Interesting how we met, kim had contacted me in early february but decided to go with another photographer.  you win some, you lose some, and i didn’t give it much thought after that, but was keeping their date open somewhat as i knew i would be travelling to new hampshire for my youngest daughter’s graduation from college, and in february at that time, we weren’t sure of our travel dates.  so..i get a call from kim 2 weeks before their wedding, for some reason the photographer they hired was going to be unable to photograph their wedding and did i still have the date available.  i did, so we met, talked, and signed the deal.  kim made it sound like their wedding would be a simple affair…ha!  simple is not how i would describe it, i would use complicated, beautiful, detailed, beautiful, interesting, and ya…beautiful.  i learned a few more things about asian weddings and had a great time, i know they did too.

the colors on the dress are just striking!!  and what you dont’ see in this photo…are the people holding the string, standing on chairs because there really was no where to hang this to get the photo of…we grabbed some ribbon and some laughs and got it done.

I really love black and white images, they tend to have a romantic look about them…even when you are just protecting yourself from hair spray!
on the guy side…they were starting to get ready for the day.i’m not sure exactly what these two were ready for though…but i would like a jacket full of money!

and wow..a little history here.   this is annunciation catholic church in downtown houston, built in 1869!! how cool is that?  there is some history involved where the church bought bricks from the city of houston courthouse to lay as their foundation for the church.  needless to say, it’s truly majestic and if you are a long time resident of houston and haven’t seen this church…you should try to check it out someday. 

So steve is looking pretty serious in this picture…who knew that a party animal lurked within…haha

The view from above in this church, although the catholic ceremonies are long, they do give a photographer time to get some great shots!
The I-Do’s are now done..and it’s on to the reception!  well, in a little while anyway..
So we were fortunate that kim and steve planned to have extra time during their wedding day to indulge me in a few photographs before the reception began.  not really sure if they planned it for my benefit – haha, more like theirs..but hey,  myself and viet enjoyed the time in between and had some fun!
We were able to walk just a bit from the hotel to another church across the street which had some fabulous places to take a few photos..
Then back to the magnolia where we pretty much invaded the rooms we were in.  it’s funny though, when you are in the middle of things…you don’t notice everyone staring…kim took it all in stride though..
and no, it’s not easy getting someone in a wedding dress on a piano…even when they are as light as kim! 
so it’s on to party time.  kim had said that it was her family custom to have bride and groom photographs taken with all of their guests…so we set up some formal lighting and for the first hour of their reception, we stood..and photographed…every…guest… while viet rocked out the detail shots.
being canon shooters, we of course got a few laughs from the people carrying nikons…  it’s a camera thing…
everyone enjoyed the photo booththey tried to get each other with the cake…but both times it was JUST out of reach…haha
very acrobatic…and for the record…he did like 5 one armed push ups after…i was in awe…
these guys were really ready!  usually all the guys RUN haha
there were some intersting dancing at the reception…this shot in particular really shows what good knees will do for you…uh huh…

so everyone had an awesome time – kim son’s resturant downtown is an awesome party venue for wedding receptions.    kim and steve left for their honeymoon and then it was back to dallas where they live and work.  hope to see you guys this weekend if the schedule permits!

monster thank you’s to Viet…who as always is fun to work with, takes great photographs and even carries my gear case sometimes – haha

Enough with that…on to the wedding day.  As always, wedding days are chaotic in their best state and this one was no different.  This wedding took place in april of this year (yes, i know, i am sooo late in posting).  What was interesting about this time of year…was the volcano that was erupting in europe cancelling flights all over the place.  so yah…of course, annette’s mom was trying to fly in from denmark.  Imagine the thought of not having your mom at your wedding because of a’volcano’.  i mean…really.  true to annette’s nature though, giving up was not an option and she managed to find a flight in that arrived on the wedding day itself.  more below..

I love stories, so i am continuing…  so the flight was routed through atlanta (i believe) and we had just had some MAJOR storms roll through houston the day before, one of those ‘clear out the clouds and humidity’ type – which of course..moved east.  to atlanta.  i sort of forget some of the details at this point, but what ended up happening was, her flight in to atlanta was horrible!! due to the weather.  i personally can’t imagine flying in thunderstorms.  so flights were taking off late, being rerouted, or cancelled altogether.  perserverance prevailed though and they managed to get her on a flight from atlanta to houston.  one problem with that though…no luggage!!No luggage meant no dress for mom..and she also had packed some chocolates to give away at the wedding, well, those were obviously gone as well.  so in the middle of all this hecticness (is that a word?) a new dress had to be found (shopping yay!)  I could only hope to look as good as she did after having been through all of that.  so for the rest of the girls, it was on to makeup and hair and getting from the hotel zaza to ashton gardens in spring.
Ashton Gardens is one of those wow venues for a wedding.  the high ceilings, the glass behind the alter, the steps, just everything about their chapel is beautiful.
yes, i love shiny things…
and nformed my husband he could get me one just like this anytime he felt like it. 

Annette was simply one of the most beautiful brides i have had the pleasure to photograph.
Sam was busy with the guys outside.
and what wedding would be complete without a couple of VERY CUTE flower girls.
Annette’s dress was phenomenal..
i love it when brides like to play with the photos!
the decorations were veryunique and quite stunning to see.
this was a danish tradition of cutting off the groom’s socks, supposedly so he can’t run away.  it was really fun.
cuteness was dancing.

So off they go into the night, on to the honeymoon and on to their new lives in Kentucky.  I miss these guys, wish they were  still lived in the area so i could visit with them from time to time. 

there is so much more i could write about this couple, but at the moment, i am fighting with my tooth and so far the tooth is still winning.  The dentist should be calling soon to avoid my calling them and complaining which i am GREAT at by the way. 

thanks so my second shooter sam as always…your rock.  also a big thanks to patty of sunnycrest photography who came out to help with the photobooth setup.  it was fun to meet you!

I have to say, Megan and Drew are fantastic – they welcomed me in to their day as though they had known me for a very long time, which really puts someone at ease stepping in for someone else.  So…let’s talk about the photos..

the flowers were awesome!  they chose a nautical theme for their wedding, with reds, whites, and blues. 

The wedding took place outside in Galveston at the Old Victoria Inn (historic i believe).  The afternoon sun promised to be a killer but there was plenty of breeze around so it felt pretty good.

Megan working on notes to Drew

I’m one of those people that believe all brides are beautiful – and Megan certainly is that…
A little tricky to get photos from here…when they are there…but it worked out great with a longer lens, there are plenty of closeups for the important parts…like the kiss..below..

The Happy Mr. and Mrs. come around for their carriage ride (to sneak back for formals).  The carriage ride eventually took them to their reception venue in the Galveston Strand District.

We were able to get some photos inside of this beautiful old Inn before we left for party time.
and yes…anytime i am behind the camera…whether i instigate it or someone else does..there is always SILLINESS (is that how that’s spelled?)
 So, Megan and Drew were awesome, thank you guys!   I sat with Megan’s dad during dinner, he was great to talk to.  There was a nephew there as well, cute kid!  and he was fascinated by my laptop and camera.  The contracted photographer came about an hour before their wedding was over and took over photographing the festivities and I began the drive home.  and yes…as promised…construction on I45 Northbound at League City.  Yes, the entire freeway was completely shut down.  and No..there were no signs on the southbound side to alert you that if you happened to be going back the other way…you were ^%$#@%^^!  So..Yes…Photographers Take Note..  Always gas up completely before a wedding, as you never know what lays on the road ahead of you. 

As always, comments are welcome on the blog – trying to get an image voting system working, but so far…no luck.