Defining Moments

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It’s been a while since I’ve done a session with someone this young, but Abby was a joy to work with, and in a happy mood for most of the shoot. Pretty hard not to get cute pics with eyes this big and beautiful! She seemed to like the floor, though, and it was a challenge at times to get her to sit up….she got into some positions that made my hips hurt just to look at (see pic #3 below)! I had forgotten that people start off so bendable.;)

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Jacob was in for a studio session today.  It’s always nice when my subjects share some musical tastes with me! He had me playing some stuff from my long ago past…..been a looong time since I’ve listened to Pink Floyd, but it was great to hear it again. I’m listening to some NIN right now, which I didn’t have downloaded in time for his session.  Here’s a sneak-peek at his session:

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I met Sara and Brian last night at a local park for their engagement session.  These guys were very easy-going and fun to work with. I had a great time getting these images, and I think they did, too. It didn’t hurt that we had absolutely perfect weather and nice, golden evening light.

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This time of year I don’t get to do much photography for myself, but since I’m waiting for a new belt for the elliptical trainer, I decided to go for a walk and bring the camera along.  Mostly vegetation shots, but I did catch a lurking arachnid and an apparently foundered caterpillar:

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…are always a great combination! Desirae came for a combo session today and we just found one spot after another outside that had wonderful directional light as well as interesting backgrounds. We also got an excellent variety of studio shots.  Here’s a quick preview:

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No, the bride and groom were not stealth-trained Japanese assassins.  By “ninja,” I mean I was in and out in under an hour, which is rare for a wedding shoot.  But that was enough time to get the required family formals, and a few fun shots of Katie and Martin.  Congratulations, guys!!

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I’m always looking for new spots to shoot.  Today, Andy and I visited a location I’ve used many times, in West Branch, but found some new spots in the area that I hadn’t used before.  We got a bunch of great shots, and here are a few:

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Olivia wanted some pics in, and with, her toe shoes.  She also brought an awesome Marylin Monroe-style white dress! Busy day, but I had time to prep two images following the session:

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In late June I was contacted by Bass Player Magazine to do a portrait of their featured artist for September.  The guy is Chris Wood, of Medeski, Martin, & Wood, and the group was here in Iowa City for the Jazz Fest.  To be honest, I had not heard of Chris or MMW, but then I don’t listen to a lot of jazz.  Turns out to be an unfortunate oversight on my part, because MMW’s music is incredible, and Chris rocks the bass!  I saw their performance on July 4th, and have since purchased two of their CDs.  Really, really good stuff!

Chris and his tour manager came to my studio for the portrait shoot, which took maybe 20 minutes. Very nice guy, and he made it easy and fun to get the shots.  Hopefully he thought it was a good experience, too.;) I was only supposed to get the cover, but I wanted to grab some other shots as well.  The magazine ended up also using a shot for the table of contents page, so I got two shots in the issue!  Below is the cover and the TOC page with my shots.  I just got my copies today, so they should be on the newsstands soon.

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Did a really fun wedding on Saturday.  The bride and groom wanted an Iowa State Fair theme to their reception, complete with hog-calling and rooster calling.  Kathryn got married in cowboy boots, and the reception was at Kinnick Stadium. In lieu of some of the more typical reception shots, they asked for fun portraits of their guests, and brought a large selection of themed props. After making everyone wear funny hats and pose with ribbons, parasols and rolling pins, I felt compelled, by request, to appear with the bride in one of these, which was shot by my assistant Rachel. This being the first wedding I have shot in First United Methodist, I had to include a few shots of the gorgeous stained glass.

Thanks to Rachel for all the help, and thanks to Kathryn and Myron and their friends and family for making it such a fun event!  Congrats, you guys!!