Jen "OH MY GOD I'm a jerk" Crooks

That was the opening line of an email I received recently. The Sender? Jennifer Crooks. WHY? Because after taking her headshots way back in March, it wasn't until the end of August that she finally got back to me with her picks. "These last several months my head has been bouncing around like a volleyball at the olympics. Okay, so I thought I sent this a while ago and realized I just had a draft of it but never sent it. Punch me in the face would ya?!" Well, I won't punch you...in the face that is, but I may have a need to release some aggression if this election doesn't end soon. Nonetheless, here's Jen's headshots. The last actually does look like I punched her. :)

Jen wore these scarfs that day and I thought, what the heck - let's try it.

This was my favorite scarf shot.

But this was my favorite overall. Love this shot of Jen.

The many faces of Jen.

Now what is she talking about here?
(Just think naughty.)

But I can't quite explain this one.

Doing her scarf dance...I think.


This would be Jen egging me on to punch her.


And if I did punch her, it might look like this. :)

Quoth the Raven, "Bonniwell."

Meet Raven Bonniwell, actor and "significant other" of fellow friend and actor Billy Finn---currently as The Shakespeare Theatre for the whole season. Billy and I knew each other from Virginia Shakespeare Festival a couple summers back when we did Romeo & Juliet and Love's Labours Lost---and it was there that I took his headshots. And now a few years later, Raven wants a new look of her own. So here she is.

My Fav.

She's definitely a "hat" girl.


Now who doesn't love a clown montage?

Cute.
(I called Billy secretly to come over during the shoot so I could get a shot of the two of them.)

Lauren & Steve : MARRIED!

Today...well, let's get this straight...This morning Kim and I met again for the second time this weekend at the lovely Woodend Mansion in Chevy Chase, MD for Lauren and Steve's Wedding. And for several reasons I was glad to wake up quite early after a long and exciting evening at Brian & Katie's wedding to be Kim's 2nd shooter.

Huge Applause goes out to the Awesome Vendors on this one:

***Danielle Couick and her crew Windows Catering crew rocked! The brunch spread looked simply amazing. (Did I mention she was doing the next wedding right after this one...talk about busy!)
***Jacqueline Ducci, coordinator - The Perfect Event
***Rev. Bill Cochran, Wedding Officiant - Say "I DO" Your Way

My favorite picture of the weekend.


Lauren's son & Steve's daughter - They were beyond cute.












The color palette for this wedding was a perfect arrangement of fall colors. Absolutely gorgeous!


Needless to say, Lauren's son was a little excited.

Best cake ever! Cheese cake, chocolate and sour cream filling. 3 options in 1.

Ellen & Pete - Sutton's Bay, MI

What do you get when you cross a dozen debaters with a few debate coaches and a bunch of wineries? You get Ellen & Pete's Wedding.  Meet Ellen Zwarensteyn and Pete Battey.  Longtime debaters, longtime friends and now newlyweds.  Both hailing from the western part of Michigan, I've known Ellen since the summer of 1994 when we were debate partners at SDI (Spartan Debate Institute) and am proud to say still friends to this very day.

When Ellen & Pete came to visit in DC last winter, our dinner at Rosa Mexicano's quickly turned into an impromptu engagement celebration.  Who knew I would be photographing the very day all these months later.  AND WHAT A WEDDING!  The ceremony at the beautiful Willow Vineyards up in Sutton's Bay, MI---and if you've never been up there, I highly recommend it.  Just look at the gorgeous scenery, beautiful weather and crystal blue lake.  You can't ask for a better locale...and did I mention this was a winery?  I got to spend 3 whole days with the wedding party, winery hopping, boating, eating, etc.  And it's by far the best wedding I've had to date.  

So a big Thank You and huge Congratulations to Pete & Ellen.  I'm super excited to see how the wedding album turns out.  With a wedding like this, it should be fantastic.  Thanks guys!

Rockin' vendors:

*** Willow Vineyards

*** The University Club of Grand Rapids, MI 

*** The Amway Grand Plaza

Pete made a bottle of wine for every guest at the reception...sweet!

I love this photo!

All the wine at the dinner was provided by the vineyard.

Ellen wanted to make sure we got a picture with the gate.

This was the view from where I stayed.  Hmm....it was OK. :)

Just look at Ellen in this picture...priceless.