Captured Productions

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.

Big Announcment from CP - Coming Soon!

We are so excited about our upcoming announcement coming mid-July.  With any big improvement comes a lot of preparation.  The upcoming change will help us provide even better service to our clients.  Stay tuned....there will be more to come on this big announcement.

Here's to Moms - Happy Mother's Day!

If you haven't seen this on You Tube.....where have you been. Okay maybe you spend a little less time on the internet than me.  This is the great summary of all the oh so familiar words we heard growing up and  may have even found yourself using today with your own kids.  One of Ethan's first videos was done to the William Tell Overture, it is very fitting to the pace and life of being a mother.

So here's to all the mothers out there who are over worked, underpaid, and under appreciated.  Mom thank you for giving me that entrepreneurial inspiration to go after my dream.  I still remember our long "business" phone call where I gave you my entire business plan over the phone and when I was all done hashing it all out, you said "go for it, I don't see why not", which meant a lot coming from a realist like yourself.  Now here we are 8 years later and have never looked back.  Thank you for your encouragement and instilling in me that indeed "we can do all things though Christ who strengthens us". (Philippians 4:13)

And of course how can I forget the mother of my children.....this is starting to sound like the Oscars.  Well honey thank you for being the best partner a man could ever ask for in this journey.  I don't know how you do it, running a home, a business, a family, and volunteering like you do.  Many people do a lot of things, but very few find the balance like you do.  Thank you for being my best friend and raising the best kids in the world.  I love you! -Aaron

Video Featured on Design Aglow Blog

If you are part of the photography world you have most likely heard of Design Aglow and their many enhancements for photographers.  I used some of these templates in my promotional video for Sara Anthony Photography, which was recently featured on their blog.  These templates are not just limited to photography, and worked great for video as well.  I am looking forward to future uses of these templates.

On to warmer places....again

We are out of here....again.  It is going to be a full week, but a lot of fun....and warmer than 35F.  First stop is Atlanta where I will be attending a workshop with Mark & Trisha Von Lanken.  Some of what we will be learning is:

Moving Camera Techniques

Shooting Receptions

On Location Church Exterior Shots

Business & Marketing

Gadgets & Gizmos

Editing Concepts

Balance between editing styles within the wedding film

Same Day Edit

From there it will be on to Florida for Spring Break and then back up to South Carolina to visit Renee's grandparents.  Our trip around the southern US will include visiting 28 family members.  It will be a lot of fun.....and did I mention warm.

Atlanta Senior Rock Star Edit

Well....it's been a whirlwind weekend in Atlanta (outside outside of the tornado that touched down while I was there), and a productive one at that.  I headed south to shoot a promo video for Sara Anthony of Sara Anthony Photography to promote the kick off for her senior season. We shot the video in one day south of Atlanta in Newnan Georgia.  You may recognize this little town as the home of the TV series "October Road"....the clock tower....train tracks.  After the all day shoot, was the 20 hour blitz edit to bring this promo to reality.  Sitting back now and watching it, with all the editing behind me, it was worth the effort.  Sara, I had a blast creating this promo with you and know you will have a huge senior season.  Rock On!

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What's New for 2008

We have been talking to a lot of couples lately about what is new for 2008.  You will be hearing more about these as the year goes on, but I thought I would list a few things to look forward to in 2008.

1. High Definition - All CP productions will be shot in HD.  We started mid-2007, were blown away with the quality, and never turned back.
2. More Wedding Trailers - If you would like to see a sneak peek of your wedding day a few days after your wedding and be able to share it immediately with friends and family, especially those who couldn't make it, talk to us about adding a Wedding Trailer to your package.
3. Trash the Dress - You'll either love it or put knots in your stomach. We have found that trash the dress means different things to different people, but no matter what the interpretation, it creates a memorable video.....stay tuned for more.
4. Bridal Elegance Video - A much more elegant version of Trash the Dress with no trash dressing.
5. iPhone/iPod Touch Video - We have always put video on any portable device.  With the ground breaking iPhone & iPod, it gives us an even more beautiful way to show off your wedding day.
6. A Day in the Life... Video - We started promoting these at the end of 2007 and they have taken off.  Needless to say you will see more of them in 2008.

Valentine Weekend Getaway

Lately most of our posts have been done about recent work or weddings we had the chance to film.  Here are a few pictures from Renee' & I's Valentine weekend getaway.....with no kids!!!!  After shooting a wedding at the JW Marriott and hearing all of the great things, we had to see what all of the talk was about.  It has been a standing tradition to get away each Valentines for little R&R....minus the kids.

I used to get a big bouquet of flowers, Renee' got bummed when they died, we had to travel with them.....and you couldn't eat them.  You can't beat chocolate covered strawberries...they taste better than roses too.

We had a great view of the sunset.

We have gotten pretty creative propping the Elph up on just about anything to get a photo with the two of us in it.

Yikes....even the picture makes my stomach turn. This is the overlook in the JW. I was comforted that a piece of glass separated us from quite a drop.

We ate pretty good that weekend....we got to eat without any interruptions from the kids and we were served for a change.

 

Happy Valentines Day Renee'!  I am truly blessed to be married to my best friend and share this wonderful life together.  I look forward to the future and life's journey ahead.  After a few days back in reality, I am already looking forward to next year.   -Love, Aaron

Happy New Year!

 
Photo by: SMA Photography

Happy 2008!  Renee' & I are looking forward to a great 2008.  With a baby on the way this June there is plenty of excitement in store.  Our wedding calendar is starting to fill up and we look forward to another busy year again this year.

We were reminded again this week when we received our 4th inquiry, that we had to turn away due to June and July filling up, if you are getting married in 2008 give us a call as soon as possible to be sure that we can hold your wedding date.

2008 has more blogging in store, with nearly 11,000 page views and our posted videos watched 7,600 times, we look forward to sharing more of your great videos and hope to be able to create some of our own to share as well.

Happy New Year!!!
Aaron & Renee'

Tis the Season.....

Not only has it been a great year for Captured Productions, but for our family as well.  We look forward to growing our family by one more come next year.  We have so much to be grateful for, and this time of year is a great time to reflect on our many blessings.  We hope you all have a great holiday season!  Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.

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