Hello from WPPI! I’m here at the convention in Las Vegas until Thursday so my apologies ahead of time if email replies are a bit slow the next few days! My roomies {Caroline Tran, Serena Grace, Sarah K Chen} & I drove in yesterday afternoon and are looking forward to classes, parties, & meeting lots of new people! You can follow all of my adventures over the next few days on Twitter.

Leaving you with a quick picture of us before the Airhorns & Lasers party last night (because a camera phone pic is better than no pic at all!)

Many thanks to these amazing blogs for recent features! When I meet with couples in the early stages of their planning, I often send them links to some of these spectacular sites to get their gears turning and to see what options are out there. These blogs are overflowing with ideas that are both budget-friendly, eco-friendly, & party-for-your-eyes friendly, and flood you with inspiration from every angle! I am a firm believer that you don’t have to break the bank to have beautiful & unique details for your day - it’s all about infusing YOU into your wedding and brainstorming with the help of gems on the web like these!

A little peek of Liz + Adam’s balloon engagement session in the sweet “Love This!” spot on Green Wedding Shoes. Jen’s blog is one of my absolute favorites and is an endless well of inspiration!

—

Tina + Sam’s wedding featured on Ever Thine, Ever Mine, Ever Ours. Lydia is rapidly growing on the blogging scene and it’s easy to see why - beautiful handpicked features daily!

Part One
Part Two

—

Sarah + Brad featured on Trendsetting Wedding. If you are planning a lovely urban wedding, this is your go-to blog! She features the most stunning city weddings & sessions.

—

Earlier this year, we had our first ever engagement session with balloons. We got lots of fun shots, there were laughs all around, and when we were not using the balloons, we had a system where Scott diligently tied them to his camera bag. We mightily explored the UCI campus, and after a change of outfits, we took off again, Christina & Rick hand in hand, me shooting away, and Scott with the balloons secured to his bag. And that’s when it happened. A “uh oh”, everyone turns around, and there are the precious green balloons tangled up 30 feet in a eucalyptus tree. Luckily we weren’t planning on using them much for this portion of the session, and luckily Christina and Rick are all kinds of sweet and awesome, but Scott & I still felt a little sheepish.

Fast forward to Liz & Adam’s wonderful engagement session last month. Another amazing session and beautiful collection of balloons. But this time, Scott would not have them going anywhere. He tied them to the front of his bag and he used a trusty “slip knot” (I was a Girl Scout for 9 years but I couldn’t tell you what that was. There’s no time for silly things like “knots” and the “outdoors” when you have all those cookies to sell.) And so here are a few shots to document how lucky I am to have such a diligent second shooter, who doesn’t mind wielding some multi-colored balloons, occasionally holding a purse or two, directing a flash, & putting up with other random tasks, all in the name of the team.

Liz & Adam’s fantastical balloon engagement session soon to follow!