Warning: Grab a tissue box before clicking “play”.
The father-of-the-bride surprised everyone with a “slightly altered rendition” of Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight”.  There wasn’t a dry eye in the room, including Dani and I.  His serenade beautifully summarized Nikki + Matt’s perfect wedding day.  This is a great video to share with those that don’t see the value in hiring an event filmmaker.  Imagine if this precious moment was documented with only still photography.

Another IN[FOCUS] event has come and gone. This year, Dani and I traveled to Charleston, SC and meet up with the greatest event filmmakers in the world. We enjoyed the presentations, chatting with old friends and making new ones. Of course, we stay current with all of our cameras, lenses, and software, but it’s important to not neglect the importance of investing in our minds.

This was our first time in Charleston and we fell in love with the city right away. Luckily we had a day or two after the conference to explore some of the historic sites before traveling back home. The SC Republican primary was in the works that week and there was plenty of GOP commotion throughout the city which was interesting to witness. Looking back at our previous IN[FOCUS] video entries, this video is very laid-back and I feel it totally represents the vibe of the city.

What a rewarding trip.

The Indiana Roof Ballroom has to be our favorite wedding reception venue in downtown Indianapolis. It’s hard to get a bad shot in there. Shannon and Chad had a wonderful wedding celebration and it was a blast being a part of it. This trailer features our usual full HD cinema footage as well as some classic silent movie footage shot with antique cameras.

prep: Conrad Indianapolis
ceremony: Tabernacle Presbyterian Church
reception: Indiana Roof Ballroom
floral: Circle City Design
dj: Platinum DJ Productions
photo: Dawn Fisher
cake: Heavenly Sweets

A letter on my door step. portraits are more than paper.

There will be no portrait photos in this post. This letter wasn’t mailed – it was at my doorstep when I got home a couple months ago. I read it, I cried, and read it again – probably a hundred times by now. It wasn’t easy to read – and honestly, as much as it validates what I do for a living – I wasn’t sure I was going to share it either – Until today, when a past client said that my print prices were too expensive. If you choose to read through the letter, you will know why I’ve finally chosen to share it.

July 2nd, 2011

Jeanine –

Today I am writing for a couple of reasons. I have some quiet time at the moment and need to get a couple of things off my mind. I will leave this for my husband to deliver to you when he is ready.

You photographed my wedding, you photographed my first pregnancy and my first baby. I contacted you awhile back to photograph my 2nd child and family. After getting prices and realizing I would want all of the pictures as we love your work – I decided against spending $500+ – which is what I normally spend for portraits and prints with you.. Please know it is not because I don’t value your amazing eye, or how much we love the experience.

That week that I decided to NOT do a session with you, this is how I spent some money.

On Sunday I called and cancelled our session. Monday I went out and got my hair cut ($39+tip), and colored ($65), Thursday I had my nails done ($24), my family went out to dinner at a somewhat expensive restaurant for no particular reason costing us $79 + tip. This was just 4 days since canceling our session, already totaling over $200 for un necessary things. My nails only lasted about 2 weeks, my hair is gone, and seven weeks passed when I got the phone call from our doctor. It was not something I expected and the cancer has spread very quickly. I will be leaving my husband, my 6 year old girl and my now 2 year old – not by choice. It is very hard for me to talk about it which is why I need to write you.

I watch your Facebook page and your posts about the value of a photo and if I could give back all of those things that I purchased this few weeks after I cancelled my session with you, knowing what I know now, and have that session, well… I would do it in a heartbeat.

Now my time is done and there are no more chances for me. The next time someone cancels a session – my wish is that you forward this letter to them. Time is fragile, it is gone before you know you had it. If you charged $200 for one print it wouldn’t be enough for what it is actually worth. I cringe to think that my priorities were a manicure over a memory to pass onto my babies and husband.

My love and thanks for what you have given us from past photos. I am so sorry that I did not see it as more than paper until now.

Karen L.

How fun it was for us to travel to Washington D.C. for a delightful wedding at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. In addition to our HD equipment, we brought along one of our vintage super 8mm movie cameras and shot a roll or two of silent movie film.

ceremony + reception: Mandarin Oriental, Washington DC
photographer: Andrew Morrell
floral + design: Amaryllis, Inc.
cake: Maggie Austin Cake
steel drum: Lennard Jack
dj: DJ Hazzard
planning: Leslie Manning Events

Here are a few slides from their wedding film

We traveled up to Chicago to cover Charline & Steve’s wedding last August. This was a first for us, a Christian Indian wedding. We didn’t have the opportunity to meet them in person before their wedding, but we learned as much as we could about them and their story. One thing was evident throughout our communications and that was their faith and their genuine love for one another. We had the pleasure of working with Matt and Stevi Savage from averyhouse. A super-cool couple that produce some stunning photography. This is their short film which they added to their feature film collection. A feature film functions as a story-filled highlight of the entire day and it’s the perfect length to share online. I hope you enjoy Charline and Steve’s story.

prep: Hyatt Place, Schaumburg
ceremony: Trinity Lutheran Church, Roselle
reception: The Seville
photo: averyhouse
dj: DJ Roberto Monastero
floral: Fleur du Jour

Super 8mm memories of Christmas 2010.

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So this is how a DJ gets married!
Dani and I had the privilege of documenting the wedding of Laura & Jeff (DJ Orion) on July 23rd, 2011.
DJ Orion (the groom; Radio NOW 100.9), DJ Lockstar, DJ Indiana Jones, and a few others had a go at the turntables throughout the night. With the help of Lori Solomon and the Boldly Chic Events team, Laura & Jeff had a fun, energetic wedding that rocked the Stutz Building in downtown Indianapolis. Earlier that day, they exchanged some personalized, heartfelt vows during their wedding ceremony at Robert’s Park Methodist Church. It was a thrill for us to be a part of this wedding. Laura & Jeff (and their crazy friends) sure know how to have fun!

ceremony venue: Robert’s Park Methodist Church
reception venue: Stutz Building
planning: Boldly Chic Events
dj: DJ Lockstar, DJ Indiana Jones & of course, DJ Orion
floral: Julies Flowers of Geist
cake: Simply Perfections

Learning from our peers in the industry is priceless. Anytime that we are able to grow in our knowledge for our business we seize the opportunity.

POSH is an all female event filmmaker retreat which took place in beautiful Cancun, Mexico this November. This is a conference that not only further educates it’s attendees through the knowledgeable speakers and their presentations, but also from being surrounded by the other talented women throughout the 4-day experience. The presenters covered not only the technical side filmmaking, but also some great ideas behind storytelling and marketing. We were also given a free day to soak up the sun, which gave me the opportunity for a nice run along the shoreline.

It was also a great opportunity to spend some more time with some of the other women in the industry worldwide. We were able to share thoughts on business and craft, was so helpful to hear from so many different perspectives. Some of these women have been shooting since the early 90′s, and some have only been shooting for only a year. Everyone had something different to offer.

I’m excited to take the knowledge and inspiration that I achieved at POSH and apply it to our work at Jet Kaiser Films. What a wonderful adventure!
-Dani