Prague, Before and After -- Europe Fine Art/Travel Photography

I've been enjoying the wedding off-season by doing a little of the work I've been piling up for years. Lori and I went to Europe in 2006 for the World Cup and I came home with about 4500 images. It was the next year that I started my photography studio and haven't taken a breath since. So for years I've longed for the time when I could do some editing and perhaps even launch a web store on which to sell my travel and fine art prints. Well, I'm still a ways away from it but I HAVE begun editing some of my favorite images from Europe and my other travels since. For fun I thought I'd show both the original file as well as the finished product. For those of you who are not used to the editing process for fine art photography, it is a LONG, tedious process. It takes hours and hours and I'm still rarely satisfied. It's a long journey from the limited data the camera can capture to the dynamic image that shows the viewer the scene as it was in my head at the time.
Anyway, this is one of my favorite places on the planet, the view from Prague castle.

Cake as a Metaphor

The Cake Cutting is a solemn tradition dating back many years. It is a metaphor for a successful marriage. At Jon Woodbury Photography, tradition is a very important part of what we do. (It's important to know what you're flouting, isn't it?)
Thanks to Calle and Dustin for having such an amazing wedding! (I haven't posted their wedding yet, I'll be blogging it soon, so stay vigilant.)

See more at www.jonwoodbury.com

Grace and Hannah

 

Sometimes I get so caught up in the technical quality of photography that I forget that one of the real values of photography is the ability to catch a moment. Digital photography has changed the world in this area. Nearly everyone has a camera available almost constantly. This image came out of our Canon Elph Point-and-Shoot at a recent family dinner. It's my daughter, Hannah (Right) playing around with her cousin Grace. It was a priceless moment that we were able to capture and will have forever!
I'm certainly not implying that quality doesn't matter--it does, even this situation would have been more artistic and eye-catching with a different angle, a better camera, or a shorter depth of field--but I just wanted to remind everyone (mostly myself) about the value of photography in general--the value of being able to freeze a moment in your memory. How much value will this image have in the future? Instead of fading into obscurity, will we think of this very image when these two hug each other at Grace's graduation, or when they laugh together at Hannah's wedding? I don't know. But I know that Hannah will never be two again, and they'll grow out of the thrill of hanging upside-down just to do it. Maybe my love of photography comes from my love of life and the constant need to grab a hold of a piece of it to keep for those moments when life isn't quite so magical or simple.

Janna's Vintage Train Station Bridals - Union Station, Ogden

Janna and Dave are getting married in Manti, Utah on Saturday.
Their engagements captured the various sides of their personalities with a glam portion in down town Salt Lake and a more natural side up Little Cottonwood Canyon. Wonder which side Janna chose for her bridal session? Vintage Glam all the way, baby! Janna brought some fantastic classic portraits of Hollywood starlets as a reference point of the looks that she hoped to achieve, and I'm happy to say that not only did she channel Lucy and Grace in certain angles, but I was able to capture some Janna-out-of-the-50's herself...which I like even better than when she mimicked the stars. Thanks for the trip through time!

If you can't see the slide show below click here for the facebook album.

See more at www.jonwoodbury.com

Grandma at 100 Years Old!

I've had so many reminders that I was going to post the portrait of my grandma yesterday. Thanks for keeping me on task (some of you are pretty used to that job ;))
Overall, my criteria were these:
I wanted to capture her strength and her lifelong commitment to healthy living.
I wanted to capture her amazingly positive attitude.
I wanted to include the two things she loves more than anything, her family, and music (especially hymns.)
I wanted to show and celebrate her age but not as an oppressor or master but more as a friend who is walking beside her teaching her as they go.
I feel like I captured all of that. I am so pleased with this portrait. (and the party was a good time too! Everyone worked hard and it turned out so fun.)
I will post some of the other photos and videos later but here is the portrait.

This first image is the 16x20 that I went with. It looked great but I missed the context of the descendants on top of the piano. I wished I would have gone with a 16x24 and included that portion of the frame but I didn't. It is cleaner and less distracting and more portaity this way so I'm still happy with it.

This is the one I should have used. I like the full frame crop better.

I think this version is my very favorite. I love the simplicity of the tinted monochrome. I used the color version because it felt more alive. Once again my lovely wife was right on. Even though I like this one better, the color print was the right choice for the party.

I did this version because, well, she's old.

Blayr & Brock - Vintage Inspired Back Yard Reception

Blayr and Brock are a couple that, quite frankly, are way too attractive for their own good. About a month after her sister Brittnie's wedding (Which I was privileged to photograph as well,) Blayr married her sweetheart in the Logan LDS Temple followed by an impeccably planned backyard reception at her parents' house in Tremonton, Utah. From the vintage Cadillac to the small-town country band from Malad, Idaho this classy reception was filled to overflowing with style and personality.
(Due to a canceled flight from Seattle, I was stuck but the ceremony at the Logan temple was covered beautifully by the lovely and talented Andrea Hanks of Andrea Hanks Photography. I finagled a flight a little bit later and was able to make it in time for the reception.)
I also just realized that I never blogged Blayr's bridal session. It was one of my favorites of the year for sure so look for it coming up.

As always, if you can't see the Flash slide show below, click here for the gallery on Facebook.

See more at www.jonwoodbury.com

Touching Tibetan Portraits by Phil Borges

I love photography. I just love looking at powerful, interesting images. I have many photography books from all different genres from US magazine celebrity portraits to classic National Geographic to iPhone images.
I thought I'd share a photographer that I recently discovered. His name is Phil Borges. He's been around a long time but I've somehow missed him until now. He does beautiful portraits of people from around the world. The above portrait is from his Tibetan collection. They're just beautiful.

His portraits are truly amazing. Click here for his website, www.philborges.com.


See my portfolio at www.jonwoodbury.com

What they won't think of next!

What a cool idea! Check this out, it's a digital camera KIT built to teach kids math, science, optics, whatever. It's a great idea!

Click here to see the article.

And here for the website.

See more of my work at www.jonwoodbury.com

Shane & Amanda - Ceremony - Stanley, Idaho

The sun had just slipped behind the Sawtooth Mountains and the light was a cool blue. I saw Amanda over on the swings just sitting there watching. I went over. She remarked at how cool it was that all their friends and family had come from so far away and they were playing games and having fun together in this amazingly beautiful place. It was exactly how she'd always envisioned it. Shane came over and we enjoyed the silence for a minute before I jumped back into photographer mode. We took some fun shots on the swings before I left them, just the two of them, to sit there in the waning light and just bask in a really cool party.
Shane and Amanda, we love you guys.

See their engagement session. (It was a cool one!)
See their pre-wedding session in Glacier National Park, Montana.

If you can't see the slide show below, click here for the facebook album.

See more of my work at www.jonwoodbury.com