With the “official” start to summer just a little over a week away, I’m excited to announce the summer sales will return….along with the searing high temperatures!

Starting next Friday, June 21st, and running throughout July, I will be running TWO sales:

The Summer Reprint Sale and the Summer Package Sale.

All reprints will be half-off!  Yes, you read that right….half-off!  All wedding, engagement and bridal photo galleries will be discounted.  No matter the size or quantity or reprints, they are all on sale. 

If your gallery is still active, the sale applies to you.  If you need a reminder of your passwords, please shoot me an e-mail at karen@kesweddings.com or call me at 501-607-0090. To view all my galleries, please check them out here.

In addition to my reprint sale, all my wedding packages will be 10% off.  You can get more info on my wedding packages by going here:

Happy Summer everyone!

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

Also featured in Arkansas Bride, is my full page ad showcasing the stunning Jordan and her pretty in pink bridals.  Jordan and Ryan is also featured on my website here: 

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

We had to postpone Karis and Jake’s engagement session twice due to rain.  Springtime in Arkansas can be a wonderful time for photos since the weather is often crisp and cool, but you have to deal with the rain and how unpredictable it can be.  But our third attempt was perfect.  We shot at Hendrix University and downtown Conway.

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

I got married in November.  For a reason.

I don’t handle heat very well.  I grew up in the deep south (New Orleans) and I hated the heat as a kid.  As an adult, I hate it even more.  Give me frost, snow and cold temperatures over heat any day.  I could not even begin to think about getting married in Arkansas in the late spring or summer.  For me, there was no decision.  I knew wearing a wedding dress would be way too hot.

Summer is creeping up on us and unlike last year, I have seven weddings this year during the “summer”, and by that I mean, between June 21-September 21.  I read this great article yesterday on the Something Blue Blog about tips to keep brides comfortable in the summer months.  I also shared these on my Facebook page too.   I’ll admit, these are great ideas.  Here is a portion of the blog post (because they talk about other things) and I think these are tips that all brides should consider:

You will probably be given plenty of advice prior to the day of your wedding, but sometimes there are some rather important aspects that people leave out.  So here are some things you might not have thought about in advance, and some solutions regarding what to do about them. And for more great tips sign up for our Something Blue Blog Newsletter.

Baby Powder, Anti-Perspirant or Monistat Chafing Relief Powder Gel  is a must!

• Wedding dresses are VERY hot.  I don’t mean hot in a sexy way, I mean temperature.  Unless you get a sheath dress that is very simple, and you aren’t wearing any special undergarments like spanx or a corset, you will be much warmer than you normally are.  Stunning wedding dresses can often credit their enchanting appearance to layers of crinoline, taffeta, silk, beading, embroidery, lace, and swarovski crystals.  Unfortunately, all this finery is also the perfect mix to create a very well insulated dress that retains all of your body heat.  When you go and try on your dress at the dress shop, you may notice at first that the store is set at the temperature of an icebox.  This is to make those trying on the dresses more comfortable.  Unless you choose to get a short dress, this unexpected rise in temperature is basically unavoidable.  Unfortunately, there are many consequences of this.  Other than just feeling warm, it can lead to excessive sweating between your legs which can lead to painful chaffing.  This is not the way you are going to want to start your honeymoon!  So, take the advice the wonderful women at Katherine’s Bridal Boutique gave me.  Get a small thing of baby powder, and cover your inner thighs with a light coating of it.   What they didn’t tell me was the fairly obvious instruction of doing this BEFORE you put on your dress.  Unfortunately for me, the day of my wedding, I was completely laced up into my dress, hair done, etc, and then it hit me, OH NO! WE FORGOT THE BABY POWDER!  It felt like a scene out of my Big Fat Greek Wedding.  At this point, we realized there was no way we had time to take off the whole dress, and do that, so instead, my wonderful bridesmaid who was a medical doctor and had just completed her obstetrics rotation had the bright idea of me laying on my back and legs up as if they were in the stirrups and she put her head up the layers andlayers of fabric and squirted many poofs of baby powder.  Of course at that very moment, the best man brought up the flower girl to have her hair done, and he let out a huge “What on EARTH is going on here!” and got out his camera to try to take a photo.  In what I hope was my only bridezilla moment of the day, I let out a scream,”GET OUT!  you take that photo, you die!”  So long story short, do use a poof or two of baby powder between your thighs to avoid chaffing, and make sure to do so BEFORE you put on your wedding dress.  Antiperspirant, Body Glide for Her, and Monistat Anti-Chaffing gel work even better than baby powder.  You might also consider having a small fan placed under your table in front of where you will be sitting.  If the linens are long, no one will be able to see it.  I have had more than one bride express to me that they’d wish they’d had a fan under the table.

• Stay hydrated.  This goes hand in hand with the wedding dresses are hot point.  It’s a tricky situation.  I have seen many brides try to not drink many fluids that day to avoid having to use the restroom, to try and fit in their dresses better, or just plain have been so busy that they forgot to drink some water.  Unfortunately, the lack of drinking fluids in combination with the very hot dresses, can quickly lead to finding yourself extremely dehydrated.  Along with all the activity of the day, this can lead brides to pass out.  So in the end, ask yourself, which is more embarrassing, having to use the rest rooms a few times with your wonderful bridesmaids assisting you, or passing out at your own wedding.  I’m guessing the latter.  To avoid this problem try to remember to drink a fair amount of water while you are getting ready in the morning and during the reception.  Be sure to use the restroom right before you put on your dress.  Ask your servers to keep your glass full of water if you have servers, and if not ask members of your bridal party to bring you water when they can.

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.

Luck! That’s all it takes.  The week of Jordan’s bridals I made an unplanned stop at the Arkansas State Capitol and it was in a sea of pink.  Once I saw the Japanese Magnolias were in full bloom, I knew we had to shoot there.  We had her indoor location at the Capital Hotel, but I’m always seeking an outdoor setting as well.  Just like Arkansas weather, these gorgeous pink blooms can be very hard to predict when it comes to when they bloom.  So needless to say it was pure luck these were blooming will lots of great color! Enjoy!

TAGS:  Arkansas Wedding Photographer, Little Rock Wedding Photographer Engagement Photos, Bridal portraits, Wedding day.