I had an inquiry from a distraught bride last week. She's getting married this summer and had hired a photographer last year. Recently, she went online to see if her photographer had any new work posted, but the website wasn't there. She tried calling the photographer, but the phone number was disconnected. She contacted the Better Business Burea who said that some other brides have been looking for the guy, but he hasn't responded to their letters. (Interestingly, the BBB database online is not showing any complaints against the company.)

I have no idea what happened to the man or his business, but neither does the bride. Understandably, she is more than a little stressed about it. She signed a contract and paid a deposit with someone that she can't find, someone who may or may not show up at the wedding. Luckily, she has a few months to find a replacement, but she has lost part of her budget and doesn't know if/when she'll get it back. Even worse, I'm guessing that this guy has other brides out there who believe that he will be at their wedding and have no idea that he is MIA.

I'm sure that this bride did her research and tried to make an educated decision when choosing her vendors. I am not suggesting that she could have done anything differently, but I do think that her situation illustrates just how important and difficult it can be to find and hire a wedding photographer. Also, it doesn't hurt to keep in touch with your vendors off and on in the months leading up to the wedding.

I met Lisa in the 8th grade and consider her my oldest and dearest friend even though we don't see each other as often as we should. Her birthday was in January, but we finally got together Friday night to celebrate it with dinner at the Italian restaurant Bravo.  Justin (who I think looks a lot like Lance Armstrong) and Lisa are getting married this April at Heritage Park in Townsend, and I have the honor of photographing their big day. We shot their engagement photos in October, and this is image that they used on their 2006 Christmas card. We enjoyed seeing you two and can't wait until April!

Although weddings keep me busy for most of the year, I really enjoy shooting portraits and want to do more in 2007. To this end, I’m currently offering a portrait session special. All regular portrait sessions (high school seniors, maternity, baby, children, family etc) booked and shot either in February or March will have the $125 session fee waived. A $200 deposit will be required to secure the date, but the entire $200 will be applied to your first print order. Sessions include up to an hour of shooting at a location of your choice within Knoxville. I will also include a web gallery with each session so that you can view, share, and order your photos online. Dates are limited and will be reserved on a first-come, first-served basis. Please email me or use the contact form on my website for more information.

You may notice that I am now including client compliments on the site (in the information section), and I would like to include some of my 2006 clients. If you want to be included and share your experience with others, please email me with the following information as you would like for it to appear:

Names, Date, Venue(s), Location(s), and your review/testimonial.

My husband Marcus and I have been working on my new website for a while now. I did the design and photos while he worked on all the difficult code that brings it together and makes it work. At one point we were almost finished, but then I decided to basically start over. Somehow, Marcus put up with me through it all, and now here we are… ready to finally unveil the new site and brand new blog! I hope you enjoy it!

If you have any problems, suggestions, or comments concerning the new site please leave a comment or email me.

A screenshot of the first Nancy Hellsten Photography website
featuring a photo from the wedding of Tiffany & Randy Raines