The one thing Mandi told me about this wedding was how sweet and fun Laura & Alex were and that their families and bridal party were one of the best she had seen, pitching in all day and making sure the timeline was right on!  Because of a later ceremony time, Mandi only had a few minutes of light remaining for their photos!  She had to get creative and use Balboa Park’s gorgeous lights and she rocked it!  Lauren and Alex were thrilled with the result.

Ceremony & Reception: The Prado, Balboa Park
Photography: Mandi with Melissa McClure Photography
Assistant Photographer: Jackie Guidi
Wedding Coordinator: Laura Rizzo – Weddings by Design

Mandi Contreras is an associate photographer for Melissa McClure Photography.  To contact her directly, email mandi@melissamcclure.com

I met Renata for the first time when she hired me to shoot her boudoir photos!  I was so happy to hear from her when she was in the market for a wedding photographer.  She and Noah had an intimate beach front ceremony in La Jolla followed by a super fun and casual reception at Brockton Villa.  Have I ever mentioned I love mid-week weddings??

The sea glass was an important part of her day and theme!

Renata’s hair was done by Susie with Up Do For You!

This is so adorable!!  Yummy cake from Flour Power.

What a gorgeous Maggie dress!

Thank you so much for your trust and friendship!  So happy our paths crossed!

Much thanks to Wendy, who told Renata about my boudoir marathon!  She also coordinated the day flawlessly!

xo, M

I am just about to hit 500 fans on my awesome Facebook fan page that I update all the time!

Because I am really excited about these particular things I am going to hold a contest!  The winner gets a $20 iTunes or Amazon gift card (your choice)!

The only requirement?

Leave a comment on this post!  That’s it, easy peasy!  I will randomly choose a winner next Wednesday and announce it on this same blog (and of course, contact the winner!)

What are you waiting for? Comment away!

Thank you to everyone who commented!  I really enjoyed reading each one!  I used Random.org to pick the number so it was truly random!

Congrats to Sally M., my 11th commenter!  Sally is a very sweet 2009 bride of mine!

xo, M

]]> http://melissamcclure.net/2010/04/08/1000-7000-500-contest-time/feed/ 40 http://melissamcclure.net/2009/06/08/the-studio-before-and-after/ http://melissamcclure.net/2009/06/08/the-studio-before-and-after/#comments Mon, 08 Jun 2009 08:01:47 +0000 Melissa McClure http://melissamcclure.net/?p=2015  Finally, some photos of the studio and its transition!  

Here are a few “before” photos taken Saturday morning before we started painting.  Brenda and Cathy had stayed up late taping up everything!

This angle is standing from where the doors are, so basically your first look at the space!

And taken from the back corner, the doors are on the right side wall

And AFTER! 

This was taken Sunday evening.  A mere 30 hours later – its pretty much completed!  We still need to hang a few canvas’ on the walls and bring in the TV

And a view of our building

The ladies of Cerimone taken by Aaron Thompson of AS Photography!

Me, Cathy and Brenda!

Aaron also took a few new headshots of each of us!   I got a haircut today by the fabulous Mei-Li!

And having a little fun on the South lawn of NTC

Write me today to schedule your consultation in the new studio!  Or even if you just want to check it out, let me know!

And a HUGE thank you to everyone who made this possible!  Allison, our room designer and her husband Jared for going above and beyond and keeping us on track!

Mo (Brenda’s mom), Katie, Shera and Noah for getting your hands dirty putting everything together!

My wonderful suite mates, without you two, none of this could have happened in the first place!  Remember when we were just dreaming about this??

And of course everyone who encouraged and supported us through this entire process!

xoxo, M

J&J were married this past November and although I was not their wedding photographer, I was so honored to be able to shoot some awesome portraits for them!

H-O-T!

Wilson Creek has a brand new building they use for weddings and it is phenomenal!  If you are planning a wedding in Temecula, go check them out!

The grapes/leaves aren’t blooming this time of year, but we couldn’t leave without a visit to the vines!

We jumped back in the car and headed south to Escondido to catch the last of the light!

Meow!  Jennie’s makeup was done by the fabulous Meghan Tyson (email me for her info!)

Thanks you two for being such great models! You two know how to work it!

xoxo, M

PS Shout out to my good friend Christina and her fiance Frank for coming along on this shoot and helping out!

The first was from last September.  My good friend Nic at Tamarack Studios brought me along to shoot at Loren and Joe’s gorgeous wedding at Pala Mesa Resort.  Pala Mesa is one of my most favorite venues to shoot at, it’s so beautiful!

Please check out Nic’s blog from the same event!

The lovely bride getting her makeup on!

I tried to catch Nic in action, but he is too quick, he spotted me first!

Joe and Loren opted to see each other first which made the day so much more relaxed!

I love the details Loren added to her bouquet…

and her dress!

Larry Samuels is an awesome bagpiper, what a great addition to a wedding!

Got some new competition out there now…

Woza!  Look at that awesome cake!  

Thanks to Nic for having me along, its always a pleasure!

xoxo, M

Malgorzata Czarny was Carrie’s wedding photographer, I was only there as a helper/guest/wedding crasher!  :)

I love all the details Carrie envisioned.  It all worked so well together.

The beautiful Carrie!

I bet this place looks familiar to alot of you!

So last weekend it poured. It hailed.  It didn’t stop.  Except for the 40-ish minutes Carrie needed for her ceremony!  The skies were amazing blue and sunny!  It was amazing since it literally was hailing in North County!

We now pronounce you man and wife!

A little quiet time…this is when the rain started! 

They had Soup Plantation for dinner!  It was delish!

Love this shot of their first dance.

A couple of my girlfriends getting freaky on the dance floor!

This shot is similar to one that my photographer took and I loved it!  :)

Carrie, thank you for letting me be part of your special day!  You and Chris have so much love for each other it just radiates out of you.  Have a blast in Hawaii!!!

xoxo, M