Oregon bound!

It's 1:18am and I'm about to abandon you all for the rest of the week. Don't get me wrong, there's a ton of stuff left to do to really be "caught up" as far as work goes, so I hope everyone is patient while they wait for their surprises!

It's so exciting to read the messages from everybody that reads the blog, and everybody that checks in to see their freinds' images.

But I've been looking forward to this week for a long time. My good friend Chris Bennett called me months and months ago to tell me he was getting married, and would I fly out to Portland for the wedding? My response: I wouldn't miss it for the world! We basicaly grew up together in the late eighties/early nineties skateboarding, going to shows and generally being a nuisance. Since then, I've married and had two children, and Chris spent years wandering the countryside, studying and teaching photography and coming home now and then to visit. I always look forward to his visits as if they were a holiday... regardless of the fact that they ARE, Thanksgiving, Christmas... his visit is what I look forward to usually more than anything.

So now, he's marrying Roseann, I have to admit I don't know much about her, other from meeting her once, I know she's from Detroit... but my first impression of her was "Wow, it's a female version of Chris!", so that's good, right? I know he's happy, they've already taken one plunge and bought a house, and it looks like Portland is where he'll finally settle down... I can't wait to see what the LITTLE Bennetts are like!

I'm a groomsman in the wediing, and it's funny, because between Chris and myself, there's also his friend Stu who's a professional photographer, so whoever's shooting Saturday is going to be under a little scrutiny! I've been instructed to behave, not to give the photographer too much grief, and I won't... it's fun to get to watch from the other side of the lens, can't wait.

Tara's going with me, Aaron, Tennesse and Katie (Irish Setter... 'Big Dummy' as I refer to her) are staying with Mom and Pop Mason, so let's wish them a great week!

Talk to you all when I get Back, Monday the 7th (or maybe Tuesday the 8th hehe)!

Me at 1:30am after fourteen hours:

Kelly & Jim - July 29, 2006

Update: 9/1/06: Click here to view the wedding photos. It may take until as late as 8:00pm eastern time for all of the images to upload... there are, afterall, 1,024 of them! Actually, it may take until 8:00 for them to be accessable at all, so check back.

Update 9/1/06: Wedding images are coming SOON! They're uploading as I write this...

Update 8/14/06: Album is now up here!

Wow! It was HOT Saturday! Yeah, July in Indiana is some serious business! Kelly and Jim had been planning quite a few adventures for their wedding day, and while we weren't sure how much we'd actually get to because of the extreme heat, our minds were soon made up for us when it decided to rain! Typical Indiana weather!

Despite all that I think the wedding was very beautiful, Kelly and Jim seemed very happy, and everyone else was having fun. Sounds like a success to me!

I'll be on vacation for the rest of this week, I'm actually IN a wedding for a change this time, my good friend Chris Bennett's, but when I get back I'll be working on Kelly's wedding album.

Here are some images for now:


These two are so CUTE!


It was easy getting Kelly and Jim to kiss...


and laugh...


... and smile, which is a good sign in my experience!


Kelly was breathless when she saw her cake:


Congratulations!

Lacey & Dustin - July 22, 2006

Update 9/01/06: Wedding images now available here!

Update 8/26/06: Wedding images will be up soon so check back in a few days!

Update 8/14/06: Oops! Album's been available for a little while now, I just forgot to post the link. Click here to view the album!

Update 7/28/06: Unfortunately, I've been ill the past two days, so I haven't made the progress I would've liked on the album for Lacey and Dustin. If I can, I'm going to get it up here on Sunday, because otherwise it will have to wait until I'm back from vacation August 8th.

Three years ago I photographed Matt Beever and his wife Sarah's wedding, and I was thrilled when I was asked to shoot for Matt's little sister Lacey!

The wedding was saturday at St. Thom's in West Lafayette. The weather was pretty much PERFECT, and everyone was in a very happy mood. I have to give a special thanks to my groom, Dustin, who was a pleasure to work with. I also would like to thank the bridal party, who were actually very easy to work with, despite my shouting of instructions and the very large group.

It's always good when a couple is so obviously in love, and I don't think Lacey and Dustin could be happier. Here are some images until the album goes up later in the week...



The beautiful bride:


The girls:


Mr. Dustin Deno.


The guys:


... and there were a LOT of them!


Dustin's expression says it all!


Ya gotta let go sometime, dad! LOL




Dustin's gonna kill me for this one!






Click on this image to see better detail:


Now THAT'S a toast!

Lilian!

We ran a promotion awhile back for child portraits, and I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to photograph Lilian and her family. As with lots of children it took a little time for Lilian to get used to the camera, but after she forgot I was there the results were fantastic. It's wonderful to watch the innocence and happiness of a child at play with her loved ones. I hope we do lots more sessions like this one!

Kara & Travis - July 8, 2006

Update 8/1/06 1:16am: Images are up here!

Update 7/21/06: I'm busy working on the rest of the image edits as well as some changes to the album, so stay tuned!

Update 7/17/06: Well, I'm happy to say that the preliminary album design for Kara and Travis is ready! How easily it came together, too! To view, click here, and wait a moment for the software to start up. Let me know what you think!

What a lovely weekend for a wedding in July. Very sunny and mild... I had a beautiful bride, a relaxed groom and a fun bridal party to work with on Saturday. I also returned to St. James here in Lafayette after a couple of years... it's a nice looking church. The real fun came when we got to the Purdue Memorial Union and the bridal party started to cut up a little:

Here are some more favorites until I can get an album designed (check back later in the week):

Ashli & Mark - July 1, 2006

Update 7/21/06: Wedding images are now available here!

Update 7/15/06: I'm happy to announce that the preliminary album design is ready to view! Click here and wait a moment for the software to start up. Enjoy!

I was back in Renssalaer, Indiana for the first time in a few years, our wedding was in the chapel at St. Joseph's College. July is here and it was HOT! Ashli was very eager to have her picture taken, which always makes my job easier! An interesting church, very reminiscent of St. Boniface here in Lafayette; a very beautiful church.

Thanks to both the families and especially the bridal party for hanging in there for pictures on this warm day! Here are some favorites of mine for now, click the images to view them at a larger size.