We have received a lot of questions, both in person and via email, about how we select the pictures that make our blog. We wanted to give a quick example of the dynamic our conversation’s have and how we choose (or debate) what makes it.

Here our two images from our recent engagement shoot. The first shot made it into the blog and the second did not (you can see who won this debate).

The debate begins…

Eric: How about this one? I love it. (Pops up Image #2 on his screen)

Neal: What? Nah… They wanted a feeling of isolation. They didn’t want to be blurred like they are from ‘The Ring’.

Eric: But it expresses that feeling. Do you really need to see the couple clearly to have a good image?

Neal: You can’t see ANY pattern to their faces; it’s just like a big blob. (Pointing towards the screen)

Both of us look very curiously at the image for a minute.

Neal: If there is no distinguishable human features… they might as well be aliens.

Eric: So you don’t like it?

Neal: It’s not that I don’t like it; it’s that I don’t like it for the blog. Clients want to see themselves. Their families and friends expect to be shown something that resembles the people they love, not two alien figures.

Eric: But there is some worth in a purely emotional image, you know it is them by their form. It transcends from a portrait into a piece of art. I think I would enjoy an image of myself that was not like starring into a mirror.

The debate continues…

We are a collaborative project, and in being so there are usually different directions each of us would like to grow. Shooting as a team, we can take those risks and have the freedom to experiment with the bounds of traditional wedding photography. But we are anxious to hear what you think, both clients and photographers about the limits and process of image making.

Eric and Neal

What a start to the new year! The long-john’s came off on the first nice day in about two weeks and we spent our day with our first wedding couple of the year, Cara and Kenny. They put up with the knee deep mud, horny honking, adult establishments, endless shoe changes… and a little more mud.

Thanks to some fancy driving by Neal, Eric had his first muddin’ experience.

All in all, we got some shots, did some experimenting and had an amazing start to this year. We can’t wait for the wedding in April. We hope you enjoy.

A side note – Beware to all our other clients; Cara and Kenny have set the bar very high.

We are still a bit unsure how the Californian’s made it through our snowy, windy, winter night of shooting the week of Christmas. From Dan’s convict worthy Photo ID facial expressions, to Vicky’s willingness to shoot in a dirty garage, there was an eagerness to go beyond the normal engagement shoot. We are excited for their upcoming wedding and hopefully slightly warmer temperatures.

Enjoy the pics, and we hope you two finally thawed.