New Christmas Socks

My niece was soooo happy about her new socks from Aunt Jessi.

Scottsdale Wedding Photography | Jake+Allison

I felt right at home with all of the tattoos, gauged ears, and skeletons. Jake and Allison are a rockin' couple who show their love for edgy fashion and decor as much as they show their passion for each other. They spent the whole night together, side by side as their guests enjoyed a beautiful November evening at Allison's parents house.

I often come away from a wedding feeling like I just spent the day with some great people but this one was different. Jake and Allison treated Jessi and I like good friends who were just there to celebrate their perfect day. The fact that they had The Cornish Pasty Company cater and Four Peaks beer made me love 'em even more.

Enjoy the pix my friends.

Their wedding theme focused on El Día de los Muertos {Day of the Dead} which was the following day.

Allison looked magnificent thanks to the makeup talent of mine and Jessi's friend, Bryana Nichols. I'm sure you are wondering why Jessi didn't do the makeup. It's rare that Jessi has a Saturday to spend with me and Bryana offered her talents.

When I first met Jake and Allison, we checked out her parents house where the wedding was going to take place. When I saw this red couch, I knew we HAD to get a picture on it.

While have a fun first dance mixed with sweet embraces and lively twirls, Jake decided to freak EVERYONE out by picking up Allison and pretending to jump into the pool. He was very convincing.

Then they had some fun with the cake.

And finally some passion. Allison, you nailed it!!

Destination Wedding Photography | Lance+Rachel

Her skin is flawless and she has one of the prettiest smiles I have ever seen. Considering Rachel's best friend's dad since toddler years was a dentist it comes at no surprise. And Lance, well he seems to have been chiseled from the same blocks of marble that Michelangelo worked from. It's almost as if God asked for advice from Tyra when pairing these two. Fierce! Did I just type that?!?!

When Lance took me to lunch that day last december and asked me under a vow of silence to be their wedding photographer, I was honored. I was intimidated. I was excited beyond belief. This would be my first destination wedding assignment. I also had to keep it quiet since they were not telling anyone about it for several months. Oh the agony.

Ok, so my statements about how beautiful this couple is may seem strong and possibly embarrassing to Lance and Rachel, but take a look at these photos captured at the Riu Palace Mexico in Playa Del Carmen, then correct me if I'm wrong.

The day started out on the golf course with Lance, his Dad, and his brother-in-laws.

Check out Rachel's gorgeous dress and colorful bouquet.

The weather was hot and very humid. It was uncomfortable but no one was concerned with it. It was all about Lance and Rachel and a hurricane couldn't have held back the love everyone was feeling for this couple.

You've got to love the casual setting of a beach wedding.

Lance gave Rachel a beautiful engagement ring but to everyones surprise (especially Rachel's) it was a fake. Glass and silver. During the ring exchange, he didn't even have the real ring on her finger and she spotted the difference. The surprise and confusion on her face was priceless. She couldn't take her eyes off of it. You gotta love the look on Lance's Dad's face in the background. Yeah, he was one of the few that were in on it.

Did I mention she couldn't take her eyes off of the ring?

Now the the real eye candy.

The shot on the right is my absolute favorite of the day.

The following day we went for a "Rock the Dress" session. The people on the beach and near the pool were not quite sure of what they were witnessing. We had a blast!!

These shots may not seem unusual but we had to crawl through a window 4 feet off the ground to get into this atrium.

Rachel, you are stunning!

Off to the beach.

Wow, wow, wow...

And finally the pool.

Peoria Arizona Wedding Photography | Donna+Randy

Donna contacted me through email and asked me if I could capture their backyard wedding. She told me that it was going to be pretty small and their attendants would include their seven adult children and two beloved English Bulldogs. I thought this sounded like a great time. When I got to their house I noticed Randy's motorcycle decor and he didn't waste anytime showing my his bike collection in the garage. What a great family. I felt very welcome the minute I got there and Donna even seemed disappointed when I told her I couldn't stick around for the rest of the evening.

Here are a few images from Donna and Randy's festive backyard wedding.

Mesa Arizona Wedding Photography | Nichelle+Saye

Nichelle and Saye were married this past Sunday during Labor Day weekend. It was a typical early September day in the Arizona Valley of the Sun with temps over 100 degrees and a bit muggy from the previous days rain storms. The clouds weren't even courteous enough to stick around for one more day. I met the guys in Old Town Gilbert for a quick session. I had not met Saye prior to the wedding day and didn't know what to expect. Saye was so cool and so were his groomsman, we had a great time together. He was very happy to be getting married, he danced up and down the aisle and smiled all day long.

The ladies were a little behind so we shot some quick shots in the venue's courtyard before the ceremony. Nichelle seemed a bit nervous but that could have just been her quiet demeanor. Her mom and sister surprised her with a cool choreographed dance routine set to a pre-recorded audio track. It was pretty entertaining.

I hope you enjoy the pix. I experimented with some actions from Kubota and TRA, some are heavier than others.

Here is Nichelle with her two sisters and all of the girls.

This is the shot where I jacked up my knee. I haven't had x-rays yet but it feels like a torn MCL. My wife thinks this is a cool shot so I'll write off the injury as a successful battle scar.

Ah shade!! Thanks to Joe's BBQ in Gilbert for such a beautiful setting. The guys just looked natural in here with their brown and ivory tones agains the soft background. They crushed it! Even little Lonnel is posing it up.

Another chill shot of the guys. We knocked out a ton of shots in about 30 minutes.

I was able to get Nichelle to give me some glam as they arrived to the venue.

The Pastor's Boy with a Rockin' Name

I only have two first-cousins on my Dad's side of the family and they are the son's of my Dad's younger sister. There is quite an age difference between us and they grew up over a thousand miles away from me. Thankfully, my Dad was an Interstate Commodities Transportation Engineer. That was his spin on the occupation of a truck driver. His career path allowed me to make frequent visits to my Aunt's house in Washington a few times each summer when I was a teenager. Those visits allowed my cousins and I a chance to know each other better. Today they are successful adults and we cherish every chance we get to spend time together laughing and loving.

Ryan, the older of the two brothers became a Lutheran Minister and received his initial pastoral assignment here in Phoenix a few years ago. He and his wife just had their first little niblet and he has become the talk of the family. Ryan told us a few months ago that he was going to be named Sebastian Axel. Sebastian Axel!!! It doesn't get any more 80's rock than that!! I mean Sebastian Bach from Skid Row and Axel Rose from Gun's and Roses, the were icons of the era. I was quickly informed that the two names are from Lutheran biblical history. Ah well, he is still a little rock star in our eyes.

Meet the family.

This is Sebastian. I think the socks are a bit distracting but if you check out the next image, you'll quickly realize that he really likes having his socks on.

Sebastian still wasn't happy when we tried this shot. I wanted a peaceful shot of him resting his head on the bible. Ryan even opened the bible to a passage with special meaning regarding children. I thought it was still a beautiful shot with a new daddy trying to comfort his little boy.

Three generations and the new little family.

Ok, so the picture on the left has some real special meaning. The chair that Ryan is in was purchased by our great-grandparents when they were pregnant with their first child. Our grandmother was rocked in that chair, my father, Ryan's mother and the baby of the family, our Aunt Susan were rocked in that chair. I was even rocked in that chair. Susan has had the chair since our grandparents passed away and made arrangements for Ryan and Adi to use it for their children. Its so amazing to see this single piece of furniture have so much meaning to us family members.

The picture on the right says so much about my Uncle Leo. He has so much pride in his family and spending time with just one or many means the world to him. The look on his face in this picture is what you will see every time Leo is around his loved ones. He is a great man and hope to be the husband and father he is.