I’m really excited about tonight’s premiere of Alcatraz, dorky? Maybe. In late October I took a trip to San Francisco to visit some friends and catch my breath mid-wedding season. I had such a fantastic time exploring the city, but by far the best thing I did was a night tour of Alcatraz. It’s going to sound crazy, but I went to San Francisco without my camera. I traveled so much for work last year that I wanted this to be a vacation where I wasn’t getting held up at the airport so they could swab my bag in security or just lugging a backpack filled with gear! I did, however have my iPhone, so expect a few iPhone posts on San Francisco. For today though, in honor of Alcatraz’s premier, I bring you these. Happy Monday!

View the inmates had of San Francisco.



As part of the night tour, they open the hospital wing. It was amazing.

So, I’m in Panama! I haven’t seen much of it yet, but I figured I’d still use some photos taken while on the job for the SPCA International. It’s been a bit of whirlwind, I’ll admit! My flight got in Sunday around 3 and I went straight to the Spay Panama site to shoot. After a quick dinner, some uploading and bed, I was back on my way to the site today to shoot some more video and images bright and early this morning. Here are a few quick photos I managed to snap along the way. Can’t wait to see and share more!

How cool is her cat tattoo?

During a detour on the way to the site, we stumbled upon this playground.

The seesaw

A day wouldn’t be complete without me photographing my feet!

Kitties in a birdcage? Yes, please.

There’s a slight chance I was favoring the cats today… so here’s a sweet puppy!

Oh… and I ate fast chinese food here…

I finally left my hotel last night and ventured out into Panama City. I didn’t really know what to expect from Panama and being from New York, I always imagine that all cities are walkable and filled with public transportation. I learned quickly that Panama is very much a driving city with no subways to get around (but there are buses!). It’s also a lot more spread out than I imagined. Anyway, I took a taxi to Casco Viejo on a whim. It’s a colonial neighborhood founded in 1673 currently undergoing an ambitious renovation project. If ‘Weird Panama’ existed, I’m certain there would be stories upon stories of the buildings here. I didn’t bring my camera with me (stupid!) because I read in a guidebook that it was dangerous there and that tourists were ‘prey’. It specifically said to not have camera out… I’m not sure why I listened and I intend to go back today or tomorrow with a wide angle and take a ton of photos. But, I did have my iPhone! You can actually crawl inside some of the ruins, which are so beautiful. It runs along the water and you get gorgeous views of the Panama city, lots of textures and local flavor. There was also this adorable vintage store (I may have bought a ring) and a few sweet restaurants. I ate at the Pony Rosso which is an art gallery in addition to a little cafe. I had the Notorious P.I.G. sandwich. Yup, amazing.

It is such an exciting day to be announcing the launch of Brooklyn Betrothed.

I hope that you will take the time to check it out! For several months we ladies have been working hard, so it’s exciting to see it all come to life! I hope that you will check in with us over at Brooklyn Betrothed where we will be posting lots of expert advice on planning a wedding. You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter!

So I’m in Kauai and it’s awesome. The twelve hour flight spread across nearly 20 hours of travel, not so awesome, but being here is like a dream come true. Really, I mean it. In the third grade we had to pick a state to make a 3-D poster of and I was dying to get Hawaii. As my teacher went up and down our alphabetical rows I was praying no one would say Hawaii before me. And they didn’t! So I made this (awesome) 3-D map of Hawaii and fell in love, never thinking that I’d ever get the chance to not only be here, but to work here?!? Amazing. Simply amazing.

I’ve been here two days now and (aside from some minor sleeping issues and a cough) it’s been just fabulous. Today is the big wedding day (!) so I thought I would post a few iPhone photos of what I’ve enjoyed so far.

The first drink I consumed here. Literally 20 minutes after landing in Kauai.

Such pretty colors!

One of many roosters (they are like the pigeons of Kauai).

Breakfast at the cutest little spot in Kappa’a

Me

My first delicious coconut water.

Hula cats. Hula Obama.

My lunchtime view.

The orchid that came with my swordfish.

The secret message in the dressing room which lead me to buy three dresses…

The stunning spot where I’ll be shooting a special wedding in just a few short hours.

So, I’m going to start this post with a personal photo and then I’ll bring on the cuteness. Susan (first-time mommy to the gorgeous baby girl you’re about to meet) has been a friend of mine for a seriously long time. As a matter of fact, I think she is my oldest friend (obviously, in terms of time length, not age!). This photo of us is one of my favorite pictures from my childhood. I remember this day really vividly and I wanted to share it before I go on and mention how amazing it felt to photograph Susan and her husband, Kyle’s, first child, Brielle.

I know you’re totally sweatin’ our style and would love to see more of us rockin’ this look, but now on to the real purprose of this post. Brielle was born just six days before I headed out to New Jersey to capture her. She is super, super, super small (she might be the smallest baby I have ever posed!) and she’s also incredibly sweet! I will admit that I had a hard time putting her down and start shooting when Susan put her in my arms (literally a second after I walked in the door). It was a true honor to capture her in her first days and it felt goosebumpy to be referred to as “Aunt Kristina”. A title I will wear with pride. I hope you enjoy this peek at Brielle’s shoot – and big congratulations to Sue and Kyle!








A big thank you to the talented Brian Edwards for knitting Brielle’s butterfly cocoon. Check out Brian’s knitting here and his awesome blogging here!

Throughout my apartment, I have little toys. Some are tied to specific moments and memories. Some more sentimental than others. But they’re there. And they brighten my days.

The particularly negative Fernando.

Little Enid.

Sushi Panda.

Crazy Cat.

Totoro (affectionately referred to as Totie).

Pupcup.

Tiger Pilot.

In top-to-bottom order: Little Totoro, Gigi, Totakeke and the apple bank.

Last but not least, our felted friends! Amazing, right? Check out more work from Mariangela Tan at Plush Play!

This (rainy/snowy/slushy) Monday’s iPhone post is a round up of things I did last week. Enjoy them!!!

Last Sunday I took the train to Connecticut to see Jasmine Star and Justin & Mary speak at CTPPA.

I got back to New York feeling really motivated and ready to jump into wedding season! Then, my Chinese food gave me some additional words of wisdom…

I also took some motivation from the street!

On my walk home from the subway, I couldn’t stop noticing how bright everything felt. I loved the way the sun hit this blue wall & pipes.

Towards the end of the week it started to really warm up! I got excited about spring and started to notice flowers popping up around the neighborhood.

Even fake ones!

Who doesn’t love a perfectly blue sky filled with birds?

I shot a wedding on Saturday…

At a golf course!

On Sunday I walked to a family shoot a few neighborhoods away. On the way home I spotted this mural.

I know today doesn’t feel so ‘springy’ but happy spring anyway!

At this year’s Wedding Crashers event I was honored to be asked to speak on the experts’ panel along side some of the best vendors in the industry. My talk was based around the most important questions to ask your potential wedding photographer. What follows is a condensed version of my speech. While asking questions is important, ultimately you want to go with your gut and chose the wedding photographer who you feel that you bond best with. But here are five important questions that can help you make the right choice.


When you’re looking at a photographer’s blog or website, keep in mind that what you’re seeing is the ‘best of the best’. And it should be – that’s what a portfolio is. But often you’re seeing just 10 or 20 images from what can be a (sometimes) 12-hour day. Or you could be viewing a styled shoot – which means there was a stylist on set, time to design, adjust and readjust the lighting, and that the bride and the groom posed in the photos may even be models. Styled shoots are great fun to take part in and ideal for testing out creative portraiture, but they’re the opposite of what shooting a wedding is like.

Weddings are so fast-paced, unpredictable and emotional, it’s more difficult to sustain a high level of images throughout an entire day. A true professional can deliver that consistency. So make sure the photographer’s full body of work makes you feel at ease. The easiest way to do this is to ask to see a proofing gallery for a wedding they’ve shot recently.

When you’re looking at a proofing gallery, pay attention to how the images make you feel. Are you moved? Do you feel excited? Inspired? Do they put you in the day or the moment? Does the gallery tell the full story of the wedding, from getting your hair and makeup done with your bridesmaids to the last happy stragglers on the dancefloor at the end of the night, and, of course, everything in between?

Some photographers excel at bride and groom portraits, others are amazing at capturing the fun and rapture of the reception. Your photographer should excel at capturing the moments you want to remember most.

As you plan your wedding day, you’ll want to choose every detail of your day to be as ‘you’ as it can be, from the dress to the shoes to the cake-toppers and your first dance choreography. Your photography package should be the same way.

Asking a photographer to customize a package to meet your needs is different to asking for a discount on their rates. As long as you’re asking for a reasonable substitution, it’s not going to disrespect the value of their work. An example of this would be asking to substitute an engagement album for a parent album or thank you notes.

Last year I shot a wedding in Jamaica for Dana and Anthony. The couple had already done an engagement shoot, but the package they selected for their wedding day included one. When they told me they did not need the engagement session, I suggested we swap the shoot out for a trash-the-dress session. It was more useful to them, a blast for both of us, and it fit their wedding vibe. (A photo from that session was also selected as a Top Knots winner!). Most importantly, it made no difference to me, but it made all the difference to them.

Viewing a photographer’s website or proofing gallery will let you see the style of photos they take, but it may not give you an idea about how they take them. All photographers work differently. Some are the quiet observers, who stand back and watch your day unfold, giving little to no direction to you and your guest. Other photographers are more vocal and directive when they work – they might encourage your guests to pose or gather for shots while on the dance floor. Some might be a balance of the two styles I just mentioned. So listen to the words they use to describe their approach to photographing a wedding and ask yourself if you can see them fitting into the vibe of your day.

While it’s definitely the least glamorous part of the whole wedding planning process, reading through all your vendor contracts can prevent heartache down the line.
 
When it comes to photography, the contract could be bulky and it should include details like how long it will be before you see your photos, what format you’ll receive your images in, what reproduction rights you’re getting, and even what happens if your photographer gets sick and cannot shoot the wedding.

These details should all be clear to you in the contract. Knowing them can avoid disappointment. And if it’s something that you’ve discussed in person or in email but doesn’t seem to be in the contract, ask for it to be written in. Couples ask me to add certain clauses all the time – it’s in both yours and the photographer’s interest to do so.

Also speaking of paperwork, ask your photographer if you can submit a wish-list of photos that you’d like from your wedding day. It’s important for your photographer to know what is important to you.

My sister, who’s a graphic designer, was married last October. She designed every teeny tiny detail of her wedding: the menus were spinning wheels where you chose your entre; programs and birdseed packets were hand sewn; everything was custom-designed. She worked hours pulling it all together and it meant so much to her to see how these things came together on her day. You better believe she made sure to ask that these elements be paid extra attention to by giving the photographer a heads-up; he was then able to set aside time to ensure that her vision and the important little details weren’t overlooked.

When it comes to wish-lists, we photograph a lot of weddings in a year and what is important to you is not the same thing that is important to our last bride or our next.  So don’t hesitate to let your photographer know these things in advance!

Okay, maybe don’t phrase is quite like that, but it’s important that you are clear on what you’re paying for, what you’ll receive, and if there will be any hidden fees along the way. Some photographers will do an engagement shoot, but the images taken aren’t included with your final images. A disc of engagement pictures might cost you $500 on top of what you’re paying, even though the shoot itself was part of the package. That’s a hidden fee.
 
There might be extra costs for cropping, editing, and black-and-white conversions. Some photographers will only edit a certain number of images – say 20 or 30 – before charging extra for any edits or even converting to black-and-white. With the huge expense of planning your wedding, these things can add up!

But like I said at the start…

Today’s iPhone post is all about Moo, our cat. Moo cracks me up. Everyday, without fail, I belly-laugh because of something she has done. She is super playful and has to get into everything. Best of all, she is always waiting by the door when I get home ready to be ‘scooped’ up and to give me kisses – kind of like a puppy!