Accidents are fun. This was an accident. Stumbling on this dirt road in the boonies waaay north of Dallas (i.e. Melissa, TX) was an accident.  But, how gorgeous are Ursula and Nathan in this seemingly charm-less location?

At the end of this dirt road was a field of dead trees. Someone said something about Twilight?  Never seen it.

For photographers: this was backlit with an off camera flash.

For photographers: this was front lit with an off camera flash. Taken seconds apart from each other.

It was raining just a bit that night in downtown McKinney. At least it kept people off the streets….

Look at those EYES!

Ursula and Nathan actually met at a bar and hit it off almost instantly. So this last frame, appropriately, taken in a bar.

Theirs is another wedding I’m bummed to be missing (it’s going to be in St. Lucia!!), but I think they’re going to bring me back some sand…right?

Meet Dr. Stephen and Dr. Sherry.  They want to be your dentists.  No, really, they just graduated from Baylor Dental (congrats!) and are ready for a real world of teeth and mint flavored floss.

You probably can’t tell, but in the above photo, Sherry is holding a real needle with Novocaine DRIPPING out and onto my shirt.  A few years ago, I had some major dental work done (I was born without 3 teeth. Don’t ask.) and every time I went to my dentist, she would inject my cheek or gums with that God forsaken needle, sometimes more than once a trip.  So, when it started dripping on me, I almost teared up and ran out of the room.  The things I do for a photo….

Stephen is an avid golfer and Sherry is…a fabulous distraction cart rider. They make a great team.

In the evening, we went by their apartment to pick up their two dogs. Their puppies are cute, sure, but they have more energy than I could handle.  In the photo to the bottom left, they are literally dragging Sherry and Stephen down the sidewalk. It might have something to do with the handful of treats I tempted them with and put down by my feet.  Hahaha.

Sherry and Stephen pulling off the classic American rocker look. Clean outfits, sexy accessories.

I’m so bummed I’ll be missing their wedding in June.  I’m sure it’ll be gorgeous and fun, just like their engagement session. One detail I left out is that we’ve known each other for almost 5 years.  They’ve both been really good friends to me and so supportive of my business when I founded Table4 3 years ago. Thanks so much for a fun session and congrats again on your engagement!  Wish I could be there for your wedding!!

Two weeks ago, I had the privilege of being part of Fortune Austin‘s 1st ever bridal show. It was organized by the team at Red Velvet Events, and Sarah did an incredible job bringing in some of Austin’s top wedding vendors, including Illios Lighting, Marquee Event Group, Simon Lee Bakery, The Joey Colarusso Trio, King Florist, Floral Renaissance, Little Wex Makeup, FaceKandy, Say Cheese Photobooth, and fellow photographer Stefano Choi.

Now, for a little background info.  Sarah emailed me in February asking if Table4 wanted to participate.  At the time, I already made plans for that date so I told her that I could send some prints or albums and have them laid out around the show.  When she later emailed me the list of other vendors, I started to think maybe I should actually be at the show.  After all, the vendors there are some of the top wedding vendors in Austin and how could I pass up the opportunity to meet them?  ;)

So, pretty much 2 weeks before the show, I rearranged my schedule, called my good friend Nita and begged her to help with Table4′s first ever bridal show.  I told her this idea I had of having different table settings displaying work or something…and…that was it.  This is the result:

Above: Setting 1. An iPad I bought on the way down to Austin set on top of a black plate, on top of an aluminum placemat from IKEA. A folded teal napkin sits between the iPad and plate, adding just the right amount of color.  A wine glass with some teal wire twisted in and around it (Thanks Nita!) and fancy flatware flanked the placemat.  The iPad was loaded with portfolio images and was in slideshow mode all night.

Above: Setting 2. A 10×10 flushmount wedding album with aluminum cover on top of another aluminum placemat, with flatware wrapped in the teal fabric.  This album was a full wedding and brides could flip through seeing what an actual Table4 wedding album looked like.

Setting 3: A custom 10×10 engagement sign in book. I cleverly had the guests and other vendors come by and sign the book as they passed by my table. One guy wrote, “Great meeting you!” ….Thanks!

Nita also picked up these small dip bowls and teal colored jelly beans. I had custom square cards printed for the event and placed at each setting.  I want to point out the big vase and lamp shade as well.  The teal lampshade was eye catching and helped my table stand out from the rest of the group. The height of the vase and lamp shade added a significant amount of interest and sophistication.  If you couldn’t tell, I’m really proud of the table. Like, really proud.

One of the bigger bowls had a bunch of jelly beans in them as well as my super fancy letterpress cards.

Right before I left Dallas, I decided to pack my vintage cameras thinking it would help people understand what I did.  It actually didn’t.  The design of the table was so good people kept asking me if I was a designer throughout the night…..despite all the photos and cameras. Thanks a lot Nita.

Thanks again to Fortune and Red Velvet Events for hosting this event!  I had a great time meeting people and schmoozing with some of Austin’s finest wedding vendors!  Also, a HUGE thanks goes out to my friend Nita!  She recently put her floral and wedding design career on hold as she plans for her own wedding in September. I’m thrilled she took on this project and I’m so happy with the results.  I’m also honored to be part of her wedding and not have to work that weekend, but… I’ll probably still take a few photos.

Ann and Daniel had dreams for their engagement session. Big dreams. More specifically, dreams of colorful plastic balls. They told me to meet them at a Mcdonald’s where they would jump into their ball pit, smiling, laughing, and acting like little children. It was going to be fun. Epic. Original.

Well, turns out there are absolutely NO BALL PITS in the DFW metroplex. Anywhere. Apparently, kids were peeing in the pits, “adults” (aka immature 21 yr olds) were throwing glass bottles in, and parents couldn’t buy enough Purell to disinfect each ball after not-their-kid put one down.  So, years ago, ball pits were banned. Forever. But, before learning that fact, we turned around and went to Chuck E Cheese’s. Surely, they wouldn’t take out the ball pit there. Wrong.  So, these images were taken in the parking lot of an abandoned Macy’s across the street.  Ball pit or no ball pit, these two are smokin’ hot.

We then drove down to the new arts district and wandered around.

Gotta give props to Daniel for doing these jumps. Obviously, we didn’t get it on the first try. But, he’s been doing the P90X and Insanity workouts together, so this was nothing.

If you haven’t seen the new Winspear Opera House, here you go. But, really. Go see it in person. You’re missing out.

Now, this next part is fate. For over a year now, I’ve wanted to shoot on highway 45 coming into Dallas. Highway 45 is what you take to get to/from Houston and the view of downtown from that side is just so much more unique than any of the other sides.  So, every time I drive back from Houston, I see the view and imagine ways for me to put a couple in front of it.  I even considered a drive by where I would drop off the couple on the shoulder, instruct them on how to stand, and then photograph them from my car as someone drove me by.  That way, I wouldn’t be parked on the shoulder and risk getting a ticket. Yea. Great idea.

So, when Ann and Daniel said they wanted to take a picture of the 45 sign, I told them my dream and slowly massaged the idea into their minds.  During most of their relationship, Daniel lived in Houston while Ann lived in Dallas.  Every month, he would drive up and spend the weekend with her, then drive back to Houston early Monday morning straight into work.  He’d visit her 3 weeks out of the month and she’d visit him the 4th.  So, needless to say, 45 has a special place in their hearts.

And so here we are, driving down 45, trying to figure out how to do this….and guess what? They’re doing road work.  How perfect could this be?  Someone up there must’ve wanted this shot as bad as me!

So we parked on the shoulder (the left lane was being merged right) and slowly got out.  One thing we didn’t think of was the fact that we were on a bridge. And bridges shake when cars drive on it. And it feels like an earthquake when semis drive on it. Oops.  I posted an image on facebook that accurately describes the…situation.

But, despite the cars speeding by (think 65mph+) and the semis roaring through, Ann and Daniel managed to drop it like it’s hot.

And, here’s that darn 45 sign you wanted, Daniel.

Guys, thanks for being so brave. And awesome. I can’t wait for your wedding.  I wonder what other life threatening shots we’ll come up with!

Kelly and Jay were married at Northwest Hills UMC and Lakeway Resort and Spa in Austin. We came, we photographed, we conquered.

Either Pastor Gaylord was really hot or he was really nervous. I’m going with nervous.

You guessed it. That is a froyo station!

Kelly and Jay gave away jars of honey to their guests. This is not photoshopped.

The day after, I went back to Lakeway to pick up Kelly and Jay for their day after session. The place was E-M-P-T-Y. You wouldn’t even know there was a 300 person wedding 12 hours prior.

After a few shots at Lakeway, we headed to Hey Cupcake, mainly because I was hungry. They bought me a Double Dose, which turned out to be a double bad idea. (Chocolate bottom, chocolate top)

Here’s Jay pointing at my cupcake and wishing me luck.

VENDORS

Church | Northwest Hills United Methodist Church

Reception | Lakeway Resort and Spa

Dress | Mori Lee

Catering | Lakeway Resort and Spa

Cake | Rise and Shine Bakery

Photography | Table4 Weddings

Kelly and Jay’s wedding was the last wedding that Andrew, my long time second shooter, shot with Table4. As of the beginning of April, he is no longer with Table4, but he is continuing his career in commercial photography. Join me in wishing him the best and success for his future. You can contact him here. All Table4 weddings will continue to be photographed by me and another photographer, maximizing our clients’ coverage.

On that note, I’m so excited for the future of Table4, it’s a little sick. First, there are a TON of new images coming. Second, I’m making BIG plans for this year and next, and third, I’m going to EUROPE this summer! I’ll be there for 3 weeks, committing one week to a wedding in Bordeaux, and then I have almost 2 weeks of vacay/sightseeing with some friends! I plan on going to UK, Paris, Cinque Terra, and Milan and I’d LOVE to photograph you in any of those cities/places! I’m excited to explore and challenge my creativity in a new environment with willing people/couples. Space will be limited but the best part? NO travel fees! Go ahead and send me an email (and pretend like you’re not excited!) You know you wanna!