Posts Tagged ‘wedding photographer’
Monday, November 22nd, 2010
Ok if you guys who voted to have more photography tips want to see these posts continue you better leave us some comment love (down at the bottom) and let us know what kind of tips you want to know about! Ask anything we’ll answer!
I decided that I wanted to write today about shooting in……………manual mode!!!!
This single tip will totally change your photography and allow you more freedom…..I promise! It may seem hard at first and you may get frustrated but just keep trying, it’s worth it.
First of all lets say you are trying to shoot facing the sun with your subject facing you. If you are shooting in aperture priority and meter on his face it will be pretty dark and your background will be perfectly lit, however if you shot in manual you would have more control and your face could be well exposed leaving your background much lighter (around here those are the yummy images!!!) Backlighting is what this is really called….just so you know I hate using technical terms so get over it if you are reading this and are super technical….maybe you should check out someone else’s photography tips. Around here I like to keep it simple because that’s how I learned and have helped others.
I’m not really going to go into a whole variety of other sorts of lighting situations (mostly bc I don’t have any pictures to back up my case) but just trust me when I say shoot manual. Those light dreamy pictures we get around here at Erika Dotson Photography….definitely shot in manual mode.
My biggest piece of advice for shooting manual……get out there and PRACTICE!!!! All the reading in the world will never make you a good photographer, get your but out from in front of the computer and go shoot! Try to shoot in different lighting situations too! Since photography is all about light…..try out shooting under that big oak tree at noon, out in a wide open field at sunset, how about under the porch at dusk? Just practice and make sure you practice all sorts of different lighting situations to the point where you can walk to a spot and within a few changes know what settings you should be at.
Yes I have a LARGE soap box about shooting in manual mode! I could go on all day long about it. There’s a reason the best photographers shoot in manual (period).
I hope you enjoy!
-erika
Tags: camera tips, different lighting situations, erika dotson, erika dotson photography, how to shoot in manual, light, lighting situations, manual shooting, NW Arkansas Photographer, Photography Tips, tips want, tips wnat, wedding photographer
Posted in For Photographers | No Comments »
Monday, October 18th, 2010
If you are a facebook fan of ours (if you aren’t you should be sure to go look us up!!! ) you most likely noticed that I made a post of how pathetic I thought it was that my parents don’t have good pictures of themselves and I am a professional photographer…….problem solved!
Introducing my parents! :) I know they will be so excited!!! ha ha ha ha ha ha
I might be just a bit biased but I think my mom is beautiful! :)
One thing I’ve learned from my parents is that as husband and wife it’s important to show affection to one another in front of your kids. The reason I think this is so important is because it proved to me that my parents loved each other! Simple as it may sound I know several couples that don’t show affection to one another and you wonder….. Thanks you two!
My stepdad (AKA “Papa” which is short for “Papa Coach”) was so proud of his Jack Purcell’s which is pretty much an old school version of our Converse. In fact he special ordered these to wear to his 50 year high school reunion! Mom said he wasn’t going to wear them unless the tip was navy blue color! Wow talk about exact!
This I think is my favorite shot of the day! My mom looks great!
LOVE!
I hope you two had fun on our little session! I know it was a memory making experience! I just want to say thank you so much for being great parents for me and also grandparents for little Titan! I’m so proud of you mom for going back to school! You really are amazing! I love you guys so much!
Enjoy!
-erika
Tags: anniversary session, arkansas anniversary photographer, dawn shoemaker, erika and liz, erika dorie photography, erika dorie simmons, erika dotson, erika dotson photography, erikaliz photography, fayetteville ar, fayetteville portrait photographer, lake fayetteville, leland laybe, leland layne, nw arkansas portrait photographer, wedding photographer
Posted in Couples | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, October 6th, 2010
This segment of the What to Wear Wednesdays series I decided to focus on weddings. The goal in writing features like this is first to give our awesome readers ideas for their weddings, portrait sessions, life, pretty much anything and secondly to inform and teach! Today I will focus mostly on teaching. Too many times I’ve been brides with a dress on that just doesn’t quite match the style of her wedding. Or for instance the other day I was watching Say Yes To The Dress (are you really surprised?) and the gal was having a destination wedding in Jamaica but was trying on a ball gown dress on?!?!?!??! REALLY? Your dress should play a huge roll in the spirit of your wedding day. Nothing says beach wedding like a loose flowy gown to me…….my last thought was a form fitted stuffy and poofy ball gown? So in my efforts today I tried to give you a theme and a color palette along with a coordinating dress.
Got any ideas for something you’d like to see us feature in What to Wear? Comment below we’d LOVE to hear from you!!!!
Enjoy!
-erika
Tags: Arkansas portrait photographer, arkansas wedding photographer, bridal gowns, color palettes, dallas wedding photographer, destination wedding photographer, edp, erika dotson, erika dotson photography, fayetteville wedding photographer, female wedding photographer, fort smith wedding photographer, jcrew, jcrew weddings, lds wedding photographer, little rock wedding photographer, lousianna wedding photographer, mena wedding photographer, missouri wedding photographer, nwa wedding photographer, okc wedding photographer, oklahoma city wedding photographer, oklahoma wedding photographer, portrait photographer, say yes to the dress, st louis wedding photographer, style boards, temple wedding photographer, tulsa wedding photographer, wedding day dresses, wedding day what to wear, wedding dresses, wedding photographer, wedding photography, wedding style, wedding themes, what to wear, what to wear on your wedding day
Posted in Weddings | No Comments »
Saturday, September 25th, 2010
I just love anything Martha Stewart does!!! She’s amazing! So Saturday’s I decided to go find something cool and totally steal it, write what I think about it, and let you go check it out! :)
Oh I’m a huge DIY (do it yourself) fan!!! Read more
I’ve seen old photos of parents’ wedding days more and more at recent weddings so I thought I’d add to that with something a bit more visually interesting than frames sitting on a table. Read more.
Linens are expensive and boring, so try out some wrapping paper! Pretty sure you could make everything way more customized! Read more.
I just want to emphasize how much the tiny details really do matter! This is just an ordinary drink station but look how adorable it is with the right touches!!! Read more.
Enjoy!
-erika
Tags: arkansas wedding photographer, cute wedding ideas, diy wedding projects, Donnally Campbell, drink station, erika, erika dotson, erika dotson photography, erika liz, erika liz photography, hawaii wedding photographer, lemondae, little rock wedding photographer, martha stewart weddings, missouri wedding photographer, oklahoma wedding photographer, old photos, Steals, texas wedding photographer, tree, vintage photos, wedding lemonaide, wedding photographer, wrapping paper
Posted in Inspiration | No Comments »
Monday, August 2nd, 2010
Claire and Aaron were wed in Jamaica but also chose to have a service here in Arkansas as well for those who couldn’t attend their Jamaican wedding but also decided to do so out of tradition! Apparently there has been a long standing tradition in Aaron’s family about getting married in the bay window at their parents historical home and having your marriage last, I think I’d get hitched in the bay window too if I were them! They had such a beautiful ceremony and reception here in Fayetteville, I was so glad that I was able to attend this one after working so closely with this couple!
Caterer: Whole Hog
Party Rentals: Eventures
Cake: Shelby Lynn’s
Florals: J Renee Floral Design
Hair: Sarah Faye Burnett at Black Sheep Salon
Photography: Erika Dotson Photography
Enjoy!
-erika
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Posted in Weddings | 1 Comment »
Friday, July 30th, 2010
Today is going to be my day! Well technically I’ll have to share with Baby Dotson and my husband too but we’re having maternity pictures taken today! I’m pretty excited! Do you remember Ruthie? She won a free mini session well low and behold she’s a rising star in the photography world around here and she has asked if we wanted to do some maternity photos with her! Thanks so much Ruthie! So that’s what we’re up to today.
I did want to post a few teasers of things I’ve been working on recently though! Everything from Conway weddings to Huntsville Seniors.
Meet Tanja and David (you should already be familiar with Tanja she’s a retired associate photographer here at Erika Dotson Photography). I’m so excited about their upcoming wedding……you know why? Well she’s retired because she moved to England to be with David so that means I’ll be going to England next summer! You’d be excited too! We’re working on their engagement session…..lot’s of yummy pictures to come!
Meet Ally. She’s going to be a Senior this year at Huntsville High School. Sorry boys she’s taken! Ally is my brother in law’s girlfriend and she’s such a sweetheart!
So now we’ve gotta meet Andy (my brother in law) yes girls he’s taken by the sweet gal above, so sorry! :) He’s also a Huntsville High Senior this year! I’m so excited for him! I’ll save all my sappiness for when I make his post later! But for now Congrats and we’re cheering you on this year!
Next up is Sarah and Ryan O’Callaghan! They were married in Springfield, Missouri a few weeks back. Sarah and I attended U of A together in the Dietetics program a few years ago. Ryan is an LSU Tiger so they’ve got some work cut out for them, in fact if I remember right the Tigers and the Razorbacks were playing each other while we were in the middle of our engagement session and we stopped off Dickson St to change and Ryan peered through the window of a bar to keep updated on the score! They are such an adorable couple and I was so excited when Sarah called an announced her engagement! Stay tuned we’ve got some exciting images coming!
And finally Ashley and Jim! They had the best wedding party I’ve been too in a long time! I’m not even kidding you their band came from Memphis and ROCKED THE HOUSE!!!! If anyone is looking for an AMAZING live band you have got to check out The Fabulous Steeler Band! I’m excited about posting all the beautiful details of their wedding!!!
Now I’m off to go enjoy my day and get ready for my time to shine! ha ha
Enjoy!
-erika
Tags: arkansas senior portraits, arkansas wedding photographer, arkansas wedding photography, arkansas weddings, conway wedding photographer, conway wedding photography, conway weddings, destination engagement photographer, destination engagement photography, destination engagements, destination wedding photographer, destination wedding photography, destination wedding photos, destination weddings, england engagement photography, england wedding photography, fayetteville ar engagement photographer, fayetteville arkansas photography, fayetteville engagement photography, huntsville ar senior portraits, huntsville high school senior portraits, huntsville portrait photography, huntsville portraits, little rock engagement photography, little rock wedding photographer, little rock wedding photography, little rock weddings, missouri wedding photographer, missouri wedding photography, missouri weddings, senior portrait photographer, senior portraits, springfield wedding photographer, springfield wedding photography, springfield weddings, wedding photographer, wedding photography, Weddings
Posted in Portraits, Weddings | 3 Comments »
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Hey there ladies and gents! :) Claire and Aaron were also married on Father’s Day just like another one of my latest wedding couples! How in the world did we manage that? Well in case you didn’t know we’ve got ourselves a little staff over here at Erika Dotson Photography and even if your wedding day is already booked with us we can still accommodate you! :) That makes us all happy right?!?!!?
I met Claire and Aaron for the first time at Panera Bread where her Father slipped in and paid for everyone’s meal right under my nose! Thanks Claire’s dad! When we originally met it was known that they were going to get married at Sandals and that a photographer came with their wedding package, well apparently Claire and Aaron didn’t like the idea of not hiring their own photographer…….we bent the rules just a bit. It was made known that if you had a friend that also happened to take pictures they would be allowed to shoot during the wedding as well. So that’s just what we decided to do become “Best Friends”!!! Well later down the road we found out we would be having a baby and that I wouldn’t be able to travel to Jamaica….. 
as you can imagine I was bummed! But Tanja was lucky enough to get to go and capture some amazing photos for them! Claire and Aaron are such a sweet couple and it’s been really fun to get to know them as a couple and as individuals! We wish you the best together for many happy years!
This will be part one of Claire and Aaron’s wedding photos……
See what she had to say (she’s already gotten to see all these Jamaica ones!):
“I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE our pictures!! I am so excited to get them. Thank you so much! I cant wait to see more… let me know what all i need to do!!” - Claire Williams
We’ll start as always with some getting ready shots! I love these!
“Something Old”
I love this dress shot!
These monogrammed robes are a super cute idea for your bridesmaids! SPA time!!!!
What a beautiful day!!!!
Yes they brought this sand all the way back to Arkansas……how awesome is that!?!!?!?
I love how the officiant is clapping! It makes me happy to see his huge grin while they seal it with a kiss!
LOVE!
She caught this while they were waiting around for the sunset for some beautiful couple portraits coming up!
Love this angle and the coloring!
This may just be my favorite shot of the whole day!
Yummy sunset lighting!
Gorgeous girl!
Adorable…..again.
I just love the simplicity of this cake…….it helps too that orchids are my favorite!
The look on Aaron’s face is priceless to me, he adores her and you can see it here!
Claire and her Father have a pretty close relationship I’ve learned, that’s why I love this image!
Keep posted for more images from Claire and Aaron’s ceremony here in Fayetteville!
Enjoy!
-erika
Tags: arkansas photographer, arkansas weddings, destination wedding photographer, destination wedding photography, destination weddings, erika, erika dotson, erika dotson photography, jamaica wedding photographer, jamaica wedding photography, jamaica weddings, mexico wedding photographer, mexico wedding photography, mexico weddings, sandals wedding photography, sandals weddings, south america wedding photographer, south america wedding photography, south america weddings, wedding photogarpher, wedding photographer, wedding photography, Weddings
Posted in Weddings | No Comments »
Monday, July 19th, 2010
A few months ago KNWA’s special projects team called me up and asked if I would like to participate in something that totally sounded awesome to me. They are GIVING away a DREAM WEDDING to one lucky couple in our area! How awesome is that?
If you knew from our last Bridal Fair in September 2009 I gave away a free wedding package to Alyssa and Seth who were recently married on Father’s Day! So I immediately jumped on the train at this opportunity!!!
As far as photography is concerned they will be highlighting three photographers: Erika Dotson Photography along with Dale Benfield and David Manning. I have yet to meet David (I have probably seen him in passing and haven’t realized it though!) but I’ve checked out his work and it’s pretty cool. As for Dale he’s pretty awesome if you haven’t met him yet, he’s super friendly and willing to help everyone!
This should be a fun contest so if you are interested go register and vote! Be sure to read the info page first (this contest has certain requirements).
If you just want to check out the submissions you can do that to!
Enjoy and Good Luck!
-erika
Tags: alyssa and seth, arkansas contest, arkansas photographers, arkansas wedding photographer, arkansas weddings, contest, Contests, erika dotson, erika dotson photography, free photography, free wedding photography, KNWA, knwa contest, knwa free wedding, KNWA Throws a Wedding, knwa weddings, wedding contest, wedding photographer
Posted in Weddings | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010
Hey everyone as promised I am posting more images from Cristy and John’s sealing in the Draper Utah Temple! I got to tag along with Doug Larson their Utah Wedding Videographer and he showed me all the hot spots at the temple grounds. Cristy and John had so much family and friends there to support them and witness their beautiful sealing! The weather was perfect, other than being a tad on the cold side (but no one can tell that from pictures! :) Cristy and John are such a beautiful couple inside and out and I’m pretty sure someone has got big plans for them while they are here!!! After their sealing they attended their reception held at John’s parents house in Heber City. Their family did lots of work preparing for the reception and it looked great! Congratulations Cristy and John!
I just love how happy they are in this shot!!! Exactly how they should be after leaving the temple! 
I love how John steals one from Cristy to show off for the camera! :) Shots like this make me smile! 
Beautiful couple at a beautiful temple! 
This is definitely my favorite shot of the day! 
I just love the lighting in this little nook! The warm glow from those doors is amazing! 
Here’s the famous cupcakes! All of John’s sister in laws spent the entire day creating these beautiful little cupcakes so I had to give them justice and feature them on the blog!
So who would have thought this old rusty chair that I spotted outside would make the perfect backdrop for Cristy’s bouquet? 
Or how about a tree stump to provide such a detailed ring shot? 
I love how happy everyone is in this photo as the couple enjoys their first dance together. 
This image is priceless to me…..it’s as if John has had a moment to really stop and think as he holds his new wife close. I can see so much love and care for her here. 
Let’s end with this playful shot of dad and son making sure they “get” the new couple as they make their get a way!
Enjoy!
-erika
Tags: arkansas wedding photographer, arkansas weddings, beautiful couple, creative wedding photographer, cristy and john pearson, destination wedding, destination wedding photographer, destination weddings, dodson photography, dotson, draper wedding, draper wedding photographer, draper weddings, erica dotson, erica dotson photography, erika, erika and liz, erika dodson photography, erika dorie dotson, erika dotson, erika dotson photography, erika dotson photogrpahy, erika liz photography, erika simmons, erikadorie photography, erikaliz photography, eureka springs wedding, eureka springs wedding photographer, fayetteville wedding photographer, little rock, little rock wedding, little rock wedding photographer, little rock weddings, nauvoo wedding, nauvoo wedding photographer, nauvoo weddings, oklahoma city wedding, oklahoma city wedding photographer, photographer for my wedding, temple wedding, temple wedding photographer, temple weddings, tulsa wedding, tulsa wedding photographer, tulsa weddings, unique photography, unique wedding photos, utah wedding, utah wedding photographer, utah weddings, wedding photographer, wedding photography, Weddings
Posted in Weddings | No Comments »
Thursday, March 18th, 2010
Hey everyone I was pretty stoked about shooting Kelly and Adam’s wedding at Devil’s Den last weekend. It was such a gloomy day to start out and I was nervous but just in time the sky cleared out for them! It’s funny that always seems to happen for us on wedding days! :) Kelly and Adam live out at Devil’s Den since Adam works there. It’s such a beautiful place to visit. Both of their families drove all the way from Jonesboro the day before and experienced the cabin life. It was an intimate but gorgeous wedding. Julie from Jules Design provided these really cool trees to put at the ceremony location, she also provided the awesome floral arrangements. She’s amazing with the flowers! They decided to take an hour before the ceremony to capture some couple portraits together, which if you’ve got the time I totally recommend! We got lots of yummy pictures of them together! Then it was time for the ceremony. Her daddy walked her down the aisle that was sprinkled with dirt, pine needles, and gumballs! :) Then they reached all the rocks that Kelly graciously crossed to her new groom. It was a very sweet and simple ceremony surrounded by the most important people in Kelly and Adam’s lives. We then caught some quick pictures of their cake from Rick’s Bakery and then they were off to go enjoy dinner with their family. I was so grateful to have the opportunity to help them remember their special day. Kelly and Adam truly are wonderful individuals and they compliment each other so well. I know they’ll be together for many many years. It was so cute to watch how concerned Adam was for his new bride as she made her way in a gorgeous wedding dress across all those rocks. What a cutie. And I can’t forget how many times Kelly told us she wasn’t photogenic……………what?!?!?!?!?!? KELLY you are totally HOTT!!! :)
Congratulations you two and we wish you the best!
Meet totally HOTT Kelly! :)
Meet the handsome groom Adam.
This beautiful shot was captured by Tanja.
Totally laid on the ground below them to get this shot! Awesome.
Aren’t they just adorable?
I’m pretty sure this is my favorite image from the entire day!
Told you Jules Design was amazing….. :)
This is another favorite! So hard to decide.
I’m not sure if there’s a more beautiful place in the world to get married……
Doesn’t “THE” kiss make it all official?
She seems pleased. :)
Enjoy!
-erika
Tags: arkansas state parks, arkansas wedding photography, bentonville wedding photography, dallas wedding photography, devils den, Devils den wedding photography, erica dodson, erica dotson, erika and liz, erika dodson, erika dorie, erika dorie dotson, erika dorie simmons, erika dotson, erika liz photography, erikalizphotography, eureka springs wedding photography, fayetteville wedding photography, intimate wedding photography, joplin wedding photography, little rock wedding photography, mena wedding photography, missouri wedding photography, oklahoma city wedding photography, outdoor wedding photography, rogers wedding photography, springdale wedding photography, tulsa wedding photography, vintage wedding photography, wedding photographer, wedding photography
Posted in Weddings | 2 Comments »
