Thursday, December 25, 2008

Merry Christmas all!

We are home in California for Christmas! Brisa and I were super excited to leave the ridiculously cold Kansas climate to go home to our family and friends in San Jose and Yorba Linda! It has been a whirlwind tour of Northern and Southern California, but the opportunity to visit both of our homes is too good to pass up!
Last night we attended a candlelight Christmas Eve service and the pastor challenged us to figure out what gifts we treasure the most and I must admit that my wife, Brisa, has been the greatest gift that God could ever give me. She is my jewel in the rough and I am incredibly thankful that God blessed me with someone so amazing for my unworthy self.
I encourage you all to celebrate and cherish your treasured gifts as we honor Christ's birth.

Here are a few pictures of our trip so far! We've been eating like crazy (not surprising) and I realize now looking at myself how much weight I've gained lately (also not surprising) and like everyone else in America, I am going to work on losing some of my "excess" ASAP! The first is a picture of my great friend, Anobel and me. He is an amazing photographer and you can view his work at www.anobelodisho.com. We have known each other since our early high school years and we make it a point to see each other every time we get a chance! Also, we have my whole family minus my oldest sister and her husband. Biggest change is that my other sister is very pregnant and we were excited to finally see her growing belly! Merry Christmas all!




Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Busy Holiday Season!!!

With Brisa recently taking her Boards exam for vet school (basically a test that covers everything she has learned or was supposed to have learned from the past 4 years) to my finals this week, it has been extremely busy at the Hsieh household! I apologize for not posting more lately, but life happens and so I was busy managing others things at the moment. Nonetheless, the show must go on! And so here is a quick slideshow of what we are currently working on! I am going to try my best to finish as many of these sessions before Christmas so that you can share them with your friends and family over the holidays! I appreciate your patience and understanding! 

Hope you all are staying warm and safe during this winter season! We had our first snowfall here in Manhattan last night and it's been a doozy! Accidents galore and people fishtailing, it was a interesting morning commute to say the least!

Enjoy the slideshow and look for a ton of posts in the next fex days! By the way, this is what you'll be viewing: Niki & Josh's wedding, Jenny & Casey's wedding, Emily & Tony's engagement session, Amie & Paul's wedding, Ashley & Bryant's wedding, Gramkow Family session and the Dexter's OpLove homecoming!


Thursday, December 4, 2008

Jenna & Travis ~ Attraction

Recently we went out and did a fun session with our awesome friends, the Wodiskes! These kids are so cool, that they are even making us consider moving to their homeland of sunny Arizona. Whoa, right? Us, the California kids moving to Arizona? That's right. The Wodiskes are THAT cool. Bound by their faith in Jesus Christ and their love for sharing the word, they are just contagiously energetic and fun people!

We went out to the gorgeous K-State campus because they really wanted to do some Lover's Lane pictures for their Christmas cards (Don't worry, we didn't spoil the surprise for those of you expecting a card)! Are these kids not absolutely gorgeous? Seriously, they could be in the next American Eagle print ads, right? It was hard picking our favorites out of the session because they were all so awesome!

Thanks Wodiskes for being such amzing friends and congrats on spending your first Christmas together!

Enjoy their rockin slideshow!


Monday, December 1, 2008

TAG!

Sometime last week, the awesome ericamay tagged me in a cool game that bloggers play! Please click on the link to ericamay's blog because she reveals some old personal information that I think is hilarious! Something about her former life in high school and if you know her, you know how ridiculous it is!


So here's how the game works:
  • link to the person that tagged you
  • post the rules on your blog
  • write 6 random things about yourself
  • tag 6 people at the end of your post
  • let the blogger know that he/she has been tagged
  • let the tagger know when your entry it up
  1. It takes me literally less than 2 minutes to fall asleep and I can fall asleep anywhere. If it takes me longer than 10 minutes to fall asleep, I get super grumpy because I feel like I have been tossing and turning all night (yes, my wife hates me for this)!
  2. I hate wasting food. In undergrad, my roommates would save their leftovers and bring them home for me to eat (even when I didn't go out to eat with them). It drives me nuts when people either a) leave a half-eaten meal and don't take it home and b) don't eat their leftovers. Maybe this explains my "larger" stature :)
  3. Going to steal one from Erica, but it is exactly the same for me: I never thought I would be a professional photographer. My at-the-time fiance and my sisters pitched in to buy me my first digital SLR camera (which I still love) and I started taking pictures of anything and everything. Suddenly I was taking pictures of friends and families and voila...my first wedding! It has been an unimaginable joy ride ever since and I have loved every second of it. After Amie & Paul's amazing wedding this past weekend, I realized how truly blessed I am to witness the power of God's love in bringing amazing people together. Weddings truly are the ultimate celebration of Him and I absolutely love them!
  4. One of my life goals is to own a BMW. I love how they look and more importantly, how they drive. The balance of the car, the pinpoint steering and beautiful sounds of the inline-6 are just a few of the things that I love about these cars. I think I am a LONG way from actually realizing my dream, but my wife and I have an agreement in place: she gets to have a horse if I can have my bimmer - everyone wins except our checkbook!
  5. I am a terrible, horrible, ridiculous procrastinator. No reasons or excuses for it really, that is just who I am. For those of you waiting to see your pictures, my procrastination does not apply to you (seriously), I try my hardest to get these back as soon as possible! Here's my current queue of editing: Niki & Josh's wedding, Jenny & Casey's wedding, Emily & Tony's engagement, Ewing Family, Jenna & Travis' x-mas, Amie & Paul's wedding...(need to work on my scheduling skills :)
  6. I brush my teeth while taking a shower. Try it sometime. My teeth and mouth feel amazingly refreshed! When I was studying abroad in Germany, my German roommates did this and I thought that they were crazy! So I tried it and it was awesome! Seriously try it. I think you'll be surprised! I now have two toothbrushes...one in the shower and one by the sink :)
Time to tag it up! Ok party people, here is the list of the next victims! Sarah Jeanne Photography, Sarah White, Ali Mocabee Designs, Ellie Jo Gramkow, Jenna Wodiske and Yellow Streaks!

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Nathan - Style

We can't say this enough...we absolutely LOVE senior sessions! So much fun and so incredibly unique every time! Nathan's session was no different. Different, individualistic and literally and figuratively rockin!

Nathan is a phenomenal guitarist and so had to incorporate part of his identity in his senior session and the end result was amazing! He loves alternative/rock, but listens to a whole host of other genres as well. Here is one of his favorite bands CLICK HERE (because we're from California, we try to find any way that we can incorporate our home state into anything :)

Someday, Nathan may start his own band or cut his own record and we think we took plenty of shots that our CD Cover material! Check out the slideshow to see what we are talking about!

Thanks again Nathan for selecting us as your photographer and we wish you the very best with your senior year and your rising music career!


Friday, November 21, 2008

Willy, Porky, Figgins & Paz


When Chris was sick last week, he took some pictures of the kids in their elements. Soaking up the sun and laying down all day long. If heaven is a smidgen of what life is like as one of our pets, we love our faith! :)








Thursday, November 20, 2008

Unnamed Trio - Jack, Alec, Caleb, and Samantha

We love to support new artists coming into their own and paving their way into the industry and so we gotta give some love to a recently formed local band here in Manhattan called The Unnamed Trio of Alec, Caleb, Jack and Samantha! They have yet to figure out a name for their newly formed group and they are asking for your help! Please visit their Facebook page to help them come up with a name here! Already, they have made waves and were featured in the K-State newspaper here. With original tracks by lead singer Samantha and fun cover songs by Caleb, this group gets the crowd pumped up with their energy and their lyrics! Keep on the lookout for them as they start landing more and more gigs in the near future!

Check out the group in action from their show at the Kathouse Lounge!









Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Bryant Family ~ Joy

Lisa, Damon, Colton, Jake, Bella, & Sabo. That's the entire Bryant family. And they are absolutely adorable! Colton, the young man that you'll see in the ensuing slideshow is quite possibly one of the cutest little boys we have ever seen! He was just so full of life and so comfortable in front of the camera that he clearly was the centerpiece of our session. Colton loved the camera so much that he even snapped a few pictures of his parents rolling around and laughing! Photographic bliss!

What's a family portrait session with out the canine kids, right? Jake, Bella and Sabo definirely made our day! They were such happy happy dogs! And so incredibly cute too!

Thank you again for selecting us for your family session! Many blessings to you all!



Monday, November 17, 2008

Sabina ~ Style

Sabina made our lives so much easier. She knew exactly what she wanted, where she wanted to take pictures and how she wanted to dress for each shot. What more could we ask for? All we needed to do was point and shoot because Sabina looked fabulous and she picked some AMAZING places for her senior portraits!!!

What a cool and mature young lady! With her stylish "little black dress" to her hunting gear and shotgun, Sabina always dresses to impress! With her dad driving us around into the backcountry between Manhattan and Wamego, we were awestruck by the beauty of the area and how comfortable Sabina was in each location.

Thank you Sabina for selecting us as your photographer and we wish you the absolute best in college and the rest of your senior year!

Enjoy the slideshow!


Friday, November 14, 2008

Courtney & Troy ~ Attraction

We recently had the pleasure and privilege of meeting Courtney & Troy! After a couple of re-schedulings, we finally made it happen and it was well worth it! Based on the slideshow, you'll realize how easy it was for us to take photos of them because they are both absolutely beautiful! And as photographers, it gets nothing better than gorgeous people in love!

Congratulations on your engagement and upcoming wedding! We wish the very best!

Enjoy the slideshow!


Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Alicia - Style

Senior sessions are awesome. amazing. creative. unique. rockin. and so so much more! why are they all these things? because seniors are so dynamically different that it makes each session a new way to think creatively to match the personality and style of that person.

With all that being said, Alicia's senior session was just that: individual, unique and special. We shot all around Alicia's favorite spots in the Wamego area and that made the shoot that much better! Not only did we learn about new places to shoot, Alicia was super comfortable with the locations and just made our jobs that much easier!

Alicia has a background in dance, loves her kitties and put up with all of our antics throughout the session even though she had just taken her ACTs that morning! We had such a great time getting to know Alicia throughout our afternoon and we wish her the very best in college next year!

Thank you again for selecting us for your senior portraits! Enjoy the slideshow!!!


Amanda & Dan ~ Attraction

Do you know what type of sessions we absolutely love doing? Anniversary sessions! Why should engaged couples have all the fun and awesome pictures? That's right! They shouldn't! Celebrate your marriage by scheduling a romantic and re-unifying Attraction session!

Ok, now that we've ranted enough, here we go! Amanda and Dan recently celebrated their one year anniversary! They are friends of Shauna and Logan which we took engagement pictures for almost a year ago. Driving all the way from Salina for their session, Amanda and Dan were up for anything which made our jobs that much easier and THAT much more fun! And it does not hurt one bit that they are one good lookin' couple! Yow-za!

We strolled around the K-State campus for a while and had a little fun and then we headed to downtown Manhattan and took some more romantic type photos. Amanda was so incredibly cute because she did not want to take those "full on making-out" photos, but we snuck in some quick and sweet kisses all throughout the session!

Thanks again you two for selecting La Brisa to do your anniversary pictures! We hope that you love them!

Enjoy the slideshow!


Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Veterans Day - Appreciation & Thankfulness

On this Veterans Day, we want to take the time to thank, celebrate and pray for all of our soldiers, wherever they may be. We fully realize that words cannot express our gratitude and appreciation for your sacrifices, your brotherhood and your unselfish desires to protect our freedom. So in honor of all the men, women, fathers, mothers, grandfathers, grandmothers, son, daughters, brothers and sisters...thank you and may God continue to bless each and every one of you and your families.

We are extremely pleased to be apart of an organization, Operation Love Reunited, of professional photographers that offers free portrait sessions to soldiers and we hope that you spread the word about this organization so that all soldiers can benefit! Although we are completely booked for the rest of 2008, we look forward to doing more OpLove sessions for soldiers and their families in 2009 and we are definitely willing to recommend you to some amazing OpLove photographers in the area! There are photographers all throughout the US and abroad, so click HERE to find one near you!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Kacie & Monte - Attraction

Even though we were here to take engagement pictures for Kacie and Monte, Lambeau and Tucker truly stole the show. As you will see in the ensuing slideshow, everything revolves around the doggies! :)

We had a fabulous attraction session all planned out for Kacie & Monte and on our way to an awesome location, the only road up there was closed for re-paving :( But, we did not let that stop us and we went nearby to one of our favorite locations, Tuttle Creek Park and they rocked it!

And then we unleashed the hounds! (Yes, we're corny-lame like that!). Lambeau, the cutest weiner-jack we've ever seen shot out of the car like a cannon and was just a bundle of energy and Tucker was the ever obedient hunting dog who was having fun being out and about! Oh do we love dogs! After numerous attempts, we finally took some family portraits of everyone and we love the one picture of Lambeau sprinting towards us as we got everything all set up!

Thanks again for making the trip down from KC for your session! We are super pumped about your January wedding and we hope for just a little bit of snow for some amazing photo opps! Enjoy the slideshow!


Wednesday, November 5, 2008

We Love the Midwest!

Being from California, one of the things that we absolutely love out here in Kansas is the transition between the changes in season. Gorgeous colors, fragrant smells and a very tranquil aura marks the Fall season and we love it! Hope you all take a minute to enjoy the simple creations in life that we all so easily ignore.



Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Please Vote!

Hey all, not trying to get all political on you, but we are facing a major turn in history this November and you need to participate! Please watch the following humorous and star-studded ode to voting! Special thanks to Jessica for the video!






Monday, November 3, 2008

Emily & Paul - Love in Olathe, KS

Based on Emily and Paul's engagement session, we knew that their wedding would be 1) amazing 2) laid-back 3) family-oriented 4) emotional and 5) well planned and organized! And you know what? We were absolutely right on all accounts!

Everything worked out perfectly. The day was absolutely gorgeous. Everyone arrived on time. Emily & Paul had the best "First Look" ever! Just so incredibly sweet and touching. We were beaming from ear to ear as we were snapping away! One of the things that we loved about Emily and Paul's wedding was how they incorporated friends and family into everything! From their nontraditional wedding party to the wedding official to their chauffeurs to all of their helpers, you could not help but notice how important family is to the both of them. And we LOVED it!

In between the reception and ceremony, we had the unique opportunity to take some pictures with a completely restored Model A Ford complete with chauffeurs and everything! Emily and Paul had set aside some time to do some portraits of just the two of them and we just ate it up!

Thank you again for selecting us as your wedding photographers! We wish you the very best and many blessings in the future!

Enjoy the slideshow :)




Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Halloween Photo Documentary?

Hey all, we are planning on doing a photo documentary of Halloween this year! We want to find the best and craziest costumes and we want to see people having an awesome time! If you know of a place or are interested in getting your pictures taken, please leave a comment or contact us through our main website www.labrisaphotography.com!

The pictures will be similar to the K-State Tailgating slideshow... a few candids and a few group shots! One more thing, we're looking to stay in the Manhattan area!

We're looking forward to hearing from you!

Happy Halloween!!!

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Kansas State Tailgating

One of the things that we have been desperately wanting to do for a while now is to do a photo documentary on tailgating at K-State. Coming from a Division II school, we have never experienced tailgating like this. Simply, it is phenomenal. Row upon row of cars and people surround the stadium numerous hours prior to kickoff and are having an absolute blast eating, laughing and being merry! Washers, ladder golf, music, dancing, grilling...K-State tailgaters had everything. Not only is everyone well prepared, they are super generous and willing to share with anyone! We were offered all kinds of foods and drinks, but the topper was the 20+ person group Jello Shot! And they were kind enough to save us one for after we took the picture! We loved seeing everyone all dressed up and because of our love for dogs, we had to include them too!

We had a blast roaming around and meeting a ton of new people and we are planning on adding to this project hopefully with another game this season! Lastly, we decided to present the slideshow in black and white because we believe that it adds to the timelessness of the day; nonetheless, we are confident that you can still see the purple shine through!

Special thanks to all of the people who allowed us to take your picture and we sincerely appreciate the food and beverages! :)

Go K-State!


Friday, October 24, 2008

Courtney & John - Love in Manhattan, KS

Courtney and John know how to party. That's it. That's all you need to know. They party like rockstars and it was awesome! You may remember them from their engagement session here and so based on those photos we were super excited for their wedding day! We were not disappointed in the least!

We started at the Holiday Inn while Courtney was doing her hair and makeup and then we headed to the quaint Crossroads Baptist Church in Riley for the ceremony. One of our favorite pictures is when Courtney and her dad see each other for the first time after Courtney finishes making herself beautiful! There was just so much raw emotion in that one moment that the day could have ended right then and there and everyone would go home happy...except for John, maybe :)

The ceremony was short and sweet and then everyone was ready to start celebrating. During the formals, we probably had the biggest failure ever. We wanted Courtney to lay across the backs of the groomsmen and it failed. Epic fail! You'll see in the pictures though that Courtney had a really good time with it and it all worked out in the end!

Courtney and John, well, Courtney more than John, is a huge K-State fan; hence, the shoes and garter and the royal purple! So naturally we went to campus to take some fun portraits of just the two of them before their reception at the Holiday Inn! With Bradley J pumping up the crowd, the party went well into the night and it was an absolute blast! Everyone, and I mean everyone was dancing, reveling, laughing and it truly was a joy to witness it all!

Congratulations Courtney and John and we wish you the very best! Many blessings to you both and your future family! :)


Monday, October 20, 2008

THANK YOU!!!

Howdy all! We just celebrated our first year of being in business and we gotta admit, everything has surpassed our wildest and most optimistic expectations! We cannot thank enough all of the people who have supported us and recommended us to their friends and loved ones! But we especially want to thank both Brisa and Chris' families for all of their love and prayers as well as Erica, Anobel and Chris for being our everyday consultants of La Brisa Photography and really being the foundation of our successes!

Breakdown by the numbers from the beginning through the first week of January 2009:

30 Attraction Sessions: Anniversaries, Engagements, Couples in Love
12 Celebration Sessions: Parties, Non-wedding Events
2 Happiness Sessions: Pets -> makes us sad because we LOVE pets!
16 Joy Sessions: Families
20 Love Sessions: Weddings :)
18 Style Sessions: Senior Portraits, Headshots, Friends
98 Total Sessions = about 7 sessions per month!
(whew!)

With that being said, we are completely booked for the rest of 2008! Woohoo! If you are interested in having some awesome pictures taken, please feel free to contact us for our own personal recommendations! We love to share the love :)

Check back later for some exciting changes at La Brisa Photography and for some teasers from Courtney & John's wedding!

Friday, October 17, 2008

Please Support Ashleigh!

Hey all you loyal La Brisa Photography blog readers! This is for you! A good friend of ours and an amazing designer, Ashleigh, has entered into a graphic design contest and needs some love! Please read the following email from her and vote for her design! She's a senior at K-State and she is well on her way towards a trendsetting career!

Hey all,

I entered my design in a contest to send me to NY. The design is for
YSL's Rouge Volupte Lipstick collection. The more votes I get, the
better chance I have at winning! Go to this link and vote! Thanks so
much for your help, wish me luck!!!

http://www.yslbeautyus.com/i58/information.html?pbb_qsi=5803018&=PPIMEMAIL_PBB_YSLRogueVolupte_333_PPIMEMAIL

Monday, October 13, 2008

Futbol de Dexters :)

We were asked to take some action shots during the Strikers futbol match and we absolutely jumped at the opportunity! Partly because Chris is a huge futbol fan and played and coached for many years and partly because it was something different and fun for us to try! You may recall the fun-loving Dexters from their family session and so we were super excited to hang out with them again!
The Strikers got off to a slow start and fell behind early, but Jake played extremely well! He was all over the place. Moving from forward to left back to the midfield and then back up to forward, we think the coach know he has something special in Jake! After several runs on goal (and several no-foul calls), Jake had a couple of great chances on target that just barely missed!
While Jake was working hard, his mom and his brothers were goofing off on the sidelines and enjoying the gorgeous day!
Unfortunately, the Strikers made a valiant comeback, but they fell a little short. But nothing turns a loss into a smile like snacks and the parent-tunnel you get to run through at the end of the game!
Thanks again for having us come out to your match and best of luck for the rest of the season!


Friday, October 10, 2008

Samantha & Tim - Attraction

Samantha & Tim were literally up for anything. Get a little dirty? Check. Get a little wet? Check. Get a little barefoot? Check. Get soaking wet? Check, check and check. That being said, we had an awesome session running around K-State and Pillsbury Crossing! If you have not had an opportunity to go out to Pillsbury, please do! What a cool place to hang out, get a little wet, bring the kids (human or canine) and just have some fun!

We just want to thank Tim for his commitment to fighting for our country. We appreciate your efforts, dedication and commitment and we wish him the very best!

Now, onto the less-serious stuff! Couldn't Sam and Tim be models? Their looks and expressions are timeless! They definitely could rock a few billboards and magazines, don't you think? So, after finding out how they met (you'll need to ask them for the details), we knew right away how laid back and open Sam and Tim would be for their shoot! On an absolutely perfect day, we had the opportunity to witness the love and affection between these two and how "absence truly makes the heart grow fonder"! Being deployed and then reunited throughout their relationship, we can't blame them for wanting to spend every waking second together!

Congrats again on your engagement and upcoming wedding! We wish you many blessings now and in the future!


Thursday, October 9, 2008

National Alpaca Farm Days - Cedar Breaks Farm

National Alpaca Farm Days? What? Because we are super cool, some of us went to Cedar Breaks Farm in Manhattan, Kansas to take advantage of a sweet opportunity to tour alpaca farms. Apparently, for a couple of days each year, all alpaca farms open up their doors and let anyone and everyone come and see how alpacas are raised!
How could we pass up such an opportunity? That's right, we couldn't. Robyn was our gracious host who introduced us to their alpacas and llama! Immediately, we fell in love with Nip, a baby alpaca (white one), who would follow Robyn around wherever she went like a little dog. You may be wondering how we can consider these animals to be cute, but once you meet them and pet them, they totally grow on you! They may have faces that only a mother could love, but we still think they are fun and really cool animals!
With prices ranging from $12,500 to $150,000 for these animals, Robyn was incredibly gracious by allowing us near them and more importantly, to get some awesome alpaca action shots! Possibly the highlight of the day was the very end, when Mr. Llama would not stop posing for pictures! Ears back, ears up, showing teeth, not showing teeth, he knew how to work it!
Thanks again Cedar Breaks Farm for sharing your animals with us!


Wednesday, October 8, 2008

An Awesome Opportunity!!!

Hey all, our good friend and amazing photographer, Erica, is doing a sweet Christmas Family Portrait Contest through her blog! If you are near the KC area or are planning to go to KC soon, you should definitely check it out and nominate a deserving family (including yours) for the contest!

The deadline is this SUNDAY, October 12th, so get your entries in NOW!

What's better than FREE, right?

Below is just a glimpse of the awesomeness that is www.ericamay.com!





Monday, October 6, 2008

Joy & David ~ Attraction

Joy and David were too much fun! Seriously, we would suggest one thing and another and they would respond, "Sure. Yes. No problem! Of course!" which made our session that much more engaging and exciting! David has just flown in from California earlier that afternoon, but he powered through and showed no ill effects of jet or travel lag! What a trooper!

We started our session at the gorgeous K-State College of Veterinary Medicine where they spend a ridiculous amount of their time in the past, present and future. With the shadows falling just right, we thoroughly enjoyed making the them contort their bodies in awkward angles to get the shot! And they did so quite willingly! Joy could not stop smiling, giggling and just being joyous (yup, pun intended ~ we're dorky like that)! Which was completely understandable because of their current long distance relationship and so we tried our best to capture her radiance throughout the evening.

After the vet school, we headed over to the Top of the World Park for some awesome sunset shots and some romantically moody photos focused on the love between Joy and David.

IT! WAS! AWESOME!

Congrats again to the both of you and thank you for selecting us as your photographers! Many blessings to your new and exciting life together!

Kennedy Turns ONE!!!

Our favorite little girl turned one recently and so we had to celebrate by taking some fun pictures at the park! You may recall Kennedy from her previous sessions with us here, here, here and here and it is just so awesome to be able to show her growth and maturity over the past year! This time around, Kennedy is standing up all on her own, walking a little bit and has really grown up!

We walked all around Annenberg Park and then we just had to go over to the softball fields to show the future Team USA Softball player in action! It is simply amazing how the relationship between parent and child develops and that is explicitly evident in watching the interactions between Kennedy and her parents. She would always look to them for approval or attention and we loved seeing the strength of their bond.

Thank you again for selecting us as your photographer and we cannot wait for Kennedy's next milestone! :)


Friday, October 3, 2008

Amy Jo & Caleb - Love in Wichita, KS

You may recall Amy Jo and Caleb from their sweet engagement session back in October! We must admit...we love being able to do the engagement session and the wedding! We feel like we have such a better bond between each other and are much more comfortable and that makes for fantastic pictures! It rained non-stop on Amy Jo and Caleb's big day, but that did not put a damper on anyone spirits!

Amy Jo was radiantly happy the entire day. She just glowed as she was getting ready, walking down the aisle, throughout the ceremony, especially during the receiving line and at the reception with all of her friends and family! And we could not wipe the goofy grin off of Caleb's face all day (nor would we have wanted to)! Everything was just so family and faith oriented and everyone was incredibly welcoming and friendly!

Thanks again for selecting us as your photographer and we wish you both many blessings in your exciting new life together!

Monday, September 29, 2008

Swartz Family - Joy

The Swartzes. Trying saying that 10x fast! What a fun down to earth family. On a gorgeous evening, we took a little drive from Manhattan, KS to Alta Vista, KS to the Swartz's beautiful home! We were super excited (yes, not just excited, super excited) about all of the fun backdrops and props that we could use for their family session! Thanks again gang for having us over and we surely appreciated the steaks!!!



Possibly our favorite from the whole session! Nothing like the grandparents getting a little romantic!!! :)


Just a little bit of fun with the grandkids!
The men and the bike. Love their "hardcore" expressions!


Sisters = super cute

And to end the evening, a little back-breaking exercise for Cathy and Glen! Way to work it!!!

Friday, September 26, 2008

Baby Joe is ONE!!!!

You may recall Baby Joe from a previous session and look how the young man has grown! Baby Joe officially turned one and we were there to help out with the festivities! We started out by taking some family shots on an awesomely foggy morning at Top of the World Park. The whole clan weathered the super early starting time and we were able to grab some fun and moody shots overlooking Manhattan!
Then, it was party time! Sara made a ridiculously awesome cake for Baby Joe and they had even more fun ripping it apart and feeding it to each other! It was the best food fight since this awesome scene from Hook (which starts at about the 3:25 minute of the clip)! Baby Joe had so many adorable toddler friends and it was like a photography bonanza for us! (Yes, we realize that we use an absurd amount of exclamation points, but we just get so excited about our clients!!!)
Happy Birthday Baby Joe! We with you and your very loving family many blessings in the years to come!


Monday, September 22, 2008

Jenny & Josh - Love in Wichita, KS

With a torrential storm on the horizon, there was a bit of nervous anxiety surrounding the day, but you would never know it by looking at Jenny and Josh. They were euphoric. You could not be around them without becoming super excited. They were absolutely contagious and it was awesome.
Their ceremony was incredibly unique in that we have never heard a sermon that placed such importance on Jenny & Josh's purpose for getting married and their encouragement for all of their guests. We were blown away by the truth and inspiration of the pastor's words and how perfect they were for Mr. and Mrs. Long :)
You may recall their sweet engagement session and ever since then, we have been planning this one shot that we have been dying to do...and we nailed it! Check out the last picture of their slideshow to see what we are so pumped about!
Josh & Jenny, thank you again for selecting us as your photographer! We wish you many blessings in your future together!

Friday, September 19, 2008

Ryan - Style

Stunning. That's what we think of Ryan. Absolutely stunning. She has such a unique vibe to her and there is just something magnetic about her that you can't quite place your finger on, right? We had an awesome time shooting at the Tuttle Creek Overlook and we were super excited at how well Ryan's session went! Thanks again Ryan for selecting us as your photographer!



Ryan was so natural in front of the camera. Her expression and body language was just timeless.

Gorgeous, simply gorgeous!

Love the look of this shot! Ryan, you should be a model!



Monday, September 15, 2008

Jessi & Scott - Love in Abilene, KS

This was by far our most emotional wedding that we have had to date. The love of Jessi's family was so tangible and authentic that it was hard to pry your eyes away from them. They have such a raw magnetism and it was explicitly clear to all attending how much the family cared for each other. And then, to top it off, the looks of happiness and love shared between Jessi and Scott were simply amazing! Throughout their day, they would steal quick glances of each other and it would just make your heart melt. That is what weddings are all about!
Congratulations to both of you and your families! We had an absolute blast at your wedding: the sword fighting, the ridiculously hot-ness of the day, Scott not even sitting with his new wife as they drove away from the reception, the "Scotty's Mom" serenade (awesome, by the way) and the sweet embraces shared by all! Many blessings to your marriage and to your new combined families!

Friday, September 5, 2008

Too Cute

We were at a friend's BBQ recently and Chris couldn't help himself but take pictures of one of our friend's son. Isn't he adorable? Gotta love his open collar and his tiny bling! He's well on his way to living up to his Puerto Rican/Louisianan heritage! :)




Thursday, September 4, 2008

Celine & Chuck - Love

Weddings are beautiful. Plain and simple. Brides look like princesses and grooms look like James Bond. And who doesn't like princesses and James Bond? Celine and Chuck's wedding was no different. Celine looked absolutely gorgeous. Breath-taking, really. The ceremony took place at Chuck's dad's church in tiny Larkinburg, KS which was absolutely perfect for the morning ceremony.
We had a ton of fun with the bridal party and both of the families were so incredibly welcoming and gracious and the breakfast reception at the country club made for some fun golfing photos! Thanks again for having us and we wish you the very best!



Monday, August 25, 2008

Niki & Josh - Attraction

Niki and Josh have an awesome story. One that is so rife with coincidence that it is blatantly obvious that they were meant for each other. Thanks to our mutual friend, Jami, Niki and Josh were one of our first couples to book a wedding with us and we are entirely grateful! We finally had the opportunity to do the engagement shoot on a warm but beautiful day in Manhattan. With Josh always cracking jokes and Niki with her one million dollar smile, it was hard NOT to have fun with these two! Definitely looking forward to your big day in November!