categoriesarchivessearcha little while ago samantha and zach got married at castle on the lake in jacksonville, tx. it was gorgeous.
la tee da flowers makin’ everything look fancy.
i LOVED zach’s reaction when he first saw samantha. i love how the two of them had so much time to just talk and spend a few moments together before the madness that is a wedding day.
this is their daughter. she won the cute contest for the day.
thank you guys for trusting me with your day. i had a blast!
so, over the past couple of weeks i have been busy. busy shooting and busy vacationing. this site is about to get a full force of blog love. here is a little peek of what’s coming your way.
i ADORE this shot of zach seeing his daughter.
stephenie and jared. chillaxing before their reception.
ericka and justin getting their flirt on.
it’s been a while since i’ve had a couple that laughed and hugged as much as cassie and kinsey.
nothing beats having your parents slam you with poppers as you make your exit.
crystal and robin had a great wedding at castle on the lake in jacksonville. it was super chill and a heck of a party. here are some of my favorites starting with some of the great work the flower girl did.
how crystal greeted robin for their first look.
my most favorite part about first looks are that it gives couples a chance to be themselves. to be alone and really experience their wedding day and the emotions they have. some couples cry, some laugh. some do both. :)
a little shoe change before the reception.
i’ll leave you with a peek at this image from the mug machine. best. photo. ever?
One of my favorite things to hear from a bride is “La Tee Da is doing out flowers.” This assures me there will be many many MANY pretty things to photograph on the wedding day. :) Barbara and her team are not only super talented but also some of the sweetest people I know. When I asked her if she would be willing to guest post she said yes and I I LOVE all the knowledge bombs she wrote up. Get ready to be schooled in the world of pedals and all things floral. But before we get to it… How about enjoying some of her amazing work!
Parts are parts?
Do you remember the commercial where the disgruntled, messy chickens were flying down the road in an old beat up car? They wanted to become Foster Farm chickens…you know…the excellent chickens. Those goofy birds finally got it – you can fluff them up all you want but they are still messy, skinny ole birds!!
Flowers are not just flowers! They have so many variables to them, so many grades. I remember when guys would come into the flower shop asking for a dozen long stem roses. Little did they know, a long stem rose is really only a second grade rose. Roses come in many lengths and with each come different head sizes. The longer the rose stem, the bigger, fuller and prettier a rose head can be. For example, a rose can be purchased in 40, 50, 60, 70 and even 80 centimeters. The “long stem” rose is about a 50 cm rose so you can see there are usually three sizes that are bigger and fuller. The other grading system is medium, long, fancy and extra fancy. So, you can see the “long stem” rose isn’t really such a big deal!! I usually explain this to my brides by making another comparison – take for example jeans. You can buy a pair from Walmart for say $15.00 and you can buy a pair of Miss Me for $100.00 (yes, I know there are a lot that are even more expensive) Now, they are both jeans….both have two legs, both are denim, both have pockets, both have a zipper, both can be worn to the movies but you sure wouldn’t say they are the same!! Well, the same can be said for flowers ….just because someone says…I can make a bridal bouquet of all red roses for $100.00 doesn’t mean there is going to be any comparison to a spectacular high grade rose. On the surface it’s easy to be fooled but get the two in front of you and I assure you, you’ll pick the better one! The problem lies in a bride and her mom picking out that one of a kind bouquet not knowing the right questions to ask. You see, a florist never says, “Well, it will be made with 36 Ecuadorian, 70 to 80 cm all white roses. The variety will be Polar Star.” They just say, “It will be an all white rose bouquet.” Then they can show up with whatever they want much to your chagrin! Now, you might say “I don’t even want roses” well, ALL flowers are selected and graded. There are florist grade and supermarket grade. There are always variables to each and every flower.
That leads me on another topic….colors are not just colors! Red is not just red, there is red to the orange side and red to the blue side! For example, tomatoes and blood red – you can imagine there are lots of shades of red in between. White can be to the yellow side or green, purple can be to the pink or blue sides! All the colors are not the same….all the varieties are not the same…all the qualities are not the same….Parts are not parts in chickens or flowers!
Fake flowers are just that….FAKE!
To many times a bride gets her hopes up on a particular flower that maybe she saw in a local craft shop. She’ll come in with a few plastic or silk flowers and think we can provide her with them in real flowers only to be disappointed. In the days of Google images, it’s so easy to see if the flowers you prefer come in the colors you want. Check it out…it’s a great tool!
Magazines and blogs are giving brides unrealistic visions of color! To many times the editor or blogger is enhancing the color to “make it prettier” or more with today’s trend. Some (of course not AlexM…lol) photographers are “color correcting” and this changes the color as well as the expectation of the bride.
Brides….did you know that the groom has responsibility in paying for some of the flowers? Grooms and/or their parents are responsible to pay for the brides bouquet, the portrait bouquet, all the men’s boutonnieres and the mother’s and grandmother’s corsages or posy’s. Ask the florist to separate the flower totals and make two copies of the contract so one can be presented to the groom. It will take you out of the equation and give credence to asking them to pay for their part.
When consulting with a florist, make sure you find one that has pictures of their own work and will guide you through the decision making process. I do my best to make sure to capture each and every brides vision of their day as each is as unique and special as every bride. So much of the time I see a bride come in for her last meeting with me and she’s exhausted and “just can’t wait for it to be over with!” Remember to ask for help, hire the very best professionals, let go of a few of the decisions and take time to relax and enjoy the best day of your life!
Wishing you a happily ever after!
Barbara | La Tee Da
Didn’t I tell you she was awesome? :)
Still wanna see more? Take a look at all the “La Tee Da Weddings” I’ve photographed the past few years.
Darcee messaged me from her honeymoon to tell me she had been checking my site non-stop for photos. (Sorry Thomas) I hope these will keep you happy till you come home. :)
It has been TOO long since I shot at Castle on the Lake. It felt so great to be back. (Britian and her staff do such a great job of making weddings super easy for everyone involved and it was great to see them all again. You brides out there looking for a place near Jacksonville totally need to look at this place.)
I also snagged this shot of Darcee when she first saw her bouquet.
Seriously. How great are all the florals La Tee Da Flowers pulled off for this wedding?!?!
Let them eat cake!!! (Really tasty / good looking cakes from Designs By D’Anne.)
This is what we in the business refer to as a “wardrobe malfunction”.
Thank you two for an amazing day. You were the best.