Soon Celebratin'!

We're soon to be celebratin' at BBP! Yes indeed! News to come!

Melisa and Jeromy

We are so pleased to announce Melisa and Jeromy as the newest members of the BBP Wedding Family! This great couple met us at a bridal show at the Frontenac Hilton and said they just knew that we were the one! Naturally we were very happy that we were still available for their wedding date next spring. It's a certainty that we will have a long and happy relationship!!

Fall has taken a back seat to the return of summer here in St. Louis and 90 degrees won't be a stretch when the temperature has it's way with us this afternoon. The weekend promises to continue this bit of heat, yikes. We're trying to enjoy it knowing that all to soon winter will be here!

Flowers, Flowers, Flowers

We're getting a lot of buzz about any special floral tips for a fall wedding. And of course, we have some suggestions! While fall is not nearly as 'tough' on flowers as a summer wedding, many of the same truths hold:

• Choose an excellent florist---- we have some favorites if you would like to know--ask!
• Rely on your florist to suggest flowers that work with your vision that are sturdy enough to withstand the rigors of location photography shoots.
• Always get a two spare boutonnières, one for the groom and a generic groomsman. The men-folk are much harder on their florals and a spare is always a great idea. The groom will appreciate a fresh flower as he enters the reception as well. If they are well packaged they can travel with the bouquets on location.
  
• Fall colors in flowers are almost always prettier than 'plain' colors. It is the fall, your flowers can and should reflect the season unless they really clash with your wedding colors
• Make sure that your florist is providing vases with water for the flowers during location photography.
• Always ask your florist if they will be present at the wedding to oversee the pinning on of flowers for the men, and handing out flowers to the women. It is nice to have them on the premises as quality control if nothing else.
• Don't be so stuck on your own vision for flowers that you do not listen to your florist. A good florist will have excellent advise to follow as you plan your florals.

Up For Air (Sort Of)

OHMYGOSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Here it is Tuesday and I'm just coming up for air. GASP. It seems like just seconds ago that we finished the beautiful wedding on Saturday of Katie and Jason out at Caroline Vineyard's................... and yet over two days have gone by and my head is spinning. I've had out of town guests, which in and of themselves are quite delightful. The downside of course is that absolutely nothing else got done. Nada. Zilch. Zippo. Bobbi has kept all of the balls in the air of course, and thank heavens!

So I'm back at it and sadly I find that my desk is piled so high I really don't seem to make much headway with anything because there is just, well So Much. Be gentle with me!

On a totally separate and completely random note, have you checked out the image scroller (or whatever they call it) from the fine folks at Blogger? You'll discover that it is a scrolling soup of images that have just been recently uploaded to the blogs that are hosted at Blogger so they are fascinating! From folks all over the world from hobby blogs, serious blogs, children's blogs, family blogs, business blogs and more---- it is strangely addictive and almost impossible to look away! Of course, I am easily distracted today but I think you will find it compelling as well. You can find the show at http://play.blogger.com/

I bring you exhibit A, below. I don't travel as much as I used to so this fascinated me. Can you even wrap your brain around this? Seriously. This is not America kids.


I'll be back with some of the lovely images from Jason and Katie's Big Day, you'll love them!

Mary Beth and Matt

I'm always so tickled when we get to welcome a new bride and groom to the BBP wedding family and Mary Beth and Matt are certainly not the exception to that rule! It will be so much fun working with them and we are looking forward to their wedding VERY much! Glad you're with us Mary Beth and Matt----- the time will absolutely fly until your wedding next year!

On a related subject (which somehow always seems to be weddings) I am sort of bummed that my favorite gown didn't get chosen for the Today Show Wedding! :( The dress that was chosen is absolutely lovely----- just not my choice. You know how I am, I sort of want to stamp my feet and pout a little bit! The bridesmaids dresses will be announced and I have to say I wasn't a big fan of any of them. I guess if pushed to make a decision it would be the Amsale gown in peony pink!

Blog-wise, one you may want to check out and possibly subscribe to is the one from the doyenne of Martha Stewart Weddings, Darcy Miller. The blog is called The Bride's Guide and is beautifully produced, with some excellent advice and tips. Check it out!

Darcy also does a weekly show on Martha Stewart Radio over on Sirius. You can listen to "The Weddings Hour" live every Wednesday from noon to 1 p.m. ET. No Sirius? I am a recent convert and absolutely LOVE it! You can get a free 3 day listen of selected shows on the schedule by going to their website.

In Memoriam

Photo courtesy of A. Cheng, NYC

We Love Wedding Gowns

Well of course we love wedding gowns! After all we see them every weekend (and sometimes more often)! The choices for the Martha Stewart Wedding on the Today Show were announced this morning. As usual they were pretty diverse and yet all really lovely. See the screen shot above to view them or log on to the Today Show site and click wedding. I was tickled that Jessica (my choice) was selected for the on air wedding, she is just as cute as a bug. Personally, for her I voted for the Monique L'Huillier dress--- it is gorgeous. My second favorite was the Lela Rose design. So---- get out there and vote for your favorite, we will all be tuned in next week when they announce the viewer's choice!

Another rainy day in St. Louis, tomorrow's bride is getting nervous! We're looking forward to spending the day (rain OR shine) with Jeff and Michelle and their friends and family. The bonus is that we get to see Michelle's sister Jennifer who is one of our former brides. Michelle, if you're reading this please know that I am still doing the No Rain Dance for you!

Shall we discuss another topic on Today??? The college student who was tossed off a Southwest flight for wearing an inappropriate outfit? Did you SEE that outfit? Skank City!!! When Matt asked her to stand up she did........... and really, I see that look all over America. When she sat down in her chair however they had to put one of those 'hazy areas' over her crotch, THAT is how short the skirt was. Please! And she and her mother thought she looked fine. Trust me, without them blurring her image on the screen we would have seen what she had for breakfast! I think THAT lovely sight was what pushed my decision over the edge! VERY interesting to me was that when the segment was replayed the cut out the peek a boo shot when she sat down AND they cut out Matt's comment about what it might have looked like to others when they walked down the aisle in front of her. That says a lot, doesn't it?

So......................... what do you think? Average All American College Girl or Skankaroo??? They even have the video up on the Today Show site......... complete with your very own opportunity to vote as to her choice of outfit. I must be a total Fuddy Duddy because here is how the voting is running:
TODAY Live Vote

	Should Kyla Ebbert have been thrown off a flight for wearing a revealing outfit? * 1203 responses
	Yes. Her skirt was so short it was practically obscene 32%
	No, it wasn't inappropriate attire. 35%
	No, but if she was my daughter I'd ask her to cover up more! 33%
Not a scientific survey. Click to learn more. Results may not total 100% due to rounding.

Preparation is Everything!

Of course prep is the key to any successful event----- most especially weddings! You've been planning your once in a lifetime day for ages now, don't let anything slip through the cracks. The most often forgotten items are:

• Rough up the soles of your 'wedding' shoes--- slipping is a bad thing!
• Shoes to wear after the ceremony when you are out on location
  
• Hairspray. 'nuff said.
• Lots of Kleenex
• Brides, try on your undies before the wedding day, trust me on this one!
  

Basic things that brides sometimes forget.


It is finally raining in St. Louis, we need the moisture bad (have I mentioned that my lawn is brown???) but I know that brides all over the area who are getting married this weekend are getting a little nervous! We have our fingers crossed................

Jennifer & Dustin

What do you get when you cross a beautiful bride, a handsome groom, wonderful and kind personalities and a Vera Wang gown? That's easy, you get Jenn and Dusty's wedding, held last weekend at the Jewel Box with their reception held at Windows Off Washington. The weather was really lovely and everyone had a fantastic time! Thanks to Jenn and Dusty for the honor of letting us share in their special day!

Labor Day Weekend Wedding

We will be spending the Saturday of Labor Day Weekend with Jennifer and Dustin as we shoot their wedding. Bobbi, Aaron and I are pretty excited that the temperature is moderate and the skies are blue! Jennifer is such a pretty woman, no doubt at all that she will be a gloriously gorgeous bride--- and her groom Dustin? Tres handsome to boot! I'm already very anxious to see the images taken from their once in a lifetime day, I know they will be spectacular!

Tomorrow after we get the gear unpacked and everything squared away some friends of BBP are playing in a bowling tournament so we thought we'd swing by, eat some bowling alley food, buy some raffle tickets and cheer them on. It ought to be a good finish to another great wedding weekend.

A Run of Jennifer's

I have to say it again................ I'm confused! :) We have been Katie heavy and Jen heavy this year, and lately it has been a run of Jennifer's. Tomorrow we will be photographing the wedding of Jennifer and Dustin and it is going to be gorgeous on all counts! First, the weather on this Labor Day Weekend seems to have broken and with any luck the forecasters are right and the weekend will be glorious, not too hot as it has been lately. Secondly the bride and groom are rather fabulous themselves! We can't wait!

Now........... just so you know, we are currently accepting applications for Nancy's, Betty's, Adelaide's and Rhonda's!

Have an absolutely wonderful weekend, hope you get a chance to relax, hang out, be with friends and family. And as always.......... be a blessing and pass one on!

Sarah & Tim

We have met with quite a few brides in the past several weeks and have had the opportunity to enlarge the BBP family as well. That does not make our welcome of Sarah & Tim any less exciting for us! Sarah is absolutely adorable, we enjoyed getting to know her a bit better when she came into the studio for her consultation with Bobbi. When she asked to retain BBP she was darling when she asked "Bobbi, please be our photographer for our big day"! Nothing would make us happier Sarah, we are really excited too! Your wedding day will be very beautiful as well as lots of fun and we're so pleased to be part of it!

Things around the studio have not slowed down one teensy bit, as a matter of fact things continue to get busier and busier. I say it all the time but it is never any less true--- we are the luckiest photography studio in the world to be blessed with such great clients, and that includes our super brides and grooms and their families!

Bride Karen tells me that hiking is in her future, Utah in October should be so magnificently gorgeous! If I were a hiker, I think I'd be jealous! As I was saying yesterday, while I am fascinated by geology and archeology, I changed my major when I discovered that I'd have to stay in less than 5 star hotels, go without makeup and look grungy. ACK! Regardless, a lovely getaway to the gorgeous scenery that is Utah sounds so good!

I would---- but I can't

Images today? Sorry. Not like we don't have a gazillion, all outstanding, to show you! Bobbi has been doing commercial shoots and the photos are absolutely wonderful! I'd show you because I know you want to see them, but I can't. For those of you who know me, I am about the one and only person on staff here at BBP that is a "rules girl". Everyone else is a rule breaker, much to my chagrin they are naughty! Maybe I should get someone else to post the photos? The shoot for St. Louis Best Bridal was really exceptional, the photos are absolutely fantastic, they'll be in the next issue so keep a lookout!

Another afternoon on location so Bobbi will rack up yet more miles on her car!

Summer Flies

We can't believe that the summer has flown by. If you stick to the traditional calendar where Labor Day is the official end of the summer, well dear readers, summer's end is upon us. This would be the last week to celebrate. I'm very sad about that mostly because it means that winter is coming. Don't get me wrong, August has been unspeakably hot and Fall is around the corner bringing beautiful colors, crisp air and apple picking. Right behind it comes the winter and I just can't bear to think about it.

Summer is still here in St. Louis however! Yesterday we were blessed to meet some wonderful brides, grooms and their families at the Hilton in Frontenac and it was cold. COLD in there, absolutely downright freezing. Most shows (as you undoubtedly know) are hot to sweltering so we were unprepared to have icicles hanging from our noses. When we were loading the SUV the 92 degree heat felt actually quite good!

Bobbi is on location today with St. Louis Best Bridal doing a shoot for their upcoming magazine, I'll be sure to share what details I can later. You can be sure that the photographs will be spectacularly beautiful!

Happy Monday!

Under the Arch

Yesterday morning Bobbi had the opportunity to meet for breakfast with St. Louis Metro wedding photographers. Some who have been around a long time, some newbies and some in between. All said it was a great time of sharing and schmoozing. I hear crepes were on the menu----- rats, how awful to have missed it!

We are still in the thick of wedding consultations from brides we have met in the past few weeks at the various shows we've done. It has been a blast to meet so many fun people! If you are postponing your visit to the studio to sit down with Bobbi and have a consultation about your day----- hesitate no more! The schedule is jammed and getting busier by the day!

The final show of the wedding show marathon is this Sunday at the Frontenac Hilton and it promises to be an absolutely wonderful show, we're excited to be there.

Our 2008 wedding calendar is almost full, 8 great dates left! Thanks to all of our incredible brides for giving us the opportunity to photograph your once in a lifetime event with "Images from the Heart..."

Vacation Yet???

I've decided that the time for a vacation is long overdue. I've lost my everlovin' mind, slipped a cog and am just dog tired. Dog. Tired. Very much after the fact I discovered late last night (when I had already been drooling on myself in front of the television) that I had given the wrong name for a bride the week after her wedding when we posted photos of her gorgeous wedding. What can I say, I am a true idiot of the highest magnitude and Michelle if you are reading this I apologize. I chalk it up to one of the busiest wedding seasons on record and of course the fact that I am feeling old and feeble apparently! :) My ace web watcher, bride Carin apparently slipped up on her job as the dear soul who makes sure that I have not well and truly lost it--- so Carin I must say you clearly need to pay closer attention here!

Vacation is actually not in the future, at least for awhile. But that is okay! Despite never seeing the bottom of my desk, we continue to be blessed by the best brides in the good old US of A. Thanks to you all for making me laugh, surprising me with your kind words, being sweet and sharing your incredibly fabulous wedding with us all.

I will close on this extremely hot Thursday in St. Louis with a recipe for one of those things that we all have in abundance--TOMATOES. I am afraid to answer the door when I get home from the studio for fear that yet more neighbors will share their tomatoey goodness.

Really Good Tomato and Basil Bruschetta

INGREDIENTS

• 6 roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped. You can use regular tomatoes, just remove most of the seeds and pulp and use the flesh of the tomato. If you use regular tomatoes you will need 3-4 depending on size
  
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil (I buy a big jar at Costco and use it all the time), chopped roughly
  
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 cup good quality olive oil
• 2 tablespoons good quality red balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, stems removed (My garden has a basil plant that is taking over!)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 French baguette, sliced diagonally for nice big oval slices of bread
  
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese or slices of fresh Buffalo Mozzarella if you like the taste
  

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat the broiler
  
• In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, basil, salt, and pepper. Allow the mixture to sit for 10 minutes.
• Cut the baguette into 3/4-inch slices. On a baking sheet, arrange the baguette slices in a single layer. Broil for 1 to 2 minutes, until slightly brown.
• Divide the tomato mixture evenly over the baguette slices. Top the slices with mozzarella cheese.
• Broil for 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.

Stay cool!

Angel Session

We are blessed--- always---- with clients and friends at BBP. Sometimes blessings come in different guises. Bobbi was called to the hospital at 3:00 a.m. this morning to photograph another Angel Session. Baby Hayden was born with a genetic disorder and will very sadly pass on in the next few hours. We know that thoughts for the family would be very much appreciated.


Count your blessings, pass one on.

Ashley & Darrell

Everyone on staff here at BBP extends a warm welcome to Ashley & Darrell, our newest wedding family members! We're so pleased to have you and are--- as always--- so honored to have been chosen to capture your wedding memories with "Images from the Heart..."

The wedding show with St. Louis' Best Bridal yesterday at the Sheraton Clayton was a smashing success. As at all of our bridal shows, the booth was teeming with brides, grooms and their families and we had such a great time meeting everyone and seeing a couple of return visitors from a previous show! The next couple of weeks will be jammed with consultations and the privilege of hearing the special wedding visions of all those great brides and grooms. We are BLESSED!

Wedding Day Makeup

We've had a lot of questions about makeup for the wedding day---- and although we have discussed this before I think it bears repeating.

• The first rule is that you want to look like YOU, just more polished.

You also want to remember to keep on trend for the season with a nod to how you will look in your photographs when viewed by subsequent generations. You don't want to be SO dated if you know what I mean! (For example, my first wedding--- which is another story entirely-- I wore white lipstick and thick false eyelashes. While it was tres chic at the time, it was definitely the stuff that dates a photo!)

• Always, always practice makeup before the Big Day, give it a trial run whether or not you are doing your own makeup or having it done.
• We have several names of excellent hair and makeup professionals, please ask if you need a recommendation. Having this service provided for you and your wedding party does take a lot of stress and strain off of your day.
• You want to be "matte" for your day, without looking cakey. Rice paper blotting papers are a must for your travel bag.
  
• Our makeup choice is from Bare Escentuals and there is a great store in the Galleria. Their makeup professionals are well versed in what you need when it comes to colors. Their foundation is powder and works extremely well for all skin types. The finishing powder is Mineral Veil and not only looks great and helps keep the matte look, but is comfortable to wear. Their eyeshadows are also powder, come in a zillion colors and don't crease or work their way off as easily as many other brands.
  
• If you don't wear a lot of makeup, don't wear a lot of makeup on your wedding day. Make sure you look as wonderful as you can, and are comfortable with how you look after your trial run. Many of our brides either choose to do a formal bridal portrait with their makeup done so they can see it, feel it, and see how it photographs or they have it done for their engagement session. Both are great options.
• Start early to find your perfect look and ask questions.
• Have I mentioned practice your wedding day look?
  

Tomorrow is round 2 of the wedding show marathon. We will be at the Sheraton in Clayton for the Best Bridal Show. If you are planning to attend what will be an excellent show, please stop by and say hi--- although we promise to be extremely busy (as always) we'd love the chance to say hi and hear a little bit about your once in a lifetime day!

B and the Gang

I couldn't help it, it was seeing Kool and the Gang on the Today Show last week, must have made me nostalgic! :) That is Bobbi with photographers from STL, Illinois, Arkansas and New York with Bambi Cantrell and Jerry Ghionis. Bambi is all in black next to Bobbi and Jerry is on Bambi's left. If you are not 'in the business' you may not know that Bambi and Jerry are two of the world's top photographers, think of them as rock stars!

Speaking of the Today Show, are you watching as the Today Show annual wedding offering kicks off as the Martha Stewart Wedding? It looks like it will be absolutely spectacular, with those incredible little details that make it Oh So Martha. (I happen to LOVE Martha--- tell me you do too!) Vote for your favorite couple at www.thetodayshow.com, you can choose from Beth and Will, Tom and Nicole, Alisa and Jason, and Jessica and Cody. If you have been seeing them sing, dance and otherwise be silly you might already have a favorite. I confess that Jessica and Cody are my favorites so I'll be pulling for them to win!

It is another record breaker in St. Louis today, yikes it is HOT HOT HOT. Stay cool and be a blessing to someone! Even a little smile or a small kindness can make the difference in someone's day when it is so oppressive outside.