A while back I had the great pleasure of being able to take part in a special photo shoot along with some great area wedding vendors including Rachel, the brains behind the great Apple Brides Blog. The shoot took place at one of Spokane’s truly unique wedding/reception venues, Barrister Winery. It’s a special bit of big city modern in our own little burgh. I fell in love with it instantly when I shot Joanna & Andrew’s reception there last year. If you’ve never been there, you should definitely make the trip.

As a photographer, a good understanding of using your flash creatively is helpful since one of it’s attributes is the dark ambience. All of these shots have some amount of flash in them except for the first one (and it’s black & white brother near the end of the post), the close ups of the bride which were shot near the sole window while the beautiful natural light shone on us (there was a reflector though), and the flowers on the paint palette. The last photo even used a strong flash since the light outside was fading & I really wanted a strong silhouette photo.

Unlike some editorial shoots where models are hired, Erica & Tyler are actually engaged. To even add another level of realness, Tyler is an employee at the winery. He gives a great tour of the place, by the way. Thanks to Shane Savage for his help in assisting during the shoot.

Fun with shutter speeds.

I love this portrait.

The power of a tilt/shift lens.

Flash blast.

Flowers: Angela Austin, Floral Design and Home Decor

Make-up: Shasta Hankins Freelance Make-up

Hair: Lindsey Wilson (509-362-6510) of the K Salon

Stationery: Carli Marie Design

Gowns: Storybook Bridal

Headpieces/Accessories: Finder’s Keepers

Tuxedo: Tuxedo Gallery

Sometimes taking pictures for clients is about completing their vision. Sometimes it’s about completing my vision. The latter is far rarer since it only happens when my vision happens to line up with theirs. This was the case with the From Sword to Sunrise (FSTS) band shoot. These pictures have been knocking around my noggin for a while & I’ve been hanging on to this location waiting for the best opportunity to make use of it. When local metal band FSTS said they needed some promo photos I proposed these photos & they were on board.

This was also the photo shoot that led to a sore foot & even sorer arm. While getting the shots of the guys by themselves through the window frame I stepped on a nail (I actually stepped on four but only one went through to my foot). I pulled it out hoping it wasn’t rusted—it was only rust. So I spent the next day getting a shot in my arm that hurt far longer than the nail.

It was all worth it.

Thanks to Caleb Skytte for his help with the shoot. Check out the photos.

Reminder: you can click the right & left arrows to jump from one photo to another.

While I wouldn’t consider myself a “commercial” photographer in the strict sense of the word, I do enjoy the challenge of shooting things that are a little different than what I’m used to. Plus, if there are people involved, then it is right up my alley.

I see photography in much the same way as I look at graphic design. You have a problem or need, you create a solution. I feel like that’s a huge part of why I’m able to translate my work as a graphic designer to photographer.

With this, the goal was to shoot promo photos for a local printer, Pacific NW Print & Fulfillment, to use on their website & printed materials so they could get away from having to use the same stock photos as every other printer around.

So I spent some time with the Chris and the crew, dragging my lights around, and seeing what they do while capturing it as well as their personalities through the lens.

They also had me photograph some sample prints (“be fast”) that they ran at 2 other local printers so they could show the quality of their work versus the other guys’ (PNW’s print is on the left).

Here are some of the photos from the shoot as well as a couple of photos of the brochure they produced utilizing the photos.

P.S. If I had to pick a favorite, it would have to be the forklift photo—mostly for the technical aspect. There are 2 different lights being used. One on the overall scene so I could keep the exposure down and the sky blue. But the one that gets me excited is the other light placed in the warehouse to give some extra definition to the boxes. Otherwise they would have been lost in the shadows.