Adriana & Julian - The Video

My wife and I can't wait to get our business full steam ahead. This past we compiled photos from friends' weddings and we shot a couple videos along the way. We will be focusing on the photo aspect of things but it's will be nice to have the video card in our back pocket as well.

Here's a look at our latest video from Adriana and Julian's wedding in the beautiful La Costa Resort in San Diego. I was great to get excited on this project. For two reasons; 1. The couple were great! Down to earth and gave my wife and I free reign to get the shots needed. And 2. It was a real test to see how the 7D would handle one full day of shooting. Yes, I need to add another battery to the arsenal and maybe another 32gig card. I love my wife for listening to me and also using her very creative eye to capture those special moments. Great job honey!

The major difference between editing thousands of photos and editing hours of video... not much at all. Different software is the only real thing I can think of. The time it takes to do either one is relative. Both require tedious amount of time behind the computer and crucial attention to detail. National University's media program covered the entire spectrum of media and I thank them for that. For that reason, I love doing both.

Props to Carlos Hernandez, the wedding photography, who was cool for letting me get in position in some shots even though I know I was in his shots. And props to Niloufar Gibson (www.perfectlymadeweddings.com) for keeping her cool in those hectic situations.

I'm happy to say that the bride and groom loved it. Even my wife became teary-eyed when she first saw the final version. Thank you Adriana and Julian for this opportunity. Great couple!

Enjoy.

Getting Experience

Isn't it funny how you can't get a job without experience and you can't get experience without a job? Fortunately for Mailei and I, we are able to shoot and video our friends' weddings to get that experience. Now with over five weddings under our belts, we're gearing up to blow up in 2013.

Mailei has come a long way as far has handling the camera. She's got the eye. One of our brides said Mailei 'captures the emotions' of the wedding day. Excellent!

We are a great team and I can't wait to get rockin' and rollin' full tilt! Be ready and please recommend us to your friends and family. We would appreciate everything you do for us. Until then, here is a shot from our last wedding shoot... congrats Val and Ken. You two are awesome!

Thank you Val and Ken.

Thousands Of...

Mailei and I have experienced our first journey through our workflow. Like some of you, I used to think that wedding photographers were overpaid. But the amount of work that goes into a single wedding is incredible.

Preparation 
Mailei and I wanted to make sure that we knew what we were going to face the day of the wedding. So we took the drive to the location of the wedding a couple times. We wanted to a feel of the lighting, the scene, layout and everything else involved in relation with the time of the ceremony. That's time and gas, right off the bat.

The Day Of 
For Mailei and I, our day started way beyond the ceremony. Bride and groom preparation photos, photobooth preparation, setting up and more. Then... we were firing off like madmen during the ceremony. We didn't want to miss anything!

Reception 
Changing settings on the camera, making sure the photo booth set up is working properly and taking time to eat are easier said than done.

Post Production 
This is where the real money is made. The amount of time to go through thousands of photos and selecting the cream of the crop is the most time consuming job of the workflow. Once, the best photos are selected, then it's time to chose the five star photos and enhance them in specific photo editing software. Each photo is carefully enhanced to make sure that the bride and groom look their best.

Are wedding photographers overpaid? It really depends on the photographer. If all he or she is doing is simply showing up to the ceremony, pushing a button, downloading photos to a disk(unedited) then handing them over to you, well... I personally would stay away from those people. If you're going to want that incredible day relived forever the way you saw it through your own eyes, you're going to have to pay for it. The photographers that have the eye and take the time to make sure your photos bring you back to that special day will not charge you $500... that's a fact. It's all relative my friends.

 Do your homework and save up!

Spencer and Kamala after 'I Do' kisses.

First One In The Books

Mailei and I did our first wedding shoot! Finally! It's like any other job. How do you get experience if you can't get a job to get that experience. We even threw it out there that we'd do it for free! Lucky for us, our friends Omar and Lynda trusted in our skills and we're sure they'll be happy.

There was a little quip in the mix. Did I say quip? Okay... the thing was that Mailei was the second shooter but the quip was that she was IN the wedding! So whenever she could, she'd grab the strategically placed camera and start firing. I love her for going the distance.

Everything went well except for my one of my cameras simply stopped working. I didn't stress because we had two back up cameras. Preparation paid off!

It also helped that we had an awesome couple to photograph. Omar and Lynda are the coolest people for allowing us and trusting us to do the deed. Thank you two.

What did we learn? Lists! I know the veterans don't need a list in their back pocket. But because we're new, we will, from this point on, have a list on us to make sure we get EVERY single shot that we and the couple envision. So expect me to wear a quarterback wristband with a list attached. Okay, I won't go that far but I will have that list on me somewhere.

Please let us know what you think... M+M



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Preparation For The 7th

Mailei and I are about to shoot our first wedding this weekend. The only thing is that she's in the wedding!? She's going to have a camera in her hand while not doing her duties. Worried. Not at all. I know Mailei will get the shots and I'm very excited to get shooting with our rented equipment.

Canon 5D, 70-200mm v2, 85mm and 24-105mm lenses... oh man, can't wait! We'll have our 7D plus another with the wide angle lens.

I know it may seem a little cheesy but I will have a shot list with me. This is our first official wedding shoot so I don't want finish up the day and say, 'oh shit! I forgot to get this shot!'

I'm excited and I'm ready. Photos soon :)

Wish us luck.

Spencer & Kamala Skipper

I was so excited to know that I was going to be on Oahu in Hawaii during my friends' wedding. Of course, I was all about getting sandy and getting them some great photos.

Lucky for me, I had my waterhousing set with me. The newlyweds were going to take a swim together after they said their I Do's. So with just minutes at hand, I put the camera in the housing and off we went into the heavy shorebreak. Got the shot and switched to video for a minute or two as well. Being prepared was key today.

The overcast made for great diffused lighting. And the smiles were in abundance.

Today was a great day. Enjoy.

(Side note) It didn't help when I had to rush down the beach, not once, but twice to help people from drowning in the pounding surf. That was totally unexpected. But it felt great to get some of my lifeguarding skills a brush up.

Kamala's eyes on Spencer.

Keiki Beach. North Shore, Oahu.

I couldn't have seen this wedding any different. Amazing.

Spencer and Kamala.

The Skippers.