We've Moved!

Please click this link for the updated blog at: BEACH STYLE-the best of the best of Outer Banks vendors-Julie

Meredith & Mike's stunning Kitty Hawk wedding

Have you seen a sunset like this?? Meredith & Mike's beautiful wedding day at the Kitty Hawk Pier at the Hilton Garden Inn ended with a breathtaking sunset. Pinks and Oranges and Yellows and Reds! What a beautiful couple, too! Check out the hilarious shots we got with the fun wedding party!

We are honored to have made the cover

Check out Currituck County's great website - http://www.visitcurrituck.com/

Kelly & Clint 7/3/09

Love Between a Father and Daughter

We have been contacted by the coordinator Karen Kelly of Coastal Events Coordinators for a feature wedding for her website-We have revisited her wedding to find some absolutely gorgeous images, but this one really struck us. Just before walking down the aisle, a must have shot, but this one is special, Jen just loved her Dad, and to capture this one image makes it clear-Follow the link:
Jen and Mark's Wedding Day

We love ring shots!

If you have any new and crazy ideas for ring shots at your wedding-let us know, we just love it!
Email us at info@beach-productions.com.

Polka Dot Wedding

Joni Starr and Bill Bock love polka dots. Wow! Having a theme for your wedding is a great idea, these two went crazy with the polka dots and we love every bit of it! Our friends at the wedding mags will love it to, detail after detail matched this theme throughout, all of the way down to the wine!-Julie

Can your Photographer "Show the Love"?

I often describe that you have to "feel comfortable" with your photographer but what exactly does this mean? I believe that if you are having a wonderful time getting your photographs taken you can relax and show your true love for one another. This does not happen by having a stuffy photographer setting you up for "candid" poses and randomly running around shooting every which way. It takes a trained eye and trained personality to have you in the right place at the right moment while making you feel relaxed to get what I call the "show the love" photos. This photograph could have been "posed" looking at the camera or at each other-it wouldn't give the look it has though. It has the look of love because Joey is actually pulling Josie towards him to whisper in her ear. I simply told them to stand in a place I knew would look hot with the sun flare in the background and teased him saying that "Why does he have to make us all stand on the beach taking these photos?" and that "It is all his idea", of course it was not. Saying this relaxed him into grabbing her for this beautiful shot-you see the love in it and I strive for this with every couple.-Julie

Josie and Joey June 28th 2009

Avon is a gorgeous place for a wedding. It is a little bit of a hike from "town" but the beaches are deserted and a gorgeous backdrop for a wedding. This bride and groom did not want anything fancy, "just show the love between us" she said. . . .What was funny is that she was very worried that the groom was not going to be into getting photographed-he loved it! It's all about feeling comfortable with your photographer and he had a great time, all I had to say was,"don't worry, we'll make this fun and easy".
The steel drum band was a huge hit - we absolutely love them! It's called One Love Caribbean Steel Drum Band - www.onelovesteelband.com
This couple also used our favorite new restaurant in town "Food Dudes". The guests raved about their presentation and delicious food. On a personal note, it is also my favorite restaurant in town, check it out.

Whitney & Soren June 9th, 2009

For Whitney & Soren, Beach Productions has become a wedding tradition!
We've been lucky enough to work with Soren's family before, and now we were back at it again to shoot Whitney & Soren's wedding ceremony in Avon on June 9th in front of Whitney's family-owned beach home, "Sanctuary." Congrats you two!

Emily and Eric June 7th 2009

The Arizona couple gets married on the beach! This fun couple said we love jumping shots, we do too Emily and Eric! Emily and Eric did a ton of decorating on their own at their event as well as using one of our favorite coordinators on the beach, Nanette of A Proper Setting located in Kill Devil Hills, NC. Our favorite were the sunset colored flowers that they used throughout their theme. Congratulations!

Devin & Larry's Beach Wedding June 5th, 2009

Devin & Larry were wed on 6/5 at the Kitty Hawk Pier. We have been doing quite a few weddings there lately, and have been trying to get creative with the photos there.
Check out the cool shots we took outside at twilight!
Click here now:
Devin and Larry's Wedding Photo Video

Check out each bridesmaid's personalized bouquet! A nice touch by Sugar Snap Florals!

Ashley and Corey's Wedding Day May 9th 2009

A Family Tradition

Julie Dreelin's Beach Productions photographed Maren and Jamie's Wedding Day years ago. Just a few weeks ago, we photographed her brothers wedding at the same lovely family house in Avon-photos still to be uploaded(Whitney/Soren Wedding). In the meantime, while Jamie and Maren were here at the beach we did a quick pregnancy shoot. There is more to come from this lovely and growing family! Congratulations you two. We can't wait to see the little one.

Christine and Goodard's Wedding Day June 12th 2009

Laura and Danny's Wedding Day June 6th 2009

Lindsay & Scot's Wedding! 5/30/09

Home is where the heart is!

And when it was time for our bride Lindsay to get married, she chose to come home again. This Manteo girl and her man Scot were wed on May 30th in Nags Head.
The two fell in love while both working in Texas for Bank of America.

Under a tent on the yard of the scenic First Colony Inn, Lindsay and Scott's reception featured music by The Crowd, with a slew of OBX local guests and Texans coming together to dance the night away in an upbeat celebration!
Click Here for the Web Video of this event






Congratulations to Mr. & Mrs. Scot Mitchell!

Jennifer and Justin's Wedding Day June 2nd 2009

Meredith and David's Wedding May 16th 2009

After a spit of rain for 3 minutes, the skys cleared and we were left with a spectacular evening for these two. Meredith spent such attention to detail in every aspect of the day that every guest left happy and full!

Jessica and Ben Engagement May 19th 2009

Mandy and Jim Wade April 25th 2009

We love all of our weddings at the Hilton Garden Inn in Kitty Hawk, one of our favorite event locations. Wedding photographs always turn out fabulously there. This wedding had an extra kick with visits from Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy. Not only did they dress up and sing but the entire guest list got up and sung to the bride and groom as well. I had never seen anything like it! What a blast, and the bride(who had no idea this was going to happen) was just beside herself with joy. What a beautiful family for making the day so special. This wedding was so unique and different that we will be submitting it to the Knot Magazine.

Trash the Dress-Jen and Mark May 3rd 2009

From the very beginning Jen knew she wanted to do a trash the dress session the morning after the wedding. She did not know that talking about it with people at the wedding at the Hilton Garden Inn made them all want to come and check them out the morning after. Needless to say, although at first a little embarrasing have the entire wedding wake up early to check out this "trash the dress" it actually became great fun and a huge end to a beautiful event!

Jen and Mark's Wedding Day-May 2nd 2009

What a fun wedding-this was a dancing crew! We love the Hilton Garden Inn and a dancing crew because the place really rocks right over the water. Guests huge out on the pier while the girls went crazy late into the night inside. the cutest part of this couple is Jen was so little that everybody was throwing her around!

Katie and Jim May 3rd 2009

Yes, they really jumped into the pool. This is what you do when your wedding gets rained out, have fun with it! Katie and Jim's wedding day ended up a huge and memorable success-ending with a smores pit - what a great idea!

Jesse Hubbard and Eric Main's Wedding May 1st 2009

May 1st 2009-
Ballons, what a wonderful economic idea!
Sugar Snap Events and Florals did the beautiful flowers for this wedding-
Congratulations Jesse and Eric!

LARGE FEATURE WEDDING-BRIDES BOOK MAGAZINE

How exciting! For all of my brides that love the wedding mags like myself, we've just been choosen for a large feature wedding in The Bride's Book Magazine. Click the link.

Bridal Portrait

I'm so happy we went in the water Martha, these were some of the cutest shots. What a wonderful gift to give your fiance!
Thank you for the lovely time at the beach yesterday-Julie

Tara and Matt's Wedding Day

At this small elopement wedding, the bride and groom let us use our creativity and go to a few different sunset locations, it paid off! Gorgeous.-Julie

Petkewicz Beach Portraits

Attack of the Monkeys

Indonesia 2009

Hello followers - I've been traveling since January throughout Indonesia.  There have been so many photos taken it was hard to choose which to upload.  Once I get back in a couple of weeks I will be able to upload them all to show, right now it takes 1 hour to upload each.  I thought you would enjoy "In the Water" and "Attack of the Monkey's" both of which are series that I've started while I've been here.  I look forward to uploading these series at the end of March.

We have traveled to Sumbawa and Bali on this trip and have been involved in a religious Hindu ceremony, played with the monkey's and lions and of course, plenty of water sports activities.  Stay tuned the end of March for the big photo upload!

Julie

Two Featured Weddings -

Congratulations to the Morgan's for also getting a feature wedding in the 2009 Outer Banks Bride Magazine this year!

Lana and Steve's Wedding Day - June 7th 2008

Congratulations Lana and Steve, The Saltaire House, and The Proper Setting for Coordinating and Julie Dreelin's Beach Productions photography for receiving a feature wedding in the 2009 Outer Banks Bride Magazine this year.

We Made It Into Modern Bride!

We are proud to announce that a photo from Julie Dreelin's wedding photo album of Aly Crandall/Rob Lehman wedding summer 2008 have been printed in Modern Bride magazine through the Currituck Chamber of Commerce. Virginia Bride Magazine has also contacted us about this wedding. You go Aly and Rob! To all of our 2009 brides and grooms, Aly and Rob did this theirselves, they contacted their favorite magazines and the Currituck Chamber of Commerce about their Corolla wedding and they made it! Congratulations!

2008-2009 Beach Productions Images choosen

Beach Productions images have been choosen for advertisements in the following The Knot magazines.

The Outer Banks Wedding Association 2009 Expo

Thank you Outer Banks Wedding Association for trusting Julie Dreelins' Beach Productions images for the cover of your 2009 Wedding Expo Pamphlet, as well as the 2009 Dream Wedding Giveaway tickets and advertising. For any needs in the area from coordinators to florists, to wedding reception sites, I always refer to the Outer Banks Wedding Association.

Lauren and James Wedding Day- Oct 2008

Sometimes when you sneak around a corner, you never know what you may find. Our motto:ALWAYS know where the bride and groom are, even when they don't think you know . . ." This wedding was at 108 Budleigh in Manteo, NC, one of the most recommended reception halls in the area.

Candid Wedding Photographs

Ocean Aisle Events

Thank you Julie Hume of Ocean Aisle Events for choosing our images for your 2009 Outer Banks Wedding Brocheures. We have worked with Julie twice now, both times the weddings were perfect, we absolutely love working with her - have a wonderful season, Julie!

Candid Moments are always our favorite!

A Gorgeous Evening at the Village Beach Club-Nags Head,NC

Ana and Mike had the most gorgeous sunset on their wedding evening last October. Thank you Mary and Ina from the Beach Club for choosing our image for your 2009 wall advertising campaign!

Blooms Design Studios!

Rene at Blooms Design Studio here on the Outer Banks asked us to submit some images to her, she is one of our favorite florists and is fully recommended by us!

Maggie and Trevor May 24 2009 Wedding

These two have decided to have their wedding at the Sanderling this coming May. They are very interested in casual sunset shots on the sound and beach. We are so excited since the Sanderling has the best area for sunset shots on the Outer Banks!
They caame down for the wedding show last weekend, and we had a blast taking their engagement photos. Thanks Maggie and Trevor, we can't wait for your event:)
Julie

A Summer Evening at the Park Cont..

Here is the Christmas Card that we put together from this beautiful shoot! What a beautiful family!

Erin and Kyle's Wedding Day Sept 21st 2008

Erin and Justin's Wedding Sept 27th 2008

Feature Wedding of the Year-Caroline and Matthew

We are honored to present the photographs of our model bride, Carrie Barton from famous Las Vegas wedding photos. She married her high school sweetheart of 16 years, Matthew. This gorgeous wedding took place at the Sanderling Resort in Duck, NC.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW HER WEDDING PHOTOS

Sara and Todd's Wedding Day

A Summer Evening at the Park

Carrie Barton, more to come

WE MADE THE FEATURE WEDDING ON WEDDINGCHANNEL.COM

Yes, we made the front page! Check out one of my favorite brides from last year, Dori and her hunky man on the front page of weddingchannel.com-
weddingchannel.com

Carrie Barton Fashion Shoot

My trusty assistant Lauren Cowart of Chapel Hill and I had a great time the other day shooting this gorgeous bride. She is a model from Las Vegas and you can tell every bit of it!
Julie












m

OK, one more for Marlene . . .

Marlene and Dave

Sometimes the small ones are the best ones. This was an elopement we did last night, so cute!

Erin and Micheal-Wren Chapel, Williamsburg

Oh my goodness

Oh my goodness is right! There have been 15 weddings since the last post. I just can't keep up with the blog with so many gorgeous wedding photos! This engagement photo got me remotivated to show you all tonight - how perfect:)



I

Jennifer Mitchell and Jeremy Denney July 4th 2008

JULIE DREELIN'S BEACH PRODUCTIONS RECEIVES THE 2008 READERS CHOICE AWARD

The Bride's Book Announces 2008 Readers Choice Awards
"The Bride's Book" readers award top wedding service providers for 2008
About "The Readers Choice Awards":
The annual Readers Choice Award is an annual award recognizing Carolina businesses that offer superior customer service and excellent quality as defined by local brides. Each year "The Bride's Book" magazine and TheBridesBook.com both based in Chapel Hill, NC ask their readers to nominate their preferred wedding vendors. This year more than 5000 brides nominated businesses throughout the Carolinas via mail-in forms, faxed forms, phone calls and general email messages. The votes were hand tallied and sorted by region after the close date of June 1st.The nominations are solicited in each issue of The Bride's Book magazine, on the website and thru quarterly email newsletters to the magazine's subscription base. All winners will be listed in the 2008 Fall/Winter edition of "The Bride's Book" magazine on sale Oct 1st, thru March 31st. Venues will be "spotlighted". Winners will also be listed on www.TheBridesBook.com by region.

Aly and Rob - June 28th 2008

Thanks for you part in a marvelous series of events topped off by a remarkable wedding ceremony on the beach behind our Corolla Light home! I loved the pictures you had on display at the reception -- and so did the entire group there to celebrate my daughter Alysson's wedding on Saturday. You were always there, showing both creativity and the right kind of needed direction to a group of 175.

The success of the event can be described in many ways, but the one most meaningful to me was the Sunday morning call from my daughter thanking me and telling me that the day had been perfect! Exactly my goal.
Derrick Crandall, father of the bride wrote:
"It has been fun over the past two days as those who watched the ceremony as gawkers have now approached me to say that the event has inspired them -- that they want to know whether they should encourage children and friends to consider Corolla for weddings of their families and friends. I'm sure you can imagine that my answer is a solid yes. The decision to do a destination wedding here made it possible to gather most of our wedding-goers for a solid week, and we had non-stop events ranging from "clan gatherings" at various homes on Corolla Light to a surprise birthday party with an entertainer on the deck of the Corolla Light oceanfront complex to a wonderful rehearsal dinner at the Currituck Club --- and then brunch for 100 (!) at our home on Sunday morning, I had dear friends -- including a former Member of Congress and other worldly folks -- tell me that this was the most fun and most memorable of all their many wedding experiences. And my extended family was ecstatic about the role the wedding played in achieving a long-overdue family reunion."

June 23rd 2008 Wedding

Flying

Going flying above the Outer Banks is always a treat - what a great way to entertain your guests while they are here! Also, my husband there on the right fly's banners for wedding ceremonies up and down the beach all summer. This was just a couple of local jokers and use having a fun afternoon spin -

Lana and Steve's Wedding Day - June 7th 2008

Lana and Steve's wedding was at the Saltaire in Duck on June 7th. We just love the uniform Steve! Lana and Steve used our favorite DJ in town not only for his dedication and personality but he just does a great job every single time, Don from Soundwavz.
They also used Blooms and Jay Bowman - funny, my assistant asked if "Do you ever do weddings with anybody else"-well of course, but they are the best!
As the heat of June fell into evening, the colors of the sky turned a magnificent color of blue right after sunset. We suggested having the dance right at this time for the primo dusk photos, they turned out wonderfully.
Congrats Lana and Steve!
Good luck on your magazine submission-

Suzanne and Marc - June 7th 2008

This was a great wedding but boy was it hot! Remember, June-August on the Outer Banks can be a scorcer. The best time for weddings is very early morning(6:30am) or around sunset (5pm). This wedding was at 10:45am in June. Minister Jay Bowman pulled through again at this wedding and made sure they had a great time anyway. Suzanne had to take a cool break before going to the reception. Although sunburnt and hot, everything turned out ok - Congrats Suzy and Marc!

Hilary and Joel June 4th 2008

H & J Wedding was a small elopement in Nags Head this week. The sunset was fast approaching on us so we had to work quick to get family beach portraits as well as our signature wedding photography! Funny, Joel was into the ring on the toes and running shots, Hilary wanted nothing but candids-we can do that! They had been going together for 10 years, and still this day was like a new beginning. Congratulations on your successful beach wedding H & J!

Outer Banks Limousine

Katie and Rich May 30th 2008

How fun was this couple! We've always been known for starting the documentary wedding revolution here on the Outer Banks-just remember, you saw these "poses"-NOT! at Beach Productions first:)
This wedding took place at the brides parents home on Ocean Blvd. in Southern Shores, NC. The reception was at Duck Woods Country Club, one of my favorite places to photograph. The lighting coming in the large windows in the evening gave the wedding a perfect glow.

New Kent Winery Opening

Finally, the New Kent Winery opened this last weekend. The project has been ongoing with Kitty Hawk Land Company for 8 years. The unveiling was a black tie affair and we were hired to document it. What a fantastic event for some fantastic wine. Kitty Hawk Land Company's investors, Bodie Noell Enterprises was there for the unveiling as well as the New Kent media.
Visit the web video here

Laura and Justin's Wedding Day

Laura and Justin's wedding was at Sea Turn Drive in Duck, NC in a big yellow house right on the water. Laura put a lot of thought into her details which I love as a photographer. She didn't even notice me for most of the day, she couldn't take her eyes off Justin.

Arlington Place Shoot

Thanks Mickey, Alison, Step, Becca, Blair and the rest of the crew at Kitty Hawk Land and the Currituck Club for hiring us to come to the opening of your newest development - Arlington Place near New Bern, NC.
Click here to visit the video show-

Natalie and Matthew May 17th 2008

Some Kids are just plain cute!

Jennifer McKinley Portrait Shoot

Meighan and Scott's Wedding Day

This wedding on May 2nd was so simple yet gorgeous. Our favorite Rev. Jay Bowman
was the officiant. Jay is so professional with an "island twist"-he really loosened up the ceremony to the point that everybody was having a fantastic time. It was truly romantic. Congrats you two!

Melissa and Dave - May 4th 2008

Congratulations Melissa and Dave! Melissa was so excited about her wedding dress that I just had to get a great shot to do it justice. This was a fantastic wedding shoot, thanks M and D for being such great models.

For those brides that I've meet with in the last couple months, THIS is what I'm talking about when I say . . .when the bride is happy, everybody is happy! Have you ever seen such a love inspiring couple? They MADE me want to express their love through photography.
Congrats again M & D-
Julie Dreelin

Lauren and Jamie's Wedding Day May 3rd 2008

It was such a beautiful day that we knew the images would really pop with our Tiffen polarizing lens. Last time we did this we were on the cover of two magazines! A couple of these photographs would definitely be in contention. Lauren and Jamie, you were great to work with!
Congratulations Lauren and Jamie
3rd May 2008

Beach Productions marketing materials receive Rave Review

Why making a superior end and marketing product is so important.
Just as we do with our Outer Banks beach photographs, we love to offer the most unique, interesting and eye catching end products from around the world. Inspired by our recent most popular and busy year ever here in Kitty Hawk, we spent some time putting together a fun little brochure for our brides and we won the photo on our print company's site.
Thank you Millerslab.com, one of our favorite labs, for choosing our marketing materials to demonstrate your products. View their beautiful products:
www.millerslab.com

Finally, Photos from the Sumbawa Trip!

The Most Important Thing to Remember At Your Wedding

A quote from my favorite book, Atlas Shrugged by Ann Rand, "Lights, colors, flowers, music are the things that make life beautiful, do people expect those things to make them romantic, not the other way around?"  Time and again I've seen from afar the bride and the groom, their moods, gaiety, relationship, intelligence and beautiful spirit are what make the best weddings. 

Trip to Sumbawa, Indonesia

Step back 100 years in time, when horse drawn carriages ruled the streets and open markets vendors fight for the right to sell you a simple days food.  We have been on a different island called Sumbawa where the sunsets rule the sky, and the ocean and the land hold no pollution.   

It is really eye opening to see such a place.  The main source of income is rice, everywhere you see people stomping with dirty feet on rice drying on mats on the street, finishing in filling up large bags that you would see in any supermarket back home.  I think of rice a little differently now.  Salt farming . . .hmm, I never knew exactly where our salt came from.  Indonesia contains some of the best salt farms in the world.  I did not believe this until I had a margarita here with salt on the glass.  It was wonderful, and I don't even like salt!  Down every side street hangs a rainbow of drying clothes and naked kids running about, their white smiling teeth sticking out from their brown skinned bodies.  One thing is more prevalent that any other, there are a lot of people just "hanging out".  Apparently, there are not many jobs in these parts because nobody was in a rush to go anywhere fast.  The only time that we had the honor of being engulfed in the true society besides the surf camp was a visit to the ATM machine.  Did we stick out like sore thumbs!  Eric is twice as tall as the tallest Indonesian, and blond. Our Muslim driver friend said it was ok that I did not wear the Muslim head scarf, my highlighted hair drew quite a stir as well.  The camera attached to my neck is worth a life's savings to the people that surrounded me, but they were not interested in it at all, they just wanted to practice their English with the strange looking people.  I could not let the opportunity pass to take a photo of the approaching school kids dressed in uniform or the old lady begging Eric for money.  Eric only had American money and tried to give her a dollar.  It was quite a scene, finally a nice lady in the line tried to explain in broken English that the lady would not even know what to do with it, these are remote parts!  I am not able to upload photographs for this post at this time, check the next post for photographs from this story

Uga Uga Festival, Bali, Indonesia

Celebrity Make-Up Artist moves to the Outer Banks

Outer Banks Makeup artist

Our suggested person for beach wedding make-up, Deborah Hess of Deborah's Make-up Inc. has worked with celebrities for over 15 years including clients in Vogue, Newsweek, and Life Magazines.  She has been the key make-up artist for Good Morning America in Washington, D.C. for 10 years.  We welcome Deborah to the Outer Banks, thank you for your tips to make brides look great on their wedding day!

Tips for beach makeup:

To view Outer Banks makeup tips exclusively from Deborah, she has listed them in the 2008 Wedding Guide to the Outer Banks which says:

Deborah Hess of Deborah's make-up, Inc., specializes in make-up that makes the skin look flawless and natural. "I try to capture the essence of the person," say Hess.  She recommends brides choose a classic look for their make-up and that they meet with their make-up artist for a trail run at least once before their wedding day.  In addition, Hess suggests that brides use oil-free products and less moisturizer to combat shine and humidity.

With wedding day packages starting at $300 to look your best in your wedding photographs, I would grab this opportunity in a heartbeat!

Assignment:WEDDING DRESS MAGAZINE SHOOT-ULU'S,INDONESIA

You don't have to be a Spanish beauty to make large earrings work with your beach wedding dress!  

Portraits, Hindu Festivals, and Rice Fields

There is a saying that I learned in Hawaii, Aloha Kai, "love the water, love the land"

Taking the opportunity to respect these aspects of life and the world encompasses a soul to a fuller life, a fuller understanding of surroundings.  This said, the wave swell never came, or at least, isn't here yet.  What a great opportunity to visit the rice fields of Seminyak, Bali and go to a Hindu offering.  The rice fields feel like 110 degrees F. with 99% humidity.  All of the people that live in these areas show wrinkles of age aching for rest.  There is none.  Our driver said that if some of these people don't harvest rice or sell to chance visiting westerners, they don't eat.

At the Hindu temple, the children giggle and giggle at the thought of getting their photographs taken.  After every one, they want to see their faces on the back of my large digital camera screen.  The ladies here all introduce themselves to me, just as the book I just read - Eat, Pray Love - there are only 5 names in all of Bali.  The first that comes out, male or female is named Wayane, the second . . .etc.  Needless to say, it's easy to remember names around here.  Some develop nicknames, one lady was named "peanut" because she is always feeding peanuts to the monkeys, a guy we met was named "hero" but I couldn't quite figure out why through the language barrier.  I have decided, though that I love this name and I ever have a son his name will be Hero.

Surfing Indonesia

Surfing every single day in Indonesia sure does get you into tip top shape!  Walking on live reef during low tide out to the break wasn't as bad as we anticipated, no booties necessary.  We met up with the hot couple Matt S. and Kelly, Justin, Barry Jr. and Ashley Heath from the Outer Banks for an Ulu's evening session.  Waves, barely overhead but glassy.  We are waiting for the 8 foot big swell to come like last week to the Nusa Dua break.  Swell.com is predicting a great week.  Barry Jr. leaves tonight to head back to work at Whalebone, thanks for the surfing tips, Barry!

Everyday Views of Indonesia

Twiddy Realty's Johana- true beauty

I have been wanting to add a section on the site called Beach Wedding Glam Squad for a while, but there is just not anybody that has sported this more than Johana from Twiddy Realty on the Outer Banks.   She went all out with an updo and tiara.  It goes to show that just because you are having a beach wedding doesn't mean that you don't go all out to look your best!

Outer Banks Training Specialist

A new trainer has arrived in the Outer Banks.  I have used her several times for training schedules for my triathlons, for a hurt knee and physical therapy or simply to get a good friend to get inspired and get off his couch to get his blood pumping.  $100-$400 has been worth it's weight in gold every time - and she comes to you!

I got to thinking, what a great idea for an Outer Banks wedding!  She does a simple stretching class for relaxation the morning or week of the wedding or a full - LOSE 10 POUNDS TO FIT INTO YOUR DRESS nutritional analysis.  What better way to prepare for your wedding, portrait session, or simply . . . . to get off the couch and get your blood pumping!  She will brighten your day, your month, your year, and your life - Thanks Patti!

turningpointfitness.net

The Bride Wore Very Little

Wedding Dress

The International Herald Tribune

Ruth La Feria-New York

I bought this newspaper when on the road and found it fasinating so I thought I'de pass it on to all of my brides.

The gown was almost wanton-fluid but curvy with a neckline that plummeted dangerously.  "It makes me feel sexy and beautiful" said Natasha DaSilva, who slipped it on for a fitting last week.

Cut away at the rear to reveal a tatoo at the small of her back, the dress suggested a languorous night in the honeymoon suite.

Except that DaSilva, who will married in Long Island in September, plans to wear it at the altar.

"Why not?" she asked.  "I want to look back in 20 years and feel like I looked hot on my wedding day."

"Brides today absolutely want to look sexy and glamourous," said Mara Urshel, an owner and the president of Kleinfeld, the venerable Manhattan bridal salon.

"Young women increasingly look to the red carpet for style ideas," said Millie Martini Bratten, the editor in chief of Brides magazine. "When they marry they they want to be the celebrity of their own event."

Today the prevailing fantasy is no longer, " 'I want to be a princess in my ball gown,' "Dias said.  "A lot of women have done that already for their prom."

Dias, who is based in Los Angeles, accommodates clients' desires for dresses that echo runway trends with halter tops and off-the-shoulder gowns that are more emphatically provocative than the strapless looks that have become commonplace.

Similar considerations prompted the designer Monique Lhuillier, a favorite in Hollywood, to fashion a dress with an Empire bodice, wide lace straps and a wispy chiffon skirt - features more often found in a nightgown.

This article was written by the reference above, for the full version, visit the International Herald Tribune

I met these two on the beach in Indonesia

Do it the simple way, just the two of you!

Drive to Ubud, Indonesia

Bali, Indonesia

We've just arrived in Bali, Indonesia, the most populous island in the world, on our winter break tour. 

Just 8 degrees south of the equator, Bali has a tropical climate - the temperature has been, well HOT ever since we got here.  The direct sun feels incredibly hot, and this is "winter time".  

We have decided to stay on the Bukit Peninsula, the southwestern tip of Bali.  There are people, motorbikes, broken down bikes, everywhere you look.  You cannot wake up in the night at any given moment without hearing the humm of the motorbikes, roosters cackling, dogs barking and the smell of fresh burning insense from the daily prayers and offerings.

For a portrait photographer, this is heaven.  Everywhere  you look there are people sitting on street corners almost posing for your photos without knowing it, if they do catch your eye every one of them lets out the biggest, brightest smile you have ever seen.  This might be the friendliest place on the planet.

We are on a mission to visit the temples this week.  Next stop - Ubud

Visits to Colorado

Dakota and Cassidy, Vail Colorado.

Museum Visit

As an artist, I am always fulfilling the insatiable desire for life and learning.
Of the many photographers that I study, Annie Leibovitz brings about a redefinition of modern celebrities in their normal day to day environment. As an inspiration to the opening of our day in the life of traveling portrait series, my city photographer friend Gayle Tiller of The Art of Photography and I visited the opening of her exhibit at the Corcoran in DC last week.

Sometimes life is the best portrait. Here are the few shots from our "life in the city" that evening.

Celebrity Photographer

Outer Banks Fishing

Our good friends Capt Brian and Sarah Gardner always know when the fishing is hot. We put together this promo video for them, and of course, caught a couple of fish on the side.

Winding Down on the Outer Banks

Fall time on the Outer Banks. November 1st 2007 swell.

Outer Banks Events

Tenth Annual Dick's Place Invitational at the Nags Head Beach Club through Village Realty.
Well, looky here! Have you ever seen such a group of fine looking "young" men! I had the opportunity to photograph 175 men at once, a girls dream! Besides the fact that we did the shoot an hour late in the dark we had a rockin time, needless to say, having their attention for even 30 seconds was an honor. Thank you to The Outer Banks Beach Club for hosting this group and commenting on what rock star golfers they were - GO DICK'S PLACE!!!!!!!!!! See ya next year.

Welcome to the world Stella Rose! We went up to Southern Shores and just had to capture some shots of this adorable puppy. What a big southern name to live up to little Stella. There is actually live video right after they were born.
Watch the you tube video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZoLg6_rYsM

Outer Banks Wedding

A Perfect Dusk Wedding with Detail Ideas and Sunset Shots

Oct 20th 2007
Corolla, North Carolina beach weddings
It turns out starting the wedding 45 minutes late brought us right to dusk - and ended up getting us one of the most gorgeous sunsets of the season.
What a great idea with the candy bar! Munching on that all evening made for a wild night of dancing and fun - and straight into the pool at the end!

Outer Banks Wedding

The New Thing-Day after Wedding Photos

Wow! Dori and Mitch went all out. We love you guys! Dori's dress broke on the wedding night, they had to cut her out of it at the end of the evening, so she said what the heck, let's have some fun with this. What fun we had. Thanks for making my job fun and interesting as well, you two.
Check out their web video for more images to music:
http://beach-productions.com/DoriMitch/index.html


Thanks Dori and Mitch!

Outer Banks Wedding

WE LOVE DIFFERENT AND UNIQUE WEDDINGS!

Featured in Spring Edition of Carolina Bride Magazine

Dusty and Werner-Oct 8th 2007

Dusty and Werner took the time to get to know us before the wedding date, and did it pay off! Not only did we have a great time together but they felt so comfortable the wedding day that we could get some fantastic different and unique shots.

CONGRATULATIONS DUSTY AND WERNER! OCT 8TH 2007

Nags Head Newbie-Congratulations Lanette!

Today we headed to South Nags Head to visit our friend Lanette. She just had Collette a week ago. What a fantastic time in their lives! Congratulations!
We did this short friendly baby shoot one week after Collette was born . .. .she's already flipping people off!
Thank you for letting us into your home and lives Collette.

Wilmington Fashion Seminar

It's amazing what you can learn at a one day seminar with David Beckstead.
We headed down to the southern end of the state to visit the beautiful coastline of Wrightsville Beach. What a fantastic part of the east coast.
Thank you David Beckstead and Matt McGraw Photography for putting on such a fun model shoot!

Southern Shores Butterfly Release Wedding

What a gorgeous night last weekend for a wedding! The butterfly release made the whole night magical-Check out what our friends at Outer Banks Concierge had to say!Click Here to view the Published Release
Rene and Sharokh, Congratulations!

Outer Banks Wedding

Congratulations Sara on Becoming our Marketing Photo Girl of the year - 2007!

Sara had us booked for a summer wedding but moved it to the frigid cold month of January after some personal issues arose.  Sara and Dave ended up being "one of the lucky ones".  Although it was in January the day was 70 degrees and beautiful.  "I couldn't have felt more blessed" she wrote in her thank you letter.  Her mother, "not only did we get the get the day of our dreams, but you made her look better in the photographs than I ever could of imagined!"  Sara, thank YOU for being beautiful.

Congratulations Sara and Dave, January 2007