Horse Play.

This afternoon I took a ride out to Lacy and Adam's horse farm for their engagement session. We started out by taking a four legged family portrait - pictured here are their 3 dogs, 3 horses, and a miniature pony -- I've never seen one close up and I have to admit it was pretty freaky. :)

I'm glad we got this session in and I had a chance to chat with them about their upcoming wedding which is this weekend at the beautiful Pleasantdale Chateau. Be sure to check back for pictures from what will surely be a great party!

In the meantime - click here to view their slideshow!

Ariana and Dan

Last Saturday I met Ariana and Dan in Central Park for their engagement session. This time of year in the park is my favorite, as long as I take my Claritin before I leave. :) The cherry blossoms are in full bloom so make sure you get into the park soon, they don't last long!

While photographing Ariana and Dan, we discussed their October wedding in Salem, Massachussets at the Peabody Essex Museum. From the bright spring colors of spring in NYC, to the fall foliage of New England in October! Looking forward to it!!

Click HERE for Ariana and Dan's slideshow.

Welcome home.

After the worlds slowest ride home from the hospital, we discovered Phoebe had already begun to receive custom made accessories via FedEx.

Here is her first "close-up".

Phoebes' Aunt Alison knit this beautiful hat for her to wear home from the hospital. Since she arrived a few weeks early it became a welcome home gift. Thanks Aunt Alison!

Jason and Phoebe enjoying a quiet moment - I've been told there wont be many of these over the next few weeks. :)

Phoebe Grace has arrived!

Despite my efforts to let her know that her room wasn't finished (by speaking into Elizabeths belly), the Groupp family's newest member couldn't wait to join us. Fortunatetly, our birthing class instructor told us the baby would not care if the room wasn't ready or if we didn't have all the proper baby gadgets. :)

Elizabeth and I went into the hospital at 3PM Sunday (not even sure if we'd be staying) and Phoebe Grace joined us 6 hours later weighing in at 7lbs. 2 ounces and measuring 20 inches long. Not bad for being a little over 3 weeks early! Liz did an awesome job and the nurses said one of the fastest deliveries they'd seen for a first time birth!

Here's one quick photo - Thanks for all the support and emails everyone has been sending out! Hopefully - I can get a few more shots up tomorrow!

Nicole and Jason.

I always try to make a note of my couples' first dance song at each wedding so I can incorporate it into their slideshow.

There are, of course, the standards we all recognize, but Nicole and Jason's song was one I had never heard before. They had chosen a song (which Nicole shared with me) by Corinne Bailey Rae - "Like a Star". What a beautiful song! Make sure you have your speakers on when you listen to their slideshow.

It's always sunny in Philadelphia.

Well - It hasn't been sunny anywhere this past couple of weeks, fortunately, it looks like the weather has finally taken a turn for the better!

On Monday I joined Sofia Negron (who put everything together - thank you!), Phil Mantas, Amos, Ryan Estes, Shelby Leigh, Jess Wernes, Jason Messner, Beth Crook and Jonathan Rubin for a little "unconference" to chat and share some ideas. And - of course what's a get together with photographers without doing some shooting? That evening we went out for a night shoot, which is one of my favorite things to do. Here are a few of those shots...





Make sure to check out their blogs for more!

Album designs

This week I will be featuring new albums and designs. Here is one i just finished from Laura and Gordons' wedding.

I will be following this post up with some exciting new choices for albums so make sure to check back soon!

New website goes L-I-V-E

I didn't expect to announce this so soon - my website has gone LIVE! Check it out!

J's new look!

I still have a lot of work to do - so please pardon some of the "blank" spots like the bio page. Anyone want to help me?

I do, however, have a couple of people I want to thank.

Chris Neyen is one of my best friends (his website is coming soon too!) and helped design my new logo. He gave me EXACTLY what I wanted and I could not be happier! If you need a graphic designer - Chris is your man!

I also need to thank the guys at BIG Folio. Their websites rock! I really went back and forth about who to go with, in the end I knew these guys were the ones. Their customer service is unparalleled - email, AIM, phone, they are available almost 24-7. And - if you've ever developed a website you know that's the kind of service you need! Thanks again to Mike, Erik and Jeff for answering all of my ENDLESS questions - this is just the beginning and I look forward to our continued partnership.

I'll be making updates to the website frequently so make sure to check it again soon!

I'd love to hear your thoughts!

YMF!

When I first walked into Nicole and Jason's reception, I thought I might be in the wrong place. The top of the cake read "YMF". I thought to myself, hmm, this doesn't sound right. I looked at my friend Roberto and asked, "Do you think we are in the right room? The top of the cake reads YMF." He smiled and replied "Yes, read the bottom...." YOU'RE MY FAVORITE, was written on the bottom, which you can see in the picture below. I thought to myself what a great touch....

It's those little touches I find so cool at every wedding! It wasn't the warmest of April days, but we (I say "we", but I really need to thank Nicole because SHE was the bravest) still managed to grab a few shots outside. Here are a few....

Big thanks to my friend Roberto for helping me this weekend. Always a good time my friend! Be sure to check his blog for more shots!

Belle Fleur

In the spirit of spring, I wanted to give a quick "shout out" to my friends at Belle Fleur . They were responsible for the awesome decor and flowers at Laura and Gordon's wedding -- check out this shot!

Also, big congrats to them on their debut on the new TLC show "Little Shop of Flowers" which aired on Saturday, March 31st @ 12PM. If you are getting married, they are a must see!!

Speaking of beautiful weddings, I just finished up Ruth and Adams' wedding slideshow. Thanks again guys for such a fun day!

Be sure to check back in the next few days for lots more posts, including an update on my handyman skilz. :)

Baby Linus' room - Day one

I'm not sure if anyone will find this post interesting, but I haven't started a family blog, so I'm going to share this with all of you! With "Linus" expected to arrive in about 6 weeks, Liz has finally worn me down to get moving on the nursery.

If you know me, you know that I a NOT a handyman. However, after many unsuccessful attempts at getting a painter/carpenter/next door neighbor's kid/anyone to do this job, I decided that if this room was going
to be finished before Liz gives birth, I needed to get on the job.

Today's pictures show sanding and prepping - this is no ordinary painting job, of course. The previous owners painted with some kind of "suede" paint which needs to be sanded first. I think. More later - stay tuned