Michael and Julia's Wedding

The wonderful couple Michael and Julia Schaumann - and baby Valentin

Breathtaking Julia

Married

Getting the party started !

No, no ... that is not me with a new fantastic boyfriend .... it's the recently elected Oberbürgermeister Richard Arnold. He's great. Kind, smart, beautiful, speaks several languages ... and breathes new excitement into the town of Schwaebisch Gmuend. Nix Besser !!!

So .. let's CELEBRATE !!!

This is 'Joe' on the left (sorry Joe, I forget your last name). He's an incredible man. Completely self-sufficient. He raises hens and other farm animals for eggs and meat ... makes his own cheese and sells it in the market ... grows his own crops ... and lives solely from the land - and his 'smarts'. The lovely man sharing in the creation of Paella is one of the top 10 chefs from Spain: Alberto Fortes. Pretty incredible, right? So ... the wedding reception of Michael and Julia could only be VERY special as they are VERY special indeed. Welcome to Joe's Farm !!

The skies were grey which not only added coolness to the temperature, but also added to the beautiful warmth inside the barn.

How fantastic is this !! Theirs is the MOST incredible wedding celebration that I have ever been to. Hands down. Music, great food, beautiful atmosphere, laughter, true friends ... and love.

The three greatest musicians. Imagine all night listening to wonderful Italian music -- and everybody singing and clapping and laughing -- really, if I EVER get married (of course that means meeting someone - european preferred - and dating, then relationship, then engagement) ... I want my wedding to have the exact same spirit as Michael and Julia's. By the way Julia, you are fired !!! Six years and no fhasap ... ok, ok ... I'll give you another six years ... you're rehired.

Michael and Julia visited me in the beautiful Villa Fontaine back in early June (see below). It was really wonderful to visit with my friends from Schwaebisch Gmuend. It was then that they surprised me with their upcoming wedding ... and upcoming baby Valentin ... AND, they invited me to be the 'Wedding Photographer' with my wonderful OLYMPUS Camera !!!! I actually brought the incredible Olympus E-620 and the Tough 8000 ... AND ... had the foresight to bring my battery chargers with me. Thankfully because I recharged both cameras several times during the night (I absolutely MUST download ALL of my photos to my computer). The Olympus E-620 is incredible ... and I not only photographed the festivities in color, but ALSO in black and white. It's a special filter on the Olympus. I don't have photoshop on my laptop so these photos are the real thing. Then ... I also made five little films during the night with the Olympus Tough 8000. They're really great !!! and they capture the joy, the music, the dancing, the lights ... and the love.


Thank you Michael and Julia for included me in celebrating your beautiful day. Congratulations my friends. I am very happy for YOU!!!

With love, Ann