Just For Fun…

So, after that amazing wedding in Santa Barbara (complete with
two different receptions, partying ’til the wee hours, and WAY too
much fun).

The Bride, Groom, my assistants and I all met up late the next
afternoon before they took of for their Hawaiian honeymoon.
We’d planned a special “day after session” in the hills of
Santa Barbara… We spent DAYS researching locations and
finally happened upon the PERFECT place.

I’m sure you’ll agree when you see the pictures
Ready?

Beautiful, isn’t it?!
The colors are just so bold, and that sky… Mmmmm gorgeous!

As the afternoon light began to wane; we kept moving, constantly
seeking the last perfect strands of California Sunset.

/\ I almost feel like this one could be in Africa /\

Mmmmm that’s the light I love!!
Here’s some more:

Seriously some of my favorite photographs EVER.
You should have seen me dancing while we captured them!

See what I mean about the location?!
It’s just oh so beautiful… One of my new favorite secrets

The one above, and the next one are just a beautiful example of the light in
Santa Barbara… I love it oh so much!! Are you getting that yet?

Oh, and btw… No editing needed on any of the above photos; barely
tweaked the contrast; other than that they’re pretty much straight out
of the camera.

This next one’s just a little bit WIDER to show you a little more of the
location… I love the light reflecting off the grass

Of course, the groom WAS there, he didn’t dress up though; so
he was enlisted for transportation

A quick “fine art” piece to put on your wall…
The stunning sunset light matched with the Winter colors in Santa Barbara.
Wonderful.

Now for a quick explanation… This was day four of shooting.
And it was directly following 15+ hours on their wedding day.
When I shoot, I’m up and down a LOT… So it’s like 15 hours of
squats and pushups…

Seeing the gorgeous beach below us was wonderful; but seeing
the hundred disjointed steps to get there was SCARY!

We made it down though; even if it took a little while

Sooo wonderful; it was a clear day so you could easily see
the channel islands in the background.

After a little while; Brian couldn’t stay away from his new Bride
any longer… And we were all glad to see it

But THEN, he decided he really WAS being left out a little too much

Cute together, aren’t they?

We had such an amazing time…
Their wedding weekend is definitely one for the record books!!

I’ve got 15 more events to blog; plus our nearly 10,000 mile roadtrip!
This past weekend, my little brother got married… Can’t wait to share
THOSE photos, especially

So, what do you think? Like these photos? Enjoy the blog?
Tell me what you think, I LOVE hearing from you!

P.S. Is there anything I can be praying for you about?

One of My Favorite Places in the World…

I love California… Orange County, San Francisco, Yosemite, EVERYWHERE.
Such an amazing State.

It’s one of the only places in the world I just naturally feel AT HOME.
And yet, each time I go back; I find some new gem, some new cherry on top
of the heaping scoop of awesome that California IS.

This time, it was Santa Barbara… While it wasn’t my first time IN SB
by any means; it sure felt a lot different this time. Maybe it was because
my darling wife was with me, maybe it was because I was shooting another
amazing couple’s wedding…

Who can be sure?!

All I know is that I *love* Santa Barbara (and the rest of the Central Coast,
for that matter)…. Here’s a little taste of WHY:

Beautiful light, isn’t it?!
Mmmmm.

But, I’m getting ahead of myself again (nasty habit, that).

Brian And Mandee’s Wedding Adventure….

I *love* these people.
When they first announced their engagement, I knew I’d be getting a call
soon… And a great one at that

See, I’ve shot three different weddings with this couple in them; from the
first one a few years ago; when they’d just started dating, to the next (Brian’s
sisters) last year where I took the liberty of shooting a few “pre-engagement”
photos… Like this one:

Cute, aren’t they?!

Well, when the call came I started planning our trip cross-country.
Nelle and I decided to make a crazy road trip of it; with no real plans
as to where we’d go, how long we’d be gone, or where we’d even end
up in the end!!

I’ve got about 15 posts worth of photos from our trip (and endless
adventures to share) but I’ll save that for another day.

We were hired to shoot Brian & Mandee’s entire Wedding Adventure;
four VERY full days of fun. In all, we shot WELL over 5,000 images

So, what follows are just a few to give you a little taste of their love,
and of my love for California

Thursday night began with a delicious Italian meal:

Followed by a rousing game of BROOMBALL:

The Bride, Mandee thought it’d be fun to be the best player out
there… ’till she nosedived into the ice about halfway through the game:

Of course, she kept playing and ended up having a TON more fun.
(I love Bride’s with a little adventure in ‘em :))

Friday, we shot the rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner… Lots of great details:

And then it was the Wedding Day

Isn’t her bouquet gorgeous?

As for HER, she’s ALWAYS one of the most radiant people
I know; her Wedding day simply increased the brightness

Time for a little boutoniere help.

Mom wants a picture too

Caught in the act!

A Little “Epic” Action

And hey, why not a picture of ME showing them that picture?



(Many thanks to my assistant for the day Carlos Chavez for shooting that one :))

Ahh soooo many fun portraits to share from this wedding!
I’m going to try to limit the number; but here are a few more

/\ That one is one of my new all time favorites /\

And another favorite:

And then; it was time for a wardrobe change… Mandee planned two
separate dresses, receptions, and more

Great times were had by all

The “Big” Portraits aren’t something I post very often; but here are a couple
of my favorites from this group:

And Another:




This one was their idea; not mine… Haha.

I always encourage my Bride’s and Groom’s to take a few minutes
to get away… To recapture themselves; close their eyes…
And just BREATHE on their wedding day.



I make EVERYONE leave them alone… Even if it’s just five minutes.
A bit of time to relax, and be alone is just SO lovely

Cute, aren’t they?

I have a bajillion more photos; I’m going to put just a few more
in this post and then possibly set up the rest for a future one

As we were walking down the street; I spotted this tiny little oasis
off the sidewalk. Brian had to carry his bride across the shrubbery;
but we got the shot!

I really DO get to shoot the most beautiful Brides

SO many more photos I *could* post; but I’ll leave you with their
wonderful ceremony… This is my second in this Church, and I just
LOVE the wood

Now,  as you might have seen by the new logo; I’m *finally*
re-launching myself as a photographer. I’ll be explaining all
of that sometime soon.

Can’t wait to share it all with you!

So tell me; which photo is your favorite?
I’d love to have your feedback

From the “Epic Surf Trip” — South.
I toyed with Final Cut Pro for the first time today, to make this video a reality.
Special thanks to Joshua Christensen, my Cousin and the videographer for much of this content…

I want to also thank Jack Kempers and all of the crew over at GoPro Camera for hooking us up with the very best in waterproof, shockproof, TINY cameras… I’m planning on adding 5-6 of them to my next project; flying over (and under) some of the craziest things you’ve ever seen

The “Avenue Of The Giants” in Northern California is one heck of a road… LOTS of tight,
extraordinarily fun corners… AND a 55 mph speed limit.

Now, let me tell you, I can drive REALLY fast around corners… Even so, it was ALL I could
do to maintain that kind speed, lol.

I can’t wait to hear what you think of the video… We had an absolute BLAST making it!

Talk Soon,

**UPDATED!**
Robert & Angela’s Wedding Adventure!!

This past weekend in Santa Barbara, CA we experienced something radical.
Something DIFFERENT.

You see, most days in Southern California, we’re blessed by divine weather…
Clear, blue, 65-75 degrees and far from humid… Occasionally though, we’re
blessed… Nay, BLESSED by what I can only call “Hawaii Skies”

You’ll see what I mean below… We had such fun with Robert and Angela under
those “Hawaii Skies” that I really cannot even imagine shooting them without
the impending threat of drenching rain, lol.

Gorgeous eh?!

We started things off on Friday afternoon with a quick engagement session,
before we rushed off to the ceremony site for a fun and easy rehearsal
(and a DELICIOUS dinner!).

Trees!!

I’m a big fan of Piers

But I have a serious love affair with THIS photo:

So has every other guy I’ve shown it to though… Must be a guy thing

They’re perfect for each other

Look at those crazy clouds!!

So Cute

And Romantic too!

The Santa Barbara Courthouse has some great views from the top…

P.S. I’m officially addicted to Tilt Shift lenses…

And you can see why…

Click to see the LARGE version *HERE*

Brian and Mandee

Click to see the LARGE version *HERE*

Call me non-traditional, but I simply couldn’t resist capturing a few pictures
of the Bride’s brother and his girlfriend… They’re just too cute!

Besides, I met Brian and Angela at the wedding I shot in the redwoods
a couple years back… So I already knew they were BOTH awesome


And that’s the end of day one
I’ll add the day two photos to the end of this post sometime soon,
but for now; I’m exhausted and getting sick!!

Oh, and I’m moving back to Florida too
Loooots of reasons why and I promise to fill you all in soon.

_______________________________________________________

Day Two:

It’s 3:26AM so I’m going to do my best to post just a few photos and very few
words… That said, I’d LOVE to get your thoughts on them, so make sure you let
me know which you like best!

Preparations…

The Waiting Game…

Sometimes it simply amazes me how little sleep we get during big events
in our lives like weddings… Makes catnaps all the more appreciated!!

Push!

Beauty…

Sometimes over exposing an image can bring out the most beautiful things

Boys…

You really ought to see alllll the ones I have of them horsing around,
they’re too much fun!! (A few more made it onto my Facebook, so if we’re
friends there you can check ‘em out!

Girls…

Flowers!

A Moment… Just For Them.

Swoop!

Kiss time

Testing…

My lights… Before I decided to go it without ‘em

A Good Choice!

Back Up…

They’re just TOO cute together, aren’t they?!



Last One… Epic!

I really need to photoshop more of my images… None of these have been properly
“shopped” I’ve only just BARELY run them through Camera Raw. One day soon,
I’ll upload images that look like these… Only better

Matt’s shots are phenomenal as well, and of course we have hundreds more from
the ceremony, and the reception… But; I’m falling asleep… Sooooo that means it’s
time to POST this thing!

Thank you all as always for your time, and for sharing your thoughts.
You make the time spent blogging OH so worth it!

P.S. I promise to finish up the “Adventures of Bugsie” as soon as possible
too… Right now, my primary concern is getting packed, and getting healthy!
(Have a nagging little sickness that’s just begun Pray for me!)

P.P.S. Which was your favorite photo so far??


Oh, and what can I be praying for YOU about?

Mechanics, Motors, Micro-Brews,
and (Finally) Making Headway!

*Or, How I Came to Love A Grandpa Who was Not My Own*

I‘ve been blessed with an incredible set of Grandfather’s…
On my Mom’s side, “Pappa” was a fighter pilot in WWII, a flight
instructor, a chef, an aircraft salesman, and a serial entrepreneur.

His soups made it to the moon on Apollo 15-16, his restaurant has
been awarded the Golden Spoon award for decades… Oh, and he
holds at least one Guinness World Record that I know of… Not Bad!

As for my Dad’s side, “Pop-Pop” is a hero, a soldier, family man…
And the greatest fisherman my Dad’s ever known (and THAT is saying
something, ’cause I’ll tell you what… My Dad can catch some serious fish!)

It shouldn’t be taken lightly then, the whole “loving another grandfather”
thing. But you see… I’ve gotten ahead of myself a bit.

__________________________________________________________

Monday morning I woke up with a start.
It was late! I hurriedly got ready for the day, scarfed down some DIVINE
Apple Cake, and rushed to borrow my friend’s home phone (haven’t
I mentioned that they’re seriously stuck in a hollow? No high speed
internet, no cell service, NOTHING! haha).

I knew who I needed to call… They’d been closed all weekend and
nearly all of the dead ends I’d phoned before had recommended I call
them… Needless to say, I was excited when they answered the phone
on the first ring.

My hopes were dashed though “We don’t work on old Bugs any more”.

Blast!

They gave me a name and number though… For THE guy they recommended
“If any one can fix it, he can… Heck, he can listen to your motor and tell you
exactly what’s wrong with it”.

Suddenly, I felt better

After a quick conversation, and one more desperate attempt to fix the car
myself, I set out… Clattering, banging, popping, and smelling like poor Bugsie
was about to catch on fire… Insane!

We made it though… And as I pulled into the shop “Grandpa” looked at me
like I was CRAZY. “This thing’s about to blow!”

After I told him what had happened, his concerns for my sanity were confirmed
“You SANK your Bug??” he asked. “Yup” I replied… “Oh”.

After that, he was stuck with this look on his face for much of the day:

Oh, did I mention that my new hero was wearing a “This is What the World’s
Greatest Grandpa Looks Like” sweatshirt? He was workin’ it too! haha.

It took us several hours, tinkering about, before he finally decided to take
a lunch break, and I walked over to a local brewery (great beer and food!)
I was STOKED to discover that they had WiFi also, as it’d been 5 days since
my last “proper” internet connection and I was downright jonesin’!

In fact, that’s where I finally posted Day One of this adventure… I was a little
behind, lol.. Hadn’t expected to be THAT out of touch!

As time passed, I caught up on my hundreds of emails, 200+ Facebook
notifications, and a few checkups with my team leaders (it still amazes
me how much they can get done even when I’m literally “off the grid”).

Then my battery died.
SO, I made my way back over to the shop.. Just in time to hear my baby
start… Stutter, cough, then run better then she had in days!

Things still weren’t right of course, so after a few more hours of tinkering,
we started tearing parts off his little roadster project “sacrificed” in the name
of Bugsie’s needs.

“Sacrificial Lamb”

“Tools For Transplants”

“Trained Hands”

Speaking of hands; one of the very first thing “Grampa” taught me that day
was all about gout, and how it’d been rotting away his finger… DISGUSTING!!!

But let me jump ahead a bit… Because after we transplanted a carburetor
(apparently, even though I’d spent the day before, rebuilding mine, there was
still something wrong in it), the distributor, the spark plugs, and more…

Tested the compression, torqued the heads, changed the oil, reset the timing,
and God knows what else, we finally set to fire her up again… Only to realize
that her fuel tank was DEAD dry!

So, after draining a bit of fuel from one of his SWEET sand rails:

She RAN!!!!!
And boy did she ever… After over 200 miles of the most painful driving I’ve
ever experienced in a car… Sputtering, complaining, backfiring, and overall;
HATING me… She was like an all new creature!!

Ahhhh it was love

Oh, and Gramps was nice to me on the cost too… Even though he had to
put off all his other projects for the day, and focused solely on my little girl…
Tore all sorts of parts off HIS car, and more… What a tremendous blessing!!
(I love my Bug, I love my life!).

God is good.

And so, as the sun was setting, I set out.
The plan for the evening? Head North… And boy did I ever!

On the drive up, I passed the light house Ethan and I slept “in” on our ride down
from Alaska, and many other landmarks that I’d have loved to have spent some
time around… But now, I was THREE days behind and I had to make serious time
to even get close to Seattle before Thanksgiving.

Of course, that didn’t stop me from taking a half hour at the Golden Gate Bridge.
I think it paid off, don’t you??

Landmark…

Landscape…

You simply MUST see this larger… I’m certain you’ll agree:
Click Here!!

From there, I’d planned to find a place to sleep, somewhere North of Marin
County… But I just kept going… And going… And going. about 4 hours later,
I finally made camp the FIRST TIME… But my, this story is getting long, you’ll
have to wait ’till the next episode before I tell you of deer, cops, more deer,
more cops, MORE cops… Oh, and more…

SUCH an eventful day is to come…

P.S. Tell me, which was your favorite photo in this set?
The ones from Day Six are going to absolutely blow your hair back!!