Photography & Videography: Tips from the Trenches

So much effort goes into planning your wedding. And you know what? When the day comes, it definitely will be the blur everyone tells you it will be. Hours pass like minutes, and before you know it, you’re off for the honeymoon. Therefore, it’s so important to have every detail of your day expertly captured, so you can enjoy those fleeting moments again and again.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of amateur photographers and videographers out there posing as pros. To help make your hiring decision easier, our friend Dave Bigler at Bigler Productions has some tips for you: Brilliance or Blah; 3 Key Things to Look For in Your Wedding Photographer or Videographer.

Here’s one of our favorite points from Dave: “One of the key elements to shooting a wedding is being able to anticipate every moment. There are no retakes or do-overs in a wedding. An experienced shooter will be in the right place at the right time to nail the right shot.”

Well said, Dave! No matter how beautiful a first kiss, the photograph of it will probably not look that great if the photographer is crouched at the bride’s knee. (Yes, we’ve seen this happen!) An experienced pro will know just where to position him or herself when it’s time for the I do’s.

(Credits: Like the photo above? So do we! It’s from “Rustic Romance,” a feature in Volume 2 of Adirondack Weddings, photographed by Greer Cicarelli Photography.)

Thanks to Adirondack Weddings Magazine for their beautiful photographs, posts, and wedding and event inspiration. Adirondack Weddings is the official bridal magazine of upstate New York’s Adirondack region, covering Lake Placid, Saranac Lake, Lake George, Old Forge, Saratoga Springs, and beyond. The magazine features stunning photography, insightful articles, and the region's top wedding professionals. Visit the Adirondack Weddings Magazine website.

Sheffield School began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

Request a free Sheffield School catalog describing our distance education courses.

Subscribe to the Sheffield Designer newsletter.

Valentine's Day Wedding Proposal

We’ve chatted about Caroline Tran’s Propel Workshops. They’re such an amazing experience for photographers and some of the best photo sessions come from it - like this sweet one inspired by Merrill + Tim’s actual proposal story. He planned a valentine’s themed proposal with a ring in a box and an accordion style card that asked her to be his valentine forever. Happy Valentine's Day!

Photographers: Meg Runion Studios, Aileen Garcia Studio, Melanie Gabrielle, Hunter Photographic,Hanbee Photography, He & Tiffany

Designer/Stylist: Lovely Jubilee  / Hair & Makeup: Theresa Huang Makeup & Hair Design / Florist:Krista Jon / Rentals: Archive Vintage Rentals / Merrill’s outfit: Ruche / Heart Garland & Confetti: the Path Less Traveled

Thanks to 100 Layer Cake for their beautiful photographs, posts, and wedding and event inspiration. 100 Layer Cake is a unique, comprehensive wedding and event planning resource for and by thoughtful, crafty modern women. Their vendors, projects, weddings, resources, sponsors, and marketplace are hand-picked and thoroughly researched with the hope that every single one is a truly unique addition to both your wedding and your planning process. Visit the 100 Layer Cake website today.

 Sheffield School began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

Request a free Sheffield School catalog describing our distance education courses.

Subscribe to the Sheffield Designer newsletter.

Jewelry Inspiration: Chicago Designer Loves Massive Scale Necklaces

Klimt02 is a website that provides an international forum for contemporary jewelry in a creative space that offers knowledge, information, debates, and exchanges - all within the artistic realm of jewelry. Based in Barcelona, Spain, Kilmt02 inspires everyone interested in the selection, quality, art, technology, and creation of art jewelry. Sheffield School has kindly been given permission to share works of global designers here on our website. Today's post focuses on a jewelry designer from Chicago, IL, Heejin Hwang, who crafts very large-scale necklaces that will surprise, intrigue, and inspire you. So often, we stick with the scale of most jewelry pieces - but why? Why not shift into a larger scale?

Heejin Hwang

Heejin Hwang
Necklace: Connection 2010
Steel, enamel, ground rock
93 x 45 x 10 cm

Heejin Hwang
Necklace: Connection 2010
Steel, enamel, ground rock
93 x 45 x 10 cm
Photograph: Jim Escalante

Heejin Hwang
Necklace: Connection 2010
Steel, enamel, ground rock
18 x 18 x 4 cm
Photograph: Jim Escalante

Heejin Hwang
Necklace: Sensation 2012
Steel wire
30 x 120 x 30 cm

Click to read more ...

Jewelry Inspiration: Ruffled Rings

The Carrotbox is a site dedicated to all those wonderful rings made of glass, lucite, resin, plastic, jade, wood, bakelite, metal, and even stone. Alice Matsumoto from Vancouver, BC, Canada has a ring shop and has kindly given us permission to inspire our jewelry lovers at Sheffield with her discoveries. In this post, Alice focuses on ballet-inspired rings. (We think they're tutu much!)

Tout tutu today! Your fingers can point — and now, they can be en pointe with this "Ballet" collection from England's Carine Chang.

Bonus

For more ruffles, check out Russia's Sasha Chi, who serves up ruffled plastic combined with pearls and beads.

Even more jewelry:

• Ghost Dancer (California) - native beading
• Vionnet (France) - gold & pearls
• Roger Rimel (Missouri) - weathered two-tone

Sheffield School began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

Request a free Sheffield School catalog describing our distance education courses.

Subscribe to the Sheffield Designer newsletter.

Jewelry Inspiration: Nostalgia, Beautifully Wrought

Klimt02 is a website that provides an international forum for contemporary jewelry in a creative space that offers knowledge, information, debates, and exchanges - all within the artistic realm of jewelry. Based in Barcelona, Spain, Kilmt02 inspires everyone interested in the selection, quality, art, technology, and creation of art jewelry. Sheffield School has kindly been given permission to share works of global designers here on our website. Today's post focuses on a jewelry designer from the Netherlands, Malou Paul, and some of her beautifully crafted, wistfully nostalgic pieces. Click here for more samples of her work.

Malou Paul

Malou Paul
Ring: Oblivion – Walcheren 2013
Silver, old postcards, glass

Malou Paul
Earrings: Crown Jewels 2012
Zinc, steel

Malou Paul
Rings: Floral Stories 2011
Silver, glaze

Malou Paul
Necklace: Blooming 2012
Zinc, wool, cotton

Malou Paul
Necklace: Chain of Memories 2012
Zinc, steel

Malou Paul
Rings: Floral Stories 2012
Fair Trade and Fair Mined 14 Ct gold

Statement

The jewelry of Malou Paul distinguishes itself with a nostlagic feeling. On one hand this is reached through the (re)use of materials, such as old doorknobs, (old) zinc, old postcards, wool, combined with precious metals. On the other hand through the sources of inspiration, like mourning jewelry, victorian jewelry and traditional costume/folklore. Also nature, in all its different appearances, is an inexhaustible source of inspiration for beautiful shapes and colors.     Together, this ensures that the jewelry pieces of Malou Paul carry a piece of history within them. The jewelry looks lived in, each with its own story. In addition, experimenting with materials is important, as well as the search for new shapes and forms. The ultimate goal remains making an interesting piece of jewellery, without "overthinking."  On sale at Webshop www.maloupaul.markita.nl GoLDFABRIK www.goldfabrik.nl  Op Voorraad www.op-voorraad.com  mail: paul.malou@gmail.com

If you're interested in learning more about jewelry design, we encourage you to explore the Sheffield School, New York, NY. Sheffield began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

Request a free Sheffield School catalog describing our distance education courses.

Subscribe to the Sheffield Designer newsletter.