Captured Productions

How will you remember your wedding day?

How will you remember your wedding day?  A very important question every couple should ask themselves. Photography?...there is no better way to grab an emotion and freeze it in time...a must and a great way to have beautiful art from your wedding day that will live on for generations.  Cinematography?...there is no better way to relive the sight and sounds from one of the most important days of your life and then be able to share it with your kids years down the road.  I often tell my potential clients to imagine if they were able to watch the wedding day of their parents or even grand parents, and hear their vows and watch them so young and in love...how great would that be?

Well a couple weeks ago I got the privilege to edit together a short montage of a wedding day filmed in 1959.  Watching the couple in motion I was again struck with the power of video.  Imagine if they opted to not have their wedding day filmed to later watch at their 50th anniversary party, sitting with their kids and grand kids.

Fortunately, due to the amazing talent that is available as well as the publicity wedding cinematography has received on blogs and the web, we are seeing more and more couples understand the power of video.  Here is the montage that was created for this couple for their 50th anniversary...we love that we create a wedding movie every week that 50 years down the road will be viewed by the couples kids and grand kids to watch how it all got started.

Captured Productions - Click to play

The Day That Changed My Perspective

One year ago Renee' & I were out to dinner with our parents enjoying the evening while the kids were at home with our baby sitter.  At dinner we got a call from our babysitter that she saw some smoke coming out of our upstairs bathroom vent and that she got everyone outside and called 911. Needless to say we moved quickly to get back home.  On our way down our street we saw 4 fire engines, fire hoses across the street and a lot of fire fighters....reality began to sink in.  Unable to get down the street we parked and quickly walked to our home along with half of our neighborhood.  There we were met with our kids and babysitter....although we knew they were safe, it was great to see their faces.  You can see more about that day on our blog post Counting Our Blessings.

It is amazing how something like that can change your perspective on life.  As important as our house and all that is in it, including our studio, and decades of memories, it is amazing how it paled in comparison to seeing our children walking down the sidewalk towards us.  Those next couple of months were a blur of remote living with 4 kids including a 2 week old, insurance claims, moving out of our house, and moving back in.  With all of the stress and inconvenience behind us, we are so grateful that all it was, was inconvenience that would soon be over.  With the source of the fire being wiring smoldering in insulation, we were only hours away from going to bed with the unknown burning in the attic above us.

In hindsight it is all like a bad dream...still a little shooken up but our family and life being intact. I am eternally grateful to God for sparing us from so much worse than inconvenience.  All's well that ends well, a couple months later we created Lauren's First Video (a tradition for us with all of our kids), we didn't plan the story to play out that way, but it serves as a constant reminder of what God spared us from and what a beautiful gift Lauren was, the calm in the middle of our storm (Lauren's First Video).

Yana + Brannon + St Joe

Friends of ours grew up in St. Joseph, MI and always talk about how beautiful it is down there.  I have only seen St. Joe from a train on the way to Chicago or stopping by on our way to a vineyard wedding.  What a beautiful location for a wedding and of course we couldn't argue with the day...beautiful blue skies with puffy white clouds.  Of course it didn't hurt that Jessica Pennington of Stella Event Design was there to make Yana & Brannon's wedding day a reality.  After watching the amount of work that coordinators do just on the wedding day to ensure all goes perfectly, it is hard to image how couples do it with out a wedding coordinator.

Yana & Brannon got married under Shadowland Pavilion and wanted to give it a warmer feeling so Jessica worked with Michael Angelo's to create an environment out of pink fabric.  The ceremony site was right on the chanel and right off of Lake Michigan, a beautiful backdrop to a gorgeous ceremony.  We shot along side Cindy Corstange of The Open Shutter.  We had a great time walking down the beach and boardwalk looking for the perfect location, which seemed to be at every turn.  I loved Cindy's energy and how she took on the day. Later I learned that this was her third wedding that weekend...wow, give me a shot of what she has....impressive.

During the wedding preparation I got a chance to hang out with Brannon while he was waiting...which is a typical preceremony tradition for grooms.  Brannon talked about how he wanted to be more than just a wedding day where people came and left.  So they planned a weekend with their guests, including a day at the beach, wave runners, food, drinks, and a roof party downtown St. Joe....sign me up....and that was before the wedding day.  Brannon & Yana truly enjoyed their wedding day and the time they spent with their closest friends and family, and it truly showed in the footage we captured from the day.  Until the release of their wedding movie, here is a sneak peek at Yana & Brannon's wedding movie.

Full Service Event Planning: Stella Event Design
Event Decor: Michael Angelo's
Florist: Bloomie's
Ceremony: Shadowland Pavilion
Photography: The Open Shutter
Reception: The Heritage Center
Catering: Bistro at the Boulevard

My First Wedding....

...well okay maybe not my first wedding since we have been filming weddings since 2000, but this was my first wedding where I shot camera two...and it wasn't a video camera.  It is a good thing that I was accompanied by my super talented wife of Captured Photography.  After shooting weddings with me for the past 9 years and being a photographer since high school, she has finally decided to offer wedding photography as well.  This was her third wedding and she has several more on the books for 2009.  I have a feeling I will be shooting second camera for her on my "weekends off", especially after the amazing images that I captured.  It is hard to tell which ones were mine, but if you like them, I am sure they were mine ;-)   I also learned that videographers are used to shooting at 30 frames a second and I shoot near that photographing this wedding....sorry hon for all the extra work....and thanks for letting me steal your blog post.  I am a big fan and love your work.  If I were to do it all over again, I would have you photography my wedding....okay, maybe that wouldn't work out too well :-|

 

 

It was getting so hot and to cool off Lindsay was twirling... I thought she looked so cute!

 

 

Look Who is ONE!

My beautiful, sweet, sweet Lauren... is ONE.  I really cannot believe how fast this past year flew!!  Lauren is such a good baby.  She likes to be held...  but is very content otherwise!  She just sits back and takes in all the activity around her.  It was only yesterday that she began crawling!!  I haven't minded her laid back nature one bit.  She is a joy and we all adore her... it is so sweet to see how the kids fight over who gets to go in her room to get her when she wakes up.  She certainly is the center of our little home and we are so excited to celebrate her One Year birthday!  We love you little Lauren and are excited to see how God is going to use you for His purposes and His glory.  Happy birthday.

Her Splits... crack us up... it is pretty impressive too...

 

 

Trashing it on the Farm

I remember Stephanie saying at the end of her wedding, as we were walking around downtown getting some great night shots,"I'll give you a call, we're gonna trash the dress this summer".  I remember thinking, I like the way she thinks....

Well a couple of weeks ago we did just that.  I traveled down to Dowagiac (a fun word to say, but not so much to spell), and we trashed it at Silverstone Farms, Matt's family's farm.  There are tons of reasons why brides decide to trash the dress and I could tell Stephanie's reason was just to have fun, and fun we did.

Not sure what we would find on the farm, I was glad we had an assortment of unexpected items to work with; an overturned car, tractors, manure shredder, a derby car, a swamp (I guess 50F ruled that out), and tons of farming equipment.  I love how Stephanie was able to be herself and have tons of fun with the shoot, and I love how Matt escorted us around to all of the various locations, he was probably a bit nervous that we would become the next overturned car.

It was great to shoot along side Tim Motley of Motley Cat Studios again.  He definitely has a passion for what he does.  You can check out his TTD images here.

Stephanie, thanks for having me do this, I had a great time!  Matt & Stephanie, you definitely have it "going on".

Captured Productions - Click to play

Jordan "Picasso" Turns 7!

I am so excited with the way that Jordan's video turned out.  I have to say I had my doubts at first, but with Renee's brilliant idea and an amazingly cute boy who loves to ham it up for the camera, we have success!  Jordan's movie was also inspired by the movie "August Rush", which is fitting since music is another one of Jordan's passions.  In the words of Jordan, "this is AWESOME!"...I couldn't agree more.

Jordan, you are truly one unique kid, to quote your grandpa Deckrow, "I am not sure what makes you tick".  Like you have said many times, Jesus has a big plan for my life, all I have to do is ask him what it is and he will show me.  Well, I can't wait to see all that He has in store for you my little buddy, and I am excited to be a part of that journey with you.  Your humility and love for life is evident.  You are definitely one of a kind...and you rock!  Thanks for producing your movie with me, you definitely had A LOT of input.  You are the coolest 7 year old around.  Happy Birthday "Jordan Picasso".  I love you!  -Dad

Captured Productions - Click to play

Jordan Picasso....Coming Soon!

One of the biggest holidays are coming up...at least in Jordan's eyes...his birthday.  Ever since Christmas, he has been asking me how many more days until his birthday...I am so glad "they have an app for that"...172 more days Jordan.

Ever since I started creating movies for others, I promised Renee' that I would never get too busy to create them of our kids.  I can't say I have not gotten too busy to create them, but I have found a way to continue to create them throughout the years...I'm not doing anything from 1AM to 6AM anyways right?

Each year Jordan has a theme for his birthday party, usually chosen 6 months in advance.  With every theme we try tie it to his annual birthday video and show it at the party or send it as a DVD invitation.  In the past it has been, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and this year he threw us a curve ball, "Dad, this year I want an art party".  Wow, an art party, how do you create a video about art.  I gave it a few months to sink in...still nothing...what if it was only 30 seconds long?...still nothing.  In his past movies Jordan has played the part of Jordan Skywalker and Indiana Jordan.  I asked Jordan, "what should we call this movie", he replied "Jordan Picasso", in his best French accent.  At least now we have a title, which was very fitting since that has been Jordan's nick name ever since he was 2 and he colored the neighbor boys entire face blue and his own countless times.  Jordan has always loved art, and if you ask him what he is going to be when grows up, he will confidently say, "an artist".  Okay, an artist video it is for sure now, but I still don't have a clue what it looks like.

Renee' & I started brainstorming the idea together...and leave it up to Renee' to come up with the most brilliant idea.  I can't give away all the details yet but it involves nature, a very creative boy and A LOT of paint.  The video will debut right here on this blog on June 3rd, in time for his June 22nd birthday.  Until then, here is a shot from behind the scenes of "Jordan Picasso"

Other Recent Deckrow Videos:

1. Lauren's First Video - Safe in my Arms
2. Ethan's 8 Year Old Video - Skate....Ethan Turns 8!
3. Lindsey's 2 Year Old Video - Something Beautiful
4. Lindsey's Outtakes
5. Jordan's 6 Year Old Video - Indiana Jordan
6. Jordan's 5 Year Old Video - Everyday Superhero
7. Jordan's Outakes
8. Lindsey's First Video

Share Your Story - DVD Wedding Invitations

Well hats off to Josh and Kaylie for stepping outside the box and working with us to create a truly unique wedding invitation for their upcoming wedding.  It started with Kaylie asking..."what do you think about creating a DVD wedding invitation......to this!  The amazing photos were shot and edited by none other than Sara from sara anthony photography.

Picture this....you send out 100's of invitations to your big day and instead of getting an expected normal invitation, you open the envelope and pull out this....

...after you untie the bow...... (great colors by the way Kaylie).... there is their engagement photo by sara anthony photography.....

...and the best part (in my opinion) their invitation & DVD....
 

...pop the DVD into your DVD player or computer....and witness not only Josh's proposal, but also a fun story of how they met, ending with an invite to join them for the rest of their story on their wedding day....

....now sit back and enjoy how Josh & Kaylie met....oh and tell all of your friends getting married about this super cool idea....

Captured Productions - Click to play

The New Face of CP

If something happens and you don't blog about it....did it really happen?  Well in our case it did.  Early this year we have been working with Michael of Holy Cow Creative on a new look and logo for Captured Productions, and we are just now blogging about it.  We have been able to incorporate it into our multiple lines of Captured Productions.  Shown here is our new logo for CP Wedding Films.  I have to admit I love the new look and look forward to showing it off.  We have already started on our website, facebook page, and now our blog.

A Super Cool Idea.....Coming Soon!

So Josh & Kaylie are getting getting married this April.  They not only had their proposal captured on video, but they wanted to share their story with their guests, not at the reception like often is the case, but as part of their invitation. Yes, we created our first DVD invitation. I have to admit, I was nervous at first because I didn't want it to be corny.....you know you don't just mess with a brides invitation that is going to hundreds of her closest friends and family.  Well the good news is that it turned out great and the presentation was better than I could have ever hoped for......the bad news is that I have not received the green light to show it online until the official invitations go out, which I hear is this week.  So stay tuned for more on this super cool idea to use video to share your story with your friends and family in a unique way that is sure to stand out.

An Amazing Proposal.....Undercover

We are all about telling stories....most of the time they are wedding stories but from time to time we get to tell a little more of the story, no not their "Love Story", their engagement story.  All good engagements begin with "The Proposal".  If you are like Amanda you see the importance of having that part of the story captured.  Amanda went as far as making it a requirement of engagement.  Yes, you heard me, Matt ran the risk of rejection on one knee if there was not photo and video documentation of the big question.  Well, Matt not only lived up to having it all captured, but you raised the bar for any guy.

So any of you brides to be out there with engagement around the corner, take a tip from Amanda and make sure your engagement story is captured as well as your wedding story.

Well enough of my introduction....Matt says it all in his proposal to Amanda at the Grand Traverse Resort in Traverse City, MI....

Captured Productions - Click to play

This post wouldn't be complete without showing off the images captured by my very talented wife Renee' of Captured Photography.  Check out more of her work at http://www.capturedphotographyart.com or her blog at http://capturedproductions.typepad.com/cp_photography.

So many things to be thankful for, here is just one.....

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy your many blessings!

Chad & Amy's Rock Star Wedding

This past October we had the opportunity to film Chad & Amy's wedding day.  You couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day.  Chad, Amy, & their wedding party knew how to have a great time.  This was the first time we shot along side of Amy of Amy Carroll Photography.  Amy was tons of fun to shoot with, she totally caught the fun and attitude of Chad & Amy.  Finding a photographer that fits your style is very important when capturing your day.  Wait until you see some of the images Amy captured of the day and posted on her blog.  ....oh and she even caught me in action....[here]

It was a day of firsts, we also got to film a wedding coordinated by Aletha of Pearls Events.  Aletha has one of the best blogs out there, dedicated to creating an amazing wedding.  She covers unique and creative ideas for your wedding day, a wide variety of wedding professionals, etiquette as well as many other wedding related topics.  Once you visit her blog you will be addicted and will finding yourself checking back daily since she is constantly posting to her blog.  Aletha was great to work with and we look forward to filming another one of Aletha's planned weddings.

After Chad & Amy's ceremony Amy & I went downtown Grand Haven to get some great shots of them and their wedding party being themselves.  They definitely know how to have fun and I enjoyed capturing it all.  Check out some of the footage we got between their Ceremony & Reception....too much fun!  Thanks Amy & Chad for allowing us to be a part of your day and making it so much fun.  We can't wait to share more with you.

Captured Productions - Click to play

Wedding Consultant & Coordinator: Pearls Events
Transportation: Grand Rapids Trolley Co.
Florist: Shelly's Designs
Ceremony: St. Patrick's Church
Reception: Camp Blodgett
Photography: Amy Carroll Photography
Videography: Captured Productions

More from Steven & Katie's wedding day.....

We just had to share more from Steven & Katie's wedding day.  I love the song they chose, it fits the feel of their day.

Captured Productions - Click to play

Matt & Stephanie's Trailer

We love when our clients totally get video, Matt & Stephanie did just that.  They opted to have their rehearsal & rehearsal dinner filmed, a segment called "The Guys" added as well wanting video for their Facebook.  We had a great weekend capturing it all.  There is now talk of trashing the dress.

Matt & Stephanie had their ceremony and reception at the Amway Grand Plaza which was of course beautiful.  It was nice to be able to bounce between the bridal suite, groom's suite, the guys hanging at the sports bar watching football, getting decor shots of the ceremony & reception ballrooms, all at one location.  Nancy Dobry and Talia of RSVP Invitations & Bridal Consulting worked very closely with Stephanie to turn her ideas into reality, and then made sure that the wedding day went as planned. The day did indeed go smoothly and flowed perfectly the entire day.

This is the third time we shot a wedding this year where Barry Jetter of Procedo Events who created an amazing environment for the ceremony & reception.  His work created the perfect backdrop for Matt & Stephanie's wedding movie.

We shot along side of Tim Motley of Motley Cat Studio.  Tim's energy was truly contagious.  After the special dances were over we went Downtown Grand Rapids to get some night shots around the city.  Stephanie's words summed it all up, "I could do this all night".

It was an amazing weekend.  Looking through all of the amazing footage we definitely have a lot of great shots to choose from.  Until the release of their wedding movie, here is a sneak peak.  Thank you Matt & Stephanie for treating us as one of your guests and being so great to work with.  We look forward to showing you more of what we captured from your wedding day. Enjoy!

Captured Productions - Click To Play

Wedding Consultant & Coordinator: RSVP Invitations & Bridal Consulting
Rehearsal Dinner: The B.O.B. - Eve Lounge
Hair & Make-up: Beautifully Stated
Florist: Procedo Events
Ceremony: The Amway Grand Plaza - Gerald R. Ford Ballroom
Reception: The Amway Grand Plaza - Pantlind Ballroom
Photography: Motley Cat Studios
Videography: Captured Productions

Go MSU!

Today is a pretty special day in the Deckrow Home... not only is it the big Game Day... it is my dear husband's birthday!!!!  To celebrate we are eating BWs and watching football.  We took a little break to take these pictures.  Happy Birthday honey, we love you and think you are the best!!

Fireproof - "Never leave your partner behind"

As you can imagine we love watching movies, they are a huge inspiration for what we do and the cinematic experience we offer our clients.  We enjoy quite a variety of movies, each for different reasons.  There is a movie that we are particularly interested in going to go see, Fireproof.  It probably won't be a blockbuster, or even be carried in every movie theater, but the subject is one we are very passionate about, marriage.  In our line of work, producing wedding movies, we witness couples say their vows before God, friends, and family every weekend, knowing that statistically 50% of them will end up in divorce.  I say statistically because it doesn't have to happen, not if you fight for your marriage, or make it "Fireproof". 

Years after the dream wedding will come life and all of it's challenges. It is great to see a movie dedicated to the subject of preserving marriages.  We like to think that we are in the business of preserving marriages.  Not only do we preserve their vows, but we provide them the ability to go back in time and relive their love for each other.

Fireproof opened today, be sure to add it to your must see list.  Below are some links including the trailer for the movie.  I have not seen it yet so I can't give my personal review, but after watching the trailer it is definitely something that we will be going to see.  After you go and see it be sure to go home and watch your wedding movie again and relive your love for each other.

A Day in the Life of Kennedy.....

Time flies!  We love that we have the power to capture the personality and love for life in each of our "A Day in the Life...." videos.  I think it would be so cool to be able to pop in a disk and watch the growing-up years of my parents.  It is cool that we can not only create a great video for our clients, but one that will be watched for generations to come.  Enjoy the power of video! ...and this little cutie.

Captured Productions - Click to play

A Day in the Life of Kennedy..... Coming Soon!

Three years ago we had the opportunity to film Chris & Jessica's wedding movie.....this week we got to capture "A Day in the Life....." of their 1 year old girl Kennedy.  Ever since we started Captured Productions our tag line has been "Capture the Moment".  This of course applies to weddings but over the last couple of years, capturing the moment has evolved into our "Day in the Life....." shoots.  It started with the idea and a few shoots and has recently taken off.  The "Day in the LIfe...." videos fit well into what we have love doing for our own kids.  It is so cool to be able to cue up a DVD (or now Apple TV)  and navigate through the years of our kids through their "Day in the Life...." videos.  It is so cool that we can now provide this power of video to our other clients and even our past wedding clients.

Caught in Action....

Kennedy did great for her shoot and we had a ton of fun playing with Kennedy and capturing her in her element and with her mom and dad.  We can't wait to share her "Day in the Life...." video with you.  Stay tuned for more from this cutie......

We will only be taking on 3 more "Day in the Life..." shoots this fall.  If you are interested in having one created this year, please contact us soon.

"When I get weally, weally bigger..."

"When I get weally, weally, bigger I am going to play football....... hike, hike, run run run frow it"  -said lindsey as she was watching Saturday College football 

More from Mark & Tiffany's Wedding Day

You may remember Mark & Tiffany's wedding trailer earlier this year.  We wanted to share more from their wedding day.  Enjoy!

Captured Productions - Click to play

Church: St Stanislaus
Florist: Antique Flower Box
Reception: The H Hotel
Photography: A Thousand Words Photography
Videography: Captured Productions

Safe in Our Arms - Lauren's First Video

Wow!!! It is finally complete!  It has been a slow and long road for this five minute video for Lauren......it hasn't been your typical summer...being out of our home and studio for over a month of her first few months.  This little girl never had a chance to sleep in her newly decorated room before we were displaced by the fire in our home.  She didn't have your typical first few months home from the hospital but has taken it in stride.

I caught the video bug back in 1999 when our first son was born and since then we have never looked back.  As Captured Productions was launched I promised Renee' that I would always make time to continue to create videos of our kids.  As our summer wedding season ramped up and proved to be one of our busiest and being out of our studio, I didn't plan on so many hurdles in creating Lauren's first video.  I managed to steal away a few hours here and there to finally complete this short 5 minute video of Lauren''s first few months.  The irony is that we selected the music for Lauren's video before we knew what this summer had in store.....needless to say it was the perfect soundtrack for Lauren's video ......"Clouds will rage in....Storms will race in....But you will be safe in my arms.....Rains will pour down....Waves will crash all around.....But you will be safe in my arms".  The contrast in this video of the good times with the bad, caused great reflection of how blessed our family is and how many things we have to be grateful for.

Lauren, you are a precious little baby, I love that we can see your personality already.  Your smiles brighten our day.  It is hard to imagine "The Deckrows" without you.  I can't promise you an easy life, but I can promise you that you will always be safe in God's arms.  No matter what life brings at you remember that God has you in the palm of his hand.  

"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.  Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!  Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.  You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.  You saw me before I’ve born.  Every day of my life was recorded in your book.  Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.  How precious are your thoughts about me, Oh God.  They cannot be numbered!  I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand!  And when I wake up in the morning, you are still with me!"  -Psalm 139:13-18

We love you Lauren and we can't wait to see your life unfold.   -Mom & Dad

Captured Productions - Click to play

Other Recent Deckrow Videos:

1. Ethan's 8 Year Old Video - Skate....Ethan Turns 8!
2. Lindsey's 2 Year Old Video - Something Beautiful
3. Lindsey's Outtakes
4. Jordan's 6 Year Old Video - Indiana Jordan
5. Jordan's 5 Year Old Video - Everyday Superhero
6. Jordan's Outakes
7. Lindsey's First Video

A Sneak Peek at Steve & Michelle's Wedding Day on Lake Michigan

I am at a loss for words..... it was beautiful... breath taking..... elegant..... relaxing..... well,  at home..... We had the opportunity to film Steve & Michelle's wedding day in front of the beautiful backdrop of Lake Michigan.  Unlike other beautiful Lake Michigan weddings, this was on Michelle's parents waterfront property.  Take this picture perfect setting, allow Barry Jetter of Procedo Events to create an environment through decor and floral arrangements, allow Nancy of RSVP Invitations and Bridal Consulting help make this dream a reality, add absolutely gorgeous weather and you have a picture perfect setting for a wedding.  ....add fireworks and you have a perfect ending to a wedding day.

We shot along side Mitch Ranger of Mitch Ranger Photography who has a truly unique style.  I often hear of photography defined as painting with light and that is the best description I have of what Mitch does.  Seeing his images displayed at the reception gathered a crowd of onlookers.  Even after watching the images loop through once you found yourself watching again.

You may recognize Michelle from a previous movie on our blog.  It was nearly one year ago we filmed her sister Jenny's, wedding day.  We love it when we get to work with a family multiple times.  We truly felt like guests at their wedding and at their home.  Steve & Michelle thank you for allowing us to be part of your day and to capture your wedding day.  We can't wait to share with the great shots we got, until then here is a quick sneak peek at your wedding day movie.

Captured Productions - Click to play

Matt & Nikki's Story

Captured Productions - Click to play

Sure we create videos, but I like to think of ourselves as storytellers, video artists, filmmakers..... you get the point.  We love to create and preserve people's stories.  We do it every weekend with each wedding we film.  It is a great honor and not taken lightly to be entrusted to capture and produce the couples wedding day story.  What I think is so cool is everybody has a story and with today's technology you don't have to be famous to have your story told and preserved.

Matt and Nikki's story included falling in love in High School, growing apart in college, and after much prayer and soul searching, finding their true love for each other.  Matt & Nikki are such a great couple, it is so cool that they will be sharing their Love Story with all of their guests at their reception.  This is such a good way to share with everyone the road that they went down leading them to their wedding day.

I can't help but look years down the road when their kids will be watching their story of how they met, how they trusted in God to bring them back together, how their dad proposed, and to hear their feelings for each other.  If only I could go back in time and  see how my parents met and hear their story.

Matt and Nikki, you guys are great.  Thank you for taking the time and making the investment in capturing your story for years to come.  It is something that you will never regret and that will get more valuable with each generation.  Continue to  to trust in Jesus with every aspect of your marriage. It is the glue that keeps our family and marriage so close through the good times, and the tough times.  Congratulations on a great life together!

Home....Sweet....Home!!!

Well after six weeks of displacement, we are finally home and loving it!!!  It has been like Christmas morning around here as the kids are playing with their old toys but enjoying them like they are brand new!!  It is nice to get a somewhat normal business workflow back as well as some routine (as much as there can be with 4 kids), Lauren is even sleeping in her own bed, instead of her car seat.

 

Thank you for all of your prayers over the past weeks, for everyone who watched our kids, brought us meals, and even restocked our pantry with groceries!   And we wanted to thank Dave Ponte of Shiloh Construction for being so helpful with not only the construction but also with making decisions throughout this sometime overwhelming process.  We also have been so blessed with how easy our insurance adjuster has been to work with, Servpro, and Recovery Cleaners.  And last but not least, thank you to Aunt Carol and Uncle Randy for allowing us to invade your home!  A family of six is no small thing and we so appreciate your willingness to allow your home to be ours!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!  We are incredibly blessed and so grateful!  (i know this isn't the Oscars, so I will stop now).

Our little girl is growing up.....

With the fire, the busyness of the summer, and the reality that we now have a big family, Lauren's first 8 weeks have flown by.  Our little baby is starting to coo, smile, hold up her head, and make eye contact....all things that warm a parents heart.  We had to be sure to capture her sweetness while she is still little.  Her first video has been delayed a little due to being out of our studio, but I hope to have it complete soon.....so stay tuned for more of this little cutie.

 

13 years.....4 kids.....and still in love!

          (You've gotta love a picture that was taken on a timer, propped up on the stroller's handle.)

I am truly blessed to be married to my best friend.  With our anniversary being in the middle of wedding season (hmmmm.....go figure) it isn't always easy to plan a get away, just the two of us (almost....Lauren tagged along this year).  We have always made it a point to celebrate our marriage each year around our anniversary.  This is a tradition we started even back when we were living in married housing at Michigan State.  It isn't always easy with a busy life and now 4 kids, but thus far we have managed to make it work.  It is great to have uninterrupted adult conversation about life, where we are, and where we are going.  We have even had moments of silence where we ran out of words.....that doesn't happen often.

This year we headed to downtown Grand Rapids which works out great with family in town to watch the kids.  Most of the time we are in downtown Grand Rapids it is to shoot a wedding or a love story, so it is nice to just walk around and enjoy the city.

We managed to capture quite a bit of video and pictures of our stroll through the city....what else do you do without kids.

Wow she's hot! ......I know what you're thinking so you don't have to say it.....I married way out of my league!  The best part is her beauty is only one of the reasons I married her.  Renee' has got to be the most selfless, loving, sincere, deep, real, creative, artistic, talented, giving, fun women a man could ever ask for.  She makes life fun, even in all of it's craziness.  I look forward to the time we get to spend together and enjoy doing life with her.  It is no wonder I am so passionate about capturing weddings, it was one of the best days of my life. Okay......enough sappiness........

Oh ya....we did have a special guest this year for our anniversary.  Lauren don't think that you will get to do this every year, but we did enjoy having some one on one time with you and of course capturing some of your sweetness before we blink and you are all grown-up.  I do have to admit, she is quite cute.

Well Renee' it has been 13 great years, it is amazing how time flies.  Thank you for being my partner in life and making our marriage a priority during a time when you have so many things pulling for your time (Ethan, Jordan, Lindsey, Lauren......to name a few).  I look forward to growing old with you.....who am I fooling I seem to be the only one getting old here.....anyways......I love you and can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you.  Happy Anniversary Sweetie! ......I know....I know I said I was done with the sappiness.

Design Envy Blogger & CP Fan

We filmed Billy & Kristen Shellenbarger's wedding back in 2006 on Mackinac Island.  Billy & Kristen are now famous with their online wedding videos seen 1000's of times, featured in the Knot, & from what I hear soon to be on the Knot TV.  Since their wedding day we have shot several of their friends weddings and stay in touch through e-mail and blogs.  One thing great about staying in touch with the couples that we film is we get to see all that they are up to in their married life.

Kristen is a cabinet designer for Midwest Counter and Cabinet Inc. and showcases her work on her blog Design Envy.  If you are thinking about doing some remodeling, be sure to send Kristen an e-mail and check out her blog.  Kristen has also been recently featured on Design Hole Online Blog......check it out.

The Big Announcement!

Well.....the big announcement....so what's all the hype about.  Renee' and I feel strongly that ALL couples should have their wedding day preserved on video for generations to come.  As we have continued to focus creating a cinematic experience and producing highly edited custom wedding movies for our clients, we have not fit into every couples budget.

In order to make it feasible for ALL couples to have a quality professionally produced wedding video.  Captured Productions will have two options for capturing your wedding day by offering two lines of wedding movies, Simply CP and CP Wedding Films.

Simply CP will allow us to create a clean professionally produced wedding video for our clients with a limited budget.

CP Wedding Films will allow us to focus on creating a one of a kind wedding movie for our clients who want to preserve their wedding day in a cinematic way.

There will be plenty more on this CP announcement.  Until then you can learn more by visiting our Simply CP Blog and our Simply CP Website.  There will be upcoming changes to our CP Wedding Films Website.

We love the idea and can't wait to share more with all of you as it is rolled out!