Happy Easter everybody!  (Sorry it’s a day late.)  We were super busy all weekend so this is really the first chance I’ve had to blog.

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to assist the wonderful and talented Scottsdale photographer Marcia: The Art of Photography.  This was my first chance to work with Marcia and I had an awesome time assisting her with a super fun wedding!  She’s been in the wedding photography business for a long time and she was really great about giving me tips and information as the day went along.  Her catch phrase for the day was “So, what did you learn?”  I loved it :-)  It was such a pleasure to observe her expertise and be able to share in her love of the business.

I didn’t actually shoot at this wedding so I decided that I’d take a quick shot of this little memento from the reception when I got home.

The wedding took place  at the Desert Botanical Garden for a beautiful young couple, Jess & Jim.  They were such a fun pair to work with – and very much in love, which makes the day extra special and SO inspiring for everybody involved.  My favorite aspect of their special day was probably the music.  Jim is a musician so they had his talented friends play during their ceremony and reception.  During the ceremony, the officiant read a poem that painted a picture of marriage as a dance.  At the end of the poem, the band played a sweet jazzy number and Jim & Jess broke into an impromptu dance.  It was so sweet and genuine it actually got me a little teary eyed!  During the reception, Jim played the accordion (yes, the accordion) with two trumpet players and a tuba – it was SO AWESOME!  So many weddings are kind of cliche’, but this couple really put together a fun event with a unique flavor all it’s own.  Thanks so much to Jess & Jim for letting me be a part of your special day!

In other news – it looks like I will be assisting Marcia for some of her other upcoming weddings, so stay tuned for more fun updates!

Sorry readers!  I posted a nice little blog a while back about the Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa, but it has now disapeared due to technical diffuculties :-(  I’m a little too busy these days to recreate it so I decided I’d just repost the best part – the photos!  Here you go:

The pool

Fire pits

Full size chess set

Dinning area off the main lobby

The driveway up to the main lobby

Sorry again – I promise I’ll be more careful next time!

Our snowy road trip came to an end at the Raddison Woodlands Hotel in Flagstaff, the location for the Northern Arizona Valentines for Life Reception.   The purpose of this very special event was to honor northern and central Arizona blood drive coordinators who’s heroic efforts brought in over 100,000 blood donations for hospital patients in 2007!  All the guests seemed to really enjoy the evening.

Here’s a few detail shots:

The YUMMY dessert tray :-)

The room looked really lovely.

Donor Recruitment Rep Ken Kotalik and his lovely wife Jennifer.

I was not the only photog in the crowd! Gotta love those handy camera phones.

Here’s a shot of the wonderful Emcee Liz Lemmer of Channel 2 News getting the program started.

The Hero Award – only 16 organizations out of 500 reached this prestigious award level in 2007.

The fabulous Hero Award winners, joined by Emcee Liz Lemmer and Donor Recruitment Director Carla Fields.

The program wrapped up with a touching Testimonial from former Tempe Police officer, Scott Tipton. Scott was shot in the line of duty and thanks 27 blood donors for helping to save his life.

Scott’s story was a great way to wrap up the evening.  Every one in the room was reminded of the importance of blood donation and how vital it can be to save lives.  All the coordinators left feeling appreciated and inspired to continue their efforts in 2008.

The evening came to an end and it was time to pack up the car and head home to the valley. Thanks to United Blood Services for letting me be a part of this special event!

For more information about blood donation or coordinating a blood drive for your organization, please visit www.UnitedBloodServicesAZ.org.