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Boulder Colorado Wedding featured on 'The Wedding Chicks'
Wednesday, February 3, 2010 - Weddings & Clients
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I'm so excited that the Wedding Chicks are showing this wedding off - it was simply beautiful! Big thanks to Leila Khalil, Wedding PR person extraordinaire, for also wanting to show this one off! (She has her own wonderful 'Bridal Blog' at Inspired By This that is great for Brides and business types!)
And, so, yeah - my photographs look pretty good I think - but the real work of making this wedding so amazing was done by Julie Gambrell of Classic Creations. If you are needing some help planning your wedding, Julie is right there at the top when it comes to Colorado Wedding Planners!
And finally, one more shout out to Alicia at Bella Fiori for her stunning work on all of the florals! Follow this link if you are in need of flowers for your wedding or special event! |
Denver Engagement Photography | Christine and Elliott
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 - Weddings & Clients
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| Christine is from Colorado. Elliott is from Tennessee. And even though they're both now living in Tennessee, their wedding will be here in Denver in just a few short months. They were in town this last weekend to get a few wedding day details taken care of, and while they were here I had the chance to get to know them both just a little bit more as we cruised around taking some photos to celebrate their engagement. They are both super kind and I'm really looking forward to their big day this April! |
| Every time I look at this next photo I start singing 'It's electric...' |
| Captured during the first engagement session of 2010, this next image sets the bar for all future 2010 engagement photos... Hands down one of my all time favorites! |
| I saw this little beam of light and had some fun with it... |
See you soon!
treasure this day forever |
Be true to yourself
Thursday, January 28, 2010 - Personal
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I came across this letter today and immediately my mind started racing...
To: Errol Morris
From: Harvey Weinstein
Date: August 23rd, 1988
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Shocking isn't it?
Hello Errol,
You're boring and you don't understand how to talk to the media.
You need to put your own art in a box and define it accordingly. People love it when everything looks like something else.
Don't share your heart and your mind. Keep it to single sentences that the masses can digest without using their own heart or mind.
If you can't do this, then we'll find someone who can. We'll lie. We'll say it's you and we'll give them nothing. We'll just tell them what they want to hear. They don't care if it's the truth or not. They don't care if it's truly from you, the artist.
Sell, sell, sell. Lie if necessary. Give them what they want. And what they want is... nothing. As long as it goes down easy.
It seems to me a lot of people have received this letter. Or, we've convinced ourselves to abide by these same principles.
Don't do it.
Be true to yourself. You are the only you we've got and we want what you bring to the table. We don't want you to look like someone else. We want to hear from YOU! Tell us the truth. From your heart. We can take it. Don't water it down. We can take it! Don't tell us what you think we want to hear. Tell us what we really want to hear. YOU! Don't pretend to be something you're not. That's boring. We'll figure it out and we'll quit listening. Instead we'll just go to the source - the person that you're trying to be - and we'll listen to them. Because they're being themselves. And you will be forgotten. Unless...
Unless, you are you. We're longing to hear from you. We want to see what you're made of. We want to see the art inside you. You are a poem. A splendid work. And when we experience you - it's exhilarating! Don't let us down.
The Thin Blue Line is regarded as one of the greatest documentaries ever made. It won numerous awards. Even more astounding is that after this film came out, the man who was the subject of the film was exonerated and released from jail. That's powerful.
If you try to pigeonhole a unique creation by defining it as being like something else I believe that it's not too long before you are actually creating your art (or, yourself) to be like something else. Can you imagine if Errol Morris actually went into this film trying to make something 'scarier than Nightmare on Elm Street', 'like a trip to the Twilight Zone', and like 'In Cold Blood with humor'? I imagine he would have lost his unique and powerful voice, the Thin Blue Line would've been a terrible film, and Randall Adams would still be locked away in prison.
Fortunately, this was over 20 years ago and Errol Morris could still speak from his heart. Can the same be said of creatives today?
Can the same be said of you?
Speak up! And tell all your 'Harvey's' to 'go fly a kite'. Even better - tell them what you really think. :) |
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Photography Q&A
Tuesday, January 26, 2010 - Photography
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I had a GREAT photography question come in from a friend last night. I'd love to share my answer with all of you!
Here's what Joseph wrote:
How much to get 20-30min of coaching from you?
I remember you told me that 90 minutes before sunset or after sunrise is best for outdoor photos. Recently our photos in the sunlight are problematic:
1. When the sun is behind our subject, we can expose best for the face...but then it's a white sky at best.
2. When our subject is facing the sun it's too harsh of a light and uncomfortable for the subject.
3. Every other angle has super-dramatic/contrasty shadows. Half the face is glowing, half is totally dark.
Is it the winter sun? Ignorance? I got your instructions wrong the first time?
We're happier with our results with cloud cover, shade, or the sun already set. There ain't a lot of clouds or shade out here where we are.
Would you be willing to give me some advice here? How do you get great portraits outdoors? Angles, flashes, reflectors...I'm open to whatever. We're in a rut.
And here's my response:
First of all I want you to know that this is a very exciting message!
Your note here tells me that you guys have reached 'the next level' of photography. These are some of the 'deeper' levels of questions that photographers begin to ask themselves when they've reached a certain level of professionalism and I want to congratulate you for having 'arrived'!!
Q: 90 minutes before sunset or after sunrise is best for outdoor photos
A: ALL of my engagement sessions over the years, except for 2, have happened 90 minutes before Sunset. ALL OF THEM!
Q: When the sun is behind our subject, we can expose best for the face...but then it's a white sky at best.
A: Yep! This is just the way it is! If you MUST have a colorful sky, you gotta use a flash (or reflector, which I pull out only during Senior sessions (also ALL 90 mins before sunset by the way!) The light on the subject is FAR more important than background. Sometimes I'll block the sun with their bodies. I'm partial to the 'faded' look and this situation is very conducive to that! |
| Sun at the back is also how you get great 'flare' shots like these... |
| And what's wrong with a white sky? Nothing. |
Q: When our subject is facing the sun it's too harsh of a light and uncomfortable for the subject.
A: Too harsh? That depends on time of day, and yes, time of year as well. But I know what you mean. Have them look at each other instead!
(Notice the heavy shadow?) |
| Or 'off into the distance' (not directly into the sun). |
And another trick I do when necessary is I get people in place, have them look where I want them and then have them relax and close their eyes.
Then I tell them I'm going to count to 3, and on '4' they are to open their eyes and look as normal as possible for as long as possible (1/2 a second!).
I rattle of a few and then do it again to make sure that I got at least one that will work. Sounds crazy, but it works! |
Q: Every other angle has super-dramatic/contrasty shadows. Half the face is glowing, half is totally dark.
A: Um, yeah. Never do this. :) (of course, rules are made to be broken...) |
Q: Is it the CA winter sun?
A: Maybe. The light here in Denver in November and December was so awful, even before sunset, that I just flat out did not want to go outside and shoot. These last couple of weeks I can tell that the light is better....
Q: We're happier with the results with cloud cover, shade, or the sun already set.
A: Fluffy cottonball clouds are my favorite. Overcast is the absolute WORST in my opinion. Shade is fantastic. Most of what I do is in the shade. |
| Even better if you can get the subject in the shade with light at their back to create a 'rim-light' around their shoulders and head to separate them from the background. Like this... |
Sun already set is nice, you can do some creative things. Shining your flash on people looks gross in my opinion. But yeah, there are things you can do for sure!
(Video Light) |
| (Single flash multiple frame) |
| 'MAGICAL' light is rare and pretty special when you find it... |
A professional photographer knows how to take what light you do or don't have, and do something 'MAGICAL' with it.
Sounds like you're just about there! Congrats! |
Wedding at Cafe Brauer in Chicago, Illinois | Katherine and Adam
Friday, January 22, 2010 - Weddings & Clients
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I'm just going to come right out and say it - I love these wedding photos!
Katherine and Adam's wedding in Chicago at Cafe Brauer was so much fun to shoot. They had so much style and then add to that the urban landscape of Chicago and the classic look of Cafe Brauer and... voila! A photo feast for the eyes.
Katherine's 'something borrowed': Her mother's earrings. |
| She was also wearing these Christian Louboutin shoes with dazzling heels, and a dress by San Francisco designer Amy Kuschel. |
| The window light in their apartment was so soft and perfect. I love this photo of Katherine. |
| We took a few portraits at their Chicago apartment before leaving for Cafe Brauer. Follow this link to see a few more of their Chicago apartment bridal portraits. |
| The staircase outside was a great spot for a few with the entire wedding party. |
| And then we all hopped on a Chicago trolley. |
| One of the groomsmen suggested that this photograph looked very 'Untouchables'-ish. |
| And here are the ladies. It was just above 30 degrees on this January day in Chicago. I was told we were very fortunate to have such warm weather. Well, at least we could go outside and if you hugged someone real tight you could almost bear it. :) |
| Adam said he passes this sign just about ever day, but had never noticed it before. |
| My second photographer for the day was Kevin Von Qualen who shot this next one. I love having 2 photographers for multiple angles! |
| Katherine had seen a shot like this somewhere and cut it out to show me because she wanted one for her very own. I think Katherine's is even better! |
| Then it was time to get married! |
| A big shout out to Kara Superfine of Bliss Weddings and Events for helping to make Cafe Brauer look even more amazing than it already does! |
| Kevin's photo... You can just see me there at the bottom with the 70-200. |
| Congratulations to you both! It was so great to travel out there to your 'neck of the woods' and to be a part of your wedding! |
This last weekend, in a little break from 'the norm', I had the great privilege of photographing Katherine and Adam's wedding in Chicago, Illinois. I'll be blogging a lot more photos in the coming days, but I wanted to throw out a quick 'sneak peek' to whet your appetite.
Katherine and Adam opted for a 'first look' so we'd have time for some great photos before dark. These portraits were taken at their Chicago apartment a couple of hours before the ceremony.
Cheers! |
Son of a Photographer
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 - Personal
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| As I was setting up my lights and backdrops in preparation for Corrinn and Ankur's portrait session I needed a model to test out everything. As it so happens, I have three "willing" models at home and so I grabbed our newest one. |
| Our little guy looks beautiful in front of the camera. |
| But soon he starts to act just like our other two resident models when they get stuck in front of the camera for more than 4 minutes. |
| This is his "Are we done yet?" face. |
| "Yes, buddy. Almost done." |
| Love this little guy and his crocodile tear. |
| treasure this day forever |
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