Danielle and Joel’s Engagements

Posted on November 19, 2008

So instead of going to dinner after our shoot, we went to Barnaby’s beforehand, since Joel and Danielle were headed back to Austin that night. We started shooting at Discovery Green, then headed over to one of my favorite little nooks of the warehouse district– a spot I hadn’t shot at in quite a while. Danielle and Joel were great subjects, and we really got some great images. It’s funny, some people totally just let me do my thing when I’m shooting, and don’t ask any questions. But some people look at me like I’m crazy. And sometimes they even ask, “what the heck are you doing?” For example in the last shot when I had them sit in this nasty couch and then I was laying down in the middle of the street to get a super low angle. Joel and Danielle were skeptical. I had to show them my camera to make them believe I wasn’t just taking a picture of concrete! Anyway, I know they’re going to love their portraits. Here are 11 of my faves!

Love the textures in this place!

Some solar-flare lovin!

Ah. The nasty-couch shot. My favorite. Right before this there was this cat in the street that caught a lizard and was slowly eating it. Danielle and Kacie were grossed out. I took some pictures, but I’m trying to keep this thing rated PG.

Thanks guys for a great shoot!

Filed Under Photography, Engagements | 2 Comments

Regan and Keith’s Wedding

Posted on November 17, 2008

Regan and Keith were married at Christ Church Cathedral in Downtown Houston, and then had their reception right down the street at the beautiful Crystal Ballroom. Regan and Keith were so much fun to hang out with! We had tons of fun at their engagement session (they even sat in the fountain for me!), then Regan busted out her America’s-Next-Top-Model skills during her bridal session, and their wedding was no disappointment! Regan owns a dance school in the woodlands, so needless to say her guests could DANCE. Check out the shots below, and watch the slideshow if you want to see more!

Love this shot of Keith. A man on a misison. Carrying the bouquets across the street.

Grrrrr….

There was this gorgeous afternoon light coming in through the stained glass window in the back of the church. Made for a sweet guys portrait.

Keith working on his Captain Morgan pose?

The horse-drawn carriage was a surprise to Regan!

And finally, the last shot of the evening, with a classic Regan-moment That’s a gun she’s aiming at me

Thanks so much Regan and Keith for letting me hang out with you on your wedding day!

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Abby’s Bridals

Posted on November 12, 2008

This is by far my favorite shoot at Rice U. The weather was PERFECT, and Abby looked beautiful. Kacie helped me with posing and managing the dress, bouquet, et al., and Blake helped me with my off camera lighting. Enjoy!

This is one of my favorites!

Ssshhh…. we weren’t supposed to go inside the buildings…..

She really wanted this “C” in the background– for the future Mrs. Clark

LOVE THIS!!!

Oh, AND THIS!

Thanks for a great shoot, Abby!

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Khara and Matt’s Engagements in Austin, TX

Posted on November 10, 2008

When Khara and Matt asked me to come to Austin to take their engagement portraits, I was stoked. Out-of-town engagements seem to be popular for me now, and I am NOT complaining! Austin is such an awesome city, and this was my first time to do a portrait session there. I’ll go any time We shot mainly at a place called Town Lake, and it was pretty sweet. If ANYONE else wants to go to Austin for a shoot, PLEASE let me know. There are lots more places we need to explore! Anyway, thanks Khara and Matt for having us, and enjoy your photos!

I love this set. These guys could pose!

Thanks again guys! I can’t wait for the wedding in January!

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Mayra and Scott’s Engagements

Posted on November 7, 2008

Mayra and Scott were really fun to work with! When we started they were both a little self-conscience about having their picture taken. They kept saying “we take such awful pictures!” Mayra told me that her sister even blamed her for ruining all her wedding photos! I explained to them that just about everyone can take great photos, they just need a little coaching. You just need someone to help you smile naturally, be comfortable, and have fun. Needless to say, the warmed up to the camera quick and we had a great shoot! Some burgers at Barnaby’s topped of the night. I shot their wedding a week later, and it was a blast! Those photos are on their way, so check back soon!

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Rachel Ray’s Mass Wedding

Posted on November 7, 2008

Last weekend Rachel Ray came to Houston and hosted a mass wedding at Minute Maid park for 50 couples whose wedding plans were ruined by either Hurricane Ike or the closure of Bella Teraza and The Tuscany. I, along with a dozen or so more houston wedding photographers, was invited to attend the event and take portraits of the couples and their families. It was quite an experience! Despite a little lack of organization that frustrated us photographers, the event went very well, and served as an incredible blessing to the happy couples who got to participate. The wedding was taped and will be aired on the Rachel Ray show in late november. Unfortunately, I’m not allowed to post any pictures until after the air date, so check back here after you see it on tv for a little behind-the-scenes action!

UPDATE: The air date for the show is Friday, November 21st. Check your local listings for the exact time and channel. In Houston that’s Channel 2 (KPRC) at 2:00pm. There was a camera guy filming me while I worked with one of my brides, so maybe I’ll be on TV!

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This is stupidly cute

Posted on November 7, 2008

That’s right. A live “puppy-cam” feed. 24/7. One more step to making the Truman Show a reality.

Filed Under Personal | 1 Comment

New York

Posted on October 29, 2008

Two weeks ago we headed to new york for Michelle and Brian’s wedding at West Point (pics to come!). Kacie and I headed up a few days early to spend some time in the city. My first impression of new york city: MASSIVE. Second impression: STINKY. Third impression: PACKED. The city is so full of life– always moving, always full of energy. It is so amazing. There is also no shortage of interesting smells. I have a sensitive nose, and a strong memory for smells. Walking down the street you could experience a new smell every half-second. Sewer, pretzels, waffle cones, sewer, hot dogs, roasted nuts, trees, sewer again, flowers, etc. There were also lots of intermittent smells that I could not identify– some pleasant, some, well… not.

We stayed on Broadway just a few blocks from Central park, and a few blocks the other direction from Times Square. We walked just about every where we went. When we did rent a car to drive to West Point I made another observation: APPARENTLY THE LANE MARKERS ARE JUST SUGGESTIONS. Especially on Manhattan Island. Central park was incredible. The enormity of it just blew me away. I’d say, just guesstimating, it is 2-3 times the size of downtown Houston. Just the park! We walked for a solid 45 minutes straight into the center of the park, and when we finally came upon a map we found that we’d only traveled about 1/5th of the length of the park. I couldn’t believe it.

On our last night in the city we ate dinner at a cute restaurant in Little Italy then went and saw the broadway play, Phantom of the Opera. It was incredible. I’ve always been a fan of the music, and really enjoyed the film, but haven’t had a chance to see the play. We had front-and-center seats on the 6th row. We loved it!

The only thing I didn’t get to do, that i was really looking forward to, is visit B&H Photo. If you’re a photographer, you know about B&H. It is the largest and busiest photography store in the country– if not the world. I buy just about everything from them via their website. Their prices are good, their service is good, and they always have what you need, even the most obscure little widget, in stock. The physical store is a HUGE 3 story storefront taking up half block in Manhattan. It’s like a photographers Holy Land. Well, the store is owned by a Jewish family, and the place shuts down for every Jewish holiday. We were up there the week of Rosh Hashanah, which meant B&H was closed the entire week. I was SO bummed!

Anyway, that’s a rundown of our trip. I didn’t go crazy taking photographs while I was there, but here are some random shots I managed to snap during our short stay in New York. Enjoy!

A tree in Central Park. We just don’t have colors like this in Houston!