Wish me luck...

As you can probably tell from some of the posts here or if you know me, Kelly turned me into a full-on football (real football, not that garbage they play here in the States) hooligan. I've played soccer now for almost five years, mostly in goal, but lately more and more as a forward or midfielder. My first love in sports though was volleyball. I played for three years at Purdue on the Purdue Men's team and for several years after that. Once I picked up soccer though, volleyball kind of fell by the wayside.

Well tomorrow night is my homecoming...I'm starting on a volleyball league. Just a local church league, but I'm still really looking forward to getting back on the court!! Still...wish me luck! :-)

Tracy & Adam From a pair of Purdue grads to a pair of soccer hooligans, how could life get any better?! We had the task of photographing this cute couple on the day of the US-Italy World Cup match. Though we had the TiVO set to record it, there was still a little twinge in the back of our minds of wondering what the score was. Luckily, the first thing we saw when we walked into the church was a big multimedia screen dropped from the ceiling and the utterly lovely vision of about twenty feet by twenty feet of glorious German World Cup soccer pitch projected above the heads of all the groomsmen. We watched and listened to the games right up until it was time to start photography, and immediately after the ceremony we were back at it. Another great day!

Valory & Kyle

This wedding had us on the road to sunny (well actually it rained that day) Elkhart, Indiana. I mean, how can you say no to a couple of fellow Purdue grads?! When they were introduced at the reception, it was to the sweet strains of 'Hail, Purdue'. What a way to kick off a party!!

Shannon & Chris

What a string of weddings we've been having! Kelly and I have both been getting some amazing photos over the past couple weeks. Here are a couple from Shannon & Chris's wedding. They were a blast to work with, and their reception was a three-alarm riot! :) We had an amazing time spending the day with them and their family. Here are just a few of the highest of the high points...

A New Sport... The child has discovered a new sport...laundry basket surfing. She crawls into the laundry basket and yells, "Riiii?!" ('ride'). Then we slide her around the floor. When our arms get tired, she yells, "Agaiiii??" ('again'). Thankfully, she eventually gets dizzy and won't ask for more. :-)

Planning Tips...

After being to more weddings than we can count, sometimes Kelly and I feel like we should go into the wedding planning business! ;-)

Here are a few random tips that can make your big day easier and more memorable...

• Unless you've got your heart dead-set on a summer wedding, go for a fall or even winter wedding. It'll be much easier to find vendors for your date, and you won't have to worry about wearing a heavy dress / tux in 90* heat!
• I know everyone wants to party into the night, but photography especially is a lot easier in well-lit conditions. Of course that's just the photographer in me talking, but overall your photos will come out much nicer in daylight.
• Make your day your own! Tradition is good, and there's nothing at all wrong with a traditional ceremony and/or reception, but don't be afraid to buck some trends here and there to make your wedding a truly memorable occasion.
• In our opinions, there are things to spend money on, and things it's okay to cut back on...spend on good food, moderately good booze, photography, and reception site. Things it's okay to cut back on...DJ, table settings, video. That's not to say those things aren't important, just in our experience those are the things that if you have to cut somewhere, that's where you'll notice it less.
• When considering a ceremony site, look at the details. The things that drive me batty as a photographer because I know they ruin photos...old carpet (70s orange, bay-beee!), bad lighting (including very low lighting, fluoroscent lighting, etc.), lots of power cords and other clutter draped all over everything.