I’ve been wanting to post this for awhile. Meet my really good friend Andrew Young. Andrew is an amazing musician, among other talents, and I love sharing his music with other people. This song was really special though. He actually kept it under wraps and nobody got to hear him play it until his bride, Emily, was walking down the aisle on their wedding day.

I hope you enjoy this video, which was made when he replayed the song after the wedding for friends to hear again.

I got to attend this wedding as a guest - my first in quite awhile, I must admit. Jeannie is a friend of Yumie’s, so I was the date. The wedding was at the Los Coyotes Country Club in Buena Park and I brought along my camera and 50mm lens. I wasn’t sure what I’d be able to shoot, but I figured it would be nice to shoot just for the fun of it.

Anyway, here are a few from the wedding that will hopefully supplement the memories of their wedding. The first picture may seem out of place, but it was the first picture taken of the day - sitting in traffic on the exit ramp.

If you are planning your wedding, and you’re still looking for a venue, please consider the Tustin Ranch Golf Club. Why? Because my sister just started as an event coordinater there and I would love to have the opportunity to work a wedding with her! (Just ask for Joanne Chin.)

How much would I like to shoot there? Well, for the first couple that book me and the Tustin Ranch Golf Club, I’m going to offer $3000 off my base package - that’s how much! This promotion is not connected to Tustin Ranch at all, and it’s just something I’m doing for fun. Please contact me if you’re interested!

After much anticipation (most of it mine), I am ready to show Armand and Vivian’s wedding images. They got married at the beautiful First Congregational Church in Los Angeles and then had their reception at the California Club downtown. Of course, we had to take advantage of being in downtown by shooting some portraits at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. There are some parts of the building that still have the older, shinier finish, which I loved. Anyway, I’m a bit scatter-brained after spending many hours on these pictures, so I’m just going to share them instead of trying to say anything interesting or profound. =P

(If you want to hear about what I think about a certain picture and my thought processes behind taking that picture, leave me a comment and I’ll respond on the blog.)

One of the reasons I frequently second shoot for some of my photographer friends is that I get to try out some new crazy stuff. Some of it falls flat on its face and those pictures never see the light of blog/day. There are some other things that work, and one of those things has been dance floor lighting for me. I have been practicing at some of my recent second shooting opportunities, and I find that it works on anything on the dance floor, including toasts. Sweet! I’m really stoked to bring my new setup to weddings this fall.

I like this particular setup over some others I’ve tried because I feel like it creates this very dynamic lighting that I love to have in dance pictures. I also like that it’s static lighting, which keeps the room oriented to me, lighting-wise. I’m not sure why that’s so important to me, but something about it feels right. A lot of photography is not just technique, but finding the one that helps me say what I want to say with my pictures.

Thanks again to Jeffrey Neal and Natalie Moser for letting me come and play.
(Clint / Cary)
(Kris / Melanie)
(Cameron / Kelly)