~ AB and Jessica Tied the Knot~ Barnwell Wedding

WOW! What a Great wedding. I must tell you that I have spent quite a bit of time getting to know AB and Jessica. The love between the two of them is very evident for everyone to see. Their personalities are very different. Jessica, more quite and reserved but beautiful inside and out!  AB, Well, let's just say he always makes those around him laugh all the time. From his dance moves on his walk up to take his place to say his vows, all the way through the first and last dance that I had the joy of witnessing on their wedding day.

There were several times during the wedding that I had to hold back the tears like watching Jessica and her mom hold hands just before her mom walked her down the long stairway and released her hand to AB. Also, the moment that Jessica's sister, Michelle spoke of the request of the photo to be taken of the chair where their dad would have sat if he would have been alive to share in the union of the two. Of course, then there was the moment that I captured the photo of AB as he first saw his bride standing before him for the first time in her gown of white, knowing that soon she would be his wife.

It was hard to decide which photos to share since there were so many. I have narrowed it down to a few..I hope you will enjoy and will feel like you too where there that day..If you weren't.. what a great wedding that you missed!

Enjoy ..

~Kira and Doug Get Married at Cherry Grove Pier~

New sneak peek wedding photos for the beautiful cermony of Kira and Doug at the Cherry Grove Pier in North Myrtle Beach, SC. The guest were close family and friends as well as the unsuspecting sun bathers that had not idea that they would have front row seats to the joining of the two. Wedding officiated by Beach People Weddings. Enjoy!

~Family Wedding at Cherry Grove Beach ~

Here are a few of a wedding that I photographed at Cherry Grove Beach in North Myrtle, SC on Thursday. The whole family was able to attend, and participate. Don and Jerri had a intimate, formal ceremony while their children and parents gathered around. We wish you all the best and congratulations on your lives together! Beach People Weddings officiated the memorable ceremony.

Photographing Newborns- Know who is taking your baby's photographs!

Hello everyone!

With the baby deliveries of two of the four moms that we have done maternity sessions for in the past two months, It has initiated my writing the blog on newborn photography sessions.

I remember the first time that I had the privilege of shooting a newborn session, it was twins. Wow, talking about diving right in! It was hard work and I really had no idea what I was doing. I didn't get any of the great poses or any photos without a baby crying. I truly was unaware of what to do. I thought that the new babies would be resting with a little smile on their faces. I also thought that it would be easy since they couldn't run away! Wow, was I ever in for a surprise!

Not every photographer is a newborn photographer just as not every photographer is wedding photographer, I can proudly say that I LOVE both! Most people think that shooting a newborn session would be the easiest photo session of them all..this is so far from true!

Here is a brief run down of a newborn session:

Arrive at the home of the baby
Bring in all of the props, photo equipment, baby sound machine (setup)
Wash up (very important before handling the baby)
Hold the baby (love the baby :))
undress the baby for those cute little bottom photos first (now the baby is a little upset since he/she has no clothes on)
Rock baby, sing to baby, shhhhhhh baby (15 to 20 minutes maybe?)
Pose baby on baby poser
Shhhh baby BACK to sleep after posing
Grab camera and shoot, shoot, shoot.
Repose baby for second photo
Baby wakes, shhhhhhh baby back to sleep
Grab camera and shoot, shoot, shoot.
Re-post baby for third photo
Baby OOPS, has to potty (oh no, we took off the diaper)
Clean up baby
Baby cries
Baby wants to eat
Baby goes to mom for feeding
Wait 30 minutes
Wow, baby is wide awake
wait
wait
wait

At this point, we have gotten two good poses in...

This is the typical session, fun? Yes, Long? Yes, patience is the key! You may end up with some great photos but it is work!  A newborn session can take anywhere from one to three hours!

Most importantly, know who is taking your baby's photos! With so many new baby posing ideas out now, be careful that your baby is being handled with care. If a photographer wants to pose your baby and your not comfortable with the pose, say so!  Babies are very pose-able after birth but photographers need to be sure that the baby is comfortable. It is important for instance that a baby that is laying on his arm is getting correct blood flow to the arm.

Also, let me say that is is very important that these photos are done (if at all possible) within the first 10 days following delivery! This allows for great posing usually without waking the baby. As the baby gets older, the times of being awake are longer and closer together. You can grab some great shots while the baby is awake, but usually not the "staged" photographs.

If your having a baby soon, or know someone else who might be, send this link to them, they might find it helpful to take some of the guess work out of their newborn session!

If you or a friend are interested in a newborn session with us, call us at (843) 458-2215 or email us. You can find our contact page on our website at http://www.llpphotos.com/.

Thank you for stopping in!!

Lori Leigh's Photography