The Real Bride Model Search 2010 | Contest Voting

Over 2600 votes were cast, and the readers of the Lisa Mark Photography Blog have chosen their winner.

Congratulations to our grand prize winner of The Real Bride Model Search 2010…

AIMEE!

The photos are now posted from Aimee’s Photoshoot – please click here to view!

Aimee has won the following prizes:

- A professional photoshoot with Lisa Mark Photography (at least 2 hours in length, possibly longer)

- Hair and make-up by Melanie Sivitilli

- Bridal styling by Ashley Braz to finesse your look on-set

- A Gorgeous 5×5 Album of 20 images of your choice

- A 16×20 Canvas Wrap of your choice

* This prize is valued at over $1500! *

Thank you to all the contestants for entering and sharing your beautiful images and words with my blog readers.  I also want to thank everyone who voted for their choice winner in this contest.  Your votes meant a lot to each contestant!

As a thank you gesture to our runners-up, I’m please to offer a one-time 25% discount to any bride who entered this contest who wishes to still do a Trash The Dress session with me.  If you are interested, please get in touch with me and I would be pleased to give you some more information.

I am pleased that this contest was a huge success and I look forward to running it again next year!  Please stay tuned to the blog this summer to see the results of our photoshoot with the grand prize winner, Aimee!

Sincerely,

Lisa Mark

All entries are in and voting now begins!  Contestants are listed below with their photo(s) and paragraph on why they want to win The Real Bride Model Search for 2010, and win the following prizes:

- A professional photoshoot with Lisa Mark Photography (at least 2 hours in length, possibly longer)

- Hair and make-up by Melanie Sivitilli

- Bridal styling by Ashley Braz to finesse your look on-set

- A Gorgeous 5×5 Album of 20 images of your choice

- A 16×20 Canvas Wrap of your choice

* This prize is valued at over $1500! *

Images from the winner’s session will be posted on the blog after the shoot!  The girl with the most votes becomes the winner, so spread the word for your favourite contestant.  Best of luck to everyone!

VOTING IS NOW CLOSED.  Final stats are as follows:

Contestant Number #1 – Alison

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“I loved my wedding dress so much, I wanted to keep it forever and be able to wear it again. I have since had it shortened (which has been coined “Marilyn Monroe” inspired) and would love to see it shown off it it’s new form. I would also love to see what it would look like with a hot tutu underneath with matching sexy shoes. I’m all about fun crazy pics and open to anything.” – Alison

Contestant Number #2 – Samantha

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“I would love to win this contest as I was 6 months pregnant on my wedding day and we had no outdoor shots on our day as it was in Jan of 2008, durning a snowfall, so we only has indoor shots done by uncle. I would love to wear my dress again-not pregnant and be able to wear it with the crinoline as that didn’t fit the day of! Getting married has been a highlight of my life as i am a 7 year cancer survivor and there was a time I was not sure of what the outcome was going to be, and my then boyfriend left me. Then I met Jeremy and my life changed. I got better over months and then i ran into him again and we have been together for 7 years now and married for two. We had a beautiful baby girl that brought our family up to 7! We have 5 children which is why wouldn’t couldn’t really afford a photographer and used my uncle. Some great shots would be awesome!” – Samantha

Contestant Number #3 – Aimee

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST (Note: This entry was submitted secretly by Kevin, Aimee’s husband):

“How should I request that Aimee, my beautiful bride, should win the Real Bride 2010 contest. I heard about the contest from Lisa’s website through Aimee, who frequently checks, favourited and bookmarked Lisa’s blog – she even made it our homepage (previously, the Globe and Mail!). So, without question, Aimee is a huge fan of Lisa’s artistic eye. But, who wouldn’t be? Lisa, is genuinely an amazing photographer, and I’d have no doubt believing that all other entrants would feel the same way.

Here’s why choosing Aimee to win Real Bride 2010 would mean the world to me (and her!):  (1) she doesn’t know I found time between the hectic wedding-honeymoon period to submit an entry, she had already lost hope of time to do so and didn’t think she’d beat any other beautiful brides she’d seen on the blog, (2) we never had a formal engagement one-on-one shoot with Lisa because work forced me to move homes to NYC (bringing Aimee with me!, and little time was left to do a shoot with Lisa), needless to say, she was crushed, (3) I may be biased, but my Aimee is the most stunning bride I have ever laid eyes on, and Lisa comes the closest to putting on paper the ideal of Aimee I see with my heart (Lisa truly captures my hearts eye). Its not that she “needs” the make-up and hairdo, but what girl wouldn’t want all that! and (4) if you knew Aimee, you would know that she is loving, caring, strong, independent, compassionate and idealistic – in other words, she is a REAL 2010 BRIDE.

Please send her your vote, because it makes me happy to see her happy, and nothing would make her happier!” – Kevin for Aimee

Contestant Number #4 – Mandy

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“I would love to win this contest because I am dying to wear my dress again and get some new shots of me in it.  On my wedding day I didn’t get many of the shots I wanted and my hair fell flat about 20 minutes after the hairdresser left….as a result I don’t have many pictures that I actually love.  This would be a perfect opportunity for me to relive my day, put my dress on again and get some pictures that I would love to have on display in my house.” – Mandy

Contestant Number #5 – Isabel

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“First of all, I would like to introduce myself and my fiance. My name is Isabel and his name is Ryan. We are from Hong Kong but working in NYC at this point. We are planning to get married 12/18/2010 in Hong Kong Langham Hotel. We would really love to be your model with my lovely wedding gown.” – Isabel

Contestant Number #6 – Kate

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“I want to win this contest because I missed the opportunity to take my engagement & wedding photos in Toronto, my beloved city.  Two years ago my mom was sick, we decided to get married in Hong Kong so that she didn’t have to travel a great distance to Toronto to attend our wedding. Unfortunately, she passed away before our wedding and couldn’t see us getting married.  Before all that happened, I always thought I would get married in Toronto, so I am very excited when I see this contest.  If I win the contest, I will be able to take beautiful pictures in Toronto, the place I live and love.  It would be my dream comes true.

Contestant Number #8 – Michelle

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“I want to win the Real Bride contest because I really love my dress and want to show it off! I bought my dress early in my engagement, became disenchanted with it and then decided, instead of getting a new one, I’d get it altered to show off my personality. Plus, what was an off-the-rack gown, is now a one-of-a-kind creation. With a little bit of pink trim, it’s become the perfect dress and I want the world to see it. Plus, whenever I wear it I feel like a princess, which is how every girl should feel in her wedding dress! I’d love a chance to have some fun, funky pictures taken of me in my perfect dress and that’s why I think I should be the Real Bride 2010!” – Michelle

Contestant Number #9 – Nicole

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“I would love to wear my dress again because I didn’t get to fully enjoy it on the day of the wedding. The night before the wedding my now husband and I were in the ER with severe food poisoning. I got home from the ER at 6:30 on the day of the wedding. Sleep=nil! This made the day more surreal than it already was. My dress was amazing and if I could experience the feeling it gave me on the day, it would mean so much to me. The dress is not just a piece of fabric I will wear once; it is full of memories and love. This why I would love to get the chance to wear it again!” – Nicole

Contestant Number #10 – Pauline

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“I would love to win this contest to celebrate what I’ve accomplished since getting married in October 2008. One of those accomplishments has been taking control of my health. Last year I had an opportunity to join a Biggest Loser competition in my office. My coworkers are known to be extremely competitive but I knew I wanted to excel and not let my team members down. During the competition I learned about eating whole foods, keeping a food journal and working out the right way. By the end I lost 25lbs (and counting)! It’s been a gratifying experience that couldn’t have been possible without the love and support of my husband, Brandon.

Furthermore, this June marks a big milestone – it will be 10 years since I met Brandon, 10 years since I gave him my number because he made me laugh, and 10 years later he still makes me laugh every single day. I would love to wear my wedding gown once more to show how proud I am to be a healthy, happily married woman and it would be more than an honour to have those moments of celebration captured by the most talented photographer I know.” – Pauline

Contestant Number #11 – Melanie

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“What a great contest! What girl doesn’t want another chance to put back on her dream dress? My dress is absolutely my dream dress. It was the first one that I tried on when I went dress shopping with my mum. I tried on at least 50 more after this one but came back to the first.

I’d really like the opportunity to win this contest mostly because I wasn’t happy with my wedding pictures when they came back. My photographer did an amazing job with lots of different shots but I felt like she missed getting photos of me that really showcased my dress, the lace, the details. In all my pictures my dress looks so plain but it you’re up close it is just breathtaking. Aside from that, it rained on the day of my engagement pictures, and poured the day of my wedding, I would just love to take some pictures in the sun!

Here is one of my favourite pics from my wedding that showcases my dress nad my pretty mummy, taken by one of my friends. Thanks for putting on this contest!” – Melanie

Contestant Number #12 – Tammy

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“This contest is such a fabulous opportunity to highlight brides, like me, who don’t often make it to the bridal magazines because of their weight, height, or skin colour.  I recently lost almost 25 pounds and when I started looking for a dress, I knew I had to find one that showed off every curve in my body.  My dress makes me feel sexy, svelt and gorgeous!  I would love to win this contest because I want to feel glamourous and I want to show everyone what a real bride looks like!” – Tammy

Contestant Number #13 – Karen

WHY I WANT TO WIN THIS CONTEST:

“Looking perfect on your wedding day can take countless months of wedding dress hunting, weeks of growing out your nails, and hours of styling.  I searched through more than 50+ magazines to finally arrive at the perfect wedding dress and hairstyle.  On my wedding day, when I saw myself for the first time in my wedding dress, I shed a few tears of happiness.  It was as though I was flipping through a page of one of my magazines, and I found myself.  It was a brief but blissful feeling.  Everything was perfect and my wedding day was off to a perfect start.  The day passed by so quickly that I wish I could relive it all over again – my husband’s stunned reaction the first time he saw me that day, the fun I had taking pictures with the wedding party outdoors while feeling so comfortable in my dress, and seeing my long flowing train drag down the aisle as I walked in with my father.  Winning this contest will give me the chance to wear my dress again and relive the memories of my wedding day.  This one-of-a-kind photoshoot will provide me with another unique set of memories of me enjoying myself in my most important and beautiful dress.” – Karen

Please vote for the contestant YOU most want to see pose in her wedding dress for her own photoshoot this summer.

The winner will be whoever has the most votes at midnight on May 15th, 2010 (or technically 12:00 AM on May 16th).  Good luck to all the beautiful contestants!