Album: iPhoto Book Review

The benefit of getting married? Among other things, you don't have to hum and haw over what to get your parents the following holiday season. It's obvious: A photo album. There are so many websites to go through (like Blurb and Snapfish and Shutterfly), but if you have a Mac, you can also order a book directly through iPhoto.

That's what we decided to do. I checked out Blurb (because so many Bees had given it rave reviews), but I was actually scared away by the design process. Instead, I opted for iPhoto's super simple drop-and-drag process. You can customize every page to hold up to four photos and even set it to have just one image bleed off the page. Want to see my favorite layouts?

To be honest, I was pretty disappointed with my first round of orders from iPhoto. The prices were good (about $50 for 32 pages), but when I received the books, there were problems. And the time crunch to send these off before Christmas didn't tame my stress level.

Within a few of the photos, there were random lines. See below:

I e-mailed iPhoto Books (there's no phone number!) and, 24 hours later (the clock was ticking towards Christmas), I got a response. What I found out was that I needed to go to "File" --> "Print" --> "Preview." If I did that process, there would be no lines on my book.

Really? They couldn't tell me this the first time around? I was pretty unhappy, but Apple agreed to refund the shipping from the original order (as I'd had it rushed to get it sent out in time for Christmas), then they remade the books and shipped them overnight for free. I'd say that's pretty good customer service. But not great, because they could've just told me to preview my book the first time.

In the end, the books came out so beautifully and our parents were completely in awe.

We haven't ordered an album for us yet. And I don't think I'll go through iPhoto--I kind of want to invest in a really nice album--but for gifts, these are fantastic. Just remember to "preview" your book before you hit the "order" button.

Where did you get your album? Any good deals out there on professional-quality albums?

Love at The Ranch: The Bride and Groom

Our photographer, Tec Petaja's, strong suit is taking pictures of couples. He's extremely good at taking pictures of everything but he has a way with direction that puts a couple at ease. Or, at least he did for us. After our First Look, we trudged into a nearby field to get some portraits of us. I gave up on holding my dress out of the sticks and let it gather what it may.

In this next one, I was probably closing my eyes because it was bitterly cold and they were starting to water, but it looks like I'm breathing in the moment.

This was another candid moment.

After the field, we switched locations to a pond-side forest nearby.

This next one makes me feel like we were in awe of our surroundings. A magical forest, if you will.

For this next background, we had to crawl under a wooden fence. I scrunched my dress up as best as possible.

The paparazzi were also on call that day. They caught us down in the field while we were getting our portraits taken.

Photo by Tim Carr

How did we get here?

First, Mr. CB and I road-tripped it to Boulder, CO.

Then, I spent a peaceful morning with my bridesmaids and maids-of-honor.
Followed by a rowdy bachelorette party that night.
The next morning, two days before the wedding, we fought.
Then, we made up.

On Saturday, Mr. CB recuperated from his bachelor party while I hiked with friends.

Until evening, when we celebrated our rehearsal dinner.

Sunday Morning: The girls got ready.

And the guys got ready too.

Mr. CB and I had our First Look.

Budget Breakdown: Bouquets and Bouts.

**All images above by the ridiculously talented and awesome Tec Petaja, unless otherwise noted. Head to his blog for some serious eye candy.**

Love at The Ranch: The First Look

Running about 15 minutes behind schedule, it was time for our first look. We hadn't made a plan for where this was going to take place so we ended up right out in front of the two cabins the girls and guys were getting ready in, respectively. This was fine, although it felt a little less private than I'd hoped because both cabins were full of bridesmaids and groomsmen peering out at us.

That all fell away, though, very quickly. I came out first and waited for him.

I gave myself one more glance, reminded that I was finally a bride and made sure everything looked as I'd planned. When you're getting ready, you only have so much time in front of the mirror to really enjoy the look you've been planning for a long time.


Then Mr. CB made his way towards me from his cabin. Some of the groomsmen watched from the patio.

I got incredibly giggly and embarrassed when I saw him coming. I embodied "the blushing bride."

We walked towards each other because I couldn't stand just waiting for him.

We embraced.

He gave me a once-over and loved it. I think he was being shy knowing there were people watching us.

Then we made our way towards the road so we could start taking portraits. The next hour and a half was slotted for shots of us, our bridal party, and family. What's shocking is that, even with that much time, we didn't get close to shooting any family. You seriously have to plan for two-and-a-half to three hours of shooting to get all of those pictures taken.

Why a first look? Mr. CB and I came up with several reasons we decided to break tradition.

• We wanted to take pictures before my make-up resembled KISS from crying at the ceremony and while we still looked fresh from getting ready.

• We didn't want to miss our cocktail hour--we wanted to enjoy the beverages and appetizers and company for the duration of the wedding.

• We aren't superstitious and I still felt like I got to see his "face" of seeing his bride for the first time.
  

• The first look was planned well before the day but as it turned out, raindrops started immediately after our ceremony and would have overshadowed any chance of taking outdoor pictures afterward.

Will you be having a First Look?

How did we get here?

First, Mr. CB and I road-tripped it to Boulder, CO.

Then, I spent a peaceful morning with my bridesmaids and maids-of-honor.
Followed by a rowdy bachelorette party that night.
The next morning, two days before the wedding, we fought.
Then, we made up.

On Saturday, Mr. CB recuperated from his bachelor party while I hiked with friends.

Until evening, when we celebrated our rehearsal dinner.

Sunday Morning: The girls got ready.
And the guys got ready too.

**All images above by the ridiculously talented and awesome Tec Petaja, unless otherwise noted. Head to his blog for some serious eye candy.**