Chicago Destination Wedding Photographer and Wedding Photojournalist http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog Destination wedding photographer & wedding photojournalist serving Chicago, Charlotte, Charleston and available for worldwide travel Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:57:56 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 I had to… http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/30/i-had-to/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/30/i-had-to/#comments Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:56:56 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4772 I glanced at this today, and I teared up. I had to post it.

Rebekah & Michael are the winners of my 2010 Free Wedding giveaway. More to come from their wedding in a couple of weeks. I love these two dearly. Happy weekend!

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/30/i-had-to/feed/ 1 Featured on Weddings Unveiled! http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/29/featured-on-weddings-unveiled-3/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/29/featured-on-weddings-unveiled-3/#comments Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:00:44 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4766 Jori & Josh’s engagement session was featured on Weddings Unveiled!

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/29/featured-on-weddings-unveiled-3/feed/ 1 Weight Loss Wednesdays No. 5 http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/29/weight-loss-wednesdays-no-5/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/29/weight-loss-wednesdays-no-5/#comments Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:00:58 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4761 So I’ve decided to skip out on Nutrisystem from now on. Although it has helped me lose weight, it was like $300 a month PLUS I still had to buy my own fruits, veggies, and proteins. A half cup of tortellini and some spaghetti sauce ended up costing around $3.00 and then I came to the conclusion that I could probably buy a package of tortellini and spaghetti sauce at Trader Joe’s for about the same price. not sure why I didn’t think of this before. So I went out and grocery-shopped. I bought things that I like to eat, but will be pre-measuring and preparing them in containers about 5 days at a time. Same idea. MUCH cheaper. MUCH tastier.

With that said, I also have a little bit of a confession. I cheated this week and last week. Not just one time, but a few times. I felt so guilty every time. Yet I constantly kept justifying it to myself with the most ridiculous excuses. I mean, seriously? Why can’t I just stay on track and do what I’m supposed to do? You would think my 10 year high school reunion this November would motivate me, but it just hasn’t. Then November will roll around and I’ll be complaining the whole time about why I couldn’t lose the weight.

Here are my current stats:
START WEIGHT: 217
CURRENT WEIGHT: 212
LBS. LOST SO FAR: 5
GOAL WEIGHT: 145

There it is. The ugly truth. I gained a whopping 4 pounds in only two weeks.

Ugh…

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/29/weight-loss-wednesdays-no-5/feed/ 0 Malibu Wedding Photographer • Patricia & Dennis • Saddlerock Ranch http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/27/malibu-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-patricia-dennis-%e2%80%a2-saddlerock-ranch/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/27/malibu-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-patricia-dennis-%e2%80%a2-saddlerock-ranch/#comments Tue, 27 Jul 2010 04:34:59 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4671 You might remember Dennis & Patricia from this engagement session shot in Charleston, South Carolina. Ever since then, I have been anxiously awaiting the day they would marry. Because of Dennis & Patricia’s ridiculously good looks, most people’s initial reaction when meeting them would be wary and unsure if they were approachable or not. Well it couldn’t be further from the truth. Dennis & Patricia are more selfless than most people I know. They serve together on mission trips, and that in itself, I find to be a truly amazing quality and speaks volumes about them. Let’s start off with some details about who was involved in making their wedding day come together.

Venue: Saddlerock Ranch
Florist: Emanuela Candrianu
Wedding Dress: Pronovias
Wedding Shoes: Custom order (imitation Rihanna)
Veil: Handmade by bride (buttons were handed down from mom)
Hair Piece: Bridal Couture
Garter Belt: Florrie Mitton
Groom’s Attire: Burberry shirt & Theory suit
Ring Bearer Pillow: Peppermint Cloud
Wood Candles: The Bent Tree Gallery
Painting Artist: Cosmin Lucaciu
Videography: Aaron and Winston Tao

Also, a special “thank you” to my husband Alin for working his butt off all day and helping me out. Another special “thank you” goes out to my sister-in-law, Otilia for organizing the many family formal shots to go quicker and smoother. Thank you both!


please do not copy, alter, or print images. you may use the images on your personal blog, Facebook, MySpace or any other social networking site as long as the watermark is left on the image and you provide a link back to my website.

When I saw this, my jaw dropped. Cosmin Lucaciu hand-painted the image below from
scratch based off of one of Dennis & Patricia’s e-session images. Amazing, isn’t it?

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/27/malibu-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-patricia-dennis-%e2%80%a2-saddlerock-ranch/feed/ 39 Engagement Photography • Roxanna & Johnny • Charleston Engagement Photographer http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/23/engagement-photography-%e2%80%a2-roxanna-johnny-%e2%80%a2-charleston-engagement-photographer/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/23/engagement-photography-%e2%80%a2-roxanna-johnny-%e2%80%a2-charleston-engagement-photographer/#comments Fri, 23 Jul 2010 18:20:17 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4640 Roxanna & Johnny are more in tune with each other than so many couples that I have ever seen together. You can see it in the way they look at each other. Roxanna is one of the head girls at Chateau Bellevie, and has become a dear and close friend to me over the past year. She is funny, light-hearted, and a hard worker. Johnny is giving, thoughtful, and very protective of his girl. So cute! We drove to Charleston to do their session, because frankly -Charleston is ‘thebomb.com’. Any textures in the images are ones I’ve personally created using actual images I’ve taken in Charleston. Roxanna and Johnny, I really do love the both of you and truly cannot wait to shoot your wedding in October!


please do not copy, alter, or print images. you may use the images on your personal blog, Facebook, MySpace or any other social networking site as long as the watermark is left on the image and you provide a link back to my website.

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/23/engagement-photography-%e2%80%a2-roxanna-johnny-%e2%80%a2-charleston-engagement-photographer/feed/ 4 Asheville Wedding Photographer • Jessi & Michael • PART TWO • The Hot Shots! Booth http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/22/asheville-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-jessi-michael-%e2%80%a2-part-two-%e2%80%a2-the-hot-shots-booth/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/22/asheville-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-jessi-michael-%e2%80%a2-part-two-%e2%80%a2-the-hot-shots-booth/#comments Fri, 23 Jul 2010 00:41:35 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4617 Welcome to Part Two of Jessi & Michael’s Asheville wedding: The Hot Shots! Booth. You can see part one of their big day HERE, in case you’re interested. Thanks to my lovely husband who manned the booth all night and shot these!


please do not copy, alter, or print images. you may use the images on your personal blog, Facebook, MySpace or any other social networking site as long as the watermark is left on the image and you provide a link back to my website.

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/22/asheville-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-jessi-michael-%e2%80%a2-part-two-%e2%80%a2-the-hot-shots-booth/feed/ 1 I Fell For You http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/20/i-fell-for-you/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/20/i-fell-for-you/#comments Tue, 20 Jul 2010 19:45:37 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4590 Ten years ago, I threw Alin a surprise birthday party at his house. We weren’t dating yet. We had just been “talking” for about a month. I was 18 years old then, immature, but a romantic sap. I loved writing songs. I especially LOVED writing songs for guys I crushed on. On July 19, 2000, I took Alin to the top of a mountain (dirt pile) in Phoenix, brought my guitar and a picture frame holding a song (see actual scan below). I handed him the song in a picture frame, pulled out my guitar and sang it to him. I don’t remember much after that, but I did ask him recently what went through his mind when I did that. And it was something along the lines of “awkward”! Why Alin continued to ask me to be his girlfriend that night is beyond me. Shoot, I wouldn’t have asked me out, that’s for sure.

After singing on the mountain top, and making the boyfriend-girlfriend thing official, we headed over to his house where his family and friends lurked in the shadows and “surprise!”ed Alin for his birthday. And we partied the night away. Here are some pictures from then. I was still using one time use film cameras then. Don’t judge me.

Everything you’ve seen is my own personal favorite memory from Alin & my life together. Now I have asked Alin’s family members to write down their favorite memories with him.

—–

From Eva (Alin’s youngest sister):

—–

From Jessie (Alin’s 2nd youngest sister):

—–

From Otilia (Alin’s 2nd oldest sister):
I will always remember the games. Chess, basketball in our front yard, and our Friday night poker games with Sardella’s pizza! Even though you mostly won them, it was always fun.

—–

From Andreea (Alin’s oldest sister):
Coming soon!

—–

From Alin’s Dad:

—–

From Alin’s Mom:

Happy 30th birthday, baby! I love you now more than I ever have!

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/20/i-fell-for-you/feed/ 7 Engagement Photography • Weezie & Reid • Chapel Hill Engagement Photographer http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/20/engagement-photography-%e2%80%a2-weezie-reid-%e2%80%a2-chapel-hill-engagement-photographer/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/20/engagement-photography-%e2%80%a2-weezie-reid-%e2%80%a2-chapel-hill-engagement-photographer/#comments Tue, 20 Jul 2010 16:17:37 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4571 Weezie & Reid met on Match.com three years ago, and here they are today. Engaged! Reid loves photography, renovating his house, and Fight Club. Weezie is an OB/GYN & loves delivering babies. She also loves her dog and learning different languages. Together, they LOVE Paris & is where they got engaged. They are definitely my kind of couple!


please do not copy, alter, or print images. you may use the images on your personal blog, Facebook, MySpace or any other social networking site as long as the watermark is left on the image and you provide a link back to my website.

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/20/engagement-photography-%e2%80%a2-weezie-reid-%e2%80%a2-chapel-hill-engagement-photographer/feed/ 3 Asheville Wedding Photographer • Jessi & Michael • PART ONE • The Wedding http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/19/asheville-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-jessi-michael-%e2%80%a2-part-one-%e2%80%a2-the-wedding/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/19/asheville-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-jessi-michael-%e2%80%a2-part-one-%e2%80%a2-the-wedding/#comments Mon, 19 Jul 2010 20:21:18 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4484 I like to people watch at weddings. At this particular one, I noticed Michael wrap his arms around Jessi a number of times for no reason at all. Just simply to remind her that he was there for her. And it warmed my heart. I loved the closeness of family & friends that came. I loved the beautiful, organic florals and decor. I loved the music. I loved EVERYTHING about this wedding. It was all simply perfect.

From the bride herself:
“We actually met through friends. We kind of met at a Halloween party in 2007 but didn’t really talk that night (Michael was wearing a ridiculous blow-up cowboy riding costume). We officially met in December of 2007 when he came with his friend, Harris, who just starting dating one of my good friends, to dinner at Sushi 101. We instantly hit it off and talked throughout dinner like we had known each other for our whole lives. Michael ended up sending me a message on facebook, including his phone number, and told me to give him a call sometime. I responded with my number and told him to give me a call sometime. Sure enough, he did that night & we talked for hours – and the next night & the next. We have pretty much been inseparable ever since .”

Venue: The Crest Center
Flowers: The Bloom Room
Bride’s Dress: David’s Bridal *mom sewed on buttons
Groom & Groomsmen Suits: Jos A Bank
Bridesmaid Dresses: Bill Levkoff
Band: Chris Cates & The Master Plan
Videography: KA Studios
Cake: Cake Creations by Alex
Table Cards & Place Cards: Stout Ideas
Hair & Makeup: Ananda Hair Studio
Officiant:: Ronell Owensby

I would like to thank my amazing husband Alin for assisting me throughout the day, second-shooting, and working at our Hot Shots! booth. I would also like to thank my adorable summer intern, Courtney, for shooting as well. Her images from the wedding will be posted on her blog, so please head on over there and leave her some love!


please do not copy, alter, or print images. you may use the images on your personal blog, Facebook, MySpace or any other social networking site as long as the watermark is left on the image and you provide a link back to my website.

Part Two: Hot Shots! booth of Jessi & Michael’s wedding coming up tomorrow!

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/19/asheville-wedding-photographer-%e2%80%a2-jessi-michael-%e2%80%a2-part-one-%e2%80%a2-the-wedding/feed/ 11 Weight Loss Wednesdays No. 4 ~ The NutriSystem Diet http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/14/weight-loss-wednesdays-no-4-the-nutrisystem-diet/ http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/14/weight-loss-wednesdays-no-4-the-nutrisystem-diet/#comments Wed, 14 Jul 2010 21:05:38 +0000 Caroline http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/?p=4480 I’ve been on a 6500 mile road trip with Alin and the kids for the past few weeks, which is why I haven’t updated my Weight Loss Wednesdays series. Let’s start off with a confession. I ate horribly while on the road. I could blame it on the fact that there were very few healthy options while in the middle of nowhere. I could. But there were many opportunities where I could have made better food choices, and didn’t. I was so afraid to come back home and weigh myself. I was sure that I had gained everything back. Surprisingly, I didn’t. In fact, I lost one more pound since my last weigh-in! Although I didn’t make the best food choices while on this trip, at least I didn’t gain anything. (Keep telling yourself that, Caroline)

Here are my current stats:
START WEIGHT: 217
CURRENT WEIGHT: 208
LBS. LOST SO FAR: 9
GOAL WEIGHT: 145

]]> http://www.carolineghetes.com/blog/2010/07/14/weight-loss-wednesdays-no-4-the-nutrisystem-diet/feed/ 2