Every so often Steve Bales from Bold American Catering gives me a ring and asks me to capture some images of decor they are doing for a corporate or social event. Occasionally, this means I’m not the “official” photographer for a wedding but I still have the pleasure of taking my time and capturing some really beautiful images of the simply amazing work that Steve and his team at Bold American churn out, event after event.
Here are just a few images from a wedding reception at the Piedmont Driving Club put together by Susan Graham Signature Events. In fact, this first image shows a few of the letter press RSVP’s that Susan put together for the bride and groom…
I’m going to keep this one short and sweet so that you can get on with watching the slideshow. But I have to show you this one image because it pretty much sums up their reception. Skotti and Tony came out dancing to You’re the First, the Last, My Everything by Barry White, which you’ll hear in the slideshow. CLEARLY Skotti didn’t get the memo about traditional first dance songs.
Check out the slideshow… and don’t forget to watch it full-screen with the icon in the bottom right corner.
Back in the fall of last year when I broke a bunch of toes and was couch-ridden for over a week, all I could do was watch tv and try to get some work done on my 17″ MacBook Pro (which my wife affectionately nicknamed my “precious”, a Lord of the Rings Gollum reference). That’s when Jenny emailed me about her wedding. So we emailed back and forth and 24 hrs later it was pretty much a done deal. Lysa Parker from Twisted Hip (awesome, awesome band, btw, you should HIRE THEM NOW) sent her my way because Jenny had hired them already.
Every step of the way since then. Jenny and Dave have been perhaps the nicest couple I’ve ever met, and THAT’S saying a LOT! I was emailing Lysa after the wedding and here’s what she said: Ben, you are DA MAN! I can’t believe what great shots you get. Thank y… oh wait, wrong part… here it is:
That had to be the nicest couple we’ve ever played for. So incredibly thoughtful from the start to finish.
And that pretty much sums it up.
Here’s a few from their engagement session the week before the wedding.
My associate, Huy Cat, was on hand to second shoot and Brian, who’s always THE MAN, was assisting.
Speaking of …, I’m going to do something I’ve never done before. All these photos have something in common. I’ll tell you what that is after you see the images.
Here’s the secret: every single one of those photos was shot by Huy or Brian. After every wedding we get the same two compliments: someone will say “man, you guys were everywhere… working hard”, then somebody else will say, “I can’t believe you get those photos, I hardly saw you the entire night.” My personal opinion is that it’s nearly impossible to do a wedding justice with just one photographer. Sure you can do it, and sure you’ll get “most” of the same images, but you end up sacrificing moments. The moments between the “important” parts. Sometimes it’s those moments that a bride cherishes forever.
That’s why with every wedding collection you book, you’ll get 2 full-time photographers covering your wedding, and during the important parts, probably 3, since my assistants can shoot too. In the end, I shoot 60-70% of the images but I process every single one myself — I don’t farm it out to some worker in a third-world country or a kid on the west coast.
Okay… sorry for the tangent. — back to Jenny and Dave.
Check out the slideshow… and don’t forget to watch it full-screen with the icon in the bottom right corner.
This is where I have interject a little story to set up the next picture…
Fr Todd did the homily (sermon) and he happens to know Tony and Skotti quite well. At one point he told a story and read from an email that Tony had sent him. One relevant fact you need to know is that Tony is 48 years old. There’s probably a cliche or two that we could drum up about a very handsome (I think Skotti would say “gorgeous”), exceedingly nice, personable, “in charge”, and VERY eligible man like Tony who has never married. To dispel any such notions Tony wrote this, in part:
As people see Skotti and I get married they may come to the conclusion that it took me 48 years to find someone like Skotti and although true, the real fact is it took 48 years for God to prepare me for HER – someone that is worthy of her holiness and her goodness.
How AWESOME is that!! Tony’s response was this photo:
The vows…
Flowers for Mary…
You think they’re happy much?
I just LOVE this shot of Mary Carter and Jim watching their mom and Tony walk down the isle as husband and wife…
A quick shot I grabbed of Skotti while we waited for Tony to track down his brother
These next three I think would be GREAT as a framed set so here they are…
Next up, the party…
Ben Vigil, photographer — almost there Skotti & Tony.
— back to Jenny and Dave.
