I am backing up photos from my cousin’s wedding in St. Louis today and I just HAVE to share a photo with you! :-)

All of you brides out there (already married or soon-to-be), I want you to raise your hand if you tried on your wedding dress before the wedding.

Now, I want you to raise your hand if you tried on your wedding day makeup. Hair style? Accessories? Shoes?

These might sound like silly questions, and some of them might not even apply to you, but as a wedding photographer I have seen some pretty ridiculous scenarios all because someone forgot to make time to ‘try it on.’

First of all, please please please don’t try out brand new make up on your wedding day. I once had a bride look like a pumpkin because her brand new foundation wasn’t the right shade to match her skin tone. Thank goodness she was used to the brand – how awful would that have been if she had an allergic reaction to the new makeup?! My advice: hire a makeup artist and do a trial run a few weeks before the wedding (right when your spray tan is the perfect shade). Makeup artists know how to make makeup look good in real life AND in photos. Also, ask if they’ll stick around during photos to help with touch-ups.

Your hairstyle? Try it on! If you want your updo to stay up or your curls to stay curled all day long, ask your stylist to have a practice run to make sure you love how it looks from all angles.

Your accessories? Try them on! There are so many cute accessories out there – from necklaces to earrings to hair clips to garters – and they are all meant to help you feel even more glamorous on your big day. Find a worry-free necklace that won’t twist or hang too low. If you don’t wear earrings every day, wear them for a few days before the wedding so your ears don’t get irritated on the day of. And this is just me, but I can’t stand wearing a garter. They’re itchy and annoying and I’d rather not have anyone try to take it off with their teeth. But that’s just me. However, I happened to find this little beauty a few weeks ago, and if it’s anything like VS’s lace-waist hiphuggers, it has GOT to be comfortable.

And, last but DEFINITELY not least. The shoes. I have seen some pretty rockin’ shoes this past year, and some pretty amazing girls have worn them all. day. long. However, if you are planning on wearing stiletto heels for the big day and but your everyday shoes are flats, make it a point to wear your wedding shoes around your apartment for a few weeks beforehand. Your feet will thank you.

AND if you’re planning on wearing some Manolo Blahniks (ahem, Paige…) please be advised that I WILL dedicate a portion of your wedding day to photograph your shoes. :-)

Why do wedding photographers only share a handful of images from each wedding on their blog?

Because they are the best of the best. They are the photographer’s favorite images from the day. They show off the highlights of the day. They are easy to look through. They are the images that everyone else wants to see.

But what about the other hundreds of images behind the blog post? If you’re shopping around for a wedding photographer, don’t you want to see what the photos from the entire day look like? I highly recommend asking your top three photographers to see an entire wedding that they’ve done recently. Compare all of the images instead of just the photographer’s top favorites.

Any photographer can take 10-30 images and make them look blog-worthy, but a great photographer will have those images plus hundreds of professional photos from every other part of the wedding day.

I am pleased to announce studio lb’s collaboration with the very talented wedding videographer, Adam of AJ Production Company. We have been offering weddings together for a while now, and we finally have something to show off together!

I invited Adam to join me at Dan + Kalina‘s wedding to try out his new ‘same day edit’ video. He covered everything from getting ready to the first look to the ceremony. We moved around each other and gave each other ideas for shots. It was SO much fun to talk lighting and have someone understand it as well as appreciate it!! I wish every wedding I photographed would book Adam as their videographer.

Okay, so maybe we got in each others’ shots a few times, but I intentionally wanted to get a few images of Adam in action. :-)

After the speeches at the reception, he showed everyone his amazing video. Of that day. I was pretty jealous. I have been wanting to do same-day slideshows for a while now, but haven’t found myself an awesome assistant to help with the editing like Adam has (yes, Kyle, that would be you!).

The reactions were priceless. :-)

It’s official… wedding season is HERE!! And I couldn’t be more excited!!

Dan + Kalina had a wonderful winter wedding in Brookings this weekend. Not only did I get to be their photographer, I also got to be their guest! I was fully prepared to catch Kalina’s bouquet at the end of the night. :-)

For those of you who don’t remember, Kalina caught the bouquet at her sister Erika’s wedding back in May. Dan proposed the very next day.

I’m so proud of Kalina for risking being cold just for the sake of pictures! :-)

The ladies and their matching scarves and mittens:

The men in their hats… breathing out… :-)

The Carlsons did it again – the Old Sanctuary was decorated so beautifully and set such a cozy mood for the reception.

ceremony | St. Thomas More

reception | Old Sanctuary

hair | Ritz Hair Studio and Whole Body Retreat

gown + bridesmaid dresses | The French Door (Sioux Falls)

men’s tuxes | Fergen’s

flowers + cake | HyVee

decorations | Pam Carlson (mother of the bride)

caterer | 1481 Grille