Congratulations to Lauren Covino & Tony Smith recipients of our 2008 Celebration Bride Photography giveaway

Congrats to Lauren & Tony, our first 2008 photography prize giveaway recipients!!! Lauren had her family and friends BOMBARD us with emails in their support. You should see the thickness of their folder! Geez!!! And, we were blown away by the fact that Lauren deserved this so much that her fiance (Tony) and her dad actually sat down and composed letters to us explaining why they were the 2008 couple to photograph. Can you imagine getting two men to sit and write letters about love? And, as you can see from the photo, they seem very happy and totally down to earth. It seems that everything was going really well with the pending nuptials until their photography studio closed down (I think you all know who we are referring to), leaving Lauren & Tony to start the scavenger hunt again for their photographers. Kudos to Lauren for taking the chance and calling us to inquire about our giveaway. Now, for all you readers out there, just so you know, there is still one more chance left for 2008. Remember, we wanted to contribute TWO giveaways to help the cause.

My first conversation with Lauren was like Lauren herself, AWESOME. You should hear the kindness and energy in her voice. One of the things I love most about Lauren ( I have yet the lucky opportunity to meet her match, Tony), is her ability to laugh at herself. On a couple of occasions Lauren has called the studio and left voice mail messages for me. If you knew her she would tell you how we have laughed on the phone because her messages seem to exceed the maximum time allowed so she's gotten cut off a couple of times. Ha, ha she reminds me of ME!

Lots to say.

One of the best parts of taking part in this contribution of our time and art is that we get to hear from our recipient's loved ones what makes that couple so special. I absolutely loved Lauren's mom's letter explaining... " I knew in my heart he was the one for Lauren. Both of them are beautiful on the inside as well as the outside. The interesting thing is this...people always talk about opposites attracting... with Tony's "feet on the ground" and Lauren's "head in the clouds" they meet right in the middle." How awesome is that? We can't wait to photograph the "grounded" Tony and his beautiful "dreamer and optomist" Lauren. Congrats you guys! Please tell your family and friends that we can't wait to meet them too. Loving family and friends, that's what weddings are all about.

Vintage Hollywood inspired makeover for artist Jackie

So this Sunday I had the lucky chance to hang out with my fellow photographer and friend, Jackie, (from the very talented studio of Karenscape (http://www.karenscape.com/). The first time I met Jackie was at Karenscape as we hung around the studio with their dynamic easy- going group of shooters. Okay, so as you will see Jackie suffers (the poor dear) from being GORGEOUS!! Yeah, I really feel for her. A couple of weeks ago she shot me an email to catch up and I quickly took the opportunity to ask her to come and sit in for a quick shoot and some headshots (hopefully for her personal site). As you know, we here are pretty serious when it comes to bridal beauty. Not only is photography super important, but the hair and makeup also play a major role in the difference between just pretty and breathtaking. Now, we can't take all the credit for how phenomenal Jackie looks. (She does look like that drop dead gorgeous Amercian Idol runner up gal, Kathrine). But, I must admit that we are patting ourselves on the back and grinning like freaking idiots for a job well done.

About the hair and makeup:

Our mission was to create a retro hollywood glamorous look to compliment the beautiful vintage headpieces from the very popular Nancy Redisch 201-767-4228. (You have probably seen Nancy's fantastic hair masterpieces featured on every metro bridal editorial from New Jersey Bride to the Knot). Hurry up and get these hair accessories before your girlfriends sport them at their wedding first!! We absolutely LOVE, LOVE these adornments and I think you will too.

Major kudos to mastermind Magda (Suzie, as you guys call her) for another jawdropping hair creation and to little ol' me for the makeup. Yep, that's me (Millie/photographer/makeup artist), coming up with some pretty custom mixed colors from my MAC palettes. We achieved two different makeup looks. The first look was a pretty palette of corals and pinks and finally we got Jackie soooo excited by mixing up the perfect shade of red for her killer good looks. A big thank you to fellow artist and photographer Jackie; with your classic features we were able to demonstrate the power of hollywood soft waves and naughty red lips. You look fantastic and I hope all our brides will agree.

Boudoir (The B-Session):

Recently we've seen an impressive increase in the number of requests for sexy b-shots. BIG thanks to all of the brides who have referred their friends to us. What makes the B-session a unique experience with us is that Magda and I are both women, so there seems to be an instant rapport and trust that builds. Our clients also feel more comfortable knowing that the shots will be tasteful and with Magda around to do the hair and makeup our clients end up looking more like Victoria Secret babes!

Headshots/Hair & Makeup for Laura

Magda and I had the opportunity to do several hair and makeup looks on Laura Zucconi. We were fortunate enough to work with Laura and come up with some awesome hair and makeup suggestions. So, for all the brides out there that can't make up (no pun intended) their minds about looking natural or going glam, here is a great idea for your upcoming hair and makeup trials. Have your hair and makeup artists start off natural, like we did for Laura, and then build the hair and makeup up for the red carpet look! HOT, HOT, HOT!!!!!

Going Hollywood Glam:
For all of these looks, yours truly (Millie b.) did the makeup and my uber talented partner in crime, Magda (yep, A.K.A. "Suzy"- her middle name) did all of the hair styles. As you can see Laura is very regal and sophisticated with some beautiful striking features and large eyes, so I didn't want to overpower her with too much makeup. The emphasis on this look was healthy radiant wedding day skin whether she wants to look natural or have that Charlize Theron glow. Thanks so much Laura. As anyone can see you look AMAZING in your pics and we can't wait to shoot you in the wedding dress. See you then.

Congratulations to our first "Celebration" Bride Recipient:

You may view our work at:http://www.thestudioweddings.com/

Congratulations to Wendy Kisla & Mike Todd: our first recipients who will receive complimentary wedding photography coverage for their 2009 wedding! (We will be posting their photos shortly).

Wendy contacted us today to ask if she is eligible for this gift we are offering since she is a 2009 bride. While she was speaking on the phone you could hear the excitement and hope in her voice, and I could not say no. Immediately after Wendy went to work on her essay (which she later half jokingly explained that she hates to write). I must admit that while I was reading her letter I actually felt the little gulp in my throat. Her letter was very heartfelt and her love story was very touching and beautiful. Now, originally we were supposed to wait for a few weeks for more emails from former CS brides, but Wendy's friends and family poured in their emails in strong support of Wendy and Mike. Okay, maybe I'm a push over, but if you read their story you would have called her immediately like I did! Okay, so before calling Wendy with the good news, I quickly called up Magda (our hair and makeup phenomenon) and asked her if she was available to also donate hair and makeup for Wendy. We want Wendy to not just feel amazing that somone wants her to have a great wedding complete with photos she will treasure for ever, we also want her to be pampered and look AMAZING. A BIG thanks to Magda who is also donating her time and skill to Wendy on that special day. Trust me, these guys deserve the best.

I just wanted to take the time out to thank Wendy (and Mike who I haven't had the chance to meet yet, but Wendy did rush over to meet me after I called her with the good news). I realize that so many people get let down and taken advantage of by vendors. And, I realize that there are wedding photographers and videographers who are trying to help by giving discounts. The reason we decided to donate our time and skill is because I can't think of a better reason to give back to a community that we treasure. Anyone else who participates in this gift should thank Wendy, because her story touched us so deeply that we have decided to donate our time and art at least once on a yearly basis.

Okay, 2008 brides, keep writing in, we still haven't chosen the (2) recipients for 2008 and (1) more for 2009! Good luck all!



Why we are donating our photography to help out brides:
Recently, we have been frantically contacted by brides who seem to have been left stranded by their photography studio. As a small gesture to help out the brides who have been devastated by the closing of "Celebration" within the tri-state area, we at The Studio Weddings are offering to photograph 2 weddings for free! Yep, you read correctly.

Here's what you need to know and do if you are interested:
- Please email us (1batista@comcast.net) with a summary of your story complete with your name, wedding date, contracted reception venue, and the reason why you should be chosen. The recipients will be chosen based on our availability, the story you write describing why you should be chosen, and any reasons you feel make you guys the couple worth shooting. Feel free to include photos and have your friends email us voting you as the couple to shoot!! The more we are nagged and bombarded by your friends and family, the more likely we will get the message and choose your letter.
- If your letter is chosen, we will immediately coordinate a meeting date in our studio to discuss the details of the date
- To be elegible you must provide proof that you are contracted with Celebration Studios and have suffered a loss of at least 50% of the total contract. (Sorry folks, but we are trying to help those most financially devastated by this crisis).
- Since our very busy season begins in March, we will be picking the recipients within 2-5 weeks depending on the number of responses that we receive. If your wedding is right around the corner (Feb or early March), please contact us immediately to be eligible.

What You Will Receive:
- All high resolution digital files (negatives) for that day (about 600-800) images to be received within 3-6 weeks from wedding date
- About 70% color and 30% black and white images
- All images will be color corrected
- 8-10 hours of coverage
- Depending on our availability (1-2 photographers) for the day
- (Optional) 4x6 color and black and white proofs ( You may choose to pay for proofs at cost)
- Online viewing of all your images for 90 days on a password protected site
- A "trash the dress," "day after," engagement, or boudior photo shoot

We hope that this small gesture will hopefully lessen someone's pain and possibly begin to mend the potential negative views on this industry that we at The Studio Weddings love so much. We wish all the CS Brides and Grooms the best of luck.