Steph and Casey

Here are a few photos from Steph and Casey's Engagement session. Visit my picasa album to view the rest. It was a fun session, even though it was very last minute and I didn't have a clue what I was going to do. Click here to read about the weekend. Hope you enjoy the view through my lens.

Weekend photo shoot

This past weekend (May 22-23) my camera began to feel like a natural extension of my hand. It started out as a trip to Branson for my first Wedding shoot, but ended up with an engagement session followed directly by the wedding photographs which lasted until 9 or 10 pm.

Jordon and Leah had asked me to take pictures at their wedding last year, but I was a little hesitant having never shot a wedding. They said they would hire another photographer and reassured me that there was no pressure. I was looking forward to shooting with Alec Vanderboom and seeing how he did it. Knowing the lighting conditions were poor in the Chapel at C of O, I purchased an external flash and bracket. I ended up with the Speedlite 580EX II. I showed up early for the rehearsal on Friday night and began messing with the flash. I had trouble getting the flash to calculate the correct strength of the flash. So many of those photos are either completely washed out or too dark. The rehearsal dinner was amazing! We ate at the Macaroni Grill at the Landing.

Saturday morning started early with an engagment photo shoot "booked" the night before after the rehearsal dinner. Stephanie Shannon and Casey Day were a joy to shoot, though I didn't have Laura with me to do all the posing, so I had to improvise. It started raining shortly after starting so we had to wait for it to clear up before finishing. I found some new places in Hollister to take some cool photos. Every location was pretty much a spontaneous decision, since I didn't have time to plan out where we would go. It was a lot of fun, and we finished just in time to for me to head over to the college to get some pre-wedding shots. I had a lot of fun taking pictures and just helping out with whatever needed to be done. It was so much fun to get to be a part of their wedding. It was truly beautiful.

It was mostly a learning experience for me, and I am truly grateful for the oportunity Jordon and Leah gave me. I tried to stay out of Alec's way as much as I could and watch him to see how an experienced photographer does it. Alec is very talented and you should definately check out his photos here, alecvanderboom.com. It was nice to know that Jordon and Leah had no expectations for me. It gave me the freedom to experiment and truly just have fun, learn, and just be a part of the wedding. This may have limited the number of great shots I got, but I think it will always remain one of my favorite wedding experiences as a photographer. I enjoyed talking to the family about Jordon and Leah and getting to meet everyone. The interaction with the people was definitely my favorite part. I especially enjoyed getting to talk to the Best Man, Corey Bright, and the Maid of Honor, Amanda Brandt. They were both very easy to talk to and were very genuine. I wish Jordon and Leah all the best as newlyweds - they are both amazingly real and fun. And I thank them for giving me this chance to learn.

Vance and Samantha

Saturday morning turned out to be a terrific day for a photo shoot. It was slightly overcast, not too warm with a cool breeze, and most importantly - not raining. Vance and Samantha were a blast to shoot. They claimed they weren't very photogenic, but nothing could be further from the truth. Their natural expressions and joyful personalities made it easy to capture the loving relationship. We started at 8:00 am with a few shots on the CofO campus. We then continued to the stairs in Hollister and various other Hollister locations until 9:30 when the breeze began to turn more into wind and the soft morning light was already beginning to cast harsh shadows. Vance and Samantha we're good sports putting up with my shutter-happy, trigger finger, and were willing to try whatever Laura or I suggested. I'm excited to shoot their wedding in June. It's sure to be a great time!

Other photos from the shoot can be found here.