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Photo 9: Mallory and Tim, commitment ceremony
Taken on August 21, 2010
9 billion degrees of sticky hell.
That about describes August in Lincoln, Nebraska. It may not be exactly like living on the surface of the sun, but that’s only because the sun is a dry heat.
Yet that didn’t stop Mallory and Tim from making the best of it and having fun with their formal shots just prior to their commitment ceremony.
Technically, we weren’t supposed to be in this location. That always adds to the fun. The threat of a trespassing ticket just adds to the romance. Or something like that.
Everything about this shot makes it one of my favorites of the day. I love the corrugated metal of the industrial bins.
The gravel road. Mallory and Tim standing almost too far apart to kiss, but Tim leaning forward to make it work anyway.
This is the sort of fun couples should aspire to for their formal shots.
Photo 8: “The circus is over, folks…”
Taken on August 8, 2010
Pop quiz: What kind of portrait sessions are my favorite?
If you answered anything other than “themed ones” you fail. Study my photos and try again.
One of Sam’s best friends, Sarah, came to Nebraska for a visit. One thing she wanted was to play dress up and do a photo shoot. Who am I to turn that down?
Sarah and Sam put together a couple of themes. One was 1940’s victory roll glamour. The other was vaudeville burlesque.
This is Sam. And Sarah. Yes. I cheated on this one and included two photos. If you really feel cheated by this, let me know. I won’t do anything about it, but I would like to know.
We were in the Creamery Building in downtown Lincoln. It’s a great building and the business owners inside are graciously accommodating to my photography antics.
We had a fantastic time. And generated more than one odd stare, too.
Photo 7: Morgan, Wyuka Cemetery
Taken on July 24, 2010
Morgan.
She’s a bellydancer. If you follow my photos, then you know.
She’s a favorite model of mine. Every few months we get together and have a blast shooting portraits of some sort or another.
We’ve both wanted to do a portrait session in Wyuka Cemetery for awhile now.
It’s the oldest cemetery in Lincoln. The visual awesome contained within is beyond compare in the city.
I was also wanting to experiment more with the world famous “Brenizer method” of panoramas.
It works like this: Use a long lens. You’ll be close to your subject, like head and shoulders. Open that aperture wide. Start shooting. A lot. Shoot, recompose, shoot, repeat. You want to cover your entire model and some surroundings. The background will be all crazy out of focus. That’s exactly what you want. Combine your images in an editor like you would any other panorama. Depending on how many images, your computer may catch fire. At the very least, it may weep.
The result is a portrait with a razor small depth of field effect.
Or, more simply, the result is magic.
I lot of you may have seen this one already. For those catching up, Morgan’s whispy outfit and the exaggerated background blur combined to make this a very ethereal image.
It was an instant favorite. I must print it large one day. Viewing it on a computer monitor doesn’t do it justice.
Photo 6: Kim and Joey senior session
Taken on June 15, 2010
I don’t like to schedule more than one portrait session in a day.
My style is not anything like the photo booth at Sears. I just don’t work that quickly. Or impersonally. I like to get to know the people I’m photographing a little. Make a connection, if possible. I think it makes for better images.
Sometimes, though, situations come up. You do what you gotta do.
I try to make a couple of trips out to Colorado a year. With June’s trip fast approaching, I contacted my sister. I had already agreed to shoot her senior session. Maybe she has some friends who want to jump on that bandwagon and book some sessions.
What I didn’t count on was it raining almost the entire trip.
One good day. That’s what I was left with. And three senior sessions to shoot. Hello brain melt.
Despite being rushed, a lot of great shots came out of the sessions. This black and white of my sister and her boyfriend is one of my favorites.
Who knew the little girl I once carried on my shoulders during a hike because she didn’t want to walk in the rain would ever be so grown up?
And now this year, she graduates. Crazy sauce.
Photo 5: Christine and Taylor Save the Date
Taken on April 3, 2010
I met Christine and Taylor when I started dating Sam.
Since then, they’ve become good friends. They are quirky, fun, and maybe as much into great food as we are.
When I met them, they were already engaged and also already had a photographer. I tried to forgive them.
They wanted to do something a little different and unique for their Save the Date announcements. They wanted a theme. The announcement was to be inspired by 1920’s and 30’s era playbills and encourage guests to travel to exciting Nebraska for adventure and thrills.
And it required photos.
Knowing that I specialize in creative portraits, they asked if I could help out. Costumes. Makeup. Hairstyles. Sets. Are you kidding? This is right up my alley!
We needed locations. I knew the perfect place: The Rogers House Bed and Breakfast Inn. Built in 1914 and restored to fit the era, the Rogers House perfectly fit the target time period. Better yet, being friends with the owner, I was able to get us full access to the house for a photo session.
With costumes on and makeup and hair done by Sam (did I mention she’s also a fantastic vintage makeup and hairstyle artist?), we embarked on our own adventure.
The day was amazing.
All of the photos turned out great and it’s impossible for me to pick just one favorite. This one, however, of the couple enjoying their morning tea in the sun room before embarking on their adventure, seems to capture all of the feelings we were going for.