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Album Design Preferences
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© Jasmine Star. This post cannot be republished without permission. Stealing makes me sad. |
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When I meet prospective clients, I feel it’s important to discuss their first family heirloom: The wedding album.
I am extraordinarily particular about album designs, so my clients will never see drop-shadows, faded images, layering, or funky background colors in my albums. I want the albums to stand the test of time so when my clients look back at their album, it won’t look dated or downright silly. Just think back to the 1980s when photographers framed one picture of a child in the upper right corner of the image looking in one direction, and another picture in the lower left corner of the same child looking in another direction. Two floating heads looking east and west. Ugh. I’m sure it was cool back then, but I’m SO glad my parents saved me from that torture! ;)
Because I work with Albumesque--an exclusive album designer--I explain in great detail what I envision for my albums, and Amy just gets it. Big images, clean layouts, negative space, just a few images on each spread. I think the exact verbiage I told Amy was to design my albums like it was a magazine spread…
Here are a few spreads from my most recent album design from Shelley and Brett’s wedding… |
    
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Taeler and Dana : Wedding
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© Jasmine Star. This post cannot be republished without permission. Stealing makes me sad. |
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H e planned a day at the beach for the two of them. Dana organized the day meticulously in order to sweep Taeler off her feet. They played in the warm sand and later relaxed in the beautiful weather. Dana then told Taeler he wanted her to play a game: He’d play a song and Taeler would have to guess what each represented. So she listened. Our first date…our trip to the river… Dana smiled enthusiastically as Taeler correctly named eleven out of eleven.
Then he stumped her with a country song. Puzzled, Taeler looked to Dana for help. Listen to the words… The arched words crept from the speakers and the singer said it was ‘bout time I slipped a ring on your finger.
It was then when Dana asked Taeler to spend the rest of his life with him.
Last Saturday, the words of the country singer came to fruition. The golden sun mercilessly shone on the rolling hills of The Crossings at Carlsbad for a fabulous wedding. Friends and family gathered to watch two amazing people promise to live one amazing life. And while eleven songs marked very important moments in their lives, there is no doubt there will be hundreds more to come…each representing the power of love they share.
Taeler and Dana…you rock my world. Thank you for inviting JD and me to share in such an extraordinary wedding day. Thank you for the laughter, the joy, and, yes, even the tears! ;) I’m honored to call you friends and I hope you have the time of your lives in Jamaica…get your hair braided, dance to reggae, and get a good tan for me! ;) Much Love and Appreciation…J*
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| Taeler prepared in the Clubhouse and while I initially panicked when I saw the mahogany walls and ceiling (and the total of three ceiling lights), I was relieved when I discovered I could illuminate the dark room with my Sunpak ReadyLite 20. I usually prefer shooting in natural light, but in a situations like this, I was thanking sweetbabyjesus for this hand-held light!! :) |
| Taeler and Dana opted for a First Look--which, as many of my readers know, makes me SOOO happy! Because it was over one hundred degrees outside, we decided to stay indoors for as long as possible... |
| Taeler and Dana had THE COOLEST bridal party...they were so fun and up for anything! :) |
| During the reception, the bartender came up to me and chided me like I was a child. Apparently, he saw me as I was getting the following shot and said that I could've seriously been bitten by a rattlesnake. People are normally prohibited where I was standing, but how was I supposed to know?! :) |
| The look of a girl who just married her best friend... |
| The look of sisters who couldn't be happier... |
| The ever vivacious Entertainment Director, Peter Merry of Merry Weddings, roasted each couple as they were announced for the Grand Entrance and I loved their reactions... |
| Taeler had such a sweet Father-Daughter Dance |
To see more of their wedding, CLICK HERE for a slideshow!
**A special THANKS goes to Vern of The Hobo Soul for joining JD and me...he's one of the best photographer's videographers around!! His work will be debuting for me soon! ;) ** |
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The Northrop Family : Anytime
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It’s sort of like going on a blind date.
You don’t know what to expect…you don’t know if you’ll mesh well…you don’t know if it’ll be worth the effort it takes seeing each other for the first time. So like a blind date.
When JD and I moved a year ago, I arranged a series of blind dates. With fitness instructors. I downloaded various workout schedules from gyms here in Orange County and set out finding a good match for my get-off-my-rear-end-and-do-something needs.
Trina taught classes like it was geriatrics aerobics.
Sophia taught classes well, but made these weird whooooop sounds every few seconds that drove me nuts.
Craig’s shorts were so short I couldn’t focus on the class, and instead found myself wondering if I was going to be harmfully exposed to his impropriety.
The dates were not successful. Until I met Christy. Then it was love at first sight. Or sweat.
I found myself working out with a new passion and, although I hated her halfway through her class, at the end I was so proud of making it through. And not fainting. I continued going to Christy’s classes and became one of her cult-like followers, attending her classes throughout Orange County. Recently, she came across my blog and we got to talking. What initially started as taking her headshots morphed into a family session. I don’t photograph families at this point in my career (and instead focus on wedding as a preferred niche), but I agreed to the session because I felt like it was the least I could do for Christy. Afterall, we’ve been dating for a year already! ;)
I was quite nervous photographing their family, but once the camera began clicking, I had a blast! Thank you Berkeley, Christy, Summer, and Kylee for making my day so enjoyable! Your family is beautifully kind and loving...something you should take pride in! :)
We started the day just hanging out with Kylee and Summer in their playhouse (which, incidentally, was the playhouse of my childhood dreams) and capturing them doing what they love: mothering their dolls... |
| Frustrated with a birthday hat that wouldn't stay on, Daddy came to the rescue and saved the day with scotch tape! Loved it! :) |
| Here's the amazing Christy... |
| Just before sitting down for a family portrait, Christy tied up loose ends, but Summer was ready to go! |
| Swinging from monkey bars... |
| I can't place what exactly I like about this picture, but I kinda just do! |
| The beautiful Northrop family...love you guys! :) |
| If you'd like to see more of my first family session ever, CLICK HERE for a slideshow! :) |
It’s so much more to me. More than bouquets, cocktails, or fabulous shoes.
It’s about being unafraid to fall in love with my clients.
I am so incredibly blessed to do what I love. I LOVE. I shot a wedding yesterday and—beyond it being a beautiful testament to two amazing people falling in love and promising eternity to each other—it was simply marvelous.
The bride and I had an awesome connection, so documenting her wedding day was multi-layers of satisfaction and pride. I’m discovering my brides are girls who would be friends outside of our working relationship. We’re the same age, like the same movies, and feign over the same shoes. These elements make what I do so much more rewarding because I feel like I’m merely documenting a friend’s wedding.
Last night the bride came up to me on a few occasions and said it was the best night of her life. Incredible. I was blessed enough to document the day and preserve her memories. I am so blessed.
After the Grand Exit, the bride and groom sat in their vintage car and waved goodbye to their friends and family. As the car pulled away from onlookers, tears poured down the bride’s face. Tears of happiness and joy.
When I pulled my camera away from my face, I wiped tears from my eyes. Tears of happiness and joy. I am so blessed to do what I love. I LOVE. |
| Thanks to JD for capturing this moment...the bride decided to bustle her dress while we were shooting formals, so seeing how I was the only girl around, I took this honor very seriously! ;) |
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The LAPD Has Its Paws On Me
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A couple nights ago I had dinner with my good friends David Jay, Allie, and Crystal. We started the meal quite late, so by the time the server cleared the edamame and discarded sushi, it was just past 11:30pm. Despite their pleas for me to stay with them in Santa Barbara and drive back to Orange County the following morning, I knew I had to get back that night.
So we said out goodbyes along State Street.
For the record, I love fast cars. I’m a total tomboy and once you get me started on horsepower and v8 engines, I’m in heaven. So you can just imagine my pleasure when I crept onto the 101 freeway just past midnight with no cars in sight. I floored my accelerated and sped along the Pacific Ocean easily at 90+ MPH. I was talking to JD on my cell when OUT OF NO WHERE I see red flashing lights pull up behind me.
I flung my cell across the car and started praying every prayer that could come to my mind…then pulled off the freeway.
After the cop received my insurance and license, I called David Jay to let him know about my escapade. Little did I realize he was RECORDING the whole conversation. Feel free to CLICK HERE to listen to the whole thing…including my fake tears as the cop writes my ticket!
With many thanks to my beautiful bride Roseann, I now have a permanent reminder to drive sloooooowly. Because her wedding was one day before my birthday, Roseann gave me a gift when I arrived to take her pictures. She’s SO amazing!! My little Polo is now my K-9 Patrol Pup, complete with a LAPD uniform…
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| So, yeah, I guess I won't be caught speeding anymore...Polo's all over it now! ;) |
2013
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