Hole in one... Nilsen Raynes Wedding

It has taken me quite some time to put this post together. As you will scroll through- you'll see why. It's a long post and I tried to gather some information in an effort to be informative as well.
While photographing the state track meet 2 years ago in Shippensburg, I met a photographer, Jacqueline Dormer, who works for the Republican Harold in Pottsville. After exchanging business cards, she mentioned passing my name along to people looking for a wedding photographer. Just a few weeks afterwards I booked my first bride referred by Jacqueline. It's all a haze after that. The snowball has continued to roll, picking up many friends of friends who are now booking me for their weddings. Jenn is one of the brides that got picked up in this snowball.
I had never met Jenn before, but she was so easy going on the phone- my kind of bride. Needless to say I was excited to do her wedding. When I met her I was even more thrilled. Laid back, not too worried about anything, but planned out every detail very meticulously, down to every last honey roasted peanut.
Jason is a great match for Jenn. Cool as a cucumber- goes with the flow. They grew up together and started dating in middle school throughout college. They often went on vacations with one an other's families which helped to build the bond they share.

Their wedding day was beautiful- I'm sure you will agree.

We started off the day with a potential disaster- but oh no, Jenn and her mom just got a big laugh out of her necklace getting caught in her hair. A one of a kind "getting ready" shot ;) This photo reminds me of Jasmine Star's recent blog (10/6/2008) on photographing details. Check her out, she's one of my inspirations.
What a beautiful girl- from the inside out.You're never going to believe this story... I'm telling Jenn and Jason to hit the ball until you sink it or just fake it, then celebrate like crazy...About 40 feet away, no lie, she put it right in the cup- first try!Insanity! No fake celebration here. I have heard that Jenn has since decided to retire from golf on this high note of her career.
The Frosty Valley Country Club near Bloomsburg University was just beautiful. We took them out after the reception was in full swing to get more shots when the light was better (not harsh midday sunlight). So glad we did- they were my favorite shots of the day.
I just loved the monogram done in flower petals. Details details details!



This wedding was on the Saturday just after I returned from the Bahamas- so I brought some help along- Charity Murtorff. She took a few of these shots and was a big help. She is trying to start her own business eventually doing mostly portraits. Charity took this detail shot at the reception...I just loved the color combination- it was unexpected- turquoise and a lime green with brown. LOVED it. They even served a turqouise signature drink during the coctail hour. Jenn said she was inspired by weddings she saw in The Knot magazine and just modeled her details after them. She even bought a few things for the wedding right off of their site.Hellooooooo chocolate fountain!And hello Jack!These had to be the most fun to shoot. Jack Daniels aftermath facial expressions. They did the shot dance (rather than just the dollar dance) which is getting pretty popular for modern weddings.Best ever- the mother of the groom.The father of the groom took it like a champ! Then things got crazy...


Really crazy!
What a night.

This wedding was just beautiful and I had a blast. Jenn and Jason, thank you so much for having me as your photographer- you guys are awesome and I wish you a long and happy marriage!

I am a huge football fan, but I'm even more a fan of doing something fun with my children. I decided to get them out of the house Sunday for a little adventure.

Wide awake and full of energy, I took them out to Hershey. Stauffers of Kissel Hill was having a Fall Fest with lots of activities.We got tatoos.Yes, this roach/beetle is so "Halloweeny". Good pick AJ.There was a straw maze. Even Maya participated.That was short lived. Grammy to the rescue! This was cute, but also short lived...
Pony rides.
Sarah the pony.
We even were given free popcorn.

AJ really enjoyed the pupkin bowling.

Then he bounced in the moon bounce, and then we bounced- to catch the end of the 1:00 games. Next week I'm photographing a wedding while my parents take the kids to one of the local apple festivals.

Sneak Peek

Since the bride, Jess, refered to me as "Freakin' Awesome", I wanted to put up a sneak peek of their wedding photos. This arbor at The Carriage Haus along with the blue skies this past Saturday were amazing. Can't wait to reveal the rest of the photos to everyone. Until then, enjoy.

Okay, just one more, then that's it!

10 years ago...

Driving home from a wedding early Saturday evening, I recieved a text from my friend, Paula, reminding me of my 10 year high school reunion at Ceolta's in Harrisburg.

Here I am with good friends Paula (middle) and Katie (right) who just had a baby 7 weeks ago. I had fun finding out how many children everyone has, where they live and what they do. Andrea (middle) used to live in my neighborhood and Denise (right) just got married and used to work for a few local news stations until recently. Denise's husband, Joseph McCracken of JMAC Productions, is a videographer- so we had a lot to talk about. A reunion is an great networking oportunity!
I also talked to Gavin who used to be a disk jockey for Kiss FM before getting moved out to California for a huge position doing the same thing out there with his crew. I voted him most famous from the class of '98.

I'm glad I went.

PennTrack XC

During the past two weekends I've been doing some work with Don Rich, the mastermind behind http://www.penntrackxc.com/. I covered the Hershey invitationals on September 20th and then the meet at Carlisle on September 27th. Shooting sports isn't my specialty, but I really enjoy the change in pace. Your life seems to last longer when you switch things up.
Here are some photos from the two weekends.

Local folks...

And I believe this is the winner from one of the races in Hershey.