Monika and Shannon

I had the honor of shooting the wedding of Monika and Shannon today.  They drove here from Michigan because they couldn't get married in their home state.  I love shooting these small weddings - they're fun events, full of love.  Kathy Blume officiated, I shot it, music by Malek, cupcakes by New Moon Cafe.  Fun shoot!

Staci's testing at Yordan's Black Belt Academy

My buddy Staci Grove, fellow photographer and martial artist, tested for her green belt at Yordan's Black Belt Academy in Underhill.  Staci couldn't test and run the camera at the same time, so she asked me to come shoot it for her.  Lots of interesting shooting, and a great testing!

Night Fires

On Thursday, I shot the production of "Night Fires" at Middlebury's Town Hall Theater.  Fascinating shoot!  It's a cool production - lots of great lighting and great music.

Shooting theater is a lot like shooting sports - there's a lot of motion, lots of quick decisions to make, and so on.  Except that you're doing it...  in the dark.

Video shoot for Vermontivate!

Today, I shot the video for Vermontivate's latest promotional video with Kathy Blume.


Fun shoot for a great cause!

Updating Jack's business cards

I did some headshots for Jack Kell of Kell and Company Real Estate today.  Jack's been without business cards for a while and needed to update his picture.  We shot these at Jack's office - the lovely Old Stone House in Winooski.  The building dates from 1790 and is the oldest building in Winooski.  The stone walls are a full foot thick!  It's an amazing facility.  Fun shoot!  And if you need a Realtor, Jack's a great guy.

Headshots with Haley!

I did some headshots for Haley today.  Great shoot!  She's a joy to work with - one of those people that lights up when you point a camera at her.  These were all taken in City Hall Park in Burlington.

Vanessa and Maria's wedding

I had the honor of shooting another awesome couple this weekend, Vanessa and Maria.  They'd flown in from Florida to get hitched, as they can't yet get hitched there.  Once again, wedding officiant extraordinaire Kathy Blume officiated, at her house in Charlotte.

The light that morning was gorgeous - early morning sun filtering down through the trees and the little bit of leaves that remained.  A great start to the day.  Thanks, folks, for letting me shoot your wedding!

Smooching on the bridge:

More bridge fun!

A quick turn...

Immediately following a hammock incident.

The happy couple!

I liked their props.

AJ and Steph's wedding

I got a call from AJ and Steph about a week ago - they'd planned their wedding a while back, including a photographer, but their photographer had to bail on them shortly before the wedding.  They called me, and we were off and running!

I met AJ and Steph at the Sterling Ridge Resort in Jeffersonville.  Despite having lived in this general vicinity most of my life, I had no idea this place existed.  It's a gorgeous resort, maybe 10 minutes from Smuggs.  Lots of cabins, from studios to big 3-4 bedroom places.  There's a big pond on the property, and lots of wildlife roaming around.

We had a little time to kill before officiant Kathy Blume arrived, so we went down to the covered bridge over the Lamoille for some pictures.

Then we jumped back in the car, drove up to the Field and Stream cabin for the ceremony.

The happy couple!

Caught in some early season snow.

Effect of aperture on depth of field

So I got a new lens the other day, which at f/1.4 is the fastest lens in my bag. In order to see how short the depth of field is at f/1.4, I focused on middle C and snapped a pic.  Then just for giggles, I ran through several shots at increasingly wider apertures to see how it looked.  Here's an animation showing what it looks like at varying apertures:

Behind the scenes of Elixir

A couple weekends ago, I ran into a bunch of guys shooting a movie on the Westford Commons.  I stopped and talked to them, and they invited me along on their next shoot.  I shot a few behind-the-scenes shots for them, and learned a little about the movie-making process as part of the deal.

Headshot session with Mary and Crew

I did a headshot session today with Mary Maloney, who is opening her State Farm office in South Burlington on Saturday.  Had a great time shooting with you, folks!

Haunted Barn "Portrait" shoot

Today was the 10th annual Cadyville Haunted Barn.  This event, put on by our friends Jim and Amy, is a local tradition for a great cause.  All proceeds go to charity, and few things bring as much joy as literally scaring somebody out of their shoes.

The barn burned just days before the event last year, devastating everyone involved and the local population, too.  Happily, the barn was rebuilt this year in time for the 10th anniversary.  Jim and Amy and a huge crew of friends got to work building new props, including the 14 foot tall guillotine that we used for "portraits" this year.

It turned out to make for great portraits - the lighting was a little sketchy, as my light stands kept blowing over.  I shot around 150 portraits in about three hours, in high winds and cold temps.  One of the more challenging shoots I've had so far, and I had a great time doing it.  The screams of the people inside the barn kept me and the people in the guillotine giggling all night.