Jill

Jill Ingram Hartsock started as a wedding client in the summer of 2010 and became a friend. Last year, she was part of my sunflower shoot (see the Sept. 28, 2011, post). Last month, she dug out a lot of family history for a fun shoot at her house.

“It is so nice to have these photos,” she said in an email. “Each one has something that was important to my family.  From my great-grandfather’s hat, my grandfather’s cowboy hat and gas pumps, and the coat my grandmother picked out for me, every photo has a wonderful memory.”

The white hat was a gift from her husband.

Americana

I found this at Brookmere Winery in Belleville, and I couldn’t resist the faded colors and the cobweb.

Fun facts

Those huge lenses you see photographers use at football games sell for $7,500-$10,000.

Field of dreams

I knew that Christine Hart is a wonderful wedding planner, but I didn’t realize she’s also a great model with a background in ballet.

She was nice enough to give up an evening recently, put on her wedding gown from last year and wade into some fields outside State College. We came up with a lot of cool shots, but this is one of my favorites. I’ll post a few more someday soon.

(By the way, her husband, Eric, is a pretty good model too.)

Changing places

I’ve devoted a lot of time to looking for unusual places to photograph a bride. This spring, Bill Fitzgerald, Dan Patterson and the other nice folks at Standard Steel in Burnham, PA, came to the rescue.

One of my clients from last year, Laurel Tate Patton, was up for something fun and different, so we spent a morning inside the historic plant, which is the only North American producer of forged steel wheels for railroad cars and locomotives.

It’s a fascinating place. The original Freedom Forge was founded in 1795, and the company holds a major place in Central Pennsylvania history. Think Greenwood Furnace, Andrew Carnegie and the Pennsylvania Canal.

This was a one-time thing – Standard Steel isn’t the new hotspot for wedding pictures. But it’s a reminder that non-traditional settings can make good wedding photographs. In the next few months, I’ll post shots from other fun, interesting places. If any of you have suggestions, please let me know. I’m always open to new ideas.

McCann School of Art

I’ve just gotten home from shooting an open house at the McCann School of Art, which is unbelievable. The next time it’s open, you’ve got to go.

It’s a hot new place for weddings and receptions, meetings, dinners — all kinds of events. And there will be new, “outside the box” art classes all summer.

Check www.mccannart.org.

It’s not far from State College or Lewistown.