While visiting Italy with my wife I was invited to shoot some photos for the amazing dress maker Mauro Adami of Domo Adami wedding dresses. It sounded like an incredible opportunity – so I hung out for an extra day in Florence, Italy while my wife boarded a train and spent the day in Rome site seeing. During the shoot there were many times when I longed-for my lighting setups back home – even a simple strobe in a softbox would have been wonderful. But since we did the trip with just backpacks I did not have any of the extra gear. Just my one camera – two lenses and a few memory cards. It was also interesting working with the models because of the language barrier. Much of the direction I had to give them was done through me posing and having them mirror what I was doing. In the end I am super excited to share the images we were able to produce. Big shoutout to Melanie and Cindy of Luxur Weddings and Events there in Florence, Italy for coordinating the day and making sure it ran smoothly and to Hasel B. Designs out of Florida for introducing me to the Luxur Wedding team.

My first contact with Christina and Christian was via email – I was in Arizona, they were living at the time in Vienna, Austria. We hit it off immediately and I fell even more in love with these two when we met in person. They have the absolute sweetest spirit and are so in love with one another – oh and when they kissed my assistants for the day Denise, Gionannva and Jennifer could be heard swooning in the background. Their gorgeous “Rustic Glam” wedding took place at Seville Country Club in Gilbert, Arizona and was coordinated entirely by the amazing Teagan Mercer.

When they were planning the wedding Christina told me that she really wanted to make sure and have plenty of time to take photos. I was of course elated. So we planned to do a first look and then jumped in some cars and hit a few nearby locations before their wedding ceremony took place. Having the extra time with them means so much towards accomplishing the goal as a photographer to create beautiful images. If you enjoyed them please leave a comment below, like or Pin your favorites on Pinterest. Thanks everyone!

As I asked Bronson about his tattoos at the beginning of the session I realized that this young man has gone through the incredible challenges while yet a teenager, including the loss of his father as remembered by his name and date on his chest. Yet rather than falling, he has risen through the trials and has become a responsible young man getting ready to graduate high school and attend college. While most young men his age getting a tattoo go with a tribal design wrapped around their arm – Bronson chose for a quote by Martin Luther King Jr., which could not be more fitting. It reads, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” What an amazing reminder throughout his life at what is truly the ultimate measure of a man.

This last week I had the wonderful blessing of being able to spend some time on the beautiful island of Dominican Republic and photograph the absolutely perfect wedding of Cassandra and Brian. I cannot wait to share more images from the beautiful occasion. Here is one as a sneak preview of what’s to come. Feel free to give it some Pinterest love! Thanks!

“Yeah he wanted to cheat off my homework,” tells me Lindsey after I asked how the two met. Her response completely had me cracking up. Dave went on to explain that he had done the hard parts and was just trying to collaborate and complete the assignment as a team. Since then these two have been next to inseparable and after years of dating they knew they wanted to live the rest of their lives together. Dave proposed by hiking with Lindsey to the top of “A” mountain and after a few minutes to catch their breath he took her breath away once more by asking her to be his wife. Since they met at ASU and he proposed there, it seemed to make the most sense to shoot their engagement photos on the college campus as well. I am so excited to shoot their wedding at Stonebridge Manor later this year. If their engagement session is any prediction of their wedding I know it will be a ton of fun. Here is a peek into their e-session. Please don’t forget to Like, Pin, or Comment below. Always super appreciated!

The mountain peak behind them in the next shot is “A” mountain which is where Dave proposed to Lindsey.

My wife and I have always been friendly competitors with one another. So when I met Luke and Katharine and heard their story I immediately loved this couple and was so excited when they let me know I’d be shooting their wedding. The two of them met while at Enterprise Car company, each in sales, each very good at what they did. In fact, so good that the two of them would compete back and forth for the top sales each month. After fighting back and forth for the #1 sales honor, these two started to be drawn towards one another – but now it was not over winning, it was over love. Luke eventually sealed the deal when he took Katharine on a hike up Camelback Mountain and proposed with a gorgeous ring. I had a wonderful time with the two of them and hope you enjoy a few of my favorites from the session we had together. Please take a couple seconds and show them some love by LIKE’ing the post, PIN it, or COMMENT below. It means a lot to see who stopped by to visit. Thanks!

Often we use social media to meet new people in our lives but we never actually get a chance to connect with them in person. It is a treat when those opportunities to make real connections come about. These last few days I have had the privilege of connecting with a good friend and photographer out of Arkansas, Keith Powell, who I met through Facebook about one year ago. Over the course of the last 12 months we have become great friends and have even conversed a few times over the phone about our families and business. This weekend Keith flew out to Arizona to help me shoot a couple weddings. Also since he is in the process of creating a new website we decided to get him in front of the camera for a few shots which you’ll see below. Thanks Keith for coming out… my wife, kids and I really enjoyed your visit.

Over a year ago, back on March 15, 2011 I joined a new community on the web called Pinterest. They had built a very interesting concept and were releasing it to the public through invites and I of course was delighted to be part of something new and exciting. I sprinted out of the blocks and immediately started building boards “pinning” photos to them that I thought were inspirational. I loved it! Then business kicked into full gear and soon my Pinterest boards laid stale for 9 months with hardly any activity. Recently, in the last month or two, I have rekindled my love to “pin” and have been spending more time on the site building my inspirational boards and even just recently spent time with a bride looking over hers and planning certain shots she loved for her wedding day. It will be a ton of fun and I love that I was able to have that conversation with the bride and can’t wait for her upcoming wedding this weekend.

But tonight while out on an engagement shoot something dawned on me. I realized that Pinterest is ruining me!

During the first 30 minutes of the shoot I was spending more time trying to recall different shots that I had on my inspirational boards and use those as my inspiration to create photos… more so then just being inspired by my surroundings and the couple I was with. I was stressing so much that I couldn’t remember some of my favorite “pinned” photos that I had found the day before that I was not focusing 100% of my attention on what I was doing at the moment. It truly had me feeling awful. Then it hit me! I have been doing this for years, much longer than I have had Pinterest. I was able to do it just fine before, why was I feeling less than adequate? What worked before that wasn’t working now? The answer was like a light bulb hovering over my head (or maybe that was just the sun peaking over the Camelback Mountains) – but it hit me hard. I realized that I was trying so hard to be inspired by others that I was failing to be inspired by myself. I was suppressing every creative gene in me.

Fortunately I was able to realize it, make changes – and finish a strong session that I can’t wait to share. If you ever feel the same way here are a few things I suggest doing…

• Look over your Pinterest boards periodically throughout the week and “pin” your favorite new photos to them – but like our teachers use to tell us back in school. Don’t try to cram the exam notes and study them just before the test. Likewise – don’t worry about looking over your inspirational boards the day of a shoot or in the parking lot as the couple is arriving.
• Get inspired by the couple! Learn about them. Learn their story. Learn what makes them tick. Learn what makes them fun or quirky. Every couple is different and as we focus our time and energy on them rather then on trying to remember our Pinterest Boards we will be continually inspired by them and the moments will flow naturally.
• Wipe the slate clean. Approach every session with no preconceived shot ideas or posed plans.
• Use prompts to create movement and capture it. Many times the movement of the couple as they enter into a position that you ask them is the time when you will be able to capture the little things that show the relationship of the couple. It might be the girl putting her hand on his chest as he approaches or him running his fingers through her hair.
• Don’t just study other wedding photographers. Dive back into the history of photographers and study some of the greats and how they used light. For example Vivian Meier is one of the best street photographers the world has ever known. The way she captured “true moments” is absolutely inspiring. Study fashion photographers, commercial, architectural, landscape, even portrait.
• Stop in the bookstore and spend a few hours there perusing the pages of books and magazines. The inspiration will be there, but the worry of what they looked like “pinned” to your board will not. No need to stress about it later. Let it come naturally.
• Study the scene that you are photographing. Look at it through a Macro lens. What do you see around you? Jewelry, watches, shoes, earrings. Focusing on the small things can help break the funk and inspire you in new directions.

“Life better inspires me!” – if we can all just keep that simple phrase in our hearts I am confident we will all be better artists because of it.

The dictionary defines inspiration as “the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, esp. to do something creative.” Keep that in mind the next time your mind starts to wander back to your Pinterest boards to remember the last photos you pinned. Instead be in the moment – and capture it! Will I continue visiting Pinterest, creating boards and being inspired by so many amazing artists out there? Heck yeah!! But when it comes time to shoot I now know how to better harness my own creative energy. I will still absolutely love seeing Pinterest boards from my wedding clients and will do everything I can to give them images they and their friends will be proud to “pin” as well.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Because every post is better with an image – here is one from tonight’s amazing session with Katharine and Luke….and yes if you love it then of course you can “pin” it! 

Thanks for chiming in. I’d love to hear your comments and feedback.

A pinch of flirting, a cup of friendship, a teaspoon of love. Joey and Nikki met each other while working in the same kitchen as cooks at one of the large beautiful resorts in town. There they immediately hit if off as friends and shortly after a bit of flirting led to a relationship which brought them to knowing they want to spend the rest of their life together. Together these two have amazing chemistry and I had a wonderful time shooting their engagement photos at the beautiful member-only Desert Mountain community in Scottsdale, AZ. Leave some love for the couple in the comments and please feel free to Like and Pin the post as well if you enjoy the photos. Thanks!

Since they met in the kitchen as cooks, I thought it would be cute to do a few photos in a kitchen as well.

Jesse and Jessica! Yep I love their names as well. When I met these two at a Paradise Bakery I immediately loved both of them. They both have such a wonderful personality and fun-loving spirit about them. The couple is joined together by their adorable little daughter who you will see in photos throughout the wedding. (I especially loved the one when she was carrying the back of Jessica’s dress.)  We met at the end of last year when they decided to tie the knot and like my wife and I they were able to put their wedding together in just a few short months and pulled it off perfectly. The wedding day was truly beautiful. A gorgeous dress by Vera Wang, stunning shoes by Steve Madden, amazing ring, insanely fun bridal party and a reception party that will never be forgotten.

Huge thank you to Elizabeth from Elizabeth Langford Photography who joined me as a second shooter that day. Also big shout out to Seville Country Club. They pulled off another successful wedding. Such a beautiful place to tie the knot. Hope you enjoy the photos and please leave some comment love for the couple at the bottom. Thanks so much!

As the girls are inside getting ready the guys are outside throwing the football around.

As Jesse is getting ready his daughter comes in to give him a hug and a kiss. Such an adorable little girl.

Just seconds from seeing each other for the first time during their “First Look” before the ceremony. I always love when couples do these as it gives them a wonderful opportunity to enjoy each other on their wedding day without all the craziness that the rest of the day brings.

The bridal party knew how to get the party started off right. They made their grand entrance so fun dancing and partying their way into the ballroom. Then Jesse entered followed by his beautiful bride Jessica who ran into his arms.

After the grand entrance and the prayer they began serving dinner at which time, Jesse, Jessica and I snuck outside to get some final sunset images for a few minutes.

Originally the plan during the first dance was to first dance part of the song together and then bring their beautiful daughter into the dance and let her spend time with Daddy. However she wanted to be part of it from the beginning and wasn’t too happy when she wasn’t. I felt bad that she was crying, but it was so cute. Fortunately Grandma was there to give her hugs and kisses during the rest of the dance.

If you enjoyed the photos please feel free to comment, like, Pinterest or all of the above! It’s always super appreciated.