Monday, October 27, 2014

It's about Me, I mean You, I mean ME!

When I shoot weddings, I'm not like all the other wedding photographers in that I barely ever wear all black. Lately, I've been wearing my favorite dresses from Anthropologie { Hello, Anthrolpologie, are you listening? I smell a sponsorship! } The maxi dresses are ideal because so much bending over and kneeling is involved in getting the right angle, I don't need to be worried about showing the guests my knickers! I love them so much because they are dressy enough to be appropriate for most outside weddings AND the patterns are fabulous but aren't crazy, so I'm not running the risk of out shining the Bride or bridesmaids. Just wanted to share some style advice to all the photographers out there when they are planning their ensemble to photograph a wedding. Let's face it, sometimes a black outfit can be fabulous and we all know that, but you also run the risk of looking like one of the waiters. And sometimes I see photographers dressed in all black everything it's like "who died?!" so have some fun in your dress, just not too much fun!

{ If I DO wear black, it's a fab backless Elizabeth&James number! Via Spiga heels in pic above }

Sunday, October 26, 2014

I Don't Dance...But Here I Am...


Butterflies

I had the honor of photographing Kyle & Chelsea's wedding during a beautiful day at a beautiful farm! During the ceremony, a butterfly was fluttering all about Chelsea and her sister/maid of honor Hannah...it was so peculiar as it would NOT leave the girls until the ceremony ended and even flew by the reception area to kiss some of the flowers that were gracing the tables. Many tears were shed when we all piled back into the bridal suite and Pam, the mother of the bride said "that was Joanie!" ...Pam's mother, the bride's grandmother, who just recently passed on. It was absolutely Joanie's presence in such a graceful way lending her spirit and blessing to this union. I felt very blessed to see such a thing and capture it on camera.
Congrats to the couple and may you have love and laughter for many years to come!


{ Joanie, the butterfly }



 { You can kind of see the butterfly in the sky, leaving the ceremony...top left }




Thursday, October 23, 2014

Stage Seven is Heaven

Since it's wedding season here in AZ, I figure most people visiting this blog are getting hitched. So I wanted to share this beautiful letter I found while cruising other blogs...I found it on Le Love blog... It's very heartfelt and I think anyone who has ever been in a relationship that has gone south can identify with what he is saying. Reading it feels very intimate, almost like it's so personal you feel like you shouldn't be reading it, like you found your grandmother's diary. What I've learned in life about love from all of my past relationships is exactly what the title of the post says: let us at least try. You can NEVER fail if you spend your life trying, but the moment you stop trying, you fail. 

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2013

let us at least try

LE LOVE BLOG LOVE SUBMISSION STORY BETTER HUSBAND COME BACK LETTER LOVE BLACK AND WHITE PHOTO COUPLE HUGGING EYES CLOSED F1000025 by Charlotte-robin, on Flickr
Photo via: Charlotte-robin


I'm not going to go all stalker on you, but I at least want to put my
 thoughts down. 
I need to get this out for me and once again I am sorry for doing this. 
Seems I've always been good at hurting you and now is no different. 

I was an unappreciative husband who didn't see how much I loved you.
I turned my back on you in your time of need. 
I didn't fight to keep you until it was too late.
I didn't show my love for you on a regular basis. 
I didn't keep you happy.
I tried to control you instead of letting you control yourself. 
I, in part, allowed you to become so dependent on me. 
I didn't make love to you every chance I got.
I expected you to turn off your illness to please me. With this one, 
there is some middle ground. I wanted you to see that you do 
have control and not to give up. I think I took it too far at times. 
I didn't realize how much I was IN LOVE with you until it was too late
And most of all, I didn't make you want to stay with me.

For this and much more I am truly sorry. None of this is your fault. 
I allowed this to happen and then I let you walk out of my life thinking 
what I was doing was right for both of us. Don't continue to blame 
yourself for what is going on, I started it and let it continue. 
I have failed you as a husband, a lover, and a friend. 
Please don't blame yourself, see this for what it really is.
About you learning to take care of yourself, this can be done together. 
I promise that. I want to go to counseling with you so someone can 
help us sort that out. We can go to Amy or anybody you want. 
Say the word and I will make the appointment myself. If we were 
to get back together, you would keep your checking account and money 
and we would split bills up so that you are responsible for some and 
would have no choice but to learn to take care of things. 
We can do this together, I don't see this as a viable reason to stay apart. 
I also want to talk to someone about finding that area between me 
being too controlling and me acting like I don't care. I want to learn 
how to be a better husband to you. 

What I do deserve is to be with someone who loves me so completely 
like you do. You have given me so much love and for that I am amazed. 
No one has ever loved me as you have, and probably never will. 
I have loved you more than I could believe I would ever love someone. 
I was very poor at showing it. 
I took for granted that you would always be there. 

All I want is for us to try to put the pieces back together. 
I want us to really work at it as a marriage should be worked at. 
I guess I thought that a good marriage required no work. 
Boy was I wrong on that one. I promised to love you and stay 
with you no matter what, and I just want to keep that promise. 
You are everything to me and I feel like nothing without you. 
The pains in my stomach and chest have become unbearable. 
I want to hold you all night long and not let go. I want to lay 
around and kiss you like its going to be our last kiss. I want 
to feel your skin against mine. I want the deep passionate kisses 
that we shared. I want to hold you from behind and kiss your neck. 
I want to go places with you and show the world my love for you. 
I want to wake up in the morning and see your face first thing. 
I want to be there for you whenever you should stumble or need a 
shoulder to cry on. I want to cry on your shoulder when needed. 
I want to go on the dates we used to go on. I want to grow with you 
and watch the years go by as we grow old together. I want to 
buy you flowers and see the expression on your face when I walk in 
the door with them. I want to wake up in the morning with no place 
to go and just lay with you and play. I want to get up on a 
Saturday morning and go out to breakfast, but only if we can let 
go of each other long enough to get dressed. I want to take showers 
together and explore each other's body like we're making a map. 
I want to be that man you fell in love with again. I want you to 
feel safe when your with me and for me to feel safe when I'm with you. 
I want to playfully wake you up in the middle of the night for some fun. 
I want to brush your hair, rub your back and feet. I want to make you 
feel like the princess that you are tom me. I want to make love 
to you like we used to, so passionate and full of love. 
I still get butterflies thinking how we clicked together as if we were 
made to be together. I never knew what it was like to feel as 
one until I loved you. I want to be your husband and to spend every 
moment of my life with you. 

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Acoustic Covers

I fell in love with Boyce Avenue when I heard him cover Imagine Dragon's Radioactive...here's one of my new favorite covers by him "A Thousand Years" originally by Christina Perri.
If you have 4 minutes and 44 seconds to spare, you'll fall in love too! Enjoy and happy Tuesday!
xoxo, L

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Forget Me Not


This Sunday October 19th in Long Beach, Betty's Foundation is hosting their annual benefit concert, Remember the Music, to raise money to end Alzheimer's. My company, The Love Bullet, has donated two necklaces to the silent auction where there will be tons of other amazing items to bid on, as well as dinner, live music and a raffle to win a guitar! If you are in the area, please go to support this cause.  

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Precious Memories


Leah and Michael's Wedding Video (small) from Elle Brown on Vimeo.
As I gear up to shoot a wedding this weekend, the first wedding of the season for me, I find myself getting very excited! Who doesn't love a wedding? Free food and drinks, music, dancing, a beautiful dress and most importantly CAKE! Just kidding, most importantly LOVE in the air. Getting to watch two people madly in love exchange vows in front of friends and family is magical. As I look back on the 50 plus weddings I've photographed, my ultimate favorite was Leah + Michael's destination wedding in St Marten. This wedding holds a very special place in my heart for millions of reasons and memories from that week I will never forget.

Friday, October 3, 2014

Freestyle Friday

Nothing gets me more than live music when you can feel the emotion in the performers voice. This is a great acoustic cover by my new favorite, Ella Henderson.
Enjoy and I hope you're feelin' free this Friday night!