Some Light Reading

Comrades,
Well my friends, it has been a tad too infrequent a visit for me to the good old blog spot. Much has transpired since the last time I came to you. Between three weddings and trying like a maniac to balance my family life mixed in with some bang bang fireworks it has battered but not beaten this soon to be 36 year old guy. Let us get right into the three weddings before we get into anything else. First stop on the tour was McCall where I had the pleasure of working with Jake & Kassy. What is it with me and lawyers? I have shot more weddings for lawyers in the last three years than most people have in their entire careers! I digress, hanging out at Shore Lodge I yet again visited the gorgeous waters with my subjects known for making amazing picture. Funny thing is, it marked the first the first time the caterer gave me flack for trying to steal a piece of chicken at a wedding. To make a long story short…….Wait, you don’t need to hear that crap, all you need to know is that I am convinced little miss server had plans of her own for the food that was supposed to keep my blood sugar from hitting the ground like a bull rider with no arms! So to offset this nutrient greed, I went over to the lodge and had em make me a burger. Little did I know that I was about to get hit up for $15 just for a beef patty on bread! No wonder the world goes hungry in some parts! Seriously, I had a blast and realize more and more just how much I enjoy doing what I do with the people who entrust me to make their day memorable. Jake & Kassy are amazing people with the looks, smarts, and edge to go the distance in this world. I hope that my commitment to their day stands the test of time as well.

Part 2July 4th was not your typical shin-dig by any stretch I am here to tell you. What was supposed to be a small neighborhood get together turned into something resembling “Daddy Daycare” vs. the Pyromaniacs! Funny how kids will crawl from all parts of the world just to get their paws on your firework supply and I am certain at one point in the night I was randomly pointing bottle rockets at those pre-school agitators! Just kidding…..I was more than glad to share the wealth and to make things complete, my son & the crew he runs with spent the better part of two weeks designing a launcher that rivaled NASA. We managed to shoot mortars across the night sky without getting anyone killed so I venture to say it was a success.

Part 3 (Sorry, No Pics)

Had the chance to spend some time in Redfish with Andy & Sabrina has they had a small ceremony with the Sawtooth Mountains as a backdrop. Talk about awesome! Met some really amazing people and spent the better part of the after party camped out on the patio of the resort drink in hand of course. The sun is so direct up in the mountains my face looked like an apple by day’s end! I always love the type of weddings that end up in a bar long after the formalities are complete. It is there that you see people letting their hair down and taking you in as if they sent you an invitation as a guest. It symbolizes one more block in the wall towards this thing a good wedding photographer invests heavily in that being, relationships with people!

Part 4The grand finale or the hot tamale you can take your pick I found myself spending some time with the ever so adventurous Mark & Emily. This gig marked the first time I participated in a “trash the dress” session and that in itself was both different and a blast. I didn’t want to do the typical dump something on the bride instead, I felt a need to create a scene of confusion mixed colors further emphasizing the beauty of the moment. For all that fancy romance novel talk I just spewed at you let me share what I used. SMOKE BOMBS! Yes, I had her in the cliché water shot but to add some depth I figured red & blue smoke would give the viewer a dybamic caught somewhere between the cover of a romance novel and a Vietnam Flashback. As for the wedding, let’s just say I just keep getting so damn lucky to run with people who represent everything that is right in this world. Somehow I know I have not seen the last of these two and my hats off to Emily for being daring enough to push our pictures to edge and beyond.

I always like to thank those who have pushed, encouraged, and helped me as I continue to pursue the ever changing world of photography. I can always tell who the “real players” are for it is not their gross revenues that speak highest nor is it their talent. It is an understanding that in some way all of us must pass the torch of knowledge on to those who come behind us so that something as healthy and worthwhile like pictures lives on forever. To that end I say thank you to the likes of Scott Evans & Greg Sims for their ability to strip out the ego & secrecy that has become so pervasive in the industry.

Selling Novels in your Hood,

Lance

Lessons with a new wedding to show

Comrades In Love,

Ever felt that ping in the back of your head telling you that your brain machine has had just about enough of the rat race? In other words, the pounding headache from having too much to do and deadlines to meet! My friends all say I am a loof when it comes to that but my argument has always been that it is part of my charm (Smiling). To give you an example, I was shuffling through the Denver airport the other day browsing my Facebook on my IPhone. I placed the phone back in my pocket and proceeded to my gate. Upon hearing my boarding call, I begin to think I have entered the aircraft sans IPhone. Searching my pockets like a confused child I let the anxiety of the moment get the best of me not even realizing that I had brushed my hand across the phone sitting right there in my cargo pocket! Not once, not twice, but THREE TIMES!!! Argghhh….Like a child I am but there is a lesson to all of this. Your wedding day can be much like the scenario I just painted for you (Yes it was a true story) & my offer is to tell you to relax and go with it regardless of how things go down. I know, you’re probably cursing me for throwing rocks in a glass house but at least you don’t have to see me in a dress! You on the other hand, will see yourself in that dress and the view is much nicer when you let the good, the bad, and the somewhere in the middle parts of your day flow for what they are, beautiful in their own way.

Had an awesome time shooting Mellissa & Noah’s gig 2 weeks ago. I would have posted earlier but vacations and the IPhone took up all of my time. Let me say that the lighting on their day was fantastic and I was on a role! Thank you guys it was fun, it was hot, and it was sultry! Until we meet again I say……………..

Sweatbands For All My Friends,

Lance

Depot Wedding

Comrades of the World,

I am always amazed at the spectacle a wedding brings. For all the pictures I take, weddings bar none bring out an elegance that is raw yet polished in emotion. May 10th did not disappoint and Micha & Carissa proved awesome! It marked the first wedding I have shot at the Depot and also marked the first picture I have ever shot in a men’s bathroom. You can laugh all you want but the layout of the bathroom was ripe for a comical picture of the boys. Many thanks to both families and the catering was by far the best I have seen in the years I have been shooting weddings. Just flat out awesome!

Urinals For All My Friends,

Lance

(Correction) Desert Storm

Comrades,

I think that I have figured out why I am not as frequent in my writings. Blame none other than Facebook! Between keeping tabs on that and the constant barrage of info found there, blogging seems secondary anymore. Not that I don't like writing the blog just sayin that when compared to the high speed exchanges on Facebook I am reduced to a lesser degree of dialogue when it comes to blogging. Most people simply read it and move on where as with Facebook you can almost always count some sort of exchange whether it be positive or negative. Maybe the blog is the "Minor Leagues" for Justis Photo and a place for me to warm up the thoughts? Hmmm, maybe not.....

Shot some pictures of Melissa out in the desert recently and aside from the fact we had 40 mph winds that seemed relentless, I pulled out perhaps some of my best work to date. Proud? That would be an understatement to describe the degree of imagery the two of us handed to ourselves on this warm yest blustery spring day. I spend weeks doing nothing but thinking of new places with new faces always trying to capture a different mood that others are either unwilling or incapable of pulling off. Was it worth lugging light stands up what seemed like Rainer like peaks? Absolutely and the pictures show it. Like I have always said, when you quit pushing yourself it is time to push yourself right out the door. This is the one profession that I have found that you can discover the true proximity of ideas and if harnessed, the ordinary becomes super natural! Having to clean sand out of my gear for a week sorta sucked but something tells me I will be enjoying these pictures for years to come.

More to come soon from last weekends wedding so stay tuned.....Drinks are on me :)

Camels For All My Friends,

Lance

Courtney Time

Comrades,

What a slamming start to the busiest time of the year for me. Individual sessions seem to be back in vogue and I welcome the challenge. I have been waiting for the opportunity to do a session on the sand dunes just past Mountain Home and come May 2nd that is where I will be. Of course, I will post some pics for ya and let’s hope for a pink sunset…..
Man somebody forgot to tell me that the more equipment you own, the more luggage you have to carry around! Perhaps it is time for me to shed some of the weight because it has become maddening. I figure I am going to need the road crew from Metallica to help me lug all this stuff around. The thing is, I bore easily and need new tools at my disposal so that I am better able to try new things. I will admit that some things have worked better than others. Perhaps I will just have a photographer garage sale of sorts this fall. The one thing you won’t see me giving up is the 30x40 light panels from Interfit. If you’re a shooter try em! I promise you that light will never look the same again and they are quite simple to set up however I encourage you to buy a sandbag or two (They catch more wind than a sailboat!). Enough of my rambling, let us begin the 2010 wedding season and I hope to see your shining faces in the warm sun.

Sun Tans For All My Friends,

Foster

Jeff & keri all the way from L.A.

Comrades,

Had the pleasure of shooting my first wedding of 2010 on March 7th and as always, I had a blast. Just to be "Anti-Establishment" I will refrain from telling you the days events in chronological order that somehow get the words "Emotion", "Love", & "Feelings" jumbled into the paragraph so that you think I was in this zen state of being with my subjects. That would be fake and one way to placate the memory of my subjects to the point of sounding like a Hallmark card that you always forget to take off the fridge. I digress, Jeff & Kari flew up from L.A. to have a ceremony right here in good ole Idaho. With a glaring sun ready to do battle with me I found myself spending the first 2 hours getting a feel for my subjects. Sometimes it is just like that in photography, you spend a bit of time earning trust for it is not everyday somebody takes 400 plus pictures of one set of people. I almost love the challenge that it presents because being the competitive guy I am, when I have conquered that obstacle whether real or perceived, I get a sense of satisfaction not found in anything else I do.

Given that no two weddings are alike, I am always pleased when a couple isn't as worried about the status quo and I can say that Jeff & Keri were all over that. Even better, I am always blown away when two people are making this huge commitment to one another and yet they come off without a worry in the world. Without a doubt, these two fit that description. The funny thing is, I was probably more the worried than them it was my first gig for 2010. Funny how you have to get your "Sea Legs" after not shooting a wedding for 6 months and yet, I have always found my first wedding of a given year to be the one I remember the most. Of course all that matters are that 1. I am satisfied with the pictures 2. The subjects are satisfied with the pictures. Ok maybe not satisfied but ecstatic! The whole experience was yet one more gateway to another time created by the 3 of us that I can only hope they reflect on down the road. Wedding photography is that one thing where we are allowed to cross the lines of business and friends and with that said I am very happy to have been a small part of a new friendship if only seen through the memories of what we created .

Flying Over Your Mother's House,

Lance

Micha & Carrissa

Comrades,

Excellent engagement session capped by sunny skies and a gentle breeze. Always felt like engagements were the time to work out the kinks and find what fits a subject best for their wedding day. This of course, is like the pre-season for weddings and already I feel like I am in mid-season form. I am ready, are you?