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  • Courtney Hizey Photography |St. Augustine, FL wedding

     

    Headshot photo credit: Emily Maultsby www.accidentalphotography.com

    Photography has always been a huge part of my life. I was always fascinated with the camera. I'm a bit of a nostalgia nut and will currently spend my spare time looking through old photographs or these days pictures on Facebook. Life is so short and the days come and go so quick that the only thing tangible we have from our memories are photographs. It was when my son was born that I began to really express interest in the technical side of photography. I documented his milestones with the camera and became more and more interested in perfecting each photo.

    Being a "creative" by nature I loved the editing part of the journey. I took as many classes and workshops as I could. As a former teacher, I love working with families and children so naturally I was drawn to having them as my subjects. I always loved the detail and the photojournalism behind crafting the perfect wedding photographs.

    In 2012 I was given an amazing opportunity to shoot and train alongside the resident photographer at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC, it was a huge experience that helped prepare me for photographing my own weddings.

    Soon it wasn't just friends and friends of friends hiring me to take their photos it was people I didn't even know who saw my work and many of those people are regular my clients 5 years later. I look back at all the places I have been and the experiences I have had, now half a decade later I have my own studio and celebrating so many amazing things happening with my business this year. I love to look back at how far I have come and all the people I have met along the way. Two of them were a recent wedding couple Erika and Christian.

    Erika was a client of mine when I lived in Florida 4 years ago.  Erika contacted me last fall letting me know she was engaged and wanted me to come to Florida and photograph her wedding.  I was honored to be asked to make the trip and be part of her day.  Not only is St. Augustine beautiful for photos, but Erika and Christian got married on the Schooner Freedom within St. Augustine's harbor.  Double amazingness.  Here are just a few photo's from their amazing wedding day.

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    Dress: Galina

    Shoes: Nina

    Venue: Schooner Freedom

    COMPANY: Courtney Hizey Photography

    WEBSITE: © www.courtneyhizeyphotography.com 

    SOCIAL: Facebook

  • Be Authentic Photography

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    There are two types of people in this world, those who are living it with you and those who make it worth living. We like to think of ourselves as the people who make it worth living. We dream big, love hard, and believe every moment is an opportunity to create a memory. This is how we approach couples...as living, breathing, feeling people who are just as passionate about their special day as we were our own....not as clients. It's for this reason we treat every single wedding we capture as if it is our very own.  We love to tell the story of love. That's why we chose to forgo the standard of naming your photo business after yourself and instead named it Be Authentic Photography, because we felt like it captured who we are and what we do better than just our names.

    When we were invited to contribute to the Basic Invite Blog, one of the main questions they asked us to answer was, "what was your favorite wedding to shoot?" We don't have favorites as much as one that stands out to us.

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    In a small white church, surrounded by tall pines, deep in the beautiful mountains of Northern California, this lovely couple tied the knot. Tarra and Chris were the kind of couple you dream of hiring you. Tarra was one of the most organized brides we have ever seen. We spent loads of time planning and organizing with them. Because she was so willing to spend the time in advance the result was honest photos on the wedding day. There was no pressure and we were able to follow them around and capture real life moments unfolding. She was fun and spunky and Chris was super laid back and happy to do anything. They were both willing to try anything and have fun with us. Not only that, they even brought their own props to the session. Tarra's sister reupholstered a beautiful set of old wooden furniture for their wedding day and we featured it in several of the photos. All in all they did an amazing job setting us up for their day and the result were stunning photos.

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    Tarra's family owned a small private ranch estate in Fall River. The couple would hold their reception here.

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    It was a beautiful piece of land located right next to fall river. A small man made bridge crossed the river on the property and would be the location for several stunning photos.

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    As we said before, Tarra and Chris were adventurous and fun so it was no surprise to find out the apple didn't fall too far from the tree with their wedding party...it was truly a wedding PARTY!

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    In the end we captured who they were rather than just their day. This really is the goal of any wedding photographer. To capture love, life, and personality. Anyone can snap a photo but to truly capture the love between two people...that's what separates a good photo from a great one.

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    COMPANY:Be Authentic Photography WEBSITE: http://www.beauthenticphotography.com SOCIAL: facebook, instagram

  • Becky Gmahling Photography

    "The hard work puts you where the good luck can find you." -Unknown

    I'm not one for quotes but I love this one because I don't really even believe in luck. I do believe that there are no rewards without hard work. If I work hard enough to find out if luck exists, I'll take all that I can get. I'm thrilled that at such a young age I have found and started my dream career. As a recent graduate from UC Davis with a degree in Design and Communication, I always knew I wanted to work in a creative field. A few years ago I began second shooting weddings and that led to me taking off on my own business venture and photographing weddings, seniors, families, lifestyle, events, camps, artwork, food - you name it. I really haven't said no to anything yet. It's the reason I love this field. There is a challenge around every corner, with every photoshoot and every subject, to give your work its own voice and individuality.

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    One of my favorite projects thus far was a lovely, leisurely engagement session throughout San Francisco. The bride-to-be has been a close friend of mine since we were just 7 years old.

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    A bit of a plot twist here: their wedding was the day after their engagement session! Talk about a whirlwind! I have never been so challenged in my life, and it all paid off. My lifelong friend was marrying the man of her dreams, on a foggy morning, in a breathtaking city, and they brought their adorable dog!

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    With a passion for lifestyle photography, I find that the details can bring back the best memories, so I make sure to capture as many details as possible. For me, the best feeling is when you look down at your camera after taking a (hopefully) winning shot, and you see the glimmer in their eye as they look at each other. It only gets better from there.

    BGP_2175BGP_2248-Edit-EditBGP_2295 BGP_2333BGP_2460BGP_2837BGP_2855BGP_2763 Through photography I have made life-long friends and worked with remarkable organizations like Camp Kesem and Active Minds. I may not believe in luck, but I am always looking forward to my next big challenge; it's what makes life worthwhile!

    COMPANY:Becky Gmahling Photography WEBSITE: http://www.beckygmahling.com SOCIAL: facebook, instagram

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