On Monday Tim and I will have been together for 7 years… (for the record, that is since I was 19 years old!) I was recently talking to a friend of mine about how crazy it is that we’re all reaching this age where people have been in our lives for over a decade… and while Tim and I haven’t quite reached 10 yet, it hit me that Tim and I have history together. We have a story and we have been such a huge part in each others lives for so long now that I cannot, and hope I never have to, picture my life without him. To celebrate our last anniversary as boyfriend and girlfriend (oh, how charming!) we are having our engagement pictures taken in the neighborhood that we called home for years.

One of the first things that everyone asked me when we got engaged was, “Who is going to shoot your wedding?” Being that we were getting married in the bay area my first thought was, “Oh good lord…. can I afford to fly her up here?”  – and then I was like, “Doesn’t matter!” … When I was just a wee thing of 23 (ha!) and working at Architectural Digest and shooting weddings and not knowing which was the right road to follow my dear friend Ana took me to a party in good ol’ Orange County for a new wedding magazine launch. At the time I read, maybe, 6 blogs on a consistent basis: fashion, food, shelter, design,and The Pioneer Woman, and Jasmine *… Not knowing much about the beast that is the wedding industry I happened to see Jasmine from across the room and thought to myself, “If I had a blog, I’d want to know who was reading it…..” So, being my dumb self, I said hi! I don’t remember exactly how the conversation went but all I remember is that I left that party knowing wedding photography was the road I was going to follow and I do believe that Jasmine’s little push played a huge part in that decision.

“What’s stopping you?” she said.

It only made sense to me that she’d be the only choice. There is a lot about planning a wedding that being a wedding photographer hinders (information overload??!?!?) but this was not one of them. I have so many friends that are photographers and so many people who do such amazing work that it wasn’t easy. One huge thing was that I wanted my photographer friends to be able to enjoy themselves and only take pictures if they felt like it. I don’t want to feel like I’m short changing them! I’m only getting married once and there is only one person besides myself and Heather (who is in the wedding, duh!) who I know I will be completely calm and collected working with and that’s Jasmine. So there ya have it folks- Who is going to shoot my wedding? She is!

Can’t wait to share the images we capture on Monday- I’m part nervous and part excited .. but I’ve got a good team of girls helping me looking good and Tim is wearing the cutest clothes I’ve ever seen him in so we’re all good to go. Here are two images from two engagement shoots I did last weekend that I am looking forward to sharing next week!!!

This fall season has been a whirlwind for me…. only two more weddings left in 2009 and then I can take some much needed breaths and actually begin to make some decisions about our wedding. (Tim made me make a pact with him that I’d sit tight until January… it was stressing us both out!)

Since our date isn’t until next November, I don’t feel rushed or pressured to make any decisions but I have definitely been doing some research. Earlier this month my mom, grandma, sister, and best friend and I all went to SF and tried on some dresses. Such a fun experience!!! But all you brides out there who bought the first dress you tried on- ARE YOU INSANE?!?!??!?!?!?!?!? So much went through my mind that day.. (especially when they put that damn veil on my head and my mom started to cry!) but the biggest thing was, “How am I ever going to decide?” Grecian, vintage, ball gown, empire, trumpet…. I love ‘em all! I have been doing some brainstorming, number crunching, etc.- going to look at some vintage shops, going to check out some sample sales, and thinking about seriously considering having my dress made.

Have been to so many weddings, seen so many things done so many ways- one thing is for sure… I want this to be our wedding, I don’t want a cookie-cutter event. Every time I think about something like, “wedding cake” … I do this, “So what can I do INSTEAD of a wedding cake?” or what other reading besides “love is patient, love is kind” can I find…? Planning our wedding is a lot harder than I thought it would be but already so so much fun and I can’t wait to be a Resudek.

Here’s the direction my dress research is going….. it’s pretty “me,” right?

And because posts are no fun without photos here’s one of me and my best friend since birth (practically) Aubrey from Dana and Keith’s labor day weekend wedding! Photo credit goes to Heather Kincaid!

Photographers: What they want you to know (but are afraid to tell you)

HIRE A MAKEUP ARTIST
“Invest in a make-up artists – it will pay off in the long run. Do-it-yourself brides look fine for the first hour or so, but then the makeup wears off. Or they wear very subtle makeup that doesn’t photograph well; Nothing ‘pops’.” Cathy Short, Devonshire Photography – Wilbraham, MA

My take: Please, do! I am a non-make up wearer- seriously, I probably put make up on my face 2 days a week and usually its a tinted moisturizer and mascara- but I will hire a make up artist. Sure we can fix it in post,

but it’s so easier when there is a beautiful base to work with! Smoooooth it out.  Jasmine Dashtizad in Los Angeles is one of my favs.

SEE EACH OTHER BEFORE THE CEREMONY
“I think the bride and groom should see each other before the ceremony. It gets the jitters out of the way and gives me time to get some fun, unique images. When portraits are taken after the ceremony, it’s hard for the couple to focus. They don’t want to miss the party!” Sarah Maren, Sarah Maren Photography – Sacramento, CA

My take: HUGE advocate. Who says the bride and groom have to miss all of their cocktail hour??? Couples are always saying to me, “Well, we had already come to the conclusion that we’d just miss it.” Why? Do a first look (it’s just as, if not more, intimate and special as seeing each other at the aisle- and we actually have more than 2.5 seconds to catch your reactions!), spend an hour and a half or so doing all your family , bridal, and

couple photos before the ceremony that way when it’s over all your friends and family can just enjoy the party!

SHARE THE PICS
“When we take posed or more traditional shots, sometimes guests attempt to capture the same images, potentially slowing the process. If you request digital images from your photographers, you can send them to your guests later, and save time on your wedding day.” Craig Butler, Craig Butler Studios – Northville, MI

My take: I’m whatever on this one, although it does bug me when I see photos on facebook of a bridal party set up I did before I’ve had a chance to post the pro-version… but definitely share the gallery link so friends and family can order what they want without having to bug you for the images!

JUST GO WITH IT
“Realize that even though you feel stupid while you’re getting pictures taken, they’re turning out great. If you can just laugh and go with it, the images will reflect your personalities and show the connection between the two of you. You can be in a crappy location, but as long as you’re in a good mood (with a smile on your face), your pictures are going to rock.” Genya Garrett, Vue Photography – Panama City, FL

My take: Yes, yes, yes! Most important thing is to trust that we are professionals and we’ll be able to feel and anticipate how you will react to certain things we ask you to do. Sometimes I’ll say something like, “Okay, now rub your two little noses together Eskimo style!” and instead of capturing some cheesy Eskimo kiss I click the shutter JUST as the couple is busting up laughing because of the cheese factor. Trust us!

CLEAN YOUR ROOM
“If you want your ‘getting ready’ pictures to look their best, keep the place clean. That room becomes the basis, the background, for all your pictures. If you have ten girls dressing and undressing in the same room, it will show in your photos. The room should be clutterless. I get the best pictures when I walk into a room that someone has intentionally kept neat.” Brian Dorsey, Brian Dorsey Studios – NY, NY

My take: Love this! If you don’t have any space to keep things neat and tidy, what about finishing getting ready in a friend or family members room that is a little more organized?

DON’T INVITE THE PARTY
“Don’t cut your first dance short or have your bridal party join you halfway through it.

This decreases the amount of images I can get of just the two of you during your reception. If you dance for the entire song, you’ll end up with more sweet, intimate photos.” Alison Conklin, Alison Conklin Photography – Philadelphia, PA

My take: Usually I have enough time to capture enough images in the first minute or so but why cut that short? Just enjoy your dance together and forget about your bridal party- they can wait 5 minutes to cut a rug.

LIGHT YOUR DANCE FLOOR
“There are so many great things that happen during a reception, so you should think about how yours is going to be lit.

Ask the DJ or band to light themselves and the dance floor. Or, it it’s in your budget, look into a lighting designer, who can add uplighting to the room and give it extra pop. Lighting makes the space look cooler and preserves the ambiance.” Anne Ruthman, Anne Ruthman Photography – Boston, MA

My take: Totally worth the money photo-wise … do whatever you can to avoid overhead florescent lights! There is very little we can do to make that look good. 

Needless to say, I calmed myself down. This is going to be fun! (and expensive) Tim and I are going to do this together (fingers crossed)- we’re going to decide things together (most of the time), and using my knowledge and expertise we’re going to have a beautiful wedding. OUR wedding.  OUR way. We’ve found a really neat, totally unique, location, which I’ll share soon… once the three bigs are taken care of – Location, Food, and Photographer *duh!* we can breathe easy until at LEAST January, right?.. well, we can try!

Here are a couple photos I took in my parents backyard of my inspiration start off point! It’s going to be a fun. *crafty* year!

So there was this venue that I had bookmarked for, oh, I don’t know, a year or so- that just had the perfect feel for what I wanted my wedding day to look like. Organic, Rustic, Elegant… Anthropologie….. So, of course, being a wedding photographer, I am well aware of how quickly things book up- so I sent an email off to the owner about 2.5 seconds after I had this ring on my finger. What do ya know! BOOKED UP for all of 2010. At first I was bummed, discouraged, a little down. But that’s okay, no one ever said wedding planning was easy and as a book my mom and I purchased yesterday states, “Don’t aim for a perfect wedding- aim for a wonderful wedding.” I have a first hand view of how much work, thought, and stress goes into planning a wedding day so I guess I should have expected bumps! Looking at a pretty neat looking space later today up in Marin – wish me luck!

I started a new category up there called, A Photographers Wedding. Sorry if this totally doesn’t interest you at all but this blog is a personal space for me and I think this next year my head is definitely going to be in planning mode and how can I not share things with you all? So, if this bores you- I’ll understand .. just scroll down.

Also, after next weekends Napa wedding I’ll be heading back to Los Angeles so be expecting a lot of blog catch up. If I know some of you, and I KNOW I know some of you, you’ve been refreshing the page daily waiting to see some of your images.

Because a blog post is better with pictures- here are some highlights from Becky and Adam’s portrait time a little earlier in the summer.

{whoosh}