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Dani & Tony Engaged | Black Hills Park photographer | Boyds Maryland photographer

c&iphoto — Wed, 06 Aug 2014 23:02:20 +0000

I’ve known Dani and Tony for some time now. Tony and I go way back to when we were just two teenagers with nothing better to do but go to concerts or hang out at malls. A few years later I met Dani at my second job, where we all worked, and like to think I had something to do with how they met. I was around when they first started dating and have watched them blossom to where they are now. Tony told me he was getting ready to ‘pop the question’ and, (if she said yes, lol), he wanted me to be a part of their journey and be their photographer. I was so siked that she accepted, and now I get to be a part of one of the most amazing and monumental days of their lives. I love any excuse to use my abilities to capture moments – it’s an added bonus when you get to hang out with friends while doing what you love. Congrats you two, can’t wait for your wedding!

-Ian

Courtney & Tony Married | Eden Resort Landcaster, PA Photographer

c&iphoto — Sun, 03 Aug 2014 22:16:10 +0000

Tony and Courtney are genuinely sweet. They aren’t afraid to act like goofballs either. We knew we were in for a solidly fun wedding day when Courtney and her bridesmaids were jumping on the bed in full wedding garb. We were right. Their venue, The Eden Resort offered an outdoor town-front vibe, with all the joys of climate control (yeah! A/C!) It made for a classically cool day that we were so happy to document! Congratulations to Courtney & Tony!

COURTNEY + TONY ENGAGED | GREAT FALLS ENGAGEMENT | GREAT FALLS MARYLAND PHOTOGRAPHER

c&iphoto — Tue, 29 Apr 2014 19:26:40 +0000

It seems like winter would never end here in Maryland, with most of the trees just now filling their branches with new buds and waking up from the rough winter; it is a refreshing to start the spring with engagements. It took a while for Courtney & Tony to decide on a great location, but since she loves the outdoors so much, we finally settled on Great Falls, a place I have personally loved since I was little. Great Falls is such a peaceful place in Maryland, full of wildlife and natural rock walls. And we actually ended up encountering some pretty crazy wildlife, from spiders, turtles, lizards, and a giant king snake. To my surprise, Tony actually caught the snake to let us have a closer look at it. I remember saying “I don’t think it’s poisonous” blinking, and watching Tony holding the snake. Haha. Anyways, I loved hanging out with you guys for the morning. Can’t wait for your wedding!!!

-Ian

Life changer|Ian and Rachel’s second child, Violet | Labor Photographer

c&iphoto — Fri, 28 Feb 2014 20:33:24 +0000

There’s nothing quite like it, the anticipation, the waiting, and when you know it’s time, the excitement. When she first told me she was pregnant, she said, I have something to tell you. That day was on May 23rd, 2013. I knew what she was going to tell me, but I gave her a solid …..umm, what? Rachel said….I’m pregnant…

At first I went through so many emotions, I felt happiness, worry, excitement but mostly, I felt secure. I knew I wasn’t ready for a second child but it would be okay because I have such a strong wife. She is the most solid person I know and has the patience of a saint. She put my mind at ease and made everything feel right. The only thing left in my mind was excitement. Was it going to be a boy or a girl? Would daddy get to play house with two beautiful girls or house with one and baseball with the other. These are seriously the first two things that went through my mind – I’ve never played baseball in my life and have played house more times then I’d like to admit. I come from a large family with lots of sisters.

Feb. 19th, 2014 1:32am.

I was woken suddenly by my wife, “it’s time,” she said. “I think she’s coming soon. We need to leave.” This was after her being in a slow labor all day long. I scurried to get my camera bag together and all Rachel’s belongings in a daze. There’s always that thought that you’re going to forget something important and remember after you leave. 5 mins later her water broke, at that point I was worried, the hospital is a 20 minute drive without traffic from our house. I’m not a doctor but I’ve put bandaids on cuts before, I really did not want to deliver our baby girl (yes another girl!!) at home or on the way to the hospital. 2:25am we were in the car, I wasn’t thinking and made the mistake of taking our mini van, I was thinking comfort… not the ideal vehicle when you’re in a hurry. We made it to the hospital at 2:40am got rushed to the birthing center and our baby Violet was born 11 minutes later at 2:51am. Our little girl, weighing in at 9lbs and 21inches long. She is the cutest little thing WITH A FULL HEAD OF HAIR!! Our first daughter, Penny, came out pretty much bald and at 6.5 lbs, we were both scratching our heads. Now our world consists of a Penny and a Violet – We’re so happy and excited.

Our first child is a wonderful little girl and if you’ve met her, you’ve been able to let a little bit of happiness into your life. She is the center of our world and is a biggest ball of happiness – we couldn’t live without her. So naturally when we first found out we were pregnant again, we worried. Would we love our second child as much as our first? Would Penny fell abandoned? Would we be able to do it? Now that she is here, she sleeps through the night, looks at you with funny faces and melts you with her beauty. Didn’t take much to take all our fears away. Penny loves Violet with the love of a older sister but the curiosity of an alien. She is an older sister in learning and loves every minute of it. So much to take in but it’s our chance for seconds and we both love seconds.

Big thanks to the lovely staff at Howard County Hospital and Nicole, Rachel’s Doula.

-Ian Dawson

Shannon + Mark | Engaged | Rock creek park | Washington DC Photographer

c&iphoto — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 01:34:49 +0000

For Shannon & Mark’s engagement session, we met up at Pierce Mill in Rock Creek Park. This was actually my first time in this part of the park in DC. But you can find Shannon, Mark, & their dog Luna there on a regular basis. We must have hardly walked a mile the entire time, it was so hard to find a bad spot to shoot. My favorite part was watching the two of them make their way across a stream on a tree trunk.

-Justin

Nicole + Steven | Married | 4.26.13 | Pasadena Maryland Photographer

c&iphoto — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 16:16:00 +0000

Nicole and I met all the way back around our high school days. We (Nicole, Ian, and I) attended the same church for a while. So it was of course exciting when I got the call to meet about her and Steven’s Big day. We usually become friends with all of our brides and grooms throughout the whole wedding process anyway, so its always a bonus and makes the whole experience extra fun when we already know each other. Nicole & Steven were married at the Anchor Inn, which is in Pasadena, Maryland. The quaint little venue sits on the water overlooking little docks and lots of boats. Very pretty for a spring time wedding in MD. Congrats you guys!

-Justin

Jennifer + Buddy | Engaged | Ellicott City, Maryland Photographer

c&iphoto — Sun, 26 May 2013 18:37:40 +0000

I met these two at Liz & Andy’s wedding last summer (Liz is Buddy’s older sister). Danielle and I actually got to enjoy Sunday dinner with their whole family a few weeks ago; Buddy and Liz’s mom was so nice to invite us over before we did the engagement shoot. It was great getting to know the whole family! After dinner, Jennifer and Buddy pulled on their cowboy boots and led us behind the house down a trail into a beautiful, rustic, country-esque park. I felt like we were in western Maryland or something for a moment; I kept forgetting we were in Elkridge, only 20 minutes away from where I live. The place was picture perfect and of course Buddy and Jennifer were right at home practically in their own backyard

Taylor + Brandon | Engaged | Thurmont Maryland photographer

c&iphoto — Wed, 22 May 2013 03:02:34 +0000

I first met Taylor when I photographed Liz & Andy’s wedding last summer. Her family actually owns the Mathwig Estate Event Barn, which is quickly becoming the most popular off the grid wedding venue in Maryland. We were excited to be a part of their first wedding show there a couple months ago; Taylor did a great job hosting it of course! And then I made the long drive back to Thurmont (where the Barn is located) for Taylor and Brandon’s engagement session…which has become one of my favorite shoots recently. Everything was so inspiring – the location, the perfect lighting, and of course Taylor and Brandon My wife ended up texting me asking where I was since I had been there for so long lol oops! Anyways…here’s what we were doing for so long….

Shelley + Chuck | Engaged | Baltimore Maryland Photographer

c&iphoto — Mon, 13 May 2013 16:13:06 +0000

I always tell my couples that their engagement session should really paint a picture of who they are and the location is a really big part of creating that. Shelley & Chuck met once upon a time at a little place called the Baja Beach club in Baltimore City, Maryland. So what better a place to shoot their engagement session? Even though the club went out of business a couple years ago, we found no shortage of great spots in and around Power Plant Live. But I made sure Chuck gave her a spin right in front of that building where they met

Megan + David | Engaged | Annapolis Maryland photographer

c&iphoto — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:48:00 +0000

I met up with Megan & David at the waterfront in downtown Annapolis, Maryland. Now, people typically think, “oh the waterfront, seen it once, seen it 100 times.” But whenever I shoot here…I am constantly discovering new colors, patterns, shapes, and well… you’ll see. Megan & David, you guys were a pleasure to photograph. Next stop…wedding

-Justin

Nicole + Steven | Engaged | Fulton Maryland Photographer

c&iphoto — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 20:26:22 +0000

Nicole & Steven spent the morning with me hitting up all the classic spots in Fulton, MD. We started off at Sidamo Coffee & Tea in Maple Lawn, not only because its super quaint inside and they make a mean mocha, but mostly because it was 8 am and I needed said mocha in order to function. I always enjoy shooting with old friends, I’ve known Nicole for a while so it was a lot of fun catching up and getting to know Steven a bit. Since I have lived in this area for a while, it was really easy coming up with little spots here and there that I thought would work well for them. One of my favorite series in this shoot is Steven playing the guitar to Nicole in the back of the old truck. I jokingly said “hey, play Crash into me by DMB”, and off he went. That just sealed the deal for me. These two are awesome and I’m looking forward to the wedding!

-Justin

I think these two are hilarious because Nicole decided they were going to jump off the bench… the only problem is they didn’t discuss how they were doing to do that. lol As you can see she went for the high jump, Steven… did not….

Angie & Costa Engaged | Bel Air Maryland Photographer

c&iphoto — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 23:46:28 +0000

I met Angie & Costa this past summer at Beth & Gary’s wedding. As I’ve probably previously mentioned, I am always excited when a couple has their own plan for their engagement shoot. Their idea was to hit up all their regular spots off Main street in Bel Air. We started off in a authentic Italian deli, Savona, where they knew the owner by name, which was great because she was so sweet and gave me the freedom to shoot all over the place. We continued to bounce around a bit through some of their regular stomping grounds- and then you know, had them sit in a fountain (the one right across from a police station of course). The bikes were a cute and, yet again, true touch. They live right down the street so its not uncommon to see these two frequenting their favorite watering hole, Sean and Bolan’s Irish Pub. Angie & Costa, you guys were naturals. I had a lot of fun photographing you. Next stop…the wedding!

-Justin

Adrienne + Peter | Married 12.01.12 | Washington DC wedding photographer

c&iphoto — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 03:39:07 +0000

I had the pleasure of photographing one of my high school buddies, Adrienne We were actually in the same photo class one year. We had the best photo teacher in the world, which opened up the world of photography and started a life-long pasion for me. The funny thing is, Mr. Drew wasn’t even very good at photography, he was just an incredible teacher. To this day, every time I hear the song “Porcelain” by Moby, I remember our class photo critiques. But I digress. Adrienne has always had a unique style so I knew her wedding would definitely be one to remember and beautiful to photograph. Then I found out Peter was a fellow motorcycle rider Anyhow, from their “First Look” on the rooftop of their apartment building in downtown DC, to portraits on the Ural (his Russian motorcycle), the quaint decor and ambiance of St. Anselm’s Abbey, and the unique styling of something vintage rentals at the reception, it certainly was everything I expected and more.

-Justin

Lexi + Sam | Engaged | Towson Maryland photographer

c&iphoto — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 01:20:42 +0000

Lexi and Sam booked dates with us before they were even engaged; It’s not to have some enthusaistic fans I was mutually excited to work with them for a few reasons. Lexi is a photography-lover. So of course I love to shoot for someone who truly appreciates this art and gives me the freedom to be totally creative- the end product is just so much better and everyone is happier in the end when stipulations or boundaries aren’t made. Just let the artists do their thing. We love working with people who love photography, and don’t just hire us because they need a wedding photographer to check it off their list. We have known Lexi for a while through other clients of ours that have gotten married over the past couple of years, but since then, she has actually assisted us on a couple of shoots or tagged along for the fun of it. Anyways, engagement sessions tend to generally take place outdoors but being the middle of a cold winter up in here in Maryland… I was a little worried when they asked to shoot in February. But of course, Lexi had a plan for this shoot and provided a great framework for me to play around with, which also kept us out of the cold for part of the time. However, we were lucky enough to catch some snow, which is always fun. It was hard to stop shooting because I had so many ideas- this could have easily gone on for hours more

-Justin

Morgan & Chris | Engaged | Westminster Maryland Photographer

c&iphoto — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 01:08:34 +0000

Morgan and Chris were right at home at his family’s log cabin out in Westminster, Maryland. Morgan told me when we first met that their dream session would be in the snow. I said ok… fingers crossed we would get some snow this year. So came a Saturday morning after Christmas when it rained a little down where I live, and I got a surprising call from them because I saw no snow. But I took their word for it and just an hour northwest and …boom- 6 inches of snow. Imagine the type of house you would want to stay in if you were off on a winter getaway at a ski lodge or something… that’s pretty much Chris’s family’s property. It was a beautiful home that Chris and his father helped build- such a unique and personal backdrop for their engagement pictures, which I hope captured how full of life and fun this couple is. Anyhow, check it out for yourself! Congrats Chris and Morgan, can’t wait till the wedding.

-Justin