MACON GEORGIA - Old Historical Churches

Being new to Georgia is exciting. The annual activities that await us are being sought after with much anticipation, so imagine our disappointment when we arrived at Macon's Cherry Blossom Festival to find it rained out before we could even park our car. And the, Spirit Walk at the Riverside Cemetery, also close due to the weather; what else was there to do and see we thought as we drove around; wait was it this I see! A huge church on a hill with two towering steeples reaching tall into the sky. Quickly I grabbed my camera and even before my husband brought the car to a complete stop I was opening door and bounding out ready to get the shot of that architectural beauty, even as the mist turned into heavier raindrops I ran as close as I could to fill up my lens. I even questioned myself for packing only the 50mm to keep my camera lite. Now I'm not one to bring my photography gear into bad weather, but this...this was exceptional, this was something that made my eyes light up and actually made me giddy! I didn't know what church it was, but beautiful doesn't even describe it, more like stunning, gorgeous, magnificent are better words to describe it's Gothic charm.

So, just for this blog, I googled, 'historic churches in Macon', and the first search brought up, St. Joseph's Catholic Church on Poplar St. That's it! This is the one, and here's how it's described;  This historic church has Romanesque Neo-gothic architecture with twin spires topped with crosses that measure 200 feet in height. Graced with 60 stained glass windows which teach the story of Salvation, a white Carrara marbled alter and pulpit, lighted vigil candles and an organ with 1,000 pipes.  

Now I didn't go inside, we were driving, but I would love to see the inside sometime and take more pictures. 
Here's a link to the website with a picture of it's interior, absolutely beautiful. http://www.stjosephmacon.com.
I hope you enjoy looking at this magnificent building as much as I do. 

Ciao, Simply Dorine Atlanta and Macon, Georgia Wedding Photographer.

David Tutera & Middle Georgia Wedding Photographer, Pederzani Photography Talk About Weddings And Budgets.

Everybody knows David Tutera. Did you know he's featured regularly on Beautiful Bride Blog, the same magazine I advertise in.  Here's a copy of an older article where David addressing the topic of wedding budgets.  I found it most informative and for the most part we agreed on almost every point, and especially one in particular. Fine out which one!

When it comes to budgeting for your wedding, should you follow the rule of using percentages per category? Should you try to save money and be a D.I.Y. bride?  David has the answers …

Yes, I do think that you should assign a percentage of your budget to each category in the planning, but you move the percentages around to accommodate what you want. The top three things are: catering, entertainment and event design. They are the three top costs in a wedding. If you walk in there and say you want a cake that is too expensive, then you are too shocked when you can’t afford other areas that cost more.

You can’t skimp on areas in your wedding that sacrifice the comfort of your guests. That is, to me, the most important thing. If a pair of shoes is going to cost you a lot of money and you pull it out of somewhere else where your guests would appreciate, that is when I say take the selfish veil off and don’t do that because your guests are not going to remember your shoes, I am sorry to say. They’re not.

Being your own wedding planner is the worst thing you can possibly do. If you can’t afford a wedding planner, ask someone to be your day-of wedding planner. Someone you can trust, someone who says they will be your wedding planner. I’ve seen this many times where that person winds up slamming down the drinks at the bar and you’ve got a wedding planner who is missing in action. So, you need to find someone who may also not even be a guest at your wedding; it can be a co-worker. But you need to find someone who is going to be executing the minute details of your wedding day.

I just went to a wedding a couple of weeks ago, and all I watched was the bride and the groom and the parents looking over their shoulders to make sure that things were getting done and then leaving the room to make sure things were getting done. You can’t do that. You have to be a guest at your own wedding.

I don’t mind brides being a little hands-on when it comes to crafting or being a little bit hands-on when it comes to putting together some projects. To me, it is a great way to take a budget and make it work by adding personality, I think that’s fantastic. There is nothing wrong with doing things yourself, as long as you are planning the process so you are not doing things the week of the wedding.

If you are prepared and organized, which is the harder part of everything I talk about, you can actually have fun at your wedding.

 My three tips..

Wedding budget headaches are common, the main one is fitting what you want into it. Here are some good tips for consideration. Your wedding is a grand day so celebrate it big, it should stand out and be distinguished from any other day! This is Your Life, Your Dreams, Your Story…so tell it loud! That's a motto to live by.
Not every event calls for extravagance, but weddings are one day that should. There are three areas you should never skimp on, the first is your gown, and the second is the menu, then lastly photography. Let me explain why...

1)  Don’t skimp on your gown! You gown complements your day and the specialty of the event. If you have to settle for your second favorite then embellish it with endearing heirlooms that make it special for you;  Adorn yourself beautifully, you'll set the mood for everyone present; and you'll glow all day long because you feel comfortable, wonderful and beautiful.
 2). Food combines and enhances the five senses that trigger emotional responses attached to memory. Sounds absurd? Does the aroma of fresh baked cookies or bread make you feel good? Yes it does, and good food will stir good memories, and the plus side is, it also speaks volumes to your guests that you value  them highly and they will always remember you and your wedding day fondly because of it; good friends are precious so treat them well.
3) And lastly your wedding photographer. A good photographer is essential and worth their weight in gold; with the right photographer any affair, simple or lavish, will flourish it's beautiful points and transform  it into something extravagant all the time even if it wasn't.

Plan your day well, if you're on a tight budget, find a creative friend who knows how to embellish decorations  and make them stand out. A good creative person is an artist and know how to create a journey for the eye to flow on. Something as simple as centralizing the positioning of the wedding cake to make it the focal point in the middle of the room for all your guests to gaze upon; with cake being the highest point in the room you don't need to worry about table centerpieces being the focal points. You saved yourself some money! From many centerpieces down to one that couples as your wedding cake and focal point.
Your wedding day is a special day and should be distinguish from the ordinary, therefore, ‘live it out loud’; and don’t apologize for enjoying it and having fun.
 As the owner of, Pederzani Photography, I hope my tips encourage you to treat yourself extravagantly special.
If you enjoyed these tips let me know.  If would like more help, just ask. I'm full of wedding ideas, because weddings are my world.
Ciao, Pederzani Photography Weddings for Middle Ga.

MERRITT ISLAND, FL. ARTIST - DELIA BIRNHAK, She Just Can't Stop Smiling!

A smile is a smile in any language and  Delia Birnhak has the most gorgeous smile of all.  As a budding artist Delia has reasons to smile, her paintings reach pass the boundaries of Merritt Island and grace the offices and homes of many out of state admirers. Recently, Delia started a jewelry line of earrings that can be seen in theses pictures. Delia is a 'bona fide' tree lover, infatuated by all kinds with Palm Trees being her favorite.  She is also a cancer survivor, she likes eating healthy but admits enjoying chips and ice cream on occasion, and quickly adds not just special occasions either; but Delia also has an affection and real love for bicycling. She loves being active and claims she and her bike are almost inseparable.
So, Delia thought it was time to have pictures of her favorite activity; that we kept simple because, first, I didn't have my bike with me and, second, I don't thing the pictures would have come out too good if I was riding one. We arranged our meeting at Kwanis Park on Merritt Island; it was the first time I actually visited the park although I drove by it many times. It's a very nice park! ...and it provided the perfect backdrop for our photo shoot.
This was our second photo shoot in a years time.
Thank you Delia, it is always fun doing a photo shoot with you, we laughed from beginning to end.

You can view Delia's art work at: fineartamerica.com/art/all/delia+birnhak/al

Double Tree Hilton Wedding Captured by Middle Ga Wedding Photographer

The starting plans for Ashley Stimpson and Brandon Parker's wedding was to have a short ceremony of vows on the beach. So they picked, Double Tree Hilton in Cocoa Beach Oceanfront , it was their venue of choice for the scenic beach frontage it boast; however, it poured cats and dogs the whole day before and with the forecast promising more rain, they chose to have an indoor ceremony instead. The staff at the hotel worked together quickly setting up an empty banquet room with the arbor decorated with star fish, and chairs draped with nautical rope and more star fish. It turned out well for the gathering of guest. I thought it would be a challenge taking pictures inside but the lighting turned out to be perfect also
During the preparation time everyone was filled with excitement; Ashley and her mother became especially emotional the closer it got to the ceremony. I got some very amusing photos of the two's shenanigans in the dressing room, and when dad arrived to check on the bride,   Ashley was overcome with emotion and began to cry; her cup runneth over with anticipation, excitement and the emotional realization that she was getting married.

Brandon too seemed a bit aloof when I arrived to take pictures of him and the men. They had bottles of Jack Daniel's and other brands opened to calm their nerves and it was obvious that some were very 'happy', but all were very charming; even the best man after I calmed his fears that I would not loose the wedding rings when I requested them for pictures.  He  took his job very seriously; in all my years of doing wedding I never had anyone guard rings as tenaciously as he. I assured him he could out run me, therefore making myself very catch-able if I chose to run off with the rings.
For the most part, I photograph in a very romantic style that is embellish through simple posing.  But Ashley and Brandon requested no special posing for them, just the traditional pictures of family and wedding party.  There is nothing wrong with traditional pictures, as Ashley and Brandon's wedding proves, they were both natural and relaxed in front of the camera that made picture taking easy as pie and picture perfect. Their expressive love and passion for one another is quite obvious and apparent in every photograph.
Thank you Ashley and Brandon for allowing me the pleasure of photographing your wedding and chronicling your love. Together you make a charming couple, may you have many blissful years of love.
Welcome, Mr. & Mrs Brandon Parker, February 23, 2014.

Here is Ashley and Brandon's wedding story from beginning to end.

Gown from David's Bridal

Cake by Publix Bakery

Cake by Publix Bakery

I know you enjoyed watching the nuptials vows exchanged between these two.  I captured every emotion Ashley experienced that day. My camera went on a roller coaster ride with her until it finally coasted into party mode where Ashley got down! The whole wedding was full of love, laughter and gaiety and even a little suspense when the EMT's arrived to treat one family member who also had a happy ending.

Ciao. Simply Dorine Atlanta and Macon, Georgia Wedding Photographer.