Archive for November, 2009
remember theresa & bob? perhaps you remember the bertoia chairs from their engagement session at millenium park? 
Fast forward a few months, and they send me their wedding invitation – it is a passport! This is so fitting for a multicultural couple that clearly loves to travel. I remember immediately taking snapshots of the invite (below) with my iphone and sending it to a few of my creative friends. Theresa is an architect and with a design background like that, she put her fiance to work, and together made the coolest wedding invitation I have ever seen. During their wedding, guests were encouraged to bring their own passports and get stamped with a rubber stamp from various tables as a way to meet and mingle with other friends and family. Being selected as their Chicago wedding photographer was such a treat since I got to see so many cool, creative elements and details on their wedding day.
theresa got ready with her bridesmaids at her grandmother’s house. 
theresa’s grandmother had a bunch of cool vintage furniture that i was in love with, including this fun velvet chair.
her flower girl gave her a big hug as they were getting ready.
at st. giles church the ring bearer and flower girl walked down the aisle flawlessly. no tantrums, no dropping stuff, it was perfection! on a side note they call the bride theresa tee tee! its so cute to hear them squeal tee tee!!!
the groom watched as his bride made her entrance
the mother of the bride listened to the pastor’s comments about marriage. he created a dialog with friends and family which everyone seemed to enjoy.
at theresa and bob’s wedding, they had placecards on a table that was covered in coins from various currencies to go with their passport travel themed wedding.
in chinese tradition, they kept with the theme of luck, and provided each guest with an opportunity to win instantly. i love their choice of blue. i shot another multicultural chinese american wedding (this time in Boston) that also chose blue as their wedding color over the summer.
here is one of the passports that had gotten stamped as this guest visited other tables
the maid of honor did a toast
and the bride and groom were laughing quite a bit at some of the stories that were told
nice big cake and a nice big kiss
it was pretty easy to catch candid moments at this wedding, lots of laughter all night
here is a photo from the first dance
in addition to wearing a white dress, theresa changed into a blue cheongsam / qi pao chinese wedding dress that was originally the mother of the groom’s
she also changed into a red qi pao wedding dress as well
theresa has compiled a list of her wedding planning details below so that you can see all her Chicago wedding vendors:
VENUE River Forest Country Club 15W468 Grand Pl. Elmhurst, IL 60126 (630) 279-5444
CEREMONY St. Giles Catholic Catholic Church 1025 Columbian Avenue, Oak Park, Illinois 60302. Phone, 708-383-3430
CANTOR Bride’s Sister-In-Law, Maria Hercik
CELEBRANT Father Michael Gabriel, currently located at St. Josaphat Parish in Lincoln Park at 2311 N Southport Ave, Chicago
PHOTOGRAPHER Chicago Weding Photographer eather Parker Photography
DJ Brett Anderson with SoundQ Productions
FLOWERS The Elite Flower (wholesaler for Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Jewel; arrangements put together by a friend
CAKE (Rhino & Ela’s) Pastryhouse 7545 W Montrose Ave, Norridge, IL 60706
DRESS (BRIDE) White One (one of the Pronovias lines)
DRESS (BRIDESMAIDS) Mori Lee (Purchased at House of Brides – Schaumburg)
DRESS (FLOWER GIRL) David’s Bridal
FAVORS Instant scratch-off lottery tickets
HAIR STYLIST Erika Romero (630)805-1272
INVITATIONS Carlson Craft – Black Tie Duo
PASSPORT INVITATIONS Design & assembly by the Bride & Groom: Combination of Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Powerpoint, QuarkXPress (The materials for the covers were purchased online, at Michael’s Arts & Crafts & Target)
JEWELERS Bride’s engagement ring: Dimend SCAASI 5 South Wabash Avenue 17th Floor, Chicago, IL 60603 (312) 857-1700
Bride’s wedding band: Golden Crown Jewelers 1 N Wabash Ave Chicago, IL 60602 (312) 782-8633
Groom’s wedding band: COSTCO
LIMO Elite Chicago Limo 400 E. Randolph St. Chicago, IL 60601 (312) 201-1055
MAKEUP ARTIST Beth Follert
NIGHT OWL SNACK Home Run Inn Pizza
SLIDESHOW Bride’s brother, using Adobe Premier Pro
TABLE ACTIVITY Rubber stamps: Michael’s, Stamp pads: Oriental Trading Company
TUXEDO (GROOM) Armani Formal Wear at Neiman Marcus
TUXEDO (GROOMSMEN) Mens Wearhouse
Tags: chengsam, cheongsam, chicago wedding, chinese wedding, chinese wedding dress, chinese wedding gown, chongsam, qi pao, qipao
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what i love about creating captivating imagery for the hospitality, resort & architecture industries, is that it often allows a photographer to travel. most recently, i had the opportunity to photograph for moon dance resorts at their moon dance cliffs hotel location in negril, jamaica. before the shoot, i consulted a lot with my cousin keshara who is a production manager for GE Projects. she had previously done a lot of international resort photography with barbara kraft, one of the leading hospitality photographers, having work featured in architectural digest and other notable publications. i was excited to head down to jamaica.
after a nearly a full day of travel, i was met by a polite, informative and very friendly driver and we embarked on long drive (no freeways) from montego bay to negril, winding along the coast, and weaving through colorful villages. i arrived at the resort just as the sun was going down. i had just enough energy in me to get a brief tour of the grounds before hitting the hay. around 5am i got my canon and hasselblad cameras ready and ran around resort snapping some test shots under the early morning light. i shot all day and by sundown, i was tired enough to go to bed early. the second day had the most favorable skies. while shooting at moon dance cliffs and villas, i experienced the most exceptional 5-star service and met some of the nicest people i have ever met in my life. in the upcoming weeks, i aim to share more images from jamaica, including a wedding i photographed at moon dance villas. below are some examples of luxury resort architectural photography.
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Tags: architectural photographer, architectural photography, architecture, coastal, destination, destination wedding hotel, destination wedding location, destination wedding resort, gallery, heather, heather parker, heatherparker.com, hotel, hotel photographer, hotel photography, luxury resort, parker, photographer, photography, photos, resort, resort photographer, resort photography
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i’m back from my shoots in jamaica. i photographed a new luxury resort, a wedding at another resort, and spent time in a village and listened to stories from the residents and even photographed a three week old baby. i will have many photos to share soon. i am excited to go through the refreshing architectural photography and amazing destination wedding. i am sending dozens of portraits to my new friends back in jamaica.
please click the image below to learn more about my plans to help jamaicans on an individual and broader level.
Posted in Photography Related |
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i was in duxbury, ma this weekend photographing a wedding and snapped this photo with my iPhone. i was talking to someone on the train about photography, and they asked what other kinds of photography other than weddings i shoot and i told them that my blog has become sort of a teaser section for wedding clients but that i would try to remember to post other types of shoots on here and passed them one of my cards. well, here are a few photos of some other projects that i should share. i will try to describe a bit of it.
first and foremost, though a lot of my shoots are local, many of them take me to interesting places, even allowing me to sit in the front sea of a cessna airplane!
the above architectural photography is of a home on nantucket island. for those who don’t know, nantucket island is east of the popular tourist destination of martha’s vineyard. on martha’s vineyard, i photographed this nice queen anne style summer cottage (below), which is owned by a software publisher by the name of peter norton, who created norton utilities and norton anti-virus.
the above house has been published in a regional annual magazine issue by cape cod life publications. although i photograph a lot of historic preservation and restoration architectural photography, i also photograph modern architecture. massachusetts institute of technology commissioned steven holl architects to design a residence hall at the university. simmons hall as it is called, resembles an abstract sponge. i heard first hand that due to the cement and steel used throughout the building, mobile phone reception is virtually impossible. while many people hate it’s design, i would like to think equally as many people enjoy it. i personally think its at least a visually striking building if nothing else. the image below of the building was used by the Kunstakademiets Arkitektskole in a publication.
i also went to barcelona to photograph the pavilion by mies van der rohe. it has an interesting story behind it and should really be called the german pavilion in barcelona.
as you can see from the above images, i get to see a lot of nice buildings, homes, and other structures. though new buildings and restored homes that are often considered masterpieces are pleasant to look at, i find myself wanting to photograph the not-so-beautiful. here is a photo of one of the many post-katrina abandoned homes in new orleans, louisiana.
as you can see, photography takes me many places. after tomorrow, i head to jamaica for more photo shoots and i will share photos when i get back to reality…
Tags: architectural photography, architecture, chicago, coastal, commercial architectural photographer, cottages, destination photographer, heather parker, hotel photographer, institutional architetural photographer, island, luxury resort photographer, martha's vineyard, modern, mv, nantucket, new orleans, neworleans, NOLA, photo shoot, photographer, photoshoot, residential archecture, resort photographer, summer cottages
Posted in architecture, Photography Related |
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tonight after the engagement shoot, i photographed a friend’s newborn baby. i have photographed evelyn, ruby, charlotte, (one with my dog), octavio, luann & family (who came from tennessee to the atlantic ocean), julian, and even did product photography for a celebrity baby bag company. i think that’s all i’ve shot for babies and families, unless i dig through the film archives… tonight’s baby shoot i did a bit more willingly. the story goes something like this: some babies happen nine months after an accident, but this particular baby arrived immediately after an accident. this makes a lot more sense if you read the calvin bedell story on the 2strokebuzz website so when i heard that my friend’s “wife, child, and unborn son were in a car accident,” i new as a gift to them, i wanted to take some photos of their newly expanded family.
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Tags: 2 stroke buzz, 2strokebuzz, 2strokebuzz.com, baby, infant, newborn, photos, story, two stroke buzz
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i love the amazing complimentary colors of the eerily turquoise river and the bright orange leaves that still seem to be hanging on! this afternoon, mari and mark (M&M get it?) had their engagement shoot. they might have a destination wedding since often they are cheaper than having a downtown wedding. i have been fortunate to have photographed brides in new orleans, california, new england and new york city and would love more opportunities as a destination wedding photographer! the turquoise color of the river and lake remind me of the waters around the florida keys and those that you see in photos of popular destinations such as puerto rico, aruba, turks & caicos, and bermuda. i will soon have photos to post of the caribbean. patience my friends!
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rebecca and chris contacted me after their milwaukee wiscosin wedding to have some more photos taken. rebecca wanted to rock the dress one more time. yes it was cold but under her gown, she wore nylons, runing shorts, and wore a stick-on heating pad to stay warm. the heating pads were $8 for a multi-pack. i brought my hasselblad and shot some film which i am very excited about, and though its not the instant gratification available with digital photography, medium format film is well worth the wait!
if you would like to sign up for a trash the dress photo session, i am offering a discount to any bride who makes a donation to brides against breast cancer. information on donating your wedding gown can be found here. please contact me for more information.
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Tags: chicago wedding photographer, fashion, heather parker, heatherparker.com, rock the dress chicago, trash the dress chicago, ttd chicago
Posted in weddings |
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Tags: chicago, chicago wedding photographer, chicago wedding photography, couple, desi, engagement, engagement shoot, heather parker, heatherparker.com, illinois, indian engagement, indian wedding photographer, indian wedding photography chicago, mandap, photographer, photography, photos, sangeet, wedding photographer, weddings
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people often speak of having a storybook wedding. well, this wedding comes literally straight from teh storybooks of alice in wonderland. shortly after photographing sam & hezzie’s wedding at gallery 1028, i was hired for sam’s sister liza’s wedding. i am picky when it comes to photographing on holidays, so if i was going to forfeit halloween, it had to be for a fun shoot. they convinced me right away when i was informed that the wedding was going to be themed as a mad hatter tea party. i met liza at her brother’s wedding, and at the time, i had no idea i would get to work with her again. liza plays by her own rules, she is an offbeat bride. heck she even made her own blue wedding dress! with the help of her mother deborah who owns norton’s usa (a unique all-american general store), the wedding would go down in the books as being one of the most memorable for everyone in attendance. they merged a mad hatter tea party theme with elements of autumn. the wedding was held at home, in a strikingly beautiful, yet mysterious house. during the ceremony, the bride emerged from a secret bookcase door, surprising guests. the groom, richard, is from manchester, uk.
it was a real pleasure photographing this wedding, as there was such great scenery and carefully thought out decorations to work with. liza’s family has two amazing horses, and a barn full of teeny kittens!
from the mother of the bride:
Hi Heather!!! They are wonderful! Glad you had fun! We all looked with Sam’s computer yesterday and we’re thrilled. Thank you so much for coming and shooting Liza & Richards wedding.
“I didn’t get to see all of Sam and Hezi’s pics but what I did see are fabulous! You really are so very talented!
Thank you from the bottomof my heart
Deborah”
caterer: moveable feast
decor: norton’s usa
cake: sugar hills bakery
flowers: barrington fresh flower market
happy halloween everyone! don’t forget to adjust the time on your cameras to daylight savings time.
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Tags: alice, alice in wonderland, architecture, autumn, bride, british, chicago, couple, decorations, DIY, england, english, fall, fashion, groom, heather, heather parker, heatherparker.com, homemade, idea, ideas, inspiration, lewis carroll, mad hatter, mad hatter tea party, madhatter, offbeat, photographer, photography, photos, pumpkin, pumpkins, shoot, story, story book, storybook, tea party, theme, themed, uk, wedding, wedding photographer, weddings
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