Tram, Calin and Gracie – Thank you for letting us spend a lovely afternoon with you!

-Soulinda

- Soulinda

I really don’t have much to add, so here are some of the shots we took:

Congratulations, Arlene & Todd!

This album is manufactured by Black River Imaging and is their “Sierra” model. Some quick specs:
- Album pages are 13″x9.5″
- Hairline gutter seam
- Supple black leather cover
- Rounded spine
- Metal cover
- Rounded page corners

This particular album we created has 20 spreads/40 sides and weighs a whopping 9 pounds!

Here’s the storage box and fabric cover the album comes in:

The cover photo is printed on a thick metal sheet. The bride and groom chose one of the shots from our engagement session w/them:

The pages can be gilded (optional). This is the silver marble gilding:

The pages are quite sturdy and lay down flat when you open the album. It also has a very thin seam down the middle:

This album features glossy, metallic print pages (optional). Unfortunately, it’s a bit hard to see the metallic tint with these photos.

The end!

I’m constantly working to improve my photography. One of my immediate goals is to become extremely proficient with off-camera lighting. When I first got into photography, I didn’t want to think about any of those fancy lighting techniques or equipment. I was just going to concentrate on being the best “natural light” photographer I could be.

However, over time I started to notice the difference between good photographers and great photographers. The great ones know how to use available light *and* how to use lighting equipment effectively.

After watching Zack Arias’ CreativeLive broadcast and his OneLight Workshop, I was inspired to attempt a studio portrait shoot to try and work on the basics.

What a difference shooting in a studio was! Being a primarily outdoor photographer in the Seattle area, it was quite nice not having to worry about rain. Also, I didn’t have to lug all of my equipment around with me. Studio shooting is quite frankly, awesome, because you get so much more control over the lighting.

Anyhow, here are some more photos from the studio session:

Overall, I’m pretty happy with the results.

-Ramon

I sometimes envy wedding photographers who live in sunny areas which see very little, if any, rain. For a few weeks in Seattle, we were blessed with some warm & sunny weather and then, out of nowhere, we had a rainy Saturday.

In Seattle, it’s pretty much a given that rain could fall at anytime. I think only crazy people would have an outdoor wedding in Seattle (full disclosure: my wife and I are two of those people). As a wedding photographer, you gotta make the best of the environment, get creative, and deal with whatever obstacles come your way. This is really what the bride and groom are paying you for.

We think we got some great photos despite the rain. We did our best to keep Kim & Matt from getting drenched and took advantage of the intermittent dryness.

Here are some of the pictures we took:

-Ramon

I like this photo of Roman because it shows off his personality and style (he actually picked his outfit himself). Just by looking at it, you can see how energetic he is. In fact, I literally had to take a nap after the shoot because I was so tired keeping up with him.

When photographing children, we like to keep them busy/active so that they forget we’re there to take their picture. This helps them be themselves and not become camera shy. It also helps burn off some energy, though nothing really slowed Roman down.

With kids, a lot of the best moments are unscripted. For instance, here’s Roman hitting me over the head with a branch:

Don’t get me wrong, the traditional “posed” portrait is something that all parents should have. We just believe that candid shots have the added value of telling a story. Also, you’re much more likely to capture genuine smiles/laughs in a candid shot.

Finally, I leave you with a “behind-the-scenes” look at Roman reviewing my work:

-Ramon

The initial weirdness subsided quickly and Lydia and Bryce were very natural in front of the camera. The smiles, laughs, and expressions you see in the photos below all came naturally and weren’t contrived. They did an awesome job and I think it shows.

One of the biggest reasons we offer a complimentary engagement session with our weddings is so we can build a rapport with our couples before the wedding day. This is important because, as photographers, we’ll be with you throughout your entire wedding day. This also gives couples a chance to practice being in front of the camera so that by the time the wedding hits, they’re seasoned pros!

Lydia and Bryce have requested to take engagement shots in multiple locations, so part two of this shoot is less than a month away. Soulinda and I are actually pretty excited about the next location. It should be fun!

-Ramon

Here are the results:

Looking forward to taking the rest of the family’s photos this upcoming weekend!

Ramon