You’re AWESOME Tracy!!!

A special note to Tracy, my wonderful 2nd shooter and friend!!…..

I am grateful and thankful that you are so into photography and willing to photograph weddings with me.  First of all you have a terrific eye,  you step back to see what’s going on and then catch it with pictures.  You make people laugh and smile.  You are so hungry to learn, it’s refreshing.  You’re eager to do well and to help exceed my client’s expectations.  You never complain under any circumstances (even when we have 2 weddings in one weekend and you’ve been on your feet for 18 hours!!!!).  

Thank you for subscribing to the glass is half full……no……’spilling over’ outlook on life.  That’s a natural trait that people have, you’ve either got it or don’t (though I’ll keep trying to show & convince people otherwise  😉 )   and you’ve got it.  I love surrounding myself with positive people and that’s one of the many reasons that you have a gzillion friends, because of your amazing outlook. 

Thanks for your continued interest in wanting to learn more, become better, and for the ease in teaching you.  I’m honored that you are part of my team.  🙂

You are a fantastic mother, wonderful wife, terrific friend, caring daughter and an A+ photographer.

You know I love you.

Kathryn and John get married…

…and what a beautiful day it was.

Kathryn and John had an incredible ceremony and reception at the Belvedere in Baltimore.  It could not have been more perfect.  Kathryn was a beautiful bride and John, a handsome groom.

So many great things about this wedding day:

The guys were all ready 2 hours before the ceremony.  We able to get some great shots of them.  A couple of my favorites…

The Belvedere has fantastic bridal suites. Tracy caught this shot of John prior to the ceremony…

Kat….stunning….

A sweet moment…

The Belvedere has some terrific photo ops, here’s a great one of Kathryn…

Rev. Jason Poling performed the ceremony and did a fantastic job. Prior to the ceremony, he found Kat and her bridal party and offered to pray with them…

Can’t you feel the love and admiration they have for one another….

A fun and happy group…

Truffles at the Belvedere did an amazing job preparing for the ceremony and flipping the room in minimal time to get it reception ready! The servers were all wonderful and efficient. Vanessa was outstanding in guiding her team throughout the night. Well done everyone!

The princess at the ball…

Johnny from Talentkey DJ’s provided awesome music all night long. It was so great, that Tracy, my rockstar 2nd photographer volunteered to stay later and take more pictures!! You’re awesome Tracy.  Thank you.

Kathryn and John, I’ve had such a great time working with you and getting to know you. You are both great people with fantastic friends and families. I’m thrilled to see what the future holds for you….it’s going to be AWESOME. Thanks so much for allowing me into your lives. Looking forward to hearing about Hawaii. 🙂

And now presenting…

Dr. and Mrs. Richard Kobetz…

What an honor we had last weekend photographing the wedding of Mary and Dr. Kobetz. Mary is the mother and mother-in-law of two of my favorite people, so I’ve had the pleasure of knowing her for several years. She is a beautiful, gracious and sweet woman. I’ve heard wonderful things about Dr. Kobetz for quite some time now it was great to finally meet him. 

They had their ceremony and reception at the beautiful and historic Whitehall Manor in Loudon County, Virginia.  The staff was amazing, they were inconspicuous as they moved around the room, yet stayed ahead of the guests needs.  The food….oh my gosh….I had a couple spoonfuls of their crab soup….the BEST I have tasted, and I’ve tasted some good crab soup in my day!  And once we packed up the car, I did enjoy a delicious strawberry shortcake!  Thank you! 😉

An outdoor wedding had been planned, the grounds at Whitehall are amazing.  But because of rain, plan B went into motion and it was just as beautiful.

Here is Mary being escorted down the aisle by her sons, Steven and Cliff…
 

The ceremony was very meaningful and as Dave, the owner of Whitehall said, right on the mark. Soon after it began, Dr. Kobetz reached over to Mary, kissed her hand, hugged her…it was heartwarmingly beautiful…and then they continued with the ceremony….

During the ceremony, doves were to be released.   Judge Michael Valentine performed the ceremony, he explained to the guests, “Doves mate for life and are a symbol of love. Tradition holds that if doves are seen on your wedding day, happiness is assured.” Dave Rhein of Cornucopia Farm offered a great solution so that the 30 doves could still been seen on their wedding day.  Tracy, my fantastic 2nd photographer, was a trooper and went outside in the rain to get several photographs of the doves, here’s one of them…

Olivera Music Entertainment provided the entertainment for the evening.  Their sound was magnificant, they were professional and great to hear throughout the evening.

Here’s the happy couple shortly after their vows…

I’ve had the pleasure of photographing Mary’s children and their families through the years and it was fantastic to see them all under one roof…with Dr. Kobetz’s daughters and family…they are beautiful people and so much fun.

Here’s a shot of Mary with the bride and grooms daughters having fun…

A fun moment while taking formal portraits…

Master Piper William MacPhail, a fantastic musician, performed during the ceremony and again toward the end of the reception…

Off they go, ready to begin this new chapter in their life…

Mary and Dick, thank you so much for your trust you placed in me and Tracy to capture your day in photos. It was a terrific honor to document your awesome occasion. Love you.

A couple more things…

There were so many wonderful musicians that we had the pleasure of listening to, I wish I knew all of your names to thank you personally.  

To the wonderful security staff…..you are awesome! We really enjoyed working with you all, thanks for being on top of everything! Hope to work with you again. 😉

And Cliff, Happy Birthday to you! 😉

To Mike, thank you, thank you for your continued service to our country. I appreciate the freedoms that my family and I enjoy because of you and our service people… 🙂

The McNerney family…McFun

This family is AWESOME! I had heard about them and how nice they were from my friends Lisa and Tom, and Lisa’s parents, Lou and Thelma (80^th birthday party) for about a year now. I was so glad to have finally met them.

When Mike and Laurie came over with their girls, there was excitement everywhere…..my girls were so excited (to say the least) to see two fun little girls the same age as them!  We see many fun play dates ahead…..and Mike is probably as much of a Terp fan as my husband, so they probably have some play dates in their future too.  😉

After having fun in the studio, we headed outside for more great shots. Here are some of my favorites…

Aren’t they just so cute…

The girls TRULY enjoy playing with one another…

Awww…

Check out this family love…

A sweet moment while walking to the stream…

Mike and Laurie, it’s no wonder the girls are so cute and adorable…

Thanks for allowing me to have fun with your family, it was truly an honor.  Your girls did a fantastic job just being themselves and allowing me to click while they had fun.  Ya’ll are great and I’m looking forward to seeing you soon. 🙂

Thank you, Lisa,  for referring me.

Happy Birthday To You !!!

HAPPY 80th BIRTHDAY TO THELMA AND LOU!!!!!

Thelma and Lou’s family organized an awesome birthday celebration for them at Patapsco Valley State Park on Labor Day. It was a gorgeous day for their party.

These are two of the nicest people that you could ever meet. And you would never guess them to be turning 80! I think 80 must be the new 50!

I had the privilege of meeting Thelma and Lou a few years ago after moving to our neighborhood.  They are the parents of Lisa…..Lisa and Tom are neighbors….not only neighbors, great friends.  They are really fantastic people, the type that you meet and feel like you’ve known all of your life.  Johnny and I are glad that they are a part of our lives…..and our girls love them!

Okay, back to Thelma and Lou….they have three children,  eight grandchildren and nine great grandchildren.  Twenty eight family members, spouses, fiances and significant others celebrated this awesome occasion with them.  Here’s a picture of this beautiful family….

One of their grandchildren, Mike, has a sweet girlfriend, Kat. Kat couldn’t get to the park in time for the group picture, so here’s one of her and Mike….

Tom and Lisa are not only great people, but great looking…

Here are just SOME of Thelma and Lou’s great grandchildren….

Aren’t they all just so sweet? 

Brian and Emily are another great couple.  They will be getting married next August. We took a walk to the waterfall to get some shots of them…

Although the Falls were suffering because it’s been so dry, both Brian and Emily look awesome….

Jake anxiously awaited for the balloons that Grandpa John was going to undo and share…

And John, my girls LOVE the balloons. Hayley was so excited to show Lexi that they both had such shiny balloons!! Thank you! 🙂

Thelma and Lou, you are both such terrific people….and responsible for so many other terrific people being here on earth. It was great witnessing the love that everyone has for you. Your family is full of wonderful people; it was nice talking with them as well as photographing them. I really enjoyed documenting such a milestone event.  I thank your entire family for sharing so much of themselves with me.

Toward the end of the party, it was evident that fun was had by all…

The new 50…

Once again, it’s been proven that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree….you all are wonderful.  Thanks so much for having me out.