Thing I'm pretty sure I forgot to tell my wedding guests...

So the wedding is about a week away so here's some things I may have forgot to tell everyone:

We are registered at Bed, Bath and Beyond
Phone number for the Cosmopolitan Hotel: 479-442-5555
Phone number for the Powerhouse Grill (rehearsal dinner): (479) 442-8300
Phone number for the Garden Room:(479) 444-0993

Dress Code: Well I'll be in a dress and if I had my way everyone would have to wear one as well. :) Since Larry wasn't into this at all, the wedding party will be dressed formal but our guests can be semi-formal. It's going to be HOT so dress comfortably. It is an outdoor ceremony and the reception is outdoor/indoor.

If you guys have any questions please let me know!

Jackie and Leon's wedding...

So I finally got the Lee's wedding pics edited and up for them to see! Here's a few of my favorites:

Maps

Here are all the directions you will need for the weekend of Larry and I's wedding! Click, print and I'll see you all soon!!!



View Directions from the airport to the Cosmopolitain Hotel in a larger map


View Directions from hotel to Powerhouse in a larger map


View Directions from the airport to the Powerhouse in a larger map


View Directions from hotel to Garden Room in a larger map

Pretty flowers are always a good back up...

So we had a hole to fill in the Observer this week. I went into date, time, place mode and spotted some pretty flowers across the street. Then I thought "there's a pic!" This is what came of it...

Brides, Baseball and Sunburns...

This past Friday was a busy day of shooting a baseball state championship then bridal portraits on Dickson Street.

The game was fun because the team I was covering won so there was lots of action. :) But it was such a nice day I decided to wear a tanktop and no sunscreen. Turns out that was a horrible idea! I was red by the time I left the game then went to Dickson Street to shoot more outside shots. But it all turned out great! Here's a sample:

Ladies Weekend

During my trip to Virginia my mother, wonderful girlfriends and future mother in-law all got together and helped me celebrate my upcoming wedding.
First we had a bridal shower. I had to pretend to be a girl and even wore a dress but I had such a good time. :) My mother even hired a caterer. So I ate my weight in cheese, crackers, and chocolate torta. Mmmmm so good!!! Katie put together some amazing games and prizes. They were super fun since I won one. :) The presents were also way more than I expected. My girls ROCK! :)


















Then the next day we went on a wine tour bachelorette party. That was SO much fun! We kicked the tour off with some lama's. I totally wanted to go back and ride the lama's after a few glasses of wine. ;) Natalie got a veil with devil horns which made it fun to wear. It also got me a free bottle of wine. The wineries were so beautiful and the girls were made it hilarious. I feel so lucky! :)















One day I'm going to ride those lamas...

Jackie, Leon and Tornados....

Well I shot my good friends Jackie and Leon's wedding last weekend. It was so beautiful! I'm so happy the weather held out for us.





They got married at St. Boniface in Dixie, AR. What a pretty little church! It was supposed to storm all day but we lucked out and had sunshine all day... well until Jackie and Leon drove off in their cleverly decorated truck.
Then the clouds rolled in and the tornado sirens started going off. Luckily everyone was OK and we all made it to our hotel. After the stressful drive I needed a nap. :)

Either way I had a wonderful time and am so honored to be the photographer!

Things aren't what they uses to be....

I have been color correcting WWII photos and this one caught my eye...

Smootastic!

Some of my awesome friends got married yesterday and I got to photograph it. We had so much fun! After downloading over 1,000 photos here's two of my favorites, so far...

Wish this was around when I was a kid...

I went to West Fork Elementary last week to photograph 4th graders and the new fad... duct tape clothing!



It was so neat to see what the girls had made. There were bags, shoes, tank tops, skirts, placemats, wallets and even a pillow. Man I wish I had thought of this when I was their age. All we did was cross-stitch and coloring books. :) I guess it's never too late... who wants to buy me a bunch of duct tape? HA!

Prom-o-rama

So this weekend I went to the West Fork prom to shoot some photos for the Observer. They had a great turn out. I was kinda surprised! :) I guess because a lot of my high school class didn't go because there was a Marilyn Manson concert the same night. (does this date me in any way?)
It was nice to see the students having a good time dancing. Really prom didn't look that different than when I was in high school over 10 years ago. Everyone just wanted to hang out with their friends and have a good time. And teachers were still trying to keep the music clean and the dancing with 6 in. of space between the couples. ;)
The best part about this prom was I could leave and go get a beer without getting in trouble. HA!

Easter eggin

I went out and shot an Easter egg hunt for the Washington County Observer this week. It was a lot of fun. The younger kids didn't really get it but the 4 and 5 year-old's were so excited. The daycare hides 4,000 eggs for all their kids. This year they got me into the action. At the end there were so many eggs I just started tossing them onto the ground. Here's some photos I got:

Washington County Observer Breaking News...

WF Council Member Arrested
Jami Coker Charged with Theft of Property
Staff Report

West Fork City Council Member Jami Coker, 37, was arrested Tuesday by University of Arkansas Police in connection with thefts that occurred over an eight-month period and totaled $50,000.
Coker, an employee of the University of Arkansas, was charged at 1:40 p.m. on March 16 with theft of property. The police report cites video and photo evidence showing Coker picking up text books that she ordered using a purchase order belonging to Walton School of Business that contained her signature. The thefts reportedly occurred between July 20, 2009 and March 10, 2010.
A call to U of A’s Walton School of Business confirmed that Coker was previously an employee there. The U of A police report states that Coker had not been taken off the list of people with purchasing privileges after her employment there ended.
According to the UA Website, Coker is currently employed in the university’s Integrated Student Information System (ISIS) office as a project assistant.
Coker has been a member of West Fork’s City Council since June 16, 2009. She was appointed by Mayor Jan Throgmorton and approved by the city council.
“I’ve known her for years and years,” Throgmorton said after learning of Coker’s arrest. “I’m going to stand by Jami until somebody proves to me she’s done it.”
Coker was released at 4:56 p.m. Tuesday on a $2500 bond. A hearing will be held at Washington County Circuit Court on Friday, March 19 at 7:45 a.m.

So, you like bluegrass music?

Last Saturday I went to the Brentwood Community Center and shot a multi-media piece for the Washington County Observer. It was such a wonderful time. There was so much history there and the music was fantastic. Who knew Northwest Arkansas has so much talent hidden away in Brentwood.

Washington County Observer...

I have been helping out at the new Washington County Observer recently. It's been fun. It's nice to be a part of something from the beginning. Also it's the only independently owned newspaper in Northwest Arkansas.

Here's some of the photos I've taken for them.

My New Website!

I have finally made an official website... well two really.

First is the website I created with 360NWA. They are an up and coming web hosting company with Community Publishers that links up all of us Northwest Arkansas small businesses together and makes us more searchable to the community. My site went live Tuesday and it's already got a good amount of traffic. I'm excited about it and have enjoyed working with 360NWA. :)

Here's my link: http://www.360nwa.com/Photography/BrookeMcNeelyPhotography.html

Second is the site I put together at Printroom. This is the site I'm going to use to sell photos I'm taking for the Washington County Observer as well as weddings and anything else that comes my way.

Here's that site: http://www.brookemcneelyphotography.printroom.com

Another cool development with my business is Jeannette Balleza developed a logo for me. It came out AWESOME! I'm happy to use our local graphic designers and she did a great job.



Things are coming together! For more samples of my work please check out my facebook fan page. As always feel free to email or call if you have questions. I look forward to working with you!

Fun at the NWA Bride show...

This past weekend I was a vendor at the NWA Bride show in Springdale. It was a great time. So many Brides to be! I set up a photo booth so people could dress up and just be silly. Here's my favorites:













Here's a short promo of wedding services I offer: