St. George Temple at Sunset

April 18, 2012 in Travel

I made a goal this year to visit 50 temples - 50 temples in 2012. So far, I've been to: Salt Lake Temple, Provo Temple, Timpanogos Temple, Draper Temple, Jordan River Temple, and this one is #6 for the year. I was so glad we got to stop here right at sunset!, loved seeing the changing colors in the sky!

^My favorite picture from the evening. In the past, I've always tried to avoid the gate in temple photos, I thought it got in the way. I was excited to find a way to use the gate to add to the photo instead.

Normally, LDS temples have an Angel Moroni with a trumpet on the steeple. It was interesting to see that the St. George temple did not. We asked in the visitor's center and apparently, there are a handful of older temples that still do not. According to ldsChurchTemples.com, "Eight (8) temples do not have an angel Moroni. They are the St. George Utah, Logan Utah, Manti Utah, Laie Hawaii, Cardston Alberta, Mesa Arizona, Hamilton New Zealand, and Oakland California Temples."

Check back tomorrow for photos from Las Vegas!

Katherine & Matt Ring Ceremony

December 05, 2011 in Wedding

First, let me apologize for my extended absence. We were supposed to have blogs posting automatically while I was gone for the holiday, but clearly I messed up! I'll try to make it up to you with a contest for a free shoot this week!

But back to the Austin wedding...

I have the opportunity to photograph weddings of all kinds. Themed costumes, crazy dance parties, small family weddings, outdoor, indoor, etc. Each couple brings in different traditions and personalities. Every wedding is unique, and that's why I love it. I grew up in Austin, but I've lived in Utah for almost 6 years now and started my business in Utah. In Utah, a little over half of the wedding I photograph are at LDS (Mormon) temples. I love the temples, taking pictures around the grounds, the beautiful architecture, and all the symbolism. Thomas and I were married in the Timpanogos temple in Utah. But for all the wonderful things about LDS temples, as a photographer, we don't actually take pictures during the ceremony, we just take pictures after the wedding on the temple grounds. We don't photograph the "I do's" and the ring exchanges, so it's a different experience.

Katherine and Matt decided to do a ring ceremony the day after the temple ceremony. It was absolutely beautiful. (Much better than the dream I had of a vow-renewal with Thomas where he forgot to write his vows and everyone showed up late. I must have been subconsciously jealous of this ceremony :D)

It's at a new reception venue in Austin called the Vineyards at Chappell Lodge. A gorgeous venue with lots of land and trees. But without further ado, here are the photos:

Below, Katherine's siblings singing to her. This family is just awesome.

This is the other reason I love ceremonies: The couple walking hand in hand down the aisle. I'm female, so I'm allowed to admit that it made me cry... right? They just look so happy.

Kandis & Greg- LDS Salt Lake Temple Wedding

September 12, 2011 in Wedding

I love this couple. I've said it before, and I'll say it again- these are the some of the nicest, most easy-going people I have ever had the pleasure of spending time with. Someone actually stepped on the back of Kandis' dress and ripped it, and Kandis didn't even break a sweat. She gave a big smile, said "Oh, it's fine!" and kept on going. She was just happy to be married to the man of her dreams.

Just look how gorgeous Kandis is! Greg is one lucky guy, and he shows that he knows it every time he looks at her.

Be sure to check out all of Kandis and Greg's photos in their full galleries here.

Joelle and Brett- Formals at Salt Lake Temple

September 04, 2011 in Bridal, Formals

Call them what you will, bridals, groomals, or formals... pre-wedding day shoots are where it is at. Joelle and Brett were great to work with, and we ended up with some photos that they were super excited to enlarge for the reception. Here are a few favorites...

Joelle did some photography back in high school, where she focused on black and white photography. So we had to get a couple b&w's to show them off as well...

Joelle and Brett will be married at the end of this month in the LDS Salt Lake Temple and will have their reception at Magnolia Grove, so check back later for more pictures!

Holli & David: LDS Draper Temple Wedding

August 29, 2011 in Wedding

The more I get to know Holli and David, the more impressed with them I get. They are some of the nicest, genuine, and giving people I have met. When I posted an S.O.S. on Facebook a couple of months ago looking for a few extra hands in loading up our moving truck, they immediately responded and said they would be there. They showed up, and not only helped us load in Lehi, but drove up to West Jordan to help us unload... and they did it happily and with a smile on their faces. PLUS, they love metal prints almost as much as I do. That in itself puts them pretty high in my book. :)

Their wedding was fantastic. They knew exactly what they wanted, and had some amazing details. The whole reception was like a big old-timey fair or carnival, where families would go and eat, relax, and just enjoy each other's company. They had some great live music and a FANTASTIC get-away car.

I love happy people. I love to shoot them, I love to talk to them, and I love to be around them. Just a few reasons why I like to hang around these two.

Don't these guys look amazing? Holli looks absolutely fantastic, and David actually had TWO suits for the day... this awesome pinstripe, and then another summer suit for the reception. Y'all will be able to check it out with the reception post... we'll do a details post tomorrow, and then the overall reception post on Wednesday.

Zmoos Wedding- Salt Lake City

July 24, 2010 in Wedding

One of the top reasons I liked working with Abbey and Taylor is even when things went wrong, sometimes disastrously so, they were still so pleasant and happy. They had had some fairly large hurdles to overcome with their formal session and as the day of the wedding came things seemed to continue in that same vein. Abbey and Taylor had extended family in town for the weekend, and apparently some of the nieces came bearing gifts in the form of plague. The little Typhoid Marys kindly shared a nice violent flu with everyone in the family, including the bride, a few days before the big day itself. Although Abbey was mostly feeling better by the morning of the wedding, on the way to the Salt Lake Temple she had an allergic reaction to something, and her eye swelled almost completely shut (fortunately a temporary situation!). Later, about halfway through the newlywed photos, Taylor's tux coat button popped off for the second time. Finally, someone accidentally spilled water over one of their favorite enlargements from the bridal session, right before the reception was due to begin. Despite this and the normal stress and craziness that come part and parcel in a wedding day, Abbey and Taylor were both happy, smiling, and thoroughly in love. It was extraordinary, and they were awesome!