Maija Karin Photography

~Location.Location.Location~

February 24, 2010 at 9:41pm

Choosing a location to have your wedding is one of the most challenging and important parts of the planning process. Before you do anything else, you need to book your venue. I’ve been in the industry here in Washington for several years, so I have been lucky enough to shoot at many different locations, each with their own beauty and character.

I recently had a friend of mine, who just got engaged, contact me to ask my advice about venues to potentially host her wedding. And I thought I would share it with all of you! I know many of you are in the midst of planning for either this year or next, so I hope you find this post helpful.

I have shot at most of these locations, but some of the venues on the list are for weddings I will be doing this year and it will be a first for me (which I love because I get to be on my “creative toes” to create images of a place I have never been to!)

This list is in no particular order. I will let each one speak for itself. I love all of them for different reasons!!

#1 Beecher Hill House in Peshastin, WA

www.beecherhill.com

The dance floor at Beech Hill House.

The front of Beecher Hill House.

#2 Mt. Springs Lodge in Plain, WA

www.mtsprings.com

One of the beautiful bridges/locations at Mt. Springs Lodge.

#3 Sleeping Lady in Leavenworth, WA

www.sleepinglady.com

#4 Highlander Golf Club in East Wenatchee, WA

www.highlandergolfclub.com

Looking over the Columbia River.

#5 Pine River Ranch in Lake Wenatchee, WA

www.prranch.com

Taken by the 1944 dairy barn.

#6 Red Tail Canyon Farm in Leavenworth, WA

www.redtailcanyonfarm.com

#7 Cave B Winery in Quincy, WA

www.sagecliffe.com

Looking over the breath taking Columbia River at the Gorge.

#8 Banjo Creek Farms in Manson, WA

www.banjocreekfarms.net

I loved the farm feel!

#9 Warm Springs Inn in Wenatchee, WA

www.warmspringsinn.com

Warms Springs is surrounded by beautiful orchards.

And has a couple rustic barns to take photos by.

#10 Suncadia Resort in Cle Elm, WA

www.suncadiaresort.com

It has amazing views of the mountains.

#11 Imbrie Hall in Hillsboro, OR (this one obviously isn’t in WA, but I loved shooting a wedding there so I thought I would add it!)

www.mcmenamins.com

The following is list of venues I have NOT photographed a wedding at but are on my schedule for this year!

#1 Wapato Point Cellars in Lake Chelan

www.wapatopointcellars.com

#2 Bybee-Nims Farm in North Bend

www.bybeenimsfarms.com

#3 MAC (Museum of Arts & Culture) in Spokane, WA

www.northwestmuseum.org

#4 Mazama Ranch House in Mazama, WA

www.mazamaranchhouse.com

#5 High Cedars Golf Club in Orting, WA

www.highcedars.com

I truly hope that this helps all of you who are in the search for the venue of your dreams. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call. I’m happy to share what knowledge I have about the area.

~Happy Planning!!!!!

Posted in Uncategorized, Weddings

by Maija

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~Happy Valentine’s Day~

February 14, 2010 at 5:35pm

Oh, happy day!!! Oh, happy day!! I hope you all feel as loved as I do today! My sweet hubby came home from shift (he’s a firefighter) with 24 roses in his hands. What a wonderful man I married!!

A couple shots of the flowers I received from my husband this morning! Aren't they beautiful.

I know some of you might be feeling a little anti-valentine’s day, and I don’t blame you. I use to feel that way a bit and those feelings usually come when we don’t have a significant other to share the day with. I am not a fan of the commercialism of it. I mean, do we really need a “holiday” to remind us to say I love you?! NOPE!

Well, once you get beyond any bitter feelings that you might have (and I’m not a negative person, I’m just stating the reality of the feelings we have, they simply aren’t all warm and fuzzy), remember that it’s a day just like all the rest…..all 365 of them. A day in which we should be expressing our love to one another. As a mother, a daughter, a brother, a friend, a lover, a father, a co-worker, a pet owner, a garbage collector, a bee catcher, a professor, a pastor, a truck driver, (get my point) all of us alike should be sending out love on a daily basis. Fortunately for us, love can be expressed in a multitude of ways. I love you does not only come in a card or a box of chocolates or even in 2 dozen roses. Those are the “extras”, the “bonus points” that make your heart smile just a little bigger.

But truly at the center of it all is love! Love IS what makes the world go ’round. It’s why we get up in the morning. It’s really the only reason to take another breath, as we go about our busy days. It’s our greatest gift in life; our great gift from God.

So go out and tell someone you love them and tell them that EVERY day!!!

With much love,

~Maija

Posted in Personal, Uncategorized

by Maija

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Jackie - I agree with what you wrote!

~5 photos and my style~

February 11, 2010 at 8:39pm

I am constantly trying to grow as a photographer, but sometimes in that growth you can get lost in what your “style” truly is. I believe each photographer has their own “thumb print” if you will, which could partly be defined by their style. We each are created so uniquely. I have done a little test on this, (and you have to have somewhat of a fine tuned eye to see the difference, but the difference is there). Give the same camera and subject to five people and you will see that even though they have the same equipment and the same subject none of the photos will be EXACTLY the same. This is our thumb print, our own bit of “magic” that each one of us has to offer to this world.

Though it’s very overwhelming to sift through 1000s of photos to pick just a few, I took on the challenge and have selected five of my photos that I think show my style (at least for wedding photography). I might be doing this about once a month with different photos, because it truly is painful to only pick a few.

I believe that my style is fun, real, moment by moment, expressive, and creative. It’s hard for me to label myself as just a photojournalist or even a life style photographer, I think I pull from both. What I most love about photography is being able to capture those fleeting moments that pass us by so quickly, and to capture those moments that others might have missed had I not been there to capture it (i.e. photojournalism). On the other hand, I love the creative elements of photography, the textures in a background, a fun or dynamic pose, not to mention all the joy that I can find in the creative editing process.

I would LOVE for you all to comment on what you think of these photos, which one is your favorite, what emotion do you feel when you look at them, or just give me a few words to describe one or all of the photos. I really appreciate your thoughts and feedback. THANK YOU!!

Photo #1

**Capturing the moment**

Photo #2

**real**emotion**

Photo #3

**fun**

Photo #4

**dynamic**texture**

Photo #5

**emotion**creative**

Posted in Uncategorized

by Maija

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brittany - i just wanted to drop you a line and let you know that i check your blog every few weeks and each time i do i get more and more excited for not only my big day but for YOU to be the one to shoot it! i think your photo's are fantastic and i love that you capture the true, candid, moments. i'm really looking forward to it! only 5 1/2 short months to go!

~Inspired and blogging~ A wedding photographer

February 4, 2010 at 11:47pm

I got off the phone with my dear friend Ruthy (Hi girl…I know you are reading this…yes you! Love you!) about a week ago and we got to chatting about blogging. I am going to have the wonderful and blessed opportunity to capture Ruthy’s wedding in about two weeks in Flagstaff, AZ and she has been madly planning her day and sinking herself into blogs. She has her very own spectacular blog called Discovery Street, which I encourage any of you brides-to-be to go visit. Anyway, she encouraged me to start spending more time in the blogging world. I have had a “photography” blog for about 3 or so years, but am realizing more and more each day that it can be so much more than it is currently.

Here is a picture of me and my sweet friend that she posted on her blog (it’s about 3+ years old, but I think we are still just as cute )

I’ve always been nervous to post anything more than just my photos and a few thoughts about those photos. But it has dawned on me that those of you who visit my blog actually might at least be an ounce interested in who is ‘behind’ the camera. It truly does scare me to put anything else out there, but I have always been a woman to be vulnerable with life, so why not with my photography blog! Brides-to-be are not only interested in a photographer who can take great photos, but are also interested in who they will be spending 8+ hours with on their wedding day. We (being the photographers) really are the ONE vendor that you have to spend/share your whole day with. I say, you better like that person or you might be in for something you didn’t sign up for.

I’m excited about what 2010 has to bring. God was so incredibly faithful to me last year. In fact, He was beyond unbelievable and I owe everything to Him. I won’t go into the story now, but I was blessed to marry my best friend/love of my life in my parents backyard on July 17th, 2009 (I will post photos later). It was, to this date, the most amazing day of my life!! I have an even deeper understanding and commitment to my job. I have always been passionate about photography and desired to give all my clients the best I could give them. Now that feeling has multiplied and I’m bursting with commitment to tell the story of a couples day. I am so looking forward to spending time with each of my couples this year…to share in all their joy!!

Thank you to everyone who takes the time to visit my blog. Oh and P.S. I LOVE comments (what blogger doesn’t?), so if you have about five seconds, I would absolutely love to hear from you!

Posted in Personal

by Maija

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Krista - Ok! So where are you?! Just waiting to hear from you.

Krista - Maija... WRITE like a crazy woman. Yes we want to hear your thoughts. At least I KNOW I do! I've narrowed my family, photography and writing blog down to my writing blog only. No time for all -- and I want to speak my mind WITH my photos... so, check it out when you have the time. All my love... Krista

ruthyg - yay! so happy you're delving deeper into the blogosphere! :) I can't wait to see you soon!!

~From Megan and Tyler~

February 2, 2010 at 6:59pm

Okay…so this time of year is especially hard for blogging, not because I don’t have the time, but because I just simply don’t take as many pictures. During the months of May-October, I am shutter happy and I start to feel like I have the first signs of carpel tunnel. But during this time of year, I have to admit at times I have to dust off the camera. (It’s not very thick dust, just a couple of weeks worth at times )

With that said, I am posting another one of my “little blessings”, which for me are thoughtful, unexpected words from my past clients. I wish there were words to truly express my gratitude for the kind e-mails and testimonials that people send my way, but there are not. So I will just say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has taken the time to write me and extend their appreciation.

I shot Megan and Tyler’s wedding back in September of 2009, and they sent me this e-mail about a month or so ago. They were simply a delight to work with and they were troopers on their wedding day….because there was down pour rain for the majority of the day. However, we sprinted outside at every moment of lapse in the rain and were able to get some amazing outdoor shots.

If you want to take a look at their wedding on my blog, click here: http://maijakarinphotography.com/blog/megan-and-tyler-9-6-09-happily-ever-after/

What they had to say………

Hi Maija,

We just wanted to Thank YOU again for the photos. They are amazing and we
cannot express how much we love them. I am so glad that we chose to work
with you. You were great at the engagement shoot… helping us break out of
our shells and then again on the wedding day! You were like an old friend at
the wedding just taking photos… even helping me with my dress We loved
that you understood the overall look in the photos we wanted and you exceed
any expectation that we had.

Your pictures are by far some of the best photos that we have ever seen
and we cannot wait to have you take more pictures for us We have seen
some of our other friends who got married and recently gotten their
photos… and we must say that we are so proud of our photos. Not that their
photos were bad… but yours were just so superior that it made us smile.
You captured our personality and love for each other better than we could
have ever imagined. Thank you for helping us through the big day… with
rain and all. Waiting for the photos was agonizing but seeing the finished
product was so worth the wait! Thanks again… if you ever come over to
Olympia… call us we would love to take you to dinner!

Love,

Tyler and Megan Baker

Posted in Kind words ~ Testimonials, Weddings

by Maija

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“It was like you took everything and put it down on paper…”

January 20, 2010 at 4:08pm

Most days I get up in the morning, wash my face, brush my teeth and overall just do what it takes to wake myself up and start the day off right. Well, a couple mornings ago I got to start the day off “right” in a whole different way!

I got my new BlackBerry (aka crackberry ) a couple months ago, so now I can check my e-mail at anytime/anywhere. I don’t typically check my e-mail right when I wake up (I’m not that obsessed yet), but this particular morning was different because I woke up earlier than normal and was checking the time on my phone and noticed I had an e-mail. That e-mail was from a couple that I worked with in June of 2008. I had the pleasure of shooting Kathie and Shannon’s wedding, and was VERY blessed to receive a sweet note from them. I wasn’t looking for it, nor did I ask for it. And that is when it means the most! I truly love what I do! It gives me a natural high to know that my couples are so happy with their photos.

I don’t want to speak for all artist, but I’m pretty sure most would agree that our work is like riding a roller coaster. When you truly have a passion for what you do and want the best for all of your clients, sometimes emotion can RULE. I find myself one day in a moment of complete bliss and then the next day I will be curled up in a ball on the floor with tears in my eyes. In my business, I want NOTHING more than for my clients to be delighted with their photos. I mean, pictures are our memories; they are what you save if your house is on fire. So when I get an unsolicited “thank you” e-mail, it brings tears of joy and a HUGE smile to my heart.

You can view more of Kathie and Shannon’s wedding on my website and/or on my old blog.

Thank you to Kathie and Shannon for giving me the chance to capture your wonderfully special day and for taking the time to send me such kind words.

Pure joy!!!

"Maija, I cannot begin to explain how truly thankful we are for everything

you did in capturing our wedding.  I can honestly say that I can relive every

moment of our special day by looking through the photos that you took.  You

have such a gift of capturing all of the moments in time that you never want

to forget...the big things like our first kiss as husband and wife, and our

first dance...and the little things that truly help you to remember just how

that day felt, the look on Shannon's face when he first saw me coming down

the aisle, the laughter, the tears...it was like you took everything and put

it down on paper for me to be able to revisit whenever I want.  Your photos

were incredible and we were so thankful that we found you and that you were

still in California to shoot our wedding!  We hope that you know how blessed

we felt to be able to work with you and we wish you all the best.  Thank you

for everything!  Kathie and Shannon Miller (married 06-07-08)

Posted in Kind words ~ Testimonials

by Maija

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~Back from Maui~

January 16, 2010 at 10:46pm

Well, I am back from my belated honeymoon in Maui and it was AWESOME!!!! I had been to a couple of the other islands when I was younger, but never to Maui, and I think I might be in love. We truly had a wonderful time. Lots of adventures to be had and a ridiculous amount of time on the beach (I like the sun!). I thought I would share a few photos that I took while adventuring through the island.

And along with returning to home, I have returned to work. Yippy!!! It kind of slipped my mind when I was planning this trip that January is one of the busiest booking months of the year for weddings. So I was able to hear from several of you who are planning your weddings, while I was sitting on my deck with a view! With that begin said, I only have a few wedding dates left that I will be booking for 2010.

One of my favorite images....mainly because it was literally taken from where I was laying on the beach. Great view!

And this is my second favorite! Such a stunning view we had.

Love the ocean.

Can't you just see yourself sitting on that bench?!!!

Taken on one of our drives to the beach.

Posted in Personal, Uncategorized

by Maija

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Abbey and Ernie~A winter wedding~12.19.09

January 14, 2010 at 2:37am

For the last 10 days I have been on my belated honeymoon in Maui (Yippy!), so posts on my blog have been at a minimum! But I am happy to post a handful of photos from my last wedding that I shot in December. I had the GREAT pleasure of meeting Abbey and Ernie back in August of last year, and I am so thankful they chose me to capture their wedding. The words that I think of when I reflect back on their day are pure, joyous, and LOTS of smiles. It truly was a blessed day for the two of them and I enjoyed basking in their happiness. I have selected just a handful (meaning about 18 photos) for this post and hope to post more later. I always have the toughest time choosing photos for my blog….tons of favorites to chose from.

Hope you can feel the joy of the day!

I thought I would start with this photos, because it shows some of the joy that Abbie exuded throughout the day!

I thought I would start with this photo, because it shows some of the joy that Abbey exuded throughout the day!

Putting on the dress that you wait so long to put on "for real". Such a joyous moment.

Putting on the dress that a bride waits so long to put on "for real". Such a joyous moment.

A few shots from when they first saw each other. So much emotion and a few tears! LOVE IT!!!

And a shot from when Abbie first saw her dad! The emotion gives me chills. It shows how much her father dearly adores her and is preparing to give his daughter away.

And a shot from when Abbey first saw her dad! The emotion gives me chills. It shows how much her father dearly adores her and is preparing to give his daughter away.

This shot was just too cute not to post.

The oh so happy couple!

I thought this was a fun shot of Abbie with the reflection in the windows at the church where they got married. It was a lovely overcast winter day. :)

I thought this was a fun shot of Abbey with the reflection in the windows at the church where they got married. It was a lovely overcast winter day.

Introducing Ernie! I liked this shot of him on the bench.

How cute are these little ones?! The ring bearer and flower girl.

The whole crew! We took these on on side of the church which had an entire wall of that was covered in wood. Turned out to be a fun backdrop!

The whole crew! We took these on one side of the church which had an entire wall that was covered in wood. Turned out to be a fun backdrop!

I really like this shot of Abbie and Ernie walking to where we were going to take photos! Don't you love her shoes!

This probably has to be my favorite shot from the whole wedding! I love the dimension in it and the story that it tells of the day!

My second favorite shot. Again...do you see the joy?!

More smiles!

And extra joy!

Posted in Weddings

by Maija

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Molly and Josh~Engaged~

January 4, 2010 at 11:21am

This is a LONG overdue post. But I wanted to get some of Josh and Molly’s engagement pics up. As you will see by their photos, they are a very fun couple and full of smiles. I had such a wonderful time with them taking shots all around Wenatchee.

I hope you all enjoy them as much as I do!

See what I mean....such a blast to hang out with them! Lots of laughter.

Beautiful Molly!

I love photography (for sooo many reasons), because you can get great pictures anywhere and with very little. We found this cool old blue bench outside of the police station. So we had an audience of police officer. :)

I love photography, for so many reasons, but one of them being you can get great pictures anywhere and with very little. We found this cool old blue bench outside of the police station. So we had an audience of police officers. I thought it turned out pretty cute.

Posted in Engagement Session

by Maija

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~A slide show for Chris and Nichole~

January 1, 2010 at 5:23pm

I mentioned in my last post that I was going to put up a few slide shows from this past wedding season. Here is a small selection of photos from Chris and Nichole’s wedding that I captured back on June 13, 2009. Such a fun and happy couple…we had a blast!

Maija Karin Photography » Blog

Welcome to my PASSION!!

~Location.Location.Location~

~Happy Valentine’s Day~

~5 photos and my style~

~Inspired and blogging~ A wedding photographer

~From Megan and Tyler~

“It was like you took everything and put it down on paper…”

~Back from Maui~

Abbey and Ernie~A winter wedding~12.19.09

Molly and Josh~Engaged~

~A slide show for Chris and Nichole~

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