Robin Buckley

Back in June I spent some time with my friends, Kurt and Christine Hiebel in their Florida beach house on Amelia Island.

We had some really great times.  What a treat to wake up every morning and walk on the beautiful sand and then go to sleep at night with the sound of the crashing waves.

We experienced some wonderful evenings with the full moon rising over the ocean and cooked up some great meals.  I was happy to cook, as the kitchen looks out over the ocean.  My kind of kitchen!

It was such a gift they gave me, inviting me to stay.  I took a few photos of their beautiful angel, McKenna as well as a few family photos, and thought I would post them here.  So this post is my little “Thank You” card to Christine, Kurt and McKenna.

This place is a jewel. Tons of old world charm and perfect for small but elegant weddings.

I will just let these photos do the talking.

About four years ago I photographed a wedding in Sonoma at the beautiful Vianca Winery and Vineyards.  The couple was from Kansas City, MO but had always dreamed of a wine country wedding.

I received an email from her not too long ago.  She told me that they now have a 3 year old son.  They wanted to come back and visit the place where they were married and bring their son along too.  She asked me to take some pictures of their visit.  So I did and here is a collection of the images.

The Zimmer Family in Sonoma

The Key Largo Marriott was the location for this sweet wedding. I love working there. The place is wonderfully managed and the grounds are pristine. Everybody bends over backwards to make sure that the bride and groom are very happy. I have heard from my clients that the wedding package prices are very competitive.

I love to incorporate a stunning sunset with the romantic images that I take of the wedding couple. The Marriott is right on the Blackwater Sound and the sun does set on the sound so the sunset photos are just incredible.

Many brides and grooms will choose this location because of the beautiful Key Largo sunsets I also like to make sure that I get a beautiful image that works well in closing out the wedding album. The suspension bridge on the property works so nicely for this. I wait to take this photo at dusk. That way, there is still enough light to get a good exposure, but the lights on the bridge light up and they show up so nicely in the photograph.

I ask the couple to walk away from me with their backs to the camera and just be involved with each other. The result is a beautiful feeling that the bride and groom are walking away into their blissful future. The last page of the wedding album, is just as important as the first, and as I like to tell a story with the album, it is such a “happily ever after” image.

Images From a Marriott Key Largo Wedding

The eco-friendly wedding made a big splash in the 2008 wedding season. Planning for a green wedding meant diamond–free rings and wedding dresses made of biodegradable fabrics.

Now with a new wedding planning season on the horizon, the demand for green wedding ideas is hitting an all time high. Brides are looking at their menus, their décor, the types of wedding registries they use, and everything else with an eye towards eco-correct.

It is most defiantly the right thing to do, but it is also the chic thing to do as well. In fact Eco-Chic will be the new buzzword in wedding planning 2010.

A wedding is an opportunity to show off your style, and with the awareness that people have to going green today, it only stands to reason that they should showcase no only their love for each other but also their commitment and respect for the environment.

The really cool thing about it is the fact that these couples are encouraging their wedding guests to also think about the impact of their footprint on the environment as well.

It is the responsible thing to do as citizens of a global community, and it is also very rewarding for wedding professionals who work with this in mind, to have clients willing to participate. This is a good example of a collective consciousness at work for the good of mankind.

Many couples are finding their own special ways to plan the eco-chic wedding. Here are a few of the things that they are doing:

Locally grown, organic foods are served.

Invitations are being emailed.

Linens are rented, and the rental company uses eco-friendly cleaning methods.

The wedding ceremony and the reception are held as close to each other as possible, if not in the same location.

Interviewing the wedding photographer, the caterer, the wedding venue and any one else who will participate in the wedding, to insure their businesses have recycling policies.

Making sure wedding favors are useful such as potted herbs or reusable grocery bags.

Use of soy candles

Recycled paper for programs, and any other paper products used

No Styrofoam anything

Buy a used wedding gown or a gown from a designer that specializes in eco-couture.

Asking guests for a donation to an Earth friendly cause instead of a wedding gift.

Donate left over food to a homeless shelter

Donate flowers to a nursing home

It all adds up to an event with as little impact as possible. Eco-Chic weddings are a hot trend, but they are also the right thing to do.

This Father’s Day was a little extra special. It came just one week after my father’s 85th birthday. My father is actually my step-father, but my father none the less. My real father died almost 5 years ago at the age of 80. So to be celebrating with Glenn, my living father, is amazing.

He is in remarkable health, and does everything that he can to insure that my mother (81) and he stay as healthy as possible. For that, I am very grateful to him for his diligence. Neither one of them are facing any serious health issues, and for their age, it is most comforting.

There is an interesting story about my two fathers, my diseased father and my living father. They both served in WWll. Glenn served in the US Army and Bob in the US Navy. They were both in Indonesia near the Island of Noemfoor. Bob was on the USS Tennessee and Glenn was on the ground. It was the men aboard the Tennessee that were shelling the island to protect the men on the ground. The incredible thing is that neither of them knew each other that day. But life took them both through a swirling mass of synchronicity and they both wound up being my fathers.

We celebrated the event at a local winery in the town where he and my mother own their home together. My two sisters, Debra and Cynthia and my husband, Jim were also in attendance as was a few bottles of Bridgeview Winery’s finest Chardonnay and Muscat.

What a hoot playing with my camera at Julie Atwood’s ranch in Sonoma. It was a great event. I was working for a client out of Los Angeles,
Janet MacLean. She designed this whole hoe down themed party and everyone had a blast.

The band was country (of course) and the food was spectacular. Enjoy the video.

I received an email from a lady in Japan and she asked me to photograph her small but elegant wedding at Chalk Hill Winery in Healdsburg CA. I was available for the assignment and was a bit excited as I had never been to Chalk Hill. I had however had their extraordinary wine on occasion and always enjoyed it.

I had no idea what a beautiful place it was. I was greeted with warmth and hospitality by the lovely Sophie Williams and her staff which includes the most amazing french chef.

This was my first event at Chalk Hill, and I have since become the preferred photographer to the estate, so you will see more of Chalk Hill on these pages, but for now, I hope you enjoy the images taken at this very special location.

Warning: The photographs may make you hungry.