Style , fashion,  and a flare for fun with beautiful portraits to show for it. That’s what you get when you hire Laurel McConnell Photography. Laurel has an eye for the beautiful, the fashionable and the quirky and bringing it all together in breathtaking images you will love and so will everyone who sees them.

Laurel is one of the amazing ladies who sat around a table 5 years ago, dreaming of how to make a difference, and thought up Get Hitched Give Hope. She not only gives countless hours every year on the team, this year as VP of Marketing, she also donates each year a fabulous photo package to help us make our goal, and this year is better than ever!

Tell us a little bit about yourself!!  What do you do & what does your business specialize in?
We are a boutique photography company for really fun people.
We don’t have millions and trillions of clients. We answer the phone at all odd hours, email entirely too much, and we-heart-text-messages.
Since 2001 we’ve been striving to keep relationships personal, ideas fresh, and products timeless.
Things are seen with a teeny bit of a fashion flare. We’ve got a passion for creating rockin’ portraits while capturing moments as they happen. In a nutshell, our style is fabulously photojournalistic plus a dash of fashion.
We commit to photograph only 20 couples and a handful of families per year in order to provide our clients the most dedicated attention and to continue to be inspired by each and every one of them.
And of course, we love supporting our community through projects like Get Hitched Give Hope!

 

 

How did you get started in business?

I was in school for psychology at the UW, and took a summer course on photography. While it was absolutely opposite of what I thought it would be (there was a LOT of math involved and I must have ruined 3 pairs of pants in the darkroom!), I was hooked and changed career paths, switching schools so that I could learn how to be an artist for a living! I finished school in 2001 with a photography degree (and partial psych and soc degrees, but hey, who uses those anyways?. Opening a business was simply a requirement of being a photographer for my day job- I am awful at the business part. I opened my virtual doors that summer, and through more trial and error than I care to admit and a major industry shift (helllloooo digital capture!), I am still hanging out over here in my little corner of quirk and fun, loving every minute of what I do. Except for when it’s tax time. No one likes that. Except accountants, I guess.

 

Tell us…. What are you donating to Get Hitched Give Hope this year?

I’m going big this year with a wedding photography package: six hours of coverage by myself and an assistant, a private reveal party of your images after the wedding, and a website to share with friends and family. Normally this package would be $3495, but since auction items typically go for a fraction of their street value, it’ll be a good one to keep an eye on! If you’ve already chosen your date, feel free to inquire in the fall and we’ll let you know if we’re available- we’ll also have a list of booked dates at the auction.

 

Any parting words?

If  you want something fun and different for your wedding, we have the coolest thing!

The New School of Photobooth-ing:
Chances will be that when you leave folks to their own devices you get some pretty funny pictures.

These days, receptions aren’t just for dancing and drinking and a photobooth isn’t limited to four walls. In fact, many are not booths at all, but more of a portable studio set up during your cocktail hour and reception in an area your guests are sure to walk through all night long. Many open-air booths only need a 12-foot-square area to encourage a wide range of snappable activity and don’t require power plugs.

Props of all types are a popular trend right now, although some opt to keep it simple and timeless, leaving everything up to the imagination of the guests. Oh, but that’s just the beginning; backdrops can be unique to the location or white and classic. Sheets, wallpaper, ribbons, or fabric are popular new trends; many brides and grooms make their own to personalize their portable studio. In fact, there’s a whole world on Etsty.com dedicated to selling photobooth related products and backdrops.

The result? Instant entertainment for those involved AND those on the sidelines, not to mention some great memories of your guests having a blast!

Includes:
• one of our backdrops
• any of our props (optional)
• a remote control, camera, and light
• supervision (optional)
• a Facebook Album of low resolution digital images or online proofing gallery posted the Tuesday after your wedding.

 

Make sure to come by Laurel’s booth at the event and bid on her fabulous package!

Keep in touch with Laurel:

Website:: www.mcconnellphoto.com

Email:: laurel@mcconnellphoto.com

Twitter:: @laurelmcconnell

Facebook:: LaurelMcConnellPhotography