Meet the Dietz's!

Another great wedding! Jen and Andrew began their new life together on a warm October day in Strongsville, OH. We definitely took advantage of the unexpectedly nice weather for a post ceremony shoot at the Westfield building. Then we followed up with a reception held at Vell's in Medina.

I thought it was a really nice touch to have a makeup artist actually come to Jen's house the morning of the wedding to take care of all of the girls. She just seems so calm and collected in this shot.
The calm soon turned into excitement and anticipation upon arrival at the church. Here Jen grabs a quick hug from her bridesmaids.
I just had to throw in this candid of Andrew prior to the ceremony. The view is through one of the church's engraved windows.

I told you she was excited!

The ceremony itself was perfectly sun lit, with beams of light highlighting them.

The location at Westfield was perfect for creating images with a classic feel.

I just laugh every time I see this shot! Someone was playing hide and seek at the reception!

Once again I'd like to offer my gratitude to Jen, Andrew, and their families for a wonderful day and all of their insight and cooperation.

Jen & Tommy's Wedding!

Jen and Tommy's wedding day has to have been one of the most touching I've ever attended. Taken place at St. Vincent church in Akron and the reception at St. Joseph's, the day was full of emotion and moments that really showed the true essence of Jen and Tommy's love for each other. I think the moment that has stuck with me most is the speech given at the reception, in which their relationship was best described as a pure love and devotion for each other. It was a pleasure to work with such an inspirational couple.

Jen and her bridesmaids just had to sneek a quick peek of Tommy through the dressing room's window.
A casual shot of Jen. I especially loved the necklace she wore, a large South Sea pearl, which was on loan from her jeweler.

A detail of the rings, including the engraving on the inside of the bands.

Tommy had a grin on his face all day long.

I just thought this was an interesting shot of all the bridesmaid's matching shoes and flowers during the ceremony.
This was a great candid. I caught Jen and Tommy sneeking in a quick kiss at the back of the church just seconds after being pronounced husband and wife.

An afternoon rain put a damper on their exit from the church, but made for a cute shot of them huddled together under an umbrella as they ran to the limo.

Love this shot!Something fun and funky.

What a party! I've never seen so many people on a dance floor before!

TTD Winner!

I'm happy to announce our winner of the Trash the Dress Shoot contest. I'd like to thank everyone for the great response we got. Please stay tuned in the coming month to see the results of the shoot!
Drumroll please....

Andrea & Casey!

How I Got the Shot #1

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful (and warm!) NEO weather that we've been having. I've been working feverishly to process the last few weddings we've done, so I know its been a while since I've had a chance to post. I just wanted to take the opportunity to introduce a new section of the blog I decided to begin called "How I Got the Shot".

This was inspired by a good friend of mine who happened to stop in the office the other day. He's a bit of a photography buff so we got to talking about how I captured different images that I have up on display. That's when it occurred to me just how many people ask about many of my images. With the advent of digital photography that has made photography much more mainstream and accessible, lots of people are now following their interest in the craft as a hobby.

So I thought many people would enjoy hearing the how-to and story behind some of my favorite shots! You can take the opportunity to learn more about the technical side of getting the shot, or just find out what is running through my mind when I'm shooting. Please enjoy and I'm looking forward to lots of feedback about these!


Featured Image:

So the background story on this shot is pretty interesting. I think it was a Saturday night early this summer and I had been craving the idea of just going out on a walk around downtown with the camera. I probably do this three or four times during the summer and I always enjoy the sense of exploration that I get from it. So I managed to convince the boyfriend to go with me. (No way I'm walking around downtown by myself at night with a big camera! I'm not that crazy! Besides, he likes to play with the good old 35mm :)

We spent almost the entire night walking around shooting, even when a light rain began. This shot was taken at around 3am, hence no cars on the road. This is the middle of Broadway, facing South, which is opposite of the normal flow of traffic on this street. To the right is the John S. Knight convention center and Quaker Square can be seen further down on the left. I just loved the way the street lights were glimmering on the wet pavement making an unexpectedly eerie feeling. So I thought the best way to capture the light on the asphalt would be to lay in the middle of the road to make the street take up the majority of the frame. I exposed the frame at 1/10 of a second at f5.6, with 400iso. It was turned black & white in photoshop and I punched up the contrast to really show off the lighting.

Now this image hangs in the office as a fine art gallery piece as a huge 30x40 print on metallic paper. I think it is by far one of my favorites and it usually ends up being a conversation starter!

Cars and Carnivals!

(A 2-part post)

Part 1: Cars

Meet Eddy. I don't usually post much about my portrait sessions, but I had to post some of the shots from his high school senior session! You see, Eddy just got a new car and just like any other self respecting high school guy he loves it! We were talking when he scheduled the session and I had the idea of going for a later session to let us do some sweet night shots with his prize posession car. I love shooting at night. You can just do so much fun stuff with lighting.

Part 2: Carnival (well actually the Fair, technically)

When I heard the Portage County Fair was in town this weekend I just had to go. I haven't been to one since I was a kid! Well I found myself in front of that darn goldfish game with one of my friends and I just had to get a fish! Its like an addiction! So between the two of us I think we spent about six bucks trying to win a darn ten cent fish. The carnival guys started feeling bad for us because we were so bad at the game and he ended up giving us extra shots. Just picture two ditsy girls throwing ping-pong balls at fish bowls horribly. So sad.... so sad.
To make a long story short...

But wait, that's not all.
I had to go to Petsmart the next day to get little "Fluffy" something to eat. While there I fell in love with one of the beta's. So now...

At least my cat has something to watch while I'm at work during the day.

Brian & Renee's Home Run Wedding!

Talk about a wonderful wedding with a unique venue! Brian and Renee’s guests will surely be talking about their day for quite a while. We started the day at one of Cleveland’s most elegant cathedrals, St. Patrick’s on the West side, followed by a reception at Jacob’s Field, the home of the Cleveland Indians. I still can’t believe how many shots I took that day. Just so many great moments and unique settings that I couldn't stop shooting!


The alter at St. Patrick's has so much intricate carving you just have to see it. I also love how the marble floor reflected Renee's dress.

I thought this was a cute action shot of the bridesmaids bustling Renee's gown after the ceremony.

St. Patrick's also has a beautiful area outside for shooting, lined with columns.

This was a great shot because it has so much meaning behind it. Brian and the groomsmen attended St. Ignatius when growing up in Cleveland. So naturally we had to stop by the school for a few quick shots.

Ok, so this shot needs some explaining! After the ceremony we hitched a ride on the limo bus to Voinovich Park for some photos. Well, apparently about 5 other bridal parties had the same idea. I don't know who the strange guy at the top of the group is....just a random groomsmen from another bridal party! He came running over insisting on being in a photo. How funny is that? Everyone got a huge kick out of it! So Mr. Random Groomsman, if you happen to find this blog please email me and I will be more than happy to send you a copy of the photo :)

So the best part of the day? We got to go on the field at Jacob's to take photos!

The guys were having a blast hanging out in the dugout. Definitely a once in a lifetime experience.

Here's a look at the reception area. It's the clubhouse over looking the field! The view just blows you away as soon as you walk in. Everyone was talking about it.

Another hit! The candy bar that Renee put together was demolished by the end of the night. There's something about Jelly Belly's that you just can't turn down.

I thought I would end with one of my favorite images from the reception. Brian and Renee seemed so lost in each other during the first dance. I love the colorful mural of downtown Cleveland that served as the backdrop to the dance floor. Richard of Academy DJ's was great at keeping the floor packed all night!

Thanks again and Congratulations to Renee and Brian for a wonderful day full of great moments.

Trash the Dress Giveaway!!!

I’m so excited to be announcing our first ever giveaway contest, for a “Trash the Dress” fashion style shoot. If you haven’t heard of the Trash the Dress sensation, its one of the fastest growing trends in wedding photography today. Built around the concept of a fashion style wedding shoot, outside of the time and location constraints of the wedding day, it allows us to create unique and beautiful images that would not otherwise be possible. I love the idea that it really allows us to get very edgy and creative! For more information on Trash the Dress, please visit http://www.trashthedress.com/.

The shoot up for grabs includes up to three hours of shooting with Jenn at a location in the Northeast Ohio area, with the images presented as full resolution files on DVD with copyright release! A $650.00 package! To enter, please send your name, phone number, and wedding date to studiojphoto@aol.com, with the title “Trash my Dress!” by September 8th. The contest is open to all brides, whether or not you’ve used Studio J for your wedding photography, but the shoot must take place prior to October 31st, 2007. The winner will be chosen at random and announced Sept. 9th. Good luck and take care!