Although there were shotguns present it was obvious that they would not be needed to encourage the marriage of August and Karissa. It was very clear how much these two loved each other and were meant to be together. Mary and I had an amazing time capturing their beautiful day on July 25th at Kent Park located just west of Tiffin on Highway 6. Kent Park offers endless opportunities to be creative with the many scenic backgrounds around the park. The Black Eyed Susies were in full bloom and made for some spectacular backgrounds.

Thank you to Karissa, August, and their families for making us part of their amazing day!

Sit back and enjoy the slideshow!

Kylie and Ryan had one of the most beautiful weddings I’ve ever been to. They started off with a lake side ceremony at the Amana Golf Course, then took a horse drawn carriage from the golf course to the Festhalle Barn in Amana. Congrats, Kylie and Ryan!

Jeni and Cody were an amazing couple and a lot of fun to work with. We had an amazing time capturing their special day. Good luck to both of them as they head to New Zealand to start their new lives together.

Natalia and Ryan are a wonderful couple. They(and a lot of their guests) came from Connecticut to have their ceremony at a beautiful location outside of Vinton, IA. Their reception followed at the Scottish Rite Temple in Cedar Rapids. Ryan has served in Iraq and continues to serve our great country. A special thanks to Ryan and all the great men and women of the armed forces who continue to fight for the freedoms that we all enjoy everyday.

There’s no better time in a childs life than the age of 3. Life is good, you have the worlds attention, and you’re just as cute as you’ll ever be. This series of photos was for Sydney’s 3rd birthday, Happy Birthday Sydney!

I don’t think there is any discipline out there that doesn’t require practice. Studio photography definitely falls into that category. This past week I had the great opportunity to work with Lauren, Lauren, and Ashlynn in my studio. They were very patient as we tried different lighting patterns, backgrounds, etc. I learn something every time I work in the studio and this time was no exception. I’ve been working with my Canon 5d Mark II and didn’t realize that the flash sync speed was 1/200th instead of the 1/250th I’m used to from my other cameras. It didn’t take too long to figure this out once I started seeing a black bar down the side of the photo.

Nikki Hynek, http://www.nikkihynek.com/, came over and did makeup for all the models. Soon we will be offering a packaged deal for your glamour photography needs.

Nikki Wagner-Hynek, a wonderful makeup artist, brought 4 beautiful models to my studio for a little portfolio building. Tayler, Hannah, Sauud, and Julie were wonderful to work with and we had a lot of fun. They were very patient with me while I was trying different things and changing around the lighting.

I met Nikki while working on a movie set where she is working as a Makeup Artist and me as a photographer. She is one of the many wonderful people I have met throughout this project. Look for photos from The Offering very soon.

Tonight we get ready to start a new year and what better way than to have dinner at The Red Avocado in Iowa City, IA. The evening was a benefit for Iowa City’s Summer of the Arts. Half of all profits from this evening will be donated to Summer of the Arts.

These images were captured with a Canon 5d Mark II paired with my trusty Canon 50mm f/1.8, and no flash. Seems kind of ironic having such a cheap little lens on such a not so cheap body. I was shooting at ISO 3200 and these have not been processed other than a conversion to JPG.

The dinner was nothing short of amazing. The food was rich, full of flavor, and by far the best vegan food on the planet.

The Menu

Mary patiently waiting for Round 1.

Round 1 was Black Bean & Corn Fritters.

Black Bean and Corn Fritter

Round two was a Green Salad with Pea Shoots and Seasonal Vegetables topped with a Cilantro Vinaigrette. For some reason I didn’t get a picture of the salad, imagine a pile of greens that tastes really really good Here’s a picture of Mary enjoying hot chocolate instead.

Mmmmmm, the best hot chocolate ever!

Round 3 was a Winter Vegetable Torte with a Red Wine Sauce. At the bottom of the pile was a beet that blended wonderfully with the wine sauce.

Winter Vegetable Torte with a Red Wine Sauce

Round 4, this is where it got REALLY good. I’m somewhat of a chocoholic (if that’s a word). The chocolate truffle was very rich and full of flavor. So good in fact that we got four more to take home, and NO I’m not sharing with you, Terry!

Chocolate Truffle

Thank you to the Red Avocado for such an amazing meal. Our last meal of 2008 could not have been any better!

About 6 weeks ago I had the opportunity to do a 8 hour portrait lighting seminar with Don Chick. I have been working on my lighting skills ever since. Carl Bromberg and I recently spent a few hours in the studio and this is my favorite of the bunch. Which PP do you prefer?

Hello and welcome to my first blog. I am hoping that this site will help me to become a better photographer by getting feedback from those who read my posts.

I hope to post an entry from my latest wedding very soon……..