Joynt Love

Just got back last night from Central Michigan where we attended our good friends Matt (Joynt) & Heidi's wedding.  Here are just a few photos from that day.  Heidi was radiantly and breathtakingly beautiful.

And here's Matt, just moments before he walked down the aisle, with his groomsmen behind him.

And here they are as husband and wife, totally blissed out, which made my job as a photographer so much easier.

More to come, I'm sure!

Another Peek...or Two...Maybe Three

I told my friend Emily I'd try to give her a peek here and there of her wedding photos before I give her the whole shabang, so I thought I'd post a few detail shots.

Say hi to Maria!  The sweetest, most calm bridesmaid ever!  She's also Emily's design and business partner for the lovely Po Campo bicycle bags.

Ah, the bridal shoes...I admire anyone who can walk in heels like that!  They sure were lovely!

All Dressed Up

Happy Monday, folks.  I have been post processing wedding photos like mad while caring for my sick 4-year-old-who-will-be-turning-5-on-Thursday, planning her birthday tea party, working my day job and fighting/succumbing to my own mild illness.  Oh, and I couldn't help myself and totally obsessed over the mix cd we'll be giving out to Cadence's guests at her birthday party.  I'm currently not totally thrilled with the Mojave 3 song I picked and can't decide on the best kid appropriate Mountain Goats song, but otherwise, it's pretty much done.

I hope parents don't object to the word "dang."  The Yo La Tengo cover uses the word "damn" so I went with the original.  I inadvertently gave out a mix CD w/ a song that had the word "damn" in it at Cadence's only other birthday party (her 1 year), but luckily no one complained.  You just never know, though...

I'm totally scatterbrained right now, can you tell?

Ben and Emily's Wedding

I had the privilege of photographing my friend Emily's wedding on Saturday.  She is a talented designer, and her whimsical touches were apparent in all the little details of the wedding.  I overheard throughout the day so many people commenting on this and that as being "so Emily."

This was my first time meeting Ben, but he was a natural in front of the camera.  In fact, I don't think he cared about the camera at all as his eyes were on Emily.  I couldn't stop grinning to myself at how HE was grinning whenever he would look at Emily.  It made my job so much easier.

Little Details

Here's another peek at the photos from last Saturday's wedding.  I just love how Bridget, the bride, took such care in picking out all the little details of the wedding. 

Photographer's Dream Location

The getting ready portion and reception of the wedding I photographed on Saturday were at Salvage One at Hubbard and Wolcott.  If any of you are looking for an extra cool place for a wedding or event, this is it.  The place is like a museum of cool reclaimed artifacts for your home.  It's also a retail store, so you can always must drop in and visit during normal business hours.  I wanted to move in and never leave.

Beautiful Inside and Out

I had the privilege of shooting a wedding with my friend Justin for an amazing couple.  Both have devoted their lives to social justice and have hearts of gold.  The bridegroom Raul is a non-stop barrel of laughs, and Bridget the bride was radiantly beautiful from the inside out.  Not only that, but all her choices in wedding accoutrements made me want to swoon.  She looked like she'd walked right out of a 1940s movie.

I've got lots more photos to go through, but I'll post a few more this week for sure.

My Faves From the Wedding

What can I say...

...the bride, my friend Eunjin, was radiant...

...she and her new hubby Joe were just glowing with joy...

...family and friends rejoiced at their happiness...

...moments of love...

...pure delight...

...fun...

...celebration...

...excitement...

...memories made...

...memories in the making...

...memories for years to come...

See more highlights from the wedding here.

Just Married!

Here is a sneak peak at the wedding photos I took this weekend.  This is my friend Eunjin and her brand new hubby Joe, about 1 minute into their marriage.  They make such a beautiful couple, and I'm so excited that I had the chance to capture their special day.

Shutter Sisters Crosspost: Flashdance

shutter speed: 1/5 sec; ISO: 400; aperture: f/5.0

After years of turning up my nose in the general direction of my flash--built-in and speedlight alike--I've come to a strange realization: I. Love. My. Flash. There, I've said it. Why the change of heart, you ask? I've got four little words for you: slow sync flash mode. Google it, y'all, and prepare to be amazed at the images you'll find.

So what exactly is slow sync flash? It's basically dragging the shutter (which Tracey enlightened us about a while back) WITH flash. In other words, it's using your flash with a slow shutter speed. I'm sure most of your cameras have a setting for your flash that's either called SLOW (a.k.a. front curtain flash sync) or REAR (a.k.a. rear curtain flash sync). Both are types of slow sync, the difference being when the flash fires (beginning of exposure for simple slow and at the end of the exposure for rear). Most cameras will automatically set the shutter speed at 1/60 or faster when you turn your flash on, and that enables you to freeze a specific image blur-free. Setting the flash to one of the slow sync modes, however, changes the shutter speed to something that's usually slower than 1/30th of a second. Using a slower shutter speed in ADDITION to flash enables you to freeze the image at the point the flash fired with the added bonus of what I call the ghost trail, or the blur of action that occurs during the entire exposure either before or after the flash fired.

The cool thing about slow sync mode is that it looks cool with just your built in camera flash if you don't use a speedlight. It's great for parties where there's a lot of action such as dancing, especially when there are funky lights that make swirly patterns depending on how you move the camera during the slow shutter exposure. So the next time you find yourself and your camera at a dimly lit party wishing they would crank the lights so you can get some decent shots, set your flash to slow sync or rear curtain, set your ISO at 200 or below, your aperture at f/4ish or narrower, your shutter at 1/15th of a second or slower, and click away! Try experiementing with different shutter speeds or by giving the camera a little shake or twist or what have you during the exposure. Remember to avoid overexposure by adjusting your ISO down or making your aperture narrower if you slow down your shutter speed.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A version of this post appears today on Shutter Sisters.

Susie and Sean Get Married

Meet newlyweds Susie and Sean!  My friend Justin (who took the photo above) and I had the privilege of shooting their wedding reception on Saturday night.  I love how Susie sang to Sean throughout their first dance as husband and wife.  It was so sweet!

I think that brides often set the tone for their wedding party, and Susie did a great job by being laid back and having so much fun that her guests couldn't help but do the same.  I mean, when the bride is wearing pink flip flops, you know you'd better get ready to party!

And party we did!  From the youngest guest on up, Susie made sure people were on the dance floor and MOVIN'!

Taking photos of people dancing is so much fun!  There were quite a few times when I'd click, look at my LCD screen and chuckle to myself at the image I'd just captured.

It's a great time for capturing blur, and I'm all about The Blur, ya know!  This may be my favorite light flare shot from the evening.

There was such a spirit of exuberance and celebration throughout the evening.  I was so busy clicking away at the non-stop fun going on around me.

The culmination of the evening, for me at least, was when all the guests held hands in circles surrounding the bride and groom as they danced and sang and cheered. 

Then all of a sudden the circles would close in on the couple and literally squeeze them with love.  It was probably the biggest group hug I've ever seen.

And as you can see, it was clearly the highlight for many other people at the party, too.

Thanks again, Susie and Sean, for letting Justin and me capture such memorable moments.  May the joy and happiness and love that flowed so freely Saturday night last a lifetime for you both!

Busy Busy Busy

My friend Justin and I shot a wedding on Saturday, and I've been super busy with post processing in my free time every since.  Plus, Cadence has had croup, so I haven't been getting much sleep.  I'll try to post some photos from the wedding tomorrow.

Looking Up

This was at the Pick Me Up Cafe in Lakeview.  I was meeting up w/ Emily, whose wedding I'll be photographing in September.  I'm pretty excited to be capturing that day for her and her fiance Ben.  We had a great time drinking our teas and getting to know each other.  She and I see eye to eye on so many things, and I know her wedding is going to be super fun to document!