This just goes to show that you can really spice up your wedding by doing something unique. You might not necessarily want to do this since it’s already been done (and done quite well, we have to say), but just remember that your wedding ceremony and wedding reception doesn’t have to be traditional if you don’t want it to be, and that there are a lot of creative things you can do to make your wedding memories special.

And, as you may have figured, unique wedding moments like this one just make for great wedding photos.

We’ll be checking out some more of these wedding dance clips in the near future. There are a lot out there that may give you some ideas for your wedding.

While there is music in Colbie Caillat’s genes (her father is producer/sound engineer who’s worked with acts like Fleetwood Mac, The Beach Boys, and Frank Sinatra), her rise to superstardom comes thanks to her MySpace page where her songs first generated lots of buzz. We’ll focus on three songs by this bright young singer that may capture the feelings you have on your special day.

“Bubbly”

This is the song that started it all for Colbie Caillat and one that you’ll instantly recognize when you hear it. It’s a sweet little tune, and the word “bubbly” describes it perfectly.

Sample: “Bubbly” from Coco

“Magic”

There’s a certain magic that comes with being deeply in love, and this song is all about that feeling. Like “Bubbly,” it’s got a California feel. While “Bubbly” is like a beach during the day, “Magic” is like that beach at sunset.

Sample: “Magic” from Coco

“Lucky”

We haven’t featured any duets with male/female vocalists, so this Jason Mraz/Colbie Caillat song seems like a good place to start. This song is summed up in one line: “I’m lucky I’m in love with my best friend.”

Sample: “Lucky” from We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things.

More wedding songs and wedding tips to come in the near future. For now, check out our wedding photography gallery to sample our work. It will show you why we’ve got a reputation for great wedding photography in Denver and Northern Colorado.

If you’ve kept up with our blog, you’ve probably found that we wedding photographers can be a great resource for good wedding ideas and can help filter out the bad wedding ideas. And, let me tell you, that advice comes in handy when it comes to those portraits taken after the wedding ceremony has been completed but before the wedding reception has begun.

How Long Should These Wedding Portraits Take?

On the one hand, you don’t want to keep your guests waiting too long between the wedding ceremony and the wedding reception, but on the other hand, it’s important to get perfect portraits of the bride and groom and their families. We’ve heard stories of these wedding portraits taking 90 minutes or more with some wedding photographers. Taking that long means that many of the wedding guests may be stuffed with hors d’oeuvres by the time the bride and groom have reach the reception.

Bill and I are full-time professional wedding photographers. That means we do excellent work in a reasonable time. When taking wedding portraits right after the wedding ceremony, we generally shoot for 40 minutes to 50 minutes, and never shoot for more than an hour tops. This way we are able to help pose people and set up our professional lighting equipment, enabling us to take beautiful portraits of the bride’s side of the family and the groom’s side of the family as well as the bride and groom together.

How Many Wedding Portraits Should Be Taken?

We had one bride in the past who wanted us to shoot 90 portraits (yes, 90!) between the ceremony and reception. She wanted individual portraits with aunts, uncles, numerous extended family members, and certain guests. We stressed to her that taking that many wedding portraits meant we would have to skimp on the quality of the portraits or that we would have to take hours shooting all of those portraits.

What we recommend is focusing on the immediate and important family members (mothers, fathers, siblings, and grandparents), and then the bridesmaids and groomsmen as groups. We’ll work off a list of portraits with the bride and groom and make sure we get those portraits completed and looking great.

You may wonder “What about photos with members of the extended family or friends?” Bill and I think it’s best to take those sorts of photos during the wedding reception. It’s also a big reason we do wedding photo booth slide shows.

I hope that wedding advice was helpful. More wedding advice to come. For now, take a look at our wedding photography gallery to learn why we’ve developed a good reputation for quality wedding photography in the Denver and Northern Colorado area.

In our first post on wedding songs for the first dance, we covered the immortal and classic Frank Sinatra. We’re back again to look at another fine voice with worldwide stardom, a great deal of class, and who also loves his Sinatra: Michael Bublé.

Michael Bublé is an international superstar who sings both jazz standards and pop standards. Playing him at your wedding means you won’t have any complaints, regardless what rendition of a song you want to play. We’ve picked a sampling of five songs from Michael Bublé that might be a good fit for your wedding.

“The Best is Yet to Come” and “The Way You Look Tonight”

Last time we shared Frank Sinatra’s takes of these standards, but since they are both such good songs for weddings, we thought it would be best to give Michael Bublé’s renditions so you can figure out which fits your wedding best.

Sample: “The Best is Yet to Come” from Call Me Irresponsible

Sample: “The Way You Look Tonight” from Michael Bublé

“You and I”

Here’s Michael Bublé giving his take on a beautiful Stevie Wonder song about staying together with your true love. As with the Sinatra songs, both takes on this tune are delightful.

Sample: “You and I” from It’s Time

“Wonderful Tonight”

Here’s another one of Michael Bublé’s renditions of a pop song, this time one by Eric Clapton. Bublé is joined by Ivan Lins on this smoky, bossa nova take on the song.

Sample: “Wonderful Tonight” from Call Me Irresponsible

“Everything”

We go from jazz standards and pop standards to a more contemporary-sounding and charming Michael Bublé original. This acclaimed song is about the person you care about being everything in your life. Very fitting for that important first dance.

Sample: “Everything” from Call Me Irresponsible

We hope this gave you a good taste of Michael Bublé’s versatile style. More wedding songs in the near future. In the meantime, we encourage you to browse our wedding photo gallery to see what we can offer you on your special day.

We’ve been doing wedding photography in and around Denver for some time now and we’ve heard lots of different songs for the married couple’s first dance. We thought it would be fun to mention some songs we like and that couples enjoy for that important first dance that the bride and groom share. And who better to start with than with Frank Sinatra?

Sinatra’s music is classy and classic at the same time. You can count on a Sinatra song to please friends and family regardless of age. Below are five songs sung by Frank Sinatra’s that people just love to play at their weddings.

“The Best is Yet to Come”

A fitting way to christen your marriage is with this Sinatra song. The title says it all. The wedding is just the beginning of something better.

Sample: “The Best is Yet to Come” from Nothing But The Best [The Frank Sinatra Collection]

“The Way You Look Tonight”

There’s just something about this song that makes you feel the love in the room and the love between the bride and groom. A lot of it has to do with Frank.

Sample: “The Way You Look Tonight” from Nothing But The Best [The Frank Sinatra Collection]

“Fly Me to the Moon” and “Come Fly with Me”

If your love feels like flying, then you have some options. If it’s like soaring through space, you have “Fly Me to the Moon.” Or if it’s like dancing in the air, you can consider “Come Fly with Me.”

Sample: “Fly Me to the Moon” from Nothing But The Best [The Frank Sinatra Collection]

Sample: “Come Fly with Me” from Nothing But The Best [The Frank Sinatra Collection]

“It Had to Be You”

Like “Fly Me to the Moon” and “Come Fly With Me,” this is one of those instantly recognizable tunes closely associated with Frank Sinatra. It’s a great fit for a wedding on top of that.

Sample: “It Had to Be You” from A Voice In Time (1939-1952)

Hope you’re not Sinatra’d out (it was hard to pick just five). We’ll look at some more wedding songs soon. While you’re waiting to hear more, take a look through our wedding photo gallery to see what we can offer you on your special day.

Bill and I have been to some weddings where the couple just hooked up their iPod and let it play instead of hiring a DJ. While this may work in some cases, an iPod just can’t interact with an audience like a DJ. If you have a choice between the two, we think going with an actual DJ would be a better bet.

A good wedding DJ can help pick up the crowd when the energy on the dancefloor is sluggish or can cool it down and help wedding guests catch their breath. That’s something that may not happen if you just let your iPod play through.

A DJ responds to the needs of your guests in a way that an iPod or a pre-set playlist just can’t. At a recent wedding we covered, the DJ told Bill that he wasn’t getting much of a response until he played a hip-hop song. As it turned out, the bridal party and many of the guests were really into hip-hop. Once the DJ put some on, the dance floor was suddenly flooded and the party just exploded.

A DJ adds so much to your special day you’d surprised. At some of the weddings he works at, Leonard at Colorado Sound cues up some “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” music and does a trivia contest about the bride and groom. Tables that get the questions right are released to the wedding buffet sooner than the others. The questions include basic ones wedding guests would know, like “Where did the couple first meet?” and “What is the couple’s favorite restaurant?”

Like I mentioned earlier, while you can’t photograph the music itself, the music can have a big effect on the mood, the look, and the action in a photo. It’s all just something to consider while you plan out your wedding celebration.

I’ll be looking at a few wedding songs and providing some more wedding tips when I get a chance. In the meantime, take a look through our site to learn more about our wedding photography services in Denver and Northern Colorado and to view some of our sample wedding photos.