The Signature Drink at the Wedding Reception {Wedding}

“The First Drink” refers to that “first drink” that everyone orders during the cocktail hour at the  Wedding reception (while the Bride and Groom are having their formal pictures taken).

It is a term that strikes terror into the hearts of bartenders everywhere.  Because it takes forever for the bartenders to prepare and serve all of those custom drinks (“I’ll have a Louisiana Shooter, two Spider’s Kiss and a Nightmare .. Please”) … there has to be a better way!

The best solution to this dilemma that I’ve seen is the “Signature Drink”.  It’s a fun & fruity, very colorful, kind of bubbly, not too sweet, not too high in alcohol drink which can be premade by the venue and served in a nice glass.

Now the title “signature drink” has nothing to do who made it or what’s in it!  It can be a fruit juice/ginger ale base, it can have orange slices and cherries in it, gin, vodka, served in a martini glass, plastic fluke whatever. It just has to be the only drink that is available when the guests arrive. Everyone will grab one and be very happy.

It’s the perfect drink for the cocktail hour because it can be made with and without alcohol, looks totally classy so girls and guys can feel good holding it (think school uniforms … no one looks any different than anyone else), kids can have the same (looking) drink as the adults and it’s inexpensive for the venue to produce.

I can’t take credit for this idea though. I recently attended an event hosted by The Knot for their “Best of Weddings 2012” (me!)  and when we arrived at the reception, there lined up on the bar were 100 (this is a guess, I’m not a savant …HA!) glasses of “signature drinks”. As I picked up my own “signature drink” I thought to myself “and the solution to a bartender’s terror is resolved”.

Bartenders rejoice - guests will no longer be able to play "stump the bartender" to impress your friends by ordering a fancy drink which has 150 year old tequila and some eye of newt in it while 150 other guests are standing behind them ... and all they wanted was a nice cold bottle of Rolling Rock ! 

So, You’re welcome.   HA!

Bethany Merlin - 2013 Senior Medfield High School

I've been looking forward to posting some of the images from Bethany's session since we shot them. 

 

We got such a mix of looks and the time flew by.  Which keeps the energy level high and the smiles fresh. 

 I do love it when I can grab a pair of sunglasses out and the image just pops!  I think that blue is Bethany's color.

 She really is a classic.

Dan Busler Photography in the New York Times {Wedding}

What a nice surprise to see that one of the images from Chrissi and John's engagement session we did in Boston's North End was used in their Wedding announcement in the New York Times.

I have to admit that this is the first time ( that I know of .. HA!) that one of my images has been printed in the Times. 

I wonder if millions of Times readers around the world paused when they saw the image and said " What an awesome photographer that Dan Busler is" ?    Well, I can dream that it happened.

Kelly Newman - Actress, Director {Headshots}

One of the first things I do before an actor's headshot session is to check out their FaceBook page. I want to see how they smile when they're hanging with their friends, how they dress when they're out at a club and the way that they naturally stand.

I learned over the years that actors get cast for the part that they look right for before they'll get cast for a part that they try to look right for.

But I have to get on the subject of this post!   Kelly Newman. The actress and director.

Kelly has a great smile and a killer " I'll kick your butt" stare ... which I told her is my favorite look.  It's so important to show both confidence [without looking mean] and still be approachable.

And Kelly has that look down without even trying.

 

So remember to spend some time working with your expressions in a mirror before your headshot session. You need to know how it feels when you smile just the way you want. The smile that will get you an awesome part!