It's always cool to have your work featured anywhere, but especially on a site you like that you feel speaks to your audience.  Such is the case here :)  Susan has had a marvelous response to our collaboration!

Michael

Kuma is an Australian Shepard and travels just about everywhere in the car.  Look and you'll see what I mean.

Michael

Kuma *loves* to chase squirresls.

Kuma keeps an eye on the rearview mirror when not looking out the window.

Kuma digs Frisbee games also. A LOT.

Kuma saw that Mindi was coming out with his favorite treat--a soft serve ice cream cone, which he devoured in 4 bites.  I guess dogs don't get ice cream headaches ;)

Kuma after a lot of play time and ice cream....... ahhh to be a content and well loved dog :)

It was raining outside, so we opted for an indoor session.

It's also appropriate to post this doggie session now because Tiggy's B-Day is Valentines Day. Really, I couldn't make that up!

Michael

Yummmmmmmm....... Tiggy loves her bone, too.

I may add a few more later :)

Michael

The view is incredible on a clear day.  Even when it's not, Scout and her human's often enjoy gazing out over Los Angeles.

Pico (above)

Miette and Scout say hello. They've known each other a long time :)

You'll see her work is unique..... and yes, that is rock candy as legs on one of her flower purses (second picture) and in one of her tropical designs.

I'm not a traditional photographer; Susan is not a traditional florist--more like an artist whose medium is flowers. :)  You might not think that your florist is as an "important" vendor-- think again.  Your florist can tie your whole wedding together, incorporating your color sceme down to the whole vibe of your wedding...... Down to earth and mellow? Striking, elegant and modern? What do you want your bouquet to look, feel and smell like??  Hopefully, you get the idea...... It can be important, depending on your taste and priorities, so find a florist whose work you like!

Enjoy the pictures,

Michael

Notice the rhinestones on this bridal bouquet..... :)

......And the crystal and rose bud on the tassel featured on this bouquet.

This arrangement is hard to define except to say it's beautiful!

I almost always prefer flowers in color, but this one worked nicely in color and B + W.  I sharpened the image more to emphasize the vase and other textures.

Calvin is off the hook Awesome!  Not only is he adorable, but he has an absolutely charming personality to match. Very sweet and very smart--poodles are known for their intelligence.*  He's so happy he never stops wagging. He is fully grown and weighs in at just 9.5 lbs. I'm sure his long fluffy tail accounts for a fair potion of that weight, too.

Bailey is my first fur child.  That's what I call my doggies: fur kids.  I <3 dogs. What can I say?  Bailey is having some issues adjusting and housebreaking is a little hit and miss thus far, but improving.

The other dogs belong to my sisters family.  Rowan, the black Lab mix, is about 15 months old.  Bodhi, the newest kid, is a Cream colored (English??) Golden Retriever with a beautiful coat and tons of kisses. VERY sweet dog! He's only about 8 months and is rapidly adapting to his pack.

I'm doing pet portraits now too, so if you would like your fur kid photographed give me a ring or shoot me an email for details!

Enjoy :)

Michael

*Note: poodles may be plotting to take over the world. Don't believe me? Check this out.

I swear the pics above and below were done his first night home and required very little input on my part.  Clearly he knows how to sucker his new Dad (and everyone else).

Bailey enjoying the wind in his furry ears at the off leash dog beach in Morro Bay.

It's hard to get a picture with you and your dog when you are the one making the picture(!), so one has to be creative.  This is me--my shadow anyway--and Bailey.

Bodhi dug a hole and lied down in it to chill out.

Rowan loves to play fetch.

Rowan, sill carrying some sand on his muzzle and head, relaxing after some hard play at the beach.

Rowan is very lean and muscular..... with his fur like it is above, it makes for some nice patterns too.

Bailey greets a Jack Russel Terrier.

Last weekend I shot a dinner party for Comadres.  (If you are a foodie and want to see all 30 or so pictures I posted for them, head over here.)

Prior to that I shot "Play with Your Food – How to Get Kids to Eat Their Vegetables." Pictures from that event will be in the December issue of KCRW's program guide.  

This weekend I shot a pie contest for KCRW. Yep, a pie contest.  What's not to like about pie?? You can read about the winning entries here on Chef & Good Food host Evan Kleiman's blog. Both events are part of a series of events put on by KCRW and Westfield, the parent company that owns the properties where the events are held. KCRW's Good Food page is here.  

Now, on to some pie! 

Love this woman's shirt :)

Judging pie is serious business.....

Or not.....

Tallying points making sure everything is correct.

Eager anticipation.....

This gentleman won (I think for an entry in the "Savory" category).  His friends were obviously happy for him too.

Evan awards another happy winner.

Harriet Ells of KCRW helps pass out awards and cool stuff to winners.

Cool ribbons like this were awarded to the lucky winners.

Melissa sent over some gifts for Jerrond just before the ceremony, including cufflinks.

I shot this while Jen did formals.

Melissa making sure she doesn't leave her veil (or parts of her dress!) behind at the church.

Flower girls at the reception.

...mmm.... wedding cake....

Fall is my favorite time of year.  The seasonal changes here in my neck of Los Angeles, while admittedly subtle, are definitely noticeable.  Even the air smells different; temperature and moisture levels fluctuate, and the damp air is now occasionally filled with the smokiness of the occasional late-season barbecue alternating with the distinct scent of cedar burning in nearby fireplaces later on in the evening. Some days are chilly, yet sometimes daytime temps still creep into the 90's.... but it always cools off at night.

By way of explanation as far as where I'm headed with this line of thought, a song lyric comes to mind: “Like seasons change, so do I.”   I know it's from a U2 song.... “New Years Day” from War?  Not sure.  Anyway, I'd like to think I'm continuing to evolve as a person and as a photographer.

So I was reflecting on this as I reviewed my work from the three weddings I have elected to feature on my new web site. It occurred to me that since I have all three of those featured weddings on my web site, why not put them in one blog post so that people can find them easily, and then look at the original posts if they would like to know more about that particular couple?
OK. Cool!
Well, the passage of some time has allowed me to look at the slideshows through a different lens, if you will. As such, I have re-edited 4 of the slideshows—kind of like the Director's cut. 

The first slideshow is from Kristy and Doug's wedding.... this slideshow has had only minor modifications--I just added some movement so it flows a little better. Their engagement pictures are here; single images from their wedding are here.

Katie and Tom's wedding was in January 09 at The Ritz Carlton in Marina Del Ray. The first post of single images from their wedding is here; the original slideshow is here.  Their engagement pictures are here.

The next two are *both* from Tiff and Phil's epic Rock Wedding at the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas.  The first blog post with single images is here.  The second post containing the *two* original slideshows and details about their wedding is here. Briefly, the first slideshow covers the whole wedding; the second slideshow is from their Jam Session with nearly *everyone* rocking out.  Be warned: these rock.  Turn your speakers up or down depending on your taste.

The shows may take a while to load depending on your bandwidth. Trust me, it's worth the wait.

It also gives me the chance to talk a little about these weddings and my work. 
These three couples are VERY different. You noticed, huh?  Katie and Tom had a more traditional wedding; Kristy and Doug's was very relaxed and contemporary; and Tiff and Phil's Rock Wedding challenges most peoples perception of what a wedding is “supposed” to be altogether.
While there are some elements of my style that are unique and identifiable, the pictures I make are unique to the particular couples.  What I'm trying to say is that what all of these pictures have in common is that they are real and authentic, and true to the couples vision of their own wedding.
These folks didn't want cookie cutter pictures based on preconceived ideas of what their wedding pictures "should" look like; they hired me—in large part-- because I'm not a cookie cutter photographer.  I make photographs that reflect you and your fiance's "YOUnique-ness" and the story of your day.

Along similar lines, my choices for the music are to fit the couple and the spirit of their day as well.

If you are a bride (or groom, or couple) looking for a cool photographer that is easy to work with and my work resonates with you, head over to my contact page to click with me.

Enjoy the slideshows!

Michael

They have left Florida and re-settled in New Mexico just like they planned..... Doug is working on his PhD @ U. of New Mexico and Kristy is teaching 5th grade.

Enjoy!

Michael

Michael

Enjoy ;)

Michael

Kristy reflected in the mirror on the way to see Doug for their first look :)

Kristy's father Julio giving her away at the alter.

I <3 this picture, so I hope they do as well.  This shot makes me think of the French expression Joie de vivre, meaning joy of life.

I shot this (and a series of others) when Doug and his Mom, Cathy were doing the Mother/Son dance. 

Kristy and Doug watching the slideshow about them that Darcy put together (as well as others who's names I have forgotten) .....

...... and Doug's parents Bob and Cathy equally enjoying the show.  I gave Kristy and Doug a few to use for the show, and there was a moment where one of my shots came up. It was kind of surreal seeing my own work of the couple being projected as I shot their wedding.  Not awkward or anything, just like deja vu or something like that.

Kristy's mom Sara watching as well. It's unusual to find couple's where both sets of parent's are still married.  It's not a judgement or anything, I just thought it was refreshing.  The warmth and affection each couple still has for each other was evident throughout the wedding. Way cool ;)

So before I before I finished up and headed out, I asked Kristy and Doug if they wanted to go back up to the garden to make a picture of them with the LA syline in the background. Duh! Of course!  I had already checked it out to see if the shot was feasible.  It was so dark it was literally hard to see... So while this shot was set-up, it was not posed as in "look here, do this." Heck, I was happy to have them make-out kiss a little while I just did my thing making more pictures.

These are some of my favorites from the day :)

......and the image that I was shooting.

Sparklers were lit so Laura and Brandon could run under them at the end of the night.

So what do I like to shoot besides weddings? Concerts!!

Live music *done well* knocks my socks off.  The power of a great concert that moves you is amazing and difficult to articulate with words.... much like a wedding. If you like live music, than hopefully you understand what I mean :)   I find that there are actually a lot of parallels between shooting weddings and concerts.  I think mostly it's about fleeting moments, the value of a shared experience, and mutual respect and appreciation between the band and the audience.

Concerts--like weddings-- are also really hard to shoot, albeit for different reasons.  The norm is you get to shoot the first three songs--that's it. You don't get any second chances--just like a wedding. If you don't get good stuff, then you're toast.  Everything changes before your eyes..... it's chaotic even at mellow shows. The lighting changes incredibly fast (although it is almost always very dark); performers move; crew people move stuff around between songs; hands + hair + instruments + microphone stands get in the way of a performers facial expressions; where you can shoot from is restricted; security people have badge-itude; some concert goers are already inebriated and aren't always friendly...... you get the idea.

Which brings us to the title of my post.

I like the Cowboy Junkies, who are often labeled as an alt-country band.  I think that description is inadequate, just like most of our attempts to classify music.  Anyway, they do a great live show.  Like Pearl Jam and some other acts that I dig, they do a different set every night--never the same show twice.  Also like PJ, an "average/ok" show for both acts is better than the majority of shows you will experience by a lot of artists. I'm not well known in the music industry yet, so I wasn't shooting for any specific music magazines or what have you.  I really wanted to shoot their gig, so I contacted the band directly and they said yes.  How friggin' great is that?!? 

A HUGE thankyou to the band for letting me shoot the show!

With that, enjoy a few pics from the gig at the Wiltern in LA ;)

Michael

PS: Here are some music related threads: Music is the Drug, and Another one bites the dust: Music, Pt II.

PPS: Also, Pearl Jam has started announcing tour dates for the US and Europe.  Ben Harper will be opening for some US dates with his new band. Ben is an outstanding live performer in his own right, and I would see him in a heartbeat. I've been waiting to see them together on the same bill for about 13 years. If you only see one rock concert this year, see this show.

I think Margo was having more "hair issues" than usual.  NOT a put-down!  CJ updated their website (still transitioning), but for a long time Margo had a little sub-section of their tour diary devoted to coping with her hair :)

This is my favorite shot from the night. Margo's brother Mike, at left, writes all of the songs.  Unlike most guitar players, he stays seated for the whole show, but don't think for a minute he doesn't make it scream just 'cuz he's sitting down!  Jeff Bird on harmonica in the back (plus mandolin and lots of other "shaky stuff," as Margo put it).  He records his own music, and regularly tours with the Junkies.

Margo always has flowers, hot tea, water, and a big notebook on the music stand. The crew replenishes her tea throughout the gig.

Michael

These are some of my favorite shots from their wedding.  Thanks to Jay for being so easy and cool to work with!

Michael

Alex hanging out with his groomsmen before the ceremony.  Most of the time a second shooter covers the dudes.

Instructions for the USC fight song for the uninitiated.  Notice Alex and his new Father-in-Law at left in the background :)

Enraptured with each other in spite of all the chaos around them......

First dance.

This is the first in a series of shots I really like...... so much warmth and love, and Danielle is just beautiful :)  This is Alex's dad.

And then there is the delicate issue of, ah-hem, well, just having to go potty when nature calls in your wedding dress. It can really be quite a production. Tip: don't drink too much caffeine ;-)  Just sayin'...........

Plan your timeline around your wedding photography package, but prioritize and schedule accordingly.  For example, if you hire me for eight hours of coverage, that means I have a start and end time.  If you know your wedding will be 12 hours, what 8 consecutive hours do you want photography for? Be realistic! Trying to cram as much as possible into as short a period of time as possible is a recipe for disaster! :-( And that would be sad. 

For the formal sessions, please let me know beforehand if there are any special requests you have.  (Not to worry, I give you some paperwork to help.) Otherwise it might be missed.  Additionally, if your Uncle is not made aware beforehand that his presence has been requested immediately following the recessional, that means trying to find Uncle Charlie in the chaos that usually ensues after the ceremony will be time consuming.  I ask all of my clients to provide me with a go-to person that is familiar with the friends and family.  A coordinator or planner may also be able to assist, but they don't necessarily know the key players.  A trusted friend that knows your friends and family well can be very helpful in this kind of situation.

Are you going to see your fiance before the ceremony? If not, will you communicate with each other? If so how??

Would you like some time alone together for your first moments as husband and wife? Do you want to run away and make beautiful pictures together? Want to get the formals over as soon as possible so you can party with your new spouse and your peeps? Whatever your preferences are, let me know.

I'm here to be of service and help you map things out and give you guidance if you need it, all with the goal of making sure your day rocks, and that your wedding pictures are awesome! ;)

Michael

Anyway, if you missed The Tonight Show performance or want to see it again, it is embedded directly into their site here. Enjoy!

Michael

They live in Florida where they both teach.  Doug coaches volleyball as well, thus the pictures of them playing volleyball. Both of them love sports--they met in a softball league, and we met for drinks at their old sports bar hangout on the Hermosa Beach Pier.

They are in town this weekend for a friend's wedding.... Their wedding will be here in LA in late July. I can't wait!

Michael

Update 5/28/09: I just got this email from Kristy: The pictures are BEAUTIFUL!  Doug loves them and we shared it with our friends and family too.  They thought it really captured "us." Awesome!  That's exactly what I go for when shooting.

Drinks were on Doug. There's kind of a private joke about Doug buying beer... which shall remain private ;)  Newcastle (I think) for Doug, Fat Tire Ale for Kristy and me. On tap, and delicious.

We were walking down the boardwalk, and the guys on the balcony figured out we were making engagement pictures--they were staying

at this hotel for a wedding the following day. Congrats went out to Kristy and Doug from these guys, and another couple there as well.

Yes I asked the friendly dude on the board to do this :)

Before wrapping up, we drove over to a little apartment that they shared

when they lived in the area to make a few pictures of them on the stairwell. Glad

we did--I love this shot.

Besides your wedding day, will you ever take the opportunity again to have pictures made of just you and your fiance in love?? 

Take advantage of the opportunity.  Celebrate together.  You'll have fun and be glad you did. ;)

Michael

Michael

Yuko is from Japan and moved to the US in 2000.  Her parents flew over for the celebration.  Both the bride and groom will be going to Japan this summer to celebrate even more with many of Yuko's friends and family that live in Japan.

I'm a bit at a loss for words (strange for me, I know) since almost everything that went on was in another language.  That said, one doesn't need to speak the same language to see and feel the happiness was present :)

There are some comments below for some of the shots.

Enjoy!

Michael

I just loved the way the light + the color & the symbol on Yuko's beautiful dress + the shoes + the stone dragon came together in the same composition.

Kevin's brother and Yuko's parents.

The subtle yellow and orange color cast is actually from the light being reflected from her orange and yellow sunflower bouquet onto her face.  Look carefully and you will see just a hint of the actual reflection of the flowers in the pupil of her eye ;)  I was trying to nail that and at the same time include the beautiful new diamond stud in her ear (a pair + a matching necklace) that her Mother in Law just gave her.

Uhm, "Hey, Mike, why is there a *cat* here?!?"  I hung out with Yuko and Kevin between the morning and afternoon festivities.  This is their cat. Their very relaxed cat (whose name I forgot). We were having iced tea, and the shot was too cool to pass up.

Yuko helping out Kevin at home between the morning ceremony and the late afternoon/early evening reception.  It was a warm day.......

Kevin's Parents.

The rainbow in the background is from the glass entrance doors to the reception acting like a prism.

                                                                                        ##########

So continuing with some musings on music (the first post is here), the Los Angeles radio market (and to a slightly lesser degree the local music scene) suffered a huge blow when Indie 103.1 abruptly pulled the plug without any notice.  The station now has some Spanish programming on it, no idea if it will stay that way or go in adifferent direction.  Indie says they will continue online, but I'm very skeptical that will play out. 

Now you have to understand this station was unique.  I mean they had Steve Jones (guitar player from The Sex Pistols) on there as a DJ 5 days a week.  Other folks on there included the likes of Dave Navarro and Henry Rollins. Not exactly your run-of-the-mill on air personalities.

One would think that LA has a wide variety of music programming to choose from given a large and diverse population in one of the entertainment capitols of the world, but things are rather homogeneous.

I listen to public radio a lot, including KCRW as I mentioned in a previous post.  My only complaint about the folks on there is that they just don't rock enough. 

Well, imagine my surprise and delight when I received an announcement from KCRW in my email inbox that Mr. Rollins will be joining KCRW starting March 7. I expect that the show will be popular........ a silver lining in the clouds.

And speaking of music and KCRW, with the Academy Awards having aired last night, I was reminded of an online project KCRW is doing called the Guest DJ Project.  Quoting directly from their intro: "KCRW's Guest DJ Project invites an array of cultural icons to share and discuss songs that have inspired and moved them with KCRW DJs. Actors, authors, chefs, athletes, directors, tech entrepreneurs and more share their musical passions, giving deep insight into both their lives and their creative process." Some great stuff....check it out :)

Enjoy!

Michael

The first few shots are from their "first look," meaning they elected to see each other before the ceremony.

Last updated 1/12/09.

I got a short note from Tom via email that they love the pictures so far. They are on their honeymoon in Japan :)

Every wedding is unique, so one of the things that I'm always looking for are ways to tell the story that are particular to your wedding at your venue on your day. An obvious example is a beach: if I was shooting a beach wedding, the beach plays an important role. But what about less obvious things? Weather is another example--was it really hot? snowing?

Katie and Tom's wedding had less obvious choices, so I wanted to share a little more about my creative process and how I work.

I had a chance to do a walk through at The Ritz. Even though the venue is on the Marina, there were surprisinly few elemants that were "marina" like. However, the reception room has floor to ceiling glass windows that run the length of the room on two sides. I knew that this feature might make for some interesting--but very tricky-- situations. Why tricky? Shooting with glass is difficult. Water and metal fall into the same category. Reflections make focusing difficult (more so with an autofocus camera); you get all kinds of unwanted mirrored reflections in the image; because of the reflections, using any type of on camera flash is almost always out of the question--you must use available light; shooting in low light has it's own whole set of challenges; exposure is difficult because in addition to fooling your camera's focus, it can also fool the meter reading, thereby completely ruining your shot.

With that in mind, there were 2 shots that I posted in this thread where the windows come into play. The first is the cupcake cutting (see details in the captions below). I briefly shot what was happening inside, saw what was happening, and literally ran outside to make some pictures from outside, and ran back in. I think the picture I posted is much more interesting than the "usual," cake-cutting type of picture.

The other picture is of one of the flower girls looking out the window. I was shooting the sign in table when she came up and started gazing out the window. When I shot it, I was hoping that the flower girl migh be related to someone in the framed photograph in the foreground. The shot works by itself, and weddings are about families coming together, so whether or not there was an actual relationship or not wasn't critical. But here's where it gets even cooler: I was contacted by Curt, the father of the flower girls, and besides having some kind words for my work, he informed me of the following: "By the way, the picture of Chelsea, the 7 year old, where she's looking out the window and there is an old picture in front of her...In the picture is her Grandfather on the right and the young lady is Katie's Grandmother who couldn't make the wedding and to the left is my Uncle Sonnny."  Is that awesome or what?!? That's just the cherry on top frosting on the cupcake, isn't it?

Man I love what I do! :)

Michael

Katie's Dad.

No Photoshop or "effects" on this one were used. The dreamy background blur is often referred to as "bokeh." The softness at the left in the foreground is from the crystals that were hanging.

Pete Goslow was on guitar the whole night and took care of emcee duties, too.

Katie wanted cupcakes instead of a wedding cake. There were five different kinds. Beneath the sliver of white chocolate with their names was a different type of frosting. Actually, the carrot cake had a cream cheese frosting. The others had this delightful mouse. It was airy, yet rich, but not overly so. The cupcakes themselves were moist, very flavorful, and had great mouth feel. The two that I had (double chocolate and red velvet) were unbelievable. Seriously. Hands down some of the best cupcakes--or cake of any kind--I have ever had anywhere. They were done in-house at The Ritz. Major props to the pastry chef and bakery dept. (Yes, I'm a foody.)

The cake cupcake cutting, shot from the outside looking in.

One of the flying flower girls.

With that in mind, I've decided to do a series of posts about music. So this is part one. If you're reading this and seeing so much text with no pictures, by all means feel free to skip the chatter for now and scroll up or down to another post to find some cool pictures to look at ;) This isn't going anywhere, so I'll see you when you come back. (OK, I will not really see you, but you get the idea.)

                                                                                ######

You may have noticed in the posts immediately preceding this one that music played a crucial role in the wedding itself, and subsequently in the slideshows I made......

So let me go down that road for a minute.

Slideshows. Does anyone remember what a slideshow actually was? Maybe you, your parents, or grandparents have some slides around the house? It occurred to me that a “slide” may make as much sense to the yougans' out there as, say, a “record” or “rotary dial” ......something analog and archaic by “modern” standards.

Back in olden' days of film when I first started shooting, there was also this cool stuff called chrome (as we photogs called it). While the use of most film results in a negative image, slides are a positive process, not a negative one. In non-geek speak, after you develop film in toxic magic potions an' stuff, you literally get a negative image, but with slides, you get a positive image.

So anyway, the point here is that back in the day we shot slides, we would shoot, process, edit, and then put our mounted slides in a slide projector. And if we were lucky, we could find/beg/rent/borrow a dissolve unit. Those were really slick ;) With a dissolve unit, you could run 2 projectors simultaneously and the images would dissolve and blend, thus making a seamless transition that could be synced with a soundtrack of your choice. Contrast that with a clunky one projector set up where there is a pause between each slide as the projector swallows and spits out one image at a time. So with a dissolve unit, you get visual *and* auditory deliciousness!

That brings us back to music.

I still remember the images from some slideshows that I saw 15+ years ago. The reason I remember those slideshows more than other images is because of the combined power of pictures + music + words. Images by themselves can be powerful, and frankly they should stand on their own, but the power an image has can be greatly magnified when accompanied by cool music. Sound like a movie? Well, in a way it is. That would be where the show in slideshow comes in ;) I'm not a scholar, but I think one could say with some degree of accuracy that it was early multimedia. In any case, when well done, it was great storytelling, which is what photojournalism is about.

It's with that in mind that I raise the issue of (cue dramatic pause with tense music): Music copyrights!
I can hear you now. “Huh? Uhm, I was thinking something more... I don't know, exciting perhaps? Something remotely interesting?” Yeah, I'm guessing you were not looking for a buzz kill or boring crud about the minutia of legal issues, copyright royalties, music in the digital age, etc., etc.

I raise the issue because it's like a huge elephant in the room that affects a lot of creative artists—musicians, song writers and photogs alike—and to a lesser degree couples. Some photogs, wedding shooters especially, talk about the issue behind closed computers, but I have not seen it addressed that much openly.

In the slideshows I have on my blog, technically I do not have the right to use an artists music in my slideshows without their permission. You may even recall that during the heat of the recent election, some bands objected to candidates using copyrighted material without permission. Of course, national politics are a much bigger spotlight than my sliver of cyberspace, but the issue is similar.

So why is this important and why should you care? Well, it's not so much that you should care, but *I* do, so I want to provide my rationale for using music as well as some context.

As a wedding photographer, trying to secure rights to popular music is a sad and pathetic joke. Seriously. The hoops that you have to jump through are lengthy, time consuming, ridiculously confusing, and enormously expensive. It really is an onerous affair, and is most often fruitless, and if not it's because you either got lucky or you are very wealthy.

The alternative is to use royalty free music. There are companies that are set up for the sole purpose of this.

OK, so why not use that stuff? Fair question. My response: most of it sucks :( Sad but true [wow-there is a hidden Metallica pun in that!] I just cannot stomach using muzak for any of my work. Blech!!! Yuck!!!

OK, true not all of it sucks, but IMO, most of it does.

There is another reason I dislike it: often no one knows who the hell any of the artists are or any of the songs either because we have never heard it before. As such, that *usually* means that there is no common reference point for anyone. And even if it is uhm, non-sucky enough,  I know that another photographer has the same music from the same company, so they will be using the same music. Yes, I have seen that happen with other photogs work, and I swear I cringed.

Ouch.

That is definitely not the kind of familiar reference that I'm going for! The last thing in the world I want is for my work to seem generic or cookie-cutter like. More to the point, can you imagine being my client and going to look at your slideshow that I created using your stunning wedding pictures and hearing the exact same music as a friend of yours that just got married?!? You wouldn't want that to happen, would you? That would not be cool. That would be sad :(

What if I simply want to use a couple's favorite tune?? Why should that be an in incomprehenisble mess of legal BS?

Another issue is that since I love music, I have a mental jukebox. I'll often think of music or song lyrics spontaneously, both in and out of context. Do you ever have moments where it's hard to find the words to express your thought or feelings, but a song puts it perfectly? That's sorta what I mean, except it comes to me frequently and unexpectedly. Kinda weird, but that just seems to be how I'm wired. That being the case, I want to use my music knowledge to fit what I'm shooting. That's hugely important! I want words + music to = more than the the sum of it's parts. Ya' know, like 1+1+3. That's what I'm going for anyway ;)

And yet, I still feel a little ambivalent. Why? As a creative professional, I value protecting my own copyright, so it does feel a little odd “stealing” music. Hypocritical? Well, I don't think so, but I could understand someone feeling that way.
The way I look at it, I like to think that I'm helping an artist in a very small by promoting their work.
I guess I draw the line at selling DVD's of my slideshows. I don't.

I use music for showcasing my work and to help tell the story, much like I would if I was doing a “traditional” slideshow. In fact, I guess that's one the very few traditional things I do at all ;)  

Michael

But I was left with a problem: there was so much good stuff that I couldn't do it justice by trying to squeeze it all into one slideshow. I do try and edit my work down, really :)  However, I then recalled that I kind of envisioned their wedding divided into two segments before I ever even looked at any of my work. So uhm, yeah, I came full circle. I guess it was my plan all along (right?).

So, ladies and gentlemen, there are TWO--yes, TWO--slideshows! Ahhhh yeahhhhhhhhh...........

The first slideshow encompases the whole wedding up until the garter toss, which often signals the end point, or close to it. Note that this one *does* include Jeremy Buck's set as that was more part of the "regular" portion of the planned wedding entertainment. (Speaking of Jeremy and the garter toss: yes, that really is Tiff's garter lodged in his Mohawk in the last shot, and yes it really happened like that.)

So being as that this was clearly *not* a "usual" wedding (you did pick up on that, didn't you?), the festivities continued as previously described (in the prior post). So the second slideshow is mostly "Tiff and Phil's 'Concert Footage'" if you will. It's much shorter at just about a minute and a half. I needed a short kick-@$$ tune that was pure rock, so be warned that you *may* want to be prepared to turn your speakers and/or the player volume down...... or crank it UP, depending on your musical sensibilities and where you're watching :) It moves fast, so don't blink. Seriously. I chose a tune from Soundgarden, which was fronted by the amazing vocalist Chris Cornell, also singing for Audioslave on I am the Highway, the track in the first slideshow. Highway was Tiff and Phil's first dance song <3 :)

Ususally I set up a slideshow to start automatically, however since there are two, I made it so that you'll need to hover your mouse over the picture and click on it to start.

Enjoy the shows! Comments are always welcome :)

Michael

So what do I mean real? I'm talkin' tickets, laminated backstage passes, "security" people, a green room, theatrical and stage lighting, bic lighters, long hair (yes, I'm jealous of all that great hair on the men and the ladies), real ink + temporary tattoos for everyone, a hot pink and leopard print color scheme, and music.

A LOT of music.

The guys wore crisp new tees of their favorite bands (complete with coordinating Vans shoes) so that they were ready to party immediately after the ceremony--all they had to do was take off their jackets :) Going by that, the processional, and the ipod selections, artists included Guns n' Roses, AC/DC, Audioslave, Iron Maiden, Van Halen and Anthrax, among many others.

Jeremy Buck and The Bang hammered out a tight set, and then after dinner everybody jammed, with Phil doing most of the vocals, and Jeremy with his bandmates and so many other people taking turns on so many different songs and instruments I lost track.

I'm still working on editing and a slideshow, but I wanted to share some of my favorites so far :)

Update: Phil sent me this kind note:

“Aloha Michael,

We got back from Maui yesterday and I must say the first thing we did was pull up your blog to view the teaser pics.  WOW!  …. A million wonderful thank you’s again for stepping up to the plate at the last minute.  You knocked it out of the park alright.  We are so very appreciate of everything you did for us and of course being so understanding…

Much Love,

Phil & Tiff”

COOL!! :)

ALSO: Their slide shows (TWO!) have been posted in a new thread.

For example, there is a new Nikon ad campaign featuring Ashton Kutcher doing his schtick, and now suddenly with a good camera, he can easily make great pictures even though he is a clueless idiot. Well, there is a bit truth to this; the gap between amateur and professional photog is a lot narrower. Why? Technology. Better cameras *do* help you make better pictures, and do so more easily.

And we see technology change at mind boggling speed.

Canon's highly anticipated 5D MK II is a good example. Google it if ya' want. You'll see tons of stuff come up. This is not just the new flavor-of-the-month camera. It's amazing--a huge leap in technology.

The best thing I've seen from this camera by far is an absolutely brilliant short film by Vincent Laforet (his great blog is here!!) called "Reverie" now hosted by smugmug because the film required so much bandwidth and the demand was so beyond expectations. It went viral and has people all over the world (myself included) drooling. It is absolutely stunning eye candy. The whole film was shot using a pre-production model with no instructions. And yes, to be abslutely clear about the film: ALL of it was shot in High Definition video using a new still camera.

My point here is that while any craftsman or artist requires good tools, the tool does nat make anything, the person using it does. If we all run out and buy a new 5D MK II, does that make us Vincent Laforet? Nope. I wish it was that easy :) It's the hard work, the skill, and the imagination, e.g., the gray matter :)

I just got back from an amazing wedding with John again.

I know that most photographers usually say that their most recent wedding was great--which is often true....... But sometimes a wedding is so great and I have so much fun it's almost beyond words.

Gabrielle and Jeff's celebration was just such a wedding :)

So much love, warmth, humor, and joy. And FUN. The whole shindig was at Gabrielle's mom's house in La Jolla (near San Diego).

Jeff is from Australia, and many of his relatives came over for the nuptials.

And I have some really cool stories! Read on!

So being a casual outdoor So Cal wedding near the beach on a gorgeous day, palm trees swaying nearby with the cool ocean breeze, many people were out and about riding their bikes, taking their babies for walks, and skateboarding. I asked Jeff's best man if they surf and skate. He answered "Of course!" as if it was a no-brainer. Hmmmmm. Wheels turning in my head..... I spotted 2 kids on their boards, I started talking to them, trying to explain why I wanted a posse of skateboarders to ride back to the house because I was shooting a wedding and wanted John to be able to use them as a background for a cool portrait with the couple. John had set up some lights from the curb facing the house there anyway, as you'll see in some of the shots in the slideshow. It seemed only natural.

"Dude, gather some of your friends and come back when you can in the next hour or so and I'll pay you and your crew some $$!" They understood the money angle :) They came back with some friends, but unfortunately due to time constraints--the wedding timeline and the kids needing to leave for dinner or something--we were unable to do a creative gonzo portrait. Hey, I tried! However, I did play around with what I had to work with as I always do, and sure enough some folks in the bridal party were avid skaters and I got some nice picks of one of the wedding guests skating, in his suit :) Yes, I freely admit I was involved in creating the possibility of coolness, but neither John nor I had any clue how if at all it would play out, and we were both cool with that. So none of the images shown are set up; what unfolded was real, unrehearsed, and genuine.

John and I have a have a great working relationship: we read ocher other well, communicate very easily and efficiently, sometimes simply by hand signals or 10 words or less. It's great when you find people you like to work with. I knew he'd dig the skateboard thing if he could work it in amid the chaos of the group shots. Anyway, back to the next adventures an' stuff ....

I was advised how much I rocked for recruiting the skateboarders. And yes, I really did pay them, I have a witness. Best $20.00 I've ever spent at a gig :)

Also, a very cool inquiry from a nice lady about, "Uhm, I hope you don't mind my asking, but, uhh, why were you lyng down on the sidewalk next to the gutter?!?!" I explained (pontificated, really) that different angles are about seeing things differently-- literally, metaphorically, photographically, etc. I saw a light bulb go off as she totally got it. Coolness.

People totally loved the fact that I was dancing with them as I perched on benches and worked on the dance floor with them. As always, no photoshop in any of the dance pics--it was all shot that way, in camera ;)

Towards the end of the evening, I got down on my belly on the ground again and crawled under a table that Jeff's family was seated at to get a shot of their Scottish guest's kilt. I am generally hands off, and am a total chameleon-- but I do interact with people! So, why crawl under the table, to shoot up a Man's dress kilt??? Jeff's Dad dared me to. Really.  His wife was totally mortified, but just for a few moments.  Everyone at the table started laughing hysterically once they realized what was happening! Not a jaw-dropping shot, but we were all laughing a great deal! And the "kilt guy" then got up and came around to harass me (in a totally good natured, fun way), and then helped me up off the ground. I told him it was the first time I got my butt kicked by a man in a dress :) I know they will remember the fun they had -- including the above -- after traveling from half way around the world.

Some of the warmth was because it was a smaller, more intimate wedding with about 100-125 guests. I found out later that it was even warmer was because it was I was almost like family by proxy; John's wife has known the bride, Gabrielle, since around high school, so all night he was being introduced as his wife Jen's husband :) Everyone was so friendly!

U2 is Jeff's favorite band, so I used one of the bands mid-career songs for a slideshow. I'm pretty familiar with U2's entire catalog, and the song Spanish Eyes really spoke to me when I was listening to a mix CD of my own creation featuring that song on the drive back up from La Jolla and I was like--that's it!! That would pe perfect for a short slideshow!

As always, a big thanks to John for being so gracious in allowing me to use the images here! If you haven't done so already, please check out his work! You'll dig it :)

Enjoy the show, and here are some singles, plus the kilt shot :)

Jeff being "wowed" as Gabrielle comes down the stairs. Everybody was :)

Say Hi to Tom and Katie (insert wave here). They just moved to California recently, so they don't have a favorite hangout yet, e.g., a place of *significance* to both of them to do the shoot at. Upon further inquiry (yes, I ask my clients lots of probing questions!), I learned that they love the outdoors and are enjoying So Cal weather and hiking in the Santa Monica Mountains. We did their engagement pictures at Ferndell Park, which is part of Griffith Park. When we finished there, we went up to the Observatory.

They're gettin' hitched at The Ritz Carlton in Marina del Rey in January 09. The funny thing about the date is it's almost their "original" anniversary; they met three years ago while skiing in Colorado over New Years Eve.

They will be going to Japan for their honeymoon. What's in Japan? Well, they have both traveled a lot, and thought Japan would be fun..... plus I hear there's some good skiing there, too :)

I don't give folks a lot of direction as my approach is mostly hands off, even in situations where I have more creative control. I did encourage them to find a warm fuzzy place inside, have fun, and kiss a lot. There was more to it than that, but that was the jist of things. They did really well with their assignment! :)

Yes, the crescent moon in the background is real! :)

I did more black and white conversions on some of my work from their shoot because there were more opportunities to make interesting black and white images. The shot above and below are good examples. The beautiful, rich light that you see in some of the color shots is awesome, but you also get wonderful shadows and rich tones combined--in this case--with some equally awesome architectural elements. Hmm.... Does that make for double the awesomeness? Or is that better expressed as awesome squared? No idea, but I think they look awesome together ;)

Felicia and Warren got married at the Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden at Cal State Long Beach.

Their ceremony incorporated elements of traditional Vietnamese (Felicia) and Chinese (Warren) culture, with some Western stuff for good measure :)

Warren's groomsman Apurva put the wedding bands on a caribiner key ring so he wouldn't lose them before handing them over to best man Arnold.

Felicia was radiant, as you can see. This was just before she saw Warren.

There was bit of trouble during the unity sand ceremony: their sand got bottlenecked at the top and a breeze came in right on cue to blow some sand around, too.

Felicia (after another dress change), was serenaded by all of the guys.

The garter toss--uhm, well, it didn't really launch....... it just kinda sputtered a few feet. The ladies were equally amuzed :)

Dancing!! (Note: this has NOT been altered by photoshop--this is how the image was shot.)

I shot Kesha and James' wedding with Meghan Aileen in Manhattan Beach at Verandas. You can read Meghan's blog post about here. There were two series of pictures that I really liked from their wedding, so I put them together a bit differently......

People sometimes ask me why I post pictures on my blog of weddings that I have shot with other people. There are several reasons :)

• Although I work with all kinds of photographers, some photogs hire me because I am a "specialist" at what I do. Wedding Photojournalism is NOT a style; it is a craft unto itself. As such, another photographer (or perhaps their client) may want this incorporated into their wedding. The addition of my work complements the strengths and talents of other photographers :)
• I get to shoot with some cool photographers.
• I always learn things when I shoot with other people.
• It offers different creative opportunities that I might otherwise not get.
• I'm a photographer ;)

Anyway, here are some pics from the wedding! Enjoy, and thanks to Meghan for being so cool and easy to work with! :)

The decor and favors on the tables were in black and white, and I liked the graphic quality of the image better in black and white... so, uhm... I made it B + W. :)

I shot it while leaning over a staircase leading from the cocktail/reception area to the dining room. 

I'm not sure what is on the little LCD screen all the ladies were looking at, but it was obviously very entertaining!

A lot of stuff is still being set-up, so please bear with me while I work with Cody to get things running smoothly! Thanks for stopping by.

Michael

I went to GLOW in Santa Monica over the weekend. It's a bit hard to explain exactly what GLOW is, but basically it was a collection of free art/multimedia installations, from dusk until dawn (literally) held at the Santa Monica Pier and some of the surrounding beach and nearby park areas.

I didn't stay too long as it was incredibly mobbed with wall-to-wall people. The most interesting thing I shot was a really neat installation where 3D forms were projected on to a sphere (not a flat wall) of water.

As a side note, all of these were shot available light around 1:15 AM. No flash was used for any of these images. (In photog geek-speak, around 1/50 @ f2.8, ISO 3200.)

My own fave is of course the one featuring the dude with the awesome Mohawk. :-)

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Surveying his domain. On the lookout for other dogs, small humans, the pool guy for the neighbor, and UPS.

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I shot Queenie and Brian's wedding last weekend (5/10) with Robert Evans and Curt Apanovich. They are so incredibly relaxed when they shoot and have so much fun it might just be illegal or something :-)

I want to thank Robert for generously allowing me to use some of my favorite images from the day :-)

We started out at Cal Tech in Pasadena doing formals before the ceremony.

Yes, you read that correctly: Robert does his formal shots of the couple and bridal party FIRST. While this trend is becoming more common, it is still the exception rather than the norm. So why do formals first? Briefly:

• It takes away virtually all of the stress and anxiety of seeing your fiance for the first time at the alter. The relief is tremendous for a couple, and it creates a time and space for a couple to share some of the most intimate moments of their lives together. Do I/we shoot all of that? Yes and no; we are there to shoot, but allowing a couple some space is a good thing, and using appropriate lenses is important, especially for the most tender first moments. In other words, yes of course I shoot all of that, but never in an aggressive "in your face" kind of way. I'm not a paparazzi!! ;-)
  
• The couple and everyone else can go straight to the reception together and enjoy the celebration with their guests. You do want to party with your peeps at your wedding, don't you??

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Wow.

Where to begin?

I've known April and 2 of her bridesmaids --Shawna and Colette -- for more than 20 years , and I cannot think of anyone whose wedding I would be more honored to shoot. It has been more difficult to edit this wedding for 2 reasons: 1, I'm a sensitive and emotional dude and it's ummm...... well, let's just say I've needed lots of Kleenex tissues and leave it at that, ok? 2, It was a 2 day shoot: day one was a rehearsal and BBQ at April's Cabana, a jaw-dropping piece of heaven where you would least expect it. I'll be writing and posting more, I promise :-)

A note about the garbage: there is a lonnng story and much history to it! Among other things, it's where they had their first kiss....... It is not just a dumpster; to April and Steve, it is The Dumpster of Love.

For now, please enjoy a handful of my favorites :-)

Michael

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I shot Shaina and Ben's wedding in late March with Nicky from Eight20 Photography. You can see the cool slide show she did here. I just forgot to share (Doh!).

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Shandra and Mike were married at La Jolla Woman's Club on March 15, 2008. I shot this wedding with John. You can also read more about this wedding on John's blog!

On the way to the beach for pictures, I was kneeling down in the giant limo to shoot..... the limo went one way, I went the other..... Not a fall, it was more of a slow roll...... So I was given the nickname "Weeble," as in "Weebles wobble but they don't fall down." It actually reminded of that scene in Animal House where John Belushi, as Bluto, is assigning names to the fraternity pledges, including one he named "Flounder." I digress...
So we're on this overlook by the beach, and the guys are really getting into it, just having a great time....... we're almost done, and as I look through my viewfinder, I see the guys suddenly going absolutely nuts, and I have no idea what is going on, because the action is happeningbehind me. So after I've nailed their reaction shots, I get them to explain what happened: they (well, we, I guess), had been flashed by a very attractive young lady on the 3rd floor balcony of a condo overlooking the beach.

Then it was on to the Hard Rock Cafe for a few drinks/rendezvous with some guests before heading over to the ceremony and reception site.

It was windy at the venue, and as Shandra's veil was fluttering around, I was able to get it gracefully shaping her tattoo, which she loves, btw. In fact, if I remember correctly, the owner of the shop where she had it done was a guest.

I'll be adding some more.

This was a super-fun wedding :-) I love my job :-)

Sometimes it's hard to get a pic of myself working at a wedding, so I ducked down in a window reflection and shot this with Mike and his groomsmen. I'll have a few more posted from that shoot in another entry. They were TONS of fun!!The funny thing is I didn't pose this--it happened totally organically: we were on the way to the ceremony site, and as we walked across these mirrored panels on a building in La Jolla, they were like "Hey, check us out! We look really good together." They sure did. I was in the right place at the right time. That's my job. My name is Joe Friday. I'm a police officer in the Los Angeles Police Department. (You know, as I look back at that show, it comes off as total propaganda, but that's just way off topic......)
BTW, this is the first post where I have finally figured out how to post an image BIG on Blogger. Congratulate me :-) Bigger on Blogger is Better!

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Chris Austin was the organizer of this whole Trash The Dress Session at the Salton Sea (yes, he's the guilty instigator of all of this!). He's put up a separate page here for the project. On it you can find links to lots links to galleries from more than a dozen talented photographers! If you want to see some good TTD pics, check this out.

There is also the Trash The Dress Blog, and some of our work is showing up on there as well. As Mark Eric says on the TTD blog, it's about creation, not destruction. There is also this vid byMatt Adcock and Sol Tamargo (now husband and wife:-)) of a TTD session in the Mayan Riviera. It's awesome. The bride looks like a mermaid, just beautiful.

I think people do it for different reasons. You'll notice in many of my pics (and some of the other photographers as well), the husbands were involved, which I think is fantastic.

You can see I was into lens flares and lots of backlight for this shoot :-)

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I'm still trying to describe what this project is about. I guess the meaning is different for different people. I think it's a fun way to make unique photographs of something special to you. In thie mean time, these pics are from the latest batch that I have edited.

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These are the first images I've edited from a group Trash The Dress shoot at The Salton Sea. I'll be adding more, with more info and explanations of "You did WHAT with your wedding dress?!?!?!?!" Click on an image for a larger size view.

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Some pictures of my niece, Michaela, and nephew, Ian from Christmas. We celebrate Hanuka and Christmas. And that's my mini-poodle Bailey in the pic with Ian and the robot :-)

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I live near a neighborhood called "Candy Cane Lane" that decorates their houses with lots of Christmas lights. Maybe Grand Ma got run over by a reindeer (a cheesy song) because Santa was driving a truck with Mrs. Claus.

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Yes, I know it is almost Christmas (or Kwanzaa, or whatever you may celebrate), but I was putting together some family pictures and thought I would share.

I'm finally done finishing up my BA at UMass Boston.
It's finally starting to sink in.
I will not get my diploma until February, and I want to perma plaque it, which takes (another) 8-10 weeks.
When it gets here, I'll make a nice color copy of it and put it in a frame while I'm waiting for the perma plaque to get back.
But that means I still don't have anything for now.
Hmm.
So this is what I did. I went out and bought a mat for a frame that I already have.
Then I printed a B+W laser copy of a photo a classmate sent me when she finished in August. I've kept the photo on my desk top as a reminder and motivation when I was pulling my hair out writing a paper. (I swear I had a lot more hair 16 months ago when I started school again to finish at UMass.) I cut out the diploma portion of the photo, and scotch taped it to the mat.
Totally silly, I know.

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On Thanksgiving my family gathered at my cousin's house. My cousin Asley, 9, (with the pony tail) is a gymnast. Jumping around with her are my nephew, Ian, and my niece, Michaela. I don't mean Ashley takes a gymnastics class. I mean she is a gymnast. She trains 6 days a week and is home schooled by her mom, Michelle. Ashley declared to her pediatrician at age 5 that she was going to be a gymnast. Really. I couldn't make that up. What's even more astonishing is that she is completely self motivated--this is NOT coming from her parents. Her drive at such a young age is remarkable. She called up her dad (cousin Arnie) at work one day (unusual by itself) and asked if he would get her a trampoline for their backyard so she could train more. Wow. With the high cost of education, we're all hoping she lands a college scholarship, too :-)

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I discovered art glass many years ago, but at the time it never occurred to me that I could learn to do it myself. So about 3 years ago I took a glass blowing class at Santa Monica College, one of the very few public institutions left that still offer it. I have not blown much in the past year as I have been to busy shooting or working on my classes at UMass to devote the time and energy to it that is really necessary to get good at it.
It's incredibly demanding, and also very expensive and time consuming--kind of like photography, but more dangerous :-). The glass is over 2,000 degrees, and when you work with it, sometimes the only thing between you and a large glob of molten glass is some wet newspaper. Cuts, nicks, dehydration, and of course burns, are quite common. Glass can also explode (literally) if it cools too fast, so when you are in a hot shop, frequently one can hear cracks and pops above the roar of the furnace. I've been cut by flying glass on at least two occasions that I can remember.
I made one pic as a self portrait--look carefully and you will see my reflection. The deep red is because thats just what this glass looks like when it gets "thin" at the bottom of a piece.
The other pic is of the same glass bowl with no added light or photoshop tricks. The patterns and colors are from the metals (gold in this case) in some of the glass I used. It is a process called reduction. It is called reducing because you bring out the metals to the surface by reducing the amount of oxygen in the gas/oxygen mix when you re-heat the glass.
Anyway..... so, um, Dude, what's the wedding connection, huh? I'm so glad you asked! At Rob and Amy's wedding, they gave away succulents as wedding favors. My mom hauled some of them home. The TSA cops at the airport looked at her funny, but let her through with them. I just transplanted them in a larger terra cotta pot, and I put some colored bits of purple/blue and yellow glass shards in the pot also. I think it looks really cool! Do you do any crafty kinds of things, dangerous or otherwise?

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I had the afternoon free yesterday, so I went to shoot a local Dia de los Meurtos festival (Day of The Dead festival in English for us gringos). And that tiny bride and groom in the foreground of the vertical shot? Yes, that is indeed a cake topper! That dude in the car--yeah, I'd be worried too if I saw him at the wheel :-)

On Saturday I shot an absolutely gorgeous wedding at Grand Tradition in Fallbrook, CA, with Silvia of Cara Mia Studio. The couple, Michelle and Simon, wanted a group shot of the entire wedding party. A staff member was kind enough to tip me off that I could get to the top of the waterfall. "Make a left at that palm tree and go behind those bushes," he tells me while pointing. So I climb up there, and as I look down I see that there is no way to get a clean shot--unless I get INTO the waterfall. I start taking off my shoes and socks to get in, yelling down to Silvia and everyone else that I'm going in. Apparently, everyone thought I was nuts. I got in and everyone was cheering me!! How cool is that?!? Getting cheered on by 100 plus people at a wedding? It was awesome!! Silvia nailed a shot of me before crouching down behind some guests so that she wouldn't get in the shot. At right is Barbara, a photog that Silvia is training. I'll do almost anything to get the shot for a client :-)

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I shoot mostly weddings, but being a photographer, sometimes I shoot unique events.Lebowski Fest is definitely unique. For those who are not Achievers (this is how Lebowski fans refer to each other), Lebowski Fest is based on the Coen Brothers movie, The Big Lebowski. It has become a bona fide cult classic. It has even inspired a philosophy and a book. Jeff Bridges plays the main character, The Dude, and John Goodman plays his mentally unstable sidekick, Walter. It is really impossible to describe the film, but it has to do with a slacker who loves bowling, a stolen rug (it really ties the movie together), a case of mistaken identity, fraud, kidnapping, and some nihilists. The Coen Brothers (who have NO association with the Fest) have said that the film is not really supposed to make much sense, and frankly it doesn't, but that's not important. What's important is that the movie is hysterical, and the fans of it have a very high commitment to the film. Very high. You can see more of my pics on the Lebowski Fest web site.
What cult films are you into??
(NOTE: Most of my work is candid photography, NOT camera aware or posed. Lebowski Fest is an exception.)

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I haven't had a chance to get Jennie and Nick's wedding up on my web site yet, but I wanted to share a few pics of their beautiful wedding. I shot this as a second photographer for John Schnack again. It wasn't hot like our last shoot in Temecula when it was 110. However it had been raining really hard the day before. They were unable to get a tent at the last minute, but luckily there were only a few drizzles. They had their wedding and reception at Jennie's parents house in Ramona. Primal Alchemy catering (great food!) transformed the barn into an amazing full service kitchen. Wedding planner Catherine Smiley Jones did an awesome job of running things and making sure every thing was gorgeous. The last shot is of everyone dancing under the moonlight--it had finally cleared up!

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I was just going back and looking at some of the pictures from Amy and Roberts wedding in August, held at Big Springs Gardens in Northern California. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been in my life. It is on about 30 acres of land surrounded by a National Forest. There are lots of hand groomed trails to explore too. If you are looking for a venue in this area, check it out! The owner only has about 5 weddings their per year. The staff is very friendly, the on-site coordinator was great, and the catering was yummy. Robert is a wildlife biologist and has been collecting cacti and succulents for many years, so when they were thinking about wedding favors, they decided to give guests succulents. They did each and every tiny pot themselves. I thought it was really creative.

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Welcome to my first blog entry. I've done some blogging before, but that was for a class atUMass Boston. (I'm in the process of completing my BA--only 2 more classes!).
This blog will revolve around wedding photography.

So the last wedding I shot was as a second photographer with John Schnack at a winery estate in Temecula. It was hot.... very hot. Did I say it was hot? 110, and humid. Icky. Malik, the groom, in a very sharp 3 piece suit, was having to continuously mop his head down. His lovely bride, Babette, later took up the task as well. Malik had severely fractured his hand shortly before the wedding. I was so bad that he needed surgery and required several pins to keep everything in place. Note the cast on his right hand where his best man is tying Malik's shoes.