Thip and Suli are a great couple -- fun, energetic and more than good sports about posing for an outdoor engagement photo session on a chilly October evening in Elgin. But they more than warmed up to the task and got some great photos out of the (or)deal. 
Thip and Suli have known each other for 13 years, since they were high school classmates and will tie the knot next September. 
These pictures were taken as part of an engagement photo package - the blings shots. If the bride- and groom-to-be picked out the ring together, they've spent a lot of time looking through loupes, comparing and evaluating stones. And if the photographer wants to impress the future bride, it behooves him or her to capture what the bride remembers seeing up close at the jewelers.
That means a lot of fussing with lighting, adjusting, shooting and adjusting some more are in order until things are about as perfect as one can get. Then there's being playful and creative to come up with settings that are meaningful to the bride and her friends and family. Because more than likely, those pictures will wind up on Facebook or MySpace and become a hot topic of conversation among the bride's circle of friends in the days ahead.
Before this shoot, I talked with the bride-to-be to see if she had seen other ring photos that she liked. I also discussed some possibilities that I had in mind. Armed with her feedback, I headed to the studio and shot several settings.
Kara and Eric will be getting married next summer and asked me to do some quick engagement portraits for them. This was a simple portrait setup in the living room at Kara’s house. I brought a number of plain and patterned sheets of background papers and Kara chose … white. The lighting was supplied by a single strobe bounced off the ceiling … the bride - and groom-to-be held small reflectors on their laps while seated on an ottoman. 
The chemistry between Kara and Eric made the session a breeze. I suggested some poses, then let them get creative and have some fun. What you see is who they are.
Bling shot. 
Messing around. 
They did their thing, I just kept snapping.
A session similar to Kara and Eric’s starts at $150, which includes an hour of shooting time and delivery of a CD of images. Affordable high-quality print packages are also available. Leave a comment or drop me an email: james[at]jamesjordanphoto[dot]com. 
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