Virginia Highlands Engagement Session : Laura and Mark

Posted by Liana at 11:17 PM

Last week Mike and I had a fun evening capturing Laura and Mark's engagement pictures in the Highlands. Their first date was here and they even wore the same outfits from that day - the great thing is Laura is all about bright colors (love it!) so how perfect is it!?

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves - it was really hard to narrow it down!













Love ROCKS!!











This is the bench where they sat for hours upon hours after dinner on their first date, talking, getting to know each other. There was quite the crowd around there for this shot and of course they were curious why we were taking pics. So cute!


Love this B&W series!








While I grabbed a few more pics with Laura, Mike was nearby capturing a few more of Mark.


We saved the best for last - the spot where they got dessert on their first date - Paolo's Gelato!










Thanks Laura and Mark for getting Mike and I out on a "date night" too - we can't wait to capture your wedding next month!!

Happening This Week

Posted by Liana at 4:18 PM

Ahhhh... when do I ever stop being behind in blogging!?? LOL. June was supposed to be my month for catching up on big projects like the new website and figuring out when the next Boot Camps will be... but alas LOTS of last-minute things always come up. It's SOO good to be booked up, I'm just in desperate need of help!!

This week:

- Dana has come to my rescue and is diving in head-first getting trained and helping me with the day-to-day operations.

- two amazing weddings and a few fun engagement sessions to blog.

- dad is in town so we may have a belated Father's Day cookout on the back deck

- I'm super excited to meet and photograph the baby twin girls of a wedding client from over two years ago!

- another meeting with my savvy accountant/bookkeeper to get the new system set up finished

- doing a private consultation/class for a super talented portrait photographer who's flying into Atlanta later this week

- hosting a dinner party here for my Spain Mission Trip group

Since posts are more fun with pictures, here's some from around the house lately...

Two little bundles of love, cuddling together on the back deck.


A quick 5D Mark II lesson and lens-testing session with my friend Leigh. She's smart and is trying out different lenses before purchasing.


Grace got Mikey a perfect gift... an electric fly swatter for when she lets bugs get in the house from the back deck and can't reach high enough to get them herself. Don't worry - no batteries in it yet - she's just sniffing and rubbing up against it.


Mikey's Birthday Breakfast on the back deck last Friday. We had waffles and bacon. Fake-bacon for me, really crispy bacon for Mike!

Cupcakes for my Sweetie's Birthday

Posted by Liana at 10:10 PM

Friday was Mikey's 30-something Birthday and we celebrated his getting-older-day with LOTS of food, goofy gifts, and an evening out with a group of 20+ friends.

At about 3PM my Martha Stewart cupcake baking gene kicked in and I went on a cupcake-experimenting spree.



It was pretty funny walking into the restaurant with 100+ mini cupcakes in 5 different varieties. While signature ugly carrot cake is the standard favorite for birthdays, this went over pretty well. It's so easy to share mini-cupcakes and it was fun because we got to try a bunch of different kinds. We will need to be going on a diet after this weekend!

Here is what I managed to mix up:

Oreo Cupcakes had cookie crumbles in both the cake AND the Icing


White Chocolate cupcakes were one of my favorites. I melted Ghiradelli white chocolate to use in the frosting which surprisingly also had cream cheese in it to mellow out the sweetness.



The Key Lime Cupcakes I made on accident. I thought for sure Mikey loved Key Lime, but I was wrong! LOL. I don't particularly care for it either so I made some just-coconut and I actually enjoyed it. Fluffy and light. The meringue on top is made with egg whites and I had to make it twice because the first time I forgot to shake the egg-white carton and got mostly water. Opps!!


The next batch I call French Hazelnut Chocolate Cupcakes. They are injected with Nutella. MMMMMMmmmmm. I made a Ganache for the first time too and it was actually pretty easy. We had it in our wedding cake and now I'm addicted! Once the ganache cools a bit you simply dip the cupcakes in it - you don't need much because it's really rich!


Last but not least, Butterfinger Cupcakes! These were Mikey's favorite since it's his favorite candy and like the Oreo ones they have candy infused into the cake and icing. VERY sweet. Mmmm. We're out of these or I'd be eating one right now.


I used box mix as the base for ALL of these recipes so it was actually very easy and fun experimenting with adding in puddings, candies, and spices. Splitting the batter in half and using one mix for two different types also allowed me to make a variety without having 500 little mini cupcakes tempting us for weeks!

Join us next THURSDAY for a Summer Social at StudioWed Atlanta!!

Posted by Liana at 11:05 AM

I can't believe I haven't posted about StudioWed before!

Earlier this year an awesome new studio launched in West Midtown Atlanta. In fact, it's a concept my mom swore up and down we needed when planning my own wedding this past year. A handful of top-notch vendors in each category, all under one roof. You can have breakfast with a baker and sample cakes, meet with photographers and planners at lunch time, and sample dinner menus in the evening with a caterer. Planning your wedding would be so much easier if you're not running all over town!!

I was honored to be asked by Michelle of Lemiga Events to become part of StudioWed Atlanta. It's been a whirlwind preparing for the grand opening as the storefront opened the same day we had our wedding shower in March... and we were gone for all of April for our own wedding and honeymoon. Now we're in the middle of busy wedding-season and have just a few more things to order before the BIG official launch in August.

In the meantime, the vendors at StudioWed have been having a blast getting to know each other and others in the industry. Almost every month is a different event. This month they're going over the top as usual with a Summer Social that's bound to be good fun!

You are invited to attend and may RSVP at: http://studiowedsummer.eventbrite.com/

Thursday June 25th, 2009
starts at 6PM
StudioWed Atlanta
1000 Marietta Street Suite 124
Atlanta, GA 30318
www.StudioWed.net

Hope to see you there!!



Join us as we celebrate the release of the Weddings Unveiled Summer 2009
issue at StudioWed Atlanta where you’ll find tons of ideas and inspiration
for your wedding. You’ll meet all the StudioWed vendors while cooling off
with unique beer and wine options from Hops City Craft Beer & Wine. Enjoy
appetizers from ultra-chic Soiree Atlanta Catering & Events and desserts from
Sweet Sensations, Sugarplum Visions, and Dreamy Gelato & Chocolates.
You’ll be pampered with hand and back massages from Luxe Beauty Co.
while listening to live music from Laura Coyle. All attending brides will
receive swag bags that include a copy of the new Weddings Unveiled
Summer 2009 issue and other lovely goodies. Brides will also be entered to
win a selection of fantastic prizes and giveaways.

In A Single Second...

Posted by Liana at 12:01 AM

WOW. That was a GORGEOUS wedding. Not just the decor but in the emotion that was thick, rich, and very very present at their wedding ceremony.

Heather and Carl choose a very unique circular-set-up for their ceremony. Here is a sneak peak. I was on one side with my 70-200. Mike roamed in after Heather then shifted to my 10-o-clock with his 24-70.

The following four pictures were taken within a single second. Three are mine and the black and white one is Mike's. This picture of Mike's took my breath away when I realized the composition with the beautiful art in the background and how everything lined up perfectly. During this point in the ceremony Carl's Best Man stood in front of them and read 1 Corinthians 13. I was trying hard to hold back tears - whenever I see someone cry I get choked up too!

If you look closely to #2 and #3, you can see a bit of me in Mike's pic, and him in mine.

17:34:09


17:34:23


17:34:21


17:34:45

Rohn and Elisa got Engaged this Morning!!

Posted by Liana at 5:07 PM

After the wedding we photographed last night, Mike and I both noticed we had urgent text messages from our mutual friend Rohn. He didn't say what he wanted, but Mike and I BOTH had a hunch it had something to do with him popping the BIG question to his girlfriend, Elisa. We decided to take our cameras to church with us this morning... and sure enough Rohn proposed on the balcony of Buckhead Church (where they met for the first time) and she said "of course"!!

On our way to go celebrate with the happy couple. Here's a few pics I snapped.











Congrats Rohn and Elisa!!!

Carl and Heather are Getting Married Today!

Posted by Liana at 10:24 AM

Here's a glimpse of their engagement session we did a while back at One Midtown Kitchen. I love that they picked one of their favorite restaurants for their engagement session - it had such great afternoon light!