Isabel Sam Photography – Lexington KY Photographer

Last year completely kicked my butt. The transition to two children and constant nursing felt like it was taking me down! Most of the year was a blur, but we made it through! I know a lot of people I photographed did not get blogged. It’s not that I don’t love you, I was just trying to survive 2011! BUT now that baby is thirteen months old, he’s weaned, and my brain is slowly coming back! YAHOOOOOOO!!!!

So, let’s see this wedding of two beautiful people!

Meggie works with animals and is so caring towards others and Cory loves computers, but his heart melts for his Meggie. You can just see it in his eyes.

They got married at Pax Christi Catholic Church here in Lexington. It is one of the brightest Catholic churches I’ve ever photographed at (if you don’t frequent Catholic churches, most of them are very dark…) and brightness comes from the sun, which makes me happy!!!! They also were married by a Catholic priest and the same Baptist minister who married Cory’s parents. It was a beautiful ceremony with lots of patience as both sides figured out how to work the others rituals.

Anyway, on to the pictures!

Then we took off to Equus Run Vineyard for their beautiful reception!

I normally don’t post pictures of details, but Meggie and her family made a lot of these details in the weeks leading up to the wedding! I had to include one!

One of their favorite moments from the day was their first dance.

And if you’d like to see more, check out this video of images below!

Hello! I know, I know, I ignored this blog for how long and now two posts in a row! Crazy.

The truth is, I’ve been just overwhelmed with so much work, crazy kiddos, and everything else life has been piling on me over the past year. I sat down last month and started reevaluating EVERYTHING! I think I’ve got some good ideas for creating more balance in my life and I’m off working on them!

Anywho, it’s now time for me to attempt to get back on this! If you are one of my Super Wonderful clients and I haven’t put your session up here, yet, please don’t take it personally. It’s just becoming more difficult for me to get around to blogging. I do love you, I really really do!

Yeah, so, anyway, back on task! Meggie and Cory make up an incredibly wonderful couple. I have really really enjoyed getting to meet them this year. They are actually already married, but I couldn’t put up a wedding post about them before getting at least a couple of engagement pictures on here. So, here’s a couple from their great engagement session out at Talon Winery. Love you guys!

Off to bed. Sweet dreams everyone!

Isa

We had fun yesterday at the Bridal Bliss Classic! It was great meeting so many fun brides who laughed with us at fun Happy Booth photos and told me I have a “creative eye”. People are great, but geez, I’m still tired from yesterday!

Anywho, so, a few weeks ago I had to submit some photos for this advertising thing I’m doing. The funny thing about this, though, was that this group emailed me asking me for photos like it was nothing. They had no idea that we just moved here to Lexington and I actually don’t have wedding images from the Headley-Whitney museum. Nothing. At. All. I’ve just shot a couple of family portrait sessions there. Sweet Beth must talk me up too much! Soooooooo, what do I do? I call up my flexible and adorable and happy models and say “be ready at this time and this date!” AND, guess what? They were TOTALLY READY!!!!!!!!!! Soooo, off we went to break in to the museum grounds!

Now, while I was getting this shot, we discovered that there were TONS OF MOSQUITOES attacking one of my fabulous models. So, we ran this photo session into quick time. Anyone who has seen me photograph family photos at weddings – yeah- that’s where I went.

Oh and a quick tip: if you eat lots of citrus, mosquitoes don’t think you’re so sweet. Yep. Trust me. I’ve lived in mosquito land and haven’t been bitten and I LOVE citrus! (Google it, it really is true!)

The end. And thank you, my models, for having fun with me! I love you guys!!!

This Sunday I’m going to be at the Bridal Bliss Summer Classic! Wahoo! For anyone who has seen me at these bridal shows, you know that my booth is full of color, fun, beautiful pictures, and tons of fun prizes! So, come down and see me and Barb and Pat (pictured below!) who will tell you about all the fun they had with me on their wedding day!!! We’re excited to hang out together again!

See you on Sunday!

Chris and Mandy are cool. Mandy some how makes a living as a teacher! As a daughter of a teacher, OH MY LORD I COULD NOT DO THAT JOB! And Chris is working on becoming an Episcopalian priest. So, they naturally got married at Christ Church Cathedral.

We started out with the boys.

And then moved on to Mandy and her girls.

And then they did a first site! These are seriously some of the best things to photograph in the whole world. I’m not kidding. I LOVE it! AND a lot of my couples say they loved doing a first site because then they were more relaxed through their wedding day. Win Win BABY!

Eh, I like to get a little wacko with my portraits.

And having fun is mandatory. How could this photo not make you smile?!

Mandy and Chris went to Transylvania University! They have this tree they call the “kissing tree”, how stinkin’ cute is that? So, we walked on over and had them make out!

We then walked back to the church and let them get married.

You know how much I love photographing a freshly married couple!

Then it was time to go party! Eric, the tallest DJ in Lexington, was fabulous with the music.

Their first dance was to that song, “Anything you can do I can do better”, yes that one. It was over the top, dramatic, a little bit silly, and fake violent. It was perfection.

See what I mean about the violence?

Then everyone danced the night away and lived happily ever after.

You guys were such fun to work with! Thanks for having us out and I can’t wait to show you your images!!!

P.S. A big shout out to the Naperville peeps! You guys are fantastic!

I just don’t even know where to start with Barb and Pat. I’ve never been one of those people who gushes about everything. I’m more of a “tell it like it is” person, but their wedding was seriously seriously wonderful.

Pat started out the day by getting his guys in focus with a “game plan”. The boys were x’s and the girls were the o’s.

Aaaaannnnddd BREAK!

Now, from what I’ve heard, this is how I came to be their wedding photographer. Barb and Pat went to a bridal show where I had a booth and Phil and Heather came with me to tell people that I’m a fun photographer and they should hire me. Now, of course, when they came to the booth we were slammed and I literally just said “bye” to them when they went on their merry way. Well, according to what I’ve heard from Phil and Heather and Barb, Phil was saying that I play games with the bridal party on the wedding day and Pat said “I want to play games too”. (AND at Phil’s wedding we played games for like three minutes, seriously, I’m always amazed at how my couples remember the games so stinkin’ well!) Anywho, I ended up on the short list for photographers thanks to Pat and they decided to pick me for their super fun day! Since they seemed so excited for the games that day, I just ran with it. We played a ridiculous amount of games, but I think everyone had fun.

We ran over to get a few shots of the reception before their 400 guests came in! What a great turnout!

Their wedding was beautiful.

And I’m about to make another one of those over the top and gushing remarks. If you are Catholic and you are thinking of getting married in Lexington and you think to yourself “Self, who is the coolest priest in the world? We need a really really super cool priest to marry us, because we are just that fun.”. Well, look no more! This guy is the COOLEST AND BEST PRIEST I HAVE EVER SEEN MARRY ANYONE IN MY ENTIRE LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just ask him. He’s pretty nice. I’m sure he’ll do it.

One of my favorite parts of the wedding day.

You guys had such a great bridal party! I had so much fun with them, that I’d like to put in a formal petition now to photograph each and every one of their weddings.

And last, but never least, we got in a few portraits of the ridiculously happy couple just before we had to run and get them introduced to their 400 guests who were waiting for them!

Now, I normally do not post pictures of the father/mother/daughter/son dances, but for Barb, there is an exception. Her whole family joined in on her dance with her dad…and then Pat’s family joined in…and it was hilariously wonderful!

You know that when the cake cutting starts like this…it will end with….

…smashing!

This bouquet toss was a first for me. Pay attention to the basketball hoop behind Barb.

She threw the flowers, and I naturally ran in to find who caught the bouquet. These throws happen within seconds, and I try my hardest to be ready to photograph quickly right as the action is happening.

BUT, I couldn’t find the stinkin’ bouquet. What the heck???

Then I looked up and realized what happened.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, she made a basket, from behind, with her flowers. How stinkin’ hilarious is that?!

They did make it down, though, and made a little girl quite happy.

Here’s Pat’s throw, just for kicks. He didn’t make a basket, but it was great to watch!

And last, but not least, Barb was serenaded by many guys on the dance floor towards the end of my night with them.

Oh and they are wearing really fun jerseys that their ultimate frisbee team got them.

And if you need just a little bit more of Barb and Pat goodness, check out a video of images below!

I can’t wait to show you guys the rest of the images tomorrow! Thank you so much for having us out for your wonderful wedding! It was a TOTAL BLAST!!!!!!!

xoxo,

Isa & Bernie

Pat and Barb are just the coolest and so are their friends!

And the smallest Happy Booth participant….who was too passed out to walk over to the booth…..

I love shooting happy people! Barb and Pat’s wedding is next!!!!!!!

Yep, it’s that time of year again, my friends!

It is better to give than receive – so here it goes! I am giving away a Wedding!!! Here’s the official press release:

ISABEL SAM PHOTOGRAPHY TO DONATE WEDDING PACKAGE TO A DESERVING COUPLE

Isabel Sam Photography is searching for a special Lexington area couple to bless with a free wedding photography package in 2011. Nominations are now being accepted for a couple getting married locally that has faced difficult circumstances which impact their ability to hire their dream photographer.

To nominate a couple, please email Isabel Sam directly (isabel@isabelsam.com) by February 11th with their story (500 words or less), your contact information and the nominees, their wedding date, and a digital photograph of the nominated couple.  Examples of stories that may qualify include battling cancer, recent death or serious illness of a loved one, extended military deployments, donating wedding savings to a worthy cause, etc.

One deserving couple (as selected by Isabel Sam) will win 8 hours of wedding day coverage with approximately 300 of their best edited and retouched images from their day on a disc with reproduction rights. The winners will be announced on isabelsam.com on Valentine’s Day.

This yearly give-a-way of a wedding package is a way to live our values and give back to the community. Please do not spoil this gift with dishonesty.

I can’t wait to read your nominations and meet the great couple who wins this!!!!

xoxo,

Isa

Hi Friends!

I started having contractions over the weekend, they’ve stopped now, but I’m at a point where I feel completely miserable. I really think it’s time for me to step back and say that I’m on maternity leave and try to “relax” as much as possible before baby #2 flips our world upside down! I’ve heard that the transition from one child to two is the hardest, and honestly, I’m really scared. Solomon was an incredibly difficult baby and I’m so scared that this next year is going to be even harder!!

So, over maternity leave, I’m planning on checking email as I can and I’ll reply to emails in order of importance. (Not that you’re all not important, I just know that there will only be so much I can do! I will have a toddler to take care of, I’ll be recovering from delivery, and nursing a tiny baby every two hours – and that alone is a full time job!)

Anyway, some of my wonderful clients are getting ready to have their first tiny bundles of joy and so I thought I’d leave this post with some things that worked for us with our crazy Solomon and a few pictures from some of my last shoots.

So….babies….well, a lot of them come out with their nights and days completely mixed up! I totally suggest getting the Happiest Baby on the Block to learn lots of super fabulous tricks to help your baby sleep! This was also our answer to Solomon’s 8-10 hours of screaming that doctors just called “colic”. This video seriously reduced the screaming to a total of one hour a day. It was heavenly!!!! Oh and I recommend the DVD over the book just because some times you have to see what they are talking about!

Also, the Dunstan Baby Language was really helpful at leading me down the path of not believing those doctors and figuring out what exactly it was that Solomon needed. I knew it was sleep, I just couldn’t get him to nap until I found the Happiest Baby on the Block. (I’ve met a handful of people who claimed that they could never distinguish the cries, but I started noticing that the people who couldn’t hear the differences were ones who haven’t had much exposure to other languages. I have a feeling that their “ears” aren’t used to listening for subtle differences.)

Gripe water works much better than gas drops.

A comfy glider and ottoman is worth its weight in gold! You will be spending hours – days in it when your baby is tiny and sick!!!!!

Nursing hurts. It’s really really painful, but it goes away 6-8 weeks into it. Just trust me on this. I know those lactation consultants say “it’s not supposed to hurt”, “you must be doing something wrong”, etc…. The hospital I delivered Solomon at had lactation consultants who hadn’t nursed anyone in 25 years. They don’t remember! Also, for a whole lot of women, those $300 Medela pumps don’t pump enough milk for mama’s who go back to work full time. You’ll either need to supplement with formula or rent a hospital grade pump. AND, yes, hospital grade pumps make those $300 pumps seem like little toys. Oh I rented mine from a pharmacy instead of a hospital and saved $20/month. The best hospital grade pump is the Medela Symphony. You will fall in love!!!!!

Keep track of what you eat that first month you nurse. Some foods you eat may alter the taste of your milk and/or make your kiddo sick. The biggest culprits out there are asparagus, cabbage, chocolate, spices, and depending on your child – milk products.

Be super flexible with everything! Little children change so quickly and can’t communicate like we do…so be ready to be flexible!

And some of my fabulous clients…….(I know I just pulled these off of facebook…right now my office has been pulled apart and is located in 4 different sections of the house! So, I’m using a laptop instead.)

Steph loves loves loves her pups!

Barb & Pat are engaged and their wedding is going to be super rad in July!

The Justin, Asha, & Yoda combo is the best! Seriously!

I think I have fallen in love with this family! And Michelle is truly a Belle!

And who couldn’t love a family that throws a mini-party for their “Happy Birthday Jesus” Christmas card?!

Thank you, friends, for making 2010 so much fun!!!!! I love you all!

Isa

We started out with Gary and his awesome brothers!

Gary’s son, Nick, needed an adjustment. JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJAJJA

We did their first look inside because it started raining on the outside.

And we messed around with some moody lighting.

Sometimes the random flashes totally kill my shots and sometimes they are kinda cool.

I think this is my most favorite shot of Gary!

If you’ve been following my work for a while – you probably know these guys! Asha and Justin ladies and gentlemen!!!! They were a breath of fresh air that day!!!!!!! Thank you guys for being flippin’ awesome as usual!

And they wanted to do the old happy booth – so here it is!

Congrats, guys! You get your images this weekend!!!!