courtney jade’s blog

I knew I would adore Kimberly and Kevin when they chose Monticello’s as their meeting place to talk over the details of their special day.

The two met at school, and through Kevin’s persistence, they ended up going on a date. She thought it went terrible, and he thought it went great… but in the end, regardless of how that first date went, Kimberly was won over by Kevin’s charm.

She smiles with her eyes when you mention him, and the entire morning, before she had seen her handsome groom, she was brimming with excitement. She was the perfect bride. Beaming with beauty, grace, and anticipation, you can see how in love she is with him. She is relaxed, but excited, a perfect mix for the perfect day.

He is proud. You can tell that he is full of joy, and he has been anticipating this very day for quite some time. He is confident in his decision to marry this beautiful girl, and ready to start the next chapter of their lives together. He too, is calm, but excited. He can’t help but smile anytime he hears her name, and he is anxiosuly awaiting the moment he first sees her walking down that isle, straight to him.

Kimberly + Kevin, thank you so much for choosing me to document your most special day. I hope that these photos serve as memories for years and years to come, I feel blessed to have been there for you both. Enjoy.

Sometimes you meet people, and you just click. It’s as if you were long lost best friends, or kindred spirits.

I have been lucky enough to meet a two of such people in the past 9 months, and one of them is Deena. Read the rest of this entry …

Something that has become more and more popular over the years on your wedding day is the “First Look”. While many couples prefer to see their fiance for the first time on their wedding day be at the isle, more and more couples are opting for a “First Look” instead.

There are many positives to having a “First Look”, as opposed to seeing each other for the first time at the isle:

1) Your moment is totally private.
You are bound to get emotional on your wedding day, especially when you see the person you are about to marry, looking their best. When you arrange a “First Look”, you reserve that moment, that first glance of each other, for just the two of you. You don’t have an audience (most of the time- this can depend on the couple though), and you get to have a moment to say “hello”, and tell each other how great one another looks, as well as how excited you are for this very special day.

When you see each other for the first time down the isle (which is nerve wrecking enough, as-is) you don’t get that private moment. It’s hard to talk to each other without interrupting the flow of your ceremony. Trust me, that moment of walking down the isle will still be intense, just a little less emotional…. maybe

2) You can get your formal photos done BEFORE the ceremony.
When you arrange to have a “First Look”, this means that you only have to hide from one another until this moment. Since you’ve already seen each other, it allows for time to be scheduled before the ceremony to get through all of the formal wedding party, family, and couple photos. As a photographer, this is a HUGE saving grace. Before the ceremony, people are generally happy, excited, and eager to participate. It’s a strange thing, but after the ceremony all people can think about is that they are hungry, want to party/celebrate, and give their condolences to the bride and groom- rightfully so. So you can imagine how difficult it is to get people to show up for the family photos before racing off to the reception, let alone concentrate!  Not to mention, everyone just wants to get the photos over with so they can celebrate already!

As a bride and groom, I’m sure the last thing you want to do after you tie the knot is to stand around and wait for Aunt Betty to waddle over so she can get in the photo with you. With a “First Look”, you can get this all taken care of and out of the way before-hand, so that once you say your “I do’s” there’s nothing left to worry about except having a great time!

3) Don’t worry about the tears- or the nerves!
I don’t think I’ve ever been to a wedding where the bride didn’t shed a tear the first time she saw her fiance standing there, all cleaned up and looking like a hunk. When you do a “First Look”, you can get those initial tears out without worrying about everyone seeing your mascara run. Have your Maid of Honor stand by with a couple of Q-tips, concealer and powder so you can freshen up before the formal photos, and before you make your debut to the isle!

You also get to let go of those pre-wedding jitters! Seeing your spouse-to-be can be soothing, and reassuring. Plus, you get to tell each other how much you love one another, and how great you look- boosting your confidence for the big moment!

4) “First Look” photos are always incredibly special.
While not impossible, it is much more difficult to get really great photos of both the bride and the groom’s expression when they first see each other at the isle. With you both being so far away when first seeing each other, it’s very hard to capture each person’s initial reaction. Generally, I stand at the end of the isle, closest to the wedding party. This way, I can get photos of everyone walking down the isle. I can also usually get a pretty good photo of the groom when he first sees his bride-to-be. However, it proves difficult to get a really great shot of the bride when she first walks through the door. (If you have a second photographer, this task can be easier) Also, just think of everyone who is standing on either side of the isle while you walk down. What if your second cousin decided to wear their neon yellow and purple polka dotted blouse? Or your little nephew is intrigued by the photographer, and instead of watching you, he’s picking his nose, staring at me. Trust me, these things have happened and they are GREATLY distracting in your photos.

This is one of the most cherished reactions you will ever keep in your memories. Wouldn’t it be awesome to have really great photos of it?

5) You get to enjoy your party!
You’ve spent MONTHS, sometimes YEARS putting this awesome event together. After the ceremony, instead of waiting around for everyone to get together for photos, you get to go ahead to your cocktail hour/reception and mingle, greet guests, and enjoy yourself! With everything out of the way, the nerves gone, and nothing but happiness on your mind, there’s nothing better than kicking back, and enjoying all of the hard work! So cheers! Drink a cocktail, chat with family, dance with friends! Since you’ve gotten all of your formal pics done and out of the way, you can just enjoy yourself.

I still reserve the right to steal away the bride and groom for some extra couple photos during the reception though, sometimes there are photo ops that are just too good to miss!

With all of these wonderful perks to having a “First Look”, you can see why more and more couples are opting to go this route. With the right planning and time management, your day is a breeze!

Please feel free to contact me with any comments, questions or concerns  you may have, I’m always happy to share my experiences, advice, and encouragement!

Feel free to share this article by linking your Facebook, blog, or Twitter! Please remember to credit me by name- Courtney Jade Photography

brian (awesome) + lea (beautiful) = beautifully awesome couple.

Over a year ago the beautiful Lea asked me to be a part of her and Brian’s most special day- in Costa Rica. This was my first destination wedding ever, and I am so glad that I was able to have such a wonderful bride and groom (and their friends) to experience it with!

Brian and Lea make such a beautiful couple, but they are also genuinely wonderful people. It’s not every day that you feel like your clients are friends that you’ve known forever, yet this is how they made me feel. Thank you to both of you for making me feel like such a part of your group, not just on your wedding day, but my entire stay in Costa Rica. Brian and Lea were married at the beautiful Tamarindo Diria Hotel in Tamarindo, Costa Rica.

You are both lovely, I hope your photos will forever be a reminder of how extremely beautiful your day was.

view your slideshow here

the beginning.

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One of my MANY favorites from the wedding last week in Tamarindo, Costa Rica!
Congratulations Lea and Brian, you make a beautiful couple <3

I have SO many photos to go through and edit… I can’t wait to share them all with you!!!

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Have you ever read the book “The Five Love Languages” by Gary Chapman? Well, if you haven’t you should, it’s a very interesting book!

“Of the countless ways we can show love to one another, five key categories, or five love languages, proved to be universal and comprehensive—everyone has a love language, and we all identify primarily with one of the five love languages: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch.”

At the end there is a quiz that you take to determine which of your love languages are the strongest. My top results were “Receiving Gifts” and a tie between “Words of Affirmation” and “Quality Time”. Everyone speaks all 5 languages to some degree, but it’s natural for most people to have a dominant one or two.

This was no surprise to me by any means. I value gifts, little and big, immensely. Whether it’s a quote written down on a napkin, or a beautiful sparkly something, it has the power to take my breath away. I also love giving gifts! I feel like it’s a great way to show that I’ve been thinking of someone, and I always put great time and effort into selecting and preparing special presents for people.

I believe that this is why I love photography so much. When you take someone’s photo, and then give it to them, it’s a very special gift. No one can ever relive the moments that have passed, and memories fade with time, but a photograph lasts forever. Those little moments frozen in time to remember and hold on to forever. There’s just something so special about that.

So it was to my complete surprise when I opened my mailbox this evening and there was a “You Have a Package in the Manager’s Office” slip sitting atop my mail! I racked my brain trying to think of what it could possibly be… did I order something? Did Mark order something? A print order? A large envelope from the insurance company (you know, one of those horribly ridiculous packs of paper that they are required by law to send out once a year or something.. waste of trees!) None of those. I raced up to the office since it was about to close, and eagerly handed her my slip.

“Ah!” she said as she turned around and picked up a medium sized brown box.

She handed me the box, and it was sealed with SAINT CUPCAKE PACKING TAPE!!!! Saint Cupcake?? But, who? How? Why??? What was in there?! My mind went racing, thinking who would be so nice as to send me something so amazinly sweet and awesome… and what was in it?! I thanked the manager and raced back to my apartment. Once I got in the door, I cut the tape and opened the package.

The glory of it all. I LOVE this place. It is the first cupcakerie I ever stepped into years ago, and I’ve been in love ever since. My good friend is friends with the owners of the place (one who is a graphic designer superstar– in case you couldn’t tell..) How gorgeous is this presentation!?! I flipped the card over…

Of course!!! My lovely bride (and friend of MANY years) Jesse from last Saturday’s wedding! She had asked me for my address and I thought nothing of it. WHAT. A. DOLL!!! At this point I have serious little pink hearts floating all around me, I’m so happy. Pink + cupcakes + amazingly gorgeous packaging/design= DROOL!

I realize that it’s not just cupcakes, but an entire “Saint Cupcake cupcake kit”!!! What the heck!? Completely amazing.

Six un-frosted cakes, 6 containers of different flavored frostings, six spreading sticks, and six little baggies of sprinkles! No sparing on the presentation, this is completely adorable and to die for! Not to mention tasty!1

Naturally, I had to take some fun photos of my kit before indulging

Hot fudge!? That’s my fave!!!!

pink, pink, and more pink!!!

a pile of frosting cups!

YUMMY!!!

Thank you SO much Mr. & Mrs. Thiel & the Davis’s!!! You totally made my day SO much sweeter (literally & figuratively!) You rock, and I was honored to be a part of your special day!!!

Now, something sweet for you… a sneak peek pic from your wedding day!!! Enjoy!

Now if you’ll excuse me, IT’S CUPCAKE TIME!!!!

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