{Photojournalism} NJCAA Tournament in Salina, Round 1 ... March Madness

Well it's that time of year. March Madness.

Last week, the National JUNIOR College playoffs were here in Salina, and I had the awesome job of photographing many of the games.

Many of the games were photographed for the school. The coach or athletic director wanted pictures for end of year banquets or to give the players. I had one mom ask me to photograph her daughter, which was a fun change of pace. And the NJCAA itself asked me to photograph the semifinal & final games. It was pretty much all basketball all the time ... and I have a little catching up to do still this week!

Here are a few faves from the first round of last week's tournament:

{Wichita Engagement Portraits} Ashley + Gavin

I met up with Ashley + Gavin earlier this week in Wichita for their engagement portraits. It was a brisk day, but these two braved it out for some fun!

Being movie buffs, we closed the session out at the Orpheum. Such a beautiful space!

Wedding Photography • Family Portraits • Senior Portraits

{Products} Engagement Album / Guest Book

Our Engagement Albums/Guest Books are so popular ... they're one of the most commented on items at the Bridal Expo at Century II.

While you can view a full collection of our engagement albums/guest books HERE (there is also a big gallery on our Facebook page HERE), I've shot a quickie iPhone video to give you a feel for what they look like and what to expect. {Diclaimer: I'm not a professional videographer, our specialty is in still imagery ... just as a reminder!}

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/POuUVRP95OI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

{Wichita Wedding Planning ; Tips & Tricks} Do I need a Wedding Planner, Part 1

The Wichita Bridal & Pro Expo starts TOMORROW. How excited is everyone??!?!?!? :) Be sure you cruise on over to Ryan's blog post about preparing to go to the Bridal Expo HERE. We'll be in the booth with Janessa, one of our 2014 brides who can give you the scoop about how Heartland Photography photographed her wedding at Abode.

For awhile, I've been wanting to write a blog post about wedding planners/coordinators. I emailed a few of my favorite clients for their feedback, and they replied with novellas. So instead of one big blog post, I've decided to break it up into several posts. Today will be the first installment. :)

Wedding planner. Some people in KS think "I don't need a wedding planner/coordinator, I have a mom/sister/friends who will help take care of everything." .... What would you say to a mom or bride who has this attitude? What does a wedding planner do for them?

Toni is the mother of Megan … and she had this to say:

"As the mother of the bride, having a wedding planner provided me the opportunity to enjoy my daughter's wedding day knowing that all the little details my daughter had worked so hard to plan were being taken care of.  I was there to enjoy seeing the bride dress, get her hair and make up done, spend that special time together before during and after the ceremony. 

Some brides may think this a place to save some money or cut expenses, but do you really want your family and friends working during your big event rather than spending the time with the bride and the rest of the wedding party? 

 

I've had two daughters plan their weddings in KS while they were living out of state.  The oldest did not want to hire a wedding planner, I told the youngest if she didn't hire a wedding planner she should just plan to elope.  I was not handling another wedding without the help of a planner!  Fortunately the youngest opted for a wedding planner and it was an amazing experience for me as the mother of the bride!"

Toni / mother of Megan, about Jubilations.

Janessa, who will be in our booth this weekend has the following to say: 

"I am an organized person. As an engineer I am very detail and logistics-oriented. I also have a reasonably artistic/creative streak. I always figured I would plan my own wedding, and that I would be proud to say when it went smoothly that I did it all myself.

"When my best friend got married, she did all the planning herself, and one of her husband’s cousins coordinated logistics on the day of. Her wedding turned out great, but I realized that I didn’t have anyone that I really trusted to hand the whole production over to on the day of. Most of my friends are men, and all of my cousins are too. I wanted the people I trusted enough to take on those responsibilities (my mom, sister, and closest friends) to be relaxing and enjoying the day with me and not rushing around haggling with vendors. Also, I was ABSOULTELY not coordinating my own day. Everyone told me that the day would fly by and be a whirlwind and I wanted to be able to relax and take as much of it in as I could (P.S. everyone was right, the day is a COMPLETE whirlwind).

"I originally intended to hire Faith (based on a recommendation from my wonderful photographer) only for day-of coordination. I would do the planning and she and her staff would show up on the day of and wrangle all the monkeys so all myself, my groom, and my family had to do was show up. No matter who you are, having a day-of coordinator is invaluable to your experience and that of your family and friends. There is a lot of responsibility and stress involved in making sure everything and everyone is in the right place on that day. There are already enough challenges for the bride and her entourage on this emotional day.

Do yourself a favor, and leave the logistics to a pro. They have done this so many times that they are prepared for anything (Faith had to glue/sew parts of my bridesmaids’ jewelry back together on the fly just as we were getting ready for pictures).

There are so many details that go into a wedding. I had done lots of research, but throughout the planning process, Faith would routinely ask me questions about how I wanted things that I had never thought of before. No matter how organized you are, you can never anticipate all the details that an experienced planner has learned to handle through coordinating many events. Also, since they do this professionally, planners don’t take concerns or criticism personally. If something isn’t the way you want it, you can feel free to ask them to change it without worrying about hurting the feelings of your mom/sister/friend.

SUMMARY: The day of the wedding is hectic. Make sure you, your family, and your bridal party actually get to enjoy it by leaving the vendor wrangling to a pro…in the end, it really doesn’t cost that much (especially considering the planner can be invaluable in making sure the rest of your budget is used efficiently).

Janessa about Bel Amour Events

I'll show a few photos from the well-coordinated Not Wedding in Wichita, which was also at Abode and produced by Events by Ashley.

Gracious! I realized that for a lot of reasons, I never blogged the NotWedding shoot. I'll put that on my "to do" list for 2015. :) 

Whew! Lots of info there! Stay tuned for future installments about wedding planners in Wichita.

{Wichita Wedding Photography at Tallgrass Country Club} Lacey + David

Oh, Lacey & David! It takes a very special couple to tie the knot on New Year's Eve. From the start, Lacey said it was going to be a classy, elegant affair, and she did NOT disappoint!

These two were married on New Year's Eve, on a very cold December day at Tallgrass Country Club in Wichita.

Stunning, stunning bride!!!!

Since David has plenty of hair, the schedule for the day included some time for the groom to have  his hair done ... which was a first for us. :)

Oh it was so, so, so cold ... but these two weathered it like pros!

A few final touches ...

Mom & Dad walking daughter down the aisle is always so priceless!

The ceremony was so emotional! 

A little sass? The bridal party had some to spare.

We just love Lacey! She's so cute. The bouquet toss wasn't traditional - instead, she opted to include a single girl's survival kit .... items single ladies need to survive the dating world.

The groomsmen WANTED the garter! Or maybe just the money attached to it. ;)

A quiet, in-between moment.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! And a very happy Weekiversary, Lacey + David! :)

{Personal} 1 week 'till Christmas ... just slow down!

The holidays are a beautiful time, but they can also be stressful! Full of "I need to" & "I should" .... and then we end up feeling frazzled!

Right now, my son is spending some time with Nana "being the perfect child" and not climbing out of bed or staying up late. 

So last night, I had the rare opportunity to go out and just mosey around. It was divine. I stood outside of the mall and watched the snow fall in the lights of the parking lot. It was beautiful. Peaceful. For a half a second I thought "I should take a picture of this" ... and then I thought "Nah, let's just live life. Just soak it in." So I did. It was majestic.

I know I always feel a little bit overwhelmed during this time of year, and love sending little reminders to our clients that life is beautiful ... THEY are beautiful. Just slow down & remember that, even amidst the chaos of life right now!

We've received many thanks for our ornaments this year, but I thought I'd share this one ... 

This is also a welcome reminder to ME .... that even though we don't have a tree up (we have a cat, dog & 2-year-old, let's be real!) and it's true that I've not yet purchased the perfect gift for my in-laws (but I know exactly what I'm going to get them!) ... that it's a magical time of year ... and just to savor it!