Published on Party Spot

What a week--now I've been published! Party Spot is a new internet magazine dedicatd to Sweet Sixteen's, Quincenearas, Bar/Bat Mitzvah's, and other significant teenage events. A division of the knot, Party Spot offers advice and resources for planning these events, as well as feature articles about real events. I shot Amanda Aguilera's fabulous Quinceaneara last October, and when I was contacted by the site a few months ago about submitting work I knew that it would be perfect for their article.

The article is called "Real Quinces: Amanda in San Ramon, CA": similar to the "Real Weddings" articles in the knot magazine, in addition to my photos it features an interview with Amanda, descriptions of the decorations, the theme, and other details of the party. In the interview Amanda talks about how she made her day happen and gives planning advice to other girls and their families. Amanda and her family were totally psyched to have their words and faces in print, and of course I am honored to have my work noticed by the world's most well known wedding and event planning resource.

The best thing about working with Amanda and her family was how down to earth they are--despite being incredibly beautiful, and the focus of attention for this huge event, Amanda was far from the spoiled, frivolous stereotype of the sweet sixteen. She conducted herself with the grace and humor of a woman twice her age, and her family and friends were a pleasure to work with. This article is just the icing on the cake.

I can say I'm a bit surprised at the choice of photos Party Spot used. Out of approximately thirty they had to choose from, they picked nine. Most of them were among my favorites, but a few of the more "edgy" or ""artsy" ones (like those above) were passed over, perhaps predictably so. These are, of course, the ones I found most interesting, and I'm a bit sad to see they didn't make the cut-- like most artists, it is hard for me to give up that level of control.

Overall however I am very pleased with the format, and will be submitting more work later this summer for the Real Weddings features in the print magazine, as well as entering images in a number of contests (esp. those run by the WPJA). So keep your eyes out for more of Cohn Frankel Photography in print, and stay tuned to this blog to hear all about it.