First I have to say that i was truly honored to be a guest at their wedding, and how they wanted us to celebrate the day with them without being distracted by all the things we wedding photographers do. It was a small wedding and i know they couldn’t afford to invite everyone they wanted to, which made me wonder why I was invited. You see I have known Talene for about a year, and have only met Wes a few times. I loved their story and their character. They did make it known why, but i will let them comment if they wish.

One night we went out for dinner with the small group, and i believe that was the first time I had met Wes. I came to realize the he was an intelligent guy with a great sense of humor and seemed well grounded in his relationship with God. If i recall correctly when we were asking about their story, he knew that Talene was the one on that same day. And it was great hearing Talene retell the story of that first day yesterday at her wedding. She said that the time she spent with him, she had the feeling of something familiar.

Fast forward a few months to October of 2009 when we at our friend’s house for a Halloween party “Ghetto fabulous”. so i set up a studio light and was taking pictures of people i didn’t recognize the next time i met them, because they were so different. Well because the two of them are adventurous people, i let them know that because i was using flash i could freeze them in motion. So they had the great idea of taking a picture of her Jumping and him catching her. Well I am sad to say that one time she jumped but he was unable to catch her and she hit her head on the floor (needless to say i haven’t tried this since). But i got the shot! it was the best of the series. But i of course felt horrible, and i imagine he did as well. But it was at that moment that i saw the love and the care that he showed her, and he was there for her. And I have no doubt that he will be there for her in times of need as her husband.

Talene taking flight (this became her facebook profile picture, so she liked it regardless to what happened after it was taken)

Wes was there for her

What can I say about Talene? She is smart, funny and a godly woman. I remember her comments at bible study and how wise they were. The questions that she asked that would make us stop and think and generate discussion. And i do have to say i loved it when she read scripture, it just seemed so inspiring, especially compared to my monotone voice. She is perfect for Wes, as he is for her.

And i have to say that I was moved when they had the toasts. It was abundantly clear on how each of them had had an amazing influence and how their character challenged them to a life of excellence.

well below are some pictures i took as a guest. I loved the freedom, the lack of responsibility.  I was able to do creative things that are different from the norm.  And as i was taking them i was thinking I would never do this for a wedding i shooting, but then i thought again why not?” If you are married or about to be i would love to hear your story, feel free to post a comment or contact me directly.  I hope you enjoy one of my favorite days in recent memory.

Jr.

Look at those shaddows, not the faces.

If Wes was a state, which one would he be?

The last few months I've felt like taking very grainy black and white pictures

All Black and White pictures were shot with the in camera flash. it's the first time I used it with this camera

Remember they are married.

it was nice to clear the dust that had settled on my Blog. i hope to keep the momentum.  as a note this was supposed to be a short post 100 words max.

It’s going to be hard to top that first post. So I’m not going to even try.  The truth is that I am blessed, and recently God has blessed me so much, that I just need to share some of it.  Though I have been blessed in many area’s of my life I want to start from the point i quit my job (2 1/2 weeks to go).

I was encouraged to go to the WPPI trade show after listening to a talk by @mikelarsoninc.  I had decided that i was only going to attend the trade show (since a lot happens there and free trade show passes are easy to come by).  After reviewing the platform classes that were included for registered users, I decided to call and get the information for a single day registration which cost $130.00.  When I was talking to the lady from WPPI she asked why I was going to only purchase a day, rather than the full registration which covered all the days. I simply stated that I could not afford it. She told me that there were many companies that were giving away free Full Registrations.  She asked where I lived, then told me that Pictage (which is located close by) was giving away full registrations and signed me up.  Since I was not a member of WPPI that full registration would have cost me $399.00.  And I got it for free!

Now I needed a way to get to Vegas.  So my friend Ricardo told me not to rent a car, but to take his BMW Z4 convertible. at 25miles/gal not a bad way to get to Vegas (or anywhere else for that matter). But once again God had provided.

The third was my friend Darryl from the Fast Track OC Group already had a room and was gracious enough to ask for a room with two beds instead of his single king size bed.  So i split the room with him so even the room was cheap and close to the convention. I had never been to Vegas, and I’m still not crazy for it.  But the conference was amazing. during the platform talks I grabbed lens cleaner solution and cloth, and a Frisbee with a $100 Kubota Image Tools Certificate  (both of which were tossed into the audience).

Though i was given much, my hope is that with what I have learned will be able to impact those that I come into contact with. I was blessed to meet new amazing people at the conference, and to get to know better some of those that are closer by.

Though there has been so much more going on, but I would like to say that the greatest blessing of all is the peace and excitement I’m experiencing now, which outweighs all those material things mentioned above.

Remember that the emotion felt before courage and cowardice is fear, we should not be paralyzed in fear and uncertainty. I am looking forward to what is to come, as i step into the unknown.

Jr.

P.S. Cabdirashid from work asked me  to mention him in this post. (check)