It seems so strange to say it... My little brother is MARRIED. Yet on a beautiful day back in February, our family's came together and at the end of the day, they were married!
Joseph and Alexandra have been friends (and romantically interested) since they were 7 or 8 years old. It may sound crazy, but these two literally grew up in love.
11 years later, they were finally in a position where they could make it official between God and man... And I got to capture it all
Here's highlight reel
Shooting my Brother's wedding was a really interesting experience for me as a photographer... I wanted to be there for him as a groomsman, to experience the joy's of the day AND I wanted to be sure to capture it all as well as possible.
My wonderful assistants for the day really helped make that happen. Say hello to my darling wife Danielle, and her sister's boyfriend (up and coming photographer) Michael Flores:
The Wedding was held at the restaurant and country inn my family has owned here in Central Florida for nearly 80 years; The Chalet Suzanne.
I'm REALLY excited to be living close enough to shoot here more often, it truly is one of the best wedding and event venues in the Orlando / Tampa area.
Their wedding was at 1:00PM so we were graced with BEAUTIFUL morning light as the girls got ready...
Snacks were eaten:
It truly was a family affair... Here, two girls from each of our families help get each other ready
The Bride was the first one ready for the ceremony; she and I slipped away from the crowds to take a couple quick portraits and so she could catch her breath before walking down the aisle.
(She was quite happy ) One last photo before we were off to become siblings-in-law
Ahh yes, so fun! But then I was off to my parent's home just in time to catch a shot of my little brother going over his vows:
And then it was time!
Being in the wedding party gave me the coolest perspective to capture the day.
See?!
The Maid of Honor, and all the Bride's Sisters:
My Mom & Dad
Time for the rings:
Then a special kiss
And a high five between Father and Son
As everyone filed out, I made my way around the corner to see this preciously private sight.
After a few minutes alone, the couple were announced and a beautiful little reception ensued:
There was great rejoicing:
And Toasts!
And then a family portrait (or 20):
There are SO many more I'd love to share, but this post already has a plethora more photos than I'd normally post; so I'm going to let it draw to a close.
I'm so, so blessed to be able to share these with you, and to be able to share my gifts with my family... I hope that someday I'm able to do the same for YOUR family, dear reader.
May your day be Blessed!
P.S. Leave me a comment so I know you stopped by? Would love to know which photo was your favorite!
Over the years, I've been asked if I'd be at WPPI a multitude of times. Yet, somehow I've NEVER been able to make it. There's always been SOMETHING going on during the event so I've had to skip!!
This year however, everything we'd planned for the week of WPPI was able to easily be moved... So at the very last minute; I went!
Arriving Saturday, I was able to hook up with a bunch of old friends from my days in Orange County... Folks like the venerable Becker, the adorable Keats, and the rockin' awesome Jeff Norwood.
I also made some awesome NEW friends like Jen Otchy, and finally connected with internet buddies like Aric Becker...
All in all, Saturday was rockin'... But then Sunday began.
It all began with a little lighting workshop Lan & Vu Bui put on. They sold it out almost instantly and had a great group of folks to teach. Sadly though, two of their models failed to show at the last minute and my dear friends Matt & Stevi offered to step up (You may remember them from our time in NYC, they're the best!)
Here's a few shots from the workshop:
Another friend from our last NYC trip was there as well... Feuza Reis!!
Another one of my very favorite people was there as well; Mike Larson and I ended up rooming together for the week.
He's a TRUE rockstar of the industry, and has some of the greatest character of any man I've ever met... If you're a photographer, or even just a fan of photography, I encourage you to spend some time getting to know Mike... It'll be well worth your while.
That's his new Canon 1D MkIV -- I spent the week playing with it and I'm in LOVE.
The little guy above is the soon-to-be child prodigy of Grace Liu Anderson's (He's really an AWESOME little munchkin!)
Sunday night was a private little Pictage get together at the Mandalay Bay which soon was carried away by the Go|Bee Party... I made a few new friends there as well (who promptly shoved me into a photo booth)
The following morning (Monday) I made the rounds of the trade show (several times) finally finding myself at the Bui Brothers/ Pictage/ Dane Sanders' "New Media Lounge" complete with comfy couches, Wi-Fi and the all important iPhone chargers.
Here's a quick shot of Lan Bui with the 1D MkIV and 85mm F1.2L MkII
As the day drew to a close I started running around like a crazy person getting ready for Mike Larson's incredible speech on "Character Marketing".
Did I mention that this is Vegas, and the conference center is about a mile from the hotel rooms? Well, it is... And all in the same casino!
Mike's speech was a great success, despite technical difficulties that would certainly have thrown off a less passionate speaker.
More shots from the Canon 1D MkIV:
Here, Mike demonstrates his best Jedi mind trick on my dear friend Ginny Corbett:
Mike's workshop was an overwhelming success, people walked away each feeling more inspired to lean on their character as the foundation of their business... Each inspired.
Many thanks to Mike, and to Kiss Wedding Books for making the workshop happen... I was honored to be a part of it!
Tuesday dawned a new day... With BIG plans!! First off was a morning session with legendary wedding guru Grace Ormonde. She was really working the audience; helping them understand the best ways to get their work published in magazines like hers.
Lawrence from ToFurious had invited Mike down to do one of his famous "camera tosses" to record the event. (Mike and I actually MET because of a camera toss in Times Square a few years ago, but that's a different story for a different time
Here's Mike's shot:
Pretty cool, eh?!
Next up, we had to run over to the New Media Lounge for Mike to hop on "AskDane" with Dane Sanders...
Along the way we bumped into Becker and I finally got to subject him to what I can only call "Beckering" -- He's famous for shooting hundreds of photos of subjects in a single pose, largely to get them comfortable, and partly to ensure he's captured the PERFECT moment.
But, I had the 1D MkIV in my hands which meant I could fire off 10 frames a second for a full minute or so... I only took fourty or fifty pictures, but darnit, I still feel like I "Beckered" him good
Then, it was off to the ShootQ booth for another quick speech. (It was actually really fun chasing after Mike all afternoon, I got to capture all kinds of things
Next on our list was a sprint over to the OTHER tradeshow building for Mike's speech at the Pictage Booth... Where my dear old xanga friends Bob & Dawn Davis were just finishing up:
Jim Collins, the CEO of pictage is the one in focus... That man is a rockstar
Simon from pictage interviewed Mike all about his thoughts on Character Marketing, etc. He was quick to point out that one of Mike's photos hung above us... Which was pretty darn cool
And then in a blur, we were off to our next stop... Dane Sanders' Platform Session... With nearly a thousand other people crowded into the room!!
Mike, Jesh De Rox, and I ran to the front row right as things were getting started... Here are a few photos:
You've got to see Mike's pictures from this... They're awesome! He doesn't have them up on his blog yet, but I'm sure they will be soon
That evening was a rapid fire series of rockin' parties... First off was Dane's after party at the Centrifuge Lounge, followed by the biggest party of the week... Pictage's VIP Event at Studio 54.
Both Kiss Wedding Books, and ShootQ sponsored shows during the party, and when my friends Kevin Swan & Shaun Austin from Kiss asked if we'd shoot their special event, there was no way we could say no!
So, here are a few shots from that:
And here's a rockin' awesome video Lan & Vu Bui put together:
After the Pictage party, a group of us made a dash to the Mandalay Bay for Becker's [b]School party... Which ended up being ANOTHER awesome event
No pictures though, I left my camera in the room, that thing gets heavy fast!
Wednesday morning, I was scheduled to fly out at 8:00AM but I skipped my flight to attend the first ever "Unite" meeting at a WPPI.
Unite is an incredible group of Christian Photographers, led by Mike Larson & David Jay as well as many other photographers around the country.
We worshipped, prayed, and shared for about 2 hours... And my only wish, is that it had gone on for 10 times as long... It truly was an immense blessing (and well worth the cost of booking another flight, haha).
David Jay and Mike asked if I'd shoot a few photos to capture the event; they're attached below:
And since that's about all the vertical ones I took, let me find a few more landscape style
There are so many more photographs to post, and so many other friends to mention; but I must let this post end somewhere!
Many thanks to each of you who made the week so wonderful... I can't wait until the next time we meet, and I am truly blessed by each of you.
As always, I am here to serve.
P.S. If you were there, would you do me a favor and leave a comment with YOUR favorite moment from WPPI 2010?
I'd love to hear from you! (Even if you weren't there
If you're a photographer, then I'm certain you can understand this story. You go out; take amazing photos just for fun; edit a few, and then remember another shoot you've got to get uploaded for a client.
You focus on your clients needs; and the next thing you know, it's been nearly a YEAR and your "fun" photos have yet to make it online.
Well, a few nights ago I decided "Enough is enough!" and decided to edit ALL my photos from Sun-N-Fun fly-in, 2009.
So, here are a few of my favorites
Sean D. Tucker...
Sean is my favorite aerobatic pilot to watch... To shoot... AND he's a great guy to get to know as well.
The best part of Sun-N-Fun '09 for me though, was getting to share it with my Mom, Sister, Brother, and the woman who was soon to become my Bride.
We had SO much fun. (and gained the dirtiest feet I've EVER seen)
We ended up having quite the contest to see who's were the grossest... Still not sure who won that one for sure
Becca, Nelle, and Myself
My rockin' little bro and my Mother with a turkey leg. (Sorry Mom)
James (my brother) has grown up SO much in the past year! It's wild just looking at these.
As the night grew later, the night airshow geared up. Here's one of the many shots I was able to capture as the Aero Shell team prepared for their amazing routine.
Each year around Sun-N-Fun time, my family's restaurant Chalet Suzanne throws an epic Aviator's BBQ... It's always a MUST attend event in my world; and hundreds of pilots from around the world usually show up.
So, here's a few from that event as well
SO much fun!! There was one small damper on the festivities of the week though; one of our over night guests made a mistake on their climb out and ended up bending his airplane.
Both he, and his passenger were fine; but the accident caused a few fires that took some work to put out.
Truly amazing that they all walked away... God is good!
And that's it for me! I've got a plethora of other events to shoot, but this'll have to do for now
Next up? WPPI 2010 Recap, a few weddings, a few photo shoots, and an epic little road trip across the US with my Bride
Talk Soon!!
P.S. Which was your favorite photo? I hope this post has inspired you to go finish something you love to do!
So, after that amazing wedding in Santa Barbara (complete with two different receptions, partying 'til the wee hours, and WAY too much fun).
The Bride, Groom, my assistants and I all met up late the next afternoon before they took of for their Hawaiian honeymoon. We'd planned a special "day after session" in the hills of Santa Barbara... We spent DAYS researching locations and finally happened upon the PERFECT place.
I'm sure you'll agree when you see the pictures Ready?
Beautiful, isn't it?! The colors are just so bold, and that sky... Mmmmm gorgeous!
As the afternoon light began to wane; we kept moving, constantly seeking the last perfect strands of California Sunset.
/ I almost feel like this one could be in Africa /
Mmmmm that's the light I love!! Here's some more:
Seriously some of my favorite photographs EVER. You should have seen me dancing while we captured them!
See what I mean about the location?! It's just oh so beautiful... One of my new favorite secrets
The one above, and the next one are just a beautiful example of the light in Santa Barbara... I love it oh so much!! Are you getting that yet?
Oh, and btw... No editing needed on any of the above photos; barely tweaked the contrast; other than that they're pretty much straight out of the camera.
This next one's just a little bit WIDER to show you a little more of the location... I love the light reflecting off the grass
Of course, the groom WAS there, he didn't dress up though; so he was enlisted for transportation
A quick "fine art" piece to put on your wall... The stunning sunset light matched with the Winter colors in Santa Barbara. Wonderful.
Now for a quick explanation... This was day four of shooting. And it was directly following 15+ hours on their wedding day. When I shoot, I'm up and down a LOT... So it's like 15 hours of squats and pushups...
Seeing the gorgeous beach below us was wonderful; but seeing the hundred disjointed steps to get there was SCARY!
We made it down though; even if it took a little while
Sooo wonderful; it was a clear day so you could easily see the channel islands in the background.
After a little while; Brian couldn't stay away from his new Bride any longer... And we were all glad to see it
But THEN, he decided he really WAS being left out a little too much
Cute together, aren't they?
We had such an amazing time... Their wedding weekend is definitely one for the record books!!
I've got 15 more events to blog; plus our nearly 10,000 mile roadtrip! This past weekend, my little brother got married... Can't wait to share THOSE photos, especially
So, what do you think? Like these photos? Enjoy the blog? Tell me what you think, I LOVE hearing from you!
P.S. Is there anything I can be praying for you about?
I love California... Orange County, San Francisco, Yosemite, EVERYWHERE. Such an amazing State.
It's one of the only places in the world I just naturally feel AT HOME. And yet, each time I go back; I find some new gem, some new cherry on top of the heaping scoop of awesome that California IS.
This time, it was Santa Barbara... While it wasn't my first time IN SB by any means; it sure felt a lot different this time. Maybe it was because my darling wife was with me, maybe it was because I was shooting another amazing couple's wedding...
Who can be sure?!
All I know is that I *love* Santa Barbara (and the rest of the Central Coast, for that matter).... Here's a little taste of WHY:
Beautiful light, isn't it?! Mmmmm.
But, I'm getting ahead of myself again (nasty habit, that).
Brian And Mandee's Wedding Adventure....
I *love* these people. When they first announced their engagement, I knew I'd be getting a call soon... And a great one at that
See, I've shot three different weddings with this couple in them; from the first one a few years ago; when they'd just started dating, to the next (Brian's sisters) last year where I took the liberty of shooting a few "pre-engagement" photos... Like this one:
Cute, aren't they?!
Well, when the call came I started planning our trip cross-country. Nelle and I decided to make a crazy road trip of it; with no real plans as to where we'd go, how long we'd be gone, or where we'd even end up in the end!!
I've got about 15 posts worth of photos from our trip (and endless adventures to share) but I'll save that for another day.
We were hired to shoot Brian & Mandee's entire Wedding Adventure; four VERY full days of fun. In all, we shot WELL over 5,000 images
So, what follows are just a few to give you a little taste of their love, and of my love for California
Thursday night began with a delicious Italian meal:
Followed by a rousing game of BROOMBALL:
The Bride, Mandee thought it'd be fun to be the best player out there... 'till she nosedived into the ice about halfway through the game:
Of course, she kept playing and ended up having a TON more fun. (I love Bride's with a little adventure in 'em )
Friday, we shot the rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner... Lots of great details:
And then it was the Wedding Day
Isn't her bouquet gorgeous?
As for HER, she's ALWAYS one of the most radiant people I know; her Wedding day simply increased the brightness
Time for a little boutoniere help.
Mom wants a picture too
Caught in the act!
A Little "Epic" Action
And hey, why not a picture of ME showing them that picture?
(Many thanks to my assistant for the day Carlos Chavez for shooting that one )
Ahh soooo many fun portraits to share from this wedding! I'm going to try to limit the number; but here are a few more
/ That one is one of my new all time favorites /
And another favorite:
And then; it was time for a wardrobe change... Mandee planned two separate dresses, receptions, and more
Great times were had by all
The "Big" Portraits aren't something I post very often; but here are a couple of my favorites from this group:
And Another:
This one was their idea; not mine... Haha.
I always encourage my Bride's and Groom's to take a few minutes to get away... To recapture themselves; close their eyes... And just BREATHE on their wedding day.
I make EVERYONE leave them alone... Even if it's just five minutes. A bit of time to relax, and be alone is just SO lovely
Cute, aren't they?
I have a bajillion more photos; I'm going to put just a few more in this post and then possibly set up the rest for a future one
As we were walking down the street; I spotted this tiny little oasis off the sidewalk. Brian had to carry his bride across the shrubbery; but we got the shot!
I really DO get to shoot the most beautiful Brides
SO many more photos I *could* post; but I'll leave you with their wonderful ceremony... This is my second in this Church, and I just LOVE the wood
Now, as you might have seen by the new logo; I'm *finally* re-launching myself as a photographer. I'll be explaining all of that sometime soon.
Can't wait to share it all with you!
So tell me; which photo is your favorite? I'd love to have your feedback
When we were making our wedding plans, it was SUCH a flurry of decisions. We wanted a short engagement, but we weren't expecting to end up with just 3 months!!
Everything we'd planned suddenly was pushed forward. We'd look at wedding magazines and they kept insisting that the things we were just considering should have been done 18 months out... It was nuts!
But, we got it all together; primarily by deciding to separate our wedding ceremony, and our reception; by a week.
See, we REALLY wanted to enjoy them both, but we knew that if we tried to do too much on the day of, all we'd want to do was get away to the honeymoon! So we split them up... And boy-oh-boy are we glad we did
I'll blog images from our wedding as soon as I'm able, but for now; let me share a few from our fabulous celebration.
Here's Riley:
Just as my friend Matthew Saville was flown in to photograph our wedding, Riley Spiller flew in for the Celebration.
It's really quite special... See, Matt taught me how to take perfect photos TECHNICALLY; Riley taught me how to capture moments in the fashion world, and then I convinced both of them to come capture OUR moments
We had a blast
Nelle and I arrived from our honeymoon, directly into the waiting party. It was oh so exciting... Just ask Nelle!
The best part of the Celebration (for me) though, was that I actually got to shoot a LOT of it.
Many of the next photos are mine
There were many fantastic conversations:
We also had simply the BEST helpers in the world:
The Matron of our family (My Grandmother, Vita Hinshaw) was looking lovely as always:
If you're wondering just what the heck that pink is in the background; it's one of the main buildings of the Chalet Suzanne... Founded by my Great-Grandmother in 1931, it's where I was born and raised.
Some of these photos were taken by my new sister-in-law's boyfriend Michael Flores; he's a real up and comer, and has been growing by leaps and bounds under my tutelage.
Above is my little brother James... One of my favorite people in the world. (He is SO friggin' cool)
A few more of Nelle and I...
Laughing at something... Or someone
As it grew later, sunlight and perfect diffusion gave way to flashes and moonlight... Oh, and the party began
Just in from Scotland, where he's been studying for his Doctorate; here's Robert... My brother-in-law, and his wife Katie... They were cutting it up!
In attempting to do something a bit different; we gave away the flowers as favors... And apparently it went quite well! We heard lots of reports from folks that said they lasted over a month
One more thing we did to be a bit different... Here comes the toss!!
I told you it was a bit different
We'd assembled 12 roses... 6 loose, and 6 together. That way, MORE WINNERS
Amazingly (and unplanned) Alexandra my little brother Joseph's (then) girlfriend caught them... And as of LAST NIGHT, they're engaged as well!!
And THEN the party really got moving
Taking a breather with my older sis...
LOTS of old friends came to join in the fun... Here's a rare moment that Cody wasn't dancing like a madman:
Two of my favorite people of all time... Riley and Emily.
And here's the PERFECT picture that explains the three way relationship between Nelle, myself, and her darling sister Emilie. These girls are pretty much the uber-awesome; I'm so blessed to have them in my life.
My awesome sisters...
And the new sis, once again:
All in all, an amazing night... With loads of incredible moments:
My Dad Rocks
Many thanks to each of you that read this far; many, MANY thanks once again to all of you who made this possible.
I'm so in love with ALL of you, and so HONORED to have you in my life. I can't wait to share each of our next chapters
Saturday, my darling wife and I are heading off for another adventure... This time, a cross country road trip to California to capture another couple's perfect wedding day.
Keep us in your prayers; and let us know if we can do anything to bless your life!
In October, Nelle and I decided to celebrate our "Monthaversary" by taking off on a whirlwind tour... First, to San Antonio, Texas for the Pat O'Bryan's venerable "Unseminar 7" -- I got to speak on an area of marketing that I've never shared before and had an absolute BLAST doing so.
The attendees at Unseminar are always my favorite; and the other speakers are some of my very best friends in the industry... Here's a couple shots from our time in Texas:
I LOVE his hat... Been dying to pick up a nice Panama Fedora for a while.
Joe, ripping it up on the harmonica during one of the many after parties...
We departed late on Monday after an amazing stay at Rodney's B&B cabin's up in the Texas Mountains just outside of Wimberly. *You may remember Rodney's Wedding from earlier this year...
Flying into NYC is always such an adventure... Made a bit more so, by being the only Angels fan on the plane, while they're in the final game of the playoffs vs. the Yankees
I was upset... They were cheering... It was fun.
My Bride in The Big City...
(Doesn't she look just smashing??) This was Nelle's first time in the NYC, we had a BLAST!! We spent almost a week, exploring the city, hanging out with new and old friends; and ironically enough, sitting on our butts.
(Let me explain)
That's Dane Sanders, there on the left. He's a friend of mine from Southern California, a Pastor, and an incredible photographer.
A few months earlier, he'd asked if I'd be interested in coming up to check out his workshop which the esteemed Ira Lippke was hosting in his small Manhattan studio. Of course, we said yes; and here we were!
If you're an up and coming photographer (or even an established one) I can't encourage you enough to go and check out Dane's "Fast Track Roadshow Workshop" series. It's not so much about photography, as it is about building a real business; and building YOURSELF to be ready to move forward.
We spent two days there, sitting on the floor (did I mention that it was a SMALL studio?;)) listening intently.
Of course; because there was a group of photographers gathered together, we simply HAD to have a photo shoot... T'was fun
And yes, that is Nelle in the foreground She makes a killer, interim model... No matter how long you have to wait for the "regular" models to arrive
Ahhh, there they are:
Such a gorgeous couple
Dane did a great job of pointing out little ways each of us could excel... Everyone was constantly growing in unexpected ways.
After the workshop, it was back to see our wonderful new friends, and hosts for our New York stay Jason, Christy, and Max...
Christy and Max
They're pretty much the awesome... Thanks again!!
Later in the week, we made some time to stop by Brooklynn Brewery for their weekly open house... "Drink Up Buttercup" took the stage first:
Followed by some epic strings, accordians, and vocals from the next band:
Nelle and I had made the trip to Brooklyn, but we weren't alone... Our new friends (introduced to us by another old friend from the xanga world, Kenny Kim) were an amazing couple Matt & Stevi Savage.
They're DEFINITELY some of our new favorite people.
Here's the girls:
And we fellows... (In a sudden "rare" fit of tomfoolery we swapped hats):
He has a MONDO sized noggin'
Like I said... Tomfoolery is rare in our clan... Stevi wearing ALL the hats, on the Subway back to Manhattan:
Back on the Island, the rain was coming down more and more... So we decided to hoof it to Times Square, of course
On The Way:
And then, we were there
(Photo by Matt Savage)
Let me tell you, Times Square should ONLY be seen in the rain, after midnight, on a weeknight... Hardly any people were out; it was cold, it was beautiful... And the reflections were to DIE for.
Matt & Stevi
All in all, it was an AMAZING trip to the City... We took off the next afternoon for Jersey, and then across the border into Pennsylvania... But, this post has gone on long enough!!
Besides, there are only so many pictures you guys can stand looking at, I'm sure.
So, thanks for stopping by... Oh, and which photo was your favorite??
I still need to share our wedding, celebration, more travels, and gosh... Even MORE photos with y'all... I'll get to it asap
Saturday was our three month anniversary... And since I haven't blogged Engagement, Wedding, Honeymoon, or Celebration photos; I figured it's high time I finally do at least one of those
So, like I said... Why not go out of order?
Our Honeymoon:
It all began on Sunday, September 13th... We rushed out of my family's resort (http://ChaletSuzanne.com) already a little rushed to make our flight... Only to discover that our getaway car had a dead battery!!
A quick jumpstart and the fastest airport trip EVER (Literally; we made it in about half the time it should take... While barely speeding!) we arrived at the Orlando airport and picked up our tickets... At which point, my beloved Bride learned where we were going
Maine!
I'd spent months and months researching places we could go; and it all came down to either a small Cay in the Bahamas, or the Grand Old State of Maine. In the end, we opted for Maine since it'd be COOL (and far less likely to be in the path of a Hurricane
Man oh man, were we ever glad we went!!
See?
Truly though, Maine was perfect... We went to four breweries, two forts, and spent LOTS of time exploring.
See, when we landed in Portland, we went to pick up our rental car and they gave us a choice... A bland ol' Chevrolet, or the Toyota Prius Hybrid... To be blunt, I've always harassed the Prius and their fleet of predominantly slow, boring drivers
But on the roads of Maine? The Prius was a blast!! We drove over 800 miles on $38 in fuel (58mpg+!) and I was even able to test the "crazy" factor... Got it up on three wheels a few times, and brought the fuel burn down to 4mpg... Haha TOO much fun!
Of all the Coastal villages we visited in Maine, we liked Bucksport the very best.
It was beautiful, quiet, and wonderfully devoid of the plethora of tourists that are EVERYWHERE else in Maine.
Bucksport, ME
See that bright white building in the middle? That's a quaint old Bed And Breakfast that was recently bought out by Best Western... Know what that means? Beautiful, quaint rooms with ugly comforters, windows that open wide, and clean surroundings... Perfect!!
We stayed there for 3 days, and loved EVERY minute... See, Bucksport is unique in the fact that they have quite a few REALLY cool little things. First among them, is "Fort Knox" -- No, not the one you're thinking of, but the ORIGINAL Fort Knox from the early 1800s.
Bucksport is also the home of Maine's fastest elevator... Which takes you here:
To the top of their gorgeous bridge observatory... The view rocked
B&W = Love.
One thing we may not have mentioned... The REASON there aren't a lot of tourists in Bucksport... Simple.. There's a "small" paper mill there:
But the view from our hotel could make up for anything:
And here's our view of Fort Knox...
The clouds were just Oh SO Amazing. After three days in Bucksport we were ready to take off for the North... Bar Harbor was our next stop; but before we'd arrive there, we just HAD to stop by our second brewery of the trip... "Atlantic Brewing Company" t'was AWESOME
Nelle agreed
Then, suddenly we were in Bangor:
I stopped in and bought some *great* old books
The next day, we headed South, back to Portland... And to our 3rd brewery of the trip "Shipyard Brewing"
The last day of our trip, our flight didn't leave 'til the late afternoon so we took off on a lighthouse / Fort hunting trip...
It was successful!
Shipwreck!
Nelle and I decided we needed to snap some more photos of the two of US. I think I'm getting better at the whole self portrait thing:
An amazing old building on the Fort's grounds... It was used as an Officer Quarters in the late 19th Century.
And as a silly finale for this post... Here's the Greatest Graffiti of ALL Time:
That's all for now MANY, MANY more posts to come!!
P.S. Do me a favor? Leave a comment to motivate me to post more! Which was your favorite photo??
But it'll have to wait a bit longer See, I have a surprise for those of you who only know me through my blogging...
Something tells me it'll be worth the wait though Oh, and I'm going to make up for it in the mean time!
I've missed writing so, so, so much. This past year has been such a whirlwind, there is MUCH I need to share, so many epiphanies, so much joy, so much challenge. You're all going to dig it, I'm pretty darn sure
But let me just do what I do best... Share a little bit of true beauty with you
Rodney & Melodie (Are Amazing)....
I first met Rodney a few years back; he was working as a videographer on a project I was being interviewed for (with my marketing company). He was rad, awesome and fun... Even if he WAS a Nikon shooter
Oh, did I forget to mention? NORMALLY, Rodney's not a videographer... NORMALLY he's a photographer and lighting expert. Basically? He's the MAN
Rodney asked me to shoot he and his beautiful Bride's private wedding on their property in Wimberly, TX. I had a truly incredible time photographing and spending time with friends... Oh, and I kind of fell in love with the area too
Let's get started though, I think you deserve to see some pictures
Hard at Work...
Did I mention Rodney was a photographer? Did I also mention that he lives in the middle of no where, Texas? OF COURSE he has his own giant photo printer, haha... He was working hard and fast, just hours before the ceremony to print off some of the engagement photos I'd taken of 'em
The Bride However?
Had The RIGHT Idea
Sometimes, if you're crazy enough to hire me to shoot your wedding, I'll bring champagne so you never have to be nervous about anything
Pretty soon though, she was getting primped as could be
The make up artist was extraordinary, and fun too!
(Her name is Carol Wagener if you're looking for a MUA in the East TX area)
I just love the dynamics of this one
SO Cute!!
And this? This just SMITES me with it's '70s style awesomeness
The Groom was off getting ready on his own; but I popped over to quickly to snap a photo of the uber sweet boutonnieres.
Their ride arrived in style
Joe Vitale (aka "Mr. Fire") is a dear friend who was oh so kind as to offer the car and his time to the happy couple
I love this next one... Melodie's sweet son walked her down the aisle and their expressions are absolutely PERFECT to me
Rodney cleans up pretty well too
Married!
Snagged a fun one of the little guy's devious personality
Now onto the portraits... Leave it to a fellow photographer to have a vintage sofa in a field of wildflowers, just STEPS from the cedar grove they held their wedding in...
Getting Ready...
Talk about PERFECT!!
I simply adore this
Soon though, our time was up... In 15 minutes I'd shot nearly 300 images though so I figured that was okay
We hopped in the Rolls with Joe and hit the road to the reception site.
They didn't stop being cute though
"Mr. Fire" was having fun too
We made it! (But let me tell you, Off-Roading in a Rolls Royce Phantom IS possible, haha)
As we arrived, an incredible thunderstorm was just beginning. Many of the next shots were back lit by lightning, WAY cool
Beautiful details were abundant... The Guest Book for instance:
Her Flowers:
Even the chandeliers in the open pavilion.
Just to remind you this is Texas
(GREAT Fajitas were served)
A First Dance:
And a special moment between Mother and her son.
See the clouds in the background?! LIGHTNING Packed
After the (Awesome) party, they were about to depart when everyone realized they hadn't set up a place to pelt them with bird seed. I made the slight mistake of saying they should do it right then, right there... While standing a bit to close to them
We had FUN
And then it was over... After 8 amazing days in Texas, I flew home to Florida and into an even better time!!
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