Today I had the privilege of attending a luncheon hosted by Chicago Social Bride & the fabulous staff at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Chicago. This event hosted celebrity wedding planner Mindy Weiss. She is considered probably one of the top wedding planner in the nation. She has planned for numerous celebrities including Andre Agassi, Gwen Stefani, Christina Aguilera, Heidi Klum to name a few. She also planned the biggest wedding of 2007 in Tony Parker & Eva Longoria. Bob & Dawn Davis were the photographers of that event and they soon became good friends with Mindy. Since I knew Bob & Dawn were going to be there, I decided to go there to meet and befriends some people in the wedding industry.
When I arrived at the hotel, I soon realized that I was like only one of the five guys in a room filled with ladies (I’m assuming most of them were wedding planners). 
I felt little out of place since I didn’t know anyone there, but fortunately I was able to sit with Bob & Dawn so it made breaking the ice a bit easier.
We enjoyed a delicious three course meal prepared by Ritz Carlton’s Executive Chef Mark Payne.
After the lunch, Mindy gave us a brief talk about what the latest trends are in the wedding industry and gave some helpful tips. Bob was quick to grab his camera to capture Mindy in action. 
I didn’t shoot that many but I did manage to take one shot of Mindy speaking.
The flower decorations were amazing. I felt like I was at a wedding reception. It’s a no brainer because they were arranged by Jonathan Ryan from A Perfect Event. 
She ended the talk with a Q&A session followed by signing copies of her new book: “The Wedding Book: The Big Book for Your Big Day”. (By the way, I highly recommend this book if you are a bride getting ready to plan your wedding!)
Here’s a photo of Mindy with her co-author Lisbeth Levine.
Bob, Dawn & I took some shots with her. 
Even know Mindy is revered as the big celebrity planner, she was such a sweet person, down to earth, and easy to relate/talk to.
Bob & Dawn quickly showed the album design of Tony & Eva that they’ve been working on. She was delighted see the wonderful work that they had done! 
I had such a great time there! I just wanted to give a big thanks and shout out to the wonderful PR staff at the Ritz Carlton for organizing this fabulous event. Julie Simon & Susan Maier did an amazing job!
And finally, after this luncheon, I met up with a talented photographer Gina DeConti from Imaginative Studios. She is a photographer based here in Chicago. i was first introduced to her by our mutual friend, Alice Chae. After corresponding few times over facebook, we finally got to meet up for coffee. We talked and got to know each other. She’s been in this industry for few years longer than I have so she had lot of cool tips and ideas. I learned alot from her! She is a super-talented, sharp, smart, and a great contributor in this industry. I’m glad we became friends and look forward to networking with other great photographers in this area.
Facebook comments: