alicia + mike

Hello everyone! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and ate lots of food. I know I did.

Anywhoo… One of the last weddings of the year was for Alicia and Mike. From the day I met them earlier this year during a snow storm, I knew this wedding was going to be a blast. For this wedding I brought along the whole gang of what I like to call “Team Awesome”.

It was quite the production. Thankfully Alicia and Mike had so much to capture. Their wedding party was also a riot to work with.

It was a long day but we all had a blast. Congratulations you guys!

Thank you to Team Awesome for pulling off a spectacular wedding.

Here are some stills for you to enjoy

Movember

Hello folks!

I just wanted to take some time to talk about Movember; what it is and why I am doing it.

Movemeber (formerly November) is a month dedicated to growing mustaches and raising awareness and funds for men’s health. I have joined the movement and will be donating my upper lip to the cause for 30 days. My mustache (Mo) will spark conversations, and no doubt generate some laughs; all in the name of raising vital awareness and funds for cancers affecting men.

Many have asked whether I am being serious about all of this. I am. Although the sight of me sporting a mustache is both laughable and silly, the issue of cancer is not and I will do anything to raise awareness for further research.

The Facts

*1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime

*A man is diagnosed with prostate cancer every 2.2 minutes

*1 in 2 men will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime

*24% of men are less likely to go the doctor compared to women

*My grandfather was taken by cancer when I was 7

*One of my uncles has battled with it

Please do not misunderstand. Me growing a ‘stache is pure silliness; however, it does not mean I do not believe strongly in the efforts of many around the nation who are participating in the Movember movement. Rock stars, celebrities, sports stars, fathers, brothers; we are all united in our passion to see cures for many of these diseases come true.

With that, I am humbly asking for your participation. Please support my efforts to raise at least $100 by making a donation at http://mobro.co/paulbarrios.

You can even write a check payable to “Movember Foundation”, reference my name and Registration Number 1976280 and send it to: Movember Foundation, PO Box 2726, Venice, CA 90294-2726

Funds raised will help make a tangible difference to the lives of others. Through the Movember Foundation and their men’s health partners, the Prostate Cancer Foundation and LIVESTRONG, Movember is funding world class awareness, research, educational and support programs which would otherwise not be possible.

GIVEAWAYS

To further back what I believe, I have created some fun prizes to take part in for your participation. My first promotion was 2 tickets to see world renown recording artist Chris Tomlin on Firday 11/4/11 in Fairfax. That contest is currently going on and will end Thursday at 5pm.

Being that I am a photographer, starting FRIDAY, I will also be giving away a mini photo session for you or your family. More giveaways will happen as Movember rolls on.

The rules for all of the giveaways are simple:

1. Visit my MoSpace page for Movember http://mobro.co/paulbarrios
2. Make a donation of at least $1
3. Visit my facebook fan page for Paul Barrios Photography… LIKE the page
4. On my fan page wall post “I am a Mo Bro” (fellas) or “I am a Mo Sista” (ladies)

That’s it! Each giveaway will be chosen at random.

Ultimately this is not about me growing a mustache, going to a concert, getting photos, or whatever else. This is about raising awareness for diseases that have probably touched us all at some point, be it directly or indirectly.

Thank you for your support.

-Paul

p.s. The look I’m going for is the “Pedro”

The Great Pumpkin

Well folks… Baby G turned 1 this past weekend!! The party was awesome and the food was amazing! Thank you to all who came to celebrate with our family. Gavin is blessed to have so many people who love and adore him.

Just like each month for the past year, a mini photo shoot was planned for him. We have done everything from the Valentine’s day baby, a St. Patrick’s Day leprechaun, and even a soccer player. For his one year photo, we thought of a few different things then it hit us… in carrying on with the whole Peanuts theme that we came up with for his party, we took Gavin over to Butler’s Orchard in Germantown Maryland to shoot some pictures in a pumpkin patch. Appropriately so, we put Baby G in a shirt that reads, “The Great Pumpkin is Coming.” It was awesome.

I LOVE this kid!

Here’s my favorite photo from the shoot. As you can see, Gavin is very protective of his pumpkin!

And for the cuteness factor… here is one of him with that million dollar smile.

Besilica & Dennis’ Wedding

Hey everyone! It’s almost 2am and I could not sleep until I posted some pictures from the wedding I shot a few hours ago. I am deeply honored to have shot the wedding of my very good friend Dennis and his new bride Besilica. Maybe it was because I have seen Dennis walk through this relationship from day one, but I got a little teary eyed when I saw how extremely happy he was to be marrying his best friend. Photographing weddings for people I know is always fun… photographing for really close friends… well I tend to get into the whole party

What more can I say other than I am extremely happy for Dennis. The Good Lord surely sent him the bride of his dreams. Congratulations you guys!

And of course… what amazing wedding could be pulled off without my crew? Thanks to Stephanie Yonce for, once again, second shooting with me. You’re truly growing more and more in your craft every time! I’m truly grateful for your help!  A HUGE shout out to Emmanuel for stepping in to assist with everything from video to helping back up cards. Lastly, I have to give credit to Erin Hill for some really great make up work. Besilica looked amazing!

Okay… here are some puuurty pics!

Erin did an amazing job with make up. Be sure to check her out at http://www.divinesappointment.com/

See? I wouldn't lie

Now THAT'S a kiss

Who says pastors can't be goofy?

I got caught "Party Rockin' " by Stephanie. I have no shame.

Photo Giveaway!

Hi everyone! In response to many requests, I recently announced that I will begin selling certain photographs as large poster prints. I will start with a collection of early photographs from some of my favorite travels. You can see the collection of photos on my Facebook fan page.

To kick start it all, I am giving away a FRAMED copy of one of my favorite photographs. It’s a photograph of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. As many of you know, San Francisco is my most favorite place in the world and the city holds a special place in my heart.

Want to win? All you have to do is answer the following Trivia questions. The contest will end THIS FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 2 at 12PM. All you need to do is answer 4 out of 6 questions to qualify. Email your answers to paul@paulbarriosphotography.com no later than FRIDAY at 12pm. The winner will be picked at random. Note: this contest is intended for locals but for those outside of the DC area, you can still win… you just need to pay for shipping. Roughly it’s about $10.

Here are the questions:

1.       How long did it take to build the Golden Gate Bridge?
2.       When did the bridge open for traffic (exact date)
3.       The Golden Gate Bridge connects San Francisco and…
4.       Prior to being called San Francisco, what was the city by the bay’s original name and meaning?
5.       Name an everyday piece of clothing that was invented in San Francisco and why?
6.       True or False: Lombard Street is the curviest street in San Francisco.

Here’s the prize