I’m guessing most of you read about The Mug Machine last week. But, for those of you just joining us here on the blog, here is a little recap. The Mug Machine is a little photo station I set up at your reception to photograph you and your guests. It’s not a push a button and say cheese on 3 booth. It IS a spot for your friends and family to relax, hang out, be entertained. I have a blast shooting these and everyone else has a blast joining in on the fun. Need proof? Here’s about 15 images of Mug Machine goodness.

(Don’t forget, if you add The Mug Machine to your package before the end of the month you’ll save $250.00.)

No rambling from me.  We are going straight to the image from Jamie & David’s wedding at The Villa di Felicita in Tyler, TX.

Brosang’s Flowers did all the arrangements for the day.

Her bouquet was great, but I was a huge huge fan of the centerpieces.
(They totally reminded me of the Kaminoans from Star Wars. Yes I’m a nerd.)


You may remember Jamie being my “Best Buy Bride“. Because of David’s great love for all things technology I thought it would be fun to work some of that into their ring shot.


Designs By D’Anne was there with their usual yummy and good looking cakes.



Jamie pretty much had a huge smile on the entire day. She was giddy.

I LOVE the look of anticipation on David’s face during their First Look.




Jamie loves the cold so we ran outside for a few shots.

These next two shots are part of a little trivia game.

Can anyone tell me where they were shot? Ladies, you may have toured the Villa Di Felicita, but I’m pretty sure Rhonda didn’t show you this room.

David basically smiled this wide overtime he saw Jamie.



After the ceremony it was reception time and CMB Music made sure everyone had a good time.

Come back tomorrow to see some image from The Mug Machine!

Thanks guys for trusting me with your day. – AlexM

Let me be super clear.  If there is one thing I know NOTHING about, it’s flowers.  I know there are roses, gerber daisies, and sunflowers.  That’s about it.  The good news for you as a bride is that I don’t have to know about flowers.  I have to be able to take fancy pictures of them.  That I can do. :)  However, Barbara & Thomas from La Tee Da Flowers in Tyler, TX know absolutely everything about flowers.  Week in and week out I get to interact with  different florists.  The folks at La Tee Da Flowers set the standard for this part of Texas.  I popped into their shop one day to hang out and snapped a few photos while I was there.  Barbara kept getting on to me because I didn’t warn her and she didn’t get a chance to pick up a bit.  But seriously, look at this place.  It’s like working in The Secret Garden.

Seriously, even the “mess” on the floor is fun to photograph.

How did you get started & how long have you been doing this?
Started in 1989 as a flower wholesaler..I used to drive a 24 foot long bob tail truck. Went completely retail in 1994 after the big Calif. earthquake. Our store was called Antique Flower Garden. (goggle us)  We were an award winning florist and sold it in 2006 and moved to Texas. Love it here!

What is your favorite part about your job?
Giving the bride her bouquet and seeing her first reaction…it’s worth all the effort.

What are some things brides should look for when looking for a florist?
An owner involved florist/designer. Tons of pictures of that florist work…current ones, not pics from a book. someone who understands your sense of style and will help you develop it. 


How many flowers do you guys typically go through per week?
As little as a couple of hundred to many thousands. Nothing is typical in the flower business.

What are some arrangements that you don’t get requested often but you think look great for a wedding?
Wreaths for the entry doors.

What is something unique to your service that you are extra proud of?
No drop and ditch for us..we deliver and I mean deliver. We set up, pin on all of our own bouts and corsages (don’t leave it for the photographer) we tear down….we do it all.

Anything else you wanna say?
We love what we do….our enthusiasm is contagious, we are committed and happy to be here designing and creating for such great people. We love Texans! (My husband Thomas, says he got back here as soon as he could)



And, because you can never have enough photos in a post, here are some images from Kristina & Nick’s wedding where La Tee Da provided the flowers. 

This first shot may not seem like a big deal.  But, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been to a wedding where the florist dropped off a cardboard box full of boutonnieres and no one had any idea which one went to whom. Then at the last minute, someone is walking up to a grandfather and REMOVING his flower to place it on the usher because they thought they had enough for everyone. Not a good way to start the wedding day. This labeled board makes the whole process seamless and easy.

Say hello to the La Tee Da mascot.







One last thing… not only are their arrangements beautiful and incredible to look at, Barbra & Thomas are nice people.  Think about it.  This is your wedding.  Why would you want to interact with someone who is not super nice?  About 15 seconds into our first meeting I felt like I had known these two forever and they were totally invested in my life and business.  That type of interaction is what you want from ALL of your wedding vendors.

La Tee Da Flowers
105 North Spring Avenue
Tyler, TX 75702
(903) 566-1566

Web: http://lateedaflowers.com/
Blog: http://lateedaflowers.blogspot.com/

Right after I finished their engagement session, I started to get excited about Erin & Chris being my first wedding of 2010. These two were so much fun to work with and shoot. I could gush for hours about them as clients, but I’ll let their images convince you of just how smooth these two are.

They were married at Rose Heights Church in Tyler, TX. Rose Heights has all kinds of cool locations to shoot.
(Starting with the inside of the steeple.)

1st dress shot of the decade. Not a bad way to start.

Erin & Chris LOVE music. Erin starts with E. Chris starts with C. Band nerds take note. (“Note”, get it. Ha Ha)

Every bridesmaid in this wedding was a blast to work with.

This is one of my most-est favorite ceremony shots I have ever done.

More fun in the children’s rooms.

Every time I see a bride having a great Father/Daughter Dance it makes me want to make sure Sara still likes me when her wedding rolls around.

Erin’s expression on this one cracked me up.

Thank you two for helping me kick off the new year with a great wedding.

I’ll be posting more images soon.

AlexM

OK, the results are in and the winners are listed below. Thanks so much for voting. There were over 7,000 votes cast! You guys are crazy!!! The engagement photo came down to the last minute and was decided by only 2 votes! (Because it was so close I’ll also be giving the second place winner in that category a print as well.)

I’ll be doing a few more contests like this throughout the year so who knows what goodies you’ll be able to win. Here are the winners!

Engagement Photo (Their full blog post.)

Bridal Photo (Her full blog post.)

Ring Photo (Their full blog post.)

Wedding Photo (Their full blog post.)

Two more things to look forward to this week.

1. I’ll be posting some images from Erin & Chris’ wedding tomorrow! (A whale may or may not be involved in her dress shot.)

2. Remember that new “toy” I mentioned that would be showing up at select 2010 weddings? Well, I’ll be dropping some hints as to what it is on Wednesday.

See you soon. Alex