Jenna Cole Photography-Dallas, TX bio picture

Welcome to Jenna Cole!

Investing in a camera and launching this business has given me the
chance to merge the two activities I love most, photography and blogging. After spending several months taking still life photos for my other blogging endeavors (That Bride, Weddingbee, and That Wife) I realized that I wanted to start spending time with people. I wanted to spend my days taking pictures of people that helped them to see how beautiful they are.

I want to capture the moments in your life as they are happening, as they would happen even if I wasn't there with you. When the light falls just right, and the boy and the girl look at each other just so, magic happens. I want to be there for that moment, composing an image that tells a story, your story.

You can read more about my personal life at That Wife, add me on Twitter, or find me on Facebook. Thank you for visiting and for commenting (I read them all and they make my day!).

 

As I prepare for the next big event in my life (the birth of my baby in April!), I'm going to be refocusing my business and sacling back on the number and type of sessions I am accepting. I'll be on maternity leave beginning in March and lasting through May. Please contact me if you have any questions!

Monthly Archives: April 2009

Bridal: Jenn

When Jenn of With This Ring contacted me about doing a bridal session and mentioned that she was open minded about where we could take them, I went a little crazy on her. I was throwing out suggestions for all of the places I dreamed of shooting in the Dallas area, crossing my fingers that she would be interested in making the long drive outside of Dallas to Sugar Ridge Road in Ennis. She was, and even suggested a second location in the area, Galaxy Drive-in Theatre.

Right before we turned onto Sugar Ridge we had to slow down on account of the cow hanging out in the middle of the road. I turned to Jenn and asked “Are you afraid of cows?” We attempted to chase him down and get him to pose with us, but he wasn’t feeling camera ready that day and scampered off before we could get close enough to do anything. Jenn turned back at me and smiled and, my camera went “click!” and this is what resulted. I love image that have a story behind them.

IMG_7209

Sadly, most of the fields in the area have “No Trespassing” signs, but we stumbled on a few spots without them (or we didn’t look hard enough to find them.)

IMG_7226

IMG_7230

Jenn isn’t married yet, but this isn’t her real wedding dress (can you believe she bought it for $10 on Ebay?), so she was up for rolling around in the bluebonnets like I had hoped.

IMG_7264

IMG_7267

Look at those eyes!

IMG_7281

I’m in love with huge old trees, and the combination of bride, bluebonnets, and tree still dead from winter (with a little bit of wind thrown in for good measure) had me swooning.

IMG_7368

Jenn made this bouquet her self, the night before the shoot using grocery store flowers. Check out her tutorial on her blog for tips on how to make your own!

IMG_7439

IMG_7426

We were driving along Sugar Ridge Road when we spotted three beautiful horses next to a fence right by the road. Id didn’t know it at the time, but Jenn loves horses. In fact, her dream job would be to work with them!

IMG_7471

Love love love this image. I think it’s the kind a little girl would get excited about. What little girl wouldn’t love to grow up and be a bride surrounded by her favorite animal?

IMG_7487-2

IMG_7493

IMG_7509

A little self-portrait action?

IMG_7520

There horses weren’t afraid to get up close and personal. We have one in back trying to push her off the fence, and another attempting to turn her dress into an early morning breakfast snack.

IMG_7543

I love Jenn’s face upon realizing what the horse on the right was up to.

IMG_7549

IMG_7579

Attention hog (horse?)

IMG_7565

We were headed over to the Galaxy Drive-in, thinking that we were done with the bluebonnet shots, when we spotted the most abundant field I have ever seen. Doesn’t it look like they go on forever?

IMG_7614

IMG_7642

As I was leaving the house that morning I grabbed an old book off the shelf just in case the opportunity to make this image in my minds eye come to life presented itself. If I were to hang it in a gallery I would title it “Floating in a Field of Bluebonnets”.

IMG_7667-2

THAT SHOT!

IMG_7679

Jenn is such a fantastic model. I love how relaxed her smile is.

IMG_7725

One last unexpected stop before we made it to Galaxy, an old abandoned house on the side of the road. We saw sneakers, cigarettes, and a bible (random) on the property and became a little bit worried that some man was going to come lurching out of the shadows at us!

IMG_7810

IMG_7827

The Galaxy Theatre is a strange property filled with giant movie screens and amusement park odds and ends.

IMG_7890

Swoon. I love this shot so much. A close second for THAT SHOT.

IMG_7907

IMG_7916

As we were strolling around the property the sun kept peeking out of the clouds (we hadn’t seen it all morning) and I would get overly excited and yell SUN! Except it would only show up for 2 seconds at a time, which meant that as soon as I got my camera ready, it was gone. Love this candid of Jenn checking the sky for the next break in the clouds.

IMG_7934

See what the sun can do? So pretty!

IMG_7946

This stand was the reason Jenn wanted to come to the Galaxy. I wasn’t really feeling the spot because of the amount of distracting elements around it, but when one of the workers started hanging around talking to us, and Jenn made a “This is kind of awkward” face, magic happened! The sun was shining down on her just right, and she really pops out of the photo.

IMG_7964

We ended the session with a few quick ring shots (I had just received my macro lens attachment and I was really excited to test it out!). Isn’t her bling gorgeous?

IMG_8021

Jenn, thanks for doing this marathon shoot with me. I don’t know about you, but I collapsed in bed as soon as I got home. You worked it like only a rockstar could, and I know I’ll be using these images all over the place for years to come because you (yes you!) make my work look A+++! I’m so excited to spend June 6th second shooting your wedding day, thanks for giving me the chance to spend some time with you beforehand. Only one more month to go!

Best,

Jenna

Teaser: Jenn

Coming soon…

Jenn Teaser

Wedding: Lynn and Jonathan Catholic Ceremony

After months of planning a grand Saturday afternoon wedding, Lynn and Jon didn’t blink an eye when Jon’s parents asked them to have a Korean Catholic ceremony the Wednesday before the wedding day they had already spent so many months planning. Lynn is twice as wonderful for doing this because the entire ceremony was in Korean, a language she doesn’t speak. Lynn and Jon love both their parents so much, and it’s obvious from examples like this that they would do anything for them.

When I arrived, Mass will still going on, also in Korean. I saw Jon whisper in Lynn’s ear several times to let her know what they would be doing next.

IMG_4866

The ceremony took place in a temporary location for the church, which means that the lobby was filled with beautiful statues for me to take pictures of while I passed the time.

IMG_4876 copy

Suddenly Mass was over, and Jon and Lynn were standing at the front of the room with their witnesses on either side.

WHAT? There was no walking up the aisle! I had been so excited about “walking up the aisle shots”, and there weren’t any to be had.

IMG_4887 copy

IMG_4896 copy

I know I’ve already said it a few times, but remember this entire ceremony was in Korean, a language which Lynn doesn’t understand. Look how attentive she is!

IMG_4897 copy

IMG_4898 copy

THAT SHOT!

Love this moment between the two of them during the ceremony.

IMG_4904 copy

IMG_4908 copy

Jon started to read his vows to to Lynn.

IMG_4915 copy

And then burst out laughing. I don’t speak Korean either so I wasn’t completely in on the humor, but I think he had been reading the wrong section.

IMG_4917 copy

IMG_4920 copy

Lynn read her vows. I knew what was going on here because she said them in English. :)

IMG_4923 copy

I love the way she beams at Jon.

IMG_4928 copy

And then they were man and wife. So they kissed, right?

NO. There was no kiss. How did this happen? Just like the walk up the aisle, I made up for it later.

IMG_4944 copy

Portrait time!

IMG_4950 copy

Now I realize why photographers snap several photos in a row when they do group shots like this. I’m really happy that I was able to grab one with all eyes open!

IMG_4967 copy

Jon has the best smile. I love the way it lights up his whole face.

IMG_4991 copy

After the group photos were done I begged Lynn and Jon to give me a “first kiss” shot. I told them I needed one for my portfolio.

IMG_4997 copy

They thought it was pretty funny.

IMG_5000 copy

Second favorite shot of the day. Delicious.

IMG_5002 copy

Lynn also humored me and gave me a “walking up the aisle” shot as well. Don’t you love the back of her dress?

IMG_5012 copy

IMG_5019 copy

Socializing with guests at the end of the ceremony.

IMG_5026 copy

The church is housed in a warehouse with walls that are a soft orange color that made a really unique backdrop for a quick batch of group and  individual portraits.

IMG_5055 copy

IMG_5070 copy

Look at those hot pink heels!

IMG_5084 copy

This is the groom, the bride, the bride’s sister, and her son. I think you can see from this image that this little one is an absolute doll.

IMG_5120 copy

My favorite group portraits are the ones with a slightly candid flair to them like this one. The bride’s mom jumped in between the two of them and I turned and caught this. I love it!

IMG_5161 copy

As everyone was rushing away to meet up for lunch, I asked Lynn if I could do a few bridal portraits with her.

IMG_5165 copy

She makes capturing beautiful portraits easy!

IMG_5182 copy

Lynn and Jon, every moment I spent with you and your families was a treat. I can tell from the collective 6 hours I spent with you over the week that your marriage is going to be filled with a never-ending supply of love and laughter (lots and lots of laughter!), and that you will always have loving family right by your side, through both good times and bad. Thank you for making me feel like family for those few hours I was privileged to be with you.

IMG_5185 copy

Best,

Jenna