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!

The same tree, reflected in Kacie’s sunglasses.

Some dork in front of the Apple store.

A trip to NYC wouldn’t be complete without a photo of a fire escape!

The interior of St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

Our Hotel.

These last few shots we took on the drive to West Point.

Check back soon for pictures from Michelle and Brian’s wedding! I also did an engagement session while in the city. I’ve already posted it here.

Lindsey and Hooman’s Engagements – New York City

Posted on October 29, 2008

While we were in New York for Michelle and Brian’s wedding a couple weeks ago, Kacie and I spent a few days in the city. I called up Lindsey and Hooman (who live in NYC, but are getting married in Houston next month) and scheduled an impromptu engagement session. It was an awesome shoot! We started in Central Park and worked our way towards Times Square. Check ‘em out!

It was so funny. Every once in a while Lindsey would say “Oh good. I was secretly hoping you’d get that shot”, like after I got this shot of them walking down the sidewalk. And I told her, “Lindsey, you don’t have to secretly hope, you can just tell me.”

Thanks for an awesome time guys! I’m looking forward to the wedding!

Perry and PJ’s Engagements

Posted on October 29, 2008

Only at the Zaza can you do a whole engagement session with in one hotel room! Perry and PJ were fantastic to work with, and we got some incredible portraits!

My favorite!

Ok, maybe this is my favorite

Sarah and Gavin’s Wedding

Posted on October 24, 2008

Sarah and Gavin had an awesome wedding at the Fontenot Grand Mansion. It was my first time to shoot at that venue, and I have to say it is gorgeous. Georgia did a wonderful job coordinating the event, and Daryl & Co. did an amazing job decorating the place. Here are a handful of images, and to see more, check out their SLIDESHOW.

One of my favorite makeup shots of all time.

Sarah LOVES her pet birds!

What a great looking group!

Love it!

The limo they left in was used to escort President Eisenhower while he was in office. Complete with presidential seal and all. How cool is that?!?!

Thanks Sarah and Gavin for letting me be a part of your wedding!

Regan’s Bridals

Posted on October 15, 2008

Now that Regan’s wedding is past, I can post her bridals. We shot these at her uncle’s house in River Oaks, and she was SO fun to work with. She was really into it, and was busting out all the moves she learned watching Top Model (which I recommend to everyone about to get their portrait taken).

I LOVE this one, and all these shots we took in the wine cellar.

Lindsey’s Bridal Portraits

Posted on October 13, 2008

Lindsey and Hooman are planning an incredible wedding at River Oaks Country Club in November. They both live in New York, so she wasn’t planning on doing bridal portraits, but changed her mind last minute. I’m SO glad she did because we got some awesome images, and we got to hang out a little before the wedding, which is always a good thing. We took these portraits at her family’s home, with help and support from her Mom, her Grandmother, and her great planner, Kristen.

I love this look. So classic and glamorous!

Love it!

This is probably my favorite!

It’s rant time

Posted on October 13, 2008

I’ve ranted before about the ridiculous rules that churches impose on photographers during wedding ceremonies. Most notably how many Methodist churches, such as St. Paul’s in the museum district, confine the photographer to the balcony and won’t allow us into the sanctuary at any point. However, this past weekend I found a church that takes the cake. When I first read and signed the photography rules agreement for Christ Church Cathedral in downtown Houston, I have to admit I was very confused by them. The language was very unclear, and the terms used to describe areas of the church confused me even after looking them up on wikipedia. My best interpretation was that flash was not allowed at all, and I could only shoot from the very back of the church. The rules for the videographer were similar.

Well when I got to the church, and spoke with the coordinator, I found out that I’m not allowed to take ANY pictures inside the church during the ceremony… PERIOD. The only exception was I could take a picture of the kiss, from the very back of the church (which was almost pointless because of how far back into the altar area they were, and because of the large candle that was placed directly in front of them). To repeat, I get to the church and find out that I am not allowed to take a single picture during the ceremony. Not even a shot of the processional. Nothing. Also, despite the coordinator’s insistence, the bride was not aware of this. When I spoke to her I found out that the church has their own videographer who tapes the wedding, and the bride and groom must purchase the video from the church. They cannot bring their own videographer in to record the wedding. The coordinator claimed that this is because it is a religious ceremony and is not to be disturbed, but I put it on the same level as sports stadiums and theme parks that won’t let you bring in outside food or beverages because they want to force you to buy their overpriced goods. I could maybe understand that photography, even without the flash, might be a distraction because of the “clicking” sound, but there is absolutely no reason why a videographer could not put a completely silent video camera on top of a tripod and just let it record. Again, this is total BS. The worst part is that is not what the rules say.

From the agreement I signed:
“One or two time exposures (not requiring a flash) from a tripod in the rear aisle of the Cathedral may be taken during the service as long as there is no distraction”
Ummm…. that’s not what they said when I got there.

“After the procession, the videographer may station the camera underneath the War Memorial at the rear of the nave.”
Ummm…. again, not what happened.

Way to go Christ Church Cathedral.

Just about any church will restrict the use of flash from the moment the bride reaches the altar to the moment the couple leaves the altar. This I can deal with. A lot of churches will not allow me to go past the last row of guests. That I can deal with as well. I understand that a wedding ceremony is of religious and spiritual significance, and is very special to the bride and groom. That is why the churches set rules, and that is why I follow them. I always try to minimize my presence while shooting a wedding, and my goal is to never be a distraction. Even when some churches give me total free reign, I treat that freedom respectfully and get the best images I can while not being a distraction. This is what the bride and groom pay me (a lot) to do. Capture incredible images of real emotions and moments during their wedding. Not in fake re-creations afterwards.

I think a lot of the administrators of these churches are totally out of touch with the kind of photography people want these days. It’s not about stuffy posed portraits in big stuffy albums. It’s about capturing real moments and real emotions as they happen, and some people just don’t get that.

The moral of the story here is KNOW THE CHURCH’S RULES BEFORE YOU BOOK IT. I understand that photography is not that important to everyone, so to them this might not be a big deal. However, to my clients photography is a big deal, and chances are since you’re reading my blog, it is to you too.

Finally, since nobody likes a post without pictures, here’s a shot of an AMAZING 300 lb. Batman cake from the Cake Wrecks blog. Click on the picture to see the whole post and see more pictures.

Messin’ around

Posted on October 9, 2008

I was going through my photo library and came across this shoot Danny, Clint and I did one night in the parking lot next to my house. We were messing around with remote speedlights, and got some pretty sweet shots! We all pretty much just shot with my camera, so if you see some of the same pictures on their blogs, you know why!

This is an awesome shot of danny!

Danny grabbed this shot of me. I have to say I’m not as good at posing as he is. That’s right Danny, I called you a poser!

And finally, clint pretty much being himself

Barbie and Matt’s Groomals

Posted on October 9, 2008

More Groomals! I shot Barbie and Matt’s wedding a year and a half ago. We keep in touch, and she has even helped me work a few bridal shows. Barbie came to me and asked to do a very belated day-after session, and it was great!

Love this!

Yaaaay Fisheye!

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