Brandie & Miguel

Beautiful day at the beach. Hot enough to melt us all... but you wouldn't know it by the smiles of these two lovebirds! This mid-day wedding had a very tropical feel to it. The entire bridal party wore "tropical" colors and the ceremony took place under a gazebo, with the Gulf of Mexico for a back drop just steps from the water.

This is one of my favorite photos... nothing fancy or particularly special about the scene.... or is there? I captured the reflection of Brandie's mother watching her daughter, with a hint of a smile and maybe some nostalgia on her face, as Brandie did a last check of her hair.

One of the neatest things I had ever seen was the "sand ceremony" just before the final kiss. The bride and groom each had a glass vase filled with different colored sand. As they poured the sand in to a heart shaped glass vase, their colors blended just like their lives were about to. It was a tropical version of lighting the unity candle.

While the ceremony and reception were mid-day, I met up with Brandie and Miguel as the sun went down to capture some fun moments before the sun set. Below are a few of the pictures I took.

It was a beautiful day indeed!

Family Beach Time

My website states that this blog has been designed to share my favorite photos as well as some behind the scenes stories. I present you with my first "behind the scenes" post. : )

As a photographer who prefers shooting outside and using natural light, I find that one of the most challenging and often frustrating situations I occasionally find myself in, is not having control over the environment in which I am shooting.

Case in point.... The "D" Family loves the beach. You just can't even imagine how much the beach is a part of their lives, yet they have never had a formal portrait made on one. Brandie, Mrs. D's oldest daughter, would be getting married the following morning and they decided it would be the perfect time to have a family portrait made. However, they had dinner reservations at 8pm that evening. With the sun still very much in control of the early evening, we ran in to some challenging obstacles.

1. Perfect location... beautiful background.... no tourists or hot pink bikinis in the background. Problem? The family was facing the sun. Because the night before was rainy, we didn't realize when we initially scouted the location, that the sun would be front and center. Moving on to location #2.

2. With "Plan B" in full swing, it just doesn't get better than this! This tree was so beautiful and we thought it would make a phenomenal backdrop and a pretty good "alternate" location. The sun was to the family's back, however, it bounced off the building behind me and no amount of talent, reflectors or post-production work could salvage Mr. D's face! He was pretty washed out.

3. Third time's the charm! You knew this family was photogenic but did you see this coming? They are gorgeous! And the lighting is perfect!!
Same location, different angle. Happy faces and some creative hand tinting make this shot my favorite!

A huge thank you to the "D" Family for keeping it fun as we journeyed around the sun!