Global Ethanol Summit – Day 1

Last week I had the distinct honor of photographing an amazing international conference at the Hyatt Regency in Reston, VA, just outside our nation’s capitol.

The 2023 Global Ethanol Summit (GES) seeks to elevate bioethanol’s international visibility and ongoing successful initiatives as a viable decarbonization solution within the transportation and emerging new uses sectors.  The conference will feature senior-level officials from agriculture, environment and energy ministries from around the world to discuss environmental, human health and economic benefits of ethanol use with industry leaders, while fostering collaboration and trade.  More than 450 ministerial-level officials and senior-level industry leaders, ethanol producers and refiners from over 40 countries attended the event, with the goal of engaging a broad array of international ethanol leaders about the benefits of expanding global use.

Day 1 of the conference included registration, networking, keynote presentations, group portraits of various countries, and a warm Welcome Reception.

Caloudas Family at Daniel Island Club

Cami and I love re-connecting with old friends.

We had the privilege of being Greg & Meghann’s neighbors for many years…as well as the honor of photographing their wedding! Even though we moved, and they moved, we still stay in touch. Last week we went over to their house for “portraits and dinner”.  🙂

In between brief showers, we captured some fun portraits of their beautiful family on the front porch. Then during another break in the weather, we zipped over to the Daniel Island Club for some shots with the dramatic post-storm sunset! While we were there, we picked up dinner and brought it back to their house for a lovely evening of fun fellowship!

Greg & Meghann are such wonderful humans…and we are grateful for their friendship!!!

Capers Hall for DWG Consulting

The Citadel has long been an iconic landmark here in Charleston. I’ve enjoyed photographing many graduations, senior portraits, weddings, events, and political debates at the military college campus.

Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of photographing one of the largest renovations the college has done in recent years. Plans to renovate Capers Hall, which is at the corner of the main entrance to the campus, have been in the works since 2017. And the construction has taken over two years. But now that it’s complete, the new facility looks AMAZING!!!

Many thanks to Cate with DWG Consulting Engineers for bringing me on board and trusting me to showcase this beautiful building for them.

Marketing Shots for Seamon Whiteside

The rains cleared up just in time! Which left us with a perfect fall day to photograph new headshots and marketing photos for Seamon Whiteside. Many thanks to Lia for organizing everything, and keeping us all on track!!!

Gracie’s Senior Portraits

I’ve been photographing Gracie’s family for over a decade. Every year they vacation down here on Seabrook Island, during which we pick a fun spot around town to meet up for a fun photo session.  I just photographed their family earilier this summer.  But this weekend, I had the distinct pleasure of photographing an entire session just for Gracie!

It’s been such a joy documenting Gracie’s life from when I first met her as a shy little girl! Watching her grow into this beautiful, confident, inteligent and independant young lady makes me so honored that her family welcomed me into their lives and allowed me to preserve all her life-stages along the way.

I know Grace’s parents are so proud of her! And I am SUPER EXCITED for what the future holds for her. Keep an eye out for this young lady…great things lie ahead. And please help me congratulate her on achieving this fantastic milestone!!!

Fulcrum Staffing at Mt. Pleasant Waterfront Park

Fulcrum staffing helps the accounting industry by finding qualified staff who can fill much needed positions at different firms, especially during the hectic tax season!

I’ve had the pleasure of being their photographer for a couple years now. Yesterday I met up with them at the Mt. Pleasant Waterfront Park to photograph a couple new team members, and some updated group photos. They are SUCH a nice group of kind and friendly individuals! We had a BLAST!!!

Savage Academy Boxing Tournament at EB Fitness

Photographing boxing is a REAL CHALLENGE!!!

The whole purpose of the sport is to inflict damage, while avoiding being hit. So the athletes are constantly bobbing and weaving, moving eratically all over the ring, trying to avoid being hit…which translates into “avoiding being photographed”! Not to mention that the ring is surrounded by ropes that block your view and screw up the autofocus. But the worst part is, the ring is usually poorly lit…forcing you to shoot at obscenely high ISO if you have any hope of freezing the frantic action!!!

It was an honor to be invited by my friends Jason and Erica to come out and photograph a boxing tournament at Erica’s gym last weekend. This was my first time photographing boxing. I have a newfound respect for those who photograph this incredibly challenging sport!!!

* Nikon Z9, Nikkor 24-70 f2.8 Z, Nikkor 70-180 f2.8 Z, Nikkor 70-200 f2.8 Z, ISO 10,000 with Lightroom AI Noise Reduction *

Orange Grove Elementary Volleyball

My friend, Erin, is an amazing teacher, a wonderful photographer, and a fantastic coach to her Orange Grove Elementary students! So when she asked if she could hire me to come out and photograph one of their games for her, I jumped at the chance!

I played volleyball in high-school, as well as in intramural competitions at college. Even though I was a setter, I was still too short to play on the team in college…but our intramural teams were still really competitive.  Plus I was already playing on the college soccer and tennis teams! I feel that volleyball, and team sports in general, are truly instramental in developing confidence, structure, discipline, communication, and social skills for young people.

It was great to see the kids out there playing hard and having fun!!!

* Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 24-70 f2.8, Nikkor Z 70-200 f2.8, ISO 8000 with Lightroom AI Noise Reduction

The Kunitzer Family at Hampton Park

Several years ago I had the great honor of photographing Mary & Ryan’s amazing wedding: https://chrisandcami.com/mary-ryan-at-st-andrews-church-at-the-citadel-beach-house/. Yesterday I caught up with them at Hampton Park, where I got to meet their adorable 5-year old daughter. We had so much fun, exploring the beautiful grounds and capturing some fun family portraits of this amazing family!

Bri & Andrew’s Wedding at The Oasis

Cami and I have been looking forward to Bri and Andrew’s wedding for a long time!  Andrew is Cami’s awesome nephew. We were so happy when he found his soulmate in Bri. Together they have built a wonderful life together, which includes their adorable little daughter, Marley!

Their wedding day turned out to have the most perfect weather any bride and groom could ever hope for…sunny and seventies with blue skies and puffy white clouds. It was held at The Oasis Conference Center in Loveland, OH…a picturesque venue right on the golf course.

Bri was absolutely stunning in her cathedral length gown and flowing lace veil! My favorite part of her enseble was her cool blue Converse sneakers! Andrew was looking sharp too, in his charcoal suit and white bowtie.

The service was really special, and included a unique unity ceremony, where Bri and Andrew brought a sapling from their yard which was set on a table under their arbor. During the service, they each took turns pouring mason jars of soil from his family home and her family home, which they combined with the soil already in the pot from THEIR home!

CONGRATULATIONS Bri & Andrew! We wish you all the best as you begin this new chapter in your lives!!!

Plastics Industry Association Conference

I had never heard of the Plastics Industry Association. But when my good friend and amazing event planner, Kristyn Norton, contacted me about photographing their annual conference, and told me the big kick-off was at a local park where attendees would be volunteering their time to pick up plastic trash I was hooked!

The Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS) is a purpose-driven organization that supports the entire plastics supply chain. This Fall Conference is an annual event that brings the industry together to discuss, learn, and grow. This year’s conference was held at the Charleston Marriott. The program was designed to help participants network with other industry leaders and gain insights into the plastics industry’s future, how it may impact their business, and how to make plastic products more sustainable and recycleable. From receptions to meals and offsite excursions – the conference also encourages participants to meet other leaders from different sectors and backgrounds, build relationships, find mentors, and learn about new opportunities.

It was a real pleasure photographing this conference and working work with this fun, friendly, and knowledgeable group!

Sunny Brook Equestrian Team

While visiting family in Troy, Ohio, we had the pleasure of photographing a team photo for the Sunny Brooke Equestrian Center! It was a pretty uggly, gray, and overcast evening. But with a few speedlights and warming gels, we added a little extra punch to create a beautiful portrait for these adorable young ladies!!! Many thanks to Noelle for inviting us to capture it for them!