Wedding Season Approaches

Wow, these last two weeks have just flown by. I've been busy working on several projects. One is almost ready to go while another is still being tweaked. I'm quite the perfectionist so it may still be a bit until they're unveiled. But when they are, I know my clients and my readers here will really appreciate them. ^_^

I've also joined a social network called, "Twitter". Basically, I've installed a little text box at the top right of this blog where I can type in what I'm doing whenever I want. Jeremy introduced it to me and I'm trying it out. It's actually kind of fun updating it. Who knows, it might just become my new online addition. hehe =D

Jeremy and I have also been gearing up for wedding season. We're kicking things off next weekend with our very first Austin e-session. I'm so excited! Then the following week, we'll be jetting off to Washington DC for a very awesome wedding. Is this really my job? lol... Yeah, it is. Don't get me wrong, I do actually work - a lot. But it's so worth it to meet cool people and help them capture their most important moments for them - all while being creative! I'm so grateful to the couples that allow me to do what I love and I thank them for it!

This is going to be a great year so stay tuned for all the latest and greatest!

(Our new) Home Sweet Home

Home. It's something I've been pining over these last few months. It's also what I've been hinting about in some of my previous posts. We've been waiting and hoping and biting nails - on pins and needles even! And now, we've finally found a place to call home - Austin, TX. It was touch and go there for a while, but I'm happy - and relieved to say we are now officially Texans.

We moved into our new place this weekend after a few months of temporary living quarters. =) I won't post any pictures of the mountains of moving boxes and the battle scars of sharpie ink. They'll be gone soon enough. I hope... But just image this: sunny skies, 78F in April, and no sign of winter blahs! Farewell, East Coast. Hello, Lone Star State!

We're loving life here in Austin. There's a thriving artist community, a retro vibe with some neat eat-in theaters, live music and concerts, SXSW, rockin' sushi runs with awesome people, parks, rivers and lakes, a cool city skyline, rolling hills and plenty of green trees. It's not how I pictured Texas to be at all. FYI - I used to listen to the old Lone Ranger Radio Drama tapes as a kid and that was basically how I got my idea of Texas. ^_^ It's so summer here. Temperatures have gotten to 91F with healthy mixture of humidity. (90% - that's healthy, right?) Still, we wouldn't trade our new hometown for anything.

On the photography side of things: our internet, email and phone are all up and running. We're looking forward to booking our 1st local wedding - in Austin. Yay! =) So if you're from the Austin area or know someone who is planning their wedding here, we're available for consultations and couple portrait sessions. We already have a few couples interested which is really exciting!

If your wedding is in Maryland, DC, or Virginia and you're thinking - shoot! They moved! Never fear. We'll be back off and on in 2008 for our current wedding clients. So if you'd like to meet with us then, let me know. I can travel all over the US (and the world) for weddings and portraits. Just tell me where you'd like to have your wedding or session and I can create a travel quote for you. Being here in Austin makes my travel times shorter and the country just a little bit closer. Just one of many reasons why I love Austin - our (new) home sweet home.

Over the next few days...

We will be updating our hosting and web services over the next few days. This could mean that our current email and site may go up and down - in and out - and all around. It could be a full on Twister show-down! =)

So until we get settled into our new comfy server, please email me here: heather.jorgensen@gmail.com or call me at 410.818.6748 so I can be sure your inquiries aren't lost to the internet's email-eating abyss.

Happy Thursday everyone!
~Heather

3 years ...(and a day)

Yesterday, I awoke to a torrent of rain. I thought it was ironic. Three years ago, I had awoken to the same rain gusts - hundreds of miles away. However, the morning's rain didn't stay long. The sun broke over the clouds by afternoon - exactly as it had done three years to the day - April 4, 2005.

I remember that day so clearly. It was truly the happiest day of my life. I think Jeremy feels the same way too. =) Can you guess what happened three years ago (and one day)?

Happy Anniversary to us! hehe... I was so happy at our wedding and completely stress-free (even though there were plenty of things that didn't go exactly according to plan). But because I knew that us getting married that day meant we would always get to be together, I was fine with whatever came my way. We'd still be married at the end of the day!

We played hooky yesterday and spent a special anniversary lunch at a new favorite (in a new home town) - Mikado's. The music was hip. The setting: hot, moody, and a little sultry too. Seriously, what I wouldn't give to do a photo shoot in there! I was talking to Jeremy about it throughout our meal. Jeremy, can you picture a boudoir shoot over there on that lounge sofa with that spot light? Wouldn't it be awesome? It'd be HOT! And of course, the food was yum~mmy! Jeremy approved of the tempura fried, pound cake wrapped-ice cream. ^_^ (Random thought) You know the weirdest thing yesterday? The color scheme at Mikado's was in our wedding colors. Even the actual texture of the bridesmaid's dresses were part of their wall decor! Weird coincidence, huh? Or maybe it was a diabolically genius plan of Jeremy's to surprise me and re-decorate the restaurant JUST for our Anniversary?! lol... (Jeremy said he didn't do it though. Shame, that would have been crazy romantic - or just plain crazy.)

Hopefully we can extend the anniversary celebration through this weekend. Three-day fun (anniversary) fest! Woot!

To Jeremy: Happy Anniversary, my love! These three years went by way too fast! But that's ok. I know we got plenty more to enjoy - so bring them on! I can't wait! ^_^ love, Heather

Wishing everyone a day(or weekend) of love with someone extra special!

~Heather

WPPI 2008 Recap!

It's been a week now since the crazy awesomeness that was the WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International) 2008 convention. I'm trying to let everything soak in. It really is information overload while you're there. But the experience and knowledge you get is so worth it! I left Las Vegas bursting with ideas and drive!

This year, I took tons of pictures so I could remember everything! I don't know about you, but my photographs have started to replace my memories - or at least they're strengthening them and staving off my age-prone amnesia. I'm so glad I did this because I met a lot of great people that I want to remember and keep in touch with! Also, I want to bottle up everything that lit a fire in my soul and challenged me to create beauty in the humdrum of our every day lives. When I feel a rainy day coming on, I'll just open up the lid (or photo folder) and let the ideas run loose! I tell ya, being there was like breathing pure oxygen. I didn't want to leave, but Jeremy said I had to. So did the security guard. ;( Why can't I stand in line for next year's convention now? lol

Our trip began with a few firsts for me - sharing a plan ride with a dog! I didn't know you could bring them along with you, but there he was! Cute, cuddly, adorable, and extremely well behaved! (The other first was an impromptu portrait session at 33,000 ft.) ^_^

This year, attendance was up around 11,000 photographers! As you can see, it made for some fun times in the mosh pit ...er, I mean, the trade show line.



Our first night there, they began with a program called, "Young Guns". The name implies 12 young pro photographers who are leading their fields with unique and awesome styles in their photography.

Here's Jose Villa. He and the other "Young Guns" decided to add some spectacle to the night by sporting cowboy boots and hats while re-enacting the "toy pop" gun fight at the WPPI corral! :)



Here are the Young Guns (from left to right): Ryan Schembri, John Solano, Mike Larson, Gene Higa, Lori Nordstrom, Jesh De Rox, David Jay, Catherine Hall, JB & DeEtte Sallee, and Jim Garner. (Check out that sweet smoke effect!)



Young Guns group pics! Yay! That right one leads me into one of the most amazing people I've ever heard speak or even met! See him in the middle? That's Mr. Jesh De Rox (pronounced "rocks").



I had the amazing privilege of meeting Jesh several times throughout the WPPI. He's an incredible person to be around - genuine, giving, super-talented and truly one of a kind!



His talk the following night focused on being yourself! We've all heard it. But has it really hit us? We all have something to give to the world and if we aren't ourselves, the world misses out on what we could contribute to it. By us all giving and sharing, we lift everyone up. That's what his newest project is about - Upward Spiral. He wants to find amazing people and give them an "innerview" (yes, inner not inter). We got the chance to watch a sneak peak of his first one with singer, Amy Seeley. It was very personal and touching. I can't wait to see more and I'd encourage you to check it out once the project goes live! (Oh yeah, we also talked about photography too. ^_^ But as artists, photography is just our medium. What we want to say with our photography is really what's important.)

Miss Amy Seeley. I've loved her songs since I first heard them play on Jesh's site. We're treated to surprise live performance during Jesh's presentation. WOW! It was so surreal and beautiful! If you have never heard her, please check out these links! She really is a gifted artist!
Amy's Website
Amy's MySpace Page

One word: Yummy! Can you believe this is what Vegas calls a 'candy apple'?



While we're on the topic of food: Le Burger Brasserie has the best chicken burgers this side of the strip!



Remember how I was raving about the trade show and the awesome albums they have? Well, I wasn't disappointed. This is Cypress's cute mini album! I know I showed a pic of it previously. But this was the first time I got to flip through one myself. When you pick it up, you just wanna say, awwwwwwe! Cypress's handmade albums and luscious fabrics are to die for! I'm so glad I'll be offering these albums this year!



This was our view from our room! Check it out! We were so high up, we could see all the way to Paris! hehe... (the Paris hotel anyway)



Sexy. Chic. Right outside the burger pub!



Besides taking away all of the good memories, tips and tricks from this year's show, we also brought home a new lens! Jeremy was kind enough to be my test model =D Seriously, this is one rockin' lens!



Thanks for looking through my pics! I hope you enjoyed them! I'd also like to wish you a Happy April Fool's Day. I tried to think of something fun I could post about today, but I'll I could come up with was making this blog EXTRA HUGE! Bwhahahahaha! April Fool's! ...no, seriously. Thanks for stopping in! Have a wonderful Tuesday everybody!

~Cheers!
Heather