St. Louis Wedding Photographers | Benton Park Photography Co.

switzer film

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Fri, 09 May 2008 20:43:00 +0000

rocks the house. i had the opportunity to work with owner, joe switzer, while second shooting with stephen seward last weekend. prior to that, i was at a loss for videographer recommendations. these guys are awesome! check out their portfolio.

also fantabulous was coordinator, sabrina torti, of proposing dreams.

i think oftentimes people don't realize how helpful and stress relieving hiring a wedding coordinator can be. adam and i had ten guests at our destination wedding in taos last year and at times, even planning for that myself was overwhelming. it's something worth building into your budget, for sure.

i'm off

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Tue, 06 May 2008 00:53:00 +0000

to the windy city for a little solo arts excursion for the next few days. i'll be back thursday. enjoy our spring-has-finally-arrived weather!

peace,
becca

in the meantime, enjoy a few photos of a couple new artisan CD cases handcrafted by yours truly and a couple of new sample albums.

and INTRODUCING...drum roll please... THE MINI! minis are available with any larger album (that means any of our wedding stories qualify) for $300 each. they are exact duplicates of the big album, only just larger than palm sized. they are ADORABLE!!! these are fabulous for parents or to carry around in a purse. i loooooooooooovvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeee them. they come in their own fabulous cases, too.

kathy + tim | the slideshow

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Thu, 01 May 2008 12:45:00 +0000

kathy and tim put their hearts and souls into their wedding. they made it THEIRS. too many people get wrapped up in all the should dos instead of the i do.

their love and laughter was overflowing.

for their "first look," kathy and tim wanted something with personality- kathy coming out of a whale, perhaps? for their last look of the evening, they swung from ropes. we can't ask for more fabulous clients, especially when THEY are the ones to suggest they swing from a rope.

the first father/daughter dance was amazing- not a slow dance (that was their second), but a fast-paced, well choreographed number. later on, the parents surprised k + t with another performance, chorus line style. at least a dozen of their friends and family members rocked out in sparkly gold hats. it was magnificent.

family flew in from around the world to join them on their big day. that's how special they are.

some favorites and a slideshow:

the candy bar created by bridesmaid, erica...

kathy's beautiful bouquet...

kathy's mom AND dad walked her down the aisle. i LOVE it!

the best father/daughter dance i have EVER seen...

and the chorus line number... kathy and tim surrounded by dancing love!

rooster

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 13:38:00 +0000

we had a fabulous post-wedding breakfast at rooster sunday on locust downtown. it's owned by david bailey who also owns the wonderful chocolate bar in lafayette square.

there aren't so many breakfast haunts around the city. uncle bill's is always a fabulous choice, of course, but rooster is a nice upgrade. they serve a variety of crepes and sandwiches and your typical coffee drinks. check it out!

and stay tuned for a wonderlicious slideshow from kathy and tim's awesome city museum wedding over the weekend.

meet baby emory

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:45:00 +0000

who just joined this world on april 2nd! another set of titanium eyes and two proud parents whose wedding we photographed before we had a name! holly and cory, thanks for allowing us to continue to be a part of your lives. what a privilege. we look forward to seeing emory grow up. you just know she's going to be a knock-out with such hottie parents!

i'd be remiss not to include a picture of piper, the fabulous weimaraner!

cross your fingers

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 15:08:00 +0000

man, i didn't realize how attached to blogging i am! blogger has been goobered up for a whole week and i haven't been able to post anything. i am in the process of switching over to typepad, but in the meantime...i will try posting an update just in case! stay tuned!

power post

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 12:44:00 +0000

apologies for the lack of posts lately. it's been insane around here. both pups got pretty sick this week. jessie even had to spend a night at doggie hospital. i think we're through the worst of it, but yikes- it was scary.

on a service kudos note, last week adam and i went car shopping. we hit several dealerships, including dave mungenast honda on s. lindbergh, mazda, vw, toyota and ford to check out the escape hybrid, which they didn't have.

we did a few test drives at different dealerships and, therefore, met with a few different salesmen. we drove two different honda models and spent awhile with our guy, jim. at the end of our drives, jim introduced us to the sales manager. jim followed up with a phone call a couple of days later. he was friendly, attentive and did not pressure us at all. a couple of days after that, we received a signed letter from mungenast.

this is the way service should be. it was so good that we actually feel guilty we are leaning toward another car. it was so good that we gave serious consideration to the excellent service and our second choice car. car shopping can be a painful ordeal, so kudos to dave mungenast honda for making it a little less painful and for impressing us with their phenomenal service.

and on a keeping-up-to-date-on-business-reads-kudos-note, seth godin is an inspiring marketing writer-guru. our above mentioned car shopping pursuits brought up an intriguing conversation between adam and i about the psychology of branding. godin often discusses this idea. i'm a blog stalker of his. you should be, too.

knowing how oblivious i can sometimes be, i was especially interested in the following youtube video that appeared on godin's blog last month. just when you think you know the answer...

i'm slowly becoming a youtube fan. you're probably wondering what took me so long, right? it is super smart that at the end of each video, one can copy the code and put it on their own blog, myspace page, whatever. that's how things get viral and spread like mad.

well, in our own little techosphere, we now have the power to post our wedding slideshows on facebook and allow our clients to copy the code and post them on their own pages. go viral!

baby owen

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 19:38:00 +0000

owen just turned three months recently! look at those piercing blue eyes. his dad calls them titanium eyes.

this post serves dual purposes: to show you just how adorable he is and to give kudos to another of my oh so compassionate friends, owen's mom, sara. sara is in the process of starting her own non-profit organization called og hats.

owen was born with a condition called hydrocephalus, which is an overabundance of cerebrospinal fluid on the brain. it's really important to keep babies with hydrocephalus warm. their heads are enlarged, so there is more surface area from which they lose heat. the problem is, it's very difficult to find baby hats that are large enough. sara and her family began making their own and decided to help out other families with babies born with hydrocephalus. so they went to town making hats and an altruistic idea was born. they've already sent them out to hospitals across the country.

as you will see, owen is doing very well!

(brett, i had to post the foot picture. :-) )

liz + rob | the after shoot

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 21:43:00 +0000

these cats have been blessed with great weather x2- first for their early february wedding with 60 degrees and sunshine and second for their after session friday afternoon.

liz and rob, thanks for doing everything i asked! you guys rocked out!

i dig after shoots (a.k.a. trash the dress minus the "trashing"). they rock. we started at turtle park and then moved on to the graffiti wall and our top secret north side locations.

UPDATE: thanks, rob, for reminding me about the pimp car! how could i forget to mention that???? as we were driving up our secret, undisclosed street, we saw this shiny, candy apple red pimpness with two equally pimp guys sitting in it. we kept driving toward the gas station. when we passed back by, it was still there. i slowed down and almost stopped in the middle of the road as i tried to get a feel for whether or not liz and rob would be up for stopping. and THEY WERE! i parked the car, got out and walked over. i was almost swallowed up by a pot cloud, but i mentioned that i had a crazy question. i am a wedding photographer...we love your car...can we take a few pictures...you sure can. WOOHOO! the car owner congratulated liz and rob and then the two men just disappeared while we shot a few frames. you'll have to view the slideshow for the results.

i've been eying this abandoned gas station for a long, long while. i was thrilled to finally make use of it!

each nook and cranny of this warehouse brought another ooooooooooooohhhhhhhh, omg, i LOVE this.

and their fabulous slideshow!

etsy wedding

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 12:44:00 +0000

the little ole' link has been quietly sitting in my blog margin for some time, but whew! you gotta' check it out. having been away for a bit, i'm still getting caught up on my usual daily reads. the latest posts left me drooling and fantasizing and feeling guilty for not making jewelry in ages.

so, i present to you, formal kudos to the etsy wedding blog.

stay tuned for images from liz and rob's spectacularistic after shoot.

fair shares | community supported agriculture

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 21:18:00 +0000

fair shares is a great local organization that helps match up local produce and other goods with consumers. their website says it best,

"Would you like to support local, but don't have the means to do so easily? Do you have difficulty getting to farmers' markets? Are you interested in learning how to cook seasonally, thereby eating the best-tasting, most nutritious food available?

Fair Shares is a non-profit organization dedicated to getting fresh, local, seasonal food into the hands of more St. Louisans--regardless of their income. We think it's important to know the origin of your food--who grew it and where. With all the horrifying stories of food contamination in the news lately, it's a health risk not to know. We're also committed to spreading the wisdom of eating seasonally (if you've ever eaten a grocery store tomato in the winter, you know what we're talking about).

Sustainable farming techniques are important to us as well. Organic is great, but certification isn't a must for us. We know our farmers use minimal chemicals only when necessary and more importantly they use practices that don't rob the earth of resources or harm the delicate equilibrium. Nature had it right to begin with, so we love it when farmers know how to work with nature instead of against it. Our food loves it, too. So do our bodies.

We believe that eating healthy shouldn't just be an elite privilege, but a right for every individual, regardless of income. Fair Shares will donate profits and work with other organizations to help low-income families gain access to "real" food. Fair Shares is working with local farmers and producers to form a Combined CSA* (CCSA). Each week, we'll collect, organize and distribute a well-rounded example of the freshest, seasonal, sustainably-produced foods available in St. Louis all year long.

* Community Supported Agriculture is a partnership between consumers interested in safe, fresh, local foods and farmers interested in a stable market for their products. Consumers pledge to support the farms as co-producers, sharing in the bounty and the risks of farming, including poor harvests due to pests or weather conditions."

there are still shares available for this year. it may seem expensive at first, but consider what you spend on regular groceries each week and the quality of produce and meat you receive. in addition to produce, shares will include local breads, pastas and meats. we're excited to expand our commitment to our great city of st. louis this spring by purchasing a share.

we're baaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaacccccccccccccckkkkkk

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 20:53:00 +0000

we took an itty bitty plane back to mainland puerto rico on thursday. including the pilot, it seated ten passengers. take off and landing were woooooooowwwwwweeeeeeyyyyyyyy wobbly, but once we got up in the air, it was quite smooth and peaceful.

it was good to be home to greet our now senior pup, jessie, who will be 49 dog years in june.

and our newest addition, cadillac max, who will be 35 dog years in june. max's family gave him up after 4 1/2 years because their new house "wasn't big enough." their loss. he's a real sweetie and though he makes our favorite chocolab look like a hamster in size, he's a big teddy bear [horse]. jessie's original family gave her up after 1 1/2 years because when they tied her outside to the trampoline and didn't give her any attention, she chewed it up. she still has that stubborn determination as a senior citizen. :-)

we're softies when it comes to canines with baggage.

culebra

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:32:00 +0000

we are now hangin' out on the tiny island of culebra- 4 by 7 miles to be exact. the only ways in are ferries and itty bitty planes. we took the ferry in and it was oh so sickeningly choppy- we kept our heads down and eyes closed for the one hour trip. but when we arrived, it was sooooooooooo worth it.

lots of images below, starting with a lovely rincon sunset and followed by our stay in the mountains at the wonderfully relaxing casa grande mountain retreat. the grounds were beautifully landscaped. we yoga'd, read and got massaged.

the next series brings you to culebra for our adventurous day. we thought we were hiking to a secluded beach, only to find out quite abruptly we were in the wrong place. it was an incredibly beautiful hike through scrubby, prickly tall grasses and thorns with the occasional beach vista. i flipped out when we arrived at the "area closed" sign. bombs? um, this is america. unexploded bombs? are you kidding me? adam, don't move! no, really, don't move. needless to say, we made it down without blowing up. yeah us!

these were the thorns that we carefully avoided.

not sure why there was an abandoned beach chair way up there, but whatever.

the dramatic end of our first hike...

and the result of the right path, playa carlos rosario!

we are flying out on a tiny plane in the morning and back to st. louis tomorrow afternoon. we'll be reachable again on friday.

chillin'

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 13:13:00 +0000

is what we are doing in rincon. today we head out to the mountains.

adam did a killer job planning my 30th birthday celebration yesterday. we started off the morning surfing (despite our numerous wipeouts and swallows of salt water, we did manage to actually stand up a handful of times) and spent the afternoon horseback riding (ish- rather, moving very slowly on a horse as neither one of us has spent much time with the animals) through the jungle and along the beach. it was just how we liked it.

today, we feel the wrath of our activities and are SORE SORE SORE!! no complaints, though, as we had an absolute blast.

we're still eating like little piggies, but, hey, it's vacation, right? that's what people do, right?

apologies this is picture free. we'll be away from it all for the remainder of our trip, but we might be able to blog one last time.

we'll be back late on the 20th.

oh yeah, and if you know me, you may notice something different. i chopped off about 8" of my hair before we left and now have bangs for the first time in 15 years. lovin' them!

live from puerto rico...

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 21:20:00 +0000

we made it to puerto rico! we are now on day three, in rincon at the moment. we're at a really beautiful guesthouse called the blue boy inn, images of here to follow soon.

in the meantime, here's a brief visual tour of our first two days in san juan. the dichotomy here between american and puerto rican culture is fascinating. there is a very high concentration of american chains and even when i have practiced my spanish (i'm rusty, but i did study the language for 8 years), responses are in english.

the colonial architecture in old san juan was incredible. and we will be coming home with an extra 10 or 20 pounds. we are pigging out big time. we'll have to do double time at the gym when we get home.

this is a different way of traveling for us. in the past 10 years, we have been hard core backpackers, always using public transportation and packing as little as possible. this time, we packed a suitcase, have at least an outfit for each day and have rented a car. it's an interesting, though, i must admit, very comfortable, adjustment.

and we're off!

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 01:58:00 +0000

to puerto rico in a few hours. well, more than a few, but with a bright and early 6 am flight tomorrow, not much more than a few. so, we'll be a little less accessible until march 20th. we will check email periodically and try to blog a bit, but will not be available by phone until we return. stay tuned!

emily + dennis | the "day" after slideshow

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 01:24:00 +0000

you may remember emily and dennis from their beautiful backyard october wedding. well, adam and i had the fantabulous pleasure of photographing their day after session yesterday and it was yummylicious.

sometimes i just get flat out giddy when i stumble upon a photographer's playground of sorts--an urban landscape, it seemed, created just for us! each series of steps visually juicier than the previous.

as always, scroll down through a few favorites and check out the slideshow. emily and dennis, you guys rock! thanks for being up for everything!

faq post | four

noreply@blogger.com (adam) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 16:24:00 +0000

hello, world. this morning's faq stream of thought is my debut as a contributor to this blog. sure, i've been part of benton park photo co. from the beginning -- and have written some of the content throughout this site -- but now i'm officially stepping from behind the curtain to join becca at the microphone on stage. check check check. one...two...three... we're good? well then, let's get it on...

you are working photographers but keep your day jobs, too? why -- and how are you so energetic?

we have spent our whole lives enjoying life in our own ways. photography, broad traveling, writing, learning -- and extensively using -- languages and...generally melding a diversity of life experiences.

e.g.: becca has been an instructor for physically-challenged skiers in colorado and has lived in africa while volunteering with the peace corps. i have lived in korea as a u.s. army linguist and, believe it or not, the breathing and steadiness techniques i gained from training on a slew of firearms -- but never used against anyone -- at times are handy for photography. and i've taught english as a second language for adults in the st. louis area.

so, in my mind, it's simple. we've had dreams and actively pursued them -- and encourage anyone and everyone to do the same. why would we treat our careers differently?

besides, it is nice to have a range of interests that intersect and complement one another such as ours do.

take a look at becca's love of giving. community service has been her essence since she was 14. now that translates to teaching art for the st. louis public schools in north st. louis. more than we could know, those kids yearn for what my phenomenal wife risks to give them: endless compassion and tolerance, knowledge of the world, belief in themselves to overcome the environments they know too well -- though no person should have to know it at all. could any of us ask her to stop doing that? besides, as becca has said time and again, the challenges she faces daily in one of america's -- nay, the world's -- harshest school districts teach her skills that bolster her strengths in life, including her abilities as your wedding photographer.

and me, adam. i also have a photojournalism background that has included the fortune of seeing my work in national magazines. working with becca to shoot weddings keeps that photography flame burning in a meaningful, artistic way. but i am a writer, too. magazines, blogs, newspapers -- and now corporate communications for the #1 pet care company in the world. for me, photography and writing mesh like few other skills. i am a better photographer because of the thoughtfulness and craftiness that creative writing demands. and i am a more creative, visual writer because of the my mind and eye for making photographs.

so, that's a bit more about us and our motivations. hopefully, you agree that our multi-faceted lives benefit you. for sure we respect the full-time hustle of photographers who devote singular attention to a wide range of purposes -- school events, headshots, products, fine art, sporting events, church socials, senior pictures, weddings, etc. many areas of photography fascinate us, too. but we especially love joining wonderful people for a once-in-a-lifetime day (and evening).

to us, shooting weddings is the priority. and how many of those are happening on a weekday -- not counting that becca and i chose to get married on a tuesday so we could keep our anniversary date the same?

another plus to filling our work week with alternative meaningful efforts is that, frankly, we can financially afford to be as discerning in accepting clients as we know brides and grooms are when they choose us. if we promise to do your wedding, know you're loved. we assume we are when you put your faith in us. (when we leave a wedding, we usually are sent away with smiles and hugs. that feels awesome, like we've become a part of the family. that's only possible when you've chosen the right photographers.)

and it is a choice, right? we know you could go to any of dozens of other photographers in st. louis, or wherever you live or plan to be married. but we pride ourselves on being energetic, creatively fresh, insightful with our crafts, and service-oriented to an extent that sets us apart and makes us the photographers you need to have hanging around.

oh, and don't forget...when i spend a fantastic, celebratory day photographing your big moments, i am spending it with my wife, too. where else would i want to be on a saturday when my so-called day job is done for the week and i've still got energy to give?

faq post | three

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 12:33:00 +0000

what album companies do you use? what is special about them?

at the moment, the only album company with whom we work is pictobooks. a few posts down you'll see another beautiful alternative, but it's just not holding up. i have big concerns about durability after only a few careful views. so, picto it is!

when we started the business we researched far and wide for the most beautiful, stylish, durable, well-crafted album we could find. a trip to las vegas and two days wandering around the wedding and portrait photographers international trade show later, we chose pictobooks. i've continued to research albums and have not yet found a viable competitor.

why should we hire benton park photography co.? what sets you apart?

we hope that our photography speaks for itself. on top of that, hire us because you like us and want to hang out with us and are confident that we always do our research and provide a super stellar (intergalactic even?) client experience. this means the occasional little surprise details of which i won't divulge here.

we try to operate in such a way that you just can't wait to tell everyone you know about us.

what is the timeline for things?

once you decide to commission us, a non-refundable retainer of $1500 is due along with a signed contract. the balance is due two weeks prior to the event. we can take checks or credit cards (an additional 3% fee applies only to cover our cost of the transaction). if you want to pay in installments, as long as we have the full amount two weeks prior, we're happy to work with you on that.

one week before your event, we'll send you a timeline for the day to fill in so we know where to be and when to be there.

day of, we'll photograph to our heart's content for the alloted time.

within three weeks you will have your dvd of edited high resolution files and a link to the online gallery and ordering site.

within five weeks we email your album pre-design in PDF format. we initially choose the images for your album. our approach is that of telling a visual story. with backgrounds in journalism and page design, we pride ourselves on putting pictures together in meaningful ways. if you have any must-include images, we are happy to take suggestions. you have final approval on the album design.

once you approve your album design, it takes 6-8 weeks to produce. we upload our digital design to pictobooks and receive a printed and bound work of art several weeks later.

what is your creative approach?

photojournalism is such a buzz word these days and often misused, so though we are published photojournalists, and that's our background, that is not exclusively our approach. one of our biggest strengths is capturing storytelling emotion. our mizzou journalism backgrounds trained us to look for that. it doesn't mean we don't occasionally direct you or create more fashion based imagery. so, we like to call ourselves wedding and lifestyle artists.

we try to be as unobtrusive and laid back as possible, yet always focused on YOU.

what happens if you fall deathly ill on our wedding day?

unless we are physically not able to be there, we will. if something tragic happens, you will receive a refund and our assistance in finding another photographer. we are well connected to several talented folks in town.

photobooth sillyness

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 20:33:00 +0000

we're not really mall people, but every once in awhile, we end up in one. this morning's photobooth cheesiness made it more fun than usual.

the roma

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 20:22:00 +0000

UPDATE 03.05.08 oh couturebook how i wanted to love you! you are just not a good fit for us. i need you to stay together and stay strong!

the roma from couturebook just arrived this week. it's beautiful. take a look for yourself! (they don't come in cases, btw, so i made the one you see.) this is the roma. it's a very different and special, fine art, kind of book. its pages have a very organic feel and overall, it just exudes handmade loveliness. the cover is a velvety-soft, worn in a good way, leather with a buckle type closure.

my new favorite passion...

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 01:22:00 +0000

is embossing. i have always been the artsy craftsy type. i can thank my mom and dad for that. besides photography, i also design jewelry and have dabbled in various other forms of art.

when i couldn't find suitably creative and original DVD cases for our fabulous clients, i set out to design them. the latest appears below. i make them from scratch starting with bookboard and beautiful papers and ribbons.

until last week, however, i didn't quite figure out a good way to label them as such. that is, until the idea of embossing hit me. and conveniently enough (do we have enough adverbs in this post yet?), the next morning i saw a demo on a cheesy DIY show. i immediately designed and sent away for a custom rubber stamp! i gleefully traveled to hobby lobby to find a heat gun and embossing powder. and that's where my newest craft love affair began.

my custom stamps arrived yesterday from rubberstamps.net.

now i'm a lean, mean, stampin' embossin' machine. omg, did i just actually publish such cheesiness? darn skippy! the benton park B will be tearing it up all over town.

visual inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:46:00 +0000

after a weekend of exploring the st. louis art museum and the contemporary art museum and enjoying them both, but not feeling super inspired, i thought i'd share links to a handful of photographers who do inspire me. often. in no particular order, they are:

ben chrisman
david alan harvey
sebastiao salgado
david lachapelle

becker
jessica claire
the image is found
the weibners
jasmine star
jesh de rox
lacour

there are many more photographers that i love, so this is a short list, but perhaps this will be a post-in-progress.

plantable wedding favors!

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 14:54:00 +0000

i just had to share. botanical paperworks has a great variety of plantable invitations, notecards and favors. i LOVE this idea.

favorite discoveries include the plantable journal, the eco calendar, and the celebration grow favors.

check them out!

by popular demand...

noreply@blogger.com (Becca) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 21:32:00 +0000

a few more images from liz and rob's big day! if you haven't already received your package, it should be there any day now.

their beautiful rings...

does this look like february?

i LOVE liz's expression again here.

and what an animated dollar dance!