Wedding Photography Contest!

  This will be the 3rd year Brilliant Imagery is running the free wedding photography contest.  Eric & Sarah's Minnesota lakeside wedding was from this year and Scott & Beth's Vegas themed wedding from the year before. 
The past years I've picked the winner and it's just been too hard! I have so much fun reading about all these wonderful weddings that get submitted. I wish I could pick everyone! (Really it did just kill me.) So this year, my blog readers get to pick the winner. I'll pick the 3 finalists and I'll run a poll on the blog for 7 days and whoever gets the most votes wins!

 Most Original Themed Wedding Contest: Just email me on why your wedding will be imaginative, innovative, inspired or whatever will make your day outstandingly original! It could be an over all wedding theme (like -  Masquerade Ball) Or a location that practically has built in theme (like - Disneyland) Or your fabulous time period attire (like - 1920's classic wear). Or your destination; that's always a automatic theme. (What says tropical beach wedding more than Caribbean white sandy beaches!)  Or anything you guys are excited about and want to tell me- I love hearing all about wedding plans and details!  Send your entries to {rachel@brilliantimagery.net} please include:

-snapshot of the two of you

-paragraph on you two and your wedding 

-contact information (names, phone, wedding date and location)

 The winning couple wins free photography services for their wedding; including unlimited photography on their wedding day, a trash the dress session, professional retouching and online proofing of all the images.  That's over a $3,000 value. I'll announce the 3 finalists here on my blog on Feb. 1st 2011. Everyone will have 7 days to vote for their favorite couple. (Please only one vote per person.) On Feb. 8th I'll announce the winning couple.

Not so fine -Fine Print: Wedding must take place in 2011.  This giveaway has no cash value. Your email must be received no later than 11:59pm PST on January 31st, 2011 in order to qualify. For weddings over 200 miles from southern Nevada, travel fees will apply. Past clients or currently booked clients do not qualify for this giveaway. The winning couple will be announced here on my blog on February 8th, 2011. An email will be sent to the winning couple and if multiple unsuccessful attempts have been made to reach the couple or for some reason they are unable to claim their prize, then they will forfeit their winnings to the next qualifying couple. If I am booked on your wedding date, and you cannot change it, then you must forfeit the prize and it will be offered to the next qualifying couple. Please do not submit your story unless you intend to follow through with the prize, should you win.

I'm so excited! I can't wait to hear all your great stories! 

www.brilliantimagery.net

Red Rock Resort: Angel & Veronica

Angel and Veronica came in from California to get married this weekend. Though it's a bit close to the wedding day for an engagement session, ... we did one anyway! We had planned to shoot at the Neon Boneyard but the one day we planned turns out to also be the one day out of the year that it rains in the Las Vegas desert. 'Such is life' So we headed over to the Red Rock Resort to escape the rain and we had a blast anyways! Actually, I'm thinking that no matter what Angela and Veronica are doing they are having a blast.

Angel was so awesomely photo inclined and he always posed just how I was about to ask him to. Thanks, Angel!

And, Wow- does this girl have great taste in shoes! Are these sparkly babies screaming-awesome or what?!

Veronica is one seriously beautiful girl. I love that bird cage veil on her, she totally rocks it.

Thus I conclude that raining days are a good thing.

The Best Shoes EVER!

If you've seen my work at all you know that I'm in love with shoes. So when Lauren shows up to her and Mitch's engagement session in hand-painted Toms shoes I, of course, have to comment on them. (You remember Lauren and Mitch's engagement and trash the dress sessions). So course after seeing her cool shoes, I'm jealous and want a pair of my own painted shoes.

When you buy a pair of Toms Shoes they give a new pair of shoes to a child in need. Isn't that the coolest idea? So simple and wonderful! So Lauren being the wonderful girl that she is, wants to encourage you to buy Toms shoes by hand-painting Toms shoes for others.

I bought the shoes online and had them sent straight to Lauren. When I came pick up them up I was SO much more than happy. Like I told Lauren; I expected awesome shoes but these babies far exceeded expectations.

Aren't they gorgeous? Beautiful? Fantastical?!

I love the little twin lens camera painting, I think that's my favorite part.

Lauren painted an awesome, surreal, wedding photography theme especially for me. If you would like your own bad-ass themed hand-painted shoes Lauren is available. She charges $50 an hour. The time differs for each person's unique art work. (My took about 4 hours.)

Lauren Bonner lauren.k.bonner@gmail.com

Jensen Family Portraits

You know that older sibling or neighbor who you really look up to when you're a kid? The one that in total admiration you said "So-and-so is so cool!" Well, that is my older cousin Curtis. He's maybe 6 or 7 years older than me and I just thought he was the greatest. He would swing from the door frames, and knew all the best games. He even made a potato gun one Christmas vacation. Now that he's in his 30's and has 2 kids, I still think he's the coolest. I'm glad that Curt and Alaina asked me to photograph their family portraits this year.

He's such handsome cousin! Look and that classic Jensen face! (Jensen is my maiden name, by the way.)

And, Wow, did he get himself a gorgeous wife! So naturally they make beautiful children.

Georgia and Levi are twins and just a few months older than my 4 year son.

"That family is so cool!"

Senior Portraits: Brooklyn

Love how this shoot came together! Brooklyn is such a great, happy, unique person! So cute with her freckled face.

Brooklyn is a bit of farm girl, so she of course wanted her picture taken on the farm.

Sorensen Family Portraits

Almost everyone wants to get their family portraits taken during this season so that they can get that picture for their Christmas card. The Sorensens are a family of 10! Count them - 1, 2, 3, 4,...10.

The Sorensen girls, aren't they cute!

I did not think of doing the pyramid, they just started putting it together. They are the best- so much fun!

Three of the Sorensen progeny are in the military. So we did a few in their  Class A Uniforms.

Portrait Palooza - Help Baby Savannah!

November should be a month for being grateful. There is so much in my life that I feel blessed with. My cup truly runneth over. What better way can we show our appreciation than by helping those in need.

I want to tell you about little baby Savannah. She was born September 19th, 2010 with a severe brain injury to Suzi and Terrance Lighten, fellow wedding photographers here in Las Vegas. We need to raise $10,000 for a special therapy treatment that will help give Savannah a fighting chance. To raise this money we having Portrait Palooza! Get your family portrait just in time for the holidays and 100% of your $100 sitting fee goes directly to help baby Savannah. Portrait Palooza will take place Nov. 19th, 20th, 21st at Sunset Park with several wonderful photographers. I'll be there at Sunset Park from 10am to 2pm on Saturday the 20th. 
Please come help this beautiful new baby girl hope for the future.
 You can find out more information and schedule your session at http://www.portraitpalooza.com/
If you'd like to help even more there will be a golf and dinner fund raiser at The Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort Thursday Nov. 18th. More info on that  at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=171796502837185

Family Time

This past summer has been nuts! I was out-of-town more than I was in it. I felt just plain tired. So with the wedding season over I took a break for almost the whole month of October. Mostly my brain just shut down. I didn't do anything but play with my kid and watch TV. But we did manage to throw in some fun family activities.

My dad and I kayaked down the Colorado river for about 10 miles. (Boy, did my arms hurt.)

My Dad- isn't he a handsome fellow!

The weather was perfect, beautiful birds were out and we had the river almost all to ourselves. Great day!

One of the other things we did was have a Halloween party. My 4-year-old son, Pirate, really wanted to have a Halloween party so we pacified him. 

Pirate also insisted on being Darth Vader, so I decided on being Princess Leia to compliment him. (I wanted my husband to be Han Solo but I couldn't get him to commit to the Halloween spirit.)

Well, back to reality! (With all this laziness, I think I've gained like 5 lbs!)

Brilliant Imagery Team

I'm so excited to introduce to you the Brilliant Imagery Team! Carmen, Ashley and I have been best friends for almost 15 years. So of course they have both always been a support and an asset to me in everything- including my photography and business ventures. (Not to mention all the times I made them be my models for my crazy art photographs.)
But now as Brilliant Imagery grows, we've reorganized to include Carmen and Ashley as business partners. Carmen has been my second shooter photographer for over a year now. And as Ashley is fantastic at organizing and planning, so she'll be handling marketing and most office work.
In celebration of our team we had a little photo session last week.

Carmen

Ashley

Rachel (that's me)

There is nothing better than working with your best friends.

www.brilliantimagery.net

Downtown Las Vegas: Mitch & Lauren

When you think downtown Las Vegas, you'd think evening with the neon lights. But for a change, Mitch and Lauren and I hit it during the early morning sunrise.

Like I was telling you before, Mitch and Lauren eloped earlier this year. They didn't have any wedding day images so we went out to recreate some. And had a blast doing it!

Now remember how I said that Lauren is an artist? Well, she had this idea about recreating one of her favorite artists' paintings. Rene Magritte was a surrealist painter who did this awesome piece called 'The Lovers.'

And this is our rendition of it.

We had so much fun with this concept. (You're so clever, Lauren!)

www.brilliantimagery.net