One of my favorite wedding coordinators is Cynthia Basker from Celebrated Events. When working with Cynthia I know the wedding day will flow like a well oiled machine. But what Cynthia is really known for is her decorating style, her receptions are always a burst of color and beautiful to look at and film.

In this clip from a wedding we worked with Cynthia, last year, we captured the bride and groom’s reaction to the decorations that Cyndi designed with Michaelangelos. This is why I love video, pictures could never do this moment justice! The reception took place at the Palais Royale.

This may take a few moments to load as for some reason the video preloads before giving you the option of playing.. I’m experimenting with new codec mp4 and larger images for streaming to better present our videos. Let me know what you think.

Everything that is old is new again! We at Allure Films / River City Productions are excited to announce that we are now offering Super 8mm Film as an additional service to be integrated into your wedding video!

Super 8mm Weddings!

Why return to those old days of film production? The feel, the look, the color of film is unique, organic and made of memories. Nearly every family has a closet shelf of Super 8mm Film from up to 20 years ago. The scratchy, grainy images of granddad, grandma, mom and dad, it’s how we have learned who they were in their younger livesdays through the moving images of film.

Of course for years the ability to add fake grain, scratches have been available in the editing process. For me this has always looked fake, there is an organic feel to film that just can’t be replicated by adding a digital effect on top of a digitally created image. I have resisted for years adding such effects with the opinion that if I wasn’t offering the real thing I wasn’t going to fake it.

Then last year on a fluke I bid and won a Super 8mm Film camera on ebay. Last summer I went out and test shot a roll of film wandering around the University of Notre Dame capus. The intention was adding the campus images into weddings we shot at the Basilica. The results of that shoot are below in the video. I just love the look of film and hope you like it too!

Oh during the shoot I ran across a bride and groom getting married on a Friday at the Basilica and shot a few feet of them walking at a distance for fun.

On Friday we were hired by the Hilton Garden Inn to photograph their wonderful Fleur de Lis Ballroom. I can wait to get into there and photograph or video an actual wedding reception. We had a lot of fun, here are a few of my favorite shots.

I love the effect created by a fish eye lens and for this shoot I brought along our new lens to experiment with.

My favorite picture of all the ones we shot. Don’t ask me why, I think it’s the symmetry. This is outside of Parlor C at the Fleur de Lis Ballroom.

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! To celebrate this day here is a little clip from one of my all time favorite weddings. The bride and groom were a joy to work with. They were married in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at Notre Dame. But the standout moments were later that night at Knollwood Country Club, as the bride and several guest demonstrated Irish Step Dancing! Enjoy this clip of Irish dance on this Saint Patrick’s Day.

Well I hate to admit it, especially since I’m a man myself, but this is probably a good idea. I saw this over at Michiana Weddings the Groom’s Survival Kit.Over my nearly 20 years in this business I have seen my share of popped suit buttons, forgotten socks, bad breath to realize a few last minute problems could have been headed off at the pass with this kit…. The Groom’s Survival Kit includes, Toothbrush, Toothpaste, Dental Floss, Mints, Pain Reliever, Antacid, Facial Tissues, Deodorant, Razor, Shaving Cream, Styptic Pencil, Adhesive Bandages, Nail Clipper, Hair Comb, Interior Mirror, Lint Remover, Mending Kit, Scissors, Safety Pins, Boutonniere Pins, Stain Remover, Static Remover, Wrinkle Remover, Stress Ball Keychain, Extra Wedding Bands, Black Socks.

So brides if you want to get to the wedding vows panic free you might want to buy your groom this. Locally I’d bet you could find it at wedding coordinator Cynthia Basker’s store, Girly Girl Gifts 574.287.1423.

I just noticed, tomorrow is Basilica Day at the University of Notre Dame when the books are open for those wanting to have their wedding at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart in 2009! For all those brides and grooms who will be rushing the phones in the morning and dialing until they get through, Allure Films wishes you the best in getting the dates and times that you desire!

And once you have your date and time, please consider Allure Films for your wedding photography and videography needs! We love working in the Basilica and are at ease working within the restrictions of the Basilica wedding day rules.

Bellow is some of my favorite pictures from the Notre Dame Grotto. Enjoy!

The next three images are the same image. We have been getting questions as to what special effects we can do to your wedding photos. Well we can do anything you like, but below is three of my favorites. Enjoy.

The traditional Black and White

Modern Antique finish. This is one of my favorite effects. It has the look of a Black and White photo but the original color still seeps through just a little bit. I actually like this better than B&W!

Black and white with a red tone.

Here is our new wedding photography gallery.