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Valarie and Shawn’s New Family

Valarie and Shawn were some of my very first wedding clients.  They had a pretty Bardstown, Kentucky wedding around 3 years ago.  I was thrilled when I found out  Valarie was expecting a little boy and wanted to do a maternity/newborn session.  Sweet little Elliot is a doll.  He slept the entire time I was at their home shooting.  Valarie was so gentle and loving with him.  She is going to be the best mom ever!  Thank you so much for including me in these precious moments of your life Valarie and Shawn.

 

The Happy Couple Duo

I met this talented couple, Katy and Zachary,  last month at the Northside Bridal Show at Mayday.  They were showcasing their event entertainment business, The Happy Couple Duo.  I contacted them about setting up a shoot because I was so intrigued with them and wanted to know more about them.

I asked Katy to tell me a little more about how they got started and what they do and this is what she had to say…

“Zachary and I are high school sweet hearts and we met each other while attending The Governors School For the Arts in Virginia, a performing arts high school similar to the one here in downtown Cincinnati. We fell in love in a famous castle in Germany while on an orchestra tour at the puny age of 17.  We’ve been playing music, collaborating, and creating together ever since, almost 12 years later.

We began playing weddings and private events as a quartet at 17 through our performing arts school connections. We enjoyed the energy at events and decided to grow it into a business. We love to perform together!

We offer string duo and trio, DJ, music arrangement, LED spot and up-lighting, as well as custom artistic light displays. We can arrange any song (pop, jazz, classical, etc.) for violin/viola duet or for violin/viola/bassoon trio. Our string duo and trio music library is the most eclectic and offers the most variety of any other group in the tri-state. Our DJ library is extensive and covers every genre from top 40s to under ground and indie. We are the only music services in the tri-state area to offer DJ, lighting, and Live instrumental music.”

Katy does most of the arranging and is working on a book.  They also just got funded through Kickstarter and will have a full length album containing their own violin/viola/bassoon arrangements of popular songs by current and past artists.

Check out their Facebook page and website to see videos of them performing.

 I was drawn to them after hearing them play some of my favorite songs by Queen and Nirvana on violin/viola and because they kept me dancing all night once they started DJing.  Their music selection was diverse and fun.  I had an absolute blast on this shoot.  It wasn’t hard to get a smile out of them and their chemistry together is wonderful.

Experimenting with Ross and Laura

Check out this super talented couple I had the pleasure of photographing.  When I called them up to ask to them to do a shoot, I planned on doing environmental portraits for my on going personal project Artists and Their Space.  Once I started shooting, I knew this wasn’t just going to be a standard shoot.  I felt free to explore with them, to experiment.  Some things worked, some didn’t, but that the beauty of creating.  We shot through light bulbs and light fixtures,  we used oil lamps and fluorescent bulbs.  It was a blast!  

Ross and Laura have been together since they were teens.  Musically, they are a force.  Ross plays guitar in the , The Tongue and Lips and Laura has her own band called Children of the Emerald Fire.  Together they just started a new band called Electric Citizen.  You can see them tonight at The Southgate House Revival.  Check out their demo here, I have been listening non stop.

Styled Shoot at Bakersfield OTR

I had the amazing opportunity to collaborate with some of my favorite people for this styled shoot at Bakersfield in Over the Rhine.  We wanted to do something unique and fun.  Marti, of Marti’s Floral Design styled the shoot and had this to say about it…Off the beaten path, not the typical love. Not the typical bride. That was our inspiration of this. Focusing on the love. Even if it is not the one that everyone sees as being normal. The casual wedding taken past the mason jars. We found so much inspiration in the casualness of a quickie wedding and how stylish it could still be. Bohemian meets Masculinity. We wanted to show that both could still be present in a wedding. Something to reflect both of them. Lace and leather. Guns and flowers. Not everything has to be typical for a wedding. Make it reflect the couple that you are and not a formality. Caroline and Jesse are the perfect image of the couple today. Off the beaten path, showing the love, and forgoing the typical wedding.

Location: Bakersfield OTR Flowers and Styling:  Marti’s Floral Design  Invitation/Menu Design: Erica Keuter Designs Make up:  Cinci Makeup Wardrobe: Sloan Boutique Hair: Colleen Herman