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Star Wars Bow-TIE Tuxedo Shirt
Remember the infamous wedding Tuxedo Tee? Well, move over because nothing says "geek-chic" like a finely starched Star Wars Bow-TIE Tuxedo Shirt.
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Buy one here
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Chrissy & Lowell : : Red Top Mountain State Park : : Georgia
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Three days in hot Georgia! Who knew Red Top Mountain State Park in north Georgia was such a fantastic place to have a wedding? And who could pick a nicer couple to host all their friends and family, complete with cabins and all, along beautiful Lake Alatoona? If you guessed Chrissy and Lowell you'd be correct! I had such a great time and couldn't imagine photographing a more sweet, laid back couple. Stress-free weddings are always a plus! To top off the festivities at the end of the day's events, we all had a late night swim in the lake - I couldn't say no to that! Thanks again guys for such a fun time. Hope you enjoy these teasers...(press F11 for best viewing).
THE DETAILS
Location: Red Top Mountain State Park
Photographer: Craig Okraska Photography
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Three days in hot Georgia! Who knew Red Top Mountain State Park in north Georgia was such a fantastic place to have a wedding? And who could pick a nicer couple to host all their friends and family, complete with cabins and all, along beautiful Lake Alatoona? If you guessed Chrissy and Lowell you'd be correct! I had such a great time and couldn't imagine photographing a more sweet, laid back couple. Stress-free weddings are always a plus! To top off the festivities at the end of the day's events, we all had a late night swim in the lake - I couldn't say no to that! Thanks again guys for such a fun time. Hope you enjoy these teasers...(press F11 for best viewing).
THE DETAILS
Location: Red Top Mountain State Park
Photographer: Craig Okraska Photography
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NoCo Pro Photo online Magazine : : Priemer Edition
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Sweet! That's my work on this month's cover of the premier edition of NoCo Pro Photo Magazine - a new online publication geared towards northern Colorado photographers. We have some really talented photographers in Colorado, and I'm glad to be part of this creatively thriving community.
I'm honored to have won the first of monthly themed challenges. You can check it out here:
NoCo Pro Photo Magazine
Sweet! That's my work on this month's cover of the premier edition of NoCo Pro Photo Magazine - a new online publication geared towards northern Colorado photographers. We have some really talented photographers in Colorado, and I'm glad to be part of this creatively thriving community.
I'm honored to have won the first of monthly themed challenges. You can check it out here:
NoCo Pro Photo Magazine
Chinese Take-Out Wedding Cake
Yep, this is a wedding cake. This Asian-inspired beauty spares no details, even down to the chopsticks!
(source)
101 Uses For Your Ex-Wife's Wedding Dress
Imagine this: Your wife of 12 years packs up her belongings and decides to leave. The relationship is over. You notice a single item remained in her section of the closet, her wedding dress. She tells you she doesn't want it and slams the door. The question is: What would you do with your ex's wedding dress? Well, one guy decides to take that challenge and started a blog to share how he is handling that exact situation.
Talk about sweet revenge.
101 Uses For Your Ex-Wife's Wedding Dress
Scarecrow
New footrest
Wedding dress gym towel
Camping tablecloth
Shoe polish rag
Bed liner
Dental floss
Dish rag
Garage oil pan
Yes, that's a grill cover
Pasta strainer
Sporting event banner
... and, dog toy.
What are your thoughts on this?
Unbelievable Space Theme Wedding
Wedding cake, complete with detailed Space Shuttle launch pad - Check!
Astronaut cake topper, with flower bouquet and veil - Check!
Fake astronaut ring bearer - Check!
Yes, that is the ring bearer
(source)
Astronaut cake topper, with flower bouquet and veil - Check!
Fake astronaut ring bearer - Check!
Houston, we have a wedding!
Yes, that is the ring bearer
(source)
Why Wedding Blogs Are Better Than Wedding Magazines
Today, I'd like to cover a topic that is casually talked about but rarely gets the attention that it deserves. It's a sore subject for some, and I know I'll probably get some interesting feedback for my opinions, but I think the wedding industry owes it to itself to acknowledge the obvious:
Wedding blogs are better for wedding planning than wedding magazine print media.
In the past year, we've seen a few of our favorite (and very popular) traditional wedding magazines close their doors due to various reasons. Lack of advertising interest, supply price increases and loss of readership are definitely factors in their demise, but the main catalyst in each case is the shying away of print media by today's planning brides. And for good reason. The wedding industry is a constantly evolving environment that caters to a very targeted niche. When the majority of that targeted audience demands something, the industry should take note and work to satisfy that want.
Today's planning bride are significantly different from the brides of yesterday. The DIY bride movement is in full force and the dedication to tradition is evolving into new traditions. Personalization of a wedding is the new standard and brides are eager to find fresh inspiration to fuel their unique creativity. The industry took note, and along came wedding blogs to fill the void of delayed inspiration.
In 2002, there were less than 15K total blogs on the Internet. In 2009, that number was 27 million. Each offering a personal view on a broad topic. And within all those blogs, the wedding industry was lucky enough to inspire a collection of wedding blogs that, for awhile, unknowingly and effectively advanced the wedding industry to the next level. Inspiration and advice was now readily available 24/7 and most importantly, it was free. No longer did a bride have to wait for the next issue of their favorite wedding mag to be delivered or show up on grocery store rack to motivate their planning process. Wedding blogs were just a click away and she knew it was just a matter of minutes before brand new inspiration or advice could be found. The delayed inspiration problem had been solved.
Where print media left off, wedding blogs took over. Both magazines and blogs provide bridal information to brides, but wedding blogs do it more effectively. How so?
Wedding blogs are constantly updated. And just as important, they can easily be edited after publish. Adding on extra information once created is a luxury that every blog has. Being able to include continuous updates or findings inside a post is a direct reflection of blogs supplying the most up-to-date information to it's intended audience. Fresh info is good info.
Wedding blogs are cutting-edge and diverse. Rock n' roll brides, vintage brides, eco-brides, budget-conscious brides and every other bride can usually find a wedding blog that speaks directly to them. Wedding magazines try their best to cover each category with broad stroke articles but usually fall short. Niche specific wedding blogs allow a personal touch that won't be found in mainstream print media. Individual opinions and reviews are what fuel these category wedding blogs.
Wedding blogs are interactive. You can't comment on a print article. You can't express your opinion and instantly share it with others. It's a one-way street when dealing with wedding magazines. They decide what they think their subscribers will like and ship it to your door once a month. Not satisfied, simply wait another month and try your luck. Or, you could just do a little research and find a wedding blog that consistently delivers relevant information that you can use. And that takes me to my next point:
Wedding blogs allow sharing. If you find a cool wedding project or picture that you want your best friend or bridesmaid in another city to check out, simply email to them. Or Facebook them. Or tweet them. Within a few minutes, you can share you finding and get the feedback you want. Unless your friend has the exact wedding magazine in their hand as you do, it would be pretty hard to share that info instantly. Planning brides love efficiency.
Wedding blogs make finding information easy. Instead of tearing out pages of a magazine and storing them in a folder or box, you can just bookmark the exact blog post that you want saved and access that information at a later time. Oh, and the blog post might even be updated when you get back to it! Planning brides love organization.
Wedding blogs lead to other relevant resources. When blogs link to other bridal references, they instantly create a seamless path of information. One blog post may lead to another, then lead to a different blog and then ultimately provide a wealth of knowledge and inspiration to the reader. There are no links in magazines. No opportunity to delve further into a topic.
Wedding blogs are personal. Most wedding bloggers often includes links to their other sites, projects or products, enabling interested readers to pursue deeper relationships with that person/blog. A system of familiarity forms and a blog quickly becomes much more than just written advice and photos. It becomes trustworthy. It becomes a daily visit to a familiar place. Reader loyalty is what separates a good wedding blog from a great wedding blog.
Wedding blogs are free. Almost every single wedding blog on the Internet today is totally free from any subscription fees, renewal notices or annual billing. Wedding bloggers don't charge their audience for their interest in their blog. The information is shared with the intention of allowing visibility to every single person who visits their site, free of charge. This is a completely different business model from print media. Instead of relying on paid subscriptions, blogs rely on creating consistent content and building their audience the to create their value. There is no risk to the reader since there are no monetary barriers to cross.
So there it is. My personal opinion on why wedding blogs will continue to create the pulse of the entire wedding industry and how they are straight-forward better than traditional print media for helping today's bride plan her wedding. While a part of me was excited to write this post, a part of me was hesitant because I wanted in no way to dilute all the positive things that wedding magazines have done for our industry. It's simply a new era and it's time to acknowledge that wedding blogs are the chosen medium for the bride of 2010. Thank you for taking the time to read this and thank you to everyone who is passionate enough to express their own personal opinions in our comments.
Together we can advance the wedding industry.
Better Marriage Blanket??
Ok, we've officially seen it all. Check out this video that features the amazing features of the Better Marriage Blanket. What makes it awesome? How about the multiple layers of activated carbon that absorb offending odor molecules. That's right, it kills farts! Geez.
Erin + Ben : : The Tides Riviera Maya : : Mexico
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One word: AMAZING!
Erin and Ben were married at The Tides Riviera Maya in beautiful Play Del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico. We spent four incredible days on the beach, in the jungle, and among great people. To be honest, it was hard to stop photographing since there were pictures hidden everywhere. Erin and Ben couldn't have been easier to photograph - it helps when you have attractive subjects to work with ;) I loved every minute of it. And it doesn't hurt that they have a great sense of style (Erin was the head buyer of designer collections for Shopbop.com and is about to open her own store in NYC - yeah, she knows fashion). What more could you ask for? These guys know how to party!
I had such a tough time narrowing down only a few photos for this post, so as you can see there are a bit more than I normally post. I had such a great time guys. Thanks so much for sharing your experience and allowing me to photograph; I hope you enjoy this taste...(press F11 for best viewing).
THE DETAILS
Location: The Tides Riviera Maya, Playa Del Carmen, Mexico
Event Planner: Elegant Occasions :: JoAnn Gregoli
DJ/Music: DJ Monk
Jewelry: Rachel Leigh
Photography: Craig Okraska Photography
Assistant: the extraordinary Anika Mahoney
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One word: AMAZING!
Erin and Ben were married at The Tides Riviera Maya in beautiful Play Del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico. We spent four incredible days on the beach, in the jungle, and among great people. To be honest, it was hard to stop photographing since there were pictures hidden everywhere. Erin and Ben couldn't have been easier to photograph - it helps when you have attractive subjects to work with ;) I loved every minute of it. And it doesn't hurt that they have a great sense of style (Erin was the head buyer of designer collections for Shopbop.com and is about to open her own store in NYC - yeah, she knows fashion). What more could you ask for? These guys know how to party!
I had such a tough time narrowing down only a few photos for this post, so as you can see there are a bit more than I normally post. I had such a great time guys. Thanks so much for sharing your experience and allowing me to photograph; I hope you enjoy this taste...(press F11 for best viewing).
THE DETAILS
Location: The Tides Riviera Maya, Playa Del Carmen, Mexico
Event Planner: Elegant Occasions :: JoAnn Gregoli
DJ/Music: DJ Monk
Jewelry: Rachel Leigh
Photography: Craig Okraska Photography
Assistant: the extraordinary Anika Mahoney
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