I have been looking forward to Megan’s bridal session for a while. Her and Jacob had a great engagement session and she is the first of my FIVE June brides to have her bridal session. So as a special treat for her being so stinkin’ awesome and ahead of the game she is getting a Same Day Edit. (Her full session is online today!)

Before we get to that, here are a few of my personal favorites. Jacob won back to back state golf titles in high school and plays for SFA as well.
Like any good bride she did a few special shots for him. :)

After a few tries her mom figured out how to toss them in the air and NOT have them land on her head.

Her brother Daniel was at the course while we were shooting and he stopped by to say hello. He was too cool NOT to photograph. He’s off to ATM next year. Ladies, get in line.

We then headed to her house for the rest of the session.

AMAZING eyes!

We had a blast shooting Amanda’s session. We started out at The Belgium House, they are getting married there in a few months, and then we headed into downtown Longview.

I think my favorite part was getting out of the car at our first stop. I was getting my gear out and I overheard Amanda telling her mom. “It’s OK mom, just trust him, they will be great.” :)

By the end of the session I think I had won her over because her mom was pointing out dirty grungy trucks for us to use in the shots.  

Alex really really likes the next two shots. :)

Amanda’s color for her wedding is hot pink. :) She had a few pink accessories that she was planning on using, but while we where at the laundry place a cab pulled up.
A cab sent from heaven above. (I’m thinking they should book it as their get away car.)  

Another shot I have a crush on, and it was not even a location I picked out. :)

We had a great afternoon in Longview shooting Linsey’s bridals.
Her mom was literally the PERFECT mother of the bride, as far as bridal sessions go.  She made sure all the little details were in place, sat back at times and enjoyed the session, she even helped me with some of my little light tricks.  (I’ll update you all on how she does on the wedding day.)

The wedding is going to be at First United Methodist Church in Longview and I can’t wait to shoot there. It’s amazing.  

I really like this shot. I’m not sure if it’s the arches, the black and white, or just the expression on her face.  

She brought along her hat.  

Before I met them at the church I scouted a little back road that had a few nice spots for some outdoor shots. Lots of cool spots and not much traffic. Apparently 1.5 hours after I checked it out is rush hour in that part of town. There was a steady stream of cars while we were doing these. Everyone kept honking and waving as they drove by. Linsey loved it and it kinda brought out her inner celebrity. It was fun to watch.  

Once again ladies and gentlemen, a big round of applause for Alicia. Mother of the Bride.  

I knew this session would be pretty relaxed. I had no idea it was be as much fun as it turned out.
On the way there it looked like it might rain but I knew it would be OK because The Belgium House has some very cool indoor spots, but I was hoping it would not upset Britni. Once I got there I realized that Britni already had a rain plan. Pink rain boots and an umbrella. :)
So then I started wishing for rain, but alas it never came. Oh well.

Britni went the “non-traditional” rout for her bridal session. Of course we got some great “normal” shots for parents and grandparents to love and frame little 5x7s, but in the end she decided she wanted more of the images to be catered towards Chance and went out of her way to make them fun for him as well. (You’ll see what I mean.)

  Props! Boots and umbrella in case of rain. Flowers because, well, she’s a bride. A gun because Chance likes to hunt.
And get this… she STOLE his Texas hat, guitar and fake ducks to use them in the shoot as well! How great is that?

  Britni can’t play at all, but she is really good at faking it and smiling.

  The gun was not loaded, but still I was glad Britni liked her engagement session photos. :)

  How cool is that crazy tree?

  Her mom and Krista came along for the fun.

First off I wanted to thank everyone who entered and made this contest so much for for me.  I loved getting to read your stories and “get to know” so many of you.  I had a ton of great entries and narrowed it down to 5 finalist last week.  I sent them all a second set of questions and a few photo requests.  One of the photo requests was a new photo of them that included the 1.00 they would be using to pay for their wedding photography.  Once I got them all back in I knew I would not be able to just pick one winner so I broke the rules a bit and picked 2 winners.  (I hope that’s OK.)

A quick note for the 3 of you who did not win.
I had a few other wedding photographers look at the entries and each of them pick one of you to be the winner if they had the final say.  So you were all very close.  Like I said, you are great couples and I would LOVE to be able to share in the wedding process with all of you.  I really wish I could have given each of you the grand prize, but as you know, my wife and I keep making babies so someone has to pay the bills.  As a “consolation” prize for not winning, you will be getting FREE a Engagements and Bridal Session so it’s not a complete loss.  

Below are a few excerpts from the two winning couples.  They both had me cracking up with their answers and drew me into their story.  I can’t wait to meet you guys and take some amazing pictures.  One more thing.  A 25% deposit is required to book the date so you better get that contract and .25 cent check in the mail. ;)

Jade & Justin

What “chick flick” does the groom secretly like?  What “guy movie” does the girl secretly like?:
Justin loves the TV show Sex And The City so he was really excited when the movie came out (he got it for me for Christmas so we could watch it together).

Why do you want wedding pictures?:I think picking a photographer and getting excellent pictures is the most important part of planning a wedding.  I want to be able to have wonderful, great quality pictures to show my children and my grandchildren someday. I want to be able to say to them “Look how handsome your father was and look how pretty I was in my dress” and show them the style because we all know it will be completely different by then.
 

If you were stranded on an island with someone of the opposite sex, other than your fiancé, who would you choose? (Both of you must answer)

Justin: I would choose to be stranded on an island with Rosie O’Donnell.

Let me explain first before you think I’m crazy…If I have to be stranded on an island, I might as well try and help out the rest of the world.  I am doing this for the good of society, and taking one for the team and removing one of the most annoying, women that pretty much everyone can’t stand.  Also, I figure that this way I would not be the slightest bit tempted to cheat on Jade just in case I am rescued (and God I pray that I would be!) and get to see her again. 

What is your favorite thing about each other?

When I’m sad or upset about something, he always knows the perfect thing to say to make me forget my worries.  He doesn’t just crack jokes until I finally start smiling, he talks to me and knows exactly how to calm me down and make me happy again.  So I guess I really love his ability to make me smile…whether he has me on the ground laughing so hard I’m about to cry, or if he is wiping away my tears, holding me tight and getting me to even smile just a little. :)

What was your favorite breakfast cereal growing up?

Justin: Fruity Pebbles because it was basically just colored sugar, and as a kid how can you resist sugar?!
Jade: I totally loved Honey Nut Cheerios.  And it was my dog’s favorite too.  I would always put a scoop on the floor for Molly so we could eat breakfast together.

Who was your favorite “boy band”?

Jade: I loved me some N’Sync and not just because of Justin Timberlake (even though he didn’t hurt)… Come on now, you know you loved “Bye Bye Bye” too! Even in my first year of college, we would get a big group of girls in our dorm room and try and learn their dances!

Which one of the Disney Princesses do you most identify with?

Belle… I think it would be great to have dishes that sang and cooked my meals for me!

eriKa & Phillip 

What “chick flick” does the groom secretly like?  What “guy movie” does the girl secretly like?

Phil likes Clueless. Erika loves Bloodsport.

Why do you want wedding pictures?

In these economic times, it isn’t feasible for us to have a large wedding, so we are having an intimate immediate-family-only wedding. We have so many friends and extended family members who will not be able to share the day with us, so we have to rely upon imagery that will truly allow them to witness the celebration without actually being there.

What will you do with the 3,649 dollars you are saving by not booking a photographer?

We’ll probably put it toward a down payment on a house.

Which of you typically takes longer to get ready?

ERIKA: 2 hours…a day
PHIL: 2 hours…a month

Who was your favorite “boy band”?

ERIKA & PHIL: Queen (Maybe we misunderstood the question.)

Brad & Jen or Brad & Angelina?

Nice try, trick question. We’re too cool to answer this one.

(ALEX’S NOTE: This really was a trick question.  I decided as I was typing it that ANY couple who refused to answer it was someone I wanted to hang out with.)

What is one inanimate object in your life you could not live without and why?

I thought it was my scooter, but it was stolen yesterday, and because I’m still alive today, I guess I was wrong.