Light Walk

The Sanctuary on a Moonless Night

Hannah and I photographed these guys on Saturday; what an emotionally moving wedding! The whole day was spent at The Sanctuary in central Austin. Aside from the “usual” (dad gives beautiful bride away, groom receives and loves her!), Avery’s aunt was able to come to the wedding and that was a huge thing for the whole family. We captured some great photographs for them, along with our long-time photographer & friend Erick Nelson. Some early picks for me are here with more to come later as we have a chance to refine and edit.

One of the things I have heard other photographers do at receptions is to have a quick slide show from the ceremony up and running at some point during the night. I have to say, I thought this was a great idea but was afraid to try and squeeze that in with all the hustle of moving from one place to another, equipment setup, image load and review, etc. But, I went ahead and gave it a try for this wedding and the result was awesome. (This is a perfect example of the benefits of working as a team; Hannah was still photographing all during this little time away form the camera!) I spent about 15 minutes just loading one camera memory card and reviewing quickly; the result was a great 34 image show that we were able to have running during the reception. It was fun to see people standing around the laptop enjoying the images for the rest of the evening.

God bless you guys on your honeymoon and for the rest of your lives!

Here are some of the images we captured during the day. My favorite is the one where the flower basket has fallen into the pond just seconds before the photo was taken; no big deal really but the surprise created a wonderful memory!

View of the Capitol from the Chapel

While we are still working on the album for this wedding, I thought it would be cool to show a few more images from that evening. It was a fantastic day, with lots of emotion and beauty. The wedding was held at the United Methodist Chapel next to the Texas State Capitol. It is a very intimate place and the family and priests brought in some wonderful tradition from their own culture. I loved hearing the words the priest spoke (when he was using English ) and his absolutely wonderful smile as he addressed the people and the couple. It was a great honor to be there capturing the day among their family and friends.

Crowning the Bride

The Bride and Groom are Introduced

Exiting the Chapel as Man and Wife

The reception was over at the Austin Hyatt (see my earlier post). We were treated to dancing, dancing and dancing, some awesome toasts, amazing food and it was all beautiful. I have no idea how everyone could be moving so much for so long… Hands were in the air constantly and music was always lively. A lot of the family from from out of state and clearly enjoyed being with the couple and the extended family.

Austin looks great even in reflection

Dancing, Dancing, Dancing!

Austin Really Is The Backdrop

All in all, an amazing wedding and family; we were blessed to be a small part of the celebration. Best wishes to you both!

What a fantastic wedding! Texas Old Town is a wonderful location for a wedding, and we had a great time yesterday photographing. Ok, it was hot, but it didn’t dampen the celebration! As I stood behind the altar watching the union of these two joyful people I remembered again why I love to do this: it is so emotionally satisfying to be a part of the start of a new life. As photographers,  our job is to blend technical skill with vision and emotion, and the moment with permanence so the family can remember how they felt on this day. How great is that! I love it.

Congratulations you guys, and I pray you will live a blessed life filled with the joy you showed all evening!

Becca & David Symbolize Their Union

On Friday I photographed Donovan for his web site and printed bio; we enjoyed talking and working to create just the right headshot for his uses. I like to capture a range of expression and poses with coat on and off, formal, informal, full-length, 3/4-length, head-and-shoulders, smiling, laughing, serious and fun. It was great seeing his eyes as we reviewed the images together, knowing we had accomplished what he was looking for. Go check out his personal training website for Busy Women Bootcamps and get to know him and his business.

A casual business headshot

Hannah and I photographed a new mother-to-be and her husband this week to capture the anticipation and joy of their baby-in-the-making. Mandy was awesome and you can see in her eyes that this is going to be really cool! We had a great time talking about their life and plans while we were capturing her expressions and obvious joy. As a husband and a dad, this is such an incredible moment in time for me; new beginnings are so filled with anticipation and excitement! While we can do this kind of session almost anywhere, it seems best sometimes to just go for the simple studio backdrop so we can focus on the key elements of the heart as seen in the eyes and shapes of the mom. Congratulations Mandy and Matt!

The Joy of Mom

Last Friday we photographed at a wonderful reception venue; the Austin Hyatt Regency in the 17th floor ballroom. One entire wall is glass, allowing a great view of the city. The reception started in full daylight and as night set guests kept going over to the window to gaze at the scene below; it was always stunning. The staff and coordinator were super helpful and provided great service to everyone that I saw, including Hannah and me! I love photographing there and hope to have the opportunity again.

Austin Hyatt Overlooking the City of Austin