Crystal Lee Photography » Myrtle Beach Wedding Photographer

WPS Convention 2010 | Raleigh, NC

Saturday, July 3, 2010

I’ll start this post off by saying that if you are a wedding or portrait photographer and you haven’t joined the Wedding Photographic Society, then you need to stop reading this post and go check them out! http://weddingphotographicsociety.com/

The society hosted their first annual convention this year in Raleigh, and it was a huge success! Day 1 consisted of presentations from the leaders: Brian Mullins, Martha Manning, Christobal Perez, Robin Lin and Stacy Borelli. Day 2 we brought out our cameras and got hands on! Here are a few of the images I took during the Lens Lessons, we were graced with some really incredible models!

It was great to meet everyone, and I’m already looking forward to next year’s convention!

Posted in For Photogs

by Crystal

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July 7, 2010 - 11:32 am Nicole Gustavsson - NICE! Was the couple a real couple or just modeling as a couple? They looked like they really liked eachother.

Ele & Charles | Wedding | Wrightsville Beach, NC

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Call it cliche, but I absolutely adore the shot of the groom dipping his new bride! It’s such a classic image. Weddings are all about fairytale romance and having that one day of complete perfection. What fairytale would be complete without the dip and kiss? I make sure all of my couples receive “dip lessons” during their engagement session so that they are pros by the big day! Ele and Charles did not have an engagement session, but Ele knew ahead of time that the ‘dip’ would happen on her wedding day!

I must say… they did a fantastic job, even without my lessons!

I love this sweet moment during the ceremony.

They had their afternoon reception at the Surf Club in Wrightsville Beach. The staff there was so wonderful, I highly recommend you check them out if you’re in the area!

This wedding was extra special for me, because I got to catch up with Amanda and Townsend, who were guests at the wedding!

Congratulations Ele & Charles!

Posted in Weddings

by Crystal

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July 1, 2010 - 8:19 pm Amanda - Crystal... you are just plain fabulous!

Lina & Brian | Wedding | Breakers Resort, Myrtle Beach

Monday, June 21, 2010

Some brides were born fabulous, and Lina was definitely one of them! She was 100% the perfect bride! I feel so lucky to have been able to be a part of such a beautiful wedding. The people at the Breakers Resort really know what they’re doing! Lina & Brian had an incredible list of vendors:

Cake: Cakes By The Sea
Florals: Bright & Beautiful Flowers
Entertainment: Wally B Productions
Hair: R Salon & Spa

Here are some of my favorite images from the day!

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I knew the day was off to a fabulous start when I saw Lina’s shoes!
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The bridal party rocked!
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Congratulations Lina & Brian, enjoy the honeymoon!
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Posted in Weddings

by Crystal

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Melissa & Brandon | Engagement | Market Commons

Friday, June 18, 2010

Melissa & Brandon chose Market Commons for their engagement photos, and it could not have been a more perfect day! I absolutely love, love, love Melissa’s hair… you looked fabulous girl!

Here are just a few of my favorite shots from the day:

Congratulations guys… I’ll see you in October!

Posted in Engagement

by Crystal

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Pug Life, Episode 9 | 85mm 1.2 Lens Mini-Review

Thursday, June 17, 2010

It’s been quite a while since my last Pug Life post, so when my new lens rental arrived in the mail today from BorrowLenses.com, I figured it was definitely time for an update! I rented the 85mm f/1.2 lens for this weekends wedding, and wow is it incredible! I’ve heard that it has some focus issues, much more than the f/1.8 version, so I thought I’d give it a try myself. So far, no issues! The autofocus was actually pretty fast, even though I was shooting at f/1.2 in fairly low light. And wow is it a beast… 2.25 pounds, the same weight as my camera body. The focal length is perfect, I’m so excited to try it out at this weekends wedding! I love shooting below f/2 when doing portraits, and the 85mm length is fantastically flattering for headshots.

Until then, I have 2 awesome pugs at home who were, with some meaty bribes, all too happy to help me test it out!

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I even managed to get my daddy’s puppy, Chevy, to sit still for about 3 1/2 seconds so that I could take a portrait of him!

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Posted in For Photogs, Pug Life

by Crystal

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Lina & Brian | Engagement | Market Commons

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Lina and Brian will be getting married next weekend at the Breakers Resort in Myrtle Beach, and I was super excited to spend some time with them yesterday for their engagement session. They are absolutely adorable! And Lina is going to be a complete knockout in her wedding gown, I can tell already… that girl is gorgeous! We had a blast walking around Market Commons, I’m so fortunate to have such incredible clients! Here are some of my favorites from the shoot:

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This one is my favorite image from the day!
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I’ll see you guys next week!

Posted in Engagement

by Crystal

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June 11, 2010 - 5:55 am physician assistant - Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I have really enjoyed browsing your blog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!

June 10, 2010 - 12:53 pm Lina Leonard - AHHH that last picture is my favorite too!! you guys are awesome...someday soon we want to set up a shoot for our kids :)

Cathy & Will | Wedding | Sunset Beach, NC

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

I need to start this post by saying that I have never met such an incredible group of people in my entire life! Cathy & Will are amazing people, and they are blessed to be surrounded by such a fabulous group of friends and family. I knew from the moment that I set foot in the driveway of their beachhouse that they were going to be one of my favorite weddings ever!

Here’s a shot of the grooms side of the bridal party… don’t they look awesome?? A special shoutout goes to Coastal Bridal for outfitting the gentleman in such dashing attire.
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And if you think that’s great, check out the ladies! Seriously, they were so much fun. Once they got the bride sewed into her dress (yes, sewed), they had a relaxing time on the couch discussing their mixed feelings about Lady Gaga. Cathy and I knew that we were destined to meet when we discovered that we had both gone to the New Kids On The Block concert 2 years ago! Photobucket

Isn’t she stunning?
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I have such a soft spot for roses, so I was absolutely in love with the flowers! A special shoutout goes to Calabash Florist for doing such a fantastic job!
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The inspiration for Cathy’s wedding day hair came from a photo in a magazine.
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Faaaavorite! Cathy got this fabulous gown from A Formal Affair in Georgia.
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After a beautiful ceremony on the beach, the whole crew headed to the Lion’s Paw Clubhouse at Ocean Ridge Plantation for the reception.
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Every detail was perfect, especially the cake provided by Sugar Confections
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Did I mention how much I adored this clubhouse?? So beautiful.
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I became a wedding photographer because I am absolutely, 100% in love with love. Nothing makes me smile more than seeing 2 people who are completely adore each other and aren’t afraid to show it. I love the way these two look at each other!
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Congratulations Cathy& Will! Best wishes for a fabulous future.

Posted in Weddings

by Crystal

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June 10, 2010 - 10:35 pm Cathy Marsh - thank you so much, crystal. you were so wonderful to work with and the pictures are beautiful.

June 10, 2010 - 1:16 pm staciesmadness - beautiful!

Sheila & Bryant | Wedding| Sunset Beach, NC

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Sheila & Bryant got married in beautiful Sunset Beach in North Carolina. The temperature that day was the hottest we’ve seen so far this summer, but it was a lovely ceremony. They had a lunch afterwards at The Isles Restaurant in Ocean Isle Beach, and the food was amazing!

Here are some of my favorite images from the day:

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I love how the shells look like colorful little butterflies
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Congratulations Sheila & Bryant!

Posted in Weddings

by Crystal

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Andrea & Jarick | Wedding | Cypress Gardens

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

In typical girly-girl fashion, I am absolutely in love with the book-turned-movie “The Notebook.” So when I found out that Andrea & Jarick were having their wedding at Cypress gardens, I was overjoyed!

Andrea and her ladies were ushered to the ceremony site by canoe… look familiar?

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The day turned out to be absolutely beautiful, and Andrea made a positively stunning bride. Here are just a few of my favorite images!

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I love, love, love the look on Jarick’s face when he sees his bride for the first time!
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My assistant, Chris, captured this sweet moment just after the ceremony.
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Congratulations, Andrea & Jarick!

Posted in Weddings

by Crystal

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June 2, 2010 - 3:10 pm Nicole Gustavsson - That butterfly shot was fantastic! That's one of those one in a million shots. Great job like always!!

The Summer Portrait Shootout!

Friday, May 28, 2010

I love my job. Love, love love it! So when I looked at my calendar and realized that both July and August were completely void of weddings this year, I was disappointed. I photograph weddings exclusively, but two months with nothing to photograph? What’s a girl to do?

Thus came the birth of the Summer Portrait Shootout!

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That’s 62 days! 62 days of sizzling divas, fuzzy friends, and itty bitty babies. I will be shooting all over the Myrtle Beach area, and if the right situations calls for it, I just might be willing to travel! (Diva Shoot in Hawaii, please?) Keep in mind that I will not be offering family sessions on the beach. There are many talented photographers in the area who can provide that kind of service, and I have chosen not to be one of them. My shoots are more personalized, not to mention that sand is every photographers enemy!

Images from the shoot will be posted online within 7 days, and your disk will be either hand-delivered or mailed to you at that time.

If you’re going to be in the area anytime between July and August, or if you have any questions, shoot me an email and we can start planning your photoshoot!

Posted in Updates

by Crystal

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