…because I’m a city girl to my core. I don’t mind traffic, crowds, or even the occasional public display of…urination. My heels are at least 3″ above anything that might dissolve my skin anyway. Right?

Truly, it is so much more than that. A city to me teems with unending and innumerable possibilities. I am much more than a city girl. I am also much more than just a photographer. Mark my words.

Dream blogstalkers,

-A

GALLERY | WILCHEROLOGIE

Yeah, yeah, yeah. This post is out of order. (And funny enough…its my blog! Its fantastic how that works.) I think its all the warmth (and alcohol) that has me reminiscing. It certainly wasn’t being held by the Mexican militia on a beach while speaking little Spanish (one day those many, many years of French will come in handy…one day) the day that I was trying to re-enter to shoot this lovely wedding at Grand Velas. Nope. It wasn’t that. You see people-you hang out with me and the strangest things in life will happen to you. I imagine that some people just must think that I love to make up the most elaborate, hilarious, and embarrassing stories but its all the truth I tell ya! If you want the full story, ask me! (Please. Its pretty fun to tell!)  Regardless, I hope you enjoyed the many luscious details and almost postcard-cheesy-perfect setting that I was able to capture. Leave Rob and Theresa some love won’t you?

Back to blogstalking!

-A

P.S.- I will be posting lots of more previous weddings, don’t y’all worry.    …and don’t worry. I don’t really say y’all except for the internet.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

P.S.S-

Photographers! I will be attending WPPI in Vegas this year from Sunday through Thursday. Since I’m going it alone this year if  you recognize me, please say hello! I’ll be attending Airhorn and Lasers on Sunday night when I arrive, plus lots more random events that I’m basically too lazy to list. If you’d like to keep up on my daily happenings while there, follow me on Twitter.

And because Kyle is staying home in the ridiculous cold, keep him company.

Its no secret that I refer to cupcakes as my proverbial “crack” and our local cupcake bakery my “dealer.” If you follow my tweets, then you know this firsthand.  You know that junk about blah, blah, blah, the average American consumes blah blah blah lbs of sugar per year? Well I put their blah to shame. Really. Its shameful. My mother literally let me eat icing right out of the “can” (yes, that plastic, heart sickeningly sweet can of icing) for …breakfast…with nothing else. She wasn’t a bad mom. I was just an especially sugary sweet devil child.  For over two decades of my life I ate Reese Cups, chicken fingers, french fries, bacon, McDonald’s, and well, anything with sucrose-loaded.  Sound healthy, no?

Its funny how when people stop hounding after you to change something that you automatically have the desire to do it on your own. You see, if you would have asked me just 4 or 5 years ago if I would like the following items below (and I’m NOT kidding about this) I would flat out tell you no. Here’s a list of some foods I tried for the first time EVER in the past couple years:

Pizza | Hamburger…still don’t like…okay haven’t tried  | Salad…disgusting | Cheesecake | Rice | Pasta | Steak | Apples, Strawberries, and Cherries | Pancakes and Waffles | Scrambled Eggs  Milkshakes | Ice Cream Sandwiches | Sandwiches in general. Ha…you think I’m kidding. |  Mashed Potatoes | Quesadillas & Burritos | Sweet Potatoes | Blueberry Muffins

I know you have all met some finicky eaters, but really? Even looking at that list, I can barely believe it. How did I go well over twenty years never even TRYING mashed potatoes, cheesecake, steak, or…sandwiches?!?! (Don’t ask, I thought bread and cheese and meat together was really strange.)

I was in food prison.

And I guess I’m not totally out. I still don’t like anything with tomatoes, any vegetables minus the potato variety, soups (hot liquid still freaks me out) which also rules out hot chocolate and hot coffee and teas, and I’m still slightly iffy about pie. My grandmother would look at me with such disdain as she tried to figure out why this “child” (that was my legit name by the way and still is)  would not try these DAMNED NOOOODLES!! That to this day, is the only fight we’ve ever had.

And while I might be on lifetime probation, I don’t really mind.  There are such sweeter things in life I’ll never tire. This time around though, I can make them for myself.

For the kids working at Chick-fil-A who ask me 6 times, “Sweet Tea???” when I ask them for extra packets of sugar to go with it – my job is better than yours. ; )

Thanks for blogstalking,

-A

GALLERY | SUBSCRIBE

As is the life of a photographer, many of my mind numbing hours behind the computer are spent dredging through literally thousands of images per week. Editing, emailing, editing, editing, editing, emailing, and a dash of blogging pushed somewhere in the mix tends to be the norm these days. While I am a confidently focused person on the task at hand, sometimes I just have to let my mind wander the internet and alleviate the perpetual brainstorm. Or just walk away from the computer. Not that this is particularly interesting, but I have acquired some pretty good time wasters distractions. In no particular order:

http://foodgawker.com/

I’m the self appointed Anti-Susie-Homemaker, but sometimes a girls gotta give a make 6 desserts for absolutely no reason in the span of 48 hours. Jus’ sayin’.

http://www.decorpad.com/index.htm

DecorPad is an online network mix of professional interior designers as well as people like myself. My favorite part is that it holds a huge gallery of photos to browse and find ideas that coordinate with a style or color palette. Once you click on a room you like, it will show you similar designs. I’m totally addicted. Here are some of my favorite rooms so far (as you can see I have multiple personality decorator disorder, otherwise, MPDD):

Okay, I’m guilty. I can’t actually believe that I’m putting this out here. Here are the 3 most things that I feel deteriorate my IQ, with the worst of them first.

Perez. Yes. Perez. I gotta know about Brangelina, okay? In a far second and third place, respectively, comes Twitter and Facebook. I’m not evening going to put a link to these. If you are reading this, there’s a 99% chance you know how to find it yourself.

http://beautifulpaper.typepad.com/

Being a lover of all things beautiful, Beautiful Paper makes my list.

I love the examples of letterpress, and endless array of fonts, designs, and yummy ideas.

That’s it for now. I want to hear what is in your browser! I’m in dire need to shake things up at the office in my downtime. Won’t you share? I would love to hear the unique sites you visit often and maybe why they keep you coming back.

Thanks for blogstalking!

-A

GALLERY | SUBSCRIBE

Exhale. Breathe in. Revel in each moment. Enjoy the stress. Its not always a bad thing, as it will come.

In my experience, my best weddings were not necessarily held at grand ballroom’s with $150K of floral arrangements. They weren’t dependent on a flawlessly clean alabaster dress and makeup that a tractor pull couldn’t remove. Tradition was seen as an option, not a requirement. Love and tears and laughter were cohesive. The only thing that mattered was a marriage and love shared. Once everything else took a backseat, ironically all that was left seemed to magically come together. And if it didn’t, well that’s okay too. Its always like that in life I presume.

As I was rifling through several weddings today I came along a particular and very truthful moment that illustrates though imagery much better than I can explain through my own words. (Hence why I’m a photographer.) This will live as one of my favorite photos I’ve taken to date.

GALLERY | SUBSCRIBE

Its no news that I’m a lover of all animals in general, but after an unsettling story in the news this morning (and it not by far, the worst I’ve heard) I could not go without posting something to maybe create a little more awareness to my readers for the sad and completely unjustified abuse that our furry friends face in the States and the world every single day.

Several of my weddings this year (previously on Kelly+Peter, and coming soon on Michelle+Chad’s wedding) have made the fab decision to use donations in the names of their guests as their favors.

I, personally, could not agree with a better idea.

From the ASPCA, Here are 10 sign of animal abuse:

1. Be aware. Without phone calls from the concerned citizens who report cruelty in their neighborhoods, we wouldn’t know about most instances of animal abuse. It all comes from the public, it all starts with YOU—that’s why it’s so important to keep your eyes and ears open. Get to know and look out for the animals in your neighborhood. By being aware, you’re more likely to notice, for example, that the dog next door who was once hefty has lost weight rapidly—a possible indicator of abuse.

2. Learn to recognize animal cruelty. Here are some signs and symptoms that we see in many of the cases we investigate:

• Tick or flea infestations. Such a condition, if left untreated by a veterinarian, can lead to an animal’s death.
• Wounds on the body.
• Patches of missing hair.
• Extremely thin, starving animals.
• Limping.
• An owner striking or otherwise physically abusing an animal.
• Dogs who are repeatedly left alone without food and water, often chained up in a yard.
• Dogs who have been hit by cars-or are showing any of the signs listed above-and have not been taken to a veterinarian.
• Dogs who are kept outside without shelter in extreme weather conditions.
• Animals who cower in fear or act aggressively when approached by their owners.

3. Know who to call to report animal cruelty. We’re lucky here at the ASPCA in New York City, because we have Humane Law Enforcement officers who have the power to investigate and arrest perpetrators of animal cruelty in the state of New York. But every state and even every town is different. In some areas, you may have to rely on the police department to investigate animal cruelty; in others, you may have to contact local animal control or another municipal agency. If you aren’t sure where to report cruelty visit our Report Animal Cruelty section.

4. Provide as much as information as possible when reporting animal cruelty. The details that you provide can go a long way toward assisting the investigating officer. It helps to write down the type of cruelty that you witnessed, who was involved, the date of the incident and where it took place.

5. Call or write your local law enforcement department and let them know that investigating animal cruelty should be a priority. Animal cruelty is a CRIME—and the police MUST investigate these crimes.

6. Know your state’s animal cruelty laws. These vary from state to state, and even from city to city. You can visit the ASPCA’s online database of more than 550 animal cruelty laws—and their penalties—in all 50 states.

7. Fight for the passage of strong anti-cruelty laws on federal, state and local levels by joining the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade. It’s frustrating when I have built a strong case against someone who has been arrested for cruelty to animals and the judge treats it like a simple violation. But with stronger laws, they’ll be more likely to receive tougher penalties. As an ASPCA Advocacy Brigade member, you’ll receive emails asking you to write letters encouraging your legislators to pass these laws-and you can send them directly from our website.

8. Set a good example for others. If you have pets, be sure to always show them the love and good care that they deserve. But it’s more than just food, water, and adequate shelter. If you think your animal is sick, bring him to the veterinarian. Be responsible and have your animals spayed or neutered. And I always give my own pets lots of hugs when I get home!

9. Talk to your kids about how to treat animals with kindness and respect. I regularly see children in homes where animal abuse has been reported. If a parent isn’t treating the family’s pets right, I tell kids that their dog or cat would really appreciate fresh water every day, or if they spent some time playing with them. If the animal has been left outside without shelter, I’ll say, ‘You have a nice house, and if you get cold, you can put a coat on. But your dog can’t do that. Don’t you think he’d like a nice warm place to go, too?’ I know of families who watch Animal Precinct together, and I think this can help children understand that animals are living creatures who have the ability to feel pain, joy and sadness. You can see these emotions on the faces of the animals on the show.

10. Support your local shelter or animal rescue organization. Before I even knew that police for animals existed, I was volunteering at an animal shelter. It’s a great way to make a difference. Some of our ASPCA volunteers foster animals who have been abused in their former homes, giving these dogs and cats the chance they deserve to have a good life. You can find a list of shelters and rescue groups in your area in our National Shelter Directory.

Click on the “Donate Today!” to help.

Although this list I added includes several ways to spot animal abuse, please remember that in addition to food, water, and shelter-our animals need most importantly- LOVE.

On a lighter note, click here to see my very own Maverick get the top picks in a dog contest! (He was #5 of over 1400 entries.)

Thanks for reading!

-A

It worked for Diddy.

Maybe next I’ll invite everyone to my peach and white party. Yes,  I’m hilarious.

(…and I know ya’ll got family and friends that you could tell to vote too…cause I know where you live…)

Click there to VOTE

THANK YOU!!!!!!

My mom asked on Mother’s Day, “Could we just get a couple pictures today? ”

“Mais bien sûr!” ‘ Cause we all casually throw around French in this household. Je sais pas…

Our impromptu session(s) were shot in 8 minutes each. Props to Kyle for the last photos including me and the last, yet my favorite moment with my mom. : )

Fact 1) My mom has the most hysterically LOUD laugh. Probably even louder than mine. I know, right?

Fact 2) My entire family is NUTS, and she is the leader of the nut-pack. (As you can see my sister demonstrating below as well.)

Fact 3) I have inherited “the nose” and “the legs” from her. No thanks, and thanks respectively.

Fact 4) I am a total momma’s girl and I love it.

Hope all those brave enough to be a mom had an awesome Mother’s Day!

-A

I have been on the brink of utter disaster this last weekend. Not because of any wedding or any person but because of the damned Internet. We have as many of you know, been in the process of rebranding in a way that better suites our style and our company as a whole. During the process without a long explanation I basically lost the ENTIRE old blog with all of my posts AND photos. Thankfully for some reason the only thing salvaged were my written entries so I didn’t have to rewrite everything which honestly would have just been impossible, BUT I did lose all of the blog’s photos and photo-collages I painstakingly put together. Just so everyone knows-for each portrait/engagement/lifestyle session I blog it takes me at least 30 minutes to write THEN it takes probably another 1-2 (no kidding!) hrs. to make, arrange, and edit the blog photos. Weddings?! That’s another ballgame. Sometimes I’m out for a good 3-4 hrs writing, editing, posting, critiquing myself…So I’m no coding expert, but I’d like to say I that I became very familiar with Mr.HTML this week. Oh…I lost all my sweet comments too.: (

So moving on; here’s to the new and improved, the new day, the new week, the new minute as it seems.  I’m sure I will be tweaking things here and there but at least its game time again. I’ll leave you with a little branding fun and a sneak peak for whats up next.

As always, thank you for blogstalking.
-A

Ahhh…it is almost here. Why does the “New Year” start in January when it is still dismal and dark? I have just decided that my new year arrives as the SoCal weather sets in.  I always say that I just want to move to somewhere warmer.  And then I’m always hit with the same comeback appropriately from Kyle of, “Well then you just wouldn’t appreciate the weather as much when it does become nice, would you?” Well…maybe not, but at this point snow does not go with Christian Louboutin’s.  I don’t care WHAT you saw in past posts.

There is something so magical about spring and summer that cannot be duplicated in the winter or fall here in the Midwest.

I love the powerful breeze from our 12′ windows. I love gallivanting at 9:30 pm wherever and the sun juuuuust decides to set. I love dresses-especially ones with the prefix, summer. I love warm conversations and accordingly, summer love. I love the moments where my girlfriends and I lose our adult-ness in exhange for a more giggled, gleeful child-like joy and lay in the middle of a deserted street in the dead of night, just because we can.

I just stumbled upon these images today and combined with the fresh scent of spring nearing, I am ready to break out whatever it is you break out for spring. The first photo came from an engagement session I shot in Chicago near Lakeshore. We were walking along and I, being the fervent dog lover and never one to pass up a puppy opportunity, snuck this in along our stroll. If you look close enough you can see that his water bowl was perfectly turned so that “POOCH Chicago” is visible.

This photo was actually taken with a point and shoot, again while meandering about. (I end too many sentences with a preposition, I know.)

Anyway, it’s not ALL about the gear, bb. (though it doesn’t hurt!)

Deeply inhale and let the countdown begin.