Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Tracy and Chase at the Plantation House

The Plantation House is so perfectly named. As you approach, the grandeur takes you to another era. Luanna has passed the torch to her daughter and son in law, Joanna and Tanner,  who are now the owners of the wedding facility and wow did they do an incredible job! Tracey and Chase couldn't have asked for more perfect Spring weather. The couple decided to have a first glance and take many of their pictures before the ceremony. Only about 10 percent of our couples do this, but it sure is nice to be able to talk to each other and knock out some of those pre-wedding jitters. We loved the colors - Tiffany blue with bright orange flowers by the Rebekah owner of the Glass Fountain. A sweet ceremony with the hottest new item, a unity cross, that we handmade by Tracy's parents. Then off to the reception with a great meal, toasts, lots of dancing, cake, fun in the live photo booth and bouquet toss off the balcony before being driven to their hotel by limo. The couple is enjoying their honeymoon on the beaches of the Grand Cayman Islands! So jealous....
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The Wedding Album Of Your Dreams!



It is the digital age, but you need a timeless album. Technology will change and you will never regret having a wedding album that will last a lifetime. Our albums elegant, sleek and flush mounted. You had a spectacular wedding and you love your wedding photos. Now, it’s time to create a wedding album that will tell the story of your day for generations to enjoy. Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you begin the process of picking your pictures.

After the wedding relax. Just not for too long!
You have worked hard on your wedding plans for months. And after the wedding, you will be tired after being consumed with wedding planning for so long. Give yourself time to decompress. Then give yourself plenty of time to go through all of your pictures. We look to complete albums within 6 months of your wedding.

Let us know your album preferences. There are two types of couples when it comes to album development – those that ask us to design the albums using our favorite images from the day and those who want to select their top favorites and we build the album around them. We love it when we are trusted to deliver a great album design and present it to the client who is surprised and delighted. However, some of our clients like more involvement. Letting us know your level of desired involvement will help the album process go much more smoothly.

Communicate up front with what you want your album to look like. It is very important for us to know your album preferences. Do you like pictures in the background or a solid color background? If you have forgotten what the different styles look like, come by J. Mark Photography and look at our samples again. Do you want us to incorporate your wedding colors, how do you want your album to read on the cover, do you want silver or gold lettering? Client participation is absolutely critical for success and can speed the design process along considerably and greatly reduce the number of revisions.

If you want to select your top images, divide your selections into "Chapters". Your album is a storybook of your day. We design our albums using a chaptering concept, meaning that each album we deliver will have an opening, getting read, first glance, ceremony, bridal party, bride and groom portraits, family photos, reception or party – and then an ending... your departure. It is recommended that you select your tops picks in categories each photo will fall into chapters. Your album has 24 sides (12 pages).

  • Bride and venue -1 page
  • Getting Ready - 1 bride and 1 groom
  • First glance (if you decide to see each other before the wedding) -1 page
  • Wedding party - 2 pages
  • The Ceremony - 3 pages
  • The Couple: 2-4 pages
  • Family Photos: 2-4 pages
  • The Reception/Party: 2-4 pages
  • Cake Cutting/Garter and Bouquet - 2 - 3 pages
  • Exit and close: 1 pages


Less is More. We have all heard that phrase a thousand times, and with wedding album layouts, that old saying couldn’t be more true. Choosing the right amount of photographs for your album, rather than cramming tons of photos into the space, will create a much easier story to follow and with a more premium presentation. Some of the most elegant and up-scale product designs are simple and timeless, and a clean classic design will stand the test of time when you show the book to your grandchildren 30 years from now. Though there is no one best number, we recommend selecting 25-30 of your favorite pictures and we will fill in with any needed pictures to tell the story of your day.

Having trouble fitting all your selected photos in? Then add more pages! Several weeks after the wedding, you will receive hundreds of images about 600- 800 your DVD or thumb drive. But with that many great images, it can be very hard to narrow down the special images that will best tell the story of your day to get them into the standard number of pages. Easy solution, add more pages to your book. We can always price out additional pages. Wedding albums are expensive to make and produce, no doubt, but it is worth the extra money for an album you will cherish the rest of your life.

Be Flexible.

Luckily we usually can find a solution, but sometimes it is not possible to get the exact layout you are envisioning due to the picture ratio, crop or other factors with the page and pictures.

Tell us all your revisions at one time. Once we finish the album design draft, you will have the ability to view it online and communicate any changes back to us. The online service we use allows you to view the album and turn the pages to see how the album flows. Feel free to share the link with your family but collect all of your comments and revisions and submit them all at one time. After the revisions are made, we will post the final copy and password protect the album. You will then approve the album and it will be produced and shipped directly to your home address in about two weeks.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Bluebonnets

I headed out in search of some bluebonnets to photograph this morning. I put a bunch of miles on the car but found most of these at the first stop - Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Research Center. They did not have as many as I thought they would but there were some good patches. Drove toward Seguin on 183 and over to San Marcos and back to Austin. Saw a bunch of flowers but not a lot of interest to add to the photo so I only stopped along side the road one time. Here are a few samples.
 
 
 
 
 

Friday, March 16, 2012

Sarah and Anthony at St. Williams and Kindred Oaks

Thursday may become the new Saturday in the wedding world! And, WOW what a great choice for Anthony and Sarah. You get the venue you want, their photographers (us - smile!) were not already booked and they had a ton of guests that stayed dancing to the last dance! St. Williams is so pretty and then add in an incredibly beautiful bride and you get a simply stunning combination. After mass, we took formal pictures hoping to take fun pictures with the new LOVE letters at Kindred Oaks but the weather did not cooperate. A cold front and rain blew in but things were nice and toasty inside the pavilion at Kindred Oaks. Kindred Oaks does such a wonderful job, I don't think anyone noticed the rain. Especially not Sarah and Anthony who said that they had the time of their lives. Check out the chandelier backdrop and fireplace K.O. has added. Delicious Carino's catering, wonderful Cakes by Kathy, toasts, dancing, fun in the live photo booth, and an exit to glow sticks ended the night. The couple are doing a Texas honeymoon hitting the wine country - Cheers!