Heath + Jen: Columbus, Ohio Wedding

Anyone who has had the pleasure of meeting Heath and Jen can tell instantly how in love the two are. The two met through work and formed a connection right away. After the ceremony the two were in constant contact and couldn't keep their hands off of each other. Heath and Jen, thank you so much for including me in your special day, it was an honor to capture your love. Enjoy your honey moon and your new life and family together!

Keep smiling,
Kaylina

Jen and Heath chose to do a hidden session before the ceremony- which I absolutely loved as a photographer. Jen and Heath wrote each other letters and Heath was very proud of himself for making Jen cry with his note (as any good husband would be).

Heath and Jen got married last Sunday at the Vault in Columbus, a historic bank vault in downtown Columbus. It was a gorgeous venue that served as a great backdrop for their intimate wedding.

Afterwards, we ventured outside to see if we could sneak in a few pictures in between rain showers. We got caught by the rain a few times, but Jen is so gorgeous, it didn't even matter.

Jen made and arranged all of the centerpieces herself (and drug Heath to various flea markets looking for all her vintage goodies). She also had an incredibly unique bouquet made of brooches she got from Etsy- I absolutely loved all of the vintage touches she added to her special day.

You can view more pictures from Heath and Jen's wedding in the slideshow below!

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Sierra- Pickerington, Ohio Mini-Senior Session

Sierra and I had a mini-senior session last Sunday and despite the cold temperatures, Sierra managed to look incredible in her spring dress. Sierra and I did her full senior session last fall, which you can see here and are planning another mini-session next week to capture her amazing high-jumping skills.

Sierra, you are absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to see you jump next week!

Keep smiling!
Kaylina

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Meet Mac: Granville, Ohio 2013 Senior Portraits

I met Mac on Saturday for one of my favorite senior shoots to date. I absolutely love being able to capture a senior's personality in their portraits because it makes them even more special. So when Mac's mom mentioned she wanted to spend the first hour of his shoot in Granville's public library because Mac works at his local library in McConnelsville, Ohio and is a "bookworm"- I might have done a little happy dance. (And when I saw the huge windows and gorgeous natural lighting in the library, I definitely did dance.)

So this is Mac. And to put it simply, he is an amazing guy. Not only is he extremely smart and at the top of his high school class, but he is also incredibly nice- he laughed politely at all of my lame jokes and didn't make fun of me for getting my right and left confused. Mac will be attending Brown University in the fall where he will be studying Astrophysics! It's no wonder that his family is incredibly proud of him.

After an hour at the gorgeous library we headed to Bryn Du Mansion where Mac's family jumped in on a few pictures as well. The mansion is where Mac's oldest sister, Jenna, got married last year so it was great to have his sisters, brother-in-law, and "niece", Bella the Bulldog, there as well. And to top off a perfect shoot, we finished up with Mac showing off his humorous side with his "MAC DDY" license plate.

Mac (and the rest of the Woodburns) thank you so much for spending your Saturday with me. I loved getting to know you and I wish you all the best in the future. Your future is so bright!

Keep smiling!
Kaylina

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Making Time for Pictures on Your Wedding Day

This might seem silly and obvious, but this post is about making time for pictures on your wedding day. More specifically, making time for posed pictures of the bride and the groom. I am a big advocate for doing a first look session before the ceremony, but I understand that some couples like to follow tradition and not see each other before the wedding. (You can learn more about first looks here).

So this post is more for those couple that aren't interested in a first look. It's harder for them to find time after the ceremony to get pictures taken together. A lot of brides tell me when I first meet them that they'll just get pictures taken together during the group pictures after the ceremony. That's a great idea and it's what I suggest, but if you don't sit aside time for the one-on-one pictures - they won't happen.

This is typically what happens on a wedding day: The bride has been up since 6am doing last minute things and has barely eaten because she's nervous. She just spent anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes standing in front of everyone she knows. Her feet hurt and she's hungry. And now hungry guests are pressuring her to rush through the group pictures so they can eat. A wedding day is magical and wonderful, but it's also stressful and hectic.

So in my first meeting with brides I like to challenge them to commit to putting 15 minutes aside for just the bride and the groom and say no to peer pressure! Take the bridal party shots, the family shots, and then send everyone away for 15 minutes. I know everyone's hungry and I know we all just want to get to the fun part: the drinking and the dancing, but I also know that when you skip the pictures of just the bride and the groom in a close, intimate setting - you'll regret it.

Below is a great example of an amazing couple who made time to take some one-on-one shots after their wedding. Tommy and Jen got married in Newark, Ohio in December (luckily it was a 60 degree December day). After the ceremony we took a five minute car ride to a theater downtown that meant something to them. Then we ducked into an alley nearby for some amazing, posed shots. Tommy and Jen's bridal party was with us but when it came time for Jen and Tommy's moment, I sent them around the corner to hangout so Jen and Tommy could be alone (and more comfortable in front of the lens). There's a reason that prom pictures look so awkward - it's because there's a line of 50 of your peers watching you take them! Go somewhere private for the pictures - you'll thank me.

I'm not just going to harp that you need to take pictures and then leave it to you to figure out how. I do have a few suggestions on how to make time for pictures on your wedding day. The easiest one is to take same sex group pictures before the ceremony. Tommy and Jen did this and it led to some amazing and fun pictures of the guys outside the church before the wedding (there was a jungle gym involved). This made the group pictures after the ceremony go a lot faster. Second, give yourself a buffer between the ceremony and the reception so you know you have time and you're not rushing yourself. A great way to keep your guests happy during that time is by having a cocktail hour. Lastly, make some plans for the bride and groom pictures. Pick out a location (and maybe a back-up just in case)- it can be at the church, at the reception, or somewhere else entirely and let people know ahead of time that you want it to be just a one-on-one thing.

I know I may be a little bias about the important of pictures on a wedding day, but I also know that there are brides out there that feel the same way. So if you're one of those brides, take my advice and make some time to take the pictures you'll want on your walls for the rest of your life!

Keep smiling,
Kaylina

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Still patiently waiting for Spring

A few Fridays ago it was gorgeous out (well, gorgeous for Ohio weather) - 60 degrees and sunny. Who cares that there were still piles of snow on the ground? Ever since that day I've been more than a little antsy to get outside and enjoy Spring. The problem is that every day since then has been 40 degrees... tops. I've been so desperate to get outside I let Blake talk me into going rock climbing with him.

A little clarifying note here - I DO NOT climb. I hyperventilate climbing the stairs to a top of a water slide, squeal and clamp my eyes shut on escalators, and have to sit down in glass elevators. I do not like heights. I do, however, like to sit at the bottom and take pictures.

That man with the terrible choice of pants is Blake's friend, John but when he wears those I pretend I don't know him.

Unfortunately, there was a casualty that day. And I almost got beaten up by a kid who was a little overprotective of his favorite toy.

Keep smiling,
Kaylina

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Meet James: 2013 Senior Portraits - Reynoldsburg, Ohio

I met James last Friday to take his senior pictures at Blacklick Woods Metro Park in Reynoldsburg, Ohio. Because James is graduating in a few short months, we braved the 40 degree weather and managed to have a fun time despite the fact that my fingers were bright red and he was wearing a t-shirt for half the shoot. James brought his mom, Patti and his beautiful beagle, Kennedy, to the shoot as well and even patiently sat through his mom and I's explanation of the Six Million Dollar Man and all of our accompanying (and terrible) sound effects. And for those reasons, James is an amazing and very brave soul.

James will be graduating this May from Mid-East CTC in Zanesville and plans on attending Hocking College next year. He's currently in the Natural Resources program at his high school and is also involved in cross country and swimming. So by all definitions, he's an "outdoorsy" guy which makes it even better that he didn't laugh at me when I told him I didn't know a snipe was a real bird.

James and Patti- thanks so much for spending an evening with me and for laughing when I almost made James fall into a creek instead of pushing me in as well!

Keep smiling!
Kaylina

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Meet Persius

It started out as what I consider to be a healthy fear of bathrooms. I'm terrified of scary movies, so I've seen less than a dozen in my entire life, but the few I have- always have bathroom scenes. Which led me to develop the ritual of always checking behind the shower curtain (or any other hiding place) for murderers before I do my business.

In high school I worked at a family owned ice cream shop for four years. The bathroom in the back for workers was barely big enough for one occupant, let alone a hiding place for a crazed serial killer, but I never took any chances. Every time I slipped through the door I would push back the lid on the trash can to make sure no pint size terror was waiting for me. I explained this (completely rational) fear to my co-workers and even named the fictional threat- Persius the creepy gnome. So for the next couple years there was a long standing joke about Persius the gnome waiting patiently in the bathroom trash can for the right moment to strike.

Then one day, he did. One day I pushed back the trash can lid and there he was- crinkled, murderous eyes, a blood red hat, and hands that would certainly be my demise (okay, maybe he looked more sinister in the trash can and in my mind). I screamed, everyone laughed, and Persius, the bathroom gnome, found a new home. I've had him guarding my dvd collection for the past four years. He's a little top heavy and occasionally falls from his post, scaring the bejezus out of me, but I've come to appreciate him and his creepy, watchful eye and trust the he's not waiting to kill me.

This does not, however, stop me from checking behind the shower curtain every time I enter the bathroom. You can never be too careful.

Keep smiling,
Kaylina

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