Wednesday evening I had the absolute pleasure of attending Jasmine Star’s The Fix Dallas. It was a time for photographers from all over Texas to get together, meet each other, and all have conversations together with the internationally famous, California-based wedding photographer, Jasmine Star.
I was SO excited to run into the one and only Elise from Hey, Sweet Pea at the event! Or should I say, the-girl-with-the-blonde-streak? I had just met up with Elise and her fiancé, Scott, for their nautical engagement session on Sunday and James and I were thrilled to see them again at The Fix!
Now is where I explain a little bit about how big of a deal this event was for me. Storrrrrrytiiiiiiiime!
I first found Jasmine’s blog at a time in my life when photography as a career felt very, veeeerrrrrrrrrrrry far away. I remember that I was sitting at my dining room table, just browsing photography blogs, and stumbled across hers.
And I fell in love.
Yes, with the photos, but I was also captivated by her writing, by her ability to put her personality into words. Jasmine. Take it, leave it, love it, hate it — she was just her, just Jasmine.
I spent about six hours on her blog the night I found it. No joke.
I started pouring through blogposts in the late afternoon, starting with the most recent and going backward from there. I just kept going page to page and before I knew it, James was asking me if I was coming to bed!
I looked at James. I looked back at the computer. I looked back at James. Annnnnnd then I went to bed . . . but I brought the computer with me and continued looking at the blog sitting in the bed. I couldn’t get enough of it!
I only put the computer down only when I was about ready to fall over asleep on top of it. I was hooked.
From that day forward I was “Jasmine Star this,” “Jasmine Star that.” Within a month or so, James, my best friends, my mom all knew who she was, so that I didn’t have to add any explanation when I mentioned “Jasmine Star” in day-to-day conversation, ya know, like she was a good friend.
I’ve been trying to figure out WHY I felt such a strong connection to Jasmine from the beginning. And the best thing I could think of was that she was the very first person to cast her vote of confidence in me.
She didn’t know it, but through her writing, through her story that’s what she did.
Before I could even fathom the possibility of being a full-time photographer, much less SPEAK the idea aloud to my husband or friends, Jasmine told me it was possible.
So let me tell you, when I’m approaching my opportunity to talk to this famous photographer/dear friend/person-I’ve-never-met as this mildly star-struck stranger I didn’t know how it was going to go.
The first words out of my mouth were suuuuuper-profound:Â My heart’s beating really fast right now.
But O. My. Word. She immediately took hold of both my arms and told me how she kept seeing me in the audience while she was making her presentation and thanked me because she felt so encouraged every time she saw me nodding and smiling. At least I knew SOMEONE was with me!
She went in to give me a hug and then apologizes because she hasn’t even asked me my name.
Jillian Zamora . . . I feel like I recognize that name . . .
(internal squeal!) I explain to her that it might be because she’s said my name in two of her Shooting Star video segments on her blog: Jillian Zamora asked . . .
She can hear the excitement in my voice and gets excited with me. Like friends.
So it’s at this point I feel the need to act out for her my reaction to hearing her say my name both those times in the videos.
I raise my arms above my head in triumph and whisper-yell, “SHE SAID MY NAME!!”
Well I guess that makes us best friends, she teased.
I’m okay with it if you are, I answered. And I meant it.
Let me clarify here for a moment.
I’m not obsessed.
I’m just really, really thankful.
I’m thankful that this woman shared with me her stories of struggle, of starting in the photography business, and of figuring out who she was along the way.
I’m thankful that, two years ago, when I was just a newly married, soon-to-be college graduate sitting at my dining room table with this teeny tiny notion of possibly, maybe, one day, BUT-NOT-REALLY playing any real role whatsoever in the photography industry, Jasmine reached through my computer screen via her blog, grabbed my shoulders and said, “I’ve been there. NO REALLY, I’ve. been. there.”
When I first found her blog, I had NO idea she was a renown wedding photographer.
I just knew that she was someone who had been where I was. And it gave me the strength to finally dream of what could be — not becoming Jasmine Star, but Jillian camera-in-hand-Yes-I’ll-shoot-your-wedding-thank-you-very-much Zamora.
 Thank you, Jasmine.
You guys, Jordan and David are great.
They came to me with so many meaningful ideas for their engagement session, one of which, was to start the session at the very spot where David proposed on a walk he took her on.
Another one of their ideas was to include their letters that they wrote to each other  throughout the course of their relationship.
I know. Sweet, right?
They didn’t do the long-distance thing. They just liked writing letters. Specifically to each other. And so they did.
JORDAN!! Those eyes! I can’t get over them!!
Our next stop was a part of Dallas that they frequent — going to shows, shopping some good ol Buffalo Exchange and flipping through records. Together.
You two make an alleyway look good.
I mean, I can really only rave about a person’s eyes SO MANY times in one blog post before it gets redundant, so I’m going to keep my thoughts to myself.
(It’s-just-that-I-feel-like-they-SPARKLE!)
It’s just that they smiled like this throughout the course of the session and it just made my heart so stinkin’ happy.
Some shots at the nearby Good Records was a must, as it turns out David is a bit of a record junkie , but it would seem that it’s hard for him to focus on the records when Jordan’s around . . .
I love this image even more now after a friend gave me her take on it. You see, sometimes I have issues choosing pictures for blogposts — the issue being that I just want to post all of them — so I often have to ask James or a nearby friend their opinion on which ones to include/exclude from the post. My friend Brittney was looking through Jordan and David’s images and and she stopped at this one and said:
“Oh. She is SO in love. That is the picture of a woman in love.
I felt like her friend and I had walked in on a moment, and she looked up at me as if to say,  ‘I am so in love with this man.'”
I was very pleased with this synopsis.
David is a literature major at the University of North Texas, so books were very much a necessary addition to the end of the session.
Again, it looks like he has a difficult time concentrating on reading with Jordan at his side though.
Jordan and David, I wish the two of you all the very best that life has to offer. Thank you for choosing me as your engagement photographer and letting me document these sweet, sweet moments.
Arlinda is back on the blog — this time she’s all dolled up in her wedding dress!
Get it, girl.
Poise: Graceful and elegant bearing in a person.
That is what I think of when I see this above photo.
Sigh. Favorite. Arlinda, you are absolutely stunning.
I know this is a quick post, but I hope you’ve enjoyed this small glimpse into Arlinda’s bridal session! Now it’s time to hit the gym with James! Happy Tuesday!
Miguel and Itzel were wed in September. (You might remember their sweet story from their Star Wars-tea party engagement session?)
All I have to say is that I genuinely cannot express how full my heart is for these two.
What I loved most about the flow of this wedding day was that Itzel and Miguel allowed lots of time for bride-groom portraits at Bass Hall after their ceremony! (!!!)
I uhhhh-dore the images we were able to capture together because they allowed for extra time, in a great space, specifically for bride-groom portraits. Yes, it’s pronounced “uhhhhhhhh-door.”
ITZEL!! Seriously? You’re gorgeous. That’s all I have to say.
That’s a good wedding party right there.
Lurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrve.
After our fun time on the parking garage we walked over to join in on the reception at McDavid Studio.
MARIACHI!!!
(Apparently I’ve been reduced to using one-word sentences . . .)
Now, Miguel’s groom’s cake really took . . . the . . . cake . . .
Yeah. I went for it. I’m sorry. Moving on . . .
It was an atari!! Someone had to explain to me what that was!! But I knew the cake looked super-cool regardless.
Yes, my heart is very full for these two. Together.
And the BEST news? These two will be back on the blog again relatively soon because they did a “day after” session too! Huzzah! Another opportunity to gush about how much I adore Itzel and Miguel.
I’ll take it.
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