Love Life Images :: Stephen's Blog » Documentary Wedding Photography

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Photography has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. My family would often forget to develop our film after vacations, but months later we were always excited and surprised to see what came back when we finally got our pictures developed. With the advent of digital cameras, the images come much quicker, but the excitement is still there.

I'm often awed by the power of story-telling images in various genres of photography. To me, the most powerful images make you feel what it's like to "be there." I strive to capture this in my wedding images. I feel so honored to document people's memories, knowing that pictures are such an important part of familial history and storytelling. It is a hefty responsibility, and one I do not take lightly. In fact, I know this is what I am meant to do.

When I'm not shooting weddings, portraits or corporate events, you can usually still find me with a camera in my hand - taking pictures of my beautiful family - my wife Carolyn, our son Ryan, and three dogs Jingles, Cooley and Cooper. I'm a photographer and I can't imagine doing anything else.

Apr 23 2012

Maggie & Joe’s Creative First Look

I recently posted photos from Maggie and Joe’s beautiful wedding at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, but I wanted to highlight their creative first “look.” In fact, first look isn’t the right description, because they never even saw each other! They opted to preserve that moment for the ceremony as Maggie walked down the aisle, but they still wanted an opportunity to talk to each other before then.

Inspired by a pin on Pinterest, a wonderful tool for finding wedding inspiration (among other things), Maggie wanted to try a first look without the look! We positioned her on one side of a door in the bridal suite, and they were able to spend a few minutes together without ever seeing each other. It was definitely a unique approach and made for some really fun photos. I’m sure they will cherish this moment forever.

Creative Wedding First Look : Bride and Groom

The scene was also captured beautifully by the Monachetti videographers.

Maggie and Joe’s “First Talk” from Monachetti on Vimeo.

Posted in Tips Tags: Creative first look, pinterest, wedding tips

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Apr 14 2012

Maggie & Joe :: A Wedding at the National Museum of Women in the Arts

Maggie and Joe’s wedding highlighted everything I love about being a DC wedding photographer. Start with the beautiful, historic venues (getting ready at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel and ceremony/reception at the National Museum of Women in the Arts). After the ceremony, we took a quick jaunt over to Lafayette Park for some portraits. I take it for granted sometimes, but it’s really cool that we can photograph just steps from the White House and other national landmarks. Lastly, one of my favorite new trends in DC weddings is having a food truck serve guests at the end of the reception. After a night of dancing (or working, in our case), the gourmet Mac and Cheese from CapMac really hit the spot!

Of course, what really made the day special was celebrating Maggie and Joe. I really enjoyed getting to know them at their unique engagement session in their (empty) new home last July. They are so easy-going and have great chemistry together!

Maggie made good use of hot social media site Pinterest in planning her wedding. Inspired by a pin on the site, Maggie and Joe chose to do a First Look… without the Look. They wanted a chance to talk to each other and hold hands without actually seeing each other before the ceremony. It was very sweet and made for some great photos!

I have to give a big thanks to Mark Kingsdorf, a fabulous Philadelphia wedding planner, for keeping everything running smoothly. Mark was very attentive and made a point to update us throughout the day on the timeline and any changes. Little things like that make a big difference in executing a stress-free event.

The fabulous wedding vendor team:

Coordinator: Mark Kingsdorf, The Queen of Hearts Wedding Consultants
Bridal Shop: Carine’s Bridal Atelier
Dress Designer: Kenneth Pool
Shoes: Jimmy Choo
Hair: Michael Hodges, Logan 14 Aveda
Makeup: Kim Giamarria
Suit/Tux: Hugo Boss, from Bloomingdales
Florist: Jack Lucky Floral Design
Caterer & Cake: Susan Gage Caterers
Food Truck: CapMac
Transportation: Diamond Limousines
Officiant: Bill Cochran, Say I Do Your Way
Ceremony music: Sage String Quartet
Reception music: Spectrum, Washington Talent Agency
Lighting: Jack Lucky Floral Design
Invitations: Dandelion Patch
Honeymoon location: Hawaii

Posted in Weddings Tags: Bill Cochran, Carine's Bridal Atelier, dc, Diamond Limousines, Jack Lucky Floral Design, Kenneth Pool, Kim Giamarria, Lafayette Park, Logan 14 Aveda, Mark Kingsdorf, National Museum of Women in the Arts, Queen of Hearts, Sage String Quartet, Say I Do Your Way, Spectrum, Susan Gage Caterers, Washington, Washington Talent Agency

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Mar 06 2012

Dena & David :: A Wedding at Hotel Monaco

Yesterday I posted Veronica and Tom’s wedding at the Hotel Monaco, and today I bring you another from one of my favorite wedding venues in DC! Dena and David had a beautiful day filled with personal touches. I loved seeing their beloved dog Nessa hanging around the bridal suite (I’m not sure they hired me because I’m also a pet photographer, but it probably helped a little! We dog people stick together). Dena’s father, a rabbi, performed the ceremony, which made it even more special. I imagine that officiating your own child’s weddings is one of the great moments in a parent’s life.

It was wonderful to watch David and Dena together. There were times when they would just melt into each others arms, seemingly oblivious to everything going on around them. It was really beautiful, and I’m glad I caught a few of those times in the photos.

Wedding Vendors:
Bridal Shop: Kleinfeld’s NYC
Dress Designer: Alita Graham
Hair: Mindy Whalen Bridal Hair
Makeup: Nicole Palermo
Suit/Tux: Armani
Florist: Growing Wild Floral Company
Caterer: Hotel Monaco/Poste
Cake: Sprinkles Cupcakes
Officiant: Rabbi Bruce Kahn (Bride’s Father)
Reception Music: Anthony Simpson, MyDeejay
Invitations: Creative Parties- Bethesda
Honeymoon location: Mexican Cruise and then Ireland