Inspired Photo Blog

One of my favorite cities in the Northwest is Bend, Oregon. Not only for it’s desert climate that reminds me of southern California but a picturesque beauty that can only be found in the Pacific Northwest. This is where Kara and J.B. were married at the Awbrey Glen Golf Club.

True to what one might expect from a wedding in the high desert, the day did not disappoint. It was warm and breezy without a cloud in the sky. Nothing but blue sky and sunshine. The day was filled with beautiful details, from the apple slices on the martinis to the golf ball name cards.

Shooting a wedding ceremony in full sun is filled with challenges, but rather than lament the harsh light that everyone was enjoying, I decided to embrace it and find my way. Kara and J.B. were amazing. Smiling all day long, it was obvious to everyone around them how happy and love drunk they were for each other.

Congratulations to their family and friends. It was great mingling with all of you and being a part of the day, from the toasts of Maker’s Mark to the special wedding cake presented to J.B. There’s a story in there, but I’ll let someone else share that with you. Best wishes to Kara and J.B. for a lifetime of happiness. Enjoy a few of my favorite images from their day.

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I awoke this morning to fog and a chill in the air that says summer is over. It’s hard to believe that just a short time ago when Janice and Ian were married on August 11th, it was sunny and hot. A beautiful summer day at St. James Catholic Church; a 125 year old parish in Vancouver, Washington.

Despite it’s inherent beauty, it was difficult to photograph family portraits that day because of the blaring sun. A Mass was being held before the ceremony, so we could not bring the wedding party and family into the church. Which was fine with me as I prefer photographing outdoors in natural light. However, there were no clouds, very little open shade and all the groomsmen were wearing white. All of this presented me with very unique lighting challenges. Fortunately, Janice and Ian were very understanding and patient as we chased what little shade was available to us that day.

Their reception was held at the beautiful Governor Hotel in downtown Portland, Oregon. The perfect blend of urban beauty and simple elegance. Ian’s brother gave a toast that had everyone crying from laughing so hard. That man should seriously consider being a stand up comic. Janice tore up the dance floor with her girlfriends and all I can say is you seriously want to hang out with them if you are looking to have some fun, they really know how to party.

This wedding continued my 6 degrees of separation theme from last summer. Stacy and Kasey made an appearance along with another one of my couples, Kelsey and Michael, who just celebrated their one year anniversary! (the honeymoon is officially over).

Congratulations to Janice and Ian and their families. May your days be filled with love and joy. Best wishes for a lifetime of happiness!

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It started out simply enough. “Add this FREE widget to your blog and have your posts automatically promoted on related blogs across the internet.” Overnight, my readership doubled and has maintained those numbers since installing this widget. Then word got out and internet spammers caught on and started utilizing the power of this network for their nefarious purposes. Admirably, BlogRush quickly halted all new submissions until they had a chance to manually check each website submitted to their network. This was a daunting task, but in order for this to work, it had to be done. Today, I received an email from them.

Congratulations!

You are receiving this update because your blog has passed our strict
Quality Guidelines and criteria — we believe you have a high-quality
blog and we are happy you’re a member of our network!

We’ve just completed a massive SWEEP of our entire network. We’ve
removed over *10,000* blogs (Yes, ten thousand) that did not meet our
new Quality Guidelines.

We have done a huge “quality control audit” of our network and have
reviewed all the blogs one-at-a-time. We will continue to review each
NEW blog that is ever submitted to our network.

If you would like to add this service to your blog, then click this link for BlogRush and sign up today. Ironically, I know it’s working better because I noticed a link to a friend’s photography blog this morning. Join the rush!

It’s a lot of hard work building, maintaining and promoting a web site. It’s the heart of my business. There is no staff of technicians or marketing gurus, just me. So if you like my blog, then take a moment to share it with someone you think would enjoy it too. And thanks for bringing me this far, I could not have done it without you!

To prove how long I’ve been working on this site, I want to share with you a coaster that was given to me by my dear friend Mr. Bowman over 7 years ago. He picked this up in Germany at Oktoberfest and I’ve since discovered this brewery no longer exists. On the back he scribbled, “Don’t work too hard on the web site…pause for a pilsner.” Sage advice as we enjoy the warmth of an Indian summer day at the beginning of Fall.

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Love is a strange and unpredictable turn of events. What brings two people together? For each couple it’s a different story. It’s what keeps us reading love stories and watching movies. It’s the beauty and mystery of life.

Reagan and Trevor have known each other a long time, they’re high school sweethearts. They were married on August 10th at McMenamins Cornelius Pass Roadhouse with their reception in the Octagonal barn. There were so many wonderful memories of their wedding from the laughter to the tears. Reagan’s father playing trumpet during the ceremony to the tequila shots as husband and wife. It was everything a wedding should be.

Here are a few of my favorite images from their day. I hope you get a sense of the passion between these two lovers and the fun surrounding them in family and friends. It was great to see a few familiar faces (Naomi, Jennie and Cameron) and even better to make new acquaintances. Congratulations to their families and thanks for allowing me the opportunity to share in your special day. Best wishes to Reagan and Trevor, I wish you both a lifetime of happiness! Be sure to check out their wedding day slideshow.

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Wedding season is officially over this weekend. In the Pacific Northwest, summer lasts from July through September and most of my weddings are concentrated into these three months. Unless you are a professional photographer, it’s hard to imagine how much post production work goes into a digital wedding. It would shock you, trust me.

To apologize for taking care of my clients instead of posting for my loyal readers feels like an excuse, so let’s suffice it to say that there will be a proliferation of weddings posted to my blog in the next week. I will be posting about my wedding workflow in the coming months to satiate your curiosity. In the meantime, the countdown has begun.

10 weddings to post produce. Thousands of images edited to the very best, distilled to tell the story of the day. Online galleries, proof products, blog entries, slideshows and more. It’s a lot of work folks…

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Eccentric, eclectic and endearing are all words that come to mind when you think of Amy and Isaac. They were officially married at a secret ceremony in London last year, but wanted to celebrate with family and friends living in Portland. So, on August 6th they departed from the Riverplace Marina on the Crystal Dolphin for a beautiful dinner cruise up the Willamette River.

The light was perfect from the bright overcast sky and everyone enjoyed the ceremony and cocktail reception on the top deck of the yacht. As the sun set, everyone gathered below deck for an intimate dinner celebration ending with dancing.

If you’ve ever met me in person, you know I like to break out in my horrible English/Aussie accent. Imagine how delighted I was to photograph the wedding of a bride and groom from London— a guest list filled with friends from Enlgand and even the founder and artistic director of the local band Pink Martini. As I broke into my accent, Amy turned to me and said with a smile, “don’t do that.” I guess it wasn’t as endearing as I imagined it to be.

Congratulations to their friends and family. All of you were wonderfully endearing and it was an honor and a pleasure to be amongst you for the cruise, as if we had any choice other other than jumping overboard! Thanks for allowing me into your lives and sharing in the warmth of your sentiments for this wonderful couple. Special thanks to Thomas for your generosity in helping me build my library of Pink Martini CD’s. Here are a few of my favorite images from their wedding. Best wishes to Amy and Isaac for a lifetime of happiness!

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I wanted to follow up on the amazing photo session with Lexie and showcase a few pages from a Senior album that I’m having Sarah design for me. This album will feature exciting page designs from Lexie, Elaine and Spencer’s photo sessions. Personally, I think the announcements that Sarah designed for Lexie are some of the best card designs I’ve ever seen for a senior. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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That time of life when you are marking the transition from little girl to young woman is quite extraordinary. A milestone in life. It’s always an honor to be commissioned to create a series of images capturing that time of life. A touchstone that will always remind the viewer of that time.

Lexie is Spencer’s sister. You may remember Spencer from his senior session last year. There isn’t much more that I can say about this family and their kids that hasn’t already been said. It’s truly an honor to be a part of their lives, marking those moments in time that pass so quickly for all of us. Even more of an honor to be asked back into their lives to share in these transitions.

When you meet Lexie, you will immediately be drawn in by her charismatic smile and charm. I feel these images capture the best of her that day and hope you enjoy them. Special thanks to her mother for being “reflector girl” and jumping in to lend a hand with bending the natural light a bit. Thank you Lexie for a wonderful day and being such a good sport, never questioning my creative impulses. She even picked up a filthy, stinky Polaroid that we found laying on the ground. I had an idea for an image that I’ve used to kick off this post, a blending of the past and the present. Best wishes for an incredible senior year!

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