Welcome to the photo blog... *finallogowhite25.jpg
Here's where I chat about photography (SURPRISE)...  weddings (of course)... helpful ideas I hear about...  and cool things I find along the way. 

Things you can expect from me...
    Laughter (I write how I talk if you haven't noticed.. :)
    Advice (I don't claim to be an expert...but I do claim to hear expert ideas and share them)
    Stories (but only good ones)
    Contests (gotta keep you guessing somehow..)
    Cheers (meaning good wishes to good people I meet)
    ... and a little bit bit of babbling (but hopefully always ending with a big laugh)

While this blog may not be perfect in color, shape, or words . . . I promise, it'll all be written from the heart! More than anything else... I hope that you have fun, get inspired, enjoy reading and maybe even gain a little knowledge along the way (that I'm not promising though)...  

I'm so glad you've somehow navigated your way here.  Now... don't forget to bookmark it..  and come back and visit again!! 

Love,
A




This morning I was so excited to reconnect with one of my very first couples.  It's been a few years since their wedding... and now they just had a beautiful baby girl Maria 6 months ago.  I absolutely LOVE seeing my favorite couples grow.  And can you blame me... take a look at how adorable Maria is...  and such a character... as the sneak peak at the pics show.  You can tell she is a baby FULL of personality... just take a look!!




Gina & Chris,  I am so happy and thrilled to have been a part of Maria's first photo shoot... first of many I'm sure... she's such a little model!!  It thrills me to see you three together.  May this year bring you much laughter and joy as you play with your little angel and watch her grow!!

Sooo.. I thought what better blog to end the year as one with a new beginning!  May you all have a wonderful New Years (I will try and do another entry but who knows... with all this traveling I'm never sure when I'll have internet)...  I am off to Mackinac to ring in the New Year!

REMEMBER... have fun on New Years Day... my mother always said  "What you do on New Years Day .. you do all year long"... which is why she refused to ever clean on January 1st!!

May your new year be filled with fullfilling your goals (even though they may shift)... reaching for your dreams (no matter how big and huge they may be)...  realizing the love around you (whether it be your closest companion or a stranger on the street)... and OF COURSE LAUGHTER!!

I love you all!  Happy New Year!

ANDREJKA!!
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Gina:

These are beyond awesome! I think they are the cutest baby photos I've ever seen, but I could be slightly biased. Thanks Andrejka, you're the best!

(12.31.09 @ 05:22 AM)
Susan Hydzik:

What beautiful baby photographs! They are so natural and original compared to a lot of what's out there! Absolutely adorable, awesome images!

(01.09.10 @ 11:05 AM)
Susan Hydzik:

What beautiful baby photographs! They are so natural and original compared to a lot of what's out there! Absolutely adorable, awesome images!

(01.09.10 @ 11:06 AM)
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A walk in the snow... some mulled wine... meeting with old friends... wrapping presents... holiday music...  and a little work too!!   Gotta love the holidays.

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I arrived in Detroit on Friday and was instantly whisked away to Greenfield Village for some hot cider, caroling, Model T rides... and shivering while watching fireworks!!  Followed by an evening of reconnecting with friends from college.

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And now, just prepping for the annual Sushi Stroll in the Snow... a tradition my friends and I do every December... who doesn't walk to a sushi dinner in the middle of winter in Detroit.

Below is a map of my travels for the next few weeks. If your in any of these areas... just let me know and we can meet up for some holiday cheer or even a photo shoot (I of course have my camera with me)!!! 

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Happy Holidays to everyone...  stay warm... have fun!!

Love,
A
 

Oh BTW... here's a link to what I've been working on today.  Jenny & Simon's slideshow...

CLICK HERE for the Slideshow!!!

 



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Emily :

Andrejka, These photos are amazing!! I absolutley love each and every single one of them :) Can't wait to see the ones from Hawaii, all that talking about your wedding made me want to see pictures!!

(03.22.10 @ 06:26 PM)
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: Back to the cold... and loving it! . TrackBack URL for this entry: http://andrejkaphotographyblog.com/darkroom/mt/mt-tb.cgi/100
Last week I was so excited to meet up with three of my couples from years past who all happen to live in SF... (my favorite city!!...  even more than New Orleans... but if NOLA were in Cali... it might be a toss up)

My weekend started Friday night with Amy & Michael... an incredible couple that lives in SF and Australia... but travels all the time in Asia... and had their wedding on Mackinac ... can you believe it.  I was able to photograph their wedding in Fall of 2008... it is was so much fun to reconnect .. they've now convinced me I need to start shooting in Australia and China... sounds awesome!!

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Then it was a Saturday lunch with Michelle & Jeff at the classic SF joint Tadich Grill... I met up with these two a year and a half ago at a coffee shop in SF... then months later I was photographing their touching wedding in Ventura...  I had such a great time I could have sat and chatted with them forever (even if they are PC/Nikon users... I won't hold that against them)!!

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Then it was on to an amazing dinner with Missy & Christian.  I was honored to photograph this couple just a few months ago on Mackinac.  We had so much fun chatting about the island... AND California... I just love it when my two worlds join together. 
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It was soo wonderful to be able to meet up with everyone... I can't wait to see them again.  Man... I love that I can keep in touch and become friends with my couples... no matter where they live!

THEN on Sunday ... was all for me... a day of photography .. a day to be inspired by my favorite city... by the people... the food... the sounds... everything!!  I even ended the day by catching the Richard Avedon exhibition at the SF MOMA.. he is amazing... it totally started me thinking about my own photography.  If you are in the bay area this week check it out... it ends Sunday Nov. 29th.

Here are a few pics from my favorite places in SF... Chinatown (and my dim sum... yummy.. no I didn't eat it ALL... my eyes were a little bigger than my stomach)... then on to City Lights Bookstore and the Vesuvio (in North Beach).. home of the beatnik poets... Kerouac, Ginsberg... etc... now THESE guys are awesome... just being in the bookstore makes mind open up and reminds me how much I love 20th century literature... (yup, that literature degree comes in handy once in awhile)

I hope you all have a wonderful happy joyous Thanksgiving... I'm off to go pick up my mom from the airport... first time she's in Cali for Turkey day... then... your not going to belive this but her and I back up to my fav. city... SF yet again.. I just didn't get enough last time!

May you all find gratitude in the smallest of things... and through that find joy in the world around you!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Love,
A



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Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: I love my San Francisco. .the people, the food, the art... and my couples!! . TrackBack URL for this entry: http://andrejkaphotographyblog.com/darkroom/mt/mt-tb.cgi/95
So I promise this will be the last time I babble on about New Orleans (especially because this weekend I am off to my favorite city.. well prior to being in NOLA.. San Francisco... the jury is out and will let you know next week . . will it be NOLA or SF!!).

Well...  along with a life changing 30 hour car ride... amazing photo shoot... inspiring photo conference.. NOLA was also sooo much fun because I got the chance to see .. not 1.. not 2... but THREE very dear friends I hadn't seen in years that all live in NOLA...  I was so stoked to hang out these peeps in their city and each one had different things to show me... I LOVED IT!!  I had FRESH deep fried Cajun shrimp one night at 3 in the morning from a tiny little grocery store... I watched the Saints break a record while listening to live jazz in the background... I saw a group of peeps jitterbug like crazy... and I even saw an extremely raunchy 80 year old Jazz Singer flirt with the crowd while singing and dancing his heart out (at 2 in the morning)... just to reiterate again... I LOVE THIS CITY!!

Well.. .the very last photo shoot I did... was especially cool... my friend Joe (who I grew up with in our tiny little cow town in the middle of a corn field) let me capture a window into his New Orleans life... Joe in the privacy of his home... with his books and notes strewn all over (he's a writer... as you might be able to tell from the pics)... imagine NOLA meets the Sun Also Rises...

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I absolutely LOVE doing lifestyle shoots... no posing... no thinking... no purpose .. just me capturing someones everyday life ... in the place where they can be most comfortable... their home... I really hope to do more of these... what a fun way to capture a chapter in one's life!

Hey Buddy... thank you again so much for letting me see a glimpse of your life.. .and capture it!!  This city has definitely adopted you... and you it!

Okay... bye bye New Orleans ... until next time!

May you all discover new places of joy... be it in your back yard... or half way across the world!

Love,
A


 


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Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: New Orleans.. Part THREE... the final entry... I promise! . TrackBack URL for this entry: http://andrejkaphotographyblog.com/darkroom/mt/mt-tb.cgi/93
Man I love this city...  I can't believe I've only been home a week... I miss the city already... and can't wait to go back.

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Okay ... but next time... I'll fly both ways... none of this driving 30 hours... no offense Kelly & Jim (it was definitely fun ... and not half as bad as one would think  to be in the car for 30 hours).. but I would much rather have that 30 hours spent listening to jazz and hanging out in the city...


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SO, once we arrived in NOLA...  did the AMAZING French Quarter photo shoot (see previous blog...  soo cool)  on Monday... THEN it was finally time for the reason we went... Pictage Partnercon...  WOOO HOOO!!

All I have to say is ... WOW... it totally blew my mind and was so much fun. I loved that there were less than 500 photographers... it gave the whole conference such a small intimate feeling.. and that all the meals were included... every time I talked into the ballroom I met a new photographer.  I made so many new friends from all over the country .. .I can't wait to keep in touch and share!!

And the lectures.. .amazing... I found myself crying everyday at how touching and heartfelt the lecturers were... and how they touched me in the heart. I always like to think that when I tear up hearing something its the sign of Passion and Truth!!... boy was there a lot of passion and truth going on!!

Some of my favorites...

Mike Colon:  "Defining your style"
Justin & Mary Marantz: "How to be a Rainmaker".. Mary had me crying like a baby
Joe Buissink: "Are you in a rut?"... tears galore again!!
Tasra Dawson: Women Only.. a super cool session for us girls only with an awesome panel

And Jim Collins (CEO of Pictage... had an awesome opening speach... "Dream, Create, Inspire"...  I definitely did  all three!

And I also cannot let this entry go without mentioning my new favorite LOVES....

Livebooks!!
-keep your eye open for a whole new look for Andrejka.. I am so excited to start working on a brand new customized website... just for Andrejka Photography.. woohoo... thanks Deano and Jay for putting up with all my questions...

Couture Books!!
--I am soooo excited to start offering these GORGEOUS BOOKS... Seriously.. .I have seen nothing like these... I am in LOVE... (is it sad... I'm in love with a book)...  but wait till you see them!!  Imagine the most beautiful art book from your favorite bookstore... with your favorite artist... now imagine that book is your life!!  Dave you rock and thank you for letting me sit there and drool over your books day after day!!

Okay... just a few pics of the city... 

But hold on .. I still have one more NOLA entry... of a super cool lifestyle shoot I did with a dear friend of mine. Just a little peak into the window of his New Orleans life...

May you all DREAM-CREATE-INSPIRE your own individual passions, truths, and joy!

Love,
A

P.S.  next time I am going to shoot more city pics... pathetic... only 3!!

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