The day began bright early with Kati and her girls at Onstage Hair Salon in Beaumont – yahoo! Lots of great natural window light for pretty pictures

Leave it to the Greek Goddess to match her toenails with her favorite sorority’s shoes

Meanwhile, Andrew arrives at the church to get ready:

I love the movement in these two as Kati slips her gorgeous wedding gown on:

Why yes, it does take seven attendants to look perfect

Beautiful shoes

Today, Kati and Andrew have chosen to do a first look! Yay! There are several good reasons to do a first look, one being the chance to share a huge personal moment… intimately and without a thousand eyes poring into your head

Of course, if you want to save the first kiss for “the first kiss”, you can always do a fist bump

More coming Thursday!

We last saw Kaci as she went through her whirlwind morning of getting ready. Now she has stepped down the aisle with her dad and we’re into a beautiful ceremony:

Yay!

Now it’s time to head to the Wright Building, where one of the most fun receptions of the year is about to begin. But first a few portraits of the newly minted Mr. and Mrs. … and a tribute to their favorite team:

I think someone threw a flag for Kaci being out of bounds here

There’s just something about a daughter’s relationship with her dad:

Rings!

You *know* it’s a fun reception when one of the groomsmen end up with a pink wig before the night’s over

A few more fun portraits of the bride and groom in downtown Port Neches and then it’s off to the honeymoon!

Congratulations Mr and Mrs Block! Thank you for trusting us to document your day!

That is one great life-time clench on her man

I’m out of town this week for the Foundation Workshop, a week long intensive photography bootcamp – it should be fun and I should learn a lot – see you when I get back!

Several of the preeminent wedding artists from Southeast Texas got together recently to explore what wedding trends were coming for 2012 – in that pursuit, here is our Southeast Texas perfect beach wedding:

The Sea Glass Estate at Crystal Beach was the perfect location for some of the hottest trends – white on white brides and bridesmaids dresses, gorgeous custom handmade wedding stationery, beautiful bouquets with sea shells, a canopied wedding ceremony, custom starfish place cards and favors, and bountiful seafood for the reception, it came together perfectly.

The recently engaged couple Julia and Cody were all flutters on this day, but they made one great-looking couple

A few more portraits after the ceremony and it’s time for the reception! It was beautiful!

As the sun is setting, the bridal party partakes in some nice evening signature drinks in their custom sea-monster creations from Fred Millers, we get some nice portraits of the couple at dusk followed by these oh-so-tasty donut shooters for a night-time snack:

Floral ~ Stephanie Do of La Belle Fleur
Stationery ~ Glenda Little of Dressy Designs
Cake ~ Dawneen Hebert of Artistic Confections
Jewelry ~ Leigh Ann Smithy Brittain of Ooh-la-leigh’s
Makeup Artist ~ Erica Strazz
Table Decor ~ Fred Miller’s
Hair Stylist ~ Kati Killebrew
Venue ~ Swedes Real Estate – The Sea Glass Estate
Bridal gowns and bridesmaids dresses ~ Suki’s Bridals, Formals, and Tuxedos
Tuxedo ~ Tuxedo Junction

If you’d like to see some of our work in person we’ll have a nice display of a couple of our favorite albums, standout prints and wall displays. Contact us at the above link and we’ll meet to discuss how we can best capture your day

Oh, and the best part? The Wedding Hub hosts some of the *best* wedding artists in the area – Lavonia from Occasions Linens, Angel Dauphine from It’s Your Day Wedding Planning, Glenda Little from Dressy Designs, and Becky Bowser from B&B Solutions!

Oh and because a post on a photography site without photos isn’t legal or something, below are a few of my favorite engagement photos from the last year

We began the day bright and early at Intrigue Hair Salon where Kaci is looking radiant and ready to start her big day:

Freshly coifed, we all hop into the limo and head over to Chic-Fil-A, of course

It’s easier to feel raring to go after you a good chicken sandwich in We stopped by the store to pick up a few last-minute items and then dropped in on one of Barrista Kaci’s stomping grounds at Starbucks:

The bride!

Back in the limo we have one more stop before heading to the church, but first a pause to check the hair:

We head to Nederland Nails, where they do beautiful work, but watch out for the guard dog – he’s vicious. I think I may have a photo of him later…

See? I *told* you he was ferocious!!

We stopped by the Wright Building to check out the reception site and cake, then finally make our way over to Central Baptist where the ladies begin final preparations…

Now we’ve been going maybe 6 hours at this point and we still have a way to go… the guys, on the other hand, spend 8-10 minutes fixing each other’s tie, figuring out the cufflinks and they’re ready for some wedding action

Marius does excellent work!

Time for mom and friends to wish Kaci well:

Wedding bouquets and floral decor – the always gorgeous work of Stephanie with La Belle Fleur Designs

Almost ready!

Chase heads to the ceremony:

… and his beautiful bride goes to meet him:

A brief pause before stepping into the role of Mrs. Block

More coming soon!

That leads me to the next bit of news: I’ve been accepted into the Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA), an International, membership-based organization representing professional photographers skilled in the documentation of weddings and events in a candid, unobtrusive style. As a WPJA member, I join the ranks of some of the most talented wedding photojournalists in the world as judged by their technical, creative and visual aptitude.

I’m both honored and elated to earn membership acceptance into the Wedding Photojournalist Association – as the only photographer in Southeast Texas to have my work alongside the WPJA’s esteemed collection of professional wedding photojournalists is a monumental accomplishment.

I know Lindsey, right?

Next up, a note to say Marius is shooting full-time with us now – we’ve been shooting weddings all over Southeast Texas for 4 years now, it’s about time All of our brides and grooms have gotten to know Marius and the stellar work he produces day in and day out. If you’ve seen wedding photos here, about a third of them are his. I am still limiting my couples to one a month this year, Marius is doing about the same. What’s good is we’ll still be shooting for each other in each other’s weddings and we can’t wait to get started!

Last bit o’news: Marius and I have re-doubled our efforts to improve as photographers this year and in the coming year – it’s straightforward to spend $$$$ on new equipment, we’re doing that , but we’re also investing $$$$ in training and education. For the past year (plus) we’ve been mentoring with the best wedding photographers in the world – associated with the Foundation Conference and Workshops, our mentors are recognized worldwide in their talent and ability. We understand the responsibility entailed in covering your day and the trust you’ve placed in us, we feel you deserve professional results. It will be interesting to see how much we improve this year

Below are a few more of our favorites from 2011, stay tuned as we finish strong this year with an engagement session or 2 and some beautiful fun weddings!

Oh, and Merry Christmas!

You won’t find a more manly pair of grooms shoes in existence:

I love how seriously Katie is applying the final perfections and her mom and sister are having a great time in the background

The wedding decor at Beau Reve was perfection, Clyde’s did an exquisite job as usual

You just *can’t* have a wedding reception without a dancing and spinning flowergirl

What a fun day! Thank you and congratulations to Mr and Mrs Neal!

Ceremony – Wesley United Methodist Church – Nederland
Reception – Beau Reve
Decor and Floral – Clyde’s Hairloom

While Ryder is getting ready, the ladies are stirring and Meagan arrives in style, with her lady-in-waiting Valerie close behind

Candles are lit, violin strings are tuned and little ring bearers get one final fit-check:

Finally! The music sounds as Meagan makes her grand entrance!

The Men’s Wearhouse commercial is true: they really *do* only have eyes for each other Meagan makes her way up the aisle:

Yay!

We soon make our way to the Grand Ballroom at the MCM Elegante, draped ceiling to floor in luxe:

The newly minted Mr. and Mrs. Clayton are perfect for each other…

Wobble wobble!

I love the excitement in their eyes as the bouquet re-enters the atmosphere:

The dance floor was hopping that night!

Luckily for Ryder, one friend keeps a firm grasp on him before he hits the ceiling

Awwww! Great day!

Located on Cardinal Drive, honk when you go by!