Pinks & Greens: Formals at Sleepy Ridge

  Orchards are awesome.  Especially in the springtime, with little green buds about to burst with blossoms.  Blossoms of Luuuuuve.

Chandra was such a hoot!  She is apparently "everything pink"- pink is DEFINITELY this girl's color.  She is also one of the most naturally expressive girls I have ever shot.  Just look at her- she's so fun and happy and gorgeous.  The shoes she and Roland picked out were also very spring-appropriate.  And after all, if you've been following this blog for a while, you know I am a sucker for nice, vivid colors.

We finished the formals and bridals at the Sleepy Ridge Reception Center in Orem.  The golf course there is beautiful, and has some amazing views.  The wedding reception center itself is also fantastic, and they kindly kept the exterior lit for us so we could get some photos like the one below...

Heidi & Dan: Formals in Saratoga Springs

Heidi and Dan got married yesterday!  We had a wonderful formals shoot about a week ago, and I just had to share some more of the images we got.  We had some different props for this shoot, and even though it was freezing (what is it about late spring in Utah and winter-like temperatures???) we had a great time.

I thought these signs were super cute!

Congratulations Heidi and Dan! Have fun living in Hawaii!!!

The Perfect Touch of Winter

It looks like Xinling and Daniel's photos are going to be making an earlier appearance than I anticipated!  I loved these photos so much, I put in a late night to get them done so that I could share them with y'all.  Even though we shot these photos just recently, we happened to pick a day and location that was covered with the absolute perfect amount of snow.  We spent 90% of the shoot just above Sundance in Provo Canyon, and it was breathtaking.  It wasn't bitterly cold (given that it was the end of April), it was lightly snowing (just enough to give those awesome specks and add a romantic "je ne sais quoi"), and there was the perfect little layer of snow everywhere.  

As Xinling and Daniel were actually married in December, the winter setting was just right.

I love this next photo.  Love love love.  It captures the feeling of the day to a T.  Not a worry about the cold, no concerns about the possibility of getting the dress a little dirty- just plenty of love and excitement for photos to show it off.  There's nothing I love more than a sincere laugh.  To me, that is the face of beauty.

Look how gorgeous she is.  Daniel is a lucky man!

When we headed down the canyon to finish the shoot we found out that it had warmed up a bit and suddenly everything looked like Spring again!  I promised a look at Xinling's traditional chinese wedding dress, and here it is...  The red and gold was amazing- super brilliant colors.

Take a look at all of Xinling and Daniel's formals here.

Thanks!

Today was windy and cold out in Saratoga Springs, and it could have been difficult and frustrating.  But instead we feel so lucky!  We had the most amazing couple willing to tough it out.  

A big thank you to

for an incredible formals shoot today.

Behind the Scenes at Sleepy Ridge

  We had a fantastic formals shoot last night that finished up at Sleepy Ridge in Orem.  Sleepy Ridge is an AMAZING reception venue, and sunset on the green outside is begging for a photo.  I'll be posting the entire shoot in a couple weeks, but wanted to give y'all a peek behind the scenes for one of the evening shots.

First, the finished product:

Now,  the setup:

The photo above illustrates one of my favorite lighting setups, and shows how important it can be to have an assistant (or two!) for the session.  A big thanks to my husband Thomas and one of my interns, Amber!  This photo wouldn't be ANYTHING without the light.

Windy with a chance of marriage

We had a whirlwind formals session with Athena and Cyle the week of their wedding.  They were getting married in Utah but weren't able to come up until that week because Cyle was stationed in Killeen, TX with the U.S. military.  It definitely made for some extra urgency in sorting through and editing the photos so that they could have the print they chose for the reception, but it was so worth it to get to know them a little better before the wedding day and for the chance to get these fun shots!  

Athena suggested the Gateway Mall in downtown Salt Lake City so that their formals could have a different feel than the wedding day.  The day was incredibly windy, but the bright sun was amazing on the water thrown up by the fountains in the central plaza there.  Don't they look amazing???

I thought Athena's dress was beautiful, especially when the wind caught the train so perfectly!

Wonderful smiles and laughing faces?  Check.  Beautiful backlighting from the sun?  Check check.  Awesome sparkling water all through the background? Check check check.

This green was perfect.  Just the most spring-tastic shade of green ever!

Like I said though, it was windy.  Very windy.

Some music came on in the plaza, and Cyle was able to show off his mad dance skills...

To finish up, we were able to duck inside the Salt Lake Union Pacific Depot.  The building is gorgeous and the lighting inside was to die for!

And they're... gonna get ma-a-a-rried...

Chelsea and Dan are getting married today in the LDS Draper Temple, followed by a reception at Tuscan Garden Works.  So today's the perfect day to share the photos from their formals session!  

Love the expressions below.... super cute couple!

It was a little bit cold outside.  Luckily, Chelsea had her Mickey Mouse Snuggie there.  After all, no discerning bride would be without one.

Amy & Jordan- The Formals

I love formals.  Love love love them!  I love that you can get beautiful wedding photos in a setting where you have the time to get all the shots you want without the pressure of "gotta get to that reception", where you can go to multiple locations, and best of all, where you can set the shoot for the best time of day.  When you do that, you can get photos like this:

You just can't get photos like this on the wedding day.   (p.s., I did not enhance the blues on that- if anything, it's actually a little desaturated).  Most people generally get married anywhere from 9am until about 3 or 4pm.  This does not make it exactly easy to get that sweet sunset for your newlywed photos.  Thus, we turn to the formals!

Ok, I think Amy and Jordan are just plain adorable.  Really, when you look at Amy's smile, her cute dimples, you say the same kind of  "aww" as when you smile at a baby and she smiles right back.

Formals.  All the awesome newlywed photos, without any most of the stress. ;)

Kelsey and Brandon- Formals in SLC