Marie & Nick's wedding at the St. Regis! ::: LA wedding photography

Marie and Nick's wedding was planned in literally five days. Take that, wedding timeline checklists! After dating for four years, they decided it was finally time to get married, they called me on a Monday, I met them for the first time at the St. Regis Hotel on Friday, they got ready, and then had a wedding! They surrounded themselves with their closest friends and a few family members--- most of their family lives in Jamaica though, so this post is extra long so that everyone can see what a lovely day Marie and Nick magically had last Friday.

these next two are some of my favorites!

here's the ceremony------ can you BELIEVE
that this was planned in 5 days? five days!

ahh!!!

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////

can we say, stunning ring?

another favorite! so perfectly gorgeous. wow.

okay basically i'm in love with this entire wedding. it was great because we got to just explore for a few hours after the ceremony---- with no agenda, no reception to rush to, no one telling us to hurry.... it was so perfect.

i screamed when i took this one. a good scream... that signifies: you're going to LOVE THIS PICTURE!

nick...marie.... thanks for including me in your day. i truly felt honored to be there. you are a truly beautiful couple, and congratulations on your marriage! and a big hello to everyone looking at these in Jamaica!
----- shannon

discoveries that will make your day ten thousand times better

here are a few simple things that literally make my days sing.

for me, i've realized that life is more fun if the little things in life are valued, like---- using good shampoo, eating off of lovely dishes every day, and keeping my paperclips in a glass jar instead of the ugly paper box with bad design.

here are a few of those little, simple things that i love,
i'd submit that they've literally changed my life,
and yes, made each day TEN THOUSAND TIMES BETTER!

#1. straws. oh, straws. ever since i started using them i all of a sudden drink millions of glasses of water per day. i even put a straw in my nalgene. insta-hydration! making water-drinking fun 2009!
philosophy's 'the present'. ladies, i use this every morning and it is the best makeup-base, primer, amazingness ever. it smells like lavendar, so i feel like i transported myself to a day-spa every morning. start it off right, i say. and basically everything from this brand, Philosophy, is incredible. especially their wit.
embroidery floss! life-changer. i wrap every single gift with a bow of colored string, i use it to spice up my life, and i usually have some in my purse and in my car, just in case
the milk frother!!!!!!!! since there is no Peets within 25 miles of my apartment, my roommate and i have taken extreme measures and have chosen to bypass the empire of starbucks and make our own coffee-beauty each morning. this frother is what makes it all amazing: we froth cold milk in the cup first, add some french-pressed coffee from Peets, top it with a little cinnamon or maybe some caramel sauce, stir a little bit, and enjoy! this contraption can be purchased on amazon by clicking here. prepare to never buy cups of coffee, again.
Peter Thomas Roth's Botanical Buffing Beads. ie: an awesome exfoliator. i love it because i have sensitive skin and it is absolutely perfect for me. its gentle, smells great, and makes my skin shine. but dont judge me if i have zits. because i do.
Spray Dirt. this stuff makes the morning easy and unpredictable because i spray it in and have instantaneous fun hair. clearly i love hair and face products. in fact, i'm obsessed.
lastly, these blank journals contain all of my thoughts about the world, all of my lists, all of my school notes, all of my business ideas, everything! i keep it simple by just having my entire life flow sequentially through these books---- it just works for me that way. i lose things easily, and this method keeps me organized. quotes that i hear and love, notes from a book i'm reading, websites i want to visit, someone's contact information: everything! love it. AND... you can paint on them, label them with green tape, and they have blank pages to ensure full maximized creative potential. perf.

:)
anything that has changed your life that you want to share?



--------------------- shannon

craft time! ----felt flower awesome headbands

i've found my 2nd calling: making headbands out of felt. talk about a stress-releaser, a creativity outlet, and a GREAT GIFT!! i gave the one above to my friend blythe after she declared a love for felt on her blog. people were charging $15+ for things like this on etsy, and i had an "i can make that" moment, so i went to joannes, came home, and crafted!

this one i made for rosanna:

she discovered tons of uses for this little felt wonder. ie:

felt celebration!
>>>>>>>>>>>shan

when we lose our myths..........

i love madeleine l'engles book 'glimpses of grace' and todays reading ended with this: when we lose our myths we lose our place in the universe


i love linking mystery and myth with polaroids: you never know whats going to come out of the camera---------- i'm always in awe of my little camera's way of interpreting the world.

madeleine&polaroids make the world make more sense
or less
or both


shannon :)

wedding polaroids

does anyone else love organizing their harddrives and finding photo surprises?
i do!

these are from annie and matt's wedding in long beach



off to the Puffy Taco for lunch with Rachel!
---------------------- shan

the McCoy family!

photographing the mccoy family was a total and complete delight. i loved it. i photographed joy and michael's wedding in August of 2007, so doing these family portraits made me so happy! their wedding, by the way, was one of my favorites to date. i'm adding some of those photos to the end of this post because their wedding hit my heart and melted it instantly. for so many reasons.

here's sweet Riley!!

and the whole family! :)

doesn't this moment just make you love life a little bit more?

sweetly sweet sweet hilarious riley. wow-----------

and here are a few of my favorites from their wedding. i think this is my favorite dress picture that i've ever taken. love it!

and how awesome is michael?

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MARANATHA!!!!!!!!!!!

--------------thoughts that i want to let you in on------------

• i got a printer from my parents for Christmas (thanks mom & dad!) and just opened and installed it. this is monumental for me because for the past two years i havent had one in my apartment, forcing me to go to my school's computer lab every single time i wanted to print something out, copy something, or make a scan. now i have a 3 in 1 and i LOVE MY LIFE! the joy of printers.

• went to yoga today for the first time in a month and simultaneously loved and hated my life: i felt like i was about to puke the entire time, had to sit down for half the poses and was ghostly white. luckily it will get better with time. i hate starting after i havent gone for a while. ahhh!

• bought groceries after a catastrophe: trader joes wasnt open yesterday! DEAR ME! i was determined to use my gift certificate, so Ro and I went after yoga, all nice and yoga-ed.

• i'm on winter break right now, which means: no class until the end of january! i stayed in my sweats all day with my neon orange jacket and yellow beanie (touque for the canadians)--- looking like a caution sign and loving my life.

• i'm buying a new computer soon! YES! no more midnight trips to the computer lab to edit. thank you trevor meeks for saving my mac life.

• i have an art show coming up on march 23rd! it's my senior art show------- the pinnacle of my art existence at biola, and i'm looking forward to it. you are all invited, and the details will come when it gets closer. but march 23rd, put it on your calendar!

• any other freaks & geeks lovers out there?

• chocolate covered pretzels and i were besties today

• amy seeley, thanks for making the world a more beautiful place.

• confession: i say i hate uggs but really--- i love them.



:)
love to you,
seriously,
shan

on the job!

random little times that my dearest blythe photographed me photographing people, or doing other things that end up being part of the day :)

for instance, styling!

or showing the images--- which i love\one time, my brother Carson and I ended up working at the same wedding! he was doing sound! now THAT was random.this is at wayfarers chapel, such a beautiful place!and here i am testing the light for my second shooter.
wow. bad haircut, shan.

so there you go!
have a great day,
(i went to trader joes this morning and wowzey, do i ever have good lunch options. woo!)

love,
shan

my grandparents, in trabuco canyon

my grandparents travel all over Canada and the US in their RV------ and while they were here for Christmas, I wanted to take photos of them at their campsite. one of my favorite things was having my grandma show me all of her favorite things----- great trees, great light, little flowers, and her rock collection! it was the best.

i totally love this one!
their RV was the best light reflector ever

they said i could post this one--------
grandma getting an ear hair out of alf's ear.

here are the rocks! which are quite a commitment to own when you travel in an RV where every pound counts,

!!

i loved listening to my grandma describe them.
"isn't it neat how God did this?"

they're leaving tomorrow to go off to their next adventure.
we'll miss them :)
love you guys,
shan