Hello again. World’s worst blogger here. Seriously. I’ve been posting updates on facebook, but I think I prefer the blog method of sharing better, so I’m going back to it and may do updating on the AKP facebook page with a few promotions and so on here and there. Although these were placed on facebook, I’ve got a ton of blog posts to catch up on from way back.

I always love to hear how couples decide upon the locations they select. Like many brides, Amy is no longer living locally, but returned to where she grew up to get married at Grace United Methodist Church – the church she has belonged to her enitre life. She and Steve chose the Indiana Country Club for their reception because they liked the classic setting and that it provided a nice place to take outdoor pictures.

I think that I’ve mentioned it before, but I will again…love the “getting ready” part of the day – it seems like it’s when it all becomes real. Some get nervous. Others are just eager to see the day that they’ve been planning come together. Regardless, there’s always a million things going on and I love documenting the anticipation.

The brooch sewn into Amy’s dress belonged to her maternal grandmother, Margaret. It’s always extra special to be able to incorporate bits and pieces from loved ones into part of the day – the perfect way to “carry someone with you” if they are unable to be there in person. I think that the brooch was absolutely perfect on the dress. LOVED it!

Sometimes couples opt to do a “first look” session prior to the ceremony, others like to hold a bit more tradition. Amy and Steve did something that allows a couple to have contact with each other without seeing one another. If a First Look session isn’t your preference, this may be something possible to do.

 After the ceremony, Amy and Steve went out to greet their guests with a reading of an Indian blessing and butterfly release. One of the butterflies stuck around on Amy’s bouquet for a while, move onto her hand, and then flew off.

I had the first ever altar “group photo” with a dog – they brought their beagle in to the church after the ceremony to get a few photos.

To get from the ceremony to the reception, a family friend offered his beautiful 1925 Model T.

The couple put their dance lessons to use by dancing their first dance to Fly Me to the Moon by Frank Sinatra.

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Ceremony: Grace United Methodist Church, Indiana, PA
Reception: Indiana Country Club, Indiana, PA
Reception Entertainment: Mobile MIX Entertainment
Floral Designer: Ellie’s Flower Shop, Shelocta, PA
Bakery: Gail’s Custom Cakes and Cookies, Indiana, PA
Hair Stylist: Renaissance Stylists, Kathy Stossel, Indiana, PA
Flowers used: Asiatic lilies, calla lilies, alstroemeria
Transportation: 1925 Model T, private owner
Butterfly release: Magical Beginnings Butterfly Farms
Colors: chocolate, burgundy, burnt orange, yellow
First Dance: Fly me to the Moon, Frank Sinatra
Father/Daughter Dance: What a Wonderful World/Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Mother/Son Dance: I Can See Clearly Now

Some albums arrived and are getting prepped for shipment! I can’t tell you how exciting it is to see the final product when it comes in – online previews of the layouts just don’t begin to give the true idea of what it’s like to hold these in your hands and go through the pages.

So excited to be getting these out.   Some images of Maia & Chris’s wedding album.  They got a 12×12 Fine Art Book with the duplicate 8×8 Fine Art parent book.  The larger size for both is just awesome and makes a huge difference. With the Fine Art Book, we opted for a charcoal grey exterior, which I just love and their names are in the same color as a color picked up in Maia’s gown (it had a beautiful peachy- champagne color to it).

A picture from one of the page spreads.  One of the things that I just LOVE about these albums is that we are able to design a spread without worrying about a cut down the center. The crease is extremely discrete – the image where Chris is kissing Maia’s forehead is where the crease is located.

A fun filled spread showing just a few of the highlights of guests dancing and having a great time at the reception.  Love to include one of these pages in an album.

And just a quick image showing the thickness of the pages – the book itself is about 1 1/4″ and the pages are semi rigid, with a matte finish…the paper makes it look just like a museum piece.

Next up is a sweet “Awaiting and Arrived” book for Krista and Craig.  These books are press-printed beauties with a hinged page, allowing the book to open completely without “hoving up” in the center.

Krista and Craig opted for the linen cover on their book.  It’s a slim book filled up with memories that “little Miss C.” will be thrilled to look through when she gets a bit older.

If you have questions about albums, we’re happy to talk with you about the numerous options we have available – just email or call us.

For Erynne & George, we last got together for an engagement session on a cold fall morning at Erynne’s  alma mater, St. Francis College in Loretto, PA.  In spite of us all about freezing, I had a wonderful time with them.  It was wonderful to have the opportunity to see them again on their wedding day.

During her planning, Erynne sent me a fantastic inspiration board which gave me a little peak into what to expect for their wedding day…this was a fantastic thing to get – I love getting a feel for what the couple has in mind for their wedding. 

The day started off with Erynne getting ready at the lovely Cameron Estate in Marietta, PA…truly a beautiful location.  We had to deal with a bit of drizzle throughout the day, but everybody just took it in stride.

Love the image with Erynne having her makeup applied – if you look to the right, you can make out her dress hanging in the background just waiting.  And, I loved her sweet Stuart Weitzman shoes. It seems that many of my brides wear the same shoe size as me…I think it’s so that they can torture me more was I wear my super practical Danskos.

Loved the variety of flowers and berries used in Erynne’s bouquet.  Crystals from Erynne’s grandmother’s necklace were incorporated into her bouquet and with the gardenias, it smelled absolutely amazing. My macro lens is wonderful for getting the close up details of the flowers..they would be fantastic printed up as square canvas to decorate an area.

With the photo on the left, I turned away from everyone and shot through the mirror to create a bit of a frame to draw your eye in – you can just feel the Erynne’s anticipation rising as finishing touches are completed on her dress. When Erynne was facing away from the windows, the room was very dim, so to light her, I believe that my assistant was holding off camera lighting in that photo.

Love big, beautiful churches with balconies.

During ceremonies – small moments are easily forgotten…the soft loving touch on the back, the glances as the officiant is talking…these are things that just take you back to the day immediately and help rekindle all the feelings.

The drizzle continued throughout the day, but we were able to get out for just a few minutes to get a few pictures with the Rolls Royce before it left for the day. The grounds are so beautiful at Cameron Estate – wish that we could have gone out to get some additional photos.

Father and daughter during their dance together…really, words would just take from the moments.

The bakery did a fantastic job in matching the theme of the invitations with the cake decorations.  Lovely!

Ceremony: Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church, Columbia, PA
Reception: Cameron Estate, Marietta, PA
Reception Entertainment: Jam on Sound Production
Floral Designer: Floral Designs by Heather Anne, Lititz, PA
Bakery: House of Clarendon, Lancaster, PA
Transportation: 1964 White Rolls Royce Silver Cloud, Classic British Limosine, Spring City, PA
Hair Stylist: Melissa Diaz 
Flowers used: gardenia, white hydrangeas, stephanotis, gerber daisies
Colors: white, green, magenta/fuschia
First Dance: Love is on the Way, Saigon Kick
Father/Daughter Dance: Wind Beneath My Wings
Mother/Son Dance: Simple Man

If you would like to purchase this slideshow on a DVD to play on your TV or a mini book with all of these images, please contact us via email.

Nicole and Mike’s story begins years ago back when they were 9th grade – first meeting one another in Algebra class that was taught by Mr. Kaylor (in honor of Mr. Kaylor, they have named their dog Kaylor!).  They went on their first date together during their senior year of high school – and went to their prom together – there is an awesome photo of a picture of the two of them from their prom that they put on display along with several other photos of their time together (the photo of the prom photo will be in the slideshow…you’ll love it – how can you NOT love the 90′s!).  Through the years, they went separate ways, but found one another once more in 2005, started dating and have been inseparable ever since.

It has been a few years since I last photographed at the Springwood – it was as lovely as ever for Nicole + Mike’s wedding.  I arrived a bit before Nicole so that I could begin to photographing some of the details and preparations – before I got started with those, I took just a minute or two to get a few photos of some of the flowers and surroundings.  The raindrops on the petunias in the lower left tell the story of the showers that were happening on and off that morning.

Loved the vibrant orange and fuschia that Nicole + Mike used for their wedding colors.  The crocheted butterfly on the lower right was at the bottom of Nicole’s hankerchief she carred that day.

The photo on the left just pulls me – I love this moment with her two sisters preparing to get Nicole’s veil placed on while Nicole’s mom is in the background getting ready to take a photo.  And how gorgeous is Nicole?  We had a moment to get a few quick portrait type photos before heading down to the ceremony site.

Three of the 4 photos here were taken with my macro lens showcasing some of the flowers from in Nicole’s bouquet – the macro shots would make fantastic canvas prints to decorate in a home.

As I mentioned, it had been raining off and on that day, and they had to make a decision about moving forward with the ceremony outside or move it indoors.  While it was still iffy – the hourly weather forecast said that it would be clear – luckily for everyone, no rain!  The couple included several wonderful readings and traditions within their ceremony to make it their own.

Because Nicole + Mike opted to have a receiving line right after the ceremony, the time was cut short, leaving us almost no time to get photos of the two of them between the ceremony and the start of the reception, so after they finished their meal, we stole a few more moments for them to have some private time together to enjoy being with one another while I took a few photos.  For the photo series that includes the image on the far right, I climbed up on a picnic table to get a higher vantage point – while doing it, I banged my leg pretty nicely and wound up with a lovely bruise that still hasn’t gone away…the things an artist does for her craft and her couples!  haha

I think that the first dance is often one of my favorite traditions at a reception – it seems like it’s a time when the couple just allows themself to soak in that they are husband and wife.  You can just FEEL the love that Nicole and Mike have for one another.

Congratulations Nicole and Mike!  Wishing you years and years and years of happiness together!

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Ceremony: Springwood, Pittsburgh, PA
Reception: Springwood, Pittsburgh, PA
Reception Entertainment: Hear to Please, John DeJames
Floral Designer: Joan’s Designs, Joan, Verona, PA
Bakery: CoCo’s Cupakes, Shea, Pittsburgh, PA
Hair Stylist: Venetian Aveda Salon & Spa, Jennifer, Homestead, PA  
Makeup Artist: Venetian Aveda Salon & Spa, Jennifer, Homestead, PA
Flowers used: green hydrangeas, gerber daisies
Colors: magenta/fuschia, orange, white, green

Jessica + John were married at St. Jane Frances de Chantal Church and held their reception at Bethesda Country Club. Last year, we got together for their engagement session at the Country Club as well and you may remember it from here: Jessica + John: engaged

I received a call from Jessica back when she was JUST starting to plan the wedding day…even before she and John had set a date so that she could make certain I would be available on their wedding day.  During their planning, many things changed, most notably  finding out that Jessica’s mom (who was battling cancer) was not doing so well.  At one point, Jessica sent me an email with a photo showing Gwyneth Paltrow and her mom, Blythe, in a photo taken by Annie Leibowitz and wanted to have a photo created similar to it…yeah, no pressure there!!!  We discussed how and when we would create it to make it our own…yet, sadly, Jessica’s mom passed away before the wedding day.  It’s moments like that which are a reminder as to why the job of a photographer is so important and it’s why I always do my best to capture any photos with loved ones that my couples request.

The day started out at Bethesda Country Club where Jessica and her bridesmaids got ready and I had an opportunity to get a few of the detail photos I always like to get. An interesting thing to note: Jessica selected her gown at Hitched during a trunk show for Judd Waddell…she was the first to purchase the gown AND super bonus…the designer did a sketch and gave it to her of her in the gown!  How awesome is that?

I love these two photos – Jessica was just looking down as her dress was being buttoned and the other photo is of her Aunt (who is Jessica’s mom’s twin) and Jessica’s dad looking on as the transformation into a bride on her wedding day took place.  One of my favorite parts of the day is seeing those few moments when people recognize a woman is becoming a “bride” after all the planning.

Though I couldn’t hear what was being said, I think that John was telling Jessica how gorgeous she looked in the photo in the upper left. 

After the ceremony, they had a nice toast and ride to the country club where we took a few photos. The tree covered lane was perfect for capturing a photo of the Rolls.

What a great bridal party!

A few more with just Jessica and John before they went in to mingle with guests during their cocktail hour. (They planned a little longer break in time so that they would be able to get photos AND attend the cocktail hour.)

Loved the candlestick vases with a profusion of baby’s breath.  Hydrangea’s were the secondary flower and were used as a decoration for the back of Jessica & John’s chairs and also as a centerpiece for the center table during cocktail hour.  BTW, the vibrant fuschia color of the hydrangea’s was produced by the florist spray painting them! Such an excellent idea to make a donation in the honor of their guests to the John R. Marsh Cancer Center.

First dance as husband and wife – after taking one dance lesson and deciding that it was one too many, they opted to dance to God Only Knows by the Beach Boys.

The band had everyone up and moving – everyone was having too much fun.  And hopefully there are no photos of me as I danced around a bit while I took photos!

Probably some of my very favorite time to take photos is toward evening and dark.  Jessica and John came out for a few minutes…John dipped her without prompting on my part!  I was impressed!  Just shortly thereafter, the sky was turning dark and I asked Jessica to just give me a simple pose with a bit of attitude…she did a great job!

Great warm glow from the lights and candles during the reception as well as a few more glimpses of the fun people were having dancing.  The photo of the sign and looking back at the country club and lane was taken as I was leaving for the night…Jessica emailed me to let me know that she had meant to ask me about taking a photo of the sign for the country club, but her boss was driving down the lane at night while I was taking the photo and already relayed to her that I got it! 

Congratulations, Jessica and John!  Wishing you many, many years of happiness!  Thank you for allowing me to get to know you and play an important role in your wedding day.

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Ceremony: St. Jane Frances de Chantal, Bethesda, MD
Reception: Bethesda Country Club, Bethesda, MD
Gown: Judd Waddell through Hitched Wedding Salon, Georgetown, Washington D.C.
Ceremony Musicians: Cherry Blossom Strings
Reception Entertainment: Midnight Movers
Floral Designer:  Da Vinci Florist, Silver Spring, MD
Bakery: Georgetown Cupcake, Georgetown, Washington D.C.
Hair Stylist: Salon Red, Christi, Gaithersburg, MD  
Makeup Artist: Make-up Design, Meredith Seidel
Transportation: Lasting Impressions, Westminster, MD
Flowers used: baby’s breath, hydrangeas, roses
Colors: magenta/fuschia, white, and gold accents

If you would like to purchase this slideshow on a DVD to play on your TV or a mini book with all of these images, please contact us via email.

What a wonderful day!  It’s days like these that make me pinch myself to make sure that I’m not just dreaming…that I really get to do what I do for a living!

When planning an outdoor ceremony in the east, you realize that there’s always a reasonable chance of rain.  And from the looks of the weather forecast in the days proceeding their wedding, it seemed likely that Shannon and Tony’s outdoor ceremony was going to be moved indoors. Even on the drive from Pittsburgh to Morgantown the morning of the wedding, there were showers and ominous looking clouds.

But, we were lucky – the afternoon turned into a beautiful one (though a bit humid!) and the outdoor ceremony at the 10th Tee of Lakeview Resort happened as planned.

There are so many wonderful things to share about this wedding that I hardly know where to start…in some ways, it’s almost harder to blog about one full of details because I don’t want to leave anything out!  It was the first that I actually met both Shannon and Tony – our previous contact (as with many of my couples) was by email and phone – both of them and their family and friends were all wonderful.

In discussing plans, Shannon & Tony decided that they would exchange gifts on the day of the wedding to allow me the opportunity to document those moments since the gift giver usually doesn’t get to see the reaction.  Tony got to open his gifts first and he’s a HUGE Steeler’s fan, so Shannon presented him with a special Steeler’s NFL watch to wear when they head to Pittsburgh for the September 10th season opener.  Shannon created tickets to look like the real thing, but these included some wonderful extras like a two night hotel stay and a Friday night dinner date.  So for all the Steeler fans out there, if you’ll be at the game, be sure to look for Shannon & Tony and say “Hi!” or watch for them on your tv at home.

After hanging out with Tony and his guys for a bit, I went over to Shannon’s room.  When I got there, I started photographing some of the details.  Absolutely love Shannon’s e. ring, a gorgeous Asscher cut diamond.  The couple wanted their out-of-town guests to completely enjoy the area, so Shannon created a tri-fold brochure listing things to do in the area along with the schedule of events that was place in gift bags.  Shannon, being a WVU graduate placed the WVU cookie in the gift bags…there were a few extras, so I placed the rings on the cookie.  Also pictured here is the handcrafted plates from Paloma’s Nest. 

Love the kate spade shoes that were in a gorgeous fucshia color perfectly matching the sash to Shannon’s dress. 

Once Shannon was dressed, it was time to open her gifts from Tony. She was in for the surprise of her life.  Because they both work together at Deltek, Tony said that it’s almost impossible to keep something as a surprise, so Tony wouldn’t reveal to ANYONE where they were going on their honeymoon.  When we were headed over from Tony’s room to Shannon’s with the gift, Tony told me to be certain to tell Shannon to look in the pockets – since he didn’t reveal what was inside the gift to me, I wasn’t certain what he meant at first, but he said that Shannon would understand as she started opening things up.  Here you see where Shannon is reading Tony’s card and is about to wipe a happy tear away.  And her look on her face in the next 3 pictures just doesn’t need any words at all…she certainly didn’t hide her astonishment and happiness! When Shannon opened the box, she found a Versace bag…and when she ope ned it up, she found out where they were going on their honeymoon – two weeks in Greece!  (If you’re their friend on Facebook, you’ll be able to see some of the photos they took while they were there.)  And lastly, a pair of diamond stud earrings – an “upgrade” to replace one of the earrings she lost. 

I think that Shannon’s feet hardly touched the ground as she walked up the aisle to meet Tony!  And they both were just so happy the whole time during the ceremony.  From the position of the sun during the ceremony, I was able to get some nice photos with sunflare – I’m a fan of flare, so it’s always great when I have an opportunity to capture it a bit. 

The couple opted for a profusion of carnations and orchids for their reception centerpieces.  Shannon carried a hand-tied bouquet with peonies, listianthus, and crystal-studded orchids, while Tony wore a matching orchid boutonniere.

After the ceremony, we took a few minutes for their Romance Session to get some great photos of the two of them.  The last photo was inspired by going out onto the deck in the evening.  When I went out, I loved the Chinese lanterns that Shannon and Tony decided to use outside on the deck.  Most of my couples are more than happy to go out for a few minutes to get some great photos and as soon as I walked out and saw the lights glowing, I knew exactly the photo I wanted to create for them.  There were challenges because we were surrounded by guests all around and some tables, so it took an extra minute or so for setup with my assistant, but the challenges were worth it – I just love this image on the far right!

Some various moments and details from the reception:

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Location: Lakeview Resort & Spa, Morgantown, WV
Gown: Marisa from  Lady Hamilton Bridal , Leola, PA
Ceremony Musicians: The Seneca String Quartet
Reception Entertainment: Funomenon Entertainment, Ken, Morgantown, WV
Floral Designer:  Zaccagnini’s Suncrest Florist, Kelly Jo, Morgantown, WV
Bakery: Almost Heaven Desserts, Patti, Westover, WV
Hair Stylist: Spa Roma @ Lakeview Resort, Carrie, Morgantown, WV
Makeup Artist: Spa Roma @ Lakeview Resort, Megan, Morgantown, WV
Martini Ice Luge:  Mastro Ice, Linda Anne, Pittsburgh, PA
Flowers used: peonies, lisianthus, orchids, carnation clusters
Colors: magenta/fuschia, plum, white, and gold accents