Click. “Move a bit to the right.” Click. “Turn and look towards each other.” Click. The time between the ceremony and the reception can be hectic. During all of the hustle and bustle of rounding family together and photographing each formal group can be an intimidating thing to a new photographer or photography student.  Hiring a professional photographer to make this time go ultra smooth is a must.

The cocktail hour is usually laid out as followed:

20 min – Formal Family Photographs
20 min – Bridal Party Photographs
20 min – Bride and Groom Photographs

Sticking to this layout we are able to capture both the classic and the fun minimally posed photographs of the evening. During the family portrait time we get through as many family photographs as possible while focusing on mainly just the immediate family. We try to limit the shots we take during this time to just 10-20 different groupings to help the process go quickly and smoothly. If there is a photograph that you really would like made during this time, please speak up.

Bridal party portraits are the time that we spend capturing both timeless and lighthearted portraits of your closest friends.

Portrait time is my absolute favorite 20 minutes of the day. During this time we take make fantastic portraits of the bride and groom. The more time we have during this section of portraits, the more we can be artistic and create fabulous photographs.

Now this is all great and well, but “Do you still take photojournalistic shots during the day?” Yes. Yes. Yes! HA! Photography is a mix between photojournalism and classic posed shots. We like to capture the day as it is without being obtrusive. The only time that we ever direct the shot is during the formal portrait time during the cocktail hour. Our style is lighthearted, clean and fun. It is photography that will make you smile.

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These are freakin’ huge!!! The FedEx guy dropped off these beauties yesterday. I was supposed to receive them on Friday, but for some reason FedEx still doesn’t know where my house is. Oh, how I love UPS so much more. Well, enough about my love for UPS and my dislike for any other postal company, on to canvas speak!

I ordered this canvases last week from my canvas supplier (Simply Canvas, for all of you photographers out there) and boy, am I pleased! Each of the six photos are from the different countries that Dave and I visited on our trip to Europe. Germany, the lucky winner had 2 photos chosen from it’s beautiful countryside. Each photo is a different size that HA! Photography sells. The largest one  of the castle in Germany is a huge 30″x 40″ canvas!

Just look at that! Canvas prints are by far my favorite way to display photos. Finding what exactly to hang in our home has been a challenge. I am pleased with the selection of artwork we have put up.

Here are the photos and where they were taken:

1. 30″x40″ Canvas  -  Bacharach, Germany – This canvas is HUGE! I took this photo of a castle while Dave and I were biking through a nearby town on our travels through Germany. I love the blue sky and the green vines of wine growing up the hill. Wine is big in Germany, most of them being very sweet wines such as Reisling.

2. 20″x 30″ Canvas – Sorrento, Italy – This is my favorite photo of Mount Vesevius that I took on our travels through Italy. Dave, Leslie and I spent the afternoon in Sorrento after seeing Herculaneum. The weather in Italy was absolutely beautiful. I am a sucker for hot, tropical weather.

3. 16″ x 20″ Canvas – Prague, Czech Republic – These buildings tell of a time when Eastern Europe was in it’s prime. This area is very touristy being at the entrance to the Charles Bridge.

4. 11″ x 14″ Canvas – Burg Eltz, Germany – We passed this landscape walking towards Castle Eltz.

5. 8″x 10″ Canvas – Budapest, Hungary – On our walk to Castle Hill along the river, Dave and I passed by what looked to be like an old palace/government building. This old building was clearly not in use and had gates surrounding it. These tiles were part of the ceiling of one of the entry ways.

6. 5″x 10″ Canvas – Vienna, Austria – This is the gorgeous ceiling of St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna. I first visited the cathedral 7 years ago while in Vienna for a day trip from a month long stay in Hungary. This cathedral is one of the most unique and beautiful churches I have ever seen.

Want a canvas print??? I’m sure you do now!

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**Guest Blogger Brittany Sobering is filling in for a post while Heather is traveling. Thanks Brittany! Heather will continue to update as internet usage permits**

Wedding Planning, Step 1: Prioritization

Newly engaged couples, take notice:  The first step in wedding planning that will get you on the right track is prioritization.  This step can be accomplished even before a date, venue, or budget is set in place.  When you think about a wedding that suits you both, what comes to mind?  Cuban food, salsa dancing, and photographs to look back on for ever?  A beaded ballgown, string quartet, and a champagne toast for every guest?  Use your mental image to compile a preliminary outline of what your day will look like.  This will help get your priorities in order.
For some, a fabulous (and expensive) wedding gown is of top importance and cannot be compromised.  For others, documenting the event with professional and creative photography and/or videography is of the priority.  Realizing your top three priorities will help you to adjust your budget accordingly, and may help you to stick to it.  Any former bride will tell you that throughout the engagement, unrealized potential projects and costs pop up than can leave a much bigger dent in your wallet than you originally anticipated.

At my own wedding, my priorities were 1) a beautiful outdoor venue 2) photography, and 3) live music.  Knowing this from the start, we were able to quickly narrow down and secure our venue, photographer, and band.  While the rest of the wedding was spectacular and tempting costs presented themselves everywhere, I know that these choices were really the easiest ones to make and made a huge impact on our satisfaction with our wedding day.  Though each bride has a unique wedding day vision and priorities, I can’t stress enough to invest in what lasts.  Your guests may not remember your specialty cocktail or what favors you offered, but I assure you that your photo album, prints, and video capturing your emotions during the ceremony and all your friends on the dance floor will be treasured for years to come.

For help with budget allocation, try Brides.com‘s Budget Tracker.  When you’ve narrowed down your top priorities and their costs, lock in those prices in your personalized tracker and the sliding scale will automatically update to show you what you have left to spend in other categories.
Happy planning, brides and grooms!  For more wedding tips, tricks, and inspiration, please visit Brittany’s blog at www.tickledpink.typepad.com, or inquire about personalized planning services with Brittany of Tickled Pink Brides @ 407-455-0500.

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**Guest Blogger Aimee O’Boyle is filling in for a post while Heather is traveling. Thanks Aimee! Heather will continue to update as internet usage permits**

Hi everyone!  I am so honored to be stepping in for Heather today while she is away!  A little about me…

Together with my husband, we own Creative Montage, a custom stationery studio based out of Kansas City.  I started this business in 2004 while I was planning my own wedding and it quickly became my passion.  Today, we service brides of every type and every budget, including do-it-yourself brides!

Creative Montage actually started by only creating ready-made monogram designs that brides could use on their own printed items.  While the business has taken more of a custom turn, our roots are in our monogram designs.  Today we offer over 300 ready-made monogram designs!

We are often asked what the monograms can be used for and really the options are endless.  I thought I would break it down through the wedding planning process so you can get a good visual of how to use your monogram.

Save the dates: This is the first glimpse your guests will have of your “theme” in most cases. Try to select a monogram that utilizes only your first initials and/or wedding date to stay true to the monogram etiquette of not using your married monogram until after you’re officially Mr. & Mrs.

Invitations: By continuing your monogram into your paper products such as your invites, you are setting the theme even further. Use a printed invite cuff topped off with your monogram to tie the invite together. Create coordinating mailing stamps with your monogram to spruce up the outside of your mailing envelopes and VOILA!, instant repetition! All of our custom invitations include one FREE monogram of your choice!  Not sure what design direction your invitations should take?  Selecting a monogram is a great way to gather some inspiration for your designs.

Pre-Ceremony & Ceremony paper products: There are a few ways to add your monogram to this area of your wedding day. Pre-ceremony you can use your monogram on rehearsal dinner invites or out of town guest items. Include your monogram on your wedding itinerary for your guests and you can really tie your theme together. For the ceremony, aisle runners, programs, rose petal cones, bubble containers and reserved seating signs are all great places to include your logo.

Reception Paper Products: This includes placecards, menu cards, table numbers, favors, decorative vinyls for your reception doors, floors or walls…All fantastic ways to personalize your reception space. Stick with the same monogram that was on your save the dates and invites and your special day will seem more pulled together OR select a monogram that coordinates with your pre-ceremony monogram and use your new MARRIED monogram!

Post ceremony: You can now use your new married monogram on all things paper, including thank you cards and your wedding photo album!

We hope that you have a chance to stop by our site (www.creativemontage.com) or our blog (www.creativeoddsnends.blogspot.com) to say hello!  If you have any questions about incorporating your monogram into your special day, we’d love to hear from you!

A quick thank you to Heather for allowing us to guest post while she is away!  Hope you’re enjoying your trip!

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I found these super cool cufflinks while browsing etsy for wedding inspiration. These cuff links make the perfect gift for groomsmen or even your groom to be.  I especially like the map cufflinks.

clockwise from top left corner:

Map Cufflinks – dlkdesigns

Batman Cufflinks – cuftlynx

Typewriter Keys Cufflinks – zukerj

Star Wars Cufflinks -  crimsonking

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