Remember when you were 8 days old?  Me neither…but here are some photos of tres chic Fiona, Lindsay (from Sixpence Events in West Hartford CT) and Stephen’s beautiful baby girl!

Fiona is the youngest newborn I’ve photographed except for our own kids and she was just a sweetie.  I was happy to shoot one of Lindsay and Fiona’s first opportunities to play dress up….so excited to document Fiona’s first year!

(To view the pics, click on one and use your right and left arrow keys to cycle through them)

This story took a very unexpected twist.

Last summer on June 15, 2009 Jane went into New York City on assignment for Swarovski to photograph the making of Michael Jackson’s Swarovski crystal studded outfits—to be worn on his comeback tour in London later in the year.  MJ’s attire was created by Zaldy Goco, the famous fashion designer in his NYC Garment District studio housed in the classic Chelsea Hotel.

Jane shot Zaldy and his staff as they put together the jacket which would contain some 300,000 Swarovski crystals worth $1.6M.  Nadja Swarovski, who led efforts to promote Swarovski crystals in the music and fashion industry, was on hand to check out Zaldy’s work on Jackson’s jacket and pants.

Ten days later on June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson died.

Fast forward to March 2010…a week ago Jane and I finally saw  “This is It”–the movie made in the aftermath of Jackson’s death–in which Zaldy’s talking about at length (see special feature “The Gloved One”) about making Jackson’s outfits–that footage was actually shot during Jane’s still shoot by Magic Bullet Media out of New York.  You can also see Zaldy talking about his work with Michael Jackson after MJ’s death on this YouTube video.  Zaldy’s fame continues to grow with his work for high profile clients such as Lady Gaga.

MJ’s relationship with Swarovski started years earlier–the signature crystal studded white glove from the early 80s…loaded with Swarovski crystals. Michael Jackson seems as topical as ever and is following Elvis into posthumous super-stardom with his record $250M deal just announced.

To see more images of this shoot please visit our commercial website www.photojane.com.

The web is teeming with wine websites and blogs giving recommendations for wine from all over the world.  But oftentimes at weddings, the wine choices are the old standbys..some kind of sparkling wine for the toasts and Cabernet, Merlot and Chardonnay.

Nothing wrong with that, but here are some idea starters to liven up your wine choices for 2010 and to discuss with your caterer and venue.  And you don’t have to break the bank in the process.

Just think of the M’s.

Meaning

Weddings are all about meaning…so why not follow suit with the wines.  If your family has Portuguese heritage, serve up wines from the Douro and Alentejo.  If your family is originally from Michigan, buy some bubbly from L. Mawby, a top sparkling winemaker from the Leelanau Peninsula in Michigan.

One of our brides from 2008 served red wines made by her dad’s company,  Black Rock Vintners, at her Fairfield County wedding.  And Sara, our 2009 client who works at a wine importer specializing in South African wines, naturally chose a Kanonkop South African red to pour at her wedding at the Branford House in Groton CT last summer.

And, of course, if you and your fiance have great memories of drinking Veuve Clicquot, well then…relive those memories at your wedding!

Menu

Instead of hard and fast rules on red and white wine food matches….just remember what the chefs and vintners say: “What grows together goes together.”

Whatever cultural direction your wedding menu takes, try to pair wines from the same region (or wines made in that region’s style).  Of course there’s oysters and Champagne (ok they don’t come from the same region…for that you could try a Muscadet), and for your tapas why not try an Albarino from the Rias Baixas region in Spain.  Rose wines from the south of France also pair well with rich wedding appetizers.  And a Cotes du Rhone or spicy southern Rhone wines from Vacqueyras (made from Syrah and Grenache) go well with all kinds of savory red meat dishes (the ’07 vintage is amazing).

Multitude

Remember that today there are wines made in all 50 US states (give me some of that Alaska vino!) and that great delicious wine comes from everywhere from Austria to New Zealand.  Broaden your search and have fun in choosing the wine for your wedding!

Bubbly ideas: don’t forget that there are delicious sparkling wines besides authentic Champagne from France.  Check out the Cava from Spain, Prosecco from Italy and top American sparkling wines.  Jane and I love J sparkling wine from California.

Or better yet…get married in a winery…check out the wineries along the Connecticut Wine Trail.  Several nice CT vineyards that host weddings are Jonathan Edwards Winery in North Stonington,  Chamard Vineyards in Clinton, and Saltwater Farm Vineyard in Stonington, Connecticut.

Have fun picking wines that you’ll enjoy with family and friends on your wedding day!

Cheers!!

It was great to do a portrait shoot of my wonderful friend Angela and her family while staying with them for a few days during our family vacation to Florida. One of my first family portrait sessions was when these sweet kids were 5 months old…it’s hard to believe that Mike and I now have our own family and that our kids have a great time playing together!  Ang–great seeing you guys…so glad you are in our life!

I (Jane) just returned from an amazing time at WPPI in Las Vegas…the biggest wedding photography convention and seminar in the world.  It was fabulous for so many reasons including hanging out with a group of wonderfully talented CT wedding photographers, finding some new products for our clients and taking time to think about art and not just business.

Here’s a little sampling of some fun shots of Nikki Nicole from Nikki Nicole Photography and two Australian guys who we met Fremont Street in the old downtown LV who agreed to be our models…only in Vegas!

If you want to see the pics of me on the dance floor at Studio 54′s Pictage party or more pics of Nikki Nicole, I’ll be posting them on Facebook … Jane Shauck for my everyday ramblings (and Vegas party pics) and the IRIS Photography Fan Page for official business!  : )

Just got back from Florida where for the second year Jane photographed the NY Mets at Spring Training at Tradition Field in Port St. Lucie for Media Day 2010 for SportsNet NY.

Starting at 7am the Mets roster rolled through our locker room studio.  David Wright, Jose Reyes, Mike Pelfrey, Johan Santana, Daniel Murphy, Alex Cora, Jason Bay…a great bunch of guys.  And Jane and Julie from SportsNet NY have perfected their tag team approach to getting great responses from the players that result in intimate, fun and cool photos.

This is the second year that we’ve shot the Mets…check out the 2009 Mets Spring Training photos blogpost for last year’s shots.

We were also featured in the local West Hartford Life newspaper for the SportsNet NY and the NY Mets photography…..see the article in West Hartford Life.

Lastly, this is funny: driving south on I-95 into Port St. Lucie, Jane noticed the billboard touting the NY Mets at Tradition Field…and saw they used her black and white studio photo of the Mets hat.  Hey, our first billboard!

We’ll show lots of the Mets photos on our blog after opening day in April.  Let’s Go Mets!!!!

Angel Pagan, 2010 New York Mets

Thank you Lindsay for going on the street with me…at night, in the snow, barefoot and pregnant!  I had this image in my mind as soon as we started planning the shoot.  Thank you Talia from Sixpence Events for your costumery! 

I love that Lindsay was up for something different for her maternity shoot, so we decided to do a studio and a night shoot too.  This makes me want to do a whole flora/fauna series of different people as I love playing with studio light as much as I love natural light!  Thank you Naomi Martinez Salon in West Hartford for such a beautiful make-up job!

I’m so excited to shoot our 1st Year of Life program with Lindsay for her second baby…this time it’s a girl!  When recommending Lindsay and Talia’s wedding planning company, Sixpence for your Shoe, I always let people know what great style Lindsay has and I think you can see this from the new baby’s room – from the pink striped walls to the fun couch pillows.  Congratulations Lindsay, Stephen and Landon!