I used to get asked the same question a lot when people were interested in my services…. "do you come with a second shooter?"  It’s now written into all my packages so people know upfront that they will without a doubt get a second shooter, but it still to this day surprises me that some photographers actually shoot weddings without another shooter.  I don’t want to seem like I’m putting that down, because everyone works differently, but I think a second shooter is extremely important to me.  I used to explain to people that as much as they love my work, I can only be in one position at a time.  I can only get one angle at a time.  I’m still only one person, and because I am human I have to do things like go to the bathroom, eat eventually, talk to people at the wedding who have questions or want to see the cool cameras or who want cards, and sit down for a quick breather a couple times a day (even if it is only for 15 seconds).  It’s valuable to me knowing that someone has my back during these instances. 

One of the responses I used to get from potential clients would be "yea I’m glad to hear that, because so and so says they don’t use a shooter because no one else can see a wedding like him or her."  My response would be that I agree, no one probably sees a wedding exactly like me either, but that’s a very good thing :)  I like having that other perspective, that different eye shooting with me.  I’ve always liked it, and always placed importance on it, but even more so now that Alisha and I shoot together so much.  We did a wedding together recently and pulled the couple outside for a couple cool night portraits.  Alisha set up a few shots first, and then I set up the shot below.   The shot on the left is my shot and the image on the right is Alisha’s version.  Both of these shots were taken at the same time.  While I set it up for the final version on the left, Alisha saw something totally different and nailed a smokin image… an image that I never envisioned.  When I saw it on the back of her camera later in the evening I was blown away, and it was just another one of the many times that we’ve shot the same couple, in the same light, in the same pose, and come out with images that look 110% different… but equally beautiful and unique.

(Please click on the image to enlarge it)

There have been numerous occasions where I have wanted to blog about this, but once it happened the other night I finally told myself I’d do it.  Another prime example of the same exact moment captured with 2 totally different views.

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

On Saturday I had the pleasure of photographing Dena and Dan’s wedding along with Alisha.  It’s funny because the weather has been so hit or miss lately, but on Saturday it was gorgeous for them.  Beautiful light coming in the huge windows for getting ready shots (check out the glow on her skin and those catch lights!), and it was even so nice at night that we went out for some street shots. 

Thanks so much for allowing me to photograph your wedding you two!

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

Here are some more images from the runway during the NYC bridal market -

Adele Wechsler

Alfred Angelo

Alicia’s Bridal

Augusta Jones

Bellantuono

Casablanca

Dessy Collection

Isabella Margiano

Paloma Blanca

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

Before I get into this post, a little bit of background is needed.  Those of you in the industry who have done fashion shows can skip this part, but for those of you who don’t know what it’s like to shoot a fashion show I wanted to give a little rundown.  First the photographer has to get press credentials to get into the show, which I won’t get into because it varies tremendously (maybe another blog post in the future).  Once the photographer gets in the show, he (I’ll use he since I am a male) has to set up in "the pit."  It is indeed as bad as it sounds :)  The pit is basically the area sectioned off for the video and stills, usually located at the end or near the end of the runway, that is way too small for the amount of people that have to fit in it.  This leads to everyone being super friendly and even more super respecting of other people’s space as you can imagine.  Here is a sample picture of Alisha to illustrate what I’m talking about -

So now that you’ve seen the conditions at fashion shows, you can really appreciate what we had going on Saturday at Ines DiSanto’s suite.  We came into Ines’ suite after the press show had occurred, and we had the chance to visit with Ines and Veronica (her daughter) both personally.  It was without a doubt the highlight of the day.  I have a huge appreciation for Ines’ work and to have such an up close and personal showing was amazing.  Her and Veronica let us come in and photograph a smaller showing with a much smaller number of people… and we were the only photographers.  We were able to grab some food and drinks, visit with some really nice people, and Ali and I even shared a couch together at the end of the runway without any other photographers.  Ines came over towards the end and her and Alisha hit it off talking about the dresses and showing Ines her favorite on the back of the camera and such.  It was a very unique experience and a total highlight of our day.  I had to grab a shot of them on the couch chatting away.

Anyway, here are some of my favorite designs from the showing –

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

As much as I had hoped to post some of the fashion runway this evening as Alisha and I finally settle in….. we just had to play with Lillie all night.  She was so full of energy and happy to see us that work had to take the night off.  I haven’t posted this, but unfortunately I have been really sick over the last week.  I was finally convinced to go to the doctor by my family and I’m glad I did as I finally seem to maybe be on the verge of conquering whatever I have.  That meant that I’ve been slightly behind on some of my normal stuff like emails, and I didn’t want to fall back on anything else either… but look at Lillie’s face and tell me you’d work tonight instead of play with her!! 

Alisha has a meeting tomorrow (although it’s today at this point) but I’ll be around working most of the day so I’ll have some fashion stuff soon. 

Thanks again to everyone who visits the blog, and especially to those who leave me comments.  I’m 100% honest when I say I truly appreciate it and the comments sometimes make my day. 

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

Alisha and I were in the city over the weekend shooting the NYC Bridal Market that was going on.  The event is pretty much a week long opportunity for designers to showcase their new wedding collections on the runway.  We had a blast photographing the different shows and meeting some amazing people and I can’t wait to share!  Before I get to those shots though, I wanted to start the entries off with our first day.  Before we started shooting like crazy we had the chance to visit The Knot headquarters in lower Manhattan.  Alisha and I have gotten to know Rebecca Crumley, who is the real weddings editor, through varies emails, submissions, and requests.  Since Ali and I were both going to be in NYC that weekend (we aren’t in the city together all that often) we went over and Rebecca gave us a quick showing of The Knot and then we went and grabbed some great lunch around the corner. 

Once we were done with lunch we headed back over to Chelsea… but before we hit the studio we stopped at Kleinfeld Bridal.  Knowing that many of the bride’s I work with get their dresses here I’ve always wanted to stop in (plus just knowing it’s the largest salon in the world, well that’s kinda cool too).  So we stopped in and once again were given an extensive tour and the 411 on how the whole operation works.  I have to admit, I was extremely impressed.  I really think they should tape a tour because it was so impressive and interesting.  From the bride’s perspective it made Ali and I both appreciate how much work went into that dress and from the industry’s perspective it was very intriguing seeing what a well oiled machine their operation was. 

While I freely admit I felt somewhat touristy and cheesy getting the behind of scenes of The Knot and Kleinfeld, it was totally 110% worth it.  We met some great people in Jennette and Laura, and finally got to meet up with Rebecca in person. 

This was just the start before we began shooting… stay tuned!

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

It’s raining magazine appearances this week :)  SPOSA Magazine featured one of my images in another full page appearance in the latest issue.  This is the second issue in a row where I’ve had work published, and it never gets old seeing your work as you walk through malls, stores, and newsstands. 

I’d like to thank SPOSA for using my work, and also once again for the kind email I already posted.  I hope everyone enjoys the new issue!

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

It’s been a while since I posted a picture of the week so I thought I’d post this afternoon.  This entry comes from my personal collection.  I don’t shoot as much for myself as I’d like, but I do occasionally get the chance to trek around new cities from time to time and I like to shoot something from each city.  You all have obviously seen the shot I took of Manhattan on my website in the contact section which in a way started everything.  Here is a shot I took a while back of Alisha’s home…. the Gateway City.

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]   

When I first started the blog I used to post some of the really nice emails I received.  It started to become tough though because I didn’t want to fill up my blog with nice emails, but also didn’t want people to feel left out if they sent me a touching email and I didn’t post it. 

I feel safe posting this email that I received today, as I don’t receive emails from editors of magazines every day.  The following email was sent to me by Gulshan Sippy, the Editor and Art Director over at SPOSA Magazine. 

Hello Luke,

I am always honored when my work is featured in SPOSA as I truly
believe it’s one the publications out there that places a huge emphasis
on good photography.  They take the best photography available, whether
anyone advertises with them or not, and fill their magazine pages with
beautiful images from all over the world.  I respect that a ton about
them, which is why I was so stoked to receive such a great email.  Thank you SPOSA for making a great product that features solid photography and for treating the people who work with you so well.

0 vote as favorite [add a comment] [send to a friend] [permalink]