Pittsburgh Wedding, Boudoir, Senior Photographer

2014: Our Accomplishments

I’m not quite sure where 2014 went- last year was a whirlwind for LLP, and it amazes me how much we accomplished during that time! Here are some of our biggest goals that we checked off of our list last year, and we couldn’t have done it without our amazing client base, which continues to grow rapidly in 2015!

2014 Accomplishments

1.) Rebranding
This project was a huge (HUGE) undertaking for us. It started with a new logo and website layout, and included the itty-bitty details such as finding the precise color scheme and fonts that best represent us. Do you believe that it took about 6 months for us to find a logo?! These rebranding details are a very important part of our business because they determine how we position ourselves in the market, and what we want to say to our clients, as examples.
Pittsburgh Wedding Photographers | Lavender Leigh Photography | Blog

2.) Growing Our Client Base
Our bookings in 2014 doubled in count since 2013. That’s right, DOUBLED! Thank you, thank you, thank you to our clients for helping us to accomplish this goal!
Pittsburgh Wedding Photographers | Lavender Leigh Photography | Blog

3.) Wedding Albums
Our wedding clients asked, and we answered! In 2014, we added high-end albums to our portfolio of wedding collection inclusions. These albums feature images that are printed on premium archival pages, and include a lay-flat design, which seamlessly showcases images (especially panoramic views!)
Wedding Photography Album | Pittsburgh Wedding Photographers | Lavender Leigh Photography | Blog

4.) Published Work
We were fortunate to have THREE published works! The first was Jenna and Justin’s wedding, featured on the website Beauty and Lifestyle Bride, another was Maura and Matt’s wedding, featured in The Perfect Wedding Guide magazine, and the last was our inspirational styled Rustic Wedding, featured on the website Fab You Bliss!
Published Work | Pittsburgh Wedding Photographers | Lavender Leigh Photography | Blog

5.) Create Marketing Materials
We love to send our clients pretty things! In 2014, we included Welcome Kits and Thank You Packages for our wedding clients, mini accordion and 5”x7” albums for our boudoir clients, and premium DVD packaging for our engagement/family/children’s portrait sessions.
Wedding Photography Welcome Kits| Thank You Packaging| Pittsburgh Wedding Photographers | Lavender Leigh Photography | Blog

6.) Learn Directly From Top Industry Professionals
In March 2014, we flew to Las Vegas to attend WPPI’s Wedding and Portrait Photographer’s Trade Show. We listened to a multitude of the world’s best photographers speaking at this event, and saw the latest and greatest products offered by top-notch photography vendors such as album and camera equipment companies, to name a few.

Later in March, we attended a phenomenal wedding photography workshop right here in Pittsburgh, hosted by Leavell Photography. The speakers were the amazing husband and wife team, Ted and Rachel, of Linczak Photography. Ted and Rachel’s work is simply stunning, and they have won multiple awards for their creative and vibrant imagery.

As if that wasn’t enough, in May, we also drove out to the Philadelphia area to attend Cliff Mautner’s Lighting Boot Camp! Cliff is recognized as one of the world’s most talented wedding photographers. He has an acute sense for creating stunning images in the toughest of lighting scenarios. Studying under Cliff’s wing was an honor, and the relationships I created with the other talented photographers are invaluable. I still keep in touch with the friends I met at this boot camp!

7.) Increase Boudoir Bookings
We began photographing boudoir sessions in 2012, and just love how much these sessions empower women and make them feel confident and beautiful! Boudoir sessions are a wonderful treat for a girls’ day, a wedding party event, or a gift for that special someone. You will see us blogging more in 2015 about our boudoir sessions!

8.) Create a Beautiful Space to Meet Our Clients
We like to get to know our clients, and make it a point to try and meet every one of our wedding clients in person right off the bat, to ensure we’re a good fit! A great portion of this year was dedicated to creating a Client Meeting Room in the comfort of our own house. I plan to blog about this room in more detail down the road, but here’s a sneak peek picture of this room! And yes, Benny makes a cameo in the below image. He got curious and wandered into the Client Room as I was taking pictures!

9.) Blog More!
We love to talk to our fans, which is why in 2014, we committed to blogging more! Not just about the sessions we photographed, but also about the behind-the-scenes action, Giveaways, and published works, to name a few. We’d love to hear more about what YOU want us to talk about- so please leave any feedback in the blog comments below!

10.) Continue to Provide Excellent Service to Our Clients
Yes, we love to provide our Clients with images that make their hearts sing, but it is also about the day-to-day customer service, like making sure their questions are answered, helping them feel comfortable with their outfit selection, recommending a wedding day photography timeline to ensure they receive all the pictures they want. Our job extends beyond how to operate a camera. We like being there for our clients.

Warm Holiday Wishes to Our Amazing Clients

A simple thank you just doesn’t reflect the gratitude that we feel for having the most amazing clients this year! Not only have they trusted us to capture their most important moments in life, but we’ve also gotten to know these wonderful people, and feel like our lives are fuller in result. Our clients have propelled our growth in 2014, and continue to do so in 2015.

To these amazing people- thank you, thank you, thank you for hand picking us to be a part of your once-in-a-lifetime moments! We are truly blessed that you chose us to capture your lives in a very special way.

We wish you a glittering, magical, and love-filled holiday season!

Love,
Leigh and Barry

Amy + Jason | Beechwood Farms Engagement

Amy, Jason and I met this past summer when they visited from New York to scope out reception venues (and wedding photographers!) I knew that we instantly clicked because, not only were they so much fun to get to know, but they are also such caring and genuine people. Amy travels the world frequently for her job- lucky lady- and I secretly want her to pack me away in her suitcase so I can see the world, too!

Amy and Jason’s session was a beautiful and sunny day, and we took pictures while talking about world travels and our favorite restaurants, to name a few. This couple is so smitten on one another- when they look at each other, their smiles shine so brightly and their emotion is beyond a joy to capture. Take a look at some of the images from their engagement session, and keep scrolling to learn a little bit more about this couple’s story in the Q&A section below!

Q: Tell us how you met!
A: Jay and I were fixed up by mutual friends from work. Although we knew each other a little bit professionally since we both work for IBM (we worked on the same project but in different departments), we did not have any interaction outside of work. Our friends asked me if I would be willing to go on a date with Jay because – evidently, as my friends say – Jay thought I was “cute,” but was a bit intimidated to ask me out. So, I agreed to meet Jay for a Happy Hour at a local restaurant / bar that my friends and I frequented. I knew that the Happy Hour was a fix-up, but Jay did not. Our friends told Jay that the gang was going out for drinks, but they didn’t tell him that I would be there. So Jay was a little taken aback, but everyone had a good time at the Happy Hour. Evidently it was a success, since Jay called me a few days later to go out again.

Q: What was the date of your first date? Tell us about it!
A: Our first date (the Happy Hour) was on April 25, 2012 at a bar & restaurant called Crew in Poughkeepsie, NY. Our friends thought they were being “sly” when they all left the table we were standing around to leave us alone to talk. Again, I knew what was up, but poor Jay didn’t. But he did think it strange when everyone but he and I walked away halfway through their drinks.

Q: How did you know he was the one?
A: Jay is very smart, has a witty and sharp sense of humor, and is a great problem solver. He has very good values and strong ideas about what he thinks is important, and he doesn’t compromise those to “go along with the crowd.” He is comfortable with who he is today, and he’s looking forward to raising a family in the future. What really sealed the deal for me, though, is how supportive Jay was last year during the time I was living in Pittsburgh to take care of my Dad before he died. I lived in Pittsburgh (and worked remotely) from August 2013 to January 2014 to take care of my Dad (who passed away mid-November 2013) and then help take care of Mom and the affairs associated with Dad’s passing. Jay accepted and agreed that I needed to be away from him to care for my Dad. He gave up his own time to drive to Pittsburgh several times to visit me and my family, and he was with me for Dad’s funeral and the following week. He also cared for my house and did repairs there while I was away without my asking, which was incredibly thoughtful. If actions speak louder than words, then Jay’s actions proved that he values family, he has strong character, and he can be supportive during difficult times.

Q: What date was the proposal? Give us the details!
A: April 25, 2014. Jay took me back to “the scene of the crime” (so to speak) and he took me back to Crew for a late dinner after my choir rehearsal was over. I didn’t expect him to propose; I just thought we were going out for a nice dinner since it was the two year anniversary of our first date. We had a nice dinner, and when dessert was brought to our table, the owner of the restaurant put a champagne glass in the middle of the table with a rose in it and the ring in the top. After I said “YES!” all of the patrons in the restaurant applauded and a gentleman at the bar sent over a bottle of champagne. Jay did a great job planning this because he brought the ring over to the restaurant earlier in the day and made the arrangements with the owner so I would be surprised.

Wedding Date: April 25, 2015
Ceremony Location: St. John Capistran Roman Catholic Church
Reception Location: Rolling Hills Country Club

Stephanie + Doug | City Engagement

Do you remember that day last weekend when we had freezing rain and the streets were iced over? Well, that happened to be the day that we took Stephanie and Doug’s engagement pictures around the city! These two were completely fearless as we dodged icy patches on the sidewalk and streets.

The sheer fact that Stephanie and Doug wanted to incorporate their rival football jerseys into their session made me love them from the start! Doug, who is a Brown’s fan, graciously allowed me to take a picture of them in a bar with a terrible towel hanging in the background (thanks, Doug!)

I’m not even sure where our time went during the session- this couple was so much fun to be around that our session seemed to be over almost immediately after it started! Take a look at a few of the great moments we captured!

Dana + Aaron | Montour Country Club Wedding

Dana and Aaron were married at St. Malachy Church on a beautiful fall day, with their reception to follow at Montour Heights Country Club. I just love the story about how this couple became engaged; they both love classic black-and-white movies, so Aaron proposed during the 1940’s classic His Girl Friday. A framed picture of a still from this movie was displayed at their reception. So perfect!

Dana and Aaron’s love for each other is soft and gentle, which makes each laugh, hug, and glance towards each other so special to capture. Take a look at these images to see more of the emotion, detail, and fall colors of their amazing wedding day.