Susie & Nosa's Backyard Wedding Bash

My favroite kind of wedding is the hand-crafted, cozy back yard type. Don't get me wrong, we love a posh wedding in a big venue, but this home-made type just really hits a home run for us.

My personal favorite part of any wedding is the time when I get to photograph all of the special little details. I take my time and really get creative with the presentation of everything from the rings to the flowers.

Susie and Nosa were married on a beautiful, sunny afternoon on May 10, 2014, and we were invited to capture all of the festivities. The flowers were beautiful, the cakes were made from scratch, the colors were lovely, the music was awesome, and... And... And... We could just go on!

Nothing makes a Dad more proud than walking his beautiful daughter down the isle to her soon-to-be-husband.

Everything from the teary exchange of hand written vows to the big first kiss was just perfect!

The home owner has a bee hive and a collection of vintage letters that created the PERFECT spot for group shots.... Until we broke the picnic table. Whoops! No one was hurt, and now the whole bridal party has a great story... (And so do we!)

Before the wedding I had an opportunity to do Susie's bridals. Since Nosa hails from Nigeria, his mother had beautiful clothing made just for the occasion. I am in LOVE with her dress... ( and that HAT! )

Dirty Dancing doesn't have a thing on these two- Their lift had everyone cheering!

Everyone pitched in to make this day special for the happy couple. Two very talented friends sang a beautiful song and the speeches had everyone laughing and crying. Cheers to everyone!

I have been waiting with baited breath to share these bridals! Now that the couple has officially tied the knot, here they are for all to see!

I'm in love with this lace bohemian dress- It was beautiful and comfortable, and really stood out from the standard poofy white gown tradition.

#congratulations to Susie And Nosa! May your lives be filled with adventure, love, and music.

www.SHUTTERWHALE.com

Keeping it C14ssy with Kamri- Oakrige High

Graduating from High School is one of the biggest milestones we encounter, and what better way to celebrate it than with AWESOME photography?

We met Kamri out in Hermann park and did some exploring of the new art installation by Patrick Dougherty.... It was incredible!

Kamri is a natural in front of the camera, and this was one of those sessions where we just couldn't wait to get home for edits! 

I like to go fast!

Recently SHUTTERWHALE was invited on a collaborated shoot in Dallas with Texas Motorcars! (www.TEXASMOTORCARS.com)

It was a Dodge themed shoot- consisting of a fancy schmancy Viper and a top of the line Challenger. After taking the cars on the freeway, through an airport tunnel and getting kicked out of a garage we ended up with some great shots!

As much as we love to photograph people, the change to superfast car mode was a pleasant one. While photographing we used a combination of studio light for the parked shots, and natural light for everything in motion. We suggest for all shiny fancy things to point your studio lighting down onto the subject. This will give you the cleanest look, while showing off all of the curves. This differs from people in that shooting your light down onto a subject can give you that "raccoon eyes" look.

The originals in this tunnel were a mess! We did some tweaks in Lightroom to clean up the color and exposure, then followed up with Photoshop to make the red pop.

You can find the vehicles (for now!) on TEXASMOTORCARS.com and find a selection of our favorites at www.SHUTTERWHALE.com

The sweetest Family Ever!

I love this shoot. Kathy, CJ and little grace have the cutest little family ever and I love them. We met up in Memorial park on a perfect Monday afternoon and THIS happened. Could this be any more perfect?

Service roads are a photographer's best friend. We look like we are out in the middle of the country on a perfect little dirt road, but in reality hundreds of joggers were running by just a few hundred feet away on the main trails. It was our own private piece of the park!

Grace was such a little ham! When setting up their shots she would just kind of do her own thing, which was just what I was hoping for! Her sweet hugs and kisses helped me snap some of the sweetest little family portraits ever, like this one above that ended up being my favorite.

Kathy is expecting a new addition to the family in July, I can't wait to meet her! The name isn't certain yet, but i am sure once they lay eyes on their baby girl it will come to them. All we know now is that her nickname is Emmy. (cute cute cute!)

 We left the private road and headed to a field of wildflowers and tall grass. Again, it looks like we are in this perfect middle-of-nowhere setting, but in actuality we were in the middle of the two roads and cars were zooming by! I imagine we put on quite a show! Grace had a blast showing everyone all of the flowers, and the shot above is her telling mommy about pretty they are. Heart. Melt.

Who doesn't love covering mommy in kisses?

Grace made sure to show everyone her finds, including both grandmas! They helped us get great smiles out of Grace.

THOSE. EYES. THAT. SMILE. Heart melts!

There's something about Grandmas. Seriously, hats off to Grandmas. They're pros! Years of family portraits under their belts and babies of their own that have grown into adults with their families, Grandmas know what's up. Both Grandmas were so sweet and the shots with grace were so lovely!

After all of the serious picture-takin' was over, we switched little Grace into her tutu and set her loose. She found a tasty bit of grass to chew and quickly started climbing all the trees and running at to speed through the pretty grass.

Thank you again Kathy, CJ, Grannies and Grace for an amazing afternoon! We laughed, we joked, and fun was had by all. This. THIS is why I love what I do.

Madison & Luke

Engagement shoots are just so FUN!

The couples are always so excited, and they loooooOOOoooove each other, they're fun to direct... It's all around a good time. I met Madison and Luke in League City at Challenger 7 park... AND. IT. WAS. AWESOME. I couldn't have asked for nicer people!

 I wanted a touch of whimsy in this shoot, so the lovely Katy made the beautiful wreath pictured above. It's the little things!

The weather was grey and overcast (a photographer's dream!) and I felt so lucky to be in such a gorgeous spot with such pretty people. I shot this session on a 50mm 1.4 and compensated with shutter speed to keep my aperture at 1.4 throughout the shoot. Nothing says lovely like a gorgeous creamy soft background!  

They laughed, they kissed, they danced, and fun was had by all.

It's always a good time to dance in a field for absolutely no reason without any music. But hey, they got some kisses out of it aaaaand a great shot.

The cloud cover helped the green forest really POP! The whole forest felt like it was ours. I tried to capture both shots that show ten off (They're pretty adorable, yes?) but also to show the scenery and give them a few "moment" shots. 

This shot. THIS SHOT. THIS. Thiiiiiissssss.I can't get over this shot. Isn't she perfect? Love it.

You'll see more of these two lovebirds in November when we're out at their wedding.

That shot.

A Sweet 16 Shindig

This little lady right here sure knows how to party.

Photographing a party is an amazing experience. The food, the muisc, the people, they're all geared up and ready for a good time. Chasitty's Sweet 16 had a beautiful mask theme, which for me was awesome because it made for some great shots. They ate, they danced, they laughed, they hugged, and all in all it was just a fantastic experience for everyone, myself included.

The belle of the ball in her lovely silver gown.

Veronica and Leo couldn't be more proud of their little girl, all grown up!

Always have to get a gorgeous family photo! (Don't they look great in their party attire?)

Daddy and Daughter dance

Wobble with me y'all

Audi and Mommy showing off their masks

All in all a festive night!

Thank you so much for allowing me to come party with you guys! 

And...

Happy Sweet 16 Chassity!

Oh the places you will go

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