Tiffany and Brandon

It's always a sticky situation you find yourself in when a friend gets married. Part of you wants to be just a participant, a reveler of the day, while the professional in you is aching to have control. Control over the light, the styling, the composition, the mood of the pictures... it is such a fight within to figure out what is best.

 For my best friend Kristin's wedding, I shot the whole thing with Penny and had to shoot through tears of joy. It was so special to be there, and I'm proud of the pictures, and glad of the time we spent together. However it's twice as exhausting to shoot your friends when you're emotionally involved because you have to set aside your own feelings to be as objective as possible. For Michelle's wedding, I was strong, mostly because she already had another photog in her pocket so I felt she was in good hands. But Tiffany's wedding was a serious struggle. Mostly because I knew she was in a tight spot and needed someone, but also because I love her and wanted to be a part of the whole thing, not just an observer, but an active participant.

 The great start to the day was the fact the girls came to my place so I could do their make up, so we drank sparkling wine, listen to Edward Sharpe, and wound ourselves up for the day. I helped Penny shoot the formals, and then I took a few moments to sit back and take it all in during the ceremony. I shot when I felt like it, and sat back when I didn't. I'm glad it was me (and Penny, Penny mostly...)  but mostly I'm just glad the light was good, the air was sweet, and good friends were wed on a happy autumn eve. I love my girls and we danced until the wee hours when we could see our breath and the wine had seeped into our bones in blissful warmth. 

We shot mostly natural light, with some flash interspersed throughout, but the sun kept going in and out of the clouds so we used what we had which was pretty good.

These are just the teasers, with more good things to come.

 The whole thing was out at Tiffany's aunt's farm, whom I adore. She had the greatest acreage I've seen in a while, and these charming men named Kiwi and Pickman were nice accessories.

 All Tiffany has ever wanted is to be a princess, and she finally got to be one for a day.

I love the background behind the cake. 

 Bubbles! I started this trend, just so we are clear.

 Best ring shot of the year. Eat your heart out Penny! Haha! (We always compete to take the best ring shot)

 I love this shot of Penny, it shows what she will do for the love of the picture. She had a busted toe when she climbed up there, but you'd never know.