After I finished photographing the finals of the AVP Charleston Open this Sunday, I was standing on the court talking to Stein Metzger when Mike Saia (Communications Director of the Family Circle Cup) grabbed this photo. Stein and his partner, Mike Lambert had just won the tournament, their 7th title together.

Today, Stein and Mike fly to Europe to compete in the FIVB tour and begin the qualifying process for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

See our photos on the official AVP website…

Stein Metzger just couldn’t contain himself any longer. When he and his partner, Mike Lambert won the AVP Charleston Open Sunday afternoon, he absolutely EXPLODED with excitement! As the underdogs going into the finals, this was a strong win for these two.

“We’ve been struggling to win at times, and when you’re not getting as many wins as you expect, it makes it that much better when you battle and fight and turn over every stone to find a win. Now, it’s time to enjoy this.”

Happy Father’s Day, guys!
See more of our photos on the official AVP website…

Misty Mae-Treanor has totally DOMINATED the women’s pro beach volleyball tour for the past 7 years! In fact, she recently surpassed Holly McPeak (also at this tournament) for the all-time victory leader. Add to THAT a victory at the inaugural AVP Charleston Open! Misty and her partner, Kerri Walsh, ran away with the final, making it their 8th tournament victory in 2007. In fact, except for the season opener, they’ve won EVERY tournament they’ve entered so far this year! Talk about dominating the field!!!

See more of our photos on the official AVP website…

As part of our assignment to photograph the AVP Charleston Open this past week, Cami and I got to photograph the view from ABOVE! Mike Saia is the Director of Communications at the Family Circle Cup, where the tournament was being held. He had arranged for four of these world-class athletes to play an exhibition match on the deck of the USS Yorktown…and for us to photograph it from a small Cessna airplane. Having done some aerial photography before, we knew what to expect and had a great time photographing from this unique perspective. On the flight back to the airport, we also flew over the stadium to get this shot of the tennis court that had been converted for this week’s professional beach volleyball competition. We had used Jim Ellison of Flying High Over Charleston the last time we did aerial photos. So it was great to work with him again. He’s such a southern gentleman and provides a first class experience!

I’m on assignment at the AVP Charleston Open this week. It’s the inaugural year for this professional beach volleyball tournament on the tour. So I’m honored and excited that the AVP contacted me to cover it for them. Of significance is the fact that this year is also the last year for one of the greatest volleyball athletes of our time. With three Olympic Gold Medals, at 46 years old Karch Kiraly is retiring at the end of this season. Here he is with his famous pink hat spiking the ball for a clean winner.

See more of our photos on the official AVP website…

The last few wedding’s I’ve photographed have included the presence of strong colors that caught my attention. At Lindsey & Brannon’s wedding, I found myself drawn to some really strong Black & White images! Sure, there were TONS of beautiful colors with flowers everywhere and stained glass windows glowing in the warm colors of the setting sun. You’re welcome to see all of those in their Online Gallery. But I thoroughly enjoy the simplicity and strength of a good Black & White. So I thought I’d share some of my favorites with you from their wedding. Black & White images hold their strength in lines, textures, emotions, and contrasts. I think these qualities come through in each of these moments. If you just pause for a second at each image, you’ll see that you will truly find yourself “in the moment” because each one tells it’s own story.

Linsey & Brannon, I am SO EXCITED for you guys. You two are PERFECT for each other! Thank you for allowing me to be there for you and for giving me the opportunity to capture each precious moment. God Bless…

I’ve enjoyed watching the French Open this week and following some of the exciting stories. I was sad to see Roger Federer miss another opportunity to win the “Federer Slam”. But at the same time I’m always impressed with how tenacious Rafael Nadal is on clay. The Women’s Final wasn’t all that great a match. But it was between two of my favorite players on the women’s tour! I’ve always been a huge fan of Justine Henin because her style is built around an all-court game that includes power, precision, and finesse. After having photographed Anna Ivanovic at both the Bausch & Lomb Championships and at the Family Circle Cup, I knew she was “rising star” in the making. And her strong run to the finals at the French Open proves that she has what it takes. I think we’ll see a lot more of this young lady in the years to come…

After I recovered from the sugar-overload I got at Leslie & Zac’s wedding, we met the following morning for a Trash-the-Dress session. Trashing the dress is ALL THE RAGE with brides and grooms out on the west coast. It hasn’t quite caught on in our quietly conservative state. But it’s coming. And I was EXCITED that Leslie & Zac were up for it.

Trashing the dress may at first appear to go against reason. But in actuality, it’s the ultimate gesture of love and commitment. In essence, the bride is saying “you are my FOREVER love…and I will never need this dress again”. We had an AWESOME time together that morning. And I was able to capture some beautiful images that will preserve this moment for them forever.

See the rest of the images in their Online Gallery…

There was so much “eye-candy” at Zac & Leslie’s wedding this weekend, I felt like I was on a sugar-high the whole night! (OK, maybe SOME of that had to do with all the delightful sugary treats on the candy buffet…shhh!) Regardless, these two put together a wedding that was so full of color and character that they truly made the day their own! Leslie had pink & green shoes and stockings, all the bridesmaids were in pink & green dresses, the bouquets were pink & green, Zac’s shoes were black & green, the isle runner was lined with pink & green flower pedals…heck…even the candy in the buffet was pink & green! All this color made for some truly unique images.

When I arrived at the Embassy Suites Downtown where the girls were getting ready, I noticed this huge green double-decker buss parked outside. Now WHAT are the chances of THAT!?! So of course we got a bunch of cool shots with Leslie and her bridesmaids in front of it.

The wedding and reception were held at the South Carolina Aquarium. The ceremony was outside on the terrace overlooking scenic Charleston Bay. As the evening light faded, the reception ramped up inside. Jay Maxwell kept the party going full steam and even let Zac and the guys do a little Bohemian Rhapsody serenade to the delight of everyone on the floor.

You guys were a TON of FUN! Congratulations to you both!!!
See the rest of the photos in their Online Gallery…

Not too long ago, my buddy Gary had a birthday. (I won’t tell you WHICH one – HA!) So to celebrate, he and I and a couple other friends drove to Columbia to see the famous Blue Man Group perform. WOW! Talk about sensory overload! If you ever get the chance, DO NOT pass up an opportunity to see this performance! Gary brought his Nikon D200 and took this shot from our seat in the second row…about 10 feet from the stage. Happy Birthday my friend!