Happy New Year friends! I just realized as I was going over all my photos from the past year to choose these very special 150 that this is my 6th year to do this! That makes me so happy! I do want to say that this is a totally subjective grouping in that these are my favorites… and have not been chosen by voting, or an impartial panel or anything even remotely like that. Some of the photos were taken by my daughter Celeste, which I must note because darn it I didn’t get to go to New Zealand where a couple of these were taken. I love every one of my clients and every wedding, event and portrait session is so important to me. But there is something about certain photos that just jump out at you, either aesthetically, or emotionally, or compositionally… and sometimes because of what they represent or say. And every year I do this it gets harder… I mean to tell you it’s difficult to choose just 150 out of over 100,000 photos. This is just something I do to reflect over my past year of work and to celebrate my clients and to celebrate creativity! A lot of lot of love went into each and every one of these photos and it was such a joy and honor to work with each of you and to be a part of your lives in this way. Here’s to more photo adventures in 2018!
MEGAN AND BRENDAN SO IN LOVE…
I first met Megan when I took her pictures when she was graduating from college. I was struck then by her calm easy demeanor and of course how beautiful she is, and as I usually do, I talk with my clients about their lives when we are shooting and ask lots of questions. Her eyes lit up when she talked about her guy, and how well he treated her. Then when we met again after she became engaged and we were talking about the photography for their upcoming wedding, she told me about the elaborate scavenger hunt he planned for her to pop the question. This young man certainly knows a thing or two about women! When I met him for the first time during this engagement shoot I saw instantly what a gentleman Brendan is, and how in love these two are. Brendan posted one of these images of the two of them throwing leaves on Facebook with the caption “This is what it is like marrying your best friend.” There isn’t really much I can say to top that! I can’t wait for their November wedding, it is going to be as gorgeous as they are together!
NAT AND NICOLE SO OBVIOUSLY IN LOVE!
Some couples just make marriage look good… and Nat and Nicole absolutely do! They are so obviously crazy about each other and truly enjoy each other’s company that it is infectious… and there was a lot of laughter the day of this shoot. I shot this session some time ago in one of my favorite spots… downtown near the AT&T Performing Arts Center. So many great nooks and crannies… architecture and greenspace… but Nat and Nicole outshone all their surroundings. I mean Nicole’s smile is a stunner! They brought their adorable dogs along and the four of them are so cute together I can hardly stand it!
I had so much fun with you guys!
BECCA AND GREG ARE ENGAGED!
Becca and Greg are such a sweet and romantic couple! I hadn’t met Greg before this shoot as I had only met with Becca and her mom to discuss the wedding. This is often the case and I never know how the groom to be is going to be in front of the camera. Greg was quiet at first, but I tell you what… this young man is a natural in front of the camera. These two have such great chemistry and such an amazing connection that it translated seamlessly to the camera. Their natural romanticism and loving way with one another made for beautiful images. They met in high school and have been together for many years despite how young they appear. I have a feeling that they will be one of those couples who will always appear younger than they are… lucky devils.
We met at Becca’s family home and the area was rich with perfect spots for photos. Between the bridge… which was such a fabulous backdrop, to the light coming through the golden trees, to the beautiful pool in the back yard, we were absolutely spoiled with beauty! I was particularly spoiled this day because my dear friend and fellow photographer Udi Mandu came along to share his lighting magic with us and it doesn’t hurt that he also sounds like Antonio Banderas… or maybe Antonio Banderas sounds like Udi… but at any rate everything pretty much sounds good when he says it. So we had romance coming from all directions.
There are things that stand out with every new couple I work with… of course these two have great style and I always notice that… (three changes of clothes make my stylemeter happy)… But more than that I noticed the way Greg looked at Becca. He seemed not to get tired of looking at her, it was as if we weren’t even there… and he obviously loves being close to her. I don’t think Becca minds a bit.
I have to confess that I am pretty crazy about these images… I liked every one of them… which is so rare for me. But I mean who wouldn’t like these two? Their love is contagious! Becca wanted some fall-ish images as their wedding is going to be in February and the save the dates will be going out in the fall. Being the “all out fall fan” that I am I was all for it! I have to also note that the back of Greg’s truck was such a cool place for photos… personal to them and it doesn’t hurt that they look like they are in some kind of ad. They are both Baylor Grads (Go Bears!) as am I, so I tried to get the Baylor sticker on the rear window in the image…but found myself honing in on the two of them instead.
These two are just a stunning couple… and it was a joy to photograph them. This is one of my very favorite images from the day, which was a hard call let me tell you! Becca and Greg I absolutely cannot wait to photograph the wedding!