Amber lives in Houston and we are located in Austin, so I never had the chance to meet her in person prior to the wedding. We
had spoken a bunch on the phone, but I didn’t really have a sense of her personal style. We met her at her apartment prior to
the ceremony, and couldn’t have been happier. We could have easily stayed there for another 2 hours photographing her in her
space, but the ceremony called, and off to the Rothko chapel we went. There we met Taylor, equally as photographable, and the
ceremony took place. Taylor had asked Amber to marry him at the chapel, so the location was meaningful. We were not allowed
to photograph inside, but we did attend. It was a beautiful ceremony in a simple, peaceful setting. After the ceremony everybody
went on to Ouisie’s restaurant to celebrate. Amber and Taylor were so gracious and invited us to stay for dinner. The meal was
delicious and we really enjoyed getting to know some of their friends.

Saturday, the newlywed’s greeted an even larger circle of family and friends at the Cohen House on the Rice University campus.
Lucky us, Amber chose a second dress, and Taylor a white dinner jacket, and again looked absolutely amazing. The evening was
filled with hugs and kisses, conversation and drink, dinner and cake, and dancing to cajun music.

Congratulations Amber and Taylor! Thanks so much for including us.

So yes, this was an East Austin backyard wedding, but not just any backyard. This yard belongs to Annie and Dylan. Dylan is
d.crain landscape and construction, and his work is simply fabulous. I have seen work he has done all over town, but some-
thing about his own yard sparkles. Beautifully integrated with the indoor spaces, lush with fruit trees and eclectic with all sorts
of found objects, succulent arrangements and towering structures.

But enough of that, Annie and Dylan got married! I was flattered when they approached me to be their photographer, and even
more excited when they asked me if they can use one of my paintings on their invitation. Wedding day photos started at the
Hotel St. Cecilia, and then onto the house where friendly dogs roamed about and cats slept on beds and the festivities were
getting underway.

Dress was Austin summer casual and cool towels were thoughtfully made available. A wonderfully saturated orange was the
color of the day, used on the invitations, boxes of monogrammed matches and flower leis made of marigolds, that were used during
the ceremony to bond the new family. DJ Manny was there setting the mood, and La Condesa set up, serving some very yummy
food and drinks.

Congratulations Annie and Dylan!

So I got a phone call the other day, it was Ella’s mom, she wanted to see if we would be interested in photographing Ella’s
senior portrait. Normally I would have just said no, it’s not work we typically do, but her Mom explained that they wanted a
more creative type of portrait, and spoke of  Ella’s interest in graffiti art.
I am so glad we decided to do it. As you can see below Ella is beautiful, but more than that it was a pleasure hanging out with her,
hearing about her life and pending adventures.

Have fun this year Ella!

This blog entry starts with a few photos from the portrait session we did with Emily just days before her wedding. Typically we
would do these sittings months before the wedding day, but the timing in this case just worked best this way. Having it so close to
the wedding date added a feeling of nervous excitement. I loved the adornment in her hair and the simple clean lines of her dress.

Then came the wedding day. Guests arrived and signed in on a wonderfully designed and framed sign in poster, and were offered
small fans to cool themselves with. As everyone must know by now, the Barr Mansion’s Artesian Ballroom was struck by lightning
a couple of weeks ago. They wasted no time and had a beautiful air conditioned tent created with a wooden floor, draped walls and
beautiful lighting by Ilios. Guests were directed to the tent for the ceremony where they enjoyed the classical guitar of Michael Gratovich.
The cocktail hour was held outdoors behind the main house, under fans and paper lanterns held by enormous pecan trees.
Then it was back into the very cool and comfortable tent for dancing, dinner and dessert.

Here is a shout out to their wonderful DJ, Barrington Miles of Texas pro DJ’s. He did a great job. Even managed to play some
Helen Reddy and make it sound cool.

Congratulations Emily and Bryan!

This beautiful bride is Christy. We had the distinct pleasure of being able to photograph her at the Wildflower Center in May.
You might remember her from the blog post I did of her Save the Date card, (http://stellaalesi.com/wordpress/?cat=80). She
and her fiance JC are currently residing in Dubai, but she came back to Austin for this portrait session and to prepare for the
wedding.

The wedding took place this past weekend at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. If you have never been out there, you really
should make the trip. No matter what time of year it is, it is always beautiful. This was late June, so the echinacea and indian
blankets were blooming.
JC and Christy had a fairly large wedding party, 28 in all including themselves. A good friend served as officiant, and wore
a custom made stole with their names, wedding date and an image of interlocking rings. I loved the seersucker suits the
groomsmen wore, and the adorable, colorful skirts of the bridesmaids dresses. The ceremony took place inside the gallery, which
has a spectacular view of a field of native grasses and large Live Oaks. Keeping with the season Kurant Events served peach
cocktails. They also created a French Fry station; five different kinds of fries with at least as many types of salt. Yummy!
The reception took place in the courtyard with plenty of mingling and dancing. And as a special treat, the groom’s sister and her
band the Boo Who’s, played a few songs, and happily they rocked!

Congratulations Christy and JC!

Here are a few of my favorite images from an engagement session we did last week with Jacalyn and Mark. They will be getting
married in November, with a reception at the Blanton Museum of Art, we are very much looking forward to that. We had a great
time taking these photos, hanging out with them and getting to know them better.

Early June is peach season in Fredericksburg, Texas, and this was a good year for peaches. Recently we made the trip from Austin,
passing many peach stands and fields of wildflowers. Such a beautiful drive. We were headed to the wedding of JB and Anne.
A destination wedding, as the Bride and Groom and most of their guests made their way from Houston and surrounding areas.
The Hoffman Haus is where JB and Anne and many of  their family and wedding party resided for the weekend, it is also
where the ceremony and reception took place. A beautiful establishment with ivy covered walls, many cottages, antique furniture
and front porches with rocking chairs.

What made this wedding special was the many well thought out details, such as the programs that were designed to function as
fans and the delicious cake created by Sophie’s Choice, as well the band, The Heat, that kept the party moving. And of course hiring
Elizabeth Harris to coordinate the event was a good idea. But what I think I will always remember about this wedding was the
enormous, wonderfully fun wedding party. 30 bridesmaids and groomsmen plus a house party, ushers and a flower girl. They
were all great and at times hilarious, making the photos and the party a blast. Every Bride and Groom should be so lucky to have
so many great friends.

Congratulations JB and Anne!

Does this happen to anyone else? Every once in awhile I meet a family, and then for the next few days I wander around imagining
how great it would be to be in that family. I don’t want to be a parent, too much responsibility, but a sister in the family. That is how
it was when I met Adam, Amenity and Miles. I want to be Miles little sister, and grow up on the east side in Austin with beautiful
cool parents and an awesome dog.

You might remember this family from their wedding we shot a few weeks ago. We didn’t get the family shot I wanted that day,
so I went back to visit them again. So glad I did.