I’m so excited to be featured on the Basic Invite blog today! First I want to introduce myself. My name is Lindsay and I am a Portrait and Wedding photographer based in Annapolis, Maryland. Although I love my little historic town, I serve couples all over Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia!

I love photographing couples in love and especially ones who like to have fun in front of the camera! I believe those are the best pictures, when you see people laughing and having a good time. I want to capture the true personality of my couples.

I’ve always loved being outside in nature and getting that breath of fresh air. That's where I started my love of photography. I would spend hours outside taking photos of flowers and anything I could find in my parents backyard. My style is definitely light and airy and now that I’m taking photos of people, I like to put them outside in natural light!

The shoot I decided to share on this blog is of my most recent styled shoot. We called this shoot a windswept beach styled shoot because when we got to our location, the wind was crazy! Thankfully it was only blowing in one direction, so we were able to use it to our advantage!

Styled shoots can be stressful but once everything is together, they are so much fun and the end result is always amazing! I was able to work with some awesome vendors who I will list below. So if you’re getting married in the Maryland area you should definitely check them out! We used a beach in Southern Maryland and also had a bridesmaid model to add some variety to the shoot! We did a variety of poses, some serious because our model was so gorgeous with the wind blowing through her hair and her dress! But also some of my favorite poses with laughter and tons of smiles! We definitely laughed A LOT during the process and off camera were our hair stylist and an assistant of mine setting up the table decor and quick! By the time we arrived we had less than an hour to shoot but I ended up snapping 600 photos! I couldn't have done it without everyone's help and we are all so happy with how everything turned out!

The list of vendors who helped put this shoot together:

Bridal Salon - Gamberdella Bridal Salon

Hair Stylist - Love Letters by Kayla

Makeup Artist - Kaity MUA

Wedding Planner - Enchanting Events & Design

Handmade Decor & Calligraphy - Grateful Heart Shop

Rentals - Baltimore's Best Events

Florist - Travis Floral Designs

COMPANY: 1783 Photography

WEBSITE: http://www.1783photography.com

SOCIAL: Facebook Instagram Pinterest

Hey friends! My name is Lauren Watne (top) and I am the cofounder of Awaken Photography, along with my twin sister Sarah (bottom). We have been having a blast with photography for four years and have absolutely loved the journey it has taken us on.

Our love of photography came at a very young age when our parents bought us our first digital camera. We took so many photos of each other that people thought we didn’t have any other friends. We had so much FUN doing what we loved. Eventually this transitioned into senior portraits, then engagement, anniversary, and baby announcement shoots. We shot our first wedding this summer, which was a marking moment of dreams becoming reality for us.

Capturing moments with photography is one of my deepest passions, and this opens the door to meeting really cool people. Laughing over silly faces and diving into the realness of life with our subjects draws us into connection. Without connection, the camera can never capture the heart of its subject. Photos should do more than just turn out well; photos should tell a story and reveal a person’s heart.

These pictures are from one of my favorite shoots yet. I was up in the mountains in western Colorado staying at a cabin with some of my most intimate friends. These people constantly fill me with life and surround me with love and have reshaped the way I think about authentic community. I let my camera tag along with me wherever we went and let it capture many moments that are now engraved into who I am.

Through a beautiful process, I can finally touch the dreams I once thought were distant and impossible. I have learned that unanswered potential was screaming to me that my dreams are trustworthy life was never intended to fit in a mold. I learned to embrace risk for the reward of trust it has always been worth, to plunge into the mysterious depths we were all created for, and adventure past what others have always considered “the right plan.”

Creativity is alive and it calls out to the depths of who you are. Answer it.

To find us on instagram, follow @lifewithlaurrr and @sarah_watne. Like us on Facebook. We would love to hear from you!

Hey! I am Hannah Spradlin the owner, photographer, and editor of HG Photography a small town company based in Springfield, OH!

I got my start in photography at a young age. When I was 5 years old my dad gave me my first camera and started teaching me everything he knew. Throughout the years I entered multiple photography contest before beginning my education at a technical school, and then receiving my associates degree in multimedia.

I believe that photography is the only way to really keep a memory. You can stop time with a camera and edit it to perfection whereas the brain may forget the details, the photograph will forever show them! Photos of people is a way to keep them with you forever, to watch as they age, and how they change day to day.  Photos of landscapes and wildlife let people see the details of nature and the amazing visuals only some are lucky enough to see up close.

Some of my favorite subjects to photograph are small children. It’s always wonderful to capture their innocence and the pure features of their faces. When I shoot kids I prefer to do candid shots because kids can be so spontaneous and those moments mean a lot more than any posed shot.

Another is shooting seniors and doing graduation photos. I feel like even though these are cliché, senior portraits are actually such an important event to capture. A moment between being a child under their parent’s wings to becoming an adult and learning to be on their own. These photos, to me, show a sense of responsibility and independence.

Being a photographer isn’t just about taking photos or just making money. I started my business because of my passion to see things in a completely different way than most people, and I wanted to capture things that are usually unseen or forgotten. Although photography is considered an art form, I think of it more as creating and reporting history. When shooting weddings, my goal is to catch the looks on the guests faces and the little moments that the busy bride and groom may not have seen.

Photography is a form of art, piece of history, and memories captured in time. We need to remember that when life gets a little blurry, all we need to do is adjust our focus.

Basic Invite offers a variety of graduation announcements.

You can find all of our work at Facebook or you can email us at hgphotography18@gmail.com or call us at (937-505-0212).

COMPANY: HG Photography

SOCIAL: Facebook