Thanks for stopping by to browse around. Here is where you can find all of the up to date information about Michelle Lindsay Photography! You get first dibs on the newest images, hints about upcoming, hot products, and even get a chance to gather ideas for your own wedding. You may even learn a bit about my personal life in the process!
Basically, it's a place to celebrate love, life, laughs and photographs!
So ENJOY and please feel free to leave me comments...I love hearing from my readers. And for all of you out there that have told me that you unofficially stalk me, you can now officially stalk me by subscribing to the blog!
I like black and white photography, but I LOVE bright, bold, beautiful colors even more. I just finished up an album layout for one of my favorite fall weddings, Ashley and Dusty at Meadowlark Gardens. I realized that I never got around to posting their wedding on my blog, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to share their wedding day by showing you a few of the layouts I created for them that will in a few short weeks grace the pages of their beautiful Designer Flush Mount album.
When Ashley and I sat down to discuss the direction of her album layout, we were both on the same page - we wanted to bring out the colors of the day and infuse them into the design. I couldn’t be happier with how some of the spreads turned out and cannot wait to see the final product in person….
Cheers!
(this first image actually, sadly enough, did not make it into their final album, but it was one of my favorites from the day so I wanted to share it anyways!)
This is the start of the album - I’m not sharing all the spreads. Just a few of my favorites!
If you are reading this, chances are you may have tried to hop onto my website or blog one or two times this past week, only to have it be a big fat failure. On Saturday evening, my hosting company experienced severe issues with their Servers, including the one where my website and blog are hosted. After days of fixing the issue, they were able to finally restore everything.
It’s amazing how lost we feel when we get disconnected from the world and in a way, it’s sort of terrifying how much we rely on the web and our computers.
Thank you for your patience while this issue was being fixed. I won’t waste anymore of your time. Go enjoy the photos!!!!
and P.S. my email was down for about two days. I think everything ended up forwarding, but if you send me an email or new client inquiry and I have not yet responded, please resend it. Thank you.
This Valentine’s Day was filled with passion. Lots and lots of passion for everything I love most in life.
Photography. People. Laughter. Beauty. Art.
Sarah approached me a few months back about arranging to do some portraits for her non-profit brand. She was very specific about what she was looking for and we chatted and came up with different concepts and approaches. In person, Sarah is fun, sassy, spunky, and energetic, but in front of the camera, she has this timeless style and quiet beauty that is a throwback to the Golden Hollywood era of Grace Kelley and Rita Hayworth. She also has insanely beautiful blue eyes that totally captivate you (and the camera). I spent the most amazing day getting to know her and photographing her. Meeting people like Sarah is just as much a passion for me as the photography itself. I love hearing about the lives and stories of my clients and it has become something I look forward to the most when I go on a shoot. Since it was Valentine’s Day, Sarah and I exchanged our worst date stories ever…and while I’m not going to share them with everyone, I’ll just say that hers was GOOD. Really really good. We laughed. A lot.
I can’t think of a better way to have spent my Valentine’s Day.
February 17, 2010 - 12:17 pmastrid - wow these are gorgeous!!
February 17, 2010 - 1:04 pmKim - WHOOOEEEE!! these are amazing, Michelle!
February 17, 2010 - 1:14 pmSharon - Holy amazing! these are beautiful!!! ;)
February 18, 2010 - 7:06 pmChris Rioux - Michelle, you are so talented, so gifted, you and your work truly inspire me. Keep it up, Girl! :)
February 26, 2010 - 8:33 pmLelia - Michelle, these portraits are gorgeous! You do the most incredible work.
March 3, 2010 - 8:11 pmSarah Smith - Oh, Michelle, I couldn't think of a better way to spend my Valentine's Day either! It was so much fun to work with you and to meet you, sincerely. Thank you for taking all the time and attention you did to make the experience fun, easy, and, most of all, to make me look so lovely in these pictures. You are supremely talented; and I look forward to working with you again in the future and to recommending your work from the tree tops! And, heck, let's just hang out :)
I was grew up with Wisconsin winters, so for me to claim that the DC Blizzard of 2010 was INSANE, that’s saying a lot. 5 days. Over 4 ft of snow. Pure Craziness. I don’t think I’ve ever seen snow fall as fast and as hard as it did here on Wednesday. I actually refused to leave the warm confines of my cozy condo on Wednesday, but I did venture out during Part 1 of the storm of Saturday and captured some of these shots near the GW Parkway. I actually wanted to attempt to make it onto the path, however when all I saw were ski markings, I chickened out. Oh well!!!
February 11, 2010 - 10:48 pmSharon - love it.. i know you guys are not :) stay warm and dry.. looks like good old Atlanta is going to get some snow soon too!! Have a great weekend! S
February 14, 2010 - 7:18 amJulie - Michelle - these are gorgeous! I was hoping you would post some snow pictures :-) Hope you are all dug out by now!
February 14, 2010 - 9:57 ammeg mahoney - i think it is ironic that you moved from Boston to DC, only to get way more snow there than we have had here!!
glad to see you are doing so well in DC!! although i know everyone knew that you would!
It was an emotional day for everyone. After many heartfelt toasts and speeches from friends and family, Peter and Katie stood up in front of their 300 guests and told one another why they had married each other. There were lots of little reasons Peter gave - Katie’s kindness, intelligence, smile and warmth. But my favorite was the reason Katie gave. She stood up, looked at Peter (at this point crying pretty hard) and simply said “I love you so much.” Simple. Elegant. To the point.
Peter and Katie were married on Sunday, January 31st. The ceremony was traditional Coptic Orthodox, which is very different from any other wedding ceremony I know of. It’s fascinating and so colorful and joyous and I love photographing these ceremonies. Then Peter, Katie and the bridal party went to the Kennedy Center for photos before heading over to the Capital Hilton for their ballroom reception.
Enjoy!
The flower girl was such a little ham in front of the camera. She followed me around all morning long.
Katie’s soon to be sister in law looking on…
In traditional Coptic Orthodox wedding ceremonies, the bride and groom are actually crowned, symbolizing that they are becoming rulers of their own “kingdom,” i.e. their new home together.
This next one was captured by my associate Benjamin Burrows, who I was SO lucky to have come all the way from Boston to photograph this wedding with me.
Married!
So So Sooooooo Sweet! I love this one.
Their first dance was done to this amazing song called “Lovely Tonight” that was written and recorded by one of their friends.
February 8, 2010 - 1:51 pmKim - holy WOW, woman! these are some seriously gorgeous shots!!! LOVELY!!
February 8, 2010 - 4:37 pmmichellelind - yay! I'm so glad you like them Kim! Thank you!!!
February 8, 2010 - 5:48 pmKelsey - I think this may be my favorite work of yours ever! Way to start the year off with a bang, girl! Gorgeous!
February 8, 2010 - 6:57 pmChris - Stunning, simply Beautiful! Another grand slam, Michelle!
February 8, 2010 - 8:01 pmmichellelind - You guys are way too sweet...I think was I was extra motivated from Imaging USA. Thanks for all the words of encouragement.
February 11, 2010 - 6:32 pmNadia Ishak - These are BEAUTIFUL!!!! I love how beautifully you captured the coptic orthodox ceremony especially! I have never seen it captured like this!! Simply, amazing.
For those of you who don’t know, my background and degree was actually in Graphic Design. It’s sort of funny because I was looking through some old scrapbooks the other day and found an interview I’d done for a scholarship award and in it, I was asked what I wanted to do after college. My response was own a advertising agency. Ha! Well, at least I was right about wanting to be the boss, but truth be told, I couldn’t be happier with how everything serendipitously turned out for my career path.
I still love designing and I use that skill set almost on a daily basis. I design almost all of my own marketing materials and packaging concepts, but the one area I love to utilize it most is in album design.
There are a lot of album designing companies out there - you send them your wedding images and a few days later you have a pretty descent layout. Simple and easy, but it just doesn’t feed that crazy, creative addiction I have, so I’ve opted to keep all my album designing in-house. Each layout is one-of-a-kind and best yet, it’s my chance to tell the story of the couple’s wedding day.
For me, good album design is easy on the eyes, simplistic and most of all timeless. But GREAT album design…well it’s on a whole other level because it’s the art of crafting a story through imagery. It’s the type of layout that pulls you back to a particular place and time and brings up emotions and memories. Simply put, it has the ability to move people.
I recently delivered Tina and Elvis’s Wedding Album and I was so happy with how it came out. In fact, I’m making a sample for my studio! I thought I’d share some photos of the album, as well as some of the page layouts.
Cheers! (and here’s hoping the snow holds off for my wedding on Sunday!)
January 29, 2010 - 8:09 pmSharon - nice. clean. creative. simplistic. and super strong. all the key aspects of a great album design! good stuff.. so, a question for you Miss Michelle. Do you put your logo and contact info at the end of you books.. like say on the last page. I used to and now I am going back and forth about it.. just a little question if you have a sec! great stuff love :) S.
January 30, 2010 - 1:47 pmKate Duval - Michelle! This is gorgeous...your images and your design and the couple! So awesome, love it!
February 8, 2010 - 8:30 amTracy - Awesome pictures and a beautiful album!
Bridal Shows. If you are a bride reading this, you’re probably intrigued. Free cake, lots of vendors in one place, deals and discounts. All good, right?
If you’re a photographer, you’re probably thinking, “yuck! I’m way too cool for bridal shows.”
I used to be one of those photographers. I thought that everyone who went to a bridal show was only looking for the free cake and deals/discounts. Right? WRONG. Last year, I decided to move my business from Boston to the DC metro area. Whereas in Boston you couldn’t swing a bouquet without a bride knowing who I was, I had absolutely zero word of mouth in DC. No one knew I even existed. So I thought about it and I weighed my options. I could wallow in pity, crying about the fact that I had no business OR I could get out there and meet brides face to face.
I did my first bridal show last April and was pleasantly surprised by the brides stopping by my booth. They were actually interested in my work! They didn’t care that I wasn’t handing out coupons or that I didn’t have a giveaway. The first words out of their mouths weren’t “how much do you charge?” They really wanted to talk to me and find out what I could bring to the most special day of their entire lives. As a bonus, I got to showcase my personality as much as I did my photography, which as I’ll always say time and time again is JUST AS IMPORTANT as how spectacular your photographs are. If the couple isn’t comfortable around their photographer, it’s going to show in the photos.
The reason I’m sharing this is because all too often I hear photographers snub bridal shows. I’ve even heard photographers berate one another for participating in them. It’s ridiculous and I wanted to share my experience with shows to give another perspective out there to photographers considering it. Bridal shows CAN work for you if approach them with the right attitude. Yes, you will encounter the uber budget bride who is looking for the best deal, but you’ll also talk to many brides who have made photography their number one wedding priority (and budgetary expensive after the venue and food/drink). They are genuinely interested in finding the right photographer for their day.
p.s. Some of my favorite clients found me at a bridal show…
Here’s my 2010 booth display from Sunday’s Washington Bridal show - a very special thanks to my sister who is amazing and spent her Sunday morning helping me set up. And of course, THANK YOU TO ALL THE BRIDES WHO STOPPED BY TO SAY HELLO! I enjoyed meeting and chatting with each and every one of you. I have about 5 spots left in my 2010 wedding season so if you are interested, email me now to schedule a consult.
In a few weeks, I’m launching a brand new Boudoir brand for my company. I am SO excited about it and I did a mini debut at the bridal show. If you didn’t attend the show but are interested in learning more about boudoir, email me and I’ll send you a gift towards a boudoir package!!!
January 28, 2010 - 11:08 amSharon - Oh Michelle! This looks amazing! You guys did such a great job. I LOVE the boudoir book. It looks really good on the outside and I am intrigued to see what the inside looks like :) Your work is amazing and I am so glad you wrote this blog. Bowie and I are trying so hard to do a show in Atlanta towards the end of the season! So, I am totally going to see you at the end of April. I would love for you to be apart of the shoot, and hope so badly that you and everyone else will be there! As we get closer I am going to give exact dates, but it looks like Sunday April 25th we may be in your area! Talk to you soon.
January 30, 2010 - 3:06 amKim - ooh lovely lovely!! so glad you posted!
One of my most dreaded things is sorting through all of the images I’ve taken in a year and trying to pick my favorites. It’s really hard! Especially because I see a photo and immediately have an emotional connotation associated with it and the couple in it. It’s almost like I’m a biased party. Last week I started this process because I wanted to make a video slideshow highlighting some of my favorite images. I loved how it came out and I debuted this at the Bethesda Bridal Show this past Sunday. Take a look and tell me what you think!
(to play, you need to hit the play arrow on the bottom left hand corner of the frame…make sure your volume is turned up!)
Today started off, well, not so great. I had a meeting with my accountant (never a bowl of rainbows), followed by a 2 hour phone call with my merchant services (I HATE them!), which afterwards, I then proceeded to lock myself out of my condo while answering the door for the UPS guy (seriously?!?)
BUT, as they always say, there is a silver lining. Once Steve, my handy-dandy maintenance man let me back into my condo, I noticed a lovely email waiting for me in my inbox. Wedding Wire has just announced their 2010 Bride’s Choice Awards™ , which recognizes excellence in quality and service within the wedding industry and I’m so excited to say that I was selected as among the top five percent of all vendors in the WeddingWire community, which includes over 100,000 wedding professionals across the US and Canada.
AWESOME!
If you are newly engaged and looking for a great resource for vendors, I highly recommend Wedding Wire - it is the perfect place to read real reviews about wedding professionals from real brides. You can visit my Wedding Wire page here.
Thank you to all of my super star clients who took the time out of their hectic lives to write a review for me and share their experience. Not only does it mean a lot to me, but it helps other brides know what they can expect when working with Michelle Lindsay Photography.
January 20, 2010 - 7:56 amMKD Photography - Congrats Michelle! We made it for the second year this year as well! So cool! *If you are a bride and you're reading this, Michelle is an amazing photographer and you should hire her for your wedding RIGHT NOW! No, really, I mean it!* -Mike
January 20, 2010 - 1:29 pmBrian - Congratulations, so very happy to hear you are being recognized for the amazing work you do!
January 21, 2010 - 9:23 amBeatrice de Guigne - Congrats! Your work is so beautiful!
Boudoir sometimes gets a bad rap, but I think it is a fantastic way to celebrate how strong, sexy and confident a woman is. I love photographing them and every client who has ever taken the plunge and done the session says that they are ecstatic they did it. One client wrote me after her session and said, ” I had soooo much fun this weekend and I wanted to thank you again. I really haven’t ever felt so beautiful.”
Now, I’m not really the biggest fan of Valentine’s Day - I will admit it. I guess I’ve never really understood why we need one particular day out of the year to tell our loved ones how special they are to us - shouldn’t we be doing that every day of the year??? That being said, it’s hard to ignore the holiday, especially when your job involves documenting love stories, so this year, I decided I wanted to do something special to help give women out there a more unique gift idea, as well as the opportunity to try something new and amazing for themselves.
For Valentine’s Day, I will be offering my most popular boudoir package at a GREAT discount. If you are interested, please make sure to contact me prior to January 18th to schedule your session. The session can take place wherever you’d like. One of my favorite locales is the Hotel Monaco - I can also come directly to your home or apartment (you’d be surprised what we can do with a small space!!!)
In other news, I am excited to be attending Imaging USA this upcoming week. 4 whole days spent with inspiring photographers, previewing brand new products and technology, and in general, just an all out good time! We’ll be kicking it off Nashville style starting tomorrow, which coincidentally also happens to be my birthday. Anyone wanna guess how old I am?!????
January 12, 2010 - 9:49 amKate O'Toole - I did my session last year right around this time and I couldn't be happier. I went into it thinking it was a gift for my husband but in turn it was such a gift to myself. I have never felt so beautiful. I highly recommend this to anyone!
January 12, 2010 - 9:51 amKate - I did this session about a year ago at the Hotel Monaco. I went into it thinking it was a gift for my husband, something special for him, but after it was over I think it was just as much a gift to myself. I have never felt so liberated and beautiful. I highly recommend this to anyone!
by michellelind
5 comments
add a comment link to this post email a friend