Excuse me while I move a few sites around. We will launch the fresh face of www.aimeeadamsphoto.com next week along with the new LOVEbirds blog.  If you are checking in during these processes and see the okieAMI logo, i apologize, moving sites to different hosting companies and new launches are the nature of the e-commerce beastly biz. In the meantime, thanks for keeping up with Aimee Adams via the Facebook link. This blog will be fading into the background as we launch the new only for LOVEbirds blog. Getting organized is IN this season! Contact me for any questions! More soon.

When reviewing the best planning mags for the types of weddings I love to book, REALSIMPLE says it all in their 2010 planning guide. It covers basics on location, budgeting, attire, invites, flowers, food and photography comprehensively. If you purchase this mag and nothing else and use it as a planning bible along with surfing a few blogs, you WILL have a hands down, FAB event.  And if you purchase this guide, not only can your share it with your maiden friends who are next in line, you will get a free year subscription to REALSIMPLE mag. Thats pretty cool. It was an easy sell for moi.

Whats listed in the article on page 97 listed above, I will summarize some of my favorite notes to spare you the $13.95 and annual subscription. This of course pertains to your wise choosing of your Wedding Documentary Choice.

1.. How much do you want to spend?

Make peace with the fact you will spend a hefty sum on them- between $2,000 and $6,500….

2. How do you want to remember your wedding?

Decide which style of photography suits you best: traditional, photojournalistic, or editorial (a combo of both). The latter is what I am aiming for.

**3. How comfortable will you feel with your photographer?

Spend time getting to know each other on a personal level. You may even want to arrange a test shoot, perhaps for engagement photos, so you can get a feel for how he/she works and find out if you are compatible. This is extremely important and often an oversight of many brides who are shopping around ONLY for the price factor. Face it you want the closest thing to a Ninja you can get, knows how to shoot manually and discreetly when necessary. One who is professional, knows how to interface with all parties appropriately. I have added numero 4 on my own accord below.

4. What is the Photographers Resume? Work history? Future Goals?

The tides have turned the flood gates have opened and many people with no technical training or formal Art education are launching websites hourly. This is fine by me as I believe we are all artists and if you have eyes, they can be trained to see proper composition. I encourage everyone to learn how to operate an SLR. But the fact of the matter is, MANY do not have the personality and the psychological know how, not to mention GOOD or better than GOOD taste, generally speaking. Therefore, I encourage you to get to know your photogs history if its not listed.

I tell my brides its like choosing a “house” or sorority, okay, not quite, but when you review portfolios, you will see certain types of brides, with which brides do you connect ? ? ? Take it all in and if a photographer tries to rush you, unless they are offering a booking special, feel out all your avenues before submitting the deposit. I am A-OK with shooting an engagement first and then adding on the event, of the date is open and encourage other photogs to do the same. KNOW WHO and WHAT you are paying for up front.

Below is the main spread,  and within each section, Food/Attire/Invites/Flowers etc, it offers a 10 Q+A, which really simplifies all you need to know.

I hope that was helpful for you future LOVEbirds. Drop me a line and let me know you came by. And then go by this magazine, design a beautiful wedding and call me for a quote.  xo~ aimee

I have been SO fortunate to meet many awesome families who I get to catch up with a couple of times a year and document their darling children in different stages of their life and development. I feel really lucky to get to chase these little supernovas all over and see what we can get.

These first boot scootin cuties were captured while exploring Will Rogers Birthplace by Lake Oolagah.

These next few families were shot out in Broken Arrow, near my parents land. It was a pleasure to have people come out to explore the various perspectives of the land which all provide different views of the Great Plains landscape.

This next family just welcomed another baby girl in July. Congrats to the beautiful Mireles family of Tulsa.

Here is another awesome family I was happy to meet and document at this special stage in their lives.

More soon!

I wanted a chance to dig into a few sessions I barely scratched the surface with in early early Spring. Yeah, I know its the dog days of summer and here I am just now getting to some of the goods, but I loved this session and want you to as well.

Me and my better half are Mojave bound to hike in the Red Rock Canyons and shoot a fun wedding at the Historic Flamingo Hotel.  I will catch up with my Blog friends upon my return next week.   Move on over to the Facebook Fan Page and check out some of the recent posts to be updated here. I know, ” A little less  conversation, a little more action.” ~aimee

Hello Brides to Be-Friends and Other Random Clickers By.

Yes, it has been 2 months and 3 days since my last post. I will be updating some new and diverse session posts Sunday when I return from a Tulsa Mayo wedding shoot.

In the meantime, I have been keeping up with my Facebook Fan Page and would love for you to find me there and connect!

Here is the link http://www.facebook.com/aimeeadamsphoto#!/pages/Lovebirds-Artistic-Weddings-l-Aimee-Adams-Photo/122519881106360?ref=sgm

or search on Lovebirds artistic weddings.

I have a few slideshows there for you to view, click on the play button as they are preset to play with music.

I look forward to hearing from many more of YOU. We have had a GREAT response on the 2011 booking special and have a couple of spots remaining for late August 2010-November 2010 and one early December wedding availability.

The $250/Early Bird Booking Special will end on July 31st.

I hope you are ALL having a fantastic summer and I look forward to connecting with new work and a new BLOGSITE /branding combo in a couple of weeks.

Happy Mid Summer.

~aimee

Hey there pretties!

We have ready begun booking a few 2011 brides, woohoo!! I decided  those brides that are getting their plans and vendors in line early deserved a booking special…SO, Im offering half off the deposit to hold your 2011 date.

Whats that mean?

It means with a secured service agreement and $250 deposit, your date will be held AND you will get 2010 pricing on your event.

Why is Aimee doing this?

Because she likes brides that like her and wants to reward them by offering an incentive to move forward in planning by knocking out the most important planning details FIRST: location and photog…Oh yeah, AND because I think she’s just really a nice person.

Go ahead and email me for details!

Darby and Jake are just as beautiful as they are sweet. Their event was a okie-LOVEfest! At one point the dance floor was just full of couples who had been together from a couple of months to over 50 years. It was awesome to share in the joy of that moment with SO many people in LOVE. They got hitched at First United Methodist in Yukon and then headed down to The Palace Event Center where they served breakfast for dinner to all their guests and danced all night. The field shots were shot right next to the reception venue, how lucky were we?   Cheers and Congratulations to the Hillemeyers! Click on the slideshow below for some Brighter than Sunshine.

How to know if you and your wedding photographer will make a good match?

• Some people choose based solely on price. The highest AND the lowest.
• Some brides may determine based on a sample of a few strong photos.
• Some brides let their mothers choose all the vendors for them.
• Referrals are the largest booking agent for photographers in the wedding business….hands down.

MY take: Take a close look at all the markets around you, dont just look at Brides of OKlahoma, or theknot.com or weddingwire.com, or weddingchannel.com, take in what you feel to be a solid representation, a good reputation, and style you think best suits you. Price is one factor, but if you visit with ANY wedding planner, they will tell you, you can design on a dime with borrowed treasures, and use wildflowers picked from a field, but you MUST choose your wedding photographer wisely.

Choose a match personality wise, you now have that option. Your photographer should guide you, and put you at ease and be experienced enough to provide you with a timeline and stand out in a crowd. You dont want a wallflower photographer that cannot assert her/himself when necessary. The job WILL call for it, trust me.

I got married 5 years ago and had a beautiful wedding at the Five Oaks Lodge in Jenks, outside of Tulsa. So we had the rustic all-in one beautiful venue, a designer gown, a glorious European catering team, beautiful fall color scheme of golds and deep reds. We had recycled paper invitations and programs, modern flower girl dresses and tuxes and of course ourselves and our Best Man and Maid of Honor. We welcomed about 240 guests, who all had a glorious time either eating, visiting, or dancing and singing karaoke. Many of my friends who I think have fabulous taste still say our wedding stood out in their mind of best weddings attended.

Do you want to know how I felt when I saw my wedding photos for the first time?

I dont think you really do. I felt sick at my stomach. I got angry. and then felt sick at my stomach some more. We paid $1000…5 years ago, that was an experienced rate and what did we get in return? 300 images of which were duplicates in a boring black and white process, maybe 4 pictures of me and my handsome groom that I can “live” with. We had done all the above aforementioned, had my mother meet her and tell me how sweet she was, we had witnessed some strong pictures from which the photog led her portfolio, and found an “experienced” going rate for hire for 2005. The photographer was a wallflower who was shooting digitally and didnt have the assertive nature to say “Hey Aimee, let me get a picture of you and your sister, the Maid of Honor.” Instead, she took 3 pictures of my M-O-H, one wherein shes taking a bit of a cheeseburger, one of her…putting on her deodorant, yes. she really did…and lastly, in the dawning of the digital age, she took one pic of my MOH walking into the wedding, and she happened to be blinking. No picture of us together. The family photos, I appear stressed because, Little Miss WF wasnt capable of wrangling the nuclear family for a photo. I had a beautiful BIG day and my photos make it appear a lot less beautiful than it was in reality. For shame.

The average market for “experienced” talent in OKlahoma right now begins at about $1600 and spreads to around $5000,  The average price of an experienced photographer and the “whole kit and caboodle package” range from $2500-5000, including an engagement session, 4-6 hours of coverage, and the cd/dvd. This is very reasonable folks considering the experience, equipment, and focus it takes to arrive better than alive to your BIG day and rock it.

I use the word experienced as I dont throw around  the term “professional” believing many have much to learn before they tag themselves with the P word. Its no doubt many are entering this open market due to the lowering of price on the digital SLR. You know them, I know them. Your uncle, your cousin, My Dad, they all have a desire to shoot and try their artistic clicker finger out. While I love your Uncle and my Dad, I wouldnt let them shoot the “Best Day of My Life”.

Am I over it? I have forgiven the Wallflower Photographer, but determined I would join the wedding market and make ALL my brides remember and ENJOY their day FABUlously. And I believe my former brides will tell you the same thing.

Mucho amore. ~aimee

So the last month has been extremely busy and exciting on all fronts. Not only am I moving into the Studio on 123 Main, here in Normantown, I have been super blessed with a diverse number of clients and projects…. and since you are here, on the Aimee Girl Blog, I have an inkling you might want to know what Ive been up to.  So, I guide you now.

I think this is where we left off, with this fun couple (Sophie and Stephen) who flew in from Notre Dame to have a Springy Engagement session before their September nuptials.  Heres a few faves.

This one was taken in her grandmas back yard where she used to play, I love locations with meaning.

And then we shot Kristin + Richards Big Day in Tulsa at Asbury Methodist, heres a short recap of some details.

And then I worked with Funnel Design Group on an Advertising Project for Variety Health Care here in the city, some work will be featured in their new Ad campaign and web presence.

And wrapped up a couple of Book and Print Projects. 

Remember the Stylish Masih event at the Oklahoma Heritage (Gaylord-Pickens) Museum, well this is the cover of their contemporary coffeetable book.

This was a personal project for some work I did last year, while out on Coney Island. Its title is in the center block. 4.17.09

Yeah, go ahead and throw a stylish Guthrie wedding in the mix. Voila! Click below to see highlights with the beautiful and animated Kelly + Austin.

And now for a gorgeous Senior Session.And then I was cool enough to contribute on behalf of MetroFamily Magazine for the Celebrate Diversity exhibit. Kids did this and it was amazing. Its at the Omniplex (the new Science Museum) and its super impressive. And yes, thats Sandy Garrett (State Superintendent of Education) and Sarah Taylor (MetroFamily). And then my Aunt and Uncle dropped in to town for a mini LOVEbirds session. and then there was Chris + Aelayna, who are stunningly happy and gorgeous. (my client trend)

And then there was Norman Music Festival, where I was networking for a big project named okieMAMA, which will launch on Mothers Day (cross your Mamas fingers)….and shot the Dirty Projectors and like 2 frames of Leon Russell.  I thank you in advance for your soft critique of my “band” pics, not my forte. and then there was okiEami, a loklafied apparel brand for the Metro and the Norman community.

Am I missing something? Well, yes, a Yukon wedding, I will be featuring as soon as this weekend, a meeting with Greg Mortenson (the author of Bestselling “Three Cups of Tea”), my Sons 5th birthday (boohoo), a hayride, and a sculpture shoot of Gareth Andersons work, which is a huge national bronze monument project being built here in Norman.

Thanks for caring what Ive been up to. If you are a legitimate onlooker here, chances are, I have no idea and would love to hear from you. Drop me a line. More soon~aimee