Note:  this was supposed to show up last Wednesday, so you guys would have something to look at while I was gone, but for some reason it didn’t.  Bummer :(  So here is last Wednesday’s humpdates - another to come tomorrow!  I am so happy to be back at home!

So last week was, obviously, all about the Dominican Republic! Jason and I headed out to the beautiful Cofresi area of Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic to shoot Nikole and Chris’ wedding and get some quality time in, away from computers and TVs and cell phones and work. So what did we do the entire time we were there? Watch TV, movies, check our email and voicemail, and work. We’re pathetic!!! Okay, so we didn’t do that the ENTIRE time.. But here is what our average day looked like:

9 AM - wake up, roll out of bed, and head to the buffet for breakfast
10 AM - swim in the main resort pool
12 PM - lunch at the buffet
1 PM - go back to our room and take a nap, watch TV, and check our email
4 PM - swim in the main pool again
6 PM - dinner at the buffet
7 PM - back to the room for more napping, TV, and e-mail checking
11 PM - bedtime

Seriously, aside from shooting, that pretty much sums up what we did. There were plenty of cool activities included in our package - horseback riding, tennis, basketball, spanish lessons, a dance club, a movie theater, games on the beach, a spa and fitness center - and even more fun excursions around the island, like a city tour, river rafting, jumping off the waterfalls, helicopter tours, swimming with the dolphins, and a monster truck safari. And we did genuinely talk about doing some of those things. But honestly, after months of non-stop traveling, activities, workshops, and a jam-packed social calendar, swimming and napping was pretty much the most glorious, relaxing thing we could have imagined!

Here is the place we spent 75% of our free time:

And here is what made up 75% of our diet - Banana Mamas and Pina Coladas!

Since I take photos so much all the time, I actually take zero personal photos when I go on vacation, so I don’t have much else to show you. You’ll just have to trust me when I say we had a blast! If you’re looking for an amazing destination wedding or honeymoon location, or just a nice place to get away, Sun Village Resort is a great option. The staff was incredibly helpful and friendly, virtually everything was included (the only money we spent was on souvenirs), and the resort was in a killer location. Highly recommended! I want to go back already

Now I am off to NYC to do some shoots, meet with some clients, and have a good time. The number one thing I am looking forward to is seeing BAILEY in Legally Blonde on Broadway!! She was my favorite the entire season on Legally Blonde: The Search for Elle Woods, and I can’t wait to see her. We’ve also got tickets for Avenue Q (this will be my third time to see it!) and working on Wicked tix (again, third time!). Any other Broadway recommendations? We’re considering In The Heights and Spring Awakening, and we just might be on Regis and Kelly on Thursday, too!

I’ll be back next Tuesday… In the meantime, here is another preview from Nikole and Chris’ smokin’ hot Day After session!

…of what I did today!

Just a teensy little preview to show you what I have been up to. I can’t wait to show off the rest of the images! But for now.. I am off to have a Banana Mama and go for a swim!

ps :: that image is literally straight out of the camera.  Ridiculous!!

Since I missed out on last week’s Humpdates, I am doubling the Hump-ness this week.. And finally, instead of text, I have a ton of fun photos to show off!! So he is what has been going on lately in the world of Stacy:

Two Thursdays ago, my awesome assistant Shelley called me up and asked me if I wanted to go to Six Flags. She had the day off work, I of course set my own schedule (ah, the joys of being self-employed!), and both of us hadn’t been to Six Flags since high school, so we hit the road and headed to Arlington for some good-old fashioned cheesy theme park fun!

Notice in the upper-left corner - a Cookies and Cream funnel cake! Oh… My.. God… Amazing. Seriously? Amazing.

The next day I headed off to Little Rock with my mom, sister, and two of her work friends for a Fourth of July celebration! Unfortunately Jason was stuck at work as usual, so he didn’t get to join us However, we had a blast! We spent the weeking canoeing, camping, and generally having a good time.

A little explanation is required on these.. Clockwise, from top left: anyone who knows anything about my family can guess whose chair the left one is; somehow Danny and I amazingly survived with nothing worse than a little dent; our patriotic contribution; our campsite on the side of the river; the whole group, sans me, Matthew, and Jamie. Thanks to my hilarious and awesome Uncle Carl for putting everything together! I am amazed how well he put up with three cranky blondes

Although I learned on this trip that I am definitely a “city girl” and don’t survive well out in the wilderness, it was all worth it when we woke up to this gorgeous site.. Lake Buffalo is so beautiful, if you live near northern Arkansas you should definitely make a trip to see it!

On Tuesday, we celebrated little Sallie Mae Gulledge’s very first birthday! Our little girl is growing up too fast!!

This past weekend I did something I have been looking forward to for a LOOOONG time now. I am a member of an online photography forum called Starting a Wedding Photography Business (via Flickr), and I spent a good 1-2 hours a day discussing wedding photography related topics with the other members there. A few months ago, the admin of the group approached me and asked if I would host a big get-together, and of course I said yes! After months of planning (okay, months of procrastinating and about 1.5 weeks of planning), we finally all gathered together from across the country to hang out and talk about - what else - wedding photography!

We had photographers fly in from California, Georgia, Montana, Nebraska, Arkansas - and almost Canada (a girl who unfortunately got stuck at the border), as well as several Dallas-ites. Here’s most of the group doing what they do best!

During the weekend, we set up two amazing photoshoots (which I will show off later!), a Photoshop roundtable, a pricing review, a trip to my FAVORITE album company Forbeyon, a BBQ, and a Portrait Swap. A Portrait Swap is where a group of photographers gather and take images of each other for use in marketing pieces (websites, pamphlets, etc). It’s a good chance to get some nice business photos of yourself, while getting to know your colleagues at the same time. Here are a few of my favorites:

Ken Kienow, from San Obispo, California

Julie Jones, from Little Rock, Arkansas

Darbi Gibson Hebrank, from Columbia, Missouri (does she look familiar to any of you??)

Sarah Anne, from Dallas

Jason Huang, from Dallas.  Jason also happens to be one-half of my arch-nemesis studio, Table4 Photography (and by arch-nemesis, I mean the people I send all my inquiries to when I am booked.  Love those guys!).

Dashell Sellers, from Dallas

Jason Miles Marquez, from Billings, Montana

And Shannon Kuanfung, from Savannah, Georgia (by way of Dallas).
Shannon and I stuck around after everyone left to do more photos, so I have a few extra of her.

And one last photo… If Darbi and Ken weren’t already married to other extremely hot, awesome people, this would be an adorable engagement photo! Any couples out there want to recreate it for me??

A few shout-outs and thank yous… Thanks to all who came out this weekend: Erik, Tasha, Toby, Tate, Ken, Jason H, Jason M, Ken, Darbi, Julie, Sarah, Melissa, Dashell, and Shannon; thanks also to the boyfriends and husbands who pretended not to be bored out of their minds: Jason G, Neil, Uy, and Eric. Thanks to Paige, Drew, and Sarah, for being our gorgeous models.  Thanks to Forbeyon, for the amazing tour and info packets, you guys have my business for life!! Thanks also to NYLO Hotel for housing the out-of-towners, and for letting us run all over the lobby taking photos of each other. Brides, if you’re looking for a KILLER place to do your bridal session - NYLO is it!!! I am dyyyyying to shoot a bride there!

There will be NO HUMPDATES (or any posts at all) next week, as I will be shooting the lovely Nikole and Chris’ wedding in Puerta Plata, as well as spending some quality time with my favorite on the beach! I plan to get a loooooot of reading done.. Anyone have any good recommendations for me? So far I have House of Leaves and Catch-22. Send me your book suggestions before I go!

I will be out of the country this Sunday, July 20, through the following Sunday, July 27 for a destination wedding in the Dominican Republic.  I will not have access to my phone or my e-mail.

Furthermore, three days after I get back I will be leaving for another week of destination portrait sessions in New York City, where I will have limited access to e-mail.

I am trying to wrap up all loose ends with my current clients before I leave.  If you need something from me URGENTLY (print order, album design, etc) that absolutely cannot possibly wait until after August 5, please let me know ASAP.  Thanks!

Am I the worst blogger ever? YES. I am so sorry this is so delayed.. I had a huge event going on this past weekend, and it required a lot more of my time than I expected it to, so my blog unfortunately went neglected for a few days.. Major apologies to all of you who checked the blog expecting to see posts that didn’t show up. I am a bad, bad blogger

That said, here is the long awaited second half to Darbi & Neil’s awesome Nebraska destination wedding!

A few details from the ceremony location…

And everyone’s favorite.. The ring!

After the ceremony, we headed to a “Little Mexico” area near Bellvue for some fun wedding party shots

Then it was off to the Livestock Exchange Building for the wedding reception!

A few of my favorite reception details. Have I mentioned that photographers throw the best weddings?

A few photos from the first dance…

Darbi and her dad, one of the coolest, funniest, most outrageous dads I have ever met!

My favorite part of this wedding was the toasts at the wedding reception. The toasts ranged from emotional to funny to earmuff-worthy, courtesy of Darbi and Neil’s very entertaining families and wedding party. I loved the toasts so much I had to do a collage of the images Lara and I took.

After the normal garter and bouquet toss, Darbi and Neil added a special twist.. They had the girl who caught the bouquet (Wendy) put on the garter, and had the guy who caught the garter pull it off…. with his teeth! Note Wendy’s boyfriend standing in the background, keeping a close eye on the situation

Finally it was time to DANCE!

Neil’s groomsman and fellow bandmate Mike Quinn (who also performed Darbi’s song at the ceremony) sang a song for Darbi and Neil that he wrote himself.

Darbi with her two loves.. Neil and, of course, her Canon 5D.

Sadly, all good things must come to an end, so finally the lovebirds had to say their goodbyes and head off to JAMAICA!

One last photo of Darbi and Neil outside the Livestock Exchange Building in Omaha

Darbi and Neil, thanks again for letting me be a part of your wedding day and flying me all the way to Nebraska to be there. I’m so glad you got to come visit me in Dallas this past weekend! Hopefully I will see you again soon in October!

Hello all you Dallas brides!

I am in DESPERATE need of a model for a shoot this Friday evening. My model backed out on me and I need to find a last-minute replacement ASAP. I can’t really discuss what it’s about yet, but I can tell you that we will need you from about 6:30-9 in the downtown Dallas area. You need to provide your own wedding dress, but I can provide the veil and other related accessories if needed. You will receive a copy of the edited image files as well as a substantial print credit.

If you are interested, please send an e-mail to stacy@stacyreeves.com and include a photo of yourself (a photo of you in your dress would be great too, if you have one!). Thanks girls!