A few days ago, I received the scans from my favorite lab, Richard Photo Lab in L.A, and I was ecstatic to share them. I was really pleased with how everything turned out. Film really captures the way I see so truly and moving up from 35mm to medium format, I am even more sold to continue to shoot film. I’ve been including more and more film in my wedding work and I’d love to eventually shoot the majority of an event with it. While digital is so nice in that you are able to check focus, composition, etc immediately, the focus tends to be on “did I get it right or not?”, and you loose track of being in the moment (we see many photographers loose shots because they are checking their last shot). With film you just worry about all that stuff later and when your in the moment, you just shoot and make it count. I just love the film process and am so excited to keep experimenting and journeying through this medium.

Before I share the images, I also wanted to update everyone on what we have been up to these last few months. We finished our last wedding of the season two weeks ago, so we have been in 100 percent editing mode and I am thrilled to share a ton of films in the next few weeks! I also have been working with Stillmotion and CBS on a documentary project called “Game of Honor”, which is a feature length documentary highlighting the Army vs. Navy football game and the journey leading to it. This year’s game, contested in our nation’s capital of Washington D.C. on December 10, will be followed by the film’s premiere on Wednesday, Dec. 21, only on Showtime. Some of my shots have made it into the teaser episodes, which you can view here. I am still in disbelief that some of my footage is on CBS’s website. Its definitely been an experience I will never forget and I really want to thank Stillmotion for letting me help out and giving me an incredible opportunity. So stay tuned and look out for new posts over the next few weeks. We have some surprises to reveal too. :] Enjoy the images below!

I really want to thank all of the vendors and rest of my team that helped out to make this wedding so special! Courtney and Brittany from Merriment Events were amazing to work with and were super helpful in keeping everyone on the same page and the day running smoothly. Thanks to Ashley Goodwin for helping out with photography, Jon Combs, and my father Greg for helping out on the cinema side.

Charlotte

In early August we went down to Charlotte, NC to film my good friend Ashley and Marshall’s wedding. This girl is amazing(I love it when a bride becomes a friend..yes, Jasmine Star loves this line too). It was so cool to get to know Ashley over the last few months and for her to second shoot with me twice. The best part of the trip was meeting Marshall and seeing how their personalities mix together so well. We came down on a Friday, shot an interview with Ashley and Marshall, and just hung out during the rehearsal dinner. I also got to meet Mike Smith of Ash Imagery, who is an incredibly talented film shooter from Philadelphia. It was also amazing to meet Sarah Goodwin, Becky Goodwin, Ashley Barnett, and Jeremy Mitchell. It was hard to shoot the wedding when there were so many cool people to talk to haha. This is one of those weddings I cannot wait to post and I am hoping I get to soon. Enjoy a small peak at downtown Charlotte and Ashley’s Rehearsal dinner! The first film is Tri-X (black and white) and the color is Kodak Ektar (contrasty goodness).

The Rockingham County Fair

 The Rockingham County Fair happens every August on the fair grounds near Harrisonburg, Virginia. I never go and had only been once. This year was different and I was all about going to the fair to shoot the crazy mix of rural and city culture. I met a great local photojournalist once during a workshop named Allen Litten and he had shown us pictures of the fair throughout the years. I think this is what inspired me to shoot it on film. Its probably the largest yearly event that happens here and so it remains timeless. Ashley came up from NC and shot it with me, but through different yet similar perspectives. It was a great night of cotton candy, funnel cakes, cowboy hats + boots, blue jeans, dangerous rides, and no pressure to get the shot. This was all about having fun and it really brought me back to why I got into photography…the little moments. The films I used in this were Portra 400 (I now love it), Fuji 400H, and Delta 3200 with a 35mm 1.4 (Canon EOS-3) and 50mm F/2 (Leica) lens.

I hope you enjoyed just a small peak at some of the experiences Summer has brought me. I’ll be posting more personal stories soon and quite a few wedding films, so check the blog often for updates. I am also excited to announce that we are working on converting our garage into a studio space and I’ll be talking about that quite a bit as it comes together. :]

The ceremony and reception were both held at the Thomas Birkby House in Leesburg, Virginia. The house itself was simply incredible. It was filled to the brim with details already and Emily & Doug’s touches only added to that. The centerpieces are Emily’s family’s glassware, as her parents are antique collectors (so cool). The glassware is actually remaniscent of the period the Birkby House was built, which really worked well with the setting. During the ceremony, Emily & Doug incorporated a really neat German tradition called the “Nuernberg Bridal Cup” instead of a unity candle. You can read the fascinating story of the tradition here. The cup is a handcrafted pewter vessel in the shape of a woman with drinking cups on both ends. Both the bride and groom are able to toast their wedding and drink at the same time from the same cup. After the ceremony, guests headed into the reception, while we took Emily & Doug into the golden light in front of the house. I swear, Emily & Doug are hilarious in front of the camera, especially when they pull out their lips and moustaches from the engagement session. They were giving me so many awesome poses, so it was tough to pick out just a few. I hope you enjoy a small look at Emily & Doug’s wedding day and stay tuned for the film coming soon!!

Vendors:

After a month of shooting film, I have come to love it. Film forces you to slow down and compose your shot instead of snapping away. I’ve always been a big fan of quality versus quantity and when you have 36 frames to compose in, you make them count. The other great thing is that film saves time. No longer is photoshop even needed. When you get the film back from the lab, the colors are pastel and smooth, which is what I aim for when I edit my digital files. Lab fees can be expensive, but the time saved is worth it in my opinion. So whats next? Well my goal is to start incorporating more film into my photography sessions and keep that as an option for couple’s interested in it. For those familiar with Super 8mm film, I have already begun offering that as an add on for my cinema packages, and is a completely different post. :] Below are a few personal images taken with my Leica on the streets of Virginia!

If you ever get a chance, be sure to check out Jack Browns in Downtown Harrisonburg. The atmosphere and food is fantastic!

I am currently working with James Madison University on a project for the Health Department. We were shooting a restaurant scene above.

While not using the camera on set or on the street, I set up a model session with Becca Van Cleave, who is one of my favorite models. :]

The last two images are from my medium format Bronica camera. The images from that camera and the Hasselblad appear as squares or 6×6. These last two images are from the Valentine’s Day shoot I shot a film for with Jodi Miller Photography. It was a nice shoot to experiment with film :]