It was such a pleasure to get to photograph Amy and John’s intimate wedding last Friday at Della Terra in Estes Park.  Although I love working with a second shooter, it was a treat to get to have these two all to myself and to document their special day in such an editorial manner.  Amy and John were planning on getting married next year, but Amy found out that she was expecting, so they pushed the wedding back to February…. which I think is so unbelievably romantic! I love winter weddings.

I just have to say that Amy and John are madly in love.  I can see this.  I shoot enough weddings to see genuine, true love.  These two have it and I was brought to tears again and again just seeing the way they simply looked at each other.  This blog post is very “ceremony heavy”, but I thought it was one of the most beautiful and authentic ceremonies that I’ve been to.  And I can’t complain about the gorgeous light pouring in from behind, either!   Congratulations, Amy and John.  I hope to see you soon for some belly shots!

Leah and Phil were married Saturday at the Westin Tabor Center in downtown Denver.  I have to say, working with Stacy Pisani of Alexan Events is simply  a treat.  This wedding was  stunning–maybe one of the most beautiful winter celebrations that I have even been a part of.  There were hundreds of candles, vintage jewelry, gorgeous flowers and a beautiful, beautiful couple.  Leah looked like a princess and  while I didn’t ask Phil what he thought of his bride, there was no need.  His eyes said it all.  He was mesmerized…

Lighting this event was no easy feat however. Candles and twilight make for a very difficult white balance situation with the mixture of  all the warm and cool tones.  To top it off, when you have 20 other guests using direct flash on the bride or the large windows facing downton, it is a lighting nightmare!  I stuck to  “Julie’s rule of thumb” though and focused on getting the moment and trusting my instincts technically, instead of fretting about the light, where to set up my flash and what shutter speed to use to both capture the ambient light, and still have my subjects in focus.    I hope these images convey the beauty of the day and the gorgeous design and decor.  One thing is for sure—they do convey the emotional highlights of Leah and Phil’s most important day…  the laughter was contagious…  doesn’t an image say 1000 words?

The bridesmaids had the best jewelry!  The earrings and necklaces were to die for.  And better yet, they were  handmade by Phil’s mother…

And this hairpiece was dreamy!  A gorgeous, artdeco piece of art!

It’s easy to get caught up in the hoopla of a wedding day…  but I appreciate it when I see my clients take a “time-out” for a blessing… what a wonderful way to start “forever”.

For those of you who insist  on using “actions”,  just mix tungsten light with incandescent and you’ll naturally get that “70’s” feel.  Haha!   I tried working this image to balance the whites, but ended up liking it just the way it was…

Leah and Phil met before the ceremony to take communion together.  I was honored to get to witness and document such a private and sacred ritutual.

Here’s the tungsten/incandescent thing again…  I actually love mix of hues in this image.

Stacy Pisani did an amazing job designing this room.  It’s not alwasy easy to work with hotels, but this  ceremony site felt like a romantic scene out of an old movie…  it was perfect.

I don’t want to eat my words and actually thank people for pulling out their flash during the precession, but this time somebody’s direct light actually made the image!  The picture before however was Leah with a red radar on her face.  That one will also be black and white.  Hee hee

Another “outtake” for my website!

Leah and Phil had a great party after the ceremoy.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much joy and laughter!  It truly was contagious.

I think one of the hardest things about being an artist is to define one’s own work and style.  It’s certainly easy to sit down and critique somebody else’s collection and deconstruct the genius behind it, but labeling ourselves in that way is just too scary.  I’ve been photographing weddings for 8 years.  8 years and I still can’t define my work! But I will say that there have been some very strong “themes” in my last few blog entries and I think it’s only appropriate that I put in a few lines about what it is that I’m doing here—an “artist statement”, if you will.

Emotion.  Emotion.  Emotion.  Tears are one of my stronger areas…  I am blessed to have the coolest clients who allow me to get up close and personal.  This is what I’m primarily moved by in so many weddings—-the joy and surrender to love on a wedding day will always make me cry, and I love my job because of this.   But I’m moved by a different emotion as well—humor.  I can’t tell you how many funny things I’ve seen at weddings.  Just check out my “outtakes”!   Seriously—these things may not be funny to anybody else, but it’s my sense of humor that gets me through the very busy wedding seasons.  So thanks to all my clients who “humor me” by allowing me to post some of these esoteric images on my blog.  I guess you could say that I am an emotional paradox.  I could watch “Pride and Prejudice” and “Rushmore” in the same day.  And if I were to compare my taste in film to my style of photography, you can see why I might  post an image of a ring bearer picking his nose  in the same entry as a tearful moment during the ceremony.  It’s the yin and yang of my work, I guess.

So, without further ado, I give you my last and final wedding of 2009.  I can’t think of a better wedding to cap off the season than with  Anne and Greg!  They were amazing clients—totally chill, yet totally hot for each other!  Anne is an artist herself, so I wasn’t surprised by her impeccable style.  And Greg, the handsome chap that married her, was so much fun to work with–he adores Anne and is down for anything when it comes to a good time.  It’s funny—when I had Anne and Greg over for their premier Greg asked, “Were we as cool as your other clients?”.  My answer to that question is—Greg and Anne, you are as cool as they come.  Thank you for giving me the honor to document the most precious day of your lives, and trusting me with your sweetest and funniest moments.  Congratulations!  And Anne—I’m totally serious about you selling your jewelry at my studio!

It’s generally the bride featured in this moment right before the precession, but Greg couldn’t look more sober and ready to “walk down that aisle”… I love this shot!

I posted this image because it has the famous, Emily Campbell in it of Bella designs.  She rocks my world and I love, love, love working with her!   If you’re searching for a coordinator in the Summit area, give Miss Campbell a call!  She’s more than a wedding coordinator, she’s like a personal assistant!

You might remember Hannah and Eric from their engagement pictures last summer.  They are the amazing couple who have been serving our country for the last 4 years and have spent far too much time apart from each other.  But hh happy day, Hannah and Eric were finally married in October!  And  I just have to say that it was one of the most moving weddings I’ve been to in a long time, simply because the road to Hannah and Eric’s wedding day was not any easy one.  Hannah and Eric  personalized the day with things like longboards, a roaring recession, and badass music.  And when I say badass, I mean these two cats have some taste! Hannah walked down the aisle to Sigur Ros, walked back up it to The Black Eyed Peas, and the couple danced their first dance to Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.   Yep—they are definitely cool.

Needless to say, this wedding wasn’t last weekend…  I’ve been the biggest slacker this year when it comes to blogging.  It’s a time thing and has nothing to do with liking some weddings more than others.  I had the best clients this year and plan on blogging every single wedding (eventually).  Plus things are slowing down this time of year and I’m suddenly feeling quite productive!

Jamie and Dwight’s wedding is at the top of my list of “very favorite weddings ever attended”.  They were married at Pastures of plenty, one of my favorite venues in Colorado for starters, but I think the real reasons that I loved this wedding so much, was because it was intimate with about 30 guests, super laid back, and felt straight out of a 1940’s movie.   There was vintage decor, croquet, badminton, lavender lemonade and the best blue grass band ever to grace a wedding (I so wish i could remember their name).  To top it off,  Jamie and Dwight went out of their way to make me feel like a guest–they even stuffed my arms with two bottles of organic wine when I left.  It’s fun for me to recap this day as I blog it…

It’s been a couple of months, but Congratulations are still in order, Jamie and Dwight!

Jamie and Dwight saw each other before the wedding—not to do photos, we did those after the ceremony. They simply wanted to spend their entire day together and frankly didn’t care about all the “rules” and “traditions”.  Dwight was even in the room when Jamie put her dress on.  It was quite refreshing, actually.  And very romantic.  This is a shot of Jamie and Dwight in the guest house at Pastures of Plenty, just chillin’.

I’ve photographed many a groom’s face when he catches the first glimpse of his bride, but I don’t ever think I’ve captured a groom’s expression while he watches his bride dress, until this day.  Pretty priceless.

I loved that Jamie walked herself down the aisle…

Jamie was pretty bummed about the weather as it was cold and rainy the morning of her wedding.  But her Mom put in a little request to Jesus for some sunshine and er prayers were answered when the sun came out just in time for the ceremony.

Gorgeous salads!