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I’m going to do something a little different with this blog post and do an image by image ESPN type analysis for the first half.  Why?  Well, there’s a lot of thought that goes into blogging for us.  It’s seriously one of the most time intensive tasks for us.  It’s definitely a point of much stress, but also of great rewards.  Stress, because the blog is kinda like a test for us every time.  We try to put up images that aren’t too repetitive, are vibrant in the colorful or emotional sense, artsy fartsy, and slightly different every time.  That’s super tough when you’re shooting one genre 40 times a year and trying to make it look unique each time.  But sometimes you get some images that make all that work worth it a thousand times over.  So without further ado…

The getting ready shots are a time where I feel like I can really get interesting shots that can be different from wedding to wedding.  Shooting at someone’s house means that you’re bound to get a different backdrop every time.  In this case, it was the colorful closet drape behind Jennifer as she was in a room getting ready.  Add an interesting and real detail of the moment and you get a short story of the bride as she prepares.

Oh the hanging dress shot.  It’s a pretty standard shot and can be extremely difficult to do at a house if you’re going for the really clean look.  In the shot before this we were able to get a clean shot of the dress hanging there without all the backyard clutter.  But this shot with all the empty hangers is way cooler.  The clothes line leads your eye towards the subject.  The hangers also look like they’re marching towards the dress.

Window light without the window.  This shot was taken by the front door.  The difference in light between the outside and indoors can be quite drastic, so to take advantage of that I had Jennifer stand part way out the door.  My original take on this was to completely blacken the background and draw all attention to Jennifer’s face, but the hint of background colors and shapes leave it up to the imagination to fill in the blanks.

The cross in the sky is always a very powerful image, especially when there are dramatic clouds.  I took several renditions of this, one without the lamp posts and street lights and one with the city clutter in the background.  The latter one made it to the blog, because in the year 2280 when no street lights exist, this picture will serve as historical documentation that we once drove in vehicles that needed visual cues for traffic flow.  That nail in the cross is a pretty gnarly detail.

Smooshing details together into a collage makes sense for several reasons.  The first reason being, that looking through ten different pictures of just the details can sometimes get boring.  How many different angles can you really get of a candle before you just scream “I get it already!”?  The second being, that not all places are designed by famous architects and decorated by top interior designers.  Putting close detail shots together in delicious color sequences makes any place look cool.  The third detail is from the cover of the offering box I think.

It’s always funny to see priests go out on a limb and inject humor into their wedding ceremony.  Sometimes the jokes fall flat and sometimes they work.  This was a fun pic to blog because it shows interaction during the ceremony that’s not scripted.

You know the jokes are really hitting home when you’re getting the older men to chuckle.  I also like the negative space on top as it gives the laughter of the men room to breathe.

The priest has really captivated the audience and you know the guests are all going to remember him for it.  It’s always refreshing to see fun emotions during the ceremony.

Another real moment that I liked from the ceremony.  The detail of the friend in the back serenading them while she honors her mother adds the perfect touch.

Lots to say about this cute image, but from a photojournalistic point of view there’s lot to be desired in this photo.  The impact would have been greater if the photo was taken from straight on and the hands behind the kid’s head wasn’t there.  Compositionally, I would have liked to see the full body of the person on the right to give a completer image.  The Live Strong Armstrong wrist band detracts from the subject of the photo by drawing the eye back to it continuously.  Overall though, the image captures a cute candid moment where the kid looks like he’s just holding in his boredom.

When you encounter a long hallway, bridge or occasional train car, there’s always going to be strong lines of perspective running infinitely down the middle.  The cool part about this shot is the many holes of light that add texture to an otherwise standard shot.  It adds a very sci-fi element to the image.

I love the peek of sky and clouds on the right with the color of the bridesmaids’ dresses.  It feels a little like an old Hollywood set.

Rings, ice and light.

Fiercely slaying the cake.

Cedric was coerced into doing a sexy dance for Jennifer.  Here’s a step by step guide on how to groove like the master of the sexy dance.