Making the Moment Photography

Chris ♥’s Maura forever

Brett — Mon, 14 May 2012 22:02:32 +0000

Chris & Maura are super-duper-awesome, and will be forever placed in my list of favorite couples. Ok, I don’t keep a list, but you know what I mean… these two are the type of couple I could photograph every weekend. They are fully in love, fun to be around, and a blast to photograph. And they’re pretty darn good lookin’.Wedding photography is really built around relationships and trust, and having a great relationship and rapport with these two made the creative cleveland wedding photography we made happen so much fun.To honest, I’m pretty picky when I meet with couples to ensure we’ll be a good fit for each other. Fun and artistic wedding photography does not happen outside of the comforts and trust of a healthy relationship, and when I sat down with these two I knew we’d make some awesome imagery together. I am a huge fan of story-telling, and telling the tale of a wedding day through modern photojournalistic wedding photography can only happen when a bride and groom feel comfy with me. I ♥ Chris and Maura because I know they felt comfy with my presence there; it shows in their natural wedding images.These fun and unexpected candid wedding photographs represent so much of what Chris & Maura’s wedding day at St Stanislaus church in Cleveland was. Without a candid photojournalistic wedding photographer, thousands of moments are lost to the limits of our memory and time.Wedding Photography at St. Stanislaus Church in Cleveland is a huge honor – it’s a beautiful old-world church in Cleveland’s slavic village community. The architecture and art of the venue evoke such a surreal feeling. I love photographing there!I love it, I love my job . The little glances that mean so much, and happen so quick, it means the world to me to be able to capture these as a photojournalistic wedding photographer in cleveland. Chris and Maura were SO stink in’ cute throughout the ceremony at St. Stanislaus Church in Cleveland, I have so many candid images of them just smiling and loving each other.Non-traditional and fun wedding photography is where it’s at. I spent some wonderful time creating custom and artistic wedding photographs with these two all around Cleveland. These images aren’t staged or “over-posed” – they are simply Chris and Maura being comfortable with me and themselves. I love creating wedding images this way, rather than going through a list of over-done poses. And when a dance party starts? Heck yeah, I’m all in for it.I love it – these images have such an epic and individual feel to them. The art of wedding photography in Cleveland is this – crafting something joyful and unique. The reality is that a lot of fun and natural joy happens throughout a day – my job is to capture that through the imagery. I have a very easy and fluid way of working with couples, just offering permission for people to be themselves (with some subtle guidance and suggestion along the way) creates a very natural and fun wedding photography. I think you have to be an experienced wedding photographer to offer this sort of style, but the results are fun and enjoyable.The reception was at a wonderful newer cleveland reception venue,the Ballroom at Park Lane. This was my first time being a wedding photographer at the Ballroom at Park Lane, and let me tell you, it is an awesome cleveland reception venue! The Ballroom at Park Lane has a super-classy feel to it, and feels nothing like your typical cleveland reception venue. The staff at the Ballroom at Park Lane are nothing short of awesome, I was super impressed with how they cared for people.The speeches were super-sweet and personal, and the general aura of the Ballroom at Park Lane made this wedding reception feel so comfortable and personal.Yup, that’s me on the right. I’m a geek.Final Touch Entertainment rocked us out that night, PJ (the DJ – love that it rhymes) kept the dance floor hot, and it was just a plain fun cleveland wedding reception at the Ballroom at Park Lane.Congratulations Maura & Chris – I enjoy you two so much, and am so pleased you chose me as your photographer!!

How I Proposed to my Wife

Brett — Fri, 11 May 2012 18:00:36 +0000

I still remember crying. Weeping, actually, as I rehearsed my well-written proposal in my car on the way back from talking to Colleen’s dad. It was the day before I would propose, and I was a sobbing mess in my car as I rehearsed how I would profess my love to my (then) girlfriend Colleen. Speaking of Colleen – that’s her above- and yup – she is super-awesome beautiful. I’m a lucky man
I am often asked by our brides and grooms how it was that I proposed to my wife, and because our five year anniversary is tomorrow (wow has time flown!) I thought I would share the story.

May 11,2006

Yup – it was exactly six years ago today where I asked Colleen to be my wife. What a sweet day. I asked my friend Joe to grab my camera and take pictures of the day, and I’m so happy and thankful he did. I share that partially in disclaimer (the images below this paragraph aren’t mine – they’re courtesy of Joe Boyle) and partially as a huge credit and thanks to a friend.Yes, I’m a planner. And so organizing my proposal to Colleen was about as complex and thoroughly thought out as you can get. “Operation Engagement” as it was called even had a strategic map and battle plan (made from Risk pieces) to communicate how everything would flow that night to my friends.There I am six years ago (on the right) sans the beard. My good friend (and roommate at the time) Chris Rogers is across from me, standing besides my mentor (and the man who would later marry Colleen and I) Michael Brown. For those of you paying close attention, the spot on the map that was designated where I would actually propose was marked by a ring from the DVD box set of Lord of the rings. Yes, I’m a nerd.I did enlist a group of close friends of mine to be a part of the proposal – here we are a few hours before everything went down. The engagement was a complete surprise to Colleen. We had been dating for about 2 and a half years, and although we we both knew marriage was a possibility, we had never talked of it in the form of a commitment or a plan. Hoping that she would in fact say “yes”, I surprised her in the middle of a random date we were on by taking her to a local arboretum and pretended to be looking for a bathroom so I could disappear. While she was awaiting my return, one by one each of my 9 friends approached her, and asked her to walk with them through the gardens. I asked my friends to spend a few minutes each sharing with her – encouraging her as a person, as a woman, and even throwing in a few good words on my behalf. Colleen later confessed to me that after the third guy she was convinced she couldn’t believe that all of this was happening Although she was hoping it would end with me down on one knee, she was afraid to get her hopes up.It wasn’t until Steve Rieske, one of my very great friends and mentors escorted her to me that she believed it was all for real. Remember that speech I told you about? The one that even moved me to tears? I remembered about half of it, and finally got my grounding about the time I told her I loved her (for the first time – how about that?) and told her I wanted her to be my wife. Yeah – she said yes – and then we both cried. It was sweet. All my friends were watching from a hill about a quarter mile away, and broke into applause and cheers when we hugged. What a moment.Simultaneously, I had gathered all of Colleen’s close lady friends together at our good friend Amy & Rob Seiffert’s house, so that Colleen would have the chance to all share with them at once the great news. To keep it a surprise for Colleen to share when she walked in the door, Amy had asked all the ladies to come by not for a party, but rather to be part of a small video her and Rob were putting together for a campus ministry we worked with (BG Cru!). When we walked in the door, It was so fun seeing all the girls reactions as Colleen showed off her ring.To this day, I’m so thankful and forever indebted to our friends who made this happen and were a part of it. I’m even more thankful to God and my wife Colleen for the last 5 years of our wonderful marriage. It’s been a sweet journey, and today I am even more in love with my wife than the day I asked her to marry me.

The Garden State

Brett — Mon, 07 May 2012 21:56:26 +0000

I love travel. I love cool people. I love traveling for cool people. Jillian and Nick are cool people. Simply put? The trip to New Jersey from Cleveland to be their wedding phtoographer was well worth it.As a wedding photographer in cleveland with a unique style, I’m thankful that I’m often asked to handle the occasional travel or destination wedding. Nick, Jillian and I had an instant connection when we first met, and I knew it would be worth it to travel to Trenton, New Jersey for their wedding.I traveled there in the late spring, and had a wonderful time getting to know their family and friends (as well as photographing them!). The candid and photojournalistic wedding photography that came from their wedding tells so much story, and I loved being an observer and preserver of their special moments.Being a wedding photographer based in Cleveland, especially a photojournalistic wedding photographer in Cleveland means being able to capture all the special moments and artifacts of a wedding day. From flowers to dress to jewelry, every small memory that I could capture I snapped for Jillian and Nick. Moments unfold – and a good wedding photographer can capture them instantly. Any person with a camera can learn to pose people, but as a believer in the power of candid and photojournalistic wedding photography, I believe in telling stories as they unveil.Although I hate “posey pose” photography, I love inviting bridal parties to be themselves in my creative imaging process. Check out these fun and creative wedding photos of the groomsmen – I was able to capture both sides of their personalities, all while having fun and non-cheesy.Nick’s a good man, and a snappy dresser too. We waited for Jillian to arrive at Trenton Country Club for their private introduction. Nick was nervous, but ready to see his bride.As Jillian arrived for her wedding at Trenton Country Club, I snapped some candid imagery of the two of them seeing each other for the very first time. Nick came super close to tearing up – Jillian was radiant.We then started to have fun, crafting some dramatic and simultaneously playful images of the two. Being a wedding photographer at Trenton Country Club in Trenton New Jersey was fun that day. I loved experimenting with their vintage staircase, and totally enjoyed the large rotunda of windows.Being a creative wedding photographer doesn’t mean being cheesy or fake – it means helping couples enjoy the moment, and finding ways to communicate that moment in a unique way. There was a presence to Nick & Jillian’s love that afternoon, and I simply let it happen, guiding them in the process of image capturing.Jillian is a beautiful bride, with eyes that strike you and can stare right through you. I simply let her be herself as we captured these artistic wedding photographs together.Afterwards? We created some fun & epic imagery on the grounds of Trenton Country Club. I loved playing with the golf carts, and freaked out over Nick’s father’s vintage caddy.When I handle travel weddings, I believe in being prepared. I arrived in New Jersey a few days before the wedding so I could scout good locations for wedding photography around Trenton. I discovered some awesome locations for creative wedding photography in Trenton near the historic district, and had a great time with the bridal party during the afternoon.Even though Nick and Jillian had seen each other prior to the wedding ceremony at trenton country club, it was still full of emotion – there are even a few images of Nick shedding a tear or two Moments like this are what I live for – these are the value in photojournalistic wedding photographer – this is why I encourage brides and grooms to hire candid wedding photographers, as moments like this are rare to repeat, and completely and utterly priceless.The wedding reception at Trenton country club rocked – I loved photographing there, and so enjoyed capturing the party that the Janis Nowlan band and the good folks at Trenton Country Club made happen.A million thanks and congratulations to this awesome couple. I’m so thankful that I was asked to travel to be a part of the day, and am so proud of the creative wedding photography that came from it.

Photographing Lego-Land

Brett — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 20:02:24 +0000

It is a Yacovella family tradition – the building of “LegoLand”. Ever since I was a small child I remember my father and my older sisters assembling a massive city-scape of legos on our ping-pong table in the basement. When my sisters moved off to college the building of the plastic city ceased altogether, but this past year my father recommissioned construction of the city on his pool table, and the city is back with all it’s former glory. It’s not just a collection of buildings, don’t be fooled. When my family builds Legos, we mean business. My dad maps every street and building to make sure that there is a logical flow to the city. I’m pretty sure my father missed his calling as a civic planner, as he thinks through every detail of city-life for his plastic citizenry.And yes, city life is actually happening. Seen above is my first lego wedding I have ever photographed (the groom fell to “pieces” when he saw his bride for the first time that day – a truly moving moment). Parts of the city are even under construction, complete with work crews and tools.What’s cool is that there are a million little stories happening at any given time. It’s not just a collection of buildings at all – there are conversations happening on street corners, people running errands, even police officers pursuing criminals. It would seem that my father has a lot of time on his hands these days It does take up the entire pool table, with a little extra room added on the edges with some plywood, as the city seems to keep growing.It was very fun to photograph this year’s lego-land for my father. It took the better part of an afternoon, and pretty large soft-box to pull it off, but it was a fun day of photography.Pictured above is my dad, and his construction crew – my niece & nephews! They did such a great job carrying on the family tradition!

A Crafty Side Project

Brett — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 17:14:57 +0000

We get to photograph a lot of fun things around here. Admittedly, most of our photographic work we’re known for is our creative & fun wedding photography, but we’re occasionally asked to handle different projects of all shapes and sizes. This book project being one of them.Hunter Hammersen is an acclaimed and well known author in the knitting community. Last fall she was prepping to publish her second book showcasing her “curiosity cabinet” inspired designs when she asked me if I’d be interested in handling the photography for the book. A few months later we were spending the day with 3 very talented models and a large array of socks, scarves, shawls, hats and other miscellaneous custom pieces that Hunter had dreamed up. Fashion photography is something I’ve always been inspired by and enjoyed, so this photo-shoot was sheer bliss.Part of the fun was coming up with creative and inventive positions to showcase hands and feet so that Hunter’s creations could be shown in all their splendor. We were photographing in a medical history museum and library, so inspiration was always at hand. And foot. The ladies were great to work with, running so well with my vision for the images. I can’t thank them enough!Every time a photographer brings out his/her camera, they learn something new. I have always (and will ever be) a student of lighting and color, and this particular shoot pushed my boundaries so much. I loved every minute of it.Hunter’s book is going to press this month with my imagery being published throughout and soley. I’ve been published before, but there’s something special about your work in an internationally sold book. At last count, Hunter has sold over 10,000 pre-publication copies – I can only imagine how far she’ll go.If your’e interested in getting a copy of the book yourself, or just seeing more of Hunter’s work, head on over to her site right here. You can purchase a digital download of the book (PDF) or order the full printed book (recommended!) and get a PDF alongside. If you’re a knitter yourself, or just crafty, her stuff is so worth checking out.

Bride’s Choice Award 2012

Brett — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 16:17:19 +0000

We’re super proud and super thankful for everyone who made this happen! Making the Moment Photography is proud to announce our acceptance of the 2012 Bride’s Choice Award from Wedding Wire and Martha Stewart Weddings. This represents the second year in a row we’ve won the award, and we’re so excited for it.As proud as we are of the creative wedding photography that made this happen, it was our client’s praise and efforts that made this award possible. Seriously – thank you to our numerous brides and grooms who took the time to write and share their praise about our hard work and creative efforts in preserving their wedding day. It has been such a sweet pleasure serving you all, and we’re so thankful this happened.If you haven’t yet seen the praise of our past bride’s and grooms, please check out our profile page on Wedding Wire. You’ll see the kind words and the sweet feedback our brides and grooms had for us. They are all legitimate and authentic reviews, and are all people we care very much about. Congratulations to an awesome team of photographers!