Andrew Niesen

Erin looking beautiful after her makeup and hair trial


Rachel sports the "cowgirl look" at the beach house


Viewing the ocean from our porch


Mark and his future stepfather-in-law, Mark, practice their dance for the wedding reception


Remnant


Lori and Rachel at Gaulart and Maliclet Cafe in Charleston

Mark and Erin's wedding is tomorrow, and the beach house is full of photographers! We're enjoying each other's company, celebrating Mark & Erin. Check back for more updates soon.

I had the privilege of introducing my youngest sister to wedding photography this past weekend. Sudie, who is a rising junior at Miami University (of Ohio), took a break from all her international travel and spent the week with us, to mostly watch us work, which is pretty much all we do.

We shot our first wedding at Atlanta's Fernbank Museum of Natural History on Saturday. With the blessings of the bride (who was a paleontologist — the setting was perfect), Sudie hit the dance floor, armed with Mark's Canon EOS Mark II, a flash, and guidance from our assistant.

"That was really, really hard," she said the next morning. "The headsets were pretty cool, though."

LaCour is going on vacation for a week! We're packing up today and heading to Charleston. Erin and I are getting married next Saturday, August 12. Neither of us can wait. We're so excited. We've had a long engagement - a year and a half - and are ready for our wedding to arrive. We're going to be married on Sullivan's Island. Erin grew up in Charleston, we met at the beach and we both love the area, so it's the perfect spot for us to be wed.

So we will be spending this week at at our beach house with our closest friends and family, relaxing and preparing for the weekend. After the wedding we'll be going on a honeymoon to a small, boutique hotel in the caribbean to lounge on the beach some more!

Andrew and Rachel will return to the office on August 15th and Erin and I will return on August 24th. We'll be sure to share photos and stories when we return!

We were honored to be chosen by Cameron Swartz to photograph her wedding to Matt Clark on June 17 in Flagstaff, AZ. They had a themed wedding and all of their guests dressed in attire closely resembling the 1920s and '30s.

I attended college with Cameron at the University of Georgia where we both studied photojournalism. Cameron is a great photographer and friend and Erin and I were thrilled to be able to document their wedding weekend.

** CLICK HERE to view Cameron and Matt's slideshow.

** CLICK HERE to view Cameron's website.

Ultimately, the final physical product is your client's album. Designing that album is dramatically easier when a you approach the wedding day shoot comprehensively, actively thinking about the album design as you shoot.

1) Overall wide shots: These photographs set the scene in the album, (shown above) and should be shot in each new environment throughout the day. They can be shot with or without people. These images will likely be used large in the album because they help the viewer "take in the scene." These shots often are used as "opening" shots, used early in the story.

2) Documentary Portraits: These are not stiff formal portraits, but rather photographs made while the subject is reacting naturally to the situation as it unfolds before the camera. These images can be used to establish the main characters of the story in the album.

3) Honest Emotion and Interaction: These shots are central to the story. They are the photographs that draw the viewer into the album and actually connect the viewer to the story emotionally.

4) Details: The beauty is in the details. Clients invest money in the details of their wedding, much of which will be gone after the day is over. Flowers, cakes, jewelry, dresses, tuxedos, invitations and other details, when photographed with care, will allow a bride and groom to reflect upon the details of their wedding, much of which will be a blur in their memory.

5) Medium shots: Many of the types of pictures noted above require shooting close-up or very wide, and it is important to not forget to shoot photos that are "medium shots" — ones that show people waist up or slightly wider.

6) Closer: Concluding the album can be a real challenge if you don't think about shooting a "closer" at the wedding. These are often easy, if the bride and groom have a grand exit under sparklers or rose petals. But if they simply walk out of the hotel ballroom onto the elevator with no fanfare, then you must think creatively about how to close the album.