Washington DC Wedding Photographer, Gronde Photography, Wins 2015 Two Bright Lights Editors' Choice Award

Thanks to our phenomenal clients and our commitment to producing exceptional wedding photography, we are honored to announce that we have been selected as a winner of the 2015 Two Bright Lights Editors’ Choice Award!

The 2015 Two Bright Lights Editors' Choice Awards is a signature program that recognizes photographers and vendors within the Two Bright Lights community whose number of published features in 2014 placed them among the top 5% of all Two Bright Lights members. Winners were published across many of the most respected lifestyle, wedding and other print and digital publications in the United States and worldwide.

The 2015 honorees reflect those that have demonstrated a superior quality of work for their clients, and those that had their authentic, stunning imagery, and services published directly to the top industry print magazines and online publications.

Among thousands of photographers and vendors competing for publication, the Editors' Choice winners represent the best-of-the-best.

It is a great distinction to be recognized alongside this group of talented photographers and creative professionals. Over the past year, our features have given us the opportunity to increase exposure of our work and it is exciting to receive this award in recognition of our efforts.

In 2014, we had the privilege of having the following events published:

Marissa & Marco's Wedding

Robert & Sarah's Indianapolis Engagement

Melissa & Michael's Wedding (Published in Beauty & Lifestyle Bride Magazine)

Fashion & David's Engagement
Traci & Colin's Wedding
Melissa & Michael's Wedding

We pray 2015 offers even more opportunity for publication!  Thanks again to all of the other creative professionals and clients who made these features possible!

To see more of our work, or to get in touch about our services, please visit www.GrondePhotography.com.

Washington DC Wedding Favorites - Part II

Today, we continue our favorite shots from 2014!  Seriously, how much did you enjoy our last post? Some AMAZING images, right?  Let's continue, than, shall we?  :-)

Most Touching Image

This is Lauren and her Dad, Tim "Mr. Incredible" Christensen.  We didn't meet him until the morning of the wedding, but we have never met a Father of the Bride who was more involved with making sure every single detail of his daughter's day was absolutely perfect.  When Chris was shooting the groomsmen getting ready, he was studying what looked like a play book, but it was the choreography to this dance with his daughter.  He wanted to make sure he remembered it, so that it was perfect. We could tell from the moment we met him that he was a great man!  We were beyond honored to capture these amazing moments and saddened beyond belief when we learned he passed away shortly after Lauren Bryce's wedding from a sudden heart attack at work.  We have heard people say that wedding photography is a silly expense when everyone has a camera or an iPhone.  Or to just have people take photos and post them to Facebook and that's "good enough".  As sad as we were, we felt so blessed to be the ones who were able to show these images to Lauren and her family and know that these images and the look on Tim's face as he danced with his daughter will live on forever in their heirloom album and the images on her wall.  

Most Beautiful Offbeat Wedding Dress

Robin  Maddy definitely had the most off beat wedding of our year and we loved every second of it! She had such an amazingly perfect vintage look, from her tea length wedding dress to her custom made glasses she made made to fit the theme and color of their day!  When you make a living shooting weddings, it's so refreshing to see something off the beaten path!

Funniest Moment

Sometimes you just have to break the little bit of awkwardness when you start to take photos and Carla was the best!  This is an outtake from their wedding (didn't quite make the cover of their album but totally should have!), where she wanted to break the ice a little bit and just make a funny face to loosen up.  What a fun couple they were!

Best Groom Reaction

We don't even have to explain this one.  Just look at it!  Look at his face!  Daniel was so much fun! And even though, we THINK, he was goofing around when this picture was taken, he really was completely out of breath with how Gorgeous Leah looked in her dress from Ellie's Bridal.  We always encourage our couples to have a First Look and this is one of the reasons why.  Would you see this reaction if here were at the front of the alter?  NOT A CHANCE!

Favorite Ring Shots

Brandy is the MASTER of the ring shot!  When she tells you she's taking your rings on a field trip, this is what she's doing!  Your ring is the STAR of your accessories and she always makes sure you have an amazing image to share with your girlfriends for years to come!  Rings and shoes?  HELLO, GORGEOUS! 

Favorite Shoe Shot

Everyone who knows us or has been to our home or our studio knows that we are huge Disney fans (it's all over our home), and if you ask Brandy, she'll tell you, "A Good Pair of Shoes can change your life".  So when the dress is on, makeup and hair are done, earrings are in, and garter is up and you finally put on the perfect shoe, you have a complete look!  Don't overlook your shoes because you think it will just be hidden under the dress (unless you wear Chuck Taylors, we are totally ok with you wearing colorful Chuck Taylors!).  Your shoes are an important part of your look and we will not overlook them either!

Best Stolen Moments

Being a wedding photographer is like conducting a good Jazz Band.  You direct, keep tempo, and make sure everyone is on the same page, but every so often your band just gets in an awesome groove and you just have to put your hands down and let them jam!  Some of our most romantic moments we capture have NOTHING to do with us, once we get our couples in a groove we just let them interact and catch these amazing stolen moments without any direction from us what-so-ever!

Best Twirl

If you were to bring Brandy with you to shop for your wedding dress (which if your maid of honor or mom can't make it with you and you honestly asked her she would TOTALLY go with you!), before she would let you make that final decision there would be one final test... "The Twirl Test".  If you have an amazing dress and it doesn't twirl the right way, it just isn't perfect enough.  So be sure to twirl during your dress shopping trips!  Marissa had an amazing mermaid style dress and an incredible heart felt first dance with her new husband Marco full of spins and twirls.  We happened to catch her dress at just the right moment to see this amazing twirl!  *swoon*  Good choice in wedding dress, Marissa!

The People's Choice Award (Fan Favorite)

We looked through the past year of sneak peeks that we posted to our social media pages, like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and found the image that had the most likes.  Leah's amazing dip photo was the winner with 42 Facebook Likes!  Want to see your image here next year?  When we post your sneak peek, be sure to tag all of your family and friends and share as much as you can!  

That wraps up our 2014 favorites.  We cannot wait to see what 2015 has in store!  These are some incredible moments that we cannot wait to top in 2015.

XOXO, 

Chris and Brandy

{Real Wedding} Leah and Dan Reily Wedding - Lansdowne Resort, Leesburg, VA

In the spirit of the World Cup, we would like to show you a sneak peek from Leah (that's Lay-uh, like the Princess, in case you were curious) and Dan's Wedding!  Their vintage, romantic wedding was an amazing joining of two families and multiple cultures.  Leah, being from the Netherlands, had family fly in from all over Europe which made for an amazing reception!  Talking with her family and her guests was definitely a fun experience!  Having the beautiful rolling hills as the backdrop at Lansdowne Resort hopefully made them feel a little more at home than the usual Washington, DC scene.  Leah and Daniel's personality and playfulness from beginning to end is really what made us love this wedding. (besides Leah's absolutely amazing dress!!) . From the moment Dan first saw Leah to our trip around the resort taking photos (to include a visit from a groundhog friend) to the last dance they just oozed love that was so much fun to capture!  Take a look!

Gronde Photography 2013 Year in Review! And 2014 Spoilers!!

The first thing we want to say to all of you reading this is Thank You!  Whether you are a repeat client or this is the first time you have seen our blog.  Thank you for taking the time out of your busy lives to consider Gronde Photography.  Looking back at this past year, we can not be more excited for what we have coming in 2014! 

This year we changed the status of our business to an official LLC!  It's a huge step for us to really turn this passion into a fully thriving and self sustaining business.  The average time it takes for a photographer to make a profit on their company is 3-5 years.  We launched Gronde Photography in April of 2010 and in only four years, during a very dismal time in our economic state as a country, we have had a substantially profitable year!  We've seen photographers who charge $5,000-$10,000 a wedding not have a profitable year in less than four years, so it just feels great and has really put an inspiration in both of us to charge ahead full speed into 2014! 

We also welcomed a new crew member to the family!  Liam was born in July, which put us out of commission for a large portion of the end of wedding season, but was some much needed time off to get adjusted to our new bigger family! 

Here's a few facts about our past year here.

Last year we shot:

37 Family/Children Sessions

1 Maternity Session

5 Newborn Sessions

7 Engagement Sessions

9 Weddings

We traveled approx. 2,165 miles



Places Gronde Photography was published in 2013

Crystal and David's Engagement featured in In Bliss
Crystal and David's Engagement featured in The Bride Link
Kathryn and Nic's Wedding featured in Borrowed and Blue
Kathryn and Nic's Wedding featured in Fit for a Bride
Lauren and Wills Engagement featured in Melissa Hearts Weddings
Lauren and Wills Engagement Featured in Bisou Bride
Marie and Alex's Wedding featured in Savvy Deets Bridal
Marie and Alex's Wedding featured in The Red Dirt Bride
Marie and Alex's Wedding featured in Melissa Hearts Weddings
Lauren and Matt's Wedding featured in My Hotel Wedding
Some of Lauren and Matt's Wedding photos featured on Bridalguide.com
Di and Nates Weddings featured in Rural Bride

Social Media Presence

1,253 Facebook Followers
301 Twitter Followers
17 Google+ Followers

Be sure to add us to all of your social media to make sure you never miss what's going on here!

So here's the good part!!
*SPOILER ALERT*

So, what is our "New Years Resolution" for Gronde Photography?  We have a LOT of things in the works for this coming year.  More than we have ever had planned in the years past!  When we started Gronde Photography we didn't just want to provide you with unforgettable images that would capture your most important memories forever; we also wanted to provide you with the best photography experience you've ever had!  In 2014 we are concentrating on providing you with the most personal, attentive, stress free, amazing service you have ever had from a photographer.  There are tons of photographers out there and many of us have images that are just as good as the other, but it's our service that is going to set us apart.  We're improving everything from our photo sessions pricing and packages to the way we package our products to send to you (some of you have already received the new packaging)!

Starting immediately (for the past few weeks actually) we now accept all major credit cards!  So, one of the ways we kept our cost to you down was by only accepting cash and check.  We were kind of like that gas station you see that is always $.15 cheaper than everyone else but you never see anyone using because they don't accept credit.  Eventually we had to realize that photography, especially wedding photography, is a large expense and not everyone has cash and who uses checks anymore?  We did a LOT of research on the best possible way for companies like us to accept credit cards but do it in a completely secure way!  (Chris having an IT background is very into the security aspect)  So now, although we can still accept cash or check, you can pay via an online invoice we email you or even right on the spot at your consult!  We can accept all major credit cards and we are backed by the most secure mobile payment system out on the market, Paypal.

In early 2014 we are going to start renovations to include a studio space in our home!  It's going to give us a greater range for the possibilities of photos, especially when the weather prevents us from going outside.  It will give us a safe, secure, and consistent environment for newborn sessions if your home doesn't have the space for us to set up our mobile studio.  It will also give us the opportunity to provide a comfortable environment to expand on doing more boudoir sessions without having to use a hotel room or large commercial studio.  And It will also give us a space where wedding clients can come and view samples of products, from wedding albums to canvases, and see what their images look like on large screen and up on a wall rather than just the thumbnails on the online gallery.  We want our clients to be excited to see their images and excited to have products they can show off in their home rather than just a CD of digital images in a drawer somewhere and we want to help you with those decisions. 

We also spent a lot of time redesigning the online gallery to make it simpler and better looking for viewing your photos easier. We made it easier to purchase your favorite print images with the best vendors in the business for long lasting perfect photos. The new event sites will have NO time limit, so no more requesting us to reopen your gallery after it has been live for 90 days.  For our wedding clients, we make it even better by giving your gallery it's very own personalized website domain!  So you will just have to type in something like bridesnameandgroomsname.com and there your pictures will be!  We will be taking down the old event site soon to make way for the new site, so if you have a gallery you still want to order from please let us know so that we can import your photos into the new system.

Our wedding photography is having the biggest transition this year!  New prices and new packages which offer even more than they did in the past.  More packages include a wedding album from a new vendor which is just the absolute best in the business!  We haven't seen another wedding album like these before (and can't wait to order some samples!).  These are albums your grandchildren will be able to flip through like they are brand new!  Every package includes an engagement shoot!  We want you to have that engagement shoot and have that opportunity to have a relaxed fun photo session to tell your love story; whether including a theme of your favorite movie together or go back to the place where you first met or got engaged.  It also gives us a chance to see how you interact and get a chance to know us and our shooting style and see our photos so you are completely at ease on your wedding day, knowing your photography is going to be perfect!  Every package also includes Thank You cards to send to your guests that will feature YOUR photo on it!

Another addition to our wedding service is our new branded welcome packets that Brandy and I have spent SO much time perfecting before their first launch!  Some brides come in knowing exactly what they want in their wedding and exactly how it is going to go from beginning to end, other brides come in and immediately tell us they have no clue where to even begin with planning their wedding.  All they know is they wanted to book their photographer early. (Which is good advice from whoever told them that!!)  So, we put together a packet that is just bursting with great information to make your wedding picture perfect, from information on our FAVORITE vendors to work with, what to wear on your engagement session, whether or not to do a first look, to a checklist of what you should have planned and how to stay on track.  We are still working on the possibility of adding even more information to the packet as the year goes on; as well whether or not to start one for portrait sessions as well! (perhaps a .pdf version?)

This is honestly just a taste of what is to come!  These are just some examples of some of the bigger changes we're making here at Gronde Photography!  Please continue to follow our blog and our newsletter and all of our social media outlets to make sure you are "in the know" of everything going on and please share us with your friends and family!  Especially if you know someone who hasn't had photos of themselves or their family in a long time (or ever!).  Thank you again from the bottom of our hearts for your support in turning our passion into a reality.  Whether you are just a fan of our work or a repeat client!  We couldn't have done any of this without you!  Happy 2014!!  See you soon!

Chris and Brandy

Gronde Photography

{Real Wedding} Lindsey & Jameson - Northern Virginia Wedding Photographers

This was our second back to back Navy wedding at Fort Belvoir.  This particular wedding was extra special for us because in January of this year we photographed the wedding of the Groom's brother, Matt which we absolutely loved!  It is awesome to think that our photos are such a big part of this families lives.  You could tell how much Lindsey and Jameson were completely in love with each other and it showed in every single photo!  They were such an amazing couple to photograph and we loved the fall colors Lindsey chose for their wedding!  One of the most touching moments was when Jameson gave the flower girl, Lindsey's daughter, a ring of her own to make sure she knew that he was not only choosing to be a part of her mom's life, but he chose her as well.  Her face lit up just as much as any girl that has ever been given a ring... especially by a good looking guy in Navy choker whites!  Good luck Lindsey and Jameson!  We hope this is not the last time we take photos for the Puckett family!

{Real Wedding} Rebecca & Brian - Northern Virginia Wedding Photographers

Being Sailors ourselves (both prior and active), it was absolutely wonderful to have the privilege of photographing this wonderful Naval wedding!  Brandy, being active duty, had a difficult time referring to Brian as anything other than 'Sir'; this became an issue during the formal photos when there were many 'Sirs' in the shots ;-) The weather on this day was rather gloomy but the love that these two share was enough to brighten the atmosphere.  We loved the opportunity to try something new with the gazebo and loved the resulting photos!  Congrats Rebecca and Brian; we wish you a long and happy life together. 

{Real Wedding} Melissa & Michael - Northern Virginia Wedding Photographers

We had the pleasure of photographing Melissa and Michael's beautiful sunset wedding this past August (just 6 weeks post baby!).  Their amazing ceremony and reception took place at Rose Hill Manor in Leesburg, Virginia on a warm fall day.  Melissa's Grandfather was supposed to walk her down the aisle on her special day but passed before having the honor.  She made sure to represent him by including his Naval Aviator Wings on her bouquet as she walked the aisle.  After a beautiful ceremony, the guests were greeted by a reception room full of mint and coral accents where they danced the night away.  

Thank you so much for allowing us to be a part of your special day!  You both were a dream to work with!

Gronde Photography: 2012 Year in Review

Happy Belated 2013!

We wanted to start off by saying how humbled we are at the amount of fans we have that appreciate the art that we create for you to enjoy!  Gronde Photography has grown so much over this past year and it is all because of people who appreciate good photography and supporting small business in America as much as you all do.  2012 had some of our absolute favorite weddings we have had the pleasure of photographing, the introduction of our Senior Model Program, and SO many newborns!!  We received our 10th publication and our 1st Magazine Publication!  2012 included:

Feature in Baby Lifestyles Magazine!

Feature on Charm City Wed

Feature on Storyboard Wedding

Feature on The Wedding Atlas

Feature on Savvy Deets Bridal

Feature on Capitol Romance (one of our favorite local wedding blogs) :D

We were also featured on Living Social where we sold 138 one hour photo sessions (which will continue through June 2013).  This has turned out to be quite the double edged sword for our business, but I (Chris) plan on devoting an entire blog post on the ups and downs of this experience as soon as it is all wrapped up.  If you own a small business or have ever bought anything from living social you're going to want to read it. 

2012 included a new website, new marketing materials, and all out rebranding of ourselves so that we, as a business, are more recognizable.

2012 also included reaching over 200 Followers on Twitter and over 1,000 fans on Facebook!

I (Chris) also finished my degree in Photography and began my journey towards a Bachelors of Fine Arts from the Art Institute of Washington.  (This is another thing I plan to blog about).

What does 2013 mean for Gronde Photography?  I'd like to not give the cliché, "It's gonna be our biggest year yet" speech, but we do have big things planned.  I plan to blog WAY more than I did last year!  I would like to set a resolution goal of blogging at least twice a month.  With the way Facebook has changed, only allowing about a third of our fans to see our actual posts, we are going to bring back our monthly newsletter that went on hiatus for a little bit there. (Sign up here if you haven't yet) This way you know you will get all the latest Gronde Photography news, contests, and deals straight to your inbox, just don’t keep them a secret.  Feel free to forward them to friends who might also be interested!

So, what do you guys want to see from us in 2013?  More weddings?  More contests?  Another Boudoir Marathon?  Is there something we don’t offer that you wish we did?  What can we do, to serve you guys better?  Let us know down below!  Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts for taking us to where we are!  And here’s to an awesome new year!

Oh yeah!  The summer of 2013 will also bring about another tiny photo assistant for Gronde Photography!  We thought Aiden needed some help! :D