Anna, though, has the grace of a dancer and, like Wendy, pairs it with beauty and a sweet spirit. We think it comes through in her photos which we took at Columbia’s 701 Whaley.

After taking some more traditional senior shots, Anna changed clothes and showed us some of her moves.

It’s fun telling someone “Jump!” over and over again while clicking a shutter button.

If you enjoyed these, feel free to check out some more senior photos or, if you’d like to book a session, senior or otherwise, drop us a line.

]]> http://www.lumosstudio.com/blog/2012/02/senior-photos-anna/feed/ 0 http://www.lumosstudio.com/blog/2012/02/ken-megan-engagement-session/ http://www.lumosstudio.com/blog/2012/02/ken-megan-engagement-session/#comments Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:11:03 +0000 J.P. http://www.lumosstudio.com/blog/?p=1503 Ooh, I’m having to rush to get my blog post in for the week!

Since I’m short on time, I’m also going to be short on words so I can get to the Professional Photographers of South Carolina convention on time! But let’s face it, what do I have to say that can compare with seeing two people wonderfully in love?

Here are Ken and Megan, two such people:

We love these guys and had a ton of fun at their wedding, but for now you’ll have to settle with this engagement-y taste. More to come next week!

As it happens, Brandi did have a baby a few years later, but we’ll get to that little guy in a later post. See, Wendy and I photographed Danny and Becky’s wedding a few years ago, and this past summer, they added a little one to their family. Meet Amelia.

Precious, huh? Here’s another.

Remember guys, baby-curls will get your biceps ripped.

Of course, when adding a baby to your family’s number, there’s always the possibility that other family members will be apprehensive. That was the case with Emmy.

Fortunately, whatever doubts Emmy had she got over quickly, and now she and Amelia are great buds, even if Amelia does pull her ears from time to time.

Since we took these photos, Amelia has only gotten cuter, which is impressive given how cute she was to begin with.

I hope everyone is having a better week now that Wikipedia is back up. Remember to fight internet censorship, lest little ones like Amelia grow up in a world where they don’t even know the meaning of “Rickrolled.”

At that time, Rebekah was one of my students. It would be pretty well impossible to capture Rebekah’s awesomeness in a few words on a blog. Let’s just say she was instrumental in the Snuggie incident and leave it at that.

Rebekah loves to read, which, as someone who taught English for years, has a special appeal to me.  I liked the idea of this girl who loves to read, but also loves the outdoors, so even when the sun has gone down she hunkers down by a window with her book, unable to let go of the story despite the faded light. Rebekah was nice enough to play along.

It’s tough to believe Rebekah has already finished her first semester of college. (She’s doing fantastically, by the way.) It’s a good reminder, though, that time moves quickly, so you’d better hurry and read those good books while you can!

Of course, the best way to start off any week is with coffee.

Like Wendy and me, Ben and Angel spent a good bit of their courtship hanging out at a coffee shop together. However, while Wendy and I stared adoringly at each other over cups of Cool Beans coffee, Ben and Angel were doing much the same across the river at Cafe Strudel. So, tip one is: Start your week at a local coffee house. You’ll definitely find good coffee and you might find love…

Ben and Angel didn’t actually meet at Cafe Strudel, though. They met at a show at New Brooklyn Tavern. You might have guessed from the photo that Ben is a musician and you’d be right. (Sorry, Angel, for the times I monopolized your future husband talking about music!)

So, even if your Monday doesn’t get off to the greatest start, you can take the edge off by following tip #2: Listen to music that makes you feel good. (For bonus points, add “local” to this tip as well.)

If even the sweetness of caffeine and the sweet balm of melody can’t get you ready to face the week, I’d suggest tip #3: Do something kind for someone else.

Getting them a diamond engagement ring may be overdoing it…a cup of coffee or a smile will likely suffice.

If you’ve followed along the plan this far and still find yourself in the doldrums, you may be forced to engage in tip #4: Go outside.

Ah yes, the sun, the fresh air, the need to take a Claritin…

Finally, if you’re outside with a delicious cup of hot, local coffee, listening to great music while reflecting on the many old ladies you helped cross the street and the idea of a full week of work is still getting you down, the only tip left I have left is #5: Give your beloved a big kiss.

Yeah, that makes everything better.

We hope these tips were helpful and that you have a fantastic week to come! Come back to visit on Thursday and please, kiss responsibly.

The Lumos Studio blog has languished for far too long, and so, as a new year dawns, we’re returning to the web with a vengeance. We have a year’s worth of beautiful brides, cute couples, bouncing babies, wonderful weddings, and annoying alliteration to share with you, dear reader. But it’s not just photographs we have to share. Oh no! There will be glimpses behind the curtain at Lumos Studio, tips and tricks, and perhaps the occasional philosophical musing. So, as you plan for this new year, ripe with possibilities, we hope that you’ll include coming along with us on our journey and saying “hi” from time to time.

The first stop on our adventure takes us back to March, when we took these photos of Kendra around the campus of the University of South Carolina. I’ve known Kendra’s family since high school and even taught with her mom for a  time. They’re a great family that turns out beautiful, sweet daughters like it’s their job.

 I have a confession to make about this next photo: I didn’t think we could pull it off. My lovely wife Wendy, though, was more confident in my abilities than I was and gracefully persuaded me to keep working with it until we captured this frame. I suspect the little jig I danced when I looked at the back of the camera suggested to her that she was right all along, but a little public validation never hurts, does it?

Kendra had a long and gorgeous veil that I think gave an air of mystery to these photos.

It always feels good to repose after a long shoot in a fairly heavy dress. The Inn at USC is one great place in Columbia to find that.

Wendy and I hope that your new year is filled with joy and beauty that is uninterrupted by the Mayan calendar. There’s lots more coming up, so please join us on Wednesday for our next post!

Quite apart from the photography, I’m going to take credit for this marriage. (Not the wedding, the credit for that goes to the bride and to the charming and talented wedding planner Robin Cannon, who made sure that the whole lovely evening went off without a hitch.) No, I’m claiming the marriage. You see, several years ago, before David and Jess had even been on a single date, I told them jokingly that, because the two of them were about to begin leading a house church together, they were bound to get married. The two of them were sitting on a couch across from me and Jess responded to my prognostication by placing a throw pillow between the two of them. That pillow, though, couldn’t stop their love…

Seriously, though, everyone who knows these two knows that they’re made for each other. They are creative and funny, thoughtful and silly, and both look fantastic in black.

It’s always fun after a wedding when Wendy and I compare her pictures of the girls getting ready to my pictures of the guys getting ready. I was able to correctly predict in this case that the girls were not smoking hookah as they prepared for the ceremony.

The night before the wedding, the girls got together a collection of movies to watch in preparation…

…and so did the guys.

I like that Jessica and David had a color palette that even I can understand–red and black.

The very cool programs were designed by Laura Bousman and featured a quote from Mumford & Sons.

Based on the flower shots Wendy got at this wedding, I may never bother pointing my camera at another blossom again. Her work just leaves me in awe.

And here is the lovely bride!

I’ve never had more people tell me to take a picture than when the flower girl sat down next to this window. You can see why.

David and Jessica were married at Rutledge Chapel on the USC Horseshoe, the same place Wendy and I got married!

There isn’t much staging area at Rutledge Chapel, so Jess’s bridesmaids shielded her from prying eyes immediately before her big entrance.

After the ceremony, everybody headed over to the Columbia Marriott for the dinner, dancing and, of course, cake.

It’s worth noting that David and all the groomsmen wore matching black Chuck Taylors. That was cool. His mom in black Airwalks? That’s awesome.

Time to dance! (Hi, Britt!)

I’ve never felt more like a paparazzi (thank you spell-check) than when I took this photo. If you look closely, you can see the very edge of Jess’s dress peeking out from behind the elevator door. I think she was done having her picture taken for the night.

Goodnight.

Shooting a band is oh-so-slightly different than shooting a wedding, and it gives us a chance to play in ways we normally don’t. We love the playful aspect of shooting musicians, but the other side is that there are a lot of clichés to avoid (think railroad tracks and brick walls).  For this shot, we decided to draw inspiration from the same source that the band did.  The title of Divided by Friday’s new EP, The Constant, is a reference to Lost–specifically the fact that Penny (the one whose boat it isn’t) is Desmond’s constant–the thing that keeps him anchored in time/reality/whatever was going on. If you haven’t seen Lost, go ahead and watch all seven seasons. The rest of us will wait.

Okay, I guess you’re back. Wasn’t that great? Well, yeah, maybe not the last episode, but otherwise, awesome!

Anyway, Wendy and I were discussing the idea of a constant–something that draws you back to a central point, like home. We decided that food is something that draws people together (think holidays like Thanksgiving), and it could be cool to see the guys drifting away, yet pulled back together by the fellowship of a shared meal. Admittedly, I also liked the idea of putting a rock band in my mom’s kitchen (thanks, Mom!). This is what we got:

If you have some free time, feel free to use this like a Highlights magazine and circle all the floating food in the image.

If you prefer your band pictures with more gravity and fewer calories, here’s another from the shoot:

Now, the event that actually inspired this post is the release of Divided by Friday’s latest video, their version of “O Holy Night”. Are you looking forward to Christmas? Do you like to rock? Yes? Then check it out!

After that, go check out the rest of their music on Myspace.

The alternate title for this post was: “Our Svelte, Stylish Greek wedding”, but since anybody can just wander in here from Google, I opted for the less challenging title from a vocabulary point of view.

You will no doubt remember Stephanie from her bridal post a couple of weeks ago. Well, here are some images from her wedding to Matt.

Matt is an artist and Stephanie is a total style-monger, and so Wendy and I knew that the two of them were going to have a very cool wedding, and as you’ll see, we were spot-on. First off, take a look at their wedding favors. Matt hand-made these. Unfortunately, the word for them escapes me right night, but you may have seen them before in the film Sleepy Hollow. You spin the disc using the strings on either side and, through persistence of vision, you see the images on both sides overlaid on one another. That should give you some idea who you’re dealing with.

Here’s Stephanie’s lovely wedding dress.

Groom and groomsmen: powered by sugar.

Puppy: powered by cute-fusion.

And what kind of shoes does a bride like Stephanie wear under her gown? These, of course.

Matt and his groomsmen watched USC take on Tennessee until it was time to get ready. Note that there are four visible clocks in the background. I’m thinking this may be part of the reason this location was chosen for them to get ready. 

So you’ve seen Matt now. Big, burly dude, covered in ink, probably a real tough guy, right? (Okay, maybe  scratching the puppy undermines that image a little.) Truth be told, Matt is romantic to the bone. This is his wedding gift to Stephanie–it’s a scrapbook commemorating their entire relationship through photographs, notes, and memorabilia. This page contains a ticket stub from every movie they’ve ever seen together. Ladies, if you’d like to take a moment to get a tissue, feel free.

Guys, it’s time to step up your game.

At this point, the girls were mostly ready, though Steph was still getting her hair done. The guys were, well, still watching the USC-Tennessee game.

Matt’s sunglasses are my favorite.

While Stephanie finished up with hair and makeup, Wendy took the bridesmaids outside at the gorgeous Millstone at Adams Pond for a few group poses.

Once Stephanie was ready, she joined in, too.

The wedding was held at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox church.

Here’s Steph with the book Matt made for her. Stephanie is such a magnificent fit for Matt! She attempts to fight her romanticism tooth and nail, but it’s a losing battle. She kept cursing Matt, saying he was going to screw up her makeup by making her cry.

Matt and Stephanie didn’t want to see each other before the wedding, but they did want the chance to talk, so we put a door between them.

This little guy had his doubts about being photographed.

Finally, the guys were ready…

…Stephanie was ready…

…and here comes the bride!

This was our first Greek Orthodox ceremony at Lumos Studio and Wendy and I were both struck by the beauty and levels of symbolism. Father Michael was also wonderfully gracious and helpful.

A little post-ceremony kiss with an awesome car.

This was the topper for Stephanie and Matt’s wedding cake.

..and here’s the rest of the cake from the amazingly talented folks at  Tiffany’s Bakery.

Lovely first dance mood lighting courtesy of King Entertainment.

After a little dancing, we pulled Stephanie and Matt aside for a little while to get some shots of just the two of them together.

Now back to the dancing!

Phew! Thanks for sticking with us!

Obviously, the wedding was a blast and we are tremendously thankful to have gotten to be a part of it. Stephanie and Matt, you guys are made for each other! We hope you continue to delight in every day you have together.

Now on to the photos!

We first met Brandon and Melissa a couple of years ago and, I’ll be perfectly honest here, started thinking about how to get them as clients. True, they weren’t engaged yet, but they were so cute together and so clearly in love that we were pretty sure which way they were headed. Turns out we were right!

The two of them drove down to Columbia on a beautiful and mercifully cool day in October and we got to hang out and photograph them. The clouds were gorgeous, so we tried to make the most of it, as you’ll see below.

We also decided to use the river as a backdrop for a bit, which was great, until a small fleet (fleetlet?) of brightly-colored kayaks came floating by. Well, most of them came floating by; one got stuck immediately behind Brandon and Melissa for a couple of minutes. I’ll spare you the photos.

A kiss to celebrate the kayaker getting un-stuck!

We decided one side of the river wasn’t enough, so we went to the other side.

The sky continued to cooperate nicely.

It was really hard choosing photos for this post because these two have so many wonderful expressions.

Like this laugh!

This next one is one of my favorite shots of the day. I think a bug  may have flown into Brandon’s mouth, but he handled it with aplomb.

So there you have it!

We’re looking forward to Melissa and Brandon’s wedding, as well as all our other 2011 weddings! In the meantime, though, we hope that you have a restful, thankful holiday surrounded by lots of delicious food (like sweet potato casserole with pecan, not marshmallow topping), and, of course, the ones you love.

Happy Thanksgiving!