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Okay, I know...not enough new posts lately!
I got home from a wedding in San Diego with John Griffin and realized that I haven't had a single day completely off in over 5 weeks! My plan was to take the middle 3 weeks of this past month and have a break by shooting with other photographers but it turned out to be a lot of work with all the travel and shooting so I never really got a break because as soon as I was home I was back to work on my own shoots. Don't get me wrong, it was great to shoot with friends and learn how others approach weddings but next time I probably won't do so many destination weddings without a break! So today I turned off my computer and spent a day doing...well, nothing at all! It was great! I feel so much better!

I am headed off tomorrow to shoot Scott and Paige's wedding at the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco and promise to get images up real quickly as enough of you have emailed to let me know that I'm slacking! I will also be posting some of my favorites from the past month so keep an eye out for those as well.

New York, Take 2!

Last weekend I headed back to the New York area to shoot Mac and Ashley's amazing New Jersey wedding with my friend Jason Groupp. It is so much fun to go second shoot with other photographers because I get to do more experimentation with my shooting than I do when I am shooting my own weddings. Not only that but I also get paid to go to some really cool locations with my good buddy Jason!

Here are just a couple of images from the wedding, there are tons more but I am just too swamped to post any more! I have to admit that as much as I enjoy all this travel, I am ready to get back to San Luis Obispo and a more regular schedule!


The details were really beautiful


This is the kind of experimentation that makes second shooting worth it!


The church was beautiful. It was originally build in 1717 but rebuilt to its current building in the early 1800's.


I love this shot, it shows the emotion and pride the father of the bride goes through on the wedding day.


This shot really cracks me up.


The groom's family is Scots-Irish and went over to Scotland have these kilts made for the wedding.


I have other more "clean" shots of the reception but this one illustrates just how much fun was being had


Thanks again to Jason for flying me out there for this beautiful wedding!

New York...take 1!

It never ceases to amaze me that one day I can be riding my bike through remote vineyards in the mountains above Paso Robles and the next day strolling down Broadway in Manhattan!
This past weekend I headed out to New York to shoot a wedding with my friend TJ and got a few hours to do some exploring. It was a whirlwind trip; left home at 4am on Friday, returned at midnight Sunday, but we still managed to see a bit of the city and shoot a very cool wedding in Harlem.
We stayed at the very hip Hudson Hotel. This place is so hip, in fact, that it doesn't have a sign out front or even an address! At night the entire lounge area becomes a pretty happening club with socialites galore. The first night we just relaxed a bit then Saturday we went out for a run around Central Park (which was just a block away). I got a bit carried away and ended up running a bit further than we planned. So after about 6 miles we grabbed some lunch and headed out to a very cool wedding with Susan and Alan. It was a very nice New Yorker wedding which was so fun to shoot despite the high temperatures and high humidity!
The next day Jason and TimCo picked us up and we all headed down to Jason's studio for breakfast. Haha, I love how New York diners do breakfast! There is definitely no veggie omelet and when they say bacon omelet be assured there will be more bacon than eggs!
Good thing I love to travel and have some great friends to hang out with and shoot with when I'm there because I will be back there in just a couple of days! Stay tuned for more pics from that trip!


The view from our room


Looking over the Jacqueline Kennedy reservoir


I love that you can get just about any meal delivered at just about any time to just about anywhere in the city! And even better that they deliver in "I love NY" bags!


L to R -> TJ, Me, Jason, TimCo

Angie & Brian's Avila Wedding

Nothing is as compelling to me as seeing a truly dynamic and loving couple like Brian and Angie! I have been blessed to get a chance to not only shoot their incredibly beautiful wedding but also to get to know a couple of the most fun and warm people I have ever met. Honestly, being at their wedding was an absolute privilege.
The wedding was a the See Canyon Fruit Ranch near Avila Beach. The location is a beautiful and lush garden set at a narrow spot in the rugged See Canyon, it was a perfect compliment to Angie and Brian's vision for their amazing day.
The connection between these two is what really set the mood as these guys are absolutely in love with each other. The passion and deep connection was totally contagious as so many people were affected by their love, honestly, I don't think there was a dry eye in the house through the entire ceremony!
There are so many great images from this wedding that you will soon see it featured on my website so look out for that. And a huge thanks to Sara Heinrichs for doing a spectacular job (as always!) shooting with me.

Canada

Phew! Tons of fun stuff has been happening these past few weeks, it is really exciting! I just got back from Canada where Stephanie and I spent a couple day up at the Whistler Bike Park then headed down to Vancouver to visit with my good friends Chris and Lynn and to shoot a wedding.
After just 6 hours of travel we arrived in Vancouver around 11am on Tuesday very excited to be there. Whistler is just about 120K (I'm still stuck in the metric system so that's about 80 miles) from Vancouver so we figured that it would take about 2 hours drive on a fairly curvy 2 lane road. I remembered the Winter Olympics are going to be there in 2010 and had heard about the road construction projects but 4 hours later I knew them all intimately! At least it was a beautiful drive.
The first day I headed up to the bike park to do some jump runs and experience a bit of the lift-accessed adrenaline rush that is Whistler. I had tons of fun and got to ride trails that are nothing like what I normal ride. The next day I went for a more normal, for me, cross-country ride of about 30 miles. On the way up one of the trails I found myself riding across ladders and bridges, like you see below, and down some kind of crazy rocks. I forgot how much better my own bike is than the rental I was on when I headed down the narrow spine of a boulder and proceeded to do a swan-dive about 6 feet onto my chest and face! I was SO lucky to land on a very soft spot and not get too hurt!
The next day we headed down to Chris and Lynn's place where another friend TJ Cameron was also hanging out. We had a great time fooling around in Vancouver and having a great time! Thanks so much for letting us stay C+L, we had a great time and can't wait to do it again!


It rains so much that regular trails turn into bogs thus the creation of wooden trails!


Hmm, this sign probably should have been my first warning...



I came down that rock from right to left on the highest point...but ended up at the lowest just outside the frame in front of my bike!

Scott and Paige San Francisco Engagement Photo Session

Last week I headed up to San Francisco to meet Scott and Paige for their engagement photo session in the city. They invited me into Scott's amazing loft near the AT&T Park for their planning session and to hang out a bit. I knew on my way there that I was in for an amazing time as that area has more incredible locations for photo's than I know what to do with plus I could tell in our conversations that we would all get along famously!
Scott and Paige are such nice people; very genuine and tons of fun! Both are very appreciative of the arts so it was totally flattering that they hired me as I see that a such a great compliment! One of the most important things in getting great photos is the connection between the subjects and Scott and Paige definitely have an awesome connection! We all had a great time cruising around the neighborhood and I was like a kid in a candy shop with all the great locations. We ended up shooting for quite awhile, this is just a small sample of the shots we got. I had to warn them that I might be back as their neighborhood is like a giant studio!
The wedding is coming up really soon, it is going to be a blast. I love weddings in the city!

Josh and Brenna in Avila Beach

Last week I headed down to Avila Beach for Josh and Brenna's engagement photos. One of the things I like best about being a wedding photographer is getting the opportunity to meet so many different people. Brenna is studying to become an archeologist and is already doing digs out in the desert quite regularly. Josh is studying to become a writer and, from what I have heard so far, he has some amazing concepts and story-lines he is working on. They are high-school sweethearts who will be getting married this December in Pismo Beach, which is fitting because Brenna's family has come to Pismo for many years on vacation! How cool is it to get married where you spent your vacations growing up!
Both were a bit shy getting started but really warmed up after a few minutes and had a great time. A big part of being a good photography is getting people to open up to me so I can capture who they truly are and get a glimpse of what their relationship is like. I'm really happy with these images as I think they tell a great story of a great relationship!

New Lens test

I received a new lens (the Canon 85 1.2L for all you camera nerds out there) and was testing it out during dinner last night. Steph glanced up just as Caiden was throwing his food and I got this shot. What a beauty, I'm a lucky guy!

Revolution: NYC

You can probably tell by my lack of recent posts that I have been really busy! I had 2 weekends off of weddings after shooting 16 of the last 18 Saturdays and really expected to have a bit of a break. Funny how that never works out! Senior portraits, commercial work and some exciting new personal projects that I will be announcing soon all ate away my time! I have some really exciting weddings in the comming weeks (8 of the next 10 Saturday's) in some really exciting locations; Avila Beach, Vancouver, New York, San Francisco, San Diego, Paso Wine Country, Carmel...I'm really looking forward to each one!

I know a lot of other photographers read my blog so I wanted to let everyone know about a pretty exciting workshop happening this October. Those who know me know that I rarely get excited about workshops but my good friends, and amazing photographers, Jason Groupp, TJ Cameron, and Chris+Lynn have been working very hard to put on a unique and exciting workshop in New York City October 15th-17th. Check out the website at Revolution Workshop. It is really rare to have this level of talent all get together and offer to educate other photographers in small groups. If you are thinking about going to a workshop to boost your creativity, learn new skills and develop your business, be sure to check it out!

Haha, I had to post this hilarious shot I got of John Griffin from a wedding I shot with him in Mendocino County last weekend! Don't worry, all saftey measures were taken and we were very safe but still, DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!
I will post a few more from this beautiful wedding when I get a chance.

Amanda's Senior un-portraits

Last Friday I shot a great senior portrait session in San Luis Obispo. Amanda is an ideal client; she told me to just do my thing and was totally comfortable in front of the camera, I really can't ask for more than that! She is very warm and fun to be around, I think that her great attitude really comes through in her images. We mainly shot around the Cal Poly campus, utilizing some of the interesting colors and architecture that is available. Amanda really wanted to do something non-traditional, which is exactly what I love to to, and I think we really collaborated well! Don't worry, I did get some for her mom too!
Those of you who know me well might be asking what I am doing shooting senior portraits!? Well, I had a great time and have decided that I will accept a limited amount of senior sessions with select clients this year. So if you are looking to have your senior portraits done, are looking for something different and are ready to have a good time then give me a call or visit me on Myspace. Sorry, I have the security on my myspace page but I will add you :)

I love this wood wall


I don't think we could get any less traditional of a senior portrait than this!






Yeah, the 80's are back! Amanda had this sweater with her and I found this cool blue light so I thought I would go full 80's with this one.