Sara and Dave had a garden ceremony in Tower Grove park last weekend with a reception at La Chateau in  Frontenac.  I think most of their family had camera envy - several of them were asking me what I was shooting with, and I overheard a few comments about the size of my lens.  Dave's mom even caught a few shots of me throughout the night with her camera (despite my best attempts to hide.)  You have to love people who value photography!  Check out the SLIDESHOW HERE to see Sara and Dave's photos.   Congrats to them, and I hope they are having a great time on their honeymoon in Vegas!

Here are just a few shots from the Yoga For Peace event yesterday in Tower Grove Park.  For anyone who doesn't do a lot of yoga, 108 Sun Salutations is A LOT - it's like the marathon of yoga.  Everyone at the event did really well, although I think after the first 20 or so they started to wonder what they got themselves into :)  After I got the shots I was looking for I did about 65 of the 108 Sun Salutations (so I guess I did something like the yoga half-marathon....)  It was a great event, and I hope everyone there had a great time - even if they are a little sore today!

I know when I was a senior in high school I took some hard classes, but every time I chat with a senior and hear their schedule I am amazed.  Hannah was no exception - she's taking classes like AP Calculus and AP History and AP Biology and probably 5 more AP classes I can't even remember.  Good for her!  In addition to being smart, she's also really sweet, which made it fun to take her photos today in Tower Grove Park.  I think she said she has a test tomorrow, so I hope she's studying right now - good luck Hannah!

Stacy teaches yoga at a studio I teach at, and she Tim are having a baby girl in December.  I've been hoping they would do maternity photos since I found out she was pregnant!  Since it ended up being a beautiful day, we decided to take the maternity shoot outdoors into Tower Grove Park.  Stacy had just gotten this fantastic henna tattoo on her belly, which looks amazing up close and looks very Earth Mama in her bare belly photos.  The baby Vans are so cute, too - I love baby shoes!  It's hard to see on the blog, but in the ipod photo the song playing is "Could You Be Loved" by Bob Marley, which apparently is already one of the baby's favorites. Seems like I have a lot of friends and clients getting pregnant lately ... I hope more of you call me for some maternity stuff :)

Forest Park was a disaster on Saturday.  Apparently there were graduations and events going on all morning, and hundreds of people trying to go to the zoo.  That meant insane traffic moving through the park - it took us easily 35 minutes to get to the Jewel Box from the park entrance.  Poor Angela must have been biting her nails in her brother's car as they sat in traffic (and sped ahead of traffic, waiving her veil out the window as proof that she was important!)  Fortunately most of the guests made it in time for the ceremony, which was beautiful set against the lush trees.  We had to be a bit creative on where to shoot portraits after that, having to avoid areas like the World's Fair Pavilion and being scared off by 5 other wedding parties at the Muny.  Good thing Angela and Tyler are very flexible and relaxed!

After a few photo stops, we were off to the reception at Hendri's, where the kids ruled the dance floor.  You can view the SLIDESHOW HERE.  Thanks to Katy for second shooting with me.  I hope Angela and Tyler honor their promise not to check email or cell phones while they are honeymooning in the Dominican Republic!

I can't show you anything from Laura's bridal session yesterday (can't trust that Brian won't take a peek!)  Let's just say Laura was very brave for going out during the threat of thunderstorms, and also very smart for bringing a bright white sheet perfectly sized to fit under her dress without showing - great protection for the bottom of her dress!

I'm leaving for Chicago shortly - I'll be back next Wednesday, just in time for my three wedding weekend in June.  More on that later...Have a great weekend!

I won't be able to attend the event this year (I'll be shooting Jackie and Greg's wedding instead!), but wanted to send out info to anyone who is interested.  Yoga for Peace is a non-profit event done all over the world as part of the Global Mala, and is put together locally by Urban Breath Yoga.  Teachers will lead 108 Sun Salutations on September 19th in Tower Grove Park, and there is a Closing Practice on September 20th at the new Ullola Yoga Studio in the Central West End.  Proceeds benefit City Seeds Urban Farm.  You can see images I took at last year's event HERE.  I hope some of you will make it out!

Jackie's purple shoes for the wedding were fantastic.  She said she wanted something she would wear again after the wedding.  I personally can't imagine a circumstance in which I would wear bright purple heels (I'm always barefoot or in flip flops!) but they looked completely fabulous with her dress.  And she managed to wear them all night, so they must be comfy.  I'm sure she'll find a great use for them down the road.

After a ceremony at St. Cecilia's, we did some photos in Tower Grove Park and down at the City Garden, and headed to the reception at the Crowne Plaza downtown.  Both St. Ceclia's and the Crowne Plaza were exceptionally dark - good thing I'm not afraid of a high ISO :)  Thanks Kelly Park for shooting with me.  You can see the SLIDESHOW HERE.