Tessa

2010 is shaping up to be the year of baby photos!  We’re absolutely loving it, especially since we’re already so fond of the parents of these babies!  Check out the latest!!

Nikolas

So, here’s a fun story for you.  Once upon a time, two awesome people named April & Dmitriy decided to hire us for their wedding photography.  We had immediately hit it off during their photography consult (which, to this day holds the record for the longest lasting consult we’ve had.  In fact, they stayed so long, we ended up ordering a pizza.)  and knew these guys were something special.  We were right, and since their wedding in 2005 (which held the distinct privilege of being a “hurricane wedding”…but that is an entirely different yet equally awesome story) we have become, like, total BFF’s.  Which is why I feel completely entitled to state that, while there is no blood relationship, their new baby, Nikolas, is TOTALLY our nephew-type-person and we were *thrilled* to get to take his very first baby photos.  He is, as you can see in the photos below, completely and utterly adorable.

He gets that from my side of the family.

CONGRATULATIONS, April & Dmitriy!!!

Cassandra & Tim

I *love* it when people find new and awesome places to get married!!  This very fun, Ybor-centric couple decided to use the beautiful Teatro Restaurant in Ybor City as the location for their ceremony & reception.  The day started off with an outdoor photo session before the ceremony, which included the group photos, as well as a fun walk through Ybor on our way to the restaurant.

The tiled ceilings and huge windows at Teatro provided such a beautiful and dramatic backdrop for the ceremony…

How do you fit all the wedding guests AND the sign over Centro Ybor into one photo?  Easy!  Stand at the top of a very tall stairwell…  :)

Since the ceremony and reception were to be in the same room, the ceremony set up was quickly broken down while we were shooting outside, and, voilà!  We have a reception!

What’s a wedding in Ybor with out a cigar roller?  :)

This couple’s story resounded so much with us.  The majority of Tim’s family are in Australia, where he is from, and were unable to attend the wedding.  We had the same situation at our wedding, since Paul’s family was in the Czech Republic when we got married.  But much has changed since we got married back in ‘98, and because of the awesomeness that is the internet, the ENTIRE WEDDING was streamed live over the internet, and the family & friends that had gathered in Australia were able to to type their messages of congratulations on the chat screen that was set up at this awesome little video/chat/streaming station that they had set up.  Watching this, of course, made me totally misty – what a wonderful thing that they did!  It was two continents joined for one very awesome celebration.  :)

Congrats, Tim & Cassandra!  You guys have been SO much fun to get to know.  :)

Bo & Tally

It was *such* a treat to get to work at the beautiful Boca Bay Pass Club (www.bocabaypassclub.com) just weeks after our last wedding there.  We can’t get enough of that place, and we always know a wedding there is going to be wonderful.  And this wedding definitely did not disappoint.  Of course, it didn’t hurt that the couple was simply *stunning.*  As a matter of fact, if you noticed an alarming lack of gorgeous people a few Saturday’s ago, it’s because they were all at this wedding.  Holy cow!  lol!

Bo & Tally’s wedding was a destination wedding, and being that they were from out of town we didn’t actually meet them until the day of the wedding.  It was such a pleasure, then, when we realized that they were SO easy to get along with – the entire day was a blast.  Here are some highlights!

Alisha & Gantt

I loved this wedding on so many levels.  Lemme break it down for you:  1.  AWESOME bride & groom that just crack. me. up.  2.  First time working with the fabulous wedding coordinator Zoë Gallina (www.zoegallina.com), and 3. First time shooting at the incredibly laid back but sophisticated Oystercatchers (www.hyatt.com/gallery/oystercatchers).  The wedding matched Alisha & Gantt’s personality so perfectly, with a beautiful atmosphere that was so personal and totally non-traditional.  We *loved* it.  Check out the photos!  :)

The interior of Oystercatchers – gorgeous, right?

The very fun couple…

The ceremony…during the sunset…on one of the prettiest days this year…

More couple photos … (which we actually shot *before* the ceremony, but on the blog we usually put these photos after the ceremony, so I’m just going to stick with that. ‘Cause it feels right.  m’kay?)

The beautiful reception setting…

Some of the beautiful flowers arranged by Botanica (www.botanicaflorist.com)…

It was honestly just the perfect day for these two, and it was so great to watch it all come together.  Thanks for letting us be a part of it, guys!  :)

Laura & Ben

Sometimes it’s just impossible to state how much you love something without sounding over-the-top with grandiose adjectives and redundant professions of adoration.  Sometimes you just need to shut up and show your work.  So this is me not saying how insanely lovely and perfect this wedding was.  Starting…..now!

….okay, see, yep.  I can’t do it.  This wedding was just so fantastic that I just have to risk sounding outrageous and tell you a little about it.  :)

Laura & Ben have the sweetest personalities EVER, and I knew at the initial consult with them that I was going to adore them.  And I do.  They just shine, and you can’t help but smile when you’re around them.  I often tell people that I don’t how it’s possible, but we honestly have the *best* clients ever, and the lucky streak of amazing clients continued with these two.  They made our job pure gooey goodness.

The wedding itself was at the very beautiful Boca Bay Pass Club, a venue that can do no wrong (’sup, Terry!) but an unexpected cold-front decided to do what it could to try and crash the party and wreck the beauty of the outdoor setting.  Its trick was to pound the place with wind, and inside the building before the ceremony you could hear the wind just *howling*. We were very nervous about if & how it would effect the wedding, but instead we learned that, even in bad weather, the Boca Bay Pass Club continues to dominate as a *perfect* destination wedding location, whatever the weather.  It was picturesque, and everyone had a wonderful time.

Check out the photos!!

These flowers were *awesome*!!!  As soon as I get the name of the florist that did them, I’ll post it here. This guy honestly is my new favorite wedding soloist.  He’s got a wonderful voice and knew the covers to all the right, non-cheesy, songs.  I had chills during the cocktail hour listening to him.  I have his business card…somewhere…so when I find it I’ll post his contact info.  ***UPDATE*** Found it!!   His name is Andres Colin & his number is 941-735-5766.  His business card says he sings in more than 5 languages.  Holy cow!  Anyway, yes.  Call him.  Book him.  He’s the bomb.

Ahhh…Boca Grand Pass Club, how I love thee!!

Laura’s mom did an AMAZING job helping to design the tent interior for the reception!

Congratulations on a perfect day, guys.  And thank you for letting us document it.  It was honestly a pleasure.

Tina & Vince

This wedding holds a very special place in our hearts.  Having already had the pleasure of shooting 3 other weddings for this family, we already adored this couple, and seeing them again for this wedding was like going back to see our own family.  The fun, slightly unusual situation of this wedding was that the Groom was the Father in 2 of our past weddings, and the Bride was the Mother in the other one.  Now, it was the turn for the parents of our previous couples to get married… to each other!

They got ready at the beautiful Waterside Marriott in Harbour Island.  The boardwalk behind the hotel was a great spot for some pre-ceremony pictures of the couple:

After we got the family shots at the hotel, the plan was to hop on to the trolley and take it down to the Yacht that was docked at Channelside for the wedding to board for the ceremony & reception…drifting off into Tampa Bay’s sunset.  So we headed down to the trolley and prepared to board….

…Of course, this was the *same* trolley that continued on to Ybor City, so we got a little more excitement/entertainment than we had bargained for, and, with the Bride being exceptionally fun, that made for some fun impromptu shots…

Walking from the trolley station to the Yacht couldn’t have been scheduled at a better time, with evening settling over downtown Tampa, giving us a great city shot….

Some steel drums, a ceremony & a smooch later and Mr. & Mrs. became Husband and Wife…

The reception was perfect in it’s blend of fun & relaxation..how could you not feel relaxed when you’re  cruising on a Yacht?  :)

Thank you, Tina & Vince, for making us feel like a part of your family at this wedding and all the other weddings we’ve had the pleasure of documenting for your family.  You two are incredibly special people, and we wish you all the happiness in the world!

Anna Maria Island Family Shoot

One of the coolest parts about our job is that we get to watch families grow.  From engagements, to weddings, to anniversaries, to first baby photos…we get to watch it happen and be a part of their happiest times.  You just can’t top that.  :)  We began to shoot this family with the birth of their first son, and have had such a great time watching him grow, shooting his 1st birthday, and now seeing his little sister grow up, too.  Thanks so much to them for letting us be a part of it!  Hope you enjoy the photos of this very fun trip to the sandy shores of Anna Maria Island…

We’ve been picked!

How fun!  Check out what we received today!

The verrrrrry tiny inscription at the bottom reads:  ”the best in weddings as voted by local brides.”  Well, THANKS local brides!  Whoever you are!  How totally fun to be picked.  Like a orange.  Or a grape.  Gosh…does that mean we’re ripe?  Hmm….

Anyway…that was our smile for today.  Thanks to whoever picked us!

Sisters…

These awesome kids were not only SUPER fun to shoot, but they also had some of the most amazing “wise beyond their years” expressions.  Even though the beach was closing and we only had a few minutes to run around – they had an adventurous spirit and ran from spot to spot and settling quickly into whatever “look” they felt fit the scene.  Wow!  I can definitely say that was a first for us – I wish we could take their photos every day.  :)  Check ‘em out!