Sneak Peek: Joyce and Phillip

Another beautiful couple, another heavenly day! More to come...

Sneak Peek: Allison and Ikey

I'm not sure if anything has ever been as fun as watching Allison wear her dress! She LOVED her dress and her excitement was really sweet.

Sneak Peek: Jenna and Andrew

Jenna and Andrew's wedding was classic and elegant in every detail. Look for their slide show soon.

Save the Date!

I've had several brides ask me for Save the Date cards recently so I've decided to start offering them. Here's Whitney and Eric's design; they chose to print it on magnets. Their proof received the highest form of "man praise"...Eric said it was "tight"!

There are tons of super fun and creative ways to do your Save the Date card. If you can dream it up, I can design it for you. And if you're "dream it up" challenged I can do the dreaming too :) I've also designed custom guest books. So if you've seen it in a magazine or just have some great idea floating around in your noggin call me and we'll design something fabulous and unique together!

My New Assistant, Nathan...

My kids are well versed in my work and as soon as my son Nathan found out I'd be shooting pictures for his kindergarten teacher he begged to come be my "assistant". Although he quickly lost interest in helping me test my light he was more than willing to shake his hiney for a few smiles! Now if I can just get my regular assistant to accept hot chocolate with extra marshmallows as payment...

Whitney and Eric's Engagement

Whitney and Eric will be tying the knot April of 2010 at Roseland Plantation. Thanks again for working your ladder magic guys :)

Brittany and William's Engagement

This shoot went from good to great when a train rolled through the middle of it! Brittany and William will be getting married this month, on December 19th at the Summit Club in Longview.

Skye and Kenny's Slide Show

If I haven't mentioned before that I love weddings, let this be the official notice. I don't think there is anything better in the whole world than being in love and deciding to stay that way for forever (except maybe cake). When a bride cries her way down the aisle, or a best man gives a speech that raises the hair on my arms I realize how truly blessed I am to be sharing these experiences with the people around me. Thanks again for inviting me guys...

Cara and John's Slide Show

Cara and John's wedding was a pleasure from beginning to end! They had a great wedding planner and not only did the whole day flow smoothly (and on time), but John and Cara got to relax and enjoy every part of it. Heather from Hill Country Events was so fun and easy to work with and made the day awesome for everyone from the bridal party to the vendors. The slide show is set to the song from their first dance...hopefully John will forgive me for not using the Paul McCartney version :)

Jaime and Bobby's Slide Show

Elmwood Gardens! The chandeliers outside just make my heart happy! I'd like to take a moment to recognize make-up artist Cheryl McKay. She has done the make up at several of my recent weddings, including this one, and she does beautiful work! I worked as a make-up artist early in my career and really appreciate the art of well applied make-up. I also love that she doesn't bat an eyelash when I squeeze into her space to get great detail shots! You can reach her at 903-530-6556.







Their fabulous vendors:
Venue: Elmwood Gardens
Flowers: The Flower Girl, 903-509-3839
Videographer: A Thousand Words Productions
Make-up: Cheryl McKay, 903-530-6556
Cake: Designs by D'Anne
Catering: Traditions

Allison's Bridal

Allison and Ikey were just married in Longview last weekend, on my 10th wedding anniversary! When you're a wedding photographer, that's what you do on your anniversary :)

Joyce and Phillip's Engagement

Okay, prepare for image overload! Editing down the image count for the blog isn't one of my strong points, but less isn't always more!

Jenna's Bridal

I don't normally do a slide show for bridal and engagement sessions but I am in love with way too many of Jenna's images for a normal blog post!

Ashley and John

Ashley and John were married at The Legacy in Jacksonville, which is owned by Ashley's parents. Their wedding is featured in this month's Wedded Bliss magazine. Also, check out a clip of their wedding video from videographer Nathan Browning of A Thousand Words Productions.








Their fabulous vendors:
Venue: The Legacy
Cake: Designs by D'Anne
Flowers: Antiqued Flowers, Flowers by Janae
DJ: Music Masters of East Texas
Videographer: A Thousand Words Productions

Kacie and Phil

Kacie and Phil met before their wedding at LeTourneau's Speer Chapel. They really planned their meeting thoughtfully. While music played softly in the quiet of the chapel where they would later exchange vows, they prayed and washed each others feet. The whole experience was incredibly sweet and intimate. Getting to be a fly on the wall during moments like these is why I love my job so much.

Skye's Bridal

This was one of my favorite bridal sessions ever! We had the use of a beautiful residence in Marshall and there wasn't anywhere in the house I didn't want to shoot. It was a great day with good conversation, beautiful morning light...and even a horse!

Adrienne and Trevor's Slide Show

Adrienne and Trevor's wedding will also be featured in the next issue of the Wedded Bliss! Their reception was held at Willow Brook Country Club, which is fast becoming one of my favorite places to shoot. Not only is the golf course beautiful at sunset, but the staff is just plain awesome!







Their fabulous vendors:
Venue: Willow Brook Country Club
Flowers: The Flower Girl, flowergirlstyle@aol.com
Cake: Designs by D'Anne

Ashley's Bridal

Ashley and John's wedding will be featured in the Wedded Bliss this month. It's my first appearance there and I can't wait to see it printed!

Ashton and Andy's Slide Show

The Villa, a fun couple and my mom assisting! Who can ask for more? I'm originally from southern California and when my mom was out recently for a visit she decided to come assist me on a couple of weddings. She's assisted my Dad before, who is photographer, so don't think I'll just drag along any random family member to help! Even at my age, it was odd "telling" my mom what to do, but working with her was super cool. Take care to notice the beautiful shot of the junior bridesmaid signing the guesbook...mom shot it :)

New Look!

First, my apologies! The blog has been sorely neglected because I've been so busy. Most of you know I have two little kiddos, Nate 5 and Avery 4, and it seems like the whole family has been sick since Nate started kindergarten. Our life is busy anyway, but with our own little petri dish dragging home every "ick" under the sun it's been harder to pull the 2am sessions that keep me caught up. I'm planning on stringing a bottle of Purell around his neck!

Today however I will be posting new stuff for you to enjoy....starting with my brand spanking new logo! If you've followed my blog you've probably noticed me tinkering around with logo ideals for quite some time. Last night however, inspiration struck and tada...the official logo for Brandi Burkett Photography was finally born!

Thanks again to all of my wonderful couples for giving me a reason to have a fancy blog and for giving me the opportunity to love my job!

Nick and Cortney's Slide Show

Cortney and her mom, Tina worked so hard to make this wedding beautiful. It was a pleasure to see their shared joy (and relief) as they watched it all come together! Nick and Cortney's minister read letters they had written to her about why they love and chose one another during the ceremony and nobody could help but cry as their words were read. Add to that a topless groomsman, a few dance-offs and a full moon and you've got one memorable wedding. See more here.

Their fabulous vendors:
DJ: CMB Productions
Catering/Reception Decor: Adalante Catering
Flowers: Caid Floral, Colleyville

Jonathan and Miranda's Slide Show

I would like to thank fellow photographer Allen Arrick, whose work appears in this show. It was a pleasure to have him along for this shoot! Jonathan and Miranda met before their wedding and also slipped away during their reception for a romantic (and relaxing) sunset shoot. What could be better? A quiet moment to reflect and some awesome images to make the sweetness last forever! See their preview here.

Rob and Jolinda's Slide Show

Rob and Jolinda were awesome to work with and I will always remember their ceremony because the message was so beautiful. I hear lots and lots and lots of ceremonies too, so that's really saying something! I also want anyone who's on the fence about whether to meet before the ceremony to pay special attention to this post. Notice how many fun and romantic pictures they have? They were all taken before the ceremony and yet...you will still find a picture of Rob wiping away tears after Jolinda walked down the aisle. See more here.

Cara's Bridal

We shot Cara's bridal in Houston on what may have been the hottest day of the year. She will always have my respect and admiration for keeping her sunny disposition despite the crushing heat...in twenty pounds of dress! I will also always love her for being my first bride to show up with a pair of beautiful, peacock blue Manolo's! Also, a huge thanks to the Southwest Texas School of Law for hosting us.

Jaime's Bridal

Engagement: Skye and Kenny

Adrienne's Bridal

Nick and Cortney: Preview

Miranda and Jonathan: Preview

Kacie's Bridal

Engagement: Ikey and Allison

Preview: Rob and Jolinda

Ashton's Bridal

Ashton's fiance Andy played for UTEP and is a coach now. Until I met him at our engagement session I only knew him by Ashton's nickname for him, "the coach". It's literally in my schedule that way: Ashton and The Coach. So naturally at the end of our session Ashton took her hair down, donned his helmet and worked it out.

Ashley and Bucky's Engagement

Jennifer and Damon

Brittany and Joel's Slideshow

Diana, Laredo

Let me tell you how excited I was to discover Cecy has a sister! This family has all of the good genes!

Cecy, Laredo

If you've followed my blog for awhile, you'll also recognize Cecy. I absolutely LOVE shooting with her! She's crazy creative and designs most of the clothes she wears in our shoots. This year we went a little Bollywood and then finished up with some great desert shots in the wind. Look for Cecy to pop up here again! Next year I'm thinking old Mexican churches...