playing dress-up

Again this is only semi-related to our wedding, but it is certainly relevant to weddings in general!

My mum emailed me a few weeks ago to ask if Kenny and I would be interested in being "models" for a wedding photography seminar to be held in Natick, MA. I asked (aka begged and pleaded) Kenny to do it with me and he agreed, even if a bit reluctantly.

This past weekend on Sunday we headed out to Massachusetts to stay overnight with my parents. The seminar was on Monday but my mum wanted to get some shots of us all dressed up, so we went out for a test run on Sunday. We stopped at a few locations and at one point we had parked the car on the side of a rather main road in Groton and people were honking their horns at us and yelling out "Good Luck!" It was so funny, and the best part was that it was a Sunday so for all they knew we had actually gotten married that day!

My mum got some really nice shots even though the weather wasn't all that cooperative and it was fun to traipse around in all our finery.

Speaking of the finery, the dress belongs to my friend's cousin, who generously donated the use of it for the day. The veil is also hers. Kenny's suit was bought at Men's Warehouse a couple of years ago.

On Monday we had to be at the seminar at 1:30. The photographer running the seminar was teaching the people attending it how to pose a couple, and there were all sorts of lessons built in like masculine vs. feminine posing, how to make any couple seem size proportionate in photos even if they're not in real life, and how to set up lighting properly.

We posed for about three hours and it went really well.

I had my camera with me and I handed it to one of the participants so that he could get some shots of us. The camera was kind of handed around the room and a variety of photographers took photos with it. I didn't get any of their names but thank you to everyone who got a shot of us!

Being posed by the instructor.

Kenny looking like a GQ cover model and me looking like a contorted Barbie.

One of the best shots.

A wider angle to show you how the room was set up.

Not much has changed on the planning front. We have been trying to get in touch with the Chester House in Westerly, RI, but the wedding person has been away. She was supposed to be back this week, so I am hoping we can get an appointment to see it either this week or next. It would be really nice to book a venue so I can move along with my planning!

on a semi-related note...

On Monday Kenny and I will participate in a wedding photography workshop in Natick, MA. We got the opportunity because my mum is going to the workshop and heard that they needed models. She immediately emailed me and I contacted the instructor and he said he'd be delighted to have Kenny and I participate! I am really excited; Kenny is very tolerant haha. I doubt this is what he really wants to do on a day off, but we are being compensated and it will be a great experience for both of us (at least that's what I keep telling him).

The workshop is for professional photographers to go to to learn lighting and posing techniques specifically geared towards wedding photography. Kenny and I will be the "bride and groom" and pose for all the photographers. I am excited because I get to dress up like a bride for the day and I might also meet a photographer whom I want to hire for my wedding, since I have not found one yet. Again I know I am jumping the gun a bit here because we haven't booked a venue (still working on that) but it doesn't hurt to do some research.

I mentioned I have to dress up like a bride for the day. Well clearly I am not going to wear my wedding dress a) because it's still off being cleaned and b) Kenny cannot see the dress! so a friend hooked me up with her cousin's wedding dress that she got married in two years ago and what do you know! it fits perfectly!!

(Please don't pay any attention to our room or me...I had just worked a 12 hour shift)

Not bad, huh?! Kenny will wear a suit that he already has that he looks so handsome in. I'll be interested to see how these photos come out.

I was feeling a bit crafty the other night (always a dangerous thing) and I decided to make my own birdcage veil. I want to wear a more traditional veil on my wedding day but I thought that the birdcage veils looked easy to make and they are pretty. They sell for about $80-100 but I thought I could make one for around $20. I went to Michael's and got all the supplies I needed for just under $20 and got to work. It took a few hours but for my first try I don't think it's bad!

So it started as a plain comb, loose beads and feathers, and bulk netting. I attached the netting first and then sewed all of the beads, pearls, and feathers onto the comb. Then I secured the feathers with a few dabs of crazy glue because they would have fallen out easily had I not.

It's difficult taking a photo of yourself in a mirror but you get the idea. It covers to the top of my lips and then goes across my face covering both eyes. Pretty snazzy!