Thursday, October 29, 2009

Mountain Biking in Tsali, NC

So while those of you at the Wedding Expo got to meet Jemma and her lovely assistant Jillian, you missed out on the other half of Jemma Coleman Photography- me! David Coleman. Why would David miss such an awesome opportunity to meet all you lovely brides? Well, turns out I had a trip planned long before the bridal show to go mountain biking in North Carolina with family and friends. It was super rad, if a bit wet and muddy, but gnar was shred (which is a good thing) and memories were made. I snapped a few pics with the little camera during the times when I wasn't muddy or wet (which wasn't often).

Driving 8 hours after a day at work stinks, but I almost wanted to stop and take pics of this sunset from the roadside. Almost.


Four days in the tent. Sore back, but enjoyed the great outdoors with the starry view at night. The Jetta averaged over 36mpg for the trip, which is not bad for having a muddy bike on top of the roof!


The world is thankful Daniel is no longer sporting a mullet, but the stache is pretty…uh….awesomely terrible?


No, this is not an optical illusion: those abs are not from hours in the gym.


Busted lip: In case you’re wondering, no, the handle bar does not taste good. Oh, and this is me, in case you didn't remember me from the get to know us cards at the expo.


Quite the motley crew, but they didn't give me too hard a time for being a Florida fan.


Hated to leave a place as pretty as this, but all good things must come to an end!

Look out for future adventures of david and jemma! When we're not working, we try to do cool stuff.

-david

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

{know that} - waiting for photography: {first look} {day after} and {getting creative} with schedules - Gainesville, FL Wedding Photographer

starting yet another "column" on the blog. this one titled {know that} in the effort to provide brides & grooms, vendors, and blog-stalkers with useful information about photography.

please leave comments, questions, and your own ideas so we can all share in the {know}. don't hold back. say what you say.


With so many brides and grooms wanting to spare their guests the wait while their photographs are taken after the ceremony, there are always requests to speed the photography along accompanied with a realization that all those photographs they want simply take time. A tricky situation, but we have some thoughts that might help...

There are usually three things that you want:

1. "We want lots of gorgeous photos and especially portraits of just the two of us, preferably in several different locations."
2. "We want the first time we see each other to be when I'm walking down the aisle."
3. "We don't want our guests to have to wait a long time for us at the reception."
(let's assume for the sake of argument a long time=over an hour.)

Realistically, you can pick two out of three things you'd like or get creative to make up for the other one. Read on to hear how we help our clients figure out what works best for them.

1. You can avoid seeing each other before the ceremony and have lots of amazing photos afterward, but your guests will have to wait a little while for you to get there, or you'll need to skip out on some of the reception in the middle of it.
possible solutions: cocktail hour; entertainment at the reception; have both ceremony and reception at the same site to cut down on time traveling between the two; if you're having a mid-day wedding, take some photos toward the end of the reception or afterward (great chance to catch sunset!); sneak out while everyone else is still working on their meal and grab some more photos then.
cons: extra costs of cocktail hour or entertainment; missing out on parts of your reception; hair and make-up not looking so hot after most of the reception for the later photos.

Here are some of Julie & Richard's portraits that were taken here and there before & during the reception.



2. You can see each other first at the ceremony and get to your reception on time, but you won't have a chance to do many photos and you may feel rushed.
possible solutions: pick a ceremony site that you can also have the reception at with a lot of variety in shooting locations, giving you the most opportunity in the most compact time and space, have a {day after} session and get dressed up in your duds again for some photos before you jet off your honeymoon; have a {days after} session - when you're back from your honeymoon, get dressed in your duds again (maybe even funk it up and wear something different) and gallavant around multiple fun locations to capture those shots.
cons: possibly paying for hair, make-up, and tux rental again, added cost of extra photography

Here are Dan & Sereen's {days after} portraits. Sereen changed up her hair and jewelry and Dan had a few wardrobe changes to change up the feel of the photos. They were able to do their shots in Waldo, which expressed another part of their personalities.



3. You can get lots of photos and make it to the reception on time but you'll have to see each other before the ceremony.
possible solutions: a {first look} session - make it your own, plan it out ahead of time or be spontaneous. pick a lovely location and have the groom waiting with his back turned and the bride come in, announce herself or tap him on the shoulder while the photographers shoot with a long lens to capture this beautiful, private moment between the two of you. Alternately, you can set it up with family and friends looking on if you still want the moment to be shared with your loved ones. We'll be shooting this way at our next wedding & we'll add photos to this post, so check back with us in mid-November! Either way, after the first look, you can get on with the romantic shots with the two of you, take bridal party shots, and maybe some family photos, provided you have informed them that you'd like them ready early.
cons: breaking a tradition.

here is Marion & Russ' {first look}


What do you think about these ideas? Do you see any more drawbacks? What are you going to do if you're getting married? What did you do and how did it work out?

Monday, October 26, 2009

i {spy} - craft project! - the dress & the shoes for the {expo} - FINALLY!

I was pretty excited about my outfit for the Gainesville Wedding Expo at the end of last month. After all it took me a ton of searching and trying on, returning, exchanging, and looking online and all over town to find what I wanted.

Because I was determined to match my branding, I was convinced I needed a yellow dress. And I wanted one with a poufy skirt. And I didn't want a lot of bare skin showing. I could thrill you with stories of my escapades, but I'll just get to the point. It had basically come down to me wearing a cute gray dress I'd found at Urban Thread with a bright yellow scarf and silver sandals or a JCrew halter dress I'd also found at Urban Thread and some cardigan I was desperately trying to find.

As I was taking one last look through the racks I came across a yellow dress that was definitely two sizes smaller than what I'm wearing these days. Even so, it looked a little larger than advertised, so I thought, what the heck, I'll see if I can squeeze into it. Just for giggles. And crazy enough it fit me!



I was so excited, I didn't even notice that I'd dropped a receipt in the dressing room for three cardigans I'd picked up from Ross - hoping to make them work with the halter dress. The sales ladies were happy for me and listened to me blather on about how I needed the dress for a wedding expo and yada yada yay yay yay! I gave them some of my cards!

After purchasing the dress and my fabulous shoes (I fell in love with them after having used them to try on everything at the store), I got in my car to find a parking ticket DOH! and headed to Butler Plaza. Aaaaand, I left my credit card on the counter. By the time I got to Ross across town, I realized I didn't have the receipt. Nice enough, the sweet girls at Urban Thread called me (they had my biz card) to tell me I left my credit card and so I finished up my shopping at Target and headed back to pick up my lost items. They even found my receipt! What customer service!

My fabulous JCrew shoes. So lovely, no?



Next, to complete my outfit, I thought I needed a little something extra. I'd been itching to do some crafting and saw this fabulous craft project on 100 layer cake and traced it back to Heart of Light for the details.

I printed out my instructions and got to work!


For my belt, I chose double-faced satin ribbon and picked up the fabric from the remnants bins. I chose a couple extra fabrics from the bolt to increase the diversity of textures.


I also bought some colorful fabric in case I changed my mind and wanted to do something a little different. I think I'll try this on my next craft date with a friend.


Here are my petals ready to go!


The belt is done!


Trying it on to see how it fits. OH YEAH, I forgot to mention that my dress has POCKETS! Dresses with POCKETS are my best friends.


Look how fabulous it looks with the dress!






SO easy to do and I have tons of petals left over. I'm thinking of making them into something ridiculous like bloomers. Any crazier ideas?

Saturday, October 24, 2009

More Melrose Wedding - Gainesville, FL Wedding Photography

Marion & Russ's wedding was a country home affair with an overlay of elegance. Set in historic Melrose, FL at a friend's vintage estate overlooking Melrose Bay, Old Florida charm was in every detail.

signs. I LOVE signs. Especially handmade & custom ones like this.


Marion's good friend Kelly Brown took care of the floral arrangements for the day and they were to die for. I'm in love with the colors.


Pretty excited to be in her dress! I wonder why...!!




Marion & Russ chose to do a {first look} before the ceremony, after which we got some lovely portraits. We'll be posting some more details about first looks later on. Stay tuned!


Russell's nieces and nephew were the cutest kids ever!!! And have you seen a more fabulous flower girl dress? Apple green silk shantung, so fab.




I love seeing the taste and style of my brides come to life in their weddings. Loving the classic champagne & ivory dresses with the vibrant bouquets & jewelry. A special post on the jewelry coming soon!






the sacraments are so beautiful. holy communion.


time for some more portraits after the ceremony while we're waiting for the family to assemble.


"sitting on the dock of the bay, wastin' time..."


To continue the charming country feel, Marion & Russ' reception included handmade quilts, strings of C9 lights, contra dancing, a live band, and handmade party balls. And of course for Russ, GO GATORS! One of the most adorable Gator cakes I've seen!












Marion & her Dad. The man with the plan and the love for music.


Dad had several special song requests that night from the local musicians. It was amazing!


Stay tuned for more info about {first looks} and the amazing {jewelry} Marion commissioned for her bridesmaids. <3 jemma

Marion & Russ - Gainesville Melrose, FL Wedding Photography

Marion & Russ, ya gawjuss! Thanks for the fun times. I can't wait to share some more photos with you. Here is a little teaser I just finished.



holiday special! - Gainesville, FL Holiday Family Portraits

Thursday, October 22, 2009

i {spy} - beautiful music - - - Gainesville, FL Wedding Photographer

You know how lots of folks have cool things that they found on other blogs and then a cutesy name for it? I think mine is going to be i {spy}. What do you think? So i {spy} is going to be about whatever I find on teh interwebs that I think is cool and other people would like. Kind of like email forwards, except in your google reader. and much more awesomer. for the sure. ok. enough intentional bad grammar. on to the goods!

Found this via {wreckless girl}, whose photography I kinda dig. Mostly I dig her attitude and the warmth that I feel flowing from her blog posts.

On to the goods again... What a beautiful song. The music is lovely. The video is fabulous. I too, am very inspired by stillmotion. These words from girl, wreckless.

"Here is a new invoking and inspiring music video sung by my dear friend Amy (a fellow Vagabonder) and filmed and produced by the amazing Stillmotion, who blows me away every time. Amy Seeley WebsiteAmy on Vagabond BondAmy's recent album Eight Belles on iTunes (the same album whence came this video's song)"

amy seeley // live from her living room from stillmotion on Vimeo.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

more of lil chunkie - Gainesville, FL Family & Maternity Portraits

Here is the full shebang of my favorite images from the maternity shoot of our dear friends Ted & Jill & their baby to come - affectionately named "lil chunkie".

we had fun taking some pics on Biven's Arm in Gainesville as well as around their fabulous 12th floor apartment.

Lil Chunkie will be arriving soon, maybe the end of the month! Yay!