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Hello!

Welcome to my blog and thanks so much for stopping by and having a look. My name is Jessica Pressley and I feel extremely blessed to have such a fun job as a wedding photographer. I hope that through this blog I can show my work, life, and connect with all of you. So, check back often and be sure to leave me a comment letting me know you were here!

Yamit and Ofir: Wedding! Tel Aviv, Israel 11/22/08

This amazing, beautiful wedding took place in November of last year during my stay in Israel. I was lucky enough to second shoot for the super cool Ilan Siman-Tov, one of Israel’s most awesome wedding photographers. Well, it wasn’t really luck. I just had the best program director ever, Lori Schaefer-Bacher, who worked really hard to make my wish to shoot weddings in Israel happen. She is one of the nicest, most giving people I’ve ever met and runs a program called Because We Care, a five-month volunteer program for teachers to come teach in Israel, travel, etc. Check it out!

Alright, back to the wedding. It was such a great time! Yamit and Ofir were so sweet and you could see that they were stepping into marriage with no reservations, just excitement. I didn’t see either of them looking less than perfectly happy the whole thirteen hour day.

We started that morning overlooking the Mediterranean Sea with the beautiful Yamit getting ready.
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Yamit was absolutely gorgeous.
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We traipsed around Old Jaffa though the market where the light was just perfect. Yum.
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Oh nice color combinations, how I love you…
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Old furniture shops are awesome.
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This takes place in the market, otherwise known as the Shuk. The Shuk was one of my most favorite places to go in Israel. Its filled with colors, smells, and freshly made challa bread.
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I love this photo of Ofir, he looks so debonair.
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These moments, the ones that happen between the set up shots, are my absolute favorite. *Sigh*
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Yamit plus the camera equal best friends for life. This picture makes me happy.
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Quite possibly the favorite. Totally spontaneous cuteness.
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Beat up wall with 90s fashion poster, nice!
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=)
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The signing of the covenant, a very special moment.
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This pretty canopy is where the ceremony took place.
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Ofir walking down the aisle to meet his lovely bride.
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The exciting finale- smashing the cup!
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I can not stop smiling when I look at this picture. How many favorites can I have?
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The first dance of the craziest night of dancing I’ve ever been a part of.
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I only dream of having the skills Yamit exhibited on the dance floor. Did I mention she’s a professional choreographer?
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Israelis seriously know how to celebrate. They even broke out some colorful hats and various instruments. The festivities did not stop or slow down until 3am!
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Ofir held is own as well, especially for having a professional choreographer as a wife. That could have been intimidating, but as you can see Ofir has got some dance skills as well.
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I’m really trying to avoid captioning each of these images with a *sigh* but goodness, this image pretty much makes me glad to be alive.
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The end.
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kate bennett - these are absolutely unbelievable. love them, love you, etc.

Julie - love, love, love it! awesome work. beautiful people.

“Wedding Bells” Photo Challenge!

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As an avid reader of Jasmine Star’s photography blog I am excited to enter a contest that she is judging for the iHeartFaces photo blog. I Heart Faces is a site that seeks to capture faces and their emotions. Each week they have a new photo challenge theme, with this week’s theme being “Wedding Bells.” This photo was shot in Jaffa, Israel and was the second wedding I shot with Ilan Siman-Tov. The couple is Yamit and Ofir and I just love the sweet, excited, happiness of this photo. We walked around ancient Jaffa shooting wherever caught our eye. For those of you who arent familiar with the old Bible story, Jaffa is the ancient port-city where Jonah boarded a ship only to be swallowed by a whale! Don’t worry, he was spat out three days later as good as new;). This particular shot took place on one of the corners leading into the marketplace. I hope you like the photo and be sure to check out iHeart Faces blog for more photo fun. Also, be sure to check back here for this complete wedding post!

Christie Archer - I love this photo. The couple looks so happy. Christie Archer

Amy - Beautiful. I love the colors and the composition.

Sweet As Can Be Cakes 6/25/09 Apple Valley, Ca

Cake! I love it. Especially wedding cake. Don’t you? I have eaten many a good wedding cake in my day (hmm, I wonder why?) which is why I am super excited that my good friend Jenny and her mom, Deby, are about to launch their spectacular cake baking company: Sweet As Can Be Cakes. I got to taste some of their amazing Peaches and Cream Cake the other day and I nearly devoured the piece I promised to split with a friend later that evening. Everything is hand made right down to the beautiful edible flowers. Each cake is a work of art that will not only look stunning but will leave your guests wishing they had grabbed a piece “for a friend” when they got theirs. Also, when it comes to finding vendors for your big day, one of the absolute most important things is that you not only like but trust them. I can say that Jenny and Deby are some of the sweetest ladies I know and are a dream team of mother daughter awesomeness. Email me if you are interested in snagging Sweet as Can Be Cakes for your wedding or event.

Here’s a sneak peak, the Peaches and Cream Cake:

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Yummmmmm!

Peter and Sara: Wedding! South Bend, Indiana 6/6/09

This was such a fun trip to see such awesome people in a really pretty,green place that I have never been before. What more could I ask for as a photographer? I have known Sara since about sophomore year in high school when we were theater buddies and we’ve been great friends ever since. She is a real live genius and had something like a 4.8 GPA all through high school. Also, she reads one book after another which I think is a major contributing factor to a person’s genius quotient. Did I mention that Sara makes one heck of a mix cd? Well, she does and has introduced me to most of the cool music I like (thanks Sara!). On top of it all, this girl is super fun, nice, and I just love her. After getting to spend time with her and Peter I can see that these two complement each other so well. Peter is also a super genius and gives off good vibes in general. He attended Notre Dame University at the same time Sara did and this is where they met and fell in love. After their beautiful wedding ceremony the three of us traipsed around the campus and had lots of photo fun. I hope you all enjoy these photos as much as I enjoyed taking them!

Here’s some details to start.
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There is something about this photo that I just love for some reason. Maybe its the banana/blue track jacket combo.
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Sara and I have an obsession with a health drink called Kombucha. Have you tried it?
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This is one of my favorites!
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Sara looked unbelievable on her wedding day. Her dress belonged to one of her aunts who wore it in the fifties and Sara was able to wear it without any fittings. This was by far my favorite look on a bride that I’ve photographed thus far.
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A really sweet moment between Sara and Peter during prayer.
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Another favorite.
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This is at Notre Dame. These two know how to work it.
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This shot is so fun! It looks like they might just float away.
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Oi! I cant handle the beauty that is this photograph.
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This is in front of the dome at Notre Dame. Do you see the heart shape that the trees make?
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This looks like its right out of the fifties.
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Peter had his suit made in Korea. Doesn’t he look so handsome?
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The formal portraits don’t usually get me terribly excited but this background and all of the colors of the girls’ dresses really worked out.
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We had a lot of fun taking the formal portraits of the boys. Love this.

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Peter and Sara, this was so much fun. I cant wait to see you guys again!

molly - yessss! they are absolutely beautiful! i love love love them.

Mara (Wedding Cabaret) - Stunning!

Kate - love the details!

Mary Marantz - love her whole vintage look!! these are awesome!!

Carlos Santos Tyria - Beautiful Couple, Beautiful Pictures

Julie - beautiful work!

Shari - Jessica - these pictures are unbelievable! You did a perfect job. You captured their happiness and their love. Can't wait to see the rest. Thank you so much! Sara's mom

Sara - JESSICA THESE ARE FABULOUS! You are awesome, how many times can I tell you?? And thank you for the kind words up top - you need to advertise your services around Indiana so you can come visit more often =) I can't wait to get the disks. Both the moms are totally going to be crying. Love you! -Sara

kate bennett - jessica! these are all so great. i love 'em! the groomsmen one is so funny.

Sara and Peter Wedding Preview 6/6/09

I was able to photograph the wedding of one of my best friends this passed weekend in South Bend, Indiana. Her name is Sara and she married the perfect guy for her, Peter. I have so many photographs that I adore from their wedding day but here is one to hold you over until I have the full post ready. The stunningly beautiful Sara and the ultra handsome Peter:

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Perfume ads have nothing on you guys.

Sandy Dillman - Jessica, you are quite the photo taker! These pictures of Sara's wedding all beautiful. You should be very proud of yourself. I bet your parents of very proud as well, keep up the good work. Now, when my Jess gets married maybe you will be able to help us out.

Jennifer and Jason, Redlands, Ca 5/16/09

I recently got to second shoot for my good friend Edmund Prieto at the Mitten Building in Redlands, California. The couple was Jennifer and Jason and they were such a great couple to spend the day with. Having been together for nine years, its easy to understand why they seemed to have cultivated such a deep, comfortable love for each other. Jennifer walked down the aisle with tears in her eyes to the man she would marry. Jason has a great sense of humor and Jennifer laughs at his funny jokes. She didn’t even bat an eyelash when he donned a dark gray thong over his suit for the money dance. Both of their families were also so much fun and you could just feel the love in the room. I can see a very bright future ahead for those two.

Here are some of the sparkly details to start out with.
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The colors of the bouquet were gorgeous and Jennifer looked great in her white satin dress.
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Doesn’t she look so peaceful here getting her make-up done?
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Jennifer you are so beautiful! I love the warm and cool light of this picture.
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Jason getting ready to walk down the aisle.
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Some more details from the wedding. I am trying to get better at shooting these. What do you think?
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This just might be my favorite.
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In front of Jason’s super cool yellow car. I’m sure it is very impressive and it would help if I knew its name, but sadly this is not my area of expertise.
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Such a classic beauty.
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Hooray for rich green wooden gates in open shade!
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Mmm, color…
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Each table got up and had to sing to Jennifer and Jason a song about love. Very sweet and funny.
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The happy couple.
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I think Laura sums it up very nicely:
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Thanks Jennifer and Jason! I wish you both the best.

Julie - love the pictures of the bride and groom inside and outside of the car,

Kenji Tashiro - Beautiful work! I really like the moment captured in the second to last picture. Of the groom whispering something into the brides ear. Lovely pictures!

Mom Bertsche - Great job Jessica!! Thanks so much! You and Edmund both did an awesome job

Jason P - Great job, Thank you for everything, I'm really glad you came and cant wait to see all of your work. Oh and you are a ninja, I didn't even notice you taking pic's.

allison - these look great! and so does the site!

Kathy Adams - I loved the picture in front of Jason's yellow car - the contrast between the white wedding attire and the bright yellow car is very cool. Also, re "wedding details", my favorite is the table. The focal point of the center piece and how the soft glow from the lights reflected off of everything is beautiful. Great work, Jessica!

Edmund Prieto - Great, great job Jessica. I had a blast shooting with you, and I love the detail shots!

Jonathan Pressley - All of the pictures look great. Everything looks very professional, keep up the good work!

Tomer and Orit, Tel Aviv, Israel 11/18/08

Married!

This wedding took place in November of last year during my stay in Israel. I had the amazing opportunity to second shoot for the fabulous Ilan Siman-Tov of Tel Aviv. The couple was Tomer and Orit. They were so much fun to photograph and I must say it was nearly impossible to take a bad picture of them, so that helped.

The beautiful Orit taking a break from getting her hair done. I love all of the tulle in the background.
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They don’t have the traditional bridal party in Israel but Orit’s best friend got the full style treatment and spent the day with her.
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Tomer looked quite dashing.
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Ilan had lots of creative ideas for photographing the couple. We would be driving and he would see a spot and we’d pull over to shoot. This was a sweet little cafe we stopped at that made for a nice moment between Tomer and Orit.
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Best friends!
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The venue was amazing. I loved the use of colored lights.
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Such a cute moment between both of the moms and Tomer’s dad.
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Look at all of those people. And they all danced the night away. Literally, everyone danced! It was great.
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The smashing of the cup makes it official. As soon as it happened all of those people you just saw rushed onto the stage and mobbed the couple with hugs and kisses.
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Definitely my favorite shot of the day. Its just a sweet moment between Tomer and Orit as husband and wife.
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Orit looks like a movie star.
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I’m telling you guys, Israelis know how to party!
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And they lived happily ever after…
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Morgan Taylor - i love the dancing shot! so rad! great job! Nice blog by the way!!!!

Katie Appel - Jessica, these are great! Not that I'm getting married anytime soon but seeing your work makes me want to have you come to PA to shoot my wedding whenever that happens! Beautiful pictures! :)

Julie - beautiful photos!

Nathan Schulz - I was here! :-)

C. Sam - Great mozletof action. That happens pretty fast so it's not an easy thing to be on the ball and catch it perfectly like that.

Belinda - Those are fantastic shots i love the one of the venue with the blue and purplish lights so cool!