KISS one day work shop!

Hey everyone! This is anna joy guest blogging for Mike (he's my super cool bro in law). we just wrapped up the kiss wedding book one day work shop. kiss books are so awesome! check out their website, kissweddingbooks.com! anyway, heres a few pictures of the day...

All these shots are straight out of the camera, NO editing, NO photoshop.

this shot is with a 50 1.2 lens, 1/13th shutter speed, and an ISO of 800, mike panned to get the shot shooting 8frames per second...

this shot was shot with the reflection in the tv, same 50 1.2 lens, 1/600th shutter speed, and an ISO of 800, with a Sunpak 20 camera light above the model, in the middle of the camera and her face.

Same shot, but shutter speed was 1/50th using ambient light.

this shot was using a california sunbounce reflector , 50 1.2 lens, 1/1000th shutter speed, and an ISO of 100 roughly

This was back indoors, and the shot was of her leaning on her arm on a couch, showing how you can use foreshadowing to reduce the distractions of the foreground.

Mike teaching everyone outside if KISS studio showroom...

<33annajoy

Tim & Kelly

My buddies got married last week and I am so blessed to have been shooting it. They got married and had their reception at the Dalidet Adobe Gardens. Very beautiful. We almost had our wedding reception there three years ago. We ended up spending some time at the Amazing Sanitarium Spa in Downtown SLO. This place is a beautiful restored bed & breakfast where we were able to get in and shoot. I LOVE it there, if your in town, its the place to stay, they even make you a breakfast in the morning. For the same price you'd pay for a hotel, This is a Steal! (I know i sound like frommers or lonely planet). Thanks Tim & Kelly. I can't wait for your release party tomorrow night!

I love it when couples are having fun and get a little bit goofy. Their personalities come out. This shower scene was really funny. I LOVE breaking away from the traditional and doing something nobody has done before.

I thought the textures on the wall rocked. Thank you Linneas!

New website Images (Part 1)

Its always too long in between updates, but this is part 1 of 2. I updated all the Casual portraits, and I am super amped to let the world see them. Check em out! mikelarson.com

Broad Street Event Group featured in Your Wedding Day

A few months ago the amazing magazine Your Wedding Day, interviewed us and asked about what we were doing, Its an honor to be published in their magazine sharing our business and some of the new stuff we are doing in the industry. Thea who owns the magazine has put in so much support for the wedding industry community and brides.

Jon & Savannah {Four Seasons - Southern California}

Martina & Andrew {Tuscany, Italy}

Finally! for all of you guys in Ireland who are waiting to see the images! They are finished and being sent over electronically for the slideshow saturday night! Here are a few sneak peak images! Enjoy! check the web link you received to see them on www.pictage.com go to the "clients" section on my site to view the images & enter your password.

I usually never put up formal shots, but what a backdrop and a sweet area for the pre-reception/cocktail hour. The fresh cut prosciutto on the aged Irish cheese with the dove eggs was my favorite!

I love being am american photographer shooting in Europe. It was such an honor to be asked to shoot this wedding, and I can't wait to go back again! Thanks guys, have a blast at your reception in Ireland!!!

Shot of the week

I do not do this enough, but here the the image for the week. Its from one of my flights this year. I love it and it was a screen saver on my desktop for a while. well have a great weekend!

My Marriage retreat

So, anniversaries are never soon enough! So Rachel and I decided after shooting friends weddings this 4th weekend, that we would take a few days off to concentrate on each other, reading, and being a more unified team. Call it a retreat. Whatever it is, its needed, and more than once a year. I love just re-learning what my wife loves that I do to bless her. We love to camp, hike, fish, cook, play guitar around a fire, and playing "nertz" and "speed" under a lantern till all hours. Rachel is my best friend and I LOVE hanging out with her. we planned our new 08 budget, set some goals, and talked about how we can be better spouses and better friends to our friends. Its so essential. We are both so blessed, on our way home we stopped by and hung out with my buddy Mike Schweene and his new fiance Monica. Mike owns West Coast Wakeboard Camps. He's been doing it for 6 years and is the biggest on the nation. I'm proud of what he's done, but also, stoked about his amazing relationship with Mon. They are a sweet couple and we hung out and talked while eating fajitas under the HOT summer night (it was about 95 at 9pm).

So here are some of the photos from our cheap disposable camera from our camping trip.

Ok, so get out there and block out some time for you and your spouse. Its healthy, fun, good, and is like putting money in the bank. My buddy Jim used to explain this to me. Your relationships are like little banks, you either pour into, or take from. We need to be pouring into our spouses, and not running them down with complaints, criticism, but building up and encouraging, and that comes down to spending time and focusing on what they want to do, and how you can serve them. Other times when we require crazy amounts of time, or in some way deplete them, if we have put in time (not as a chore, but out of gratitude and a serving heart) we build up not only each other, but ourselves. I feel that just being apart from my phone, email and life, I was able to listen to my wife better, everyone knows how pulled in many directions I get, and if I am in front of a TV, I zone out 100%. I know this, and its why I chose to not have cable TV at my house, personally, I have a personal weakness and I know I want to put my wife above that. The coolest part is I am learning and have more ways to continue to look forward to improving. I can't wait until our next retreat somewhere. But our anniversaries, we get to surprise each other somewhere in the country with a trip. big or small, its one way to keep things fresh and fun.

Rob & Kellyn {Paso Robles, Ca}

I have some extra time sitting here in Chicago waiting for a delayed flight, which is the perfect time to blog, sometimes being on the run does not allow me to blog as much. But i LOVE to share about the amazing shoots and great people I am blessed to work with. I really love to travel. I think it really helps me to have a perspective of how small I am in the scope of this world. But I also realize the potential for me to use my gifts to bless others. So here goes. I don't know if I am qualified to share this, but from my experience photographing who you guys really are, and waiting to watch how you act and who you guys are, this is what I see.

Rob, you are a really genuine guy. I love your honesty, excitement and how tender and respectful you are towards Kellyn.

Kellyn, you have this flare in you that makes everyone smile around you. You are beautiful on the inside, and Rob is blessed to have you as his wife.

I am very excited to present to you this body of work I created (me and Rachel) from your wedding.

Photographing at the always beautiful Robert Hall Winery we had a triple digit temperture day, I heard reports of the temp ranging from 106-109!

That didn't keep us from having fun.

thanks guys for a great day!

Kevin & Jamie (amazing wedding today)

So I usually never get a chance to post weddings the night of anymore, since My studio isn't inside my house, but I have 3 weddngs this weekend and was coming by to offload the images before I go to bed (late night tonight) and decided to throw this up online. I LOVE shooting weddings and absolutely feel like tonight i did stuff I've never done before. I had a new 50mm 1.2 lens and LOVED IT! I was able to have much more time before the ceremony to get creative and spend some extra time with Kevin & Jamie. The WHOLE bridal party, coulpe, and friends were so great, the whole day I was on creative excitement. Thats when I get a chance to produce my best work. My beautiful bride(Rachel) was by my side helping and enabling me to do my best. The all great DJ Beau Kramer was there as well as Ben & Sam from Cana VP. and the sweet coordinating couple Brenda & Andy Boorman. Adornments had a huge hanging centerpiece chandelier that was part orchid, part hanging candles and mostly amazing. The food was off the richter scale, Jenny from Trumpet Vine Catering filled us up with tantalizing food. What a difference creative and original food is. When i have something at a wedding for the 1st time, thats sweet! Villa de Buena Vista is a great spot and the weather was pure Tuscan. If you have been to Tuscany, you know how unpredictable the weather is. But IT enabled for great light.

Thank you Kevin & Jaime for enabling us the honor of capturing your day. Ciao, an have an amazing honeymoon.


Here are a few of my favorite images below, as well as the slideshow up top!

The Slideshow...