Flash Freeze

I created this image at Erin & Jason’s wedding last week. Everyone was marveling at how dramatic the moon was that night. It didn’t take much prodding to get Erin & Jason to join me for a daring adventure to capture that drama in an image of them! šŸ™‚

Working with a minimalist amount of gear, I had my two Nikon D3’s, each fitted with a Nikon SB-900, plus one remote SB-800 on a Bogen 3333 stand I had used earlier for group photos.
I set the SB-800 off on camera right, zoomed to 70mm to concentrate the beam of light on them. I took the SB-900 off one camera and flipped it to remote mode (I LOVE how quickly you can switch modes on the 900 vs. the 800). This one was placed behind the couple for a rim light. I positioned Erin & Jason so that the street light in the distance was behind her veil. And there’s some landscape lighting on the famous Pineapple Fountain I liked.
To pick up the ambient light of the moon, street lamp, and landscape lighting, I used ISO 1600, f2.8. Even so, I was at 1/30th of a second. I was using the D3 with the 70-200. I had no tripod with me. So you’re probably thinking at that slow a shutter speed, this image is going to be blurry, right? Well, by carefully placing Erin & Jason so that all the ambient light was behind them, the couple was pretty much pitch black at this point. The only light hitting them from the camera side was the off-camera SB-800. This is VERY IMPORTANT! By doing this, I am essentially using the high-speed burst of light from the strobe to FREEZE them in place. At this point, the shutter speed of the camera is only affecting the ambient light, it has nothing to do with the exposure of the main subject. So even hand-holding that long lens at such a slow shutter speed, Erin & Jason are as sharp as a tack!
And that’s how you use Flash Freeze to save your behind when you don’t have a tripod with you! šŸ™‚

Erin & Jason at Harbor Club

Erin & Jason are friends of ours from St. Andrew’s Family Fitness Center where we work out. So it was extra special for me to be able to celebrate their wedding day with them AND capture all the joy of their Big Day!

It started at the Harborview Hotel with preparation photos of Erin, followed by their “First Glance” on the grand staircase. After that we spent some time in and around Waterfront Park creating some beautiful images. It was a gorgeous day, Jason was looking SHARP, and of course Erin was STUNNING in her wedding gown! We circled back around, ending up at the Harbor Club, where the wedding took place on the Pavilion as the sun was setting over the cityscape.

Later we noticed how dramatic the moon was that night. Erin & Josh were so adventurous and gladly slipped out with me to create an amazing image of them beside the Pineapple Fountain with the moon overhead! Click Here to check out the rest of their images. CONGRATULATIONS Erin & Jason!!!

Melanie Oudin

The young, talented, and fearless Melanie Oudin from Marietta, GA, will be playing today as she advances to the second week of the US Open. Earlier this year at the Family Circle Cup I had a quick private photo shoot with the 17 year old tennis sensation. She is as sweet off the court as she is feisty on the court. Catch the action on ESPN and cheer her on!!!

Deana & Will at Debordieu Colony

I was so EXCITED last weekend as I drove North on Hwy 17 heading to Debordieu Colony. I was on my way to photograph a BEAUTIFUL wedding, in this PICTURESQUE setting, with a FANTASTIC couple, all coordinated by the AMAZING Elizabeth of Grand Occasions!

Deana & Will were so much fun to work with…not an ounce of stress…nothing but energy. Deana was adorable in her beautiful gown that was perfect for the beach setting they selected. After the ceremony everyone headed to the club house for cocktails on the lawn while
Pan Fusion, a steel drum band, floated “island style” tunes into the air. Inside,
M Gladden Designs had created an amazing spread of floral displays like you would not believe. As guests entered the club house, award winning Incredible Edible Cakes had their masterpiece on display at the center of the circular staircase for Deana & Will to do the honors. Upstairs in the ballroom, DJ Wally B raised the roof as the couple made their grand entrance!

The whole day was absolutely perfect. Click Here to see the rest of their photos. CONGRATULATIONS Deana & Will…you guys ROCK…no…REALLY!!! šŸ™‚

Serengeti

I’ve finally found a couple hours to edit some more of our Tanzania Adventure photos. By our second day on safari, our excellent guide, Leonard, had led us to all of the “Big Five”. These images are from our first day in the Serengeti. We were UNBELIEVABLY lucky with our lion encounters. These big cats aren’t anything like the tame, placid animals you see in the zoo. THESE have vibrant mains, sinewy muscles, and a fire in their eyes that sends a shiver down your spine when they look directly at you. It was SO COOL to see how God and nature intended these great beasts to live!

Robin & Leif

Here’s a few of my favorites from Robin & Leif’s fun family session. They have the most ADORABLE kids, don’t they?!? It was a little stormy that day. But they decided to take a chance and were WELL rewarded. This is PROOF that days you don’t “think” will be good for portraits are often the BEST days for portraits. The drama of that sky just ads so much dimension to the images! šŸ™‚

Corporate Head Shots

I had a fun shoot for the folks at the David Gilston Insurance Agency the other day. This was my second time out to their office. I know, it looks like this was photographed in some expensive studio somewhere. But we have an AMAZING portable studio setup we take on location to provide studio-quality portraits to our corporate clients IN THEIR OFFICE! They love it because there’s no “down time” for their employees. Instead of each employee trucking over to our studio and wasting an hour of their time, we set everything up there and they simply walk down the hall when it’s their turn. It’s so cool because while I’m shooting, the images are wirelessly flying over to my laptop. So each person can review their images to make sure they’re happy with the results before going back to their desk!

If you work in an office environment, or know of any companies that would benefit by having professional, executive-style head-shots, please let me know. We are accepting new corporate clients!

Introducing Marley

This turned out to be a very special Anniversary for Cami amp; I. After loosing Henry several months ago, our hearts have finally healed. We met Marley through the Low-Country Golden Retriever Rescue program and fell in love! šŸ™‚ He’s a beautiful and fun-loving dog, just under two years old. He needed a family to love him and we are so thrilled that he chose US for the job!br /br /a href=”http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs192.snc1/6456_138953818728_690368728_2346032_5556882_n.jpg”img style=”DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 401px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 603px; TEXT-ALIGN: center” alt=”” src=”http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs192.snc1/6456_138953818728_690368728_2346032_5556882_n.jpg” border=”0″ //a

Introducing Marley

This turned out to be a very special Anniversary for Cami & I. After loosing Henry several months ago, our hearts have finally healed. We met Marley through the Low-Country Golden Retriever Rescue program and fell in love! šŸ™‚ He’s a beautiful and fun-loving dog, just under two years old. He needed a family to love him and we are so thrilled that he chose US for the job!

Nicole & J.B. at Legend Oaks

I had the pleasure of being a part of something really special last weekend! Nicole & JB were referrals to us from Brittany & Mitch, two of my FAVORITE clients in the whole world! And I’m sure Nicole & JB will become the same. šŸ™‚

They are both so fun and full of energy. Nicole was absolutely beautiful on her wedding day. She had this radiant smile that is either indicative of a wonderful day at the salon…or true love! (I don’t think she spent the day at the salon…HA!) JB is such a great guy. We had an absolute BLAST together. Though he’s been in the US many year, he’s originally from France. And since I’d grown up in the Congo, where once upon a time I was pretty fluent in French…I had a great time slipping into his mother tongue every now and then.

Their ceremony was held at the scenic Legend Oaks Golf Club. And we all went to historic Middleton Place for pictures before heading to her parent’s fantastic spread for the reception. Though his family couldn’t make the journey, his Host Parents were absolutely wonderful…as were Nicole’s parents and brothers. I specifically selected the song for their slideshow to lend a European flare to their images. So enjoy the show! Then head over to http://www.chrisandcami.zenfolio.com/ to see the rest of their pictures. Alors, FELICITATION Nicole & J.B. !!!

Our Hearts are Sad

Abby & Dan were married at Alhambra Hall on July 28th, 2007. I remember their wedding like it was YESTERDAY! They were such a beautiful couple with so much joy in their hearts and a real connection with each other. I recently received the sad news that Abby just lost her battle with cancer. You can read her story here: www.mylifeline.org/abbadoo. Cami & I were shocked when we heard the news. Our hearts and prayers go out to Dan and her family during this difficult time.

It was an honor to have been a part of this special day in Abby’s life many years ago. Her passing is a powerful reminder to me that what I do is not just a job. Creating beautiful images that tell the story of special people, bonds of love, and the gift that is LIFE is something that I am humbled to be a part of!!!