Connor Studios Blog

Julie and Kenny kicked off  our 2009 wedding season last week and it couldn’t have been nicer.  A lot of photojournalists ask me how I can stand putting up with weddings and brides.  They just don’t understand that what they see on TV is not at all what I get to experience.  It’s people like Julie and Kenny that completely disprove that myth and make photographing weddings such a treat!  Both of them redefine “easy going”.

Their wedding and reception was held at Whitehall Manor in Bluemont, Va.  Whitehall is on a beautiful property and you really feel removed from busy Washington.

A coworker of mine at the paper was there with his girlfriend Emily who was a bridesmaid.  Emily (of Embellished by Emily) also designed all the programs, table cards and invitations and they turned out beautifully.

The flowers were done by Carol Beales of Galleria Florist and turned out great.

One of my favorite shots is of Kenny and his Best Man Keith with their flasks being Bad Boys in the “no alcohol zone” at Whitehall.  Once I saw their flasks, I remembered seeing the sign outside and knew that it would make a hilarious photograph!

Julie and Kenny – Thank you so much for letting me be part of your day.  I hope you loved your honeymoon in Spain (not sure why you didn’t want to fly me there to document that!!!).  :-)  Thank you also for being so wonderful to work with.  I couldn’t have had a better time and by the looks of all the dancing photos everyone seemed to be having a great time as well.

We had a lot of fun yesterday meeting with hundreds of brides at the GMU bridal show.  Thank you for all of you who stopped by!

We had a TON of interest in one of our photos on display from people wanting to get married outdoors and on the Eastern Shore.

Everyone wanted to know where the photo was taken and I was completely blanking on the name of the place.  Of course the minute everyone left and we were tearing down, it came back to me!  Go figure.

It is the Inn at Mitchell House near Chestertown, Md. and is a wonderful place. Definitely one of our favorite places to photograph last year.

If you would like to see some of our favorite photographs from there, please click on the two following links:

Photo Set 1

Photo Set 2

We are almost booked for this Summer and Fall so if you are still looking for your date, let us know as soon as possible so you don’t loose out.  For those of you planning for next Spring, we are already booking out to next June, so it’s never to early to get your photographer set in stone.  Once you have your date and location, the next thing to cross off your list is your photographer so let us know how we can help!

Shoot us an email or give us a call (202.321.1496).

It’s been a pretty busy week with a wedding last weekend and an engagement shoot today (both awesome and will be up here soon).  In the middle of it all, our friends Lana and Matt were blessed with little Abigail.  She was in a bit of a hurry and came a couple days early — probably taking after Matt.

We were able to pop by for a bit yesterday to meet her and she was beautiful.  I almost forgot how tiny Grace was when she was first born!

Everyone seems healthy and happy so you couldn’t ask for more!

We will be showing our goods at the upcoming Bridal Showcase at the Patriot Center (GMU campus in Fairfax) on Sunday, March 29 so stop by and say hi.  Now we know that there is no need for you to go there to find your photographer (Ha!) but it’s a great place to find anything else you haven’t crossed off your to-do list.

The tickets are $10 at the door but they just sent us 10 free tickets so email me if you want any.  First come, first served.  Just make sure you swing by our booth and give us a hug, high-five, fist bump or any other platonic show of affection.  :-)

Players and fans aren’t the only people who aren’t always best friends with the Refs at the games. Basketball seems to be the worst for us. Not only are they always in our way but it’s not always the most flattering angle.

These are from shooting during the Patriot League semifinals over the weekend between American University and Army. This guy was in my way for almost every shot (and there weren’t many shots to get so it was even worse). I changed my side of the basket midway through the first half and he decided to change right with me. I just couldn’t win!

I decided to give the guy his 15 minutes of fame since it seemed like he really wanted me to shoot him more than the game.

Working at the White House seems pretty glamorous but that’s not always the case.  Let’s be honest and say that it is an honor to be there and photographing history.  But it’s kind of like the saying about sausage — it’s better to not see how it’s made!  :-)

I was up there the other day to cover President Obama signing an executive order overturning the Bush administration’s stance on funding stem cell research.  He was doing the signing in the East Room and I decided to hang back and get a different shot.  There were roughly 30 (maybe more) photographers from various organizations and wire services covering it.

I was working right next to Ron Edmonds of the Associated Press and I knew if I did the normal shot where I got up on a ladder to get above the crowd, there would be no difference between our pictures.  Our editors can see my photos and AP’s photos on our system.  It’s not that they wouldn’t have been happy with that photo, but I feel it’s my job to try for something a little different otherwise why send me there at all.

While not a ground-breaking shot, I feel like I earned my pay and got a shot other photographers weren’t getting from the event.  In today’s economy and with papers doing as “well” as they are doing, anything I can do to earn my pay is just fine by me.  :-)