Gracie on Vacation

It wasn't the easiest first year of life for little Gracie, daughter of long-time Wallflower clients Jennifer and Paul. So when birthday #1 arrived a few weeks ago, it was time for celebration! A week at a beautiful rental house on Vashon Island with the extended family was a terrific getaway choice. Just a short ferry ride and drive from Tacoma, the house and yard had a park-like atmosphere perfect for a Wallflower portrait session.

We warmed up the camera with a few quick shots of Grace on the colorful couch.

Being right on the water, we got to enjoy a beautiful and easy backdrop for all sorts of photos, including this adorable vignette of the girls and a semi-candid shot of the whole gang on driftwood.

For a little something different, I spotted this shady area under a few pine trees. By this time the sun and excitement had knocked Grace out, giving me the chance to get some sweet asleep-in-arms photos.

Jennifer and Paul had ordered the cutest birthday cake from Celebrity Cake Studio, which called for a few last photos indoors before I had to run to catch the ferry back to Tacoma.

Happy birthday Gracie!

A Catholic-Korean-Marines-Murano Wedding

When we shot Sonya and Warren's engagement portraits at Point Defiance during the snow storm of December 2008, we could only dream of the kind of weather that we got on their wedding day: sunny, warm, and dry. But while the weather couldn't have been more different, one thing remained the same -- those big smiles that made this couple so easy and fun to work with.

We began the day at Tacoma's one-of-a-kind Hotel Murano. The glass-art-themed hotel's modernistic decor inside and out was ripe for some portraits with the giant wedding party (with additional Marines swelling the ranks) and with Sonya and Warren.







Then we hit the road for the ceremony venue, Holy Disciples Catholic Church in Puyallup, the church Sonya grew up in. It was a fairly long ceremony, which we as photographers love because it gives us all sorts of time to find unusual angles and perspectives on the event. It also helped that the church layout gave us a lot of freedom of movement without becoming a distraction to guests or participants.







Warren's fellow Marines gathered outside the church doors after the ceremony to form a traditional sword arch. The couple had to kiss in order to gain passage through the final row. Petal-tossing followed.




Then it was back to Hotel Murano ...

... for a Korean wedding ceremony and then the reception. The Korean ceremony was a blast — parents throwing dates and chestnuts at the new husband and wife to promote baby daughters and sons, respectively! Then the wife jumps on her husband's back and off they go.




The Murano's ballroom is so much nicer than its previous incarnation as the Tacoma Sheraton! Loved that the sword made an encore appearance.






Congrats Sonya and Warren!

Family Portraits, Pre-Deployment

Imagine: You're a new dad. You're about to get deployed to Iraq. You probably have a whole list of things you want to get done before you're gone for the better part of a year. For Wallflower wedding clients (and good friends) Shannon and Jeremy, that list included fresh new family portraits to be treasured by parents on both sides of the world.

We first photographed Izabelle back in January when she was only 5 weeks old, and boy has she grown! She's 8 months old here.




We shot these portraits at Tacoma's Wright Park, only a few blocks from our house. The historic park was renovated last year, and the pond is probably the most improved — and now most beautiful — area of the park.


Playing on the grass:


An interesting new pose:

At the Victorian-style botanical conservatory, built in 1907:


At the old bathrooms:

And up in a dogwood tree!

Jeremy and Shannon, hopefully these images will help you get through the long separation. We're thinking of you!