Avery House » Matt & Stevi http://blog.averyhouse.net Chicago Wedding Photography | Destination Wedding Photography Fri, 03 Sep 2010 16:04:21 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 A Dog Day Afternoon at Tompkins Park, NYC | New York Lifestyle http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/08/31/a-dog-day-afternoon-in-tompkins-park-nyc-new-york-lifestyle/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/08/31/a-dog-day-afternoon-in-tompkins-park-nyc-new-york-lifestyle/#comments Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:55:26 +0000 Matt Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=2065 What better way to spend a Saturday afternoon than with one of your best girlfriends and a little pup? We unfortunately don’t have a dog but would like to adopt this one of Kathryn’s named Baily… he was so cute! This was part two of our shoot in the East Village of New York City. You can view part one here. We had this idea of going to the dog park in Tompkins Park so Kathryn had her husband bring Baily down and it made the shoot even more fun. Shirley and Kathryn are literally best friends and it shows, they have so much energy and chemistry with one another. This is key when shooting fun lifestyle work; that your subjects are completely care free and up for just having fun. It also helps that they are extremely talented at their jobs. We wanted to keep things fun so I shot almost all of our shoot at a true 35mm so you feel like you are right there with them.

Thanks to Ford Models, Courtney Rust for wardrobe styling, Kerry Crawford for makeup and Julius Toussaint for hair.

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/08/31/a-dog-day-afternoon-in-tompkins-park-nyc-new-york-lifestyle/feed/ 2 Engage!10 | Cayman Islands http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/06/16/engage10-cayman-islands/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/06/16/engage10-cayman-islands/#comments Wed, 16 Jun 2010 19:45:35 +0000 Matt Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=1874 Last week Matt and I attended a luxury wedding business summit in the Cayman Islands called Engage!10.  We came home feeling inspired and renewed.  We firmly believe that in order to continue growing as artists and as entrepreneurs, it is important that we take time to surround ourselves and learn from the people in our industry who have already successfully paved their own way.

Some of the conversations we shared with other attendees left us dreaming bigger than we ever have before.  Without big goals and dreams, we will never be able to fully grow into the person that we are called to be.  We also feel that while working with your spouse is great, it is an even bigger challenge to constantly make sure we are growing together and always open to respecting each other’s perspectives.

Taking time to travel and attend a conference like Engage is a great way for us to feel challenged and refreshed.   Thank you to everyone who made our experience unforgettable.  We’ll let the photos below tell the rest of the story!

A little video recap from our friends at I Do Films!

engage!10 Cayman Islands from I Do Films on Vimeo.

Visit these blogs for more Engage!10 recaps:

(if you want to add your recap to this list email me, contact@averyhouse.net)

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/06/16/engage10-cayman-islands/feed/ 10 AveryHouse Press | Recent Blog Features http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/06/01/features-and-announcements/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/06/01/features-and-announcements/#comments Tue, 01 Jun 2010 16:09:29 +0000 Stevi Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=1729 Matt and I are excited to be back in the office this morning after a weekend of two fun outdoor weddings, 13 hours in the car together singing, dancing and sharing life stories and a hot Memorial Day date at McDonald’s. Yes I said McDonald’s. It was a first for us. We had a blast.

In other news, we were excited to wake up several times last week to find that we were featured on some great blogs. Be sure to check them all out and add them to your RSS feeds as they are some of our favorites. We’re also excited to announce that the girls at Junebug Weddings just launched a new photography section including some of the world’s top photographers. We were thrilled when they asked us to be a part of it as we are in the company of so many other talented artists. If you are a bride or know of anyone planning a wedding, be sure to send them over to Junebug. The site is full of lots of helpful resources and tips.

We have 3 days this week to cram in lots of work before we leave for a wedding in Stillwater, OK on Friday. Then on Sunday we’re off to Engage!10 Grand Cayman for a week of learning and networking at the world’s leading luxury wedding business summit. Can’t wait!


1.// Elizabeth Anne Designs featured Paul and Katie’s DIY peacock feather inspired wedding at Hidden Falls Ranch, TX.



2.// Cake and Pictures featured Lia and Jake's military wedding that Matt shot with Tony in honor of Memorial Day Weekend.



3.// Oprah.com featured a few images from our Wedding Trends event with Debi Lilly from A Perfect Event this past winter.



4.// A few weeks ago, we photographed our friend and amazing food photographer, Stephen Hamilton. He caught us off guard and had his wonderful assistant, Regina, grab a quick interview of us. We weren't prepared for that but were excited to be featured on his "Who's Hungry?" blog. Click here to watch the interview.  P.s. No, Matt does not have makeup on. We had just gotten back from our cruise so he was really tan. I know, it looks like he bronzed his nose!



5.// And last but not least, be sure to check out Junebug's new hotlist section! So many great photographers to follow. 


Contact | averyhouse.net | ©2010 AveryHouse

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/06/01/features-and-announcements/feed/ 5 Pictage Lens and Learn | The Boys and Girls Club | Las Vegas http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/03/24/pictage-lens-and-learn-the-boys-and-girls-club-las-vegas/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/03/24/pictage-lens-and-learn-the-boys-and-girls-club-las-vegas/#comments Wed, 24 Mar 2010 22:07:39 +0000 Stevi Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=1544 “The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. It’s as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.”
- Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese’s

Recently Matt and I have been traveling and spending time with so many of our amazingly talented friends (new and old). We have tried to make it a point to surround ourselves with people who are excited about facing challenges and living their dreams. There are so many opportunities that await us if we only keep an open mind and stay out of our comfort zone. One of the most exciting experiences for us was in Las Vegas a couple weeks ago where we joined 14,000 other photographers for the world’s largest wedding and portrait photography trade show, WPPI. It was awesome. One of our favorite partners, Pictage, who provide our online gallery service was organizing a small event called “Lens and Learn” involving a few of the country’s most well known wedding photographers (all of whom we admire and look up to). Our wonderful friend, Kenny Kim, invited us to come along and we will be forever thankful. The event was an experience we won’t forget and will always be inspired by. For a whole day, we joined the other photographers in teaching a group of kids from the Las Vegas Boys and Girls Clubs about photography. We spent time talking and goofing around with the kids before we broke into groups so that a few of the photographers could share their own personal stories of why they chose their career and the ins and outs of shooting a camera, composing an image, etc. The kids were encouraged to ask questions and one of my favorites was from a little guy who said in disbelief.. “So people can actually make money taking pictures?!” At that moment I realized just how powerful the day was for those kids. Some of them may have never been inspired to learn about photography or any other art form before that day. Afterward, we all went to a nearby Preserve for an organized photo scavenger hunt. The day was so fun for us.
Jim Collins, the CEO of Pictage, was the visionary for the project and after hearing him share his heart for why he wanted to do the event, we totally felt a connection to what he was saying. He knows that he has the ability to help people and he has a passion for it and isn’t afraid to get out and work hard to accomplish his goals. The success of the day put a huge smile on his face that made me so happy and so thankful to be there. Fortunately, Ron Dawson, was there to capture footage and interview some of the photographers. It is a beautiful production.
So all of this being said, Matt and I want to send a huge thank you to Kenny Kim (w/o him we wouldn’t have had the opportunity), Pictage, Jim Collins, all of the kids from the Boys and Girls Club, Canon (who donated the cameras for the scavenger hunt, and all of the other photographers and people that came out to help. We were inspired and motivated to get up and live our dreams, help people and most importantly not let anything hold us back from being ourselves. We feel so proud and so blessed to be a part of this community.
Enjoy the video!

Lens & Learn – Inspiring Kids Through Photography from Ron Dawson on Vimeo.

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/03/24/pictage-lens-and-learn-the-boys-and-girls-club-las-vegas/feed/ 1 Anniversario Numero Due http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/03/22/anniversario-numero-due/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/03/22/anniversario-numero-due/#comments Mon, 22 Mar 2010 16:38:01 +0000 Stevi Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=1511 Two years ago today we said “I Do” and began the rest of our lives together as Mr. and Mrs. Matt Savage. We’ve laughed, we’ve cried, we’ve conquered, we’ve shared our secrets and our dreams, and we’ve spent almost every single day together. Through all of it, we have fallen and messed up many times but that’s when the Lord draws us closer and everyday we see ourselves becoming a better spouse to each other. There is no way we could do what we do without His grace and mercy.

One of my favorite memories was on our recent trip to Italy. Matt and I were out walking one night when the near by gelateria cranked up the new George Michael album. There were only a few strangers walking by when Matt grabbed my umbrella and toboggan and ran out to the middle of the street and began dancing like I’d never seen before. I stood there with joy and happiness watching him be as serious as he could be, knowing that he was dancing just to see me smile. I thought, “Wow, I am so lucky! I can’t believe I got to marry this guy. He is perfect.” After a few minutes, the rest of our friends came down and all 10 of us joined Matt and danced as hard as we could to George Michael. It was an awesome moment. One that I will never forget. We had no cares. Only freedom. And I’m sure the gelato man was thoroughly entertained. To be ourselves completely in front of each other without fear of embarrassment is a wonderful thing. It’s one of my favorite parts of being married.

Happy Anniversary my Love. Everyday I get to wake up next to you is the best day of my life.

These photos were taken last week in Las Vegas by Jory Cordy.

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2010/03/22/anniversario-numero-due/feed/ 8 LIFEinPRIME | "Take One" | Chicago Lakefront http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/11/18/lifeinprime-take-one-chicago-lakefront/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/11/18/lifeinprime-take-one-chicago-lakefront/#comments Wed, 18 Nov 2009 22:26:01 +0000 Matt Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=1171 I recently started a new project called LIFEinPRIME. This is a personal project exploring the correlation between a focal length and a person’s age and thoughts as narration during that time. Now this is the very first project, and was a learning experience to see what works and what doesn’t. This however has nothing to do with my age and was in fact shot all with a 50mm. Sometimes I am hesitant to share personal work, well, because it is personal and I’m worried about what other’s might say or think. But with much prodding from my always encouraging wife, here is “Take One”, and I assure you the Chicago Lakefront doesn’t look like this anymore. I am working on a dedicated website for these projects that will include stop animation and interviews from future subjects. Projects like these keep my mind working and unfortunately plenty distracted as well. Hopefully I will have time to share some more projects in the not so distant future. One more thing… “LIFEinPRIME” is me, Matt.

LIFE in PRIME | Take One from LIFEinPRIME on Vimeo.

This is a project I have started and is in the making, this was the brain child. Shot with a Nikon D700 and a 50mm 1.4, Music is Andrew Bird – “Natural Disaster”

Contact | Website | Chicago Wedding Photographer | Chicago Wedding Photographers | Destination Wedding Photography

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/11/18/lifeinprime-take-one-chicago-lakefront/feed/ 5 Destination India | One Month Count-Down http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/10/26/destination-india-one-month-count-down/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/10/26/destination-india-one-month-count-down/#comments Mon, 26 Oct 2009 21:17:55 +0000 Matt Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=1080 Although the primary focus for Avery House Creative is wedding photography we have a broader vision than just weddings and portraits. From the very beginning we have been involved in missions and supporting missionary friends that have dedicated their lives to sharing the Gospel around the world near and far. Missions like Casas Por Cristos, The Word at Work, Dublin Christian Mission, and Matthew 10 Ministries. Everything we do is worthless unless we have a community we can give back to and be a part of. We are blessed to have a vocation that allows us to give back so freely with our time and resources.

We finalized our travel dates today with Matthew 10 Ministries, a non-profit group based in the states that partners with Manna Ministries in India to help orphans, equip pastors, encourage widows, and bring the Christian Gospel to thousands of people there. We will be traveling Nov. 22 – Dec. 1, 2009 to Suryapet and several other surrounding towns. There are a handful of images below that Stevi took on her trip in 2007 to Warrangal capturing the essence of the people and children that, to the eyes, have so little, but looking deeper have everything they need. Coming from a consumer society this is hard to believe but to hear Stevi say “they were the happiest and most beautiful people you have ever seen” I believe her and can’t wait to experience India for the first time next month.

We are going to document the best we can what God is doing through Matthew 10 and Manna Ministries with stills and short video clips for about nine days traveling from city to city and meeting with families, children, widows and pastors and look forward to sharing the stories and images with all of you.


Contact | Website | Chicago Wedding Photographer | Chicago Wedding Photographers | Destination Wedding Photography

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/10/26/destination-india-one-month-count-down/feed/ 3 My Sweet and Sour http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/07/08/my-sweet-and-sour/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/07/08/my-sweet-and-sour/#comments Wed, 08 Jul 2009 15:34:17 +0000 Matt Savage http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=699 Today I am soaking it in. Trying my hardest to take a look into my future. Focusing on what’s ahead and adding to my list of goals. I am celebrating my birthday and 26 years of life. Memories flooded my mind this morning as I took a minute to stare out over Lake Michigan during my run. I thought about my supportive & loving parents, my wonderful brothers and sisters, my beautiful family, and all of the incredible friends that I have met along this journey that have helped shape the way I see and experience this world. I really could not thank my God enough for all of the people that enrich my life. But, there is one person that brings me to my knees with joy. One person that has become a part of who I am forever but also makes me feel more like myself than ever. . . This morning, as I stood there by myself, I cried out to the Lord with an overwhelming gratefulness. He has given me the gift I cherish most. My best friend. My protector. My husband. Someone that is here to walk through thick and thin with me. Someone that can heal my heart with one smile. Someone to tell me 27 times a day that he loves me. Someone to take me to the doctor when I am sick. Someone to sing me love songs for no reason. Someone to share made up words with. A reason to make mix tapes. A date for dinner. A hug before bed. All of the things in life that can be shared are shared with him. There is nothing to hide and nothing to love more. He is my rock and I will be beside him for the rest of my days. I couldn’t ask for more. Matt, I love you. You are the creamy cheese on my macaroni and the sprinkles on my birthday cake. I can’t believe I get to share all of life’s ice cream with someone as amazing as you. You are my scrumptuliciousness and have made this day a happy one.

mattstevi1

Contact | Website | Chicago Wedding Photographer | Chicago Wedding Photographers | Destination Wedding Photography

]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2009/07/08/my-sweet-and-sour/feed/ 4 Happy Thanksgiving! http://blog.averyhouse.net/2008/11/27/happy-thanksgiving/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2008/11/27/happy-thanksgiving/#comments Thu, 27 Nov 2008 17:09:39 +0000 admin http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=274 Right now I am enjoying the fact that I am married to my fabulous husband and not only get to spend this day with him, but also his brother, Andrew. Drew is our roommate and I am so SO lucky to have a rock star brother-in-law. We are thankful to have him share our lives with us and he does such a wonderful job of pitching in ideas and critiques for Avery House. I know Matt loves having him around to bounce ideas off of and I love having him around because he is always smiling and always an encouragement. It is nice to have someone around to witness with me just how goofy my husband can be a lot of times! So below is a picture from this past summer that I took of Matt and Drew at the end of a long day on a location job. These are the two wonderful people that I am thankful to share this day with. We have no plans other than to lounge around and watch the parade and some football. And of course eat some good food! I hope all of you are enjoying your time with family and friends today. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

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]]> http://blog.averyhouse.net/2008/11/27/happy-thanksgiving/feed/ 2 A long weekend. http://blog.averyhouse.net/2008/11/17/a-long-weekend/ http://blog.averyhouse.net/2008/11/17/a-long-weekend/#comments Tue, 18 Nov 2008 02:09:43 +0000 admin http://blog.averyhouse.net/?p=249 This weekend we had a great trip driving to Knoxville to visit the fam for Derek and Casey’s baby shower for our yet to come nephew, Lincoln. Still waiting on parts to fix our car, which is in Louisville, we took a detour today in the rental car through the hillside near Cumberland Falls. It looks like we missed the amazing fall colors by a week but still had a great time in the leaves today. Rarely do we get out and take pics of ourselves but this impromptu session was a nice change of pace. I am pretty sure now that I know what I look like when I jump off a ledge, I will never do it again.

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