Michèle M. Waite

Perfect filtered sun and a wagon full of tutus, dolls, and shoes…

Rachel of Shimmer is my good friend one of my favorite wedding make-up artists (ladies, go check her out now!) and I got to shoot her adorable family. Here are just a few from our stroll down a Bellingham alley:

Having a 2 year old has made me more weather aware than ever before. It just seems that the cold and rain are endless thus restraining us day after day to messy inside activities, like dumping out Boggle and Cranium pieces all over the house. Daphne is not a tidy 2 year old.

April was crazy. Just as we thought it was time to do some gardening, we got snow. I actually planted my veggie boxes and Mark went out to do some work on the apple tree the day before we got a very late in the season snow storm. Back to the board games…

But then the sun came out and the fabulous Bellingham Farmer’s Market opened up for the season. And there were tulips and radishes and spicy greens for salad and it seemed like everything would be ok again.

I have been working away on Kristen and John’s Coffee Table Album (seriously, albums take forever to make but are totally worth it) and thought I would post from their September wedding at Homestead. We had a bit of Summer drizzle, but played outside for most of the photos. Lea and Cathie, the wondrous duo of Simply Wonderful Weddings did the coordinating and the lovely design (love the red programs!) Take a peak:

The Photogirls now have a blog– it’s official! Check it out.

Also, I will be out of the studio for a week, visiting my family in San Francisco where my mom just had a liver transplant. She is still in major recovery and very ill, but they are calling the surgery a success so far. Your continued thoughts and prayers are still appreciated!

Since I can’t write a post with out photos, here are a few more portraits of the Photogirls.

Here is Rebecca Peters. I didn’t get to post a shot of her in my first Photogirls installment:

Khara from Kabloom showing off on the beach:

Adorable Adrienne:

Sara and Mel, those crazy Whitebox ladies.

Beautiful Mary Basnight:

Love this one of Melissa Jill:

I know it looks like all I have been doing is frolicking in the sun. I do, however, live in the Northwest and people do get married when the weather is less than perfect. But sometimes that is a really good thing. How else would I be able to shoot in wide open sky in the middle of the day at Gasworks Park in Seattle for Sarah and John’s early March wedding? See, sometimes a gray sky is nice.

My good friend and incredible photographer Jeremy Leffel joined me for this one. He had fun watching me run and up and down hills (you can see me stalking Sarah and John in a shot that Jeremy took below.)

Other than all the fun we had at the park, Sarah and John put on a cozy ceremony and reception (inside, thank you) at the Lakeside. Another note is that Sarah had the most fabulous hair. Just about the best wedding up-do I have seen. Maybe Sarah will comment and tell us who did her super sexy, soft wedding locks…

One more thing, I have changed my blog signature, yet again, in attempt to make my photos as big as possible. Let’s see how this goes:

Me crawling up the hill.  Thanks Jeremy.

Sarah has a weapon, watch out!

As promised, part dos of my fabulous wedding at Hacienda Xcanatun in Merida…

More texture overlays taken at the Hacienda:

I love this shot that Della took:

Della from the roof:

Daphne had her first visit from the Easter Bunny and her first egg hunt.

My mom is doing miraculously well after what her doctor declared to be “one of the most difficult surgeries in the medical profession.”

Happy Easter everyone!

I had the crazy notion that I would be able to fit Mariana and Michael’s destination wedding all in 1 post. But after editing through almost 4 days of shooting such beautiful, gracious people in and around the old city of Merida, I realized this is going to have to be more on an on-going journal of the wedding and of my trip.

When I book destination weddings, I rarely get to meet my clients before the wedding or see the venue, so the whole adventure is a bit unknown. I seriously struck it rich folks when I not only got to shoot such a radiant couple, but also in 2 dream locations– the historic district of Merida and lavish hacienda, Xcanatun. My good friend and great photographer Della Chen came along to assist and she can attest to the fact that we actually got to live a photographer’s dream– and we just couldn’t stop squealing.

So we’ll start with some of the rehearsal, getting ready, and first session in downtown. The actual wedding, reception and more scenes from Merida will come later…

One note: The textured images are sandwiched photos of textures that I took around the hacienda. The wildly colorful, rustic feel of Xcanatun provided a chance to add some shots to my texture arsenal and it was fun to use the colors and feel of the actual wedding site to enhance the photos.

Della in action:

A shot Della took of me in action:

Just a quick note to say that I am in and out of the studio, once again, for the next week as my mom heads to San Francisco for a live donor liver transplant (amazing that the liver can regenerate!) If you have the inclination to say a little prayer for her, I would welcome it. We are so excited that she has been given a second chance through the kindness and amazing courage of a donor, but things feel a little bit scary right now.

I am doing my best to keep up with orders and editing, but a tiny bit of extra patience is really appreciated.

Also, if you are not an organ donor, you should be! You could save many, many lives. You can go here to sign up:

www.donatelifenw.org

I am finally back home and have a ton to post from my trips, but I must first go back to Nick and Suzanne’s gorgeous Winter wedding at Resort Semiahmoo and Loomis Trail. I got to work with Steven Moore Designs yet again as he transformed the Semiahmoo dock into a wonderland. Nick and Suzanne were so fun to work with– such great models, beautiful, full of wonderful silliness and personality. I love photographing couples who are completely comfortable and at ease with one another– it helped that they were high-school sweethearts and that Nick is a comedian! S and N, thanks for being A+ clients.

other vendor notes:

Make-up- Shimmer

Umbrellas- Bella Umbrella

Dress- Monique Lhuilier

Wow, what an incredible week I just spent on the gorgeous North Carolina coast with a group of amazing women photographers from all over the country. We cozied up in a beach house in Nag’s Head and were photo nerds for 5 whole days. Sara and Mel, my good friends from Whitebox organized the whole event, cooking us up some fantastic grits and salsas and other Southern treats. Day one was spent stalking seagulls on the beach which naturally lead into forming our bodies into the word “Photogirls” and then a crazy portrait session of one another at the local Sea Foam Motel. Do we know have fun or what?

Here is the list of Photogirls:

sara & mel :: whitebox photographers
rebecca haas :: rebecca peters photography
adrienn maples: adrienne maples photography
arden ward :: arden photography
khara plicanic :: kabloom studios
mary basnight :: mary basnight photography
melissa jill :: melissa jill photography
brooke mayo :: brooke mayo photography
jena murray :: jenna murray photography

rebecca made up this cool logo for us:

We’ll begin the Sea Foam portrait time with my shot of Arden who is an equally hot model and photographer:

I do love flare!

Brooke sporting a Shootsac– Hey Jessica, don’t you think this would be a good ad!?

How cute is Brooke? Brookie-pants, you make me laugh.

Adrienne is as cute as a button– don’t you see a bit of Anne of Green Gables here? I just love the famous person game…

Melissa is a blogging guru– she taught me a lot. Isn’t she hot, boys?

I met Mary last year in Mexico and she, simply, warms my heart.

Here is Mel, one of our hostesses, looking sassy with her gear.

And our other fine hostess Sara, catching some air.

Jena is my neighbor in Bellingham and a fantastic photographer. She is also incredible in front of the camera.

On the beach chasing seagulls on the first day. Some shots of Sara and Rebecca.

And finally, Sara’s photo of me!

Just got into Outerbanks, NC for a Photogirl Retreat– more on that later, but I had to post at least one shot from Merida, Mexico where I have been for the last 5 days shooting a wedding. I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful couple or more beautiful scenery so get ready for a monster post in a few weeks.  I also have tons to post from last weekend’s gorgeous wedding at Semiahmoo.  Just a few quickies for now…

Beautiful people, beautiful place, and the MOST beautiful light… We are just craving that kind of light here in the NW! Thanks to Sara from Whitebox Weddings for inviting me along to shoot this fantastic destination Cancun wedding. Lili and Corey, you are truly lovely. Muchas gracias!

I thought it is supposed to be warm all the time in Texas. My trip from 30 degree Bellingham to 38 degree Austin for David and Phaedra’s wedding turned out to be chillier than expected– why didn’t I bring a coat? Good thing these two fabulous people gave me nothing a great time on their grand event of a wedding day. From Phaedra’s adorable handmade felt bouquet, to her bright red shoes, to all sort of fun props– cool couches, clown noses (thank you Apples) and old books– these 2 were non-stop fun. We even hit some Texas golden hour light on our way to the reception so I could practice my flare. Thanks for the sweet Texas hospitality, great BBQ and good, kind folks.