final product...

This is by far the first time I sat down and completed a workflow in one day. I really could NOT pry myself away from these photos... I really love them. :) Staci is just beautiful; I don't believe that she once was not photogenic. And, Ashley, I'm still thinking on that loft. Maybe I'll make it big between now and January!!!

click HERE for the slideshow

man... i loved this shoot!!!

i don't even know where to begin...

i did just realize how very few (if any) engagement sessions are on my blog, and this is a fantastic one to make as my "pilot." i was introduced to morris avenue, a fantastic loft, a beautiful church downtown, and a great dog named "sam." it was wonderful. the light was beautiful... the cobblestone street... it was just perfect. so much fun.

staci & ashley, thank you. i thoroughly enjoyed our time together. thanks for introducing me to morris boulevard. :) i am forever indebted to you. these photos definitely show who you two are perfectly, i think, especially when you're together. i am reminded yet again why i refuse to control my couples during shoots; i love the emotion we caught. i love how staci will just quit smiling in some of the sequences and look at ashley... and, that one of you guys on the couch. i just love how much fondness you can see in ashley's eyes. i cannot wait until january. it's going to just be fantastic.

and, i'm going to call bull shit on you guys not being good in front of the camera!!!

enjoy these 13. i'll have the rest and a slideshow (hopefully) by the end of this week. there are going to be so many more great ones. these were literally just a few that caught my eye in about 15 minutes...

albums

i have copy/pasted the following questions/answers from my "scbinformation" packet. i get a lot of questions about my albums and am very proud of the way they turn out each and every time! i love, too, the design process, and including each bride in that process. it just makes it so special!! :)

How is the album designed? The albums are all designed by me, Camille. I will take approximately 50 of your wedding photos and put together 10 pages (20 sides) that will then we presented to you. You will be able to edit this completely to your liking, and when all is decided upon, the album will be printed.

What exactly do the albums look like? The albums that are designed are “flush-mounted,” meaning that they are thicker pages whose photos are actually the page. There is no matting in these albums. The albums are either leather-bound or part of the “brilliant” collection. The genuine leather-bound covers come in the following colors: black, brown, tan, white, red, blue, and pink. The “brilliant” collection is a newer offering that actually includes a photo as the cover.

What is the personalized guest book? This guest book is personalized with your engagement photos and designed in a very similar manner as the actual wedding album. Each page will have one engagement photo as ½ the page and faded parchment paper on the other ½ for guests to sign. Each guest book comes with 10 pages (20 sides); you can choose between 8x8” and 10x8” sizing.

Can I order a personalized guest book if I do not go with the all-inclusive package? Absolutely! The price is $350, not including the engagement photo session fee. This price is for 10 pages (20 sides) designed in either size: 8x8” or 10x8”.

i am also trying to "tag" some of my album design pages to this section, so be looking for more future album designs right here in "tips for brides."

a month free and...

Well, it's now nearing the end of September, and I haven't had a single photography shoot planned this whole month. Whew! It has been a good break, considering July 25 through August 31 was the maddest rush of my life. :) I miss it, though, and that says a lot about what it means to me. I really thought the month would go by without me even realizing that I didn't have a shoot. That wasn't the case, though, because on multiple occasions I thought about when my next one would be. Sunday, Sunday, Sunday -- I am the lucky photographer of what will be a great, fall, fun engagement shoot. I have a couple who are getting married in January, and they are just super fun. We are going to have a big-time blast; I can't wait. We're going to casually shoot some at their house and then onto a park or something. Can't wait!!! I love relaxed, easy, fun shoots, as it's always my goal to capture emotion... Photos that draw out emotion from the admirer.

_______________________________________________________________________

The "..." at the beginning of this post is meant to be "my best wedding advice." I don't think I'm actually going to say this is the "best" because I continue to attend many weddings, BUT I have seen many. I think the best thing that you can do as a bride is us the money how YOU want to use the money. It doesn't matter if your budget is $2500 or $250,000, use it as your own. That's the best thing to do. I love it when a wedding was just obviously planned by the bride and the groom. I love that because its always more fun and more memorable.

Now, of course I'll be biased and say that you should use the money on photography, but of course you can use it however you want. I just say that photos are a great way to use the money because they are the only things that will actually last. But, if photography isn't you thing, go with whatever feels right. If photography is your thing, though, go for the most expensive photographer you can afford. I really do not think you could possibly regret your decision.

I guess to sum it up... just spend the money YOURSELF. I think so often, especially here in the South, people try to influence you from the MOMENT you get engaged. Don't let them!!! If Aunt Betty-Sue loves flowers and thinks you should spend $5000 on them, only do it if YOU love flowers, too. If you don't care, spend the money on something else. Make your reception a party!!! Buy a beautiful dress that makes you look like a model and hott!!! And, of course, save some money for a fantastic honeymoon. :)

That's all... Be looking for engagement photos next week.

:) camille

kristen stewart

Kristen Stewart has recently become my "official" second shooter, and she has done such a fantastic job!!! We were introduced by a mutual friend, and I'm so grateful for the introduction. :) She is perfect for the job, and we do have an absolute blast together. She is so talented, especially to have just started shooting at weddings. She does have some practice (and amazing talent) in kids/family/senior photos.

With all that said, if you're lucky enough to have her second shoot your wedding with me, then you're just that -- LUCKY. Check out her wedding blog and see some stuff from our most recent wedding:

www.kristenstewartweddings.wordpress.com

She's also the credit-taker of this fun shot of me in action... She's so great!!!

a great perspective

the pastor from my home church just started blogging, and i read what i think was his first entry. it's got a lot of relevance to my life right now, and i think it's a fabulous read, a great perspective:

Bob Flayhart writes: I was reading in the book of Job yesterday...when we face incredible pain and suffering, why is it that our default perspective is that we must have done something to tick God off? And why is our second thought often, "What do I need to do or how do I need to change that will get me out of this fix?" We're so often just like Job's friends...we still hold to a theology that says if we're good, we will prosper and be comfortable, and if we're struggling it must be due to sin. We just can't seem to handle a God that is so big that He might actually make suffering part of the plan to soften us toward others and transform us internally and help us to hunger for Him more. It is in times of pain and suffering that our true belief (or unbelief!) in the gospel is revealed. Its easy to say we believe in the truth of grace when things are going well...but do we really take our stand in Christ's righteousness when our worlds are coming apart? How often are we like the disciples: "Jesus, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"

gavin & kim

gavin & kim's wedding was nothing short of spectacular! i loved each aspect of it and really feel like i captured it the way that it should have been. gavin & kim are such fun, kind, each-going, beautiful people; i am just blessed that i was chosen to capture their wedding day. wow... it was fantastic.

you can view the slideshow HERE

and, here is the photo that sits as the first photo you see on my site. LOVE it. :)

my sweet riley...

what to wear...

I get this question a lot from brides. I usually don't get it from brides trying to decide what to wear the day of the wedding; I get it more concerning the engagement shoot!! I understand this can be hard because everytime I have a photo shoot of myself I am just completely blown away by the decision, so let me offer a little insight. Who knows... it may help you pick out your wedding dress, too (minus the part about the colors). :)

1. Pick something that is flattering. Anything too tight or too big is never flattering on anyone. This should be obvious. If you have bigger thighs, maybe consider wearing a skirt or something that might hide that. Never go for a huge bottom, though, because that's just going to make you look bigger, in my opinion. If your mid-section is your problem, maybe wear more of an a-line, non-clingy shirt. Don't make yourself look pregnant, though, if you're not!

2. Go for colors that accent your skin tone and do not clash with other people's clothing for the shoot. I am NOT a fan of matching at all and would much rather people wear colors they usually wear. I also do not feel like black is a bad color. If you usually wear black, then do it. Wear black. If you wear blue a lot, then do it. Wear blue.

3. Don't dress-up or dress-down more than you usually do. If you wear jeans a lot, then wear jeans. Don't feel like you have to dress up; I always love it when couples look and act like the people they are. Don't try to be someone that you're not. Also, don't dress differently than the other person in the photo. If your fiance is wearing shorts and a polo, don't wear a dress... it doesn't "match."

Let's say that hypothetically I was in a relationship... I might wear scrubs to my engagement shoot. Just kidding! :) I could assume that me and my hypothetical fiance would definitely wear jeans, probably some sort of fun shoe, and a cute shirt. I would definitely wear black or blue, because they are common in my wardrobe. As for him, I don't know because he doesn't exist.

4. You can always do more outfits. I have often seen engagement shoots done in 2 different sessions - one more casual, one more elegant. We can save certain areas for different outfits... For example, shoot inside and on the porch with casual clothing and shoot outside and at a neat building for the fun, more dressy photos.

I hope that helps... Just remember that these photos are meant to bring out your personality and the emotion between the two of you, not your clothing (see below):



P.S. You are NOT as bad in the front of the camera as you may think!!! And, I WILL make you laugh, so you don't feel like you are smiling and kissing for this weird, awkward, boring photographer!!!

my "generic schedule"

I think I often freak out some of my brides with my "generic schedule" document. What I will do is send all my brides a list of photos that I usually take at weddings, such as bride with sisters, groom with each groomsmen, etc. I then tell them to take off and add any that they might want or not want.

What this allows me to do is send my brides a detailed schedule with times and such. That lets people know when to get there... it lets each bride talk with your wedding director more in depth about the day's schedule... it also lets the brides know how to discuss with your florist when bouquets need to get there, etc.

It appears overkill, but I don't want it to. I want it to be helpful to each couple... I actually don't really follow it. I do follow the pattern of your schedule but have it memorized enough that I don't have to go by it photo by photo. There are always little bumps along the road, and my goal is to make wedding days calm. With that said, I never freak out when the schedule is not followed because I know that there are always great photos to be taken!

What I will do is make perfectly certain that any unique photos that you want get taken. For example, a recent bride and groom of my both work at UAB. They wanted all of their fellow co-workers to get a photo together. I thought it was a great idea! I usually keep up with those on a notecard in my pocket, so feel free to offer up any specific photos that you want...

With all that said, I do offer one piece of advice to anyone reading this: Let your photographer capture the day. Do not get caught up in the schedule or in the formal shots. I promise that your ceremony will happen when it was meant to happen, and the photos will get taken. Be flexible and enjoy your day. Remember that you have chosen that photographer because you like their images, so let them get those images for you!

album pages, as promised

remember, that these pages are a lot larger than they seem... all of these albums were ordered at 10 inches by 10 inches, which means that these pages open up to be 20 inches by 10 inches.

flush-mount albums

I feel like I am very often describing flush-mounted albums to brides. This newer trend in the wedding industry started off a little too "artsy" for my style; I am more into the idea of classic, traditional albums. Now, these are my favorite... I think the transition came because I am now able to design them exactly how I want to design them. I feel like now, my stylings allow the album to be both modern and classic.

Modern... because the style of the album is different, as you will see in this post. The pictures are actually the pages. There aren't any mattes, and the photos do not sit off the page.

Classic... because I can design the album to show the flow (or the story) of your wedding day. You will see examples of recent pages in the next post.

I actually believe in these albums so much that I only offer these now. I do encourage my clients to have whatever album type they would like; I just think that these are so nice, so well made, and designed so story-book like that the feelings and emotions of your wedding day will never be lost.

P.S. Forgive the coloring and background of this photo. I decided to post this and whipped out my camera to my unmade bed. The sheets are actually not even on my bed, and of course all I had was my flouresent light in my room. Ahh!!! It gives you a good idea of what you're getting, though:

"tips for brides"

i am in the mist of starting some "tips for brides" documents and blog-posts... nothing spectacular, just things that i have noticed. i have been doing this for close to 2 1/2 years now, maybe even pushing 3. i've seen a lot done right and really not a lot done wrong, which is good. sometimes i think that brides get bombarded with information about their friend's weddings or their family member's weddings, and it seems like it's just way too much information!!

my goal is to put out some information that will free you up to do things that will make your wedding day special to YOU. after all, it is YOUR wedding day... i also want to educate brides on things that are traditional and do not actually have to be repeated, as well as new trends in the wedding industry.

keep checking that "tips for brides" section of my post titles for more... and, if you have a question or comment, ask! that's the only way i'm really going to know what's helping.

2 new fads...

There are 2 new "fads" in the wedding industry that I am really enjoying. The first has been out for a while, and they are what we call flush-mounted albums. The old wedding albums used to be matted, and while I think those were very classic, they have the right balance (I think) between classic and modern. I use them solely now and love how they can be designed. The photos are actually the page, which is why it's called flush-mounted, and they open up big, either 10x20 inches or 12x24 inches.

Along the same line are new guest books. A lot of people use the traditional guest books, where people can just sign their name at the wedding ceremony or reception. That's not all bad, but I wonder how much of that is simply tradition. I'm not sure I would go back, at least not often, to read the names of the people who were at my wedding. These new guest books are actually designed with the engagement photos in an album. The neat thing is that around the pictures, there is paper that can be signed. People can sign it and leave notes; it's like an engagement album showcase and a guest book in one. Fantastic!

A lot of people have been matting a picture in a big frame and getting people to sign that. It's not a bad idea, either. I will say, though, that I would rather have a book than a big photo. To me, having a classic smaller guest book and a classic larger wedding album would be easier to keep up with and showcase in my home than a big photo.

It's all personal preference... Just think through the new "fads." Some of them aren't all that bad.

just beautiful

Mary is a new, dear friend of mine, getting married in December. Unfortunately, I am not going to be able to shoot her wedding, but I was able to shoot these of her in her beautiful wedding dress. I think she is very Audrey Hepburn and classic... and just freaking beautiful! :)

Enjoy:

this cute kid...

my weekend in georgia

I spent a great weekend with my good friend, Meagan, last weekend in Georgia. We spent a lot of time playing with our cameras, which was fun, and I actually got to spend some time on a "photo safari." I rarely shoot pictures, unless I am on a photo shoot, and I had a blast at the park. It was a beautiful, hot day, and the scenery was beautiful, as I'm sure you can tell with the photos. Some of the pictures we actually took of each other, which was pretty funny. Fun, though! :)

We got to take photos together at her friend's house of a precious little boy; I'm hoping to be able to blog that very, very soon!