Beck and Call Photography

Kayla and Jeremy!

Ellen and Jeremy hired an antique car to get them to and from the ceremony and reception. Made for some wonderful portraits in front of the church.

And away they go. Congratulations Ellen and Jeremy!

Last minute advice from your daddy.

Photography Guidance: Lately doing a ladies portrait and a men's portrait for a family has been important. Grandmother, mother, daughter, granddaughter and even great granddaughter in one portrait has had a special meaning in today's families. Add this one to usual shot list.

Ellen and Jeremy's cake cutting and bouquet toss.

Ellen and Jeremy's reception, first glances.

The bride and her besties!

Bridesmaids getting ready. Congrats to Ellen and Jeremy! I am so excited to see you leap into life together! Many blessings to you.

Photography Guidance: Using the steps to gather all the guests for a full wedding guest shot might take a little more time than you were hoping to take for posed images, but I believe it's a very important shot at a wedding.

Photography Guidance: Adding the people watching in this photo was incredibly important to the story. Once again, using the foreground and the background to help set the stage of what was happening comes in very handy. Many photographers, just assume that the audience will know that the crowds are watching the bride make her entrance, and that's a dangerous way of thinking for a photographer. Always assume your audience knows nothing about the story you are telling.

Photography Guidance: Most photographers shoot a mixture of candid and posed images at a wedding. This is a photograph taken out of camera, and you can see a little white piece of linen to the left of the picture. These little nuances should be taken out of the image through photoshop before presenting them to the couple. Although large edits aren't possible on every photo, you still must present an image that is fine tuned. In this image you might even take out the railing on the right, although it doesn't bother me as much as the piece of linen.

Photography Guidance: I've seen a lot of images with the couples who have their back to the camera, and they are supposedly walking away from the camera. I love the idea of walking off into the sunset after a wedding, but I prefer to have them at least looking at each other so you get a bit of their faces, or fully looking back into the camera as they walk away.

Photographer Guidance: Use your depth of field to create a story. The foreground of the rings in focus and the couple kissing in the background is an example of how we use all the elements in a photograph to tell the story of the day.

Photography Guidance: Sometimes whimsical and magical shots are mandatory! Don’t forget to include them whether you use lighting, posing or location, wedding photos are the perfect time to think about it.

Photography Guidance: Don't leave all the funny shots to the guys. Women don't really require candids or silly photos, but they still love them included in their wedding day. Just be careful because at some point in life, they will see if there are any Freudian slips that go thrown in.

Photography Guidance: Men do better with pictures when they are just being themselves, and you grab the candid. These tend to be the images that they want to use for later on as well.

Photography guidance: If there is a cake smash, make sure you get images of the smash cleanup. Have the smasher doing the cleanup job, as this will be repeated through life during squabbles, and they WILL look back on the process later on.

Photography Guidance: Getting a few images from the famous haunts of the bride and groom are fun, and time well spent. Don't be afraid to suggest it when you have extra time in the schedule.

Photography Guidance: This is one of my favorite shots on wedding day. It's directly after the exit, and gets everyone out of the ceremony site so family and wedding party can go back in for the portrait session without the mingling of friends and family, plus it shows the size and scope of the guest list. It also gets the crew in the mood to party as they cheer on the bride and groom while they kiss.

Photography Guidance: Candid shots make up most of the fifteen hour wedding day, and it's easy to get tired, to not move as swiftly as you did the first eight hours, but it's important to try different things. Tylenol, breath freshener, snacks, and using an assistant to carry bags and equipment. If you are really vested in photographing weddings, maintaining your physical condition is paramount, otherwise wedding day becomes a literal pain.

Ten baptisms today. Seven were spontaneous, three had planned. Hard to believe how hard God is working in our church! WOW! I feel so honored and privileged to photograph some of the best moments of life.

Photography Guidance: Back lighting a couple with a flash can create some nice effects. Be careful with placement and color temperature, you might need some gels.

Photography Guidance: Long veils mean lots of great depth shots as you hold the veil, shoot the couple at the end of it. Leading lines can be created with any size veil but the long ones leave lots of options for where the lines come from.

Photography Guidance: Taking a few minutes after the sparkler exit to get some standing still portrait type images can really enhance the album, and gives you a bit more control over lighting, and placement of the sparklers. Having everyone behind the couple with their sparklers held high creates a nice shot.

Photography Guidance: Using a macro lens on the wedding day is an extra bonus as you can get very close to your details. This is a must have at a wedding, and usually these lenses work great for portraits as well.

Photography Guidance: Churches are usually dark, and the door to the outside typically has a lot of light spill to it. Using a filter on the lens to create the dreamy look of walking into bliss makes a great addition to any album