Friday, January 3, 2014

Blue Mason Photography's 1st Free Wedding Photography Giveaway!

The amount of support everyone has shown us these past two years has been amazing.  We want to say THANK YOU by doing something HUGE to show our appreciation. We're giving away a free wedding photography package to one lucky couple!
To enter is easy as 1, 2, 3...4, 5, and 6:  
1. Read over the rules of the contest to make sure you agree and are alright with our guidelines.
2. Like our page on Facebook.
3. Leave a comment on our wall letting us know you've entered the contest! 
4. Leave a Comment on THIS blog post telling us the sweetest story ever of how you and your significant other got engaged, as well as your prospective wedding date.
5. Share this post on your Facebook wall! 
6. Cross your fingers and wait until January 11th to see if you're a finalist:)
**Important:  Submit your entry right away, because we're limiting this contest to the first 10 eligible couples to enter. Entries will be accepted until January 10, 2014.
Voting on free wedding photography giveaway entries begins on January 13 and ends on January 20.  The top 5 couples with the most votes will be announced on January 23rd on our blog as well as notified by email. (We want the collaboration with our finalists to be successful. Please take time to look through our wedding photography website and check out our work.  This is very important, because even though we're giving away free wedding photography services, you need to be sure that Ashley and Emily are the right photographers to capture your wedding day.)

OFFICIAL RULES AND GUIDELINES OF THE 2013 BLUE MASON PHOTOGRAPHY FREE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY GIVEAWAY:
You must be 18 to enter and getting married between April 1-December 31, 2014.  You must be physically located and getting married in the United States to win this prize.
You can enter for yourself, or you can enter someone else that you think deserves to win.  But only one entry per couple please.
By entering the contest, you promise that all information submitted by you is true, current, and complete.
YOU CANNOT BE BOOKED WITH ANOTHER PHOTOGRAPHER ALREADY.  (Not even us.)  No ditching another photographer.  That’s not nice. 
All entries must be submitted electronically via this blog on or before 11:59pm, January 10, 2014. Late entries will not be accepted.  Incomplete entries will not be accepted. The first 10 eligible couples will be accepted, and entries will be accepted in the order in which they are received.  The photographers (that’s us) are not responsible for any malfunction or failure to perform of any email service or device.
Entries for weddings on dates for which Blue Mason Photography is previously committed will not be eligible.  Paid bookings that occur prior to and during the contest will supercede contest entries. That means that even if my calendar shows I’m available when you enter the contest, if another couple books me at any point during the contest, you will become ineligible.
Reasonable transportation costs from Nashville for the photographer must be covered by the winners if the wedding is greater than 60 miles from Nashville, as determined by online driving directions service.  
Winners will be selected from the top five finalists by votes on Facebook, as well as Blue Mason Photography.   All decisions are final.
The grand prize winner will be notified by email to the address they provided and announced on the blog on February 14.  The winning couple must claim the prize within seven days.
If the winning couple cannot claim the prize for any reason, the runners-up will be awarded the prize at the discretion of the photographer.
One couple will be awarded the GRAND prize, which is 8 hours of professional photography on their wedding day and an engagement session.  All images will be available in an online private gallery for 6 months, with online print ordering available.  The approximate value of this prize is $3000.
The second place finalists will be eligible for a 20% discount on wedding photography services from Blue Mason Photography, as well as a free engagement session. 

Third, Fourth, and Fifth place finalists will be eligible for a 20% discount on wedding photography services from Blue Mason Photography. 
The prize and discounts awarded cannot be sold, traded, transferred, or exchanged for cash or any other item or service.
The winning couple must be willing to be featured on www.bluemasonphotos.com and all related websites/social media outlets.  Names and images of the winning couple will be used by Blue Mason Photography for promotional purposes and may be featured additionally on other websites and blogs. 
All copyrights of images produced and publicity material belong to Blue Mason Photography.
All federal, state, and local taxes, fees, and surcharges are the responsibility of the prize winners.
VOID WHERE PROHIBITED. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY.  PURCHASES DO NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCE OF WINNING

8 comments:

  1. Jared and I got engaged on the night of Christmas Eve. We started the night off by going to church with his family. He had told me a few days before that we were starting a new tradition with our families- a dessert party on Christmas Eve. So after church, we headed to the "dessert party". My family and some friends from church joined us and we were hanging out and eating desserts. Jared then announced that this year he made homemade gifts for everyone and that he wanted everyone to come downstairs to see what he made me. So we all went downstairs. He had a chair in the middle of the room for me and he started playing a slideshow, which consisted of pictures of us and one of our favorite songs playing in the background. Then he said that he also wrote me a poem titled "love". He began reading it and it was perfect! It went like this:

    "Love is more than a word
    Far more than simply a noun or a verb

    Love is an inspiration that swells up from one's very core
    To do better, to be more

    Love is a dedication to hold the wants and needs of another
    Above yourself or any other

    Love is a gift from above to be cherished and treasured
    It binds one to another with a power that could never be measured

    You have increased my joy ten fold
    I have found something much more precious than gold

    I know that the road won't always be easy, and storms are bound to come, but there's nowhere I'd rather be than by your side because I know that's where I belong.

    Our hearts have forevermore been intertwined.
    A better match I could never hope to find.

    You truly have made me want to be nothing more than the best man I could possibly be
    Whitney Savanna Bell, will you marry me?"

    The whole time he was reading it, he was getting choked up and fighting back tears (and of course I was balling my eyes out - along with everyone else in the room). It was so sweet and perfect.
    We are getting married on August 2, 2014 and we could not be more excited!

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  2. Adam and I were each others crush in middle school, fell out of touch for ten years, then reconnected again this past June. After six months of rekindling our relationship, we discovered that we had a chance for a friendship and a love that was worth keeping for a lifetime. My family had been planning for almost a year to spend Christmas in Spain, so Thanksgiving was the best shot we had for me to meet his entire family as soon as we could.

    Thanksgiving rolls around, we drive out to a little town in West Tennessee, and I meet his family, thrilled to be introduced as "Adam's girlfriend". His grandparents have a huge farm, so we spent Thanksgiving day (after a fantastic meal, of course!) driving four-wheelers, seeing the farm, then we decided to go shoot. I had brought my handgun, and he had his shotgun.

    We drive out to a secluded part of the farm, start trying to shoot at targets we put up ourselves, and laugh at what terrible shots we both are. I was simply amazed he was being such a good sport about being mediocre at something like shooting. Eventually, it came to light why he didn't mind missing the target, for little did I know he had a diamond ring in his pocket!

    After walking further down to a plowed corn field, we tried again to shoot my pistol. We were both so determined to get better! After taking my turn (and missing the target...yet again!) I turned around to go reload. Instead of meeting Adam's gaze when I turned, he wasn't there.

    Looking down, I saw the man I love kneeling in the field. With no one else around, sharing that moment together, he asked, "Kendall Armstrong from middle school, will you marry me?"

    I was able to nod and say, "Yes!" And there I was, having a gorgeous solitaire diamond ring put on my left hand, hugging the man I had loved as a young girl....and still holding a gun in my right hand! Crying and laughing, he took the gun out of my hand, smiling and saying, "I don't think we need this right now."

    It dawned on me that he had proposed to a woman with a gun in her hand, and told him what a courageous choice that had been. Right in line with his quick wit, he smiled and claimed, "We may not have a shotgun wedding... but we got a shotgun engagement!"

    That wedding will take place on July 12th, 2014, and as much fun and enjoyment we have had since we reconnected last June, we expect our wedding day will be a joyous celebration of our love and future together.

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  3. My sister (Jessica Pollock) is getting married May 31st, 2014 and does not have a photographer yet. As a maid of honor, I feel like this is a way to help with the wedding. She is an awesome sister and deserves the best! She got engaged July 24, 2013 on the beach in Destin, Florida. They had gone to dinner and then decided to walk on the beach underneath the stars. As they were walking, they were talking about different beaches and she asked "What beach do you like better, Panama or Destin?" Her fiancé Bryce then said, "Well, I will answer your question after you answer mine..." Then, he bent down and asked her. Of course she said yes, and ironically, a hotel started shooting fireworks, which was totally not part of the plan but must have been a God thing!

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  4. Brett asked me to ICE at the Gaylord Palms on New Years Eve with dinner to follow. The whole day at work co-workers were telling me "it's going to happen today", but not wanting to get my hopes up, I kept letting the comments slide off and continue to disagree. When we arrived at ICE, we found that our tickets were lost because of glitches in the computers all day, but the gentlemen assured us that we would be taken care of. He continued to walk us into the exhibit past the lines and straight to the parka pickup where he jumped a head of the line to grab us our parkas and keep us moving. I kept commenting to Brett that this was "ridiculous VIP service" but we thought it was nice and didn't ask any questions. We then proceeded into the exhibit where of course it was freezing and we did not have any gloves with us. We walked at a quick pace stopping very few times to snap a quick photo on our phones before walking to the next sculpture. We reached the final sculpture (the Nativity) where I took two quick photos and started heading out of the exit when Brett pulls me back saying "woah woah, wait". I asked him what he wanted since we were both freezing, but he gave me a kiss and said "You know I love you" and immediately I knew what was going to happen, but I couldn't hold back the tears as he got down on one knee to ask me for his hand in marriage while pulling out my gorgeous ring. I of course said yes probably 5 times. As he stood up to give me another kiss, we heard clapping from the room before us and that's when I put it together that Brett had planned this moment. There was a photographer that followed us secretly throughout the exhibit to document our time spent there leading up to the moment and also an employee was with the photographer to make sure nobody was in the room except for us in front of the Nativity. It was such a special moment, especially when Brett became teary-eyed with me :) No official date yet, but plans are pointing towards end of May or beginning of June!

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  5. Ryan and I were set up on a blind date by mutual friends 4 years ago. The first time I ever heard his voice was on my birthday, December 7th. He called and said, "I know you don't know me, but I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday and ask you out on a date." Two days later we met for a drink. I lived in Birmingham at the time, and had little hope that anything would come from a blind date. But, I was going to be coming through Nashville to visit my sister in KY, so I thought, "why not?"
    A drink turned into dinner, dinner turned into a wonderful evening looking at the Christmas lights at Opryland, then talking until almost midnight. We started spending time together whenever we could and four years later, I live in Nashville!
    On my birthday this year, my 30th, Ryan took me to Opryland to see the Christmas lights, something we do every year to remember our first date. I was a little suspicious, he seemed a little nervous.... But we saw all the lights and decorations and then he said, "ok, ready to go?" And we left. I was a little confused, but then...he told me there was one more stop to make on the way home. He made up a story about not wanting to find parking downtown, so we parked at the Greenway park by the stadium and walked across the pedestrian bridge. Halfway across the bridge we walked over and looked at downtown. We talked about Nashville and how it had become our city. We talked about great memories we had over the past four years - places we had been to that we could see from the bridge - Titans games, 4th of July celebrations and concerts on the riverfront, fun nights dancing on Broadway. Then he looked down at the river and said, "Do you want to take the plunge?" I laughed and said, "No way, it looks way too cold!" He tried again, "Yeah, but do you want to take the plunge?" I laughed and said "No way!" He dropped down to one knee, reached in his pocket, pulled out a ring, and said, "Well, will you marry me?"
    I was grinning from ear to ear! He then gave a most beautiful and romantic speech. I, of course, said yes!
    Looking at the skyline of the place that had become my home, remembering all the wonderful memories of the past four years that had built our relationship, and making the decision to make my best friend the one I will walk through life with.... What a perfect way to spend my birthday!
    We are planning an outdoor backyard barbeque type wedding in late August/September. We hope to have a bluegrass band and join together with family and friends for a true celebration! We would love to have Blue Mason capture the joy of our day in their authentic and unique way.

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  6. Since the day I met Jesse at my freshman orientation registration for college I have been waiting for the day he would make me his lucky bride to be. Throughout our dating, the kind and sweet gestures he did for me led me to believe that our proposal would fall nowhere short of perfect. I had always imagined some sort of extravagant proposal that somehow involved photography and all my family members. Little did I know, neither of those things is what made our proposal so perfect to me.

    Jesse and I had been dating for nearly three years at the time he proposed. In the duration of that time I had the privilege of meeting his “grammy” and “paw.” If there ever was a relationship of love and respect there’s was it. Within an hour of meeting them I could feel the love and passion in their relationship. Grammy having lost her memory years ago due to illness and the recent diagnosis of Paw’s lung cancer, they had experienced no easy journey. However, not a day went by that I didn’t see them smile and laugh with each other. They would do anything in the world for each other. I learned that because of their unconditional love and happiness with each other it was hard to not be filled with happiness around Grammy and Paw. We spent many Sunday afternoons at their house just sitting in the living room talking and learning about Paw’s crazy adventures from the military and from fishing on the river. As Paw’s cancer got more aggressive we spent more and more time over there trying to savor every moment with him. In late May 3013 we lost Paw to cancer. The days following Paw’s death were very difficult for Jesse. Paw was his number one role model. He was the person Jesse had always strived to be. It was the first time when I really had to be Jesse’s rock. I had to use what I had learned from Grammy and Paw’s relationship to really be Jesse’s other half. If it weren’t for Paw and the relationship he had with Grammy, there is no doubt in my mind that Jesse would be a very different person and there is absolutely no doubt that Jesse and I would have a very different relationship. They taught Jesse a lot of what he knows about being a good boyfriend, fiancé, and husband and for that I will be forever grateful to Grammy and Paw.

    A few months had gone by and Jesse hadn’t yet made it back to visit Paw’s grave. We had a Sunday family dinner planned with his family and as we packed up to head to his mother’s house he asked if it was alright if we stopped by Paw’s grave. It was about a 30 minute drive to the grave site and looking back I’m impressed at how calm and collected he was. When we pulled up to the gravesite, Jesse simply asked that I stay in the car so that he could have a minute alone at the site. When he got out of the car he handed me a hand written, two-page letter. I began reading the letter about our relationship and the things we have been through together. Half way through the letter he asked that I grab a bible that he had hidden in the back of the car. In the bible he had marked a verse about commitments. He then made me a commitment to never leave me. He appropriately ended the letter by stating, “God brought us together, and only through him can we ever last.” At the very bottom Jesse had written, “I love you so much, Briana Hoover. Please come over by me.” I got out of the car and approached Jesse with butterflies swarming my stomach. He had tears running down his face, knelt on one knew and asked that I marry him. The next minute is somewhat of a blur of hugs and tears. I hope at some point I said yes but can’t even remember. As sweet as he has ever been Jesse then told me that he was sorry it happened in a graveyard but that he “wanted Paw to be a part of our engagement.”

    We had the privilege of seeing Blue Mason photograph my cousin Amanda’s wedding and would be absolutely thrilled to have you both capture Jesse’s and my perfect day on June 21, 2014.

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  7. Chris and I met in college, but we were not "college sweethearts". In fact, when we met we were dating other people. However, we kept in touch, and after college reconnected and began dating. Originally our relationship was long distance, with him in Houston, TX and me in Ann Arbor, MI. That only lasted about 6 months, before I couldn't take it anymore -- I packed up and moved to Houston. We spent 2 years together in Houston, and then moved to Nashville this past July, when I was accepted to graduate school at Belmont University. Though the move was sudden (and challenging), Chris supported me 100% and we left everything behind to start a new life together in a new place.

    I should pause quickly to explain: Our love story is not traditional. When Chris and I began dating, I already had a 3-year-old daughter from a previous relationship. Chris was not ready to be a Dad. In fact, he said those exact words to me at one point. It was a huge lifestyle change, and an even bigger commitment. Over time, Chris fell in love with being a Dad. He accepted our daughter as his own, and two years later we happily welcomed another daughter to our family. Perhaps not the traditional love story, but it's our story. And it works :)

    On the day that Chris proposed, we were finishing up my birthday weekend, which (thanks to Chris) was full of surprises. On that Saturday, he planned a brunch with all my friends. After brunch, we decided to spend a quiet evening alone. I volunteered to make a nice dinner, to thank him for an amazing birthday weekend. As I prepared a new recipe, Chris disappeared to our home office. I decided to sneak in some romance, so I lit a few candles, popped open a nice bottle of wine and set our plates. Chris called me to the back, and asked if we could get "all dressed up". I loved the idea, and put on my favorite black dress and heels.

    We sat at our little dinner table in our apartment, and it was better than any restaurant we could've chosen instead. Great food, great conversation... and then Chris passed me an envelope across the table. In the envelope was a letter, detailing a scavenger hunt that he had created around our home. Each letter would include a small token, and would also provide me with a clue, leading to the next. All of the letters were themed, describing aspects of our relationship that he was thankful for. The idea was perfect. I could not stop blushing as I read each letter, filled with praises and loving words. The final letter was titled "Our Future". The last lines of the letter read,

    "I envision every morning, every evening, every parent/teacher conference and every argument ending with these words: Thank you, I love you."

    As soon as I finished reading, Chris took me by the hands, and in our living room - in front of the fireplace - asked me to be his wife. For some people, an in-home proposal may have seemed lacking. But for us, it was absolutely perfect. I couldn't have imagined it any other way. Our home represents all that we have committed to one another. All of the cross-country moves, the fears, the sacrifices. And all of the support, which defines our past and will carry into our future.

    We have heard great things about Blue Mason Photography, and would love to have the opportunity to work with you. Since we are raising two kids, paying for graduate school and planning a wedding on our own - the budget is limited! Thank you for this amazing opportunity :)

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    Replies
    1. Also - our wedding will be held on August 16, 2014 in Nashville, TN :)

      Thanks!

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