The Expressive Blog

I have a lot to be grateful for... and one of those things, is the great people I get to work with - like Wesley and Sarah. It turns out I have more ambassadors out there, talking up Expressive Photographics, than I realize, and that's how Sarah and Wesley learned about me - from the mother of one of my happy brides! Remember folks, I am available for assignments anywhere in the USA - not just the Bay Area. If you know someone planning their wedding in another area, who is looking for a photographer, I hope you will let them know about Expressive Photographics... But I'm getting off the real subject of this post, which is Wesley and Sarah's wedding.

Their wedding was held at the Saint Joseph Basilica, in Alameda, where generations of their family members have also been married. The reception was at the Claremont Resort, in Berkeley. It was a beautiful day, and here are the pics to prove it...

Above, Wes awaits the start of his wedding ceremony. Below, he escorts mother and grandmother to their seats.

Sarah was escorted by her grandfather. I love these next captured moments.

With some weddings, the timing is planned to allow a break of several hours, between the ceremony and reception. Such was the case with Wes and Sarah's. After the ceremony, they planned almost three hours of photo-taking, in various locations. About twenty minutes was dedicated to doing some traditional family group shots, and the rest was dedicated to many cool photo-ops with the couple and their attendants. A special note to other brides-to-be... I am often given 60 minutes or less, to complete all requested photos of the family, plus the wedding party, plus the bride and groom together, and I can get great results with less time when necessary. However, if you want the most from your photographer on your wedding day, be sure to allow them plenty of time to work creatively with you. Why would anyone invest thousands of dollars in photography for their wedding, and then short-change themselves, by not giving the photographer time to create something very beautiful for them? You might be surprised to see, how I often must do a great deal of photography in a very short time! Of course, as a pro, you must learn how to perform with the time-constraints of real-world weddings! Playing "Hurry up, but make it pretty" was not the case, with Sarah and Wes though. We actually had PLENTY... more than plenty of photo-time, which was a good thing, as it turned out. That "extra" time came in very handy, as an opportunity for Sarah and Wes to slip upstairs... just to check in to their bridal suite, at The Claremont, that is.

No matter who your photographer is, it can be very beneficial to carve out as much time as possible, to allow them to create the images that will preserve your memories of one of the most joyful and important days in your lives. Even much of what is today called "wedding photojournalism" is often more about "creating (and then capturing) the moment", than about just capturing the moment. Many moments are best captured with zero input/interference from a photographer - such as the wedding ceremony, first dance, toasts etc. I believe the best approach to capturing a wedding, is to direct or choreograph less, rather than more, but a good photographer also needs to know when and how to interact with the people in front of the camera, to bring out the best in any moment. Oh yeah... and it helps if you can make the experience fun!

Okay, I'll stop ranting. Here are the rest of my favorite shots from Wes and Sarah's wedding.

With this image, I wanted to produce a grainy, vintage look.

I recently did a photo-session with Noga Vilozny, visionary artiste, singer and dancer. This was a test-shoot, where we were free to be spontaneous, and I had the perfect opportunity to experiment with some new ideas and techniques for creating interesting nighttime images. We also made some more "conventional" portrait images, that are very much like what I do for my clients. I have posted several images from that session here. I hope you enjoy them!

BTW - Noga Vilozny, is a wonderful and talented performing-artist! She truly loves what she does, and that quality infuses what she does. She creates performances in flamenco dance, and is also gifted with a beautiful voice. If you ever want a special performance for an event you're planning, I recommend contacting Noga.

This final image was the primary new technique I wanted to test with Noga. I am currently refining my skills for creating images that combine well-illuminated subjects, such as Noga here, with starry skies. For a first try, I was very happy with the result here! What do you think of it?

I would also like to give thanks to my team of excellent assistants, who braved the cold, damp and windy conditions on this photography session. It was their help, which made the session so easy and even more fun! They were John Christiansen, Reija Bolwell and Leila Cara.