Kim & Chad's Wedding

Last Saturday Kim and Chad tied the knot at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Traveler's Rest, SC. The day was made even more special because so many people came together to give them a wedding to remember. The entire congregation helped with food, decorations, coordinating and even Kim's beautiful up-do was a gift from the hair stylist! That's why we enjoy weddings so much. They bring out the best in people to celebrate love. Kim and Chad are truly blessed to have such wonderful people in both their family and church.

You gotta love natural light!


Apparently, being married almost four years is making us
think alike because we both got some neat reflection shots.


The guys and the 20 ft. cross.


I guess you could say it was a day of reflection for us.
(pun intended)


I just thought this was funny as I walked by.


The ring-bearer playing peek-a-boo during the ceremony.


The sanctuary was so big that we could move around
unnoticed and get great angles like this.

Note for future couples: Consider facing the audience as you light
the Unity candle. That way we can still get shots of it in churches
where moving around isn't an option.


Right before the kiss, Kim and Chad looked at the crowd in anticipation.
Their expressions during this joyous moment are priceless.






This shows the onslaught of bubbles and sugar hearts that guests
pelted them with as they left.
At one point Kim even screamed out, "It feels like rocks!"

Thank you Kim and Chad for giving us time to create beautiful images. And thanks to all the family, friends and members of the church for making this wedding a joy to be a part of.


Emily & Curtis Snyder
Kismet Photography

Anna & Chris' Wedding

Saturday we had a blast at Anna and Chris' wedding. Both the ceremony and reception were held at the beautiful Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC. Have we mentioned how much we love Asheville? Between the surrounding mountains and historic and unique venues, it's a photographer's paradise. The nice thing about the Grove Park is they can do everything from the food to flowers and cakes. The girls all got their hair done at Asheville Oasis which was just a stone throw from the Grove Park.

Anna was breathtaking by the window light.
Not to mention her beautiful eyes.
Doesn't she look like a 1950's Hollywood actress?

The excitement builds as the veil goes on.

We're trying to capture the rings in more unique and interesting ways. For this one, there was dappled light coming through the trees onto a table and it just made a neat spotlight for the rings. If you look closely you can even see a little rainbow sparkle on Anna's bling.

Anna's sister helping her with a "wardrobe malfunction" :)

We were loving the emotions during Anna and Chris' "first look" before the ceremony. And so was the videographer.

The completely adorable flower girl and
ring bearer stole the show as usual.

We just love it when people "go vertical" with their
point and shoot cameras.

Free Photography Tip: Don't be afraid to rotate your camera to get a better crop or angle. Especially when shooting two or three people standing together, "go vertical" and get tighter so you don't have tons of empty space on the sides.

They look so happy together!

The setting sun makes for such amazing light
and her veil caught the breeze just right.

Charge!
Did we mention how much we love sunset pictures?

Now this is how you end a "First Dance"!

The emotions were high between Anna and her twin sister
as their proud papa looks on.

Chris' mom was all smiles during the mother-son dance.
It's moments like these that make what we do so meaningful.
We love our "jobs".

Jumping Jukebox did a great job of keeping
the dance floor ...well, jumping.
Looks like it was the ladies' turn to lead in the dance.

Another interesting angle on the rings.
No, we're not dwarves but the groom was 6'5".

A long kiss good night.

Anna & Chris,

We loved that you were so comfortable in front of the camera. It allowed us to really capture the emotions of your day. Thank you for sharing it with us. Have a wonderful and relaxing time on your honeymoon.


Emily & Curtis Snyder
Kismet Photography

Oscar Night America Gallery Online

For all of you eager Oscar Night attendees, the gallery is now online. You can get to it by going to our website www.kismetphotography.net and clicking on "Proofs". Then click on the "JLG's Oscar Night America" link.

Please note that 10% of the proceeds from all print sales will be donated to the Junior League of Greenville. Thank you in advance for your contribution to a wonderful organization.

"Best Dressed" Contest

Joan Rivers, eat your heart out! Kismet Photography is hosting our own "Best Dressed" contest. Follow the instructions above to view the pictures from the Oscar Night America event and decide who you think is worthy of the title "Best Dressed". Place your vote by leaving a comment at the bottom of the this post. In your comment, please give us the image # and describe what the person is wearing. You can even vote for yourself, we won't tell anyone ;) Please be fair and only vote once.

The person with the most votes by March 10th will win a Free 5x7 print of their choice, not to mention bragging rights! Be sure to check the blog after March 10th to see if you're the big winner.

Curtis & Emily Snyder
Kismet Photography

We've had a very busy weekend. The Wedding Festival on Saturday was a huge success and we enjoyed meeting and talking with so many brides and grooms. Thank you to all of you who took the time to stop by our booth and chat with us. Since the expo we've been swamped with calls and emails and 2007 is filling up quickly. If you are interested in having us photograph your wedding, we highly recommend contacting us as soon as possible.

On Sunday, Kismet Photography was invited to photograph the Oscars! No, we weren't hanging with the stars, but we did see some fabulous gowns. Right here in Upstate, SC the Junior League of Greenville hosted their annual "Oscar Night America" fund-raiser to support local charities. This was our second year photographing the event and taking portraits of everyone decked out in their Oscar-worthy attire.

For all of you itching to see pictures from last night, they will be up by tomorrow afternoon. Just a reminder, if you would like to order any prints, 10% of all proceeds will be donated to the Junior League of Greenville.

The "Red Carpet" entrance to the Hilton.

The awesome ice sculpture by Ice Magic.

Our vote for "Best Dressed" (and "Most Fun").

Curtis & Emily Snyder
Kismet Photography

Wedding Festival & "Lost" Last Words

We are gearing up for the biggest, baddest Wedding Festival of the year this Saturday. We'll be there looking spiffy and ready to meet all of your smiling faces and answer all your questions. The Asheville and Greenville shows in January were so much fun and have kept us busy ever since. We look forward to the same this Saturday at the Palmetto Expo Center...or is that the Carolina First Center.

On a more grave note, the TV show "Lost" has officially lost us as viewers. We don't watch a lot of TV but there are a couple shows we watch religiously. Lost was one of those, at least until last night's episode. After pretty much wasting 45 minutes watching it, we're throwing in the towel and assuming our many questions will never be answered.

We got into the show after the first season DVD came out and we watched the whole thing in a few days. Then season two had some great moments but was getting a little sidetracked. Then came season three. What can we say...it sucks! They have been introducing so many new characters (which we could care less about) and totally avoiding all the questions that got us hooked back in season one. According to last weeks rating, we are not the only ones that feel this way. If the writers don't pony up some answers soon, this season's finale could wind up the series finale. So if you are one of the brave souls that continue to watch it, let us know if anything actually interesting happens.


Curtis & Emily Snyder
Kismet Photography

Anna & Chris' Engagement Portraits

Yesterday we met Anna and Chris in Asheville, NC for their engagement session and holy cow it was freezing. They had no choice but to snuggle close most of the time to stay warm. We started off at a playground so they could tap into their inner-child and relax after a hectic move.





As the sun began to set, we headed to the Grove Park Inn to warm up and get right to the romantical stuff. You can see from the icicles on the waterfall that it was really cold. But Anna and Chris were troopers and even took off their jackets for a few shots. Brave souls.








By the end of the night we couldn't feel our fingers but it was so worth it. We had a great time getting to know you both and we can't wait for your beautiful Grove Park wedding.


P.S. Thanks again for the hot chocolate.


Curtis & Emily
Kismet Photography

A portrait of us

Last month our friend Kathrine came to visit us all the way from Denmark. She is going to school for theatre costume design but is amazing at all things artistic. We have always known she was super talented but we were blown away when we received this "Kathrine original" in the mail yesterday.



We think it's an uncanny likeness. What do you think? She pretty much drew this from memory to give you an idea of how good she is. And in case you couldn't tell, we're towering over Table Rock Mountain (one of the reasons we moved here). We hiked it during her visit and she left us in the dust the whole time. I guess we need to get out from behind these computers and hike more!


Curtis & Emily Snyder
Kismet Photography

We've been FRAMED!

Yeah, we know it's lame but how else do we introduce the fact that we now offer custom framing. It's part of our effort to be a full-service photography studio and provide another valuable service. We've even decked out a wall in our studio with over 40 frame samples. So now when you purchase a beautiful portrait to display in your home, you won't have to drive around town to find the perfect frame.



While taking pictures of the new frame wall, we finally got around to taking some of the rest of the studio.

This is where the magic happens.


The view from the couches. This is also the display we used at the January Expos. It's a good thing our studio has a high ceiling.



Curtis & Emily Snyder
Kismet Photography

Don't let this happen to you!

Being behind the scenes at a wedding can prove to be very interesting, but thankfully we've never seen anything like this. This video is a prime example of why we suggest hair and make-up trials before the big day. That way, you can make sure it's going to look just the way you want. Of course, a bridal portrait session is the perfect opportunity to do that, but we digress.

Feel free to skip the first minute and a half, but once the bride enters the room the tragedy begins.




Curtis & Emily Snyder
Kismet Photography

Wedding Festival Fever!

Wow, where has the time gone? We have been so busy this past month that it's hard to believe February is almost here. Wasn't it just New Year's?

We have been having a blast though. The Wedding Festivals at the Greenville Hyatt and Asheville Civic Center were a lot of fun and we enjoyed meeting and talking to hundreds of brides and grooms. Our new booth design was an Emily and Curtis original that we built ourselves. We must have done something right because since the Expos we have been meeting with couples left and right and our year is booking up quickly.

If you have never been to a Wedding Festival before, you should definitely check it out (if you are planning a wedding of course). They are our main form of advertisement and we love them. Its great for the couples as well since they get to see samples of our work and get to know us a little better before they even decide to come by our studio. And did we mention free cake and gourmet food!

We will also be set up at the Wedding Festival on February 24th at the Palmetto Expo Center. Be There, BE THERE, BE THERE! It is the biggest show of the year so feel free to come by and check us out if you haven't already. You can even visit the 200 other exhibitors if you want. ;)

A quick but sincere Thank You to all the couples who have chosen us to be a part of their wedding. We are honored and excited to work with all of you.


Curtis & Emily Snyder
Kismet Photography