RENATE & BRAIN

Married on June 5th! (wow, it’s been that long… eeekk!)

If you don’t remember Renate and Brian, check out their engagement photos… they were awesome! Despite the rain… We made it happen! AND, not to forget her bridals!! Sigh. Love, love, love them! She is the reason I can’t stand bridals! They turn out so great… yet ‘you’ cannot post them until AFTER the wedding! Ugh… the beauty of secrets right?

Renate and Brian’s wedding day started out with no parking at the hotel, wind that made your hair a whirlwind and humidity that that made you question if it was sweat or not. Ahem, It was a wonderful day to get married… ON THE BEACH! But let me just say… Renate and Brain… YOU ROCKED IT!  They were amazing. And let me drag them EVERYWHERE to get that extra shot… or as I call it, the ‘One more’ shot!

Take a look at their wedding photos. Let us know what you think!

SO, sit back and enjoy the ride! We have lots of things coming to you in the next couple of weeks — from weddings to baby bumps to babies… sigh. The circle of life!

Tonight, I shall blog about my experience with my recent baby affairs. They were a while back, BUT I never got the chance to blog about them on here! So, catch up step one: START.

First: Master Griffin

Mr. Precious Griffin was SUCH a trooper… from the carpet to Mama and Daddy’s arms to kitchen bowls to snuggle time to pianos and fire pits… I think we maxed out on our limit! Griffin was a little over a week old when his mama and daddy decided to do his photo shoot! And lets just say… AMAZING! Griffin was a GREAT baby during his shoot. As we all came to notice, He can just about sleep ANYWHERE!

Last: Miss Lilly (starting with the glass sink bowl)

Baby Lilly was two weeks old and a tiny lil’ thing too! She was only a little over 6lbs. That’s right. Two weeks and 6+lbs! Can you believe it! Sigh. A tiny bundle of joy that did not want to give up her paci! AND her house was just amazing! I could spend days taking photos of Baby Lilly! I sure do hope I get the privilege of taking her 3 month photos! I did get the privilege of designing her baby announcements.

If you are interested in Tomme or I taking photos of your ‘wee wittle won’ — let us know. We would love to be an addition to your new addition! ha. Just email us at gallery.tommehilton@gmail.com

*Please stay tuned as we blog about our recent JUNE wedding extravaganza’s and post our {GUEST BLOGS}

Till next time,

erica.

It was a really icky day here in Charleston and luckily everyone else thought so too. We basically had the USS Yorktown to ourselves to complete the feel for the shoot.

Next time your couple session seems humdrum or if your fiancee is dreading it, let him have fun planning the shoot to his liking. This will get him involved and actually look forward to it.

Until next time. XO

We’ll see more of Melissa and Davey in October for the BIG DAY!

Entering the world of ‘Beebee’ photography is quite the challenge. Not because of the other photographers out there… but because of the skill it involves, PATIENCE. Yes, many believe patience would come with the job. But dealing with adults versus a baby is different. Adults you can communicate verbally what you want them to do (not that they all listen)… but, BeeBees… well, you just have to wait, hope and pray they will work with you… and when you place them into the position you want… they might stay… or they might not. But, all ‘you’ as a photographer can do is wait. And try to make the family as comfortable as possible. Because, the more comfortable the mom is… the easier she can calm the baby. AND that is what you want and need to get great photos!

{Master Jonah experience}

We shot baby Jonah when he was 2 weeks old.  Now most 2 week old baby’s sleep A LOT. Ahem, not Jonah. Jonah apparently started that very day we shot him… with Colic. Yes, Colic. If you dont know what colic is… basically, THEY CRY A LOT! And nothing you can do will calm them… well, hardly nothing. And Poor thing, he was not happy with us. BUT, when his mom got him calmed down… these are the shots we took:

Overall, I think Master Jonah’s photos turned out well (esp. for the crying we went through!) Laugh.

Oh, Beebees. Got to love them!

Until Next time!

tomme and erica

{Stage 1} engaged.

I got engaged in August of 2007. I had seen Tomme’s work before hand and set her website aside for when I become engaged. Photography was the only thing I wanted to spend money on. It is my most important feature of my life. Not as a skill. No No… That, I am still learning. But more because of the moment each photograph holds. Photographs are irreplaceable.  And I LOVE to look back on moments and remember that ‘special day’.

I met Tomme and knew right away that I wanted to sign her. I didn’t even have to meet with any other photographer… just her. So, I signed with her and Tomme did my engagement photos that November.

{Stage 2} bridals.

I had thoroughly analyzed her work before I chose her… knowing she would produce wonderful unique images. BUT, in order for them to be as AWESOME as I wanted… I knew I had to get dirty… And I did.

For my bridals, I was in a field with grass, crickets, spiders (yuck) and mesquites (i think i ended up with 14 bites)… then I rolled around in the middle of a road… Dont worry ladies… the dirt comes out!

{Stage 3} the wedding.

Once your wedding day arrives, there is nothing to do but put your faith in your photographer. It is ALL in their hands. Because THEY ARE THE REASON YOU REMEMBER YOUR WEDDING.

{Stage 4} maternity.

My husband and I found out shortly after our wedding that we were expecting. SURPRISE to us! And of course the first thing I did was contact Tomme. DUH! Its another big moment in my life. You think I dont want me captured when I am 30+ lbs over weight! Many think not… but to be honest… Tomme made me feel like a SEXY pregnant woman. Let’s just say I walked away from this shoot feeling more confident than I did the entire pregnancy! Come on, any woman who gains 30+ lbs doesn’t feel ‘sexy’ or ‘pretty’… EVEN IF THEY ARE PREGNANT! I walked away feeling like a MODEL!

{Stage 5} baby.

And then came baby… HOUSTON! A couple weeks ago Tomme and I scheduled for her to come and shoot my baby, Houston‘s newborn photos. Sigh. Didn’t work as planned. Let’s just say Newborn photography has a different skill… PATIENCE! and more PATIENCE! and then waiting. This was our first attempt at ‘Newborn’ photography. And well… ahem, yea.

Although, I wouldn’t say it was a complete failure. Our first mistake was trying to shoot his photos during the main time Matt and I keep him awake… Oh well… But, as always, Tomme still got some great shots in between the crying…

Tomme and I called it a night. So the next day I started thinking… since I had started shooting with Tomme in October (2009), my confidence was not quite up there… I still get a little jittery before I shoot. So, I knew I had to grow a pair of… you know… and try to shoot on my own. SO, I tackled this shoot myself. AHHH. Dont worry, I did good! So good, I impressed myself! And Tomme!

{Stage 6} Family

My family (entire family) is having a photos session with Tomme this spring! So, I will be sure to post them soon!

Thanks for staying with me and reading my chronicles of life. I think its very important to develop a relationship with your photographer. Because, they are the ones that help you remember the important moments in your life. Before I was Tomme’s assistant, I told myself I would use her for every important moment in my life. Because the first time I met her, she was not just a photographer, she became a friend.

London should make his grand entrance in April and I hope I get to get some images for them to post. I remember Jaime’s aunt Kim writing me on Facebook telling me they were expecting a girl – I didn’t realize they had a change of plans. I had bought pink bows and pink paper and all kinds of girlie props only to find out he would have more parts than than i was bargaining for.

Erica and I are working hard on adding more to the portfolio. Newborns are what we have been encountering lately, so if you know of a new family -  encourage them to contact us to have images of them as new angels in this world.

Until next time.

Meet ROBYN & MATT:

Matt had his bachelor party the night before our engagement shoot.. for you future couples…. this is not the best time to decide to walk around Charleston in the elements if you aren’t quite feeling up to par.  But he cheesed it up for me quite well… and nearly got attacked by a pigeon but was all worth the while.

OH, the things you do for love!

Now, take a look at this couple-in-love before they TIED THE KNOT!

Charlie and Ashley met via E harmony, which I think is AWESOME…. it’s so hard to meet the right person. Many of my friends go from person to person without any luck, so it’s always a good thing when there is a tool to put the right people in the right circumstances. 

Here are some shots we got:

I just loved the wood grain in this photo.

I love how tight she has him held. 

football fans.

I have this odd effect on people.

They are getting married beginning of April at Debordieu Plantation. I love beach weddings, when it’s not so hot that the sweat causes the sand to stick eternally to locations you weren’t sure were yours.  I love how casual they are about it. I didn’t ask but I have to wonder if the dogs will be there dressed in their bests.? I guess I will be posting that soon enough!

Until later. 

xoxoxoxo