History, and Old School Photoshop

You know how I said that my mom and I were going through her wedding stuff this past weekend?  Well as part of that conversation I found out the most fascinating thing about her wedding photos - something I'd never noticed in all my years of casually flipping through her wedding album every now and then.

She showed me this picture:

And she focused my attention on one particular detail.

Notice anything about this close-up, besides the fact that my mom is absolutely gorgeous?  Anyone thinking that her eyelashes are amazing in this picture?  Well, they should be.  Those lashes were given the old school photoshop treatment.  If you don't have the slightest clue what that could mean, then you're in good company because I'd never heard of this particular technique either.

It means that those lashes were actually painted onto the printed photo itself!!  Can you believe that?!  

I was completely floored when she told me, but as I flipped through her album looking for additional evidence of old school photoshopping, I saw it everywhere.  There were pictures where the photographer painted in sections of my mom's hair because the tip of her ear was peeking through, and multiple examples of him painting in eyes on my father because my dad was squinting in many of the photos.

It's incredible to me that I never noticed this before, but I guess it's proof that no one scrutinizes your wedding photos like you do.  That's certainly a good lesson for a perfectionist like me.  It also made me really happy that there are more advanced photo manipulation techniques available to modern photographers.  Of course, the minute I have that thought I flash forward to the day we'll flip through our wedding album with our kids and they will scoff at how dated those now-so-modern Photoshop effects are.  Ahhh, the neverending march of time (and technology).

Was anyone else aware of photographers painting/drawing directly onto printed images?  I'm curious how widespread this practice was.

Don't Talk While Posing, and Other Lessons Learned

I am *so glad* we did an engagement shoot with our amazing photographers before the wedding.  Not just because I love the pictures we got, but because it gave us an opportunity to see what it's like to have our own personal paparazzi for a few hours.  What looks easy from the outside (stand still, smile) was actually pretty hard work (stand still for a long time, now sit at an awkward angle, giggle, now be serious, oops too serious).

all photos by Paco and Betty

The preparation of picking the outfits and getting ready and all that was a bit of a fiasco unto itself, but the most important things I learned were things I realized during and after the shoot.  For instance, who knew that something as awkward as getting your picture taken in public (sometimes in compromising positions!) could feel normal after about an hour, or that it's physically tiring to smile for extended periods of time, or that I am virtually incapable of keeping my mouth shut for more than a few seconds?!

And there are definitely a few things I want to remember going into our wedding day (besides not talking while posing - I got it!).  I want to remind us both to do more looking at the camera - at the same time.  There are only a few pics of us like this because we're either looking at each other, one looking at the other, or both looking away. Not to brag on ourselves too much, but our eyes are kinda amazing so I want to make sure I have lots of options of pictures where they really stand out. 

As the sequence of pictures go on, I can see the frizzies and dark circles starting to creep in ever-so-slightly, which reminds me that I want to be sure I take time to freshen up my hair and makeup at some point during the night.  And I want to remember to stay relaxed.  Our least favorite pictures are the ones where we felt most awkward, and our favorite pictures are ones where I know we weren't thinking, "How does this look?  Am I doing this right? What did they say?"

Another lesson learned - giving up control, and I'm not talking during the shoot (although that's certainly true as well).  I mean giving up control of what images come back to us.  For our engagement shoot we received 115 images taken in a little under 2.5 hours, which I know logically is more than enough.  But since I'm a volume shooter when I take pictures, I'm used to coming home and sorting through hundreds of images all taken in a pretty short time span.  If I don't quite like a facial expression or detail in one or three or five images I've taken, there's a good chance I've got at least another five still to choose from.  But pro pics don't work that way, so I needed this engagement shoot experience in order to be more realistic in my expectations about how many wedding day images I'll get to look at.

And lastly, though most importantly, I want to remember that everything won't work out exactly as planned and yet all will still be perfectly wonderful.

What lessons did you learn from your experience(s) being photographed?  Let's add to this list!

*all photos in this post by Paco and Betty

A Piercing Dilemma

As you may have noticed in my previous posts, I have two facial piercings.  There's a diamond nose ring I've had for about 5 years and an eyebrow ring I've had for 10 years.  (Yes, I am aware that *no one* has an eyebrow ring any more.  That's part of my dilemma...)  In general, I am completely oblivous to them.  And just for the record, I think I'm fairly unadventurous in my appearance other than these piercings - no tattoos, no eclecticly fabulous wardrobe, no brightly colored hair or funky/fun haircut.  I work a professional job and no one has ever asked me about them in a job interview or any other work setting (take that, Mom!).  And as an obligatory note, of course there's nothing wrong with having a more adventurous appearance, obviously (says the girl with two piercings... in her face!). 


{both piercings on display, albeit a larger eyebrow ring than I have now}

A few years ago, on a total whim, I decided I'd outgrown my eyebrow ring and I took it out for the very first time ever.  And I freaked the eff out!  I didn't recognize my face anymore.  I started crying, and I called Mr. FW to ask for his help in putting it back in (a story in its own right).  After that experience I've twice decreased the size of the ring to make it less conspicuous, and I'm pretty happy with how it looks now.  (The nose ring is so teensy that most people don't notice it anyway, so I hardly ever think about it.)When I ask my friends about the eyebrow ring, they all tell me that they love it, they can't imagine me without it, and that it's super unique and "Ms. FW-esque" because few other people have eyebrow piercings right now.  But I've always had the nagging sense that someday I'd feel "too old" or "too professional" or "too uninterested in piercings," and I'd take it out for good. 

I never considered that I might feel "too bride-y" for my eyebrow ring - but I kinda do.  Although I have no idea of the kind of image I want to project of myself on our wedding day, I'm not positive that an eyebrow ring will fit that image.  Do I want to look back at pictures of our wedding 50 years from now and see myself with this piercing?  On the other hand, how would I react to having ALL of our wedding pictures feature me without my eyebrow ring?  I honestly can't imagine taking it out and not having that very visible piece of myself present on such a big day.  I mean, I literally don't have a single picture of myself without my eyebrow ring since I was... wait for it...  19 years old! 

Here's a photoshopped before-and-after I did so you can see what my gorgeous mug looks like without my statement piercing:


{left - that's me!; right - who is that girl?!}

So I'm curious what y'all think.  Should I stick with the face I've known for 10 years, or do I take the plunge now so I can get used to it before the wedding? 

And if you've had a similar question for yourself, how did you ultimately decide what to do?

Photos Before Venues

After numerous wedding conversations we've had over the past few years, there are only two wedding day elements that have consistently reigned supreme in our list of really-super-wanna-haves.  In no particular order, those elements were location and photography.  I don't think those priorities are so abnormal.  What's strange, I think, is the order in which we ticked those two items off the list.  Your average person would probably choose the location first - get that wedding date nailed down in the preferred venue before putting down deposits for other vendors.  So sensible...

But sensible we were not.  Nope, we totally signed on the dotted line with our photographer for our preferred wedding date without a *clue* what our venue would be, what time our ceremony and reception would occur, or whether any venue we toured would be available on the day we'd hired the photographers for.  Why oh why would we do that, you ask?  Good question, I say, and one I'm not totally sure I know the answer to.  If I had to guess, I'd say it's because we were crazy overwhelmed by the number of venue choices and our eyes were swimming in the dollar signs required to make that decision. 

Photographers, on the other hand, presented more limited options.  Limited not because San Francisco doesn't have its more-than-fair share of spectacular wedding photographers, no no.  But limited because we like a very specific photography "look," and we needed to find that look within our budget.  The look we love?  Noticeably post-processed gloriousness (a.k.a. 'artistically ehanced').

photography by Steve Koo Photography

photography by Esther Julee Photography

photography by Laurie Anne Photography / Photoshop Actions by MCP Actions

We don't mind - in fact, we crave! - pictures that look like they've had a little work done.  I know it's not everyone's thing, and I can totally respect that.  I love taking pictures myself, and there is something wonderful about capturing a true, beautiful moment exactly as you saw it with your eyes.  But to us these post-processed pictures look and feel more like art than just photos, and we want art! 

I was able to come up with 4 photographers for us to meet with who might fit our artsy/budget-minded requirements.  At our very first photographer meeting with the uber fabulous Paco & Betty (aka Whitney and Marcellos), we were shown a sample guest book album that was so So SO *flash*bang*wow* and pick-your-jaw-up-off-the-floor that we just couldn't get over it.  Not only did we have to have those pictures, we had to have those pictures in that album, with those photographers and all 4 of their amazing creatives eyes - end of freaking story!  So hopefully in only a few short months, we'll have heartbreakingly beautiful pictures of us that look something like this:

above photos by Paco & Betty

For only $200 over our budget (btw, it's always "only $x over budget," isn't it?), we're getting an engagement session, 8 hours of wedding day coverage, a disc with 600-800 images, and a 7-8 minute slideshow set to music.  Our package doesn't include the album, and we decided we're okay with that since the album we fell in lust with was way more affordable than the traditional album.  We plan to get it for each other as our holiday gift that year - totally worth it and best gift e-vah!

Decision made.  Deposit paid.  And so it was.  We were photographer-deep into our wedding with absolutely no other plans.  Feelin' good!

Anyone else take a risk by booking vendors before they had a confirmed date at a venue?

Engagement Photo Props, or Not?

Our engagement shoot is almost exactly one month away, and one pressing question we need to answer is whether or not to use props in some of the photos.  Like many of you fellow wedding blog readers, I'm always amazed by picnic or random furniture in a field engagement shoots. 

photography by Adrienne Gunde / image via Ruffled

photography by Andi Grant

Gorgeous - and so. much. work.  Seriously.  How the effin' eff do you get that bed in the field?!  I do not have the energy to even think about how to make all that happen, much less actually do it.  But I do see the appeal of some less labor-intensive prop options.  Having something to interact with might help us appear a little less awkward and camera shy than we actually are.  Plus, depending on what props we chose, it could be a way to personalize the pictures a bit.  So last summer I cobbled together a few props for us, should we decide to use them.  (Yes, you read that right - last summer.  What can I say?  I was in the midst of funemployment and loving every second of it!)

I originally bought this ampersand and outfitted it with the black and white houndstooth pattern to hang between our chairs at the reception.  But then I thought we could get double use out of it if I just created other fun paper coverings for it and brought it with us to the engagement shoot. 

Try to look past the messy basement and bewildered dog.  Just focus on that large white frame, which began as a really ugly garage sale purchase but with a little primer and glossy white spray paint now has a second shot at life.  Regardless of whether or not we use this for our engagement shoot, it's potentially useful as a photobooth prop or a set-up for escort cards or something.  (Or at least that's what I'm telling myself to justify it's existence, so please don't tell me otherwise.  Thanks.)

I made this super-simple, super-cheap pennant banner especially for our engagement shoot because we hope to use one of the final images to create some thank you cards.  Not sure if we'll hold the ends or string it up somewhere, but whatever we decide I just know it's gonna elicit serious ooh and ahhs from our gift-givers.  It's probably also going to make them incredibly grateful they gave us something so they could have the opportunity to see such a fun and thoughtful thank you card.  Just sayin'.

Oh, and these.  These, fair Hive members, are our dissertations.  I will now give you a moment to pause, stare, admire, and bow down if you must.  Take your time.  I know, it's incredible.  Two little books (*ahem* one [mine] a bit smaller than the other) representing the culmination of a combined 87 zillion years of schooling.  I have no freaking idea how we could use these without it looking totally random, but these little devils have been a BIG part of our relationship history so if we're going the prop route then it only makes sense to try and include them.

That's IF we go the prop route.  I'm concerned that this measly collection of items will be too minimal to make any kind of artistic impact.  Plus I've flipped through the engagement shoots on our photographers' website and most of them don't feature any props.  Surely many of those couples were just as nervous and camera shy as we are, yet they look wonderful in their pictures.  So now I'm just not sure.  Obviously we'll try to keep the 'thank you' banner because we already have a use in mind for it, but we might end up scrapping everything else.  We still have a few weeks to make a final decision and, if we can't decide, I guess we could just lug all of it with us and let our photographers sort through it.  Ya know, pass the buck.  Easy peasy. 

What do you think - should we bring the props with us?  And have you ever used props for a photo shoot, or do you prefer a more au naturale look?