The Himalayan Book

20.04.11 the latest & greatest

Woo!  It’s finally here! It, being one of our new samples albums.  We’re so so so so excited about all the new albums we’re offering.  Honestly.  We’ve put a lot of thought and research into our albums and made sure to select lines that reflect many of the aspects of our brand.  We also gave great consideration to who are brides and grooms are and what they want.  We’ve decided on three very different album lines in a couple different sizes – more on those later.

For now, our first little baby, The Himalayan Book produced by Couture Book, is most appropriate for those who want a collection with lots and lots of images from their wedding day but are on a smaller budget, or just dig the earthy, organic lifestyle. :-)  Special shout out to Dave from Couture Book for being SO incredibly helpful in the process of creating all our books.  He and his team are just amazing to work with – I’m proud to support this company.

Part of the reason we selected this book was based on how it’s created.  Not only is it hand-assembled by the folks at Couture Book, but the process of creating the Lokta paper for the cover is worth noting:  Lokta paper is made from the bark of the Daphne Cannabina bush, which grows in the Himalayas at altitudes of 6500 to 9500 feet.  After harvesting, the bush naturally regenerates, reaching full maturity again in 6-7 years. The paper and the process of making it are completely natural, posing no threat to the Himalayan ecosystem.  The bark is gathered at high altitudes and then carried down to villages, where local paper makers clean and boil the bark.  The boiled bark is beaten with wooden mallets, producing a pulp, then poured over screened wooden frames and dried in the Himalayan sunshine, just as it was a thousand years ago.

The interior of the book features cream felt paper with torn edges.  You can select your cover image and also choose from black, brown, or cream cover paper.  The book below is cream and 8×10″ in size.   You an fit up to 200 images in these keepsakes!  Each image has a distressed border.

All of our books carry with them a 100% satisfaction guarantee and a lifetime guarantee on the workmanship.

***Because we are so stoked to get these into the hands of our brides, grooms, and their families the first 3 people (past or present clients/their families) to order their Himalayan Book by the end of May will also receive a complimentary Museum Gallery Wrap Canvas!! :-)

E-mail us for more information!

This book is definitely ideal for either a wedding or an engagement session.
I’ve chosen to feature our best engagement images in this book.

Broadmoor Engagement: Coéle & Andrew

20.04.11 engagements

Good morning!  And happy Wednesday!  You’re half way through the week and Easter is almost here. :-)  Boy, do I have a treat for you.  And no, it’s not a Cadbury Egg (those are the best aren’t they? :-).  It’s the beautiful engagement session of the lovely Coéle and Andrew.

We met up a couple of weeks ago at one of their favorite hang outs: The Broadmoor.  I’m a little bummed when I post these images because it could possibly be the last time you see these two on our blog.  We were already booked for their wedding day, but they still wanted get their engagement images done with us.  I also got to spend a little time with them when I invited them over for coffee one morning to talk about what to look for in a wedding photographer.  So fun.

These two are wonderful, wonderful people.  We met them at Elizabeth and Ryan’s wedding last summer and judging by their chemistry on the dance floor, I knew it’d only be a matter of time before Andrew proposed.  Sure enough, this spring, in front of the Disneyland castle he popped the question. :-)

Get ready for some sweet eye candy.  These two are stunning and have amazing chemistry with each other and the camera.

Can I just say that picture on the left could be one of my favorite shots that I’ve taken?  I don’t know why!  It seems so symbolic.
I call it, “American Dream.” :-)

Oh, Coéle, you are SO stunning!!

Like I was saying… stunning!

I adore you two!  Love this!

Love!

These guys are my type of people.  We finished off the evening with a glass of, not wine, but scotch at the Broadmoor bar.

I think Coéle has the prettiest back.

My absolute favorite:

Reveals

19.04.11 the latest & greatest

What are these reveals I speak of?  A Reveal is pretty much my favorite part of the René Tate Wedding Experience.  Because by this point, we are besties.  I’ve calmed you, the groom, down just before you’re about to see your bride for the first time; I’ve seen you, the bride, in your underwear just before you put on your dress.  Like I said, we’re pretty much besties. :-)

So why not invite my besties over to my home, share bottle (or two!) of my favorite wine, and relive your oh-so fabulous wedding day through pictures?

It all starts with some flowers… because flowers make the heart melt.

Next throw in a little Peter Bradley Adams with dinner.

Don’t forget the vacuum lines and wine. ;-)

And of course, cinnamon and sugar Yankee Candles.

And last but not least, a bride and groom, and if all the stars align: Chipotle!  Because it’s a tradition for at least this group.

If you haven’t recognized them by now, that’s Malerie and Chris!  We had a beyond fun night this weekend looking through their images.  These guys will definitely be around for a while.  We had such a blasty!  They’re even cat people and insisted we bring out Calvin for some lovin.

Believe it or not, he’s actually not getting a root canal, but soaking up a little face massage from Chris and LOVING it.

The photo above = blasty blast of a night.

Taking the Leap

18.04.11 personal

The anticipation in the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife.  The butterflies soared.  The tourists watched as we climbed the stairs, after just having signed our lives away.

We reached the top of the stairs and were greeted by three college-aged “dudes” who sat slouched in their chairs.  Overlooking Fremont Street, the tourists looked up at us, pulling out their cameras for what was to come.  Confidently, as always, he held my hand and winked, “It’s okay baby girl.”  The dudes, who I couldn’t believe we were about to trust with our lives, walked us over to a contraption on the ground of what looked like tie-downs for hauling an ATV.

“Put your feet through those holes,” the dude said.  He pulled up the straps around my body, tightening them until I realized my thighs weren’t quite toned enough to be wearing something so tight with such unforgiving leggings.

Both suited up and cinched in, we held hands again for the few short steps that led to an even higher platform where the zip lines above ran parallel to the street below.  Not knowing if the college dude was joking or not, I felt a little embarrassed when he asked, “Dude, do you guys, like, wanna hold hands while you go down?” “Can we really?!” I asked excitedly.  ”Uhhhh, no.  You can’t do that.”

Guess he was joking.

“Let’s just do this,” I said.

Locking into one last carabiner that would soon hold my body weight, I leaped off the ledge and let out a girly squeal.  Spinning around I brushed the hair out of my eyes just in time to see John take the same leap, whooping and hollering, giving the tourists below quite a show.

And just like that we soared.  35 miles an hour we soared through the air side by side, kicking our feet, spinning around and around, and laughing and smiling at each other all the way into what is now one of my favorite memories.

Because sometimes, no matter how nervous you are, you just have to take the leap.

It could be better than you expected.