Love Me Do Photography

Gaelyn and John were married a couple of months ago and were our contest winners of this year for free wedding photography. When we arrived on the west coast, we wanted to get a feel for the couple’s personality and also a view of some of the landscape. We agreed on doing a “day-before shoot” and the couple showed us around the area. We absolutely loved shooting in California and hope to do it again soon! So any west coast couples out there looking for a photographer, just because we’re based in Philadelphia doesn’t mean we wouldn’t be available… we love to travel!

Thanks again to Gaelyn and John for participating in the contest and congratulations on winning! We had a blast with you guys!

And of course, thanks to Rock n Roll Bride for hosting the contest!

This wedding is coming to you in two parts. Why? Because it’s a special one! (Not to say that all our weddings aren’t special.) A year ago we ran a contest for free wedding photography through Rock n Roll Bride, and Gaelyn and John won! This is the first time we’ve ever done a contest and it was definitely a positive experience. We really had no idea what we were in store for. We weren’t sure that anyone knew of us outside of Philadelphia, and we really wanted to branch out to other parts of the country. This was the perfect opportunity.

Gaelyn and John were married at a 1920’s beach cottage in Carpinteria, California… which is just about the farthest thing from Philadelphia. Even though we were completely unfamiliar with the territory, had never met the couple in person, and only had about half of our equipment with us, we were up for the challenge of making these photos some of the best we’ve ever taken. To tackle this, we brought the equipment that was essential: our digital cameras, flashes, and multiple lenses. We had to keep the heavy duty artillery home (lights kit, hand held lights, flash attachments) because we just couldn’t carry everything with us. The following morning after we arrived (the day before the wedding), we spent 2 hours walking around the town and beach, scouting locations of shots of the couple. Then we spent another 2 hours with Gaelyn and John, staging a “day-before” shoot where they took us around to some of their favorite spots (pictures coming soon of that). After that we felt that we were fully prepared for the wedding!

Gaelyn and John were such great hosts and very friendly! The day went so smoothly and Amanda and I felt that we really could get the shots that we want, and at the same time, get the shots that they would love as well. With that said, we’ve conquered California and would love to shoot there more often. In fact, we pretty much want to shoot in every state and maybe even get a few in Europe someday, so if you’re not in the Philadelphia area but still love what we do, hit us up!! Also if you need more awesome stuff to look at, be sure to check out Rock ‘n Roll Bride’s post on this wedding, which will have all the detail and vendor information. And lastly, Gaelyn and John’s own wedding videography website, What We Do Films, which is to die for!

Thanks Gaelyn and John for having an awesome wedding! And a special thanks to Kat from Rock n Roll Bride for hosting this contest, we couldn’t have done it without you!

- Carina and Amanda