Chelsie & Mike

A few months ago my little sister had a whorl wind of an engagement and marriage, as is custom in LDS culture between semesters of school.  The engagements were taken in March, and the wedding was in April. We had the most lovely weather for the engagement session and because of our good luck then, it rained like mad for the wedding it self.  We took just a couple shots in the rain with the whole group of people then ran inside the Temple to take just a few more of Chelsie and Mike in the Atrium.  Good thing the Portland LDS Temple has an atrium due to the amount of rain they have and number of weddings.  Luckily we had good weather the next day at the reception.  Take a look at the happily hasty couple on their Big Days!

 

 

Special thanks to Brother Johnson and your efforts for trying to keep my Baby dry! 

Its hard to keep a toddler dry when they are so determined to be wet!

Starting Anew

I have been thinking a lot and for awhile on what path I am on as a photographer.  I feel I have found myself on the path I never wanted to be on and traveled by a lot of other people. Robert Frost would not be happy with me.  I have always wanted to photograph landscapes and different studies of things that have interested me or that I find beautiful.  So how do I get on the path that I want to be on?  What are the first steps that I take?

Instead of buying myself something to further my portrait career I bought myself something to further my true happiness as a photographer.  A true Christmas present from myself, and everyone else that just gave me money for christmas.  A Fuji 6x9.  I used this camera in college and adored it.  It's simple but robust and produces the most lovely large, yet still medium format, negatives.  I think it will serve me well for the rest of my life.

Let me tell you why film: it's not that it's cool to shoot it or that I think it produces better work than digital.  It's because it's slow and magical.  I have always compared it to ceramics; you work hard on a piece and do the best you can, place it in the kiln and hope the pottery gods smile upon it.  It's not until the next day that you open the kiln and see the results of your labor have worked out in your favor and happiness rushes over you when it does.  Photography is a bit more exact then ceramics but it's similar in the fact that for a period of time your work is shut off from you.  No matter how confident you are in your exposure and your development skills, the rush of exuberance and joy that comes over me when I look at my freshly developed negative is wonderful.  Once this feeling me made me exclaim "I LOVE PHOTOGRAPHY" to the whole photo-lab one day with out even thinking about it.  I just love it. Digital doesn't give me as much of that feeling.  

For this new path I need more than just my camera.  I need a plan.  I needed a refresher course in "On being a photographer" by David Hurn and Bill Jay.  This book was required reading for one of my classes in school.  I found it had exactly what I was feeling and what I needed to do about it.      

"It seems to me self-evident that in order to photograph with any degree of continuous passion, you must have a fascination for the subject, otherwise you cannot sustain an interest in the act of creation for a long enough period of time in which to make any insightful or original statement about it."

So true.  What insightful or original statement am I making in the world of Portrait Photography? Nothing. I have little trists of creativity when on a shoot, but for the most part I literally copy what other people have done for my clients, which is fine, people have done it for hundred of years in portrait photography and I think it needs to be done.  I just don't want it to define me as a photographer.

"I began shooting anew, with a simple concentration on the subjects which most interested me, with no thought of success, prestige, or reputation, but with a  joyous liberation..."

Yes! Joyous Liberation!

How?

"The first thing to do is carry a notebook and during quiet times or as the thought occurs to you, couple a list of anything that really interests you.  In other words, write a list of subjects which fascinate you without regard to photography.  What could inflame your passion and curiosity over a long period of time?  At that stage, make the list without any regard for photography.  Be specific as possible..."

So thats the second gift I got for Christmas.  A little blue notebook nestled in my stocking.  I think of things like this all the time and try to remember them, but I don't.  I need to write them down. So this little blue notebook is going in my bag.  Right with my essentials; wallet, diapers, wet wipes, sippy cup cell phone, keys, blue photography notebook.  Let me give you a peak into what my blue book will have; Power lines (they are large yet delicate, each is unique, I could look at them all day), 'My Country Tis of Thee' (Purple mountains majesty upon the fruited plains - lovely), Invictus (William Ernest Henley - Read it!), Where I live (my neighborhood)... the list goes and will go on and on.

We will have to have a conversation latter on how Bill Jay helps narrow down this list.  For now this is my anew; I may be young, I may be a mother, I may be in Utah waiting for my husband to finish school, I may shoot the occasional portrait but I will not let this define me as a photographer.


"I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul." 

The following photos were taken on my maiden voyage with my fuji.  Watch for more.

Kodak Tmax 

120mm

Provo, UT

Baby Clara

Almost 5 years ago I photographed this little guy and just four weeks ago he got a new baby sister.  I'm happy that I live so close to them now that I was able to shoot some film of her still in the hospital, then just a couple days later staged in her home. Take a peek. I will say this: it is encouraging to see that my photography has improved in 5 years, at least I think it has. 

Kodak Tmax

I thought I'd sneak in one of my sweet baby!

American Fork, UT

Dieing Trees of Santaquin

On Monday I took a few hours off of being a wife and mother and took a drive to explore and photograph all by myself.  It was nice.  I need to do it more often than I do.  Why can't every Monday be a holiday with a stay at home dad?

Santaquin, UT

The Cottrell Wedding!

 I was so happy I got to document this wedding. Kevin and Mary got married just a couple days after Christmas and you could tell the Christmas cheer was still around.  Everyone was so happy and I think we got some pretty tender moments captured.  Their was a lot of dancing at the reception which made it possible for me to capture sweet little moments shared between just a couple of people.  Those are probably my favorites, so take time to look at them and the faces of the people.  Over all it was lovely to photograph this special day for these two love birds. Congratulations to the new Mr. & Mrs.! 

Draper & Orem, UT

Mary's Bridals

I have been like an ostrich lately with my head buried in my editing.  I thought I'd take a break and show what I have done.  A week before Mary got married she came over to my house and we did a little Bridal Shoot.  I thought it would be nice to get some shots of her sister LynDee helping get Mary ready for two reasons.  The first is in LDS (Latter Day Saint) weddings the bride gets into her dress and ready to go in the Brides Room in the Temple, only her mother and maybe one other person is with her, and cameras aren't allowed in the temple.  You see it's a sacred place where sweet and tender things happen so all distraction is removed.  So those wonderful shots of all the girls and the bride getting ready on the wedding day are ofter overlooked in LDS weddings.  The second reason I thought it would be nice to get a few of these shots was because Mary's mother told me how she loved that her daughters were such good friends and to be sure to get some of just the two of them at the wedding.  SURPRISE Sister Winterton, unless your girls already told you, I got a lot of just the two of them! After we were done at my house we just went up the street to Provo Castle, it's actually an amphitheater that looks like a castle and was part of the "New Deal".  So it's kinda historic.  A movie was being filmed that day, so our access was limited but we got some pretty good shots while being quiet as mice and staying out of the way.  I hope y'all enjoy them and look for more of Mary's wedding soon to come!

Provo, UT