South Congress Portraits

My favorite bunny

It's Easter weekend...i couldn't resist pulling out my favorite bunny outtake from last year's session with Antonio. 

Denny Family Portraits

The last time I photographed the Denny family...Liz and Doug were newlyweds and Patrick was under a year old. It is crazy to see how time has passed. In a few months, Patrick will turn 3. I'm happy they asked me to capture their family here and now.

Spent some time with these two today...It's always surreal when you see someone go from girlfriend, to wife, to mother. I'm happy Erin asked me to take Cora's first pictures. Here is Cora Rose at 5 weeks old. More to come...

Rainey Street Engagement Session: Erin + James

Engagements can be a little daunting for some couples. How in the world can you capture their closeness? Kind of like this...

The Bride Is Always Right...

I recently read a post from a local wedding professional that tackled the subject of what photographers really talk about when they "talk shop". This got me to thinking that I don't share enough of my personal experiences as a photographer on the blog. Every wedding creates a topic of conversation among photographers about something that happen that day or during the process. We share experiences all the time between each other, but I never share much on the blog.

I've always used the blog to showcase my latest work to prospective brides, for means of pinning a photo and for current brides. The truth is I'm a blog enthusiast.  I relate to other professionals, photographers and personalities by reading their blogs, so it's only fair to share my own experiences, passions and lessons in return.

Experience learned today...the bride is always right. In the retail world, you hear the phrase: the customer is always right, but I never thought of that applying to brides. During the editing process, I always offer to change a photo or add a photo to a final group of photos, so why was I taken aback when I bride asked for more photos.

Recently, I presented a bride with her final wedding photos, and she emailed me back with a gracious "thank you...we enjoyed [the photos], but do you have more of this, this and this shot. My first thought was "wow, you weren't blown away by the edited photos I sent you". I'm not lying. Editing a wedding equals a full time job, so as photographers, we forget that what took us hours to create takes a brides minutes to look through.

With this I'm reminded that every bride has a vision of her day. From the moment she's engaged until she hits her honeymoon, she knows how she wants her day to look. She's chosen me to capture that vision, and it's my job to deliver. Even if that means sifting through thousands of photos (again) to find a possible outtake of her and her groom walking back down the aisle, or more pics from the quick stop we made at the Capitol on our way to the reception, or of the bride and groom both waving from their exit car.

Looking back through the photos cause me to exclaim...the bride was right. Not only did I find 3 out of 4 of the extra pics she was looking for. I also found the photo of the couple kissing above and a better pic of both the bride and groom waving from the car.

Here's the original shot I gave the bride. I thought it was nice to see them peeking out the window as they drove away.

Here's the shot I found after looking through all of the photos multiple times. Keep in mind this is a candid shot taken as they are driving away to the reception. I was almost sure we didn't have a clear shot of both the bride and groom waving out.

Sure as photographers, we could argue that the two pictures are essentially the same shot, but to the bride the second picture tells her vision of the day. The bride was right, and I'm glad that she thought enough about her photos to ask me to look for this car pic.

In this business, we don't have a time sheet to log or an agenda to follow. We make snap decisions, and try to capture both the expected and unexpected moments. Well, these pics were unexpected finds for me, and it's moments like this that give us photogs "shop" to talk.

Welcome 2014!

New Year, New Fun...Thanks for following the blog, or if you're finding Number 9 for the first time...welcome.  The end of 2013 was crazy busy. I've taken some family time the last few weeks, traveled to my hometown, visited my grandpa, took my son around to relatives houses, and now I'm back.

I'm looking forward to the year that's ahead. Last year, I experienced some very personal highs and lows. Through it all, I had the comfort of working with newlyweds. I'm thankful for every couple I've had to pleasure to meet, work with and eventually know.  When the wedding is said and done, couples feel like family.

I've been thinking a lot about photos and goals I want to accomplish this year. I want to explore more personal projects, keep things fresh and new and move forward with more minimal compositions.

In 2013, I was able to step back into the second shooter role as I shot a lot with Kelly Cameron. I worked on more event projects (that I can't blog due to privacy clauses), found a new second shooter, Gabby T, and found a new appreciation for bridal sessions.

Here are some of my favorite bride pics from last year...

Townlake Engagement: Shayla + Dallin

Number one rule in taking engagement photos...don't be afraid to be yourselves. You'll still look as good as these two :) Here Shayla is a sack of potatoes. 

Mercury Hall Wedding: Nicole + Andy Got Hitched

This post has been a long time coming. Every now and then a couple comes along and really reminds me of the importance of taking photos.  Nicole said it right during her vows to Andy when she said that Andy loved her at a time when she needed to be loved.

When I met Nicole around this time, she also described it as a time when she needed her picture taken. I'm glad I met Nicole when I did, and I'm glad I can give her the gift of pictures from the Best. Day. Ever.

Thank you, Nicole...everytime I look at our first session together, I'm reminded not to take my job, camera or personal connections for granted. I hope to continue to photograph you and Andy as grow old, hold your children and continue this adventure together. Here's to the start...

Check out the grape soda pin...Andy's gift to Nicole.