Engagement Session Teasers - Little Cottonwood Canyon - Chase and Kat

I have been so busy that this blog has kind of gotten shafted. I'm determined to fix that. Here are some teaser shots from my engagement session tonight with Kat and Chase. They are one of the most photogenic couples I've ever shot. (All of these are treated with my personal collection of Lightroom presets.)

Jamison & Amy Part I - Salt Flats Engagement Session

Jamison and Amy came up all the way from Las Vegas to have me do their engagement session and a formal session (That one's next.) It's a shame I couldn't do their wedding but these sessions allowed us a lot of freedom and creativity. We basically spent all weekend together and I felt like I became like a member of the family, especially after watching fireworks with them on the golf course.
I loved the ideas proposed and I love the images that came out of them.

For those of you on smart phones who can't see the slideshow below, click here to be whisked electronically to the facebook album.

{PHOTO IQ: I went with the obvious subject on this one--wind. There's not much you can do about it in most cases so just go along with it! You'll notice lots of poses with Amy's face into the wind to keep her hair out of her face. Sometimes the wind and the light simply don't agree, you have to take your pick. (Notice in the closer poses sitting down, good light, bad wind direction.)
Other ideas are to:

- Pose less formally so the wind feels like a natural part of the shot instead of something breaking up the "perfect" pose. I would even advocate a desperate measure, the dreaded camera tilt...hey, everything comes in handy at one time or another. In this case, it works to make the shot feel less formal.

- The more movement you use in the shots, the less out-of-place the wind will feel--Have fun!

- Have someone hold the hair as a natural part of the shot. (See this Salt Flats engagement session as well.) 

- Shoot more. The wind will change all the time. I try to shoot 5 or 6 shots at a time and most sets I got one with hair will work.

The bottom line is that anything you can't control, embrace! 

Cue cheeseball wind joke of your choice.}

See more at www.jonwoodbury.com

Up-Inspired Engagement Session

Just too fun not to post!
This couple took a theme that represented their love and went all out. Their engagements echo the elements in the Disney/Pixar movie UP.
I LOVE it and had to share it!
The photographer is WildFlower Photography. Here's their website.

Click below for parts 1 and 2 of this cinematic session.!

Part 1

Part 2

The LDS Bride, Killer Videography, and My Wedding Photography

 

I am the focus of the world! ...or at least the focus of The LDS Bride Blog...for a day or two...but still pretty cool. Jason and Kylee's wedding has been one of my showcase weddings for a long time and I'm thrilled to see it on the LDS Bride Blog. Spencer Hale of Giant Brothers Films did an unbelievable job, as always. You should also go see Kylee's Bridal video, he won major awards with that baby too, because it kicks butt.

Corinne and Joe - UNDERWATER Engagements!

Joe and Corinne met while they were both working at the Bountiful Recreation Center. They both love the water so we thought it would be fun to do their engagement session under water. (So dang cool!) We started in the park and then came inside and they jumped right in! AWESOME!!!

If you are unable to see the flash slideshow below, click here for the facebook album.

See more at www.jonwoodbury.com

The Best of 2009 part II - Engagements

Engagements are one of my favorite things to shoot. I love the latitude we have to be creative and unique. We can literally do anything! We are limited only by our creativity. I enjoy putting thought and effort into coming up with killer images. So, without further ado, here is the second part of my 2009 review, Engagement Portraits.

Dave & Janna - Engagements

One thing I love about my job is that I get to meet and befriend so many wonderful people. I have so many new friends because we get to know each other through the course of a wedding.
This wedding is different. I have known Janna for about 20 years. She has been one of my closest and most devoted friends for many years (and the reason I looked at Snow College as an option when I was a freshman.) I am extremely excited and honored to be doing her wedding. There are few people on the planet that I know as well or who knows me as well so I really wanted her engagements to feel like her. Janna is at the same time sweet, sophisticated, sexy, and mysterious. I feel like all of those things come out in the images.
Congratulations guys. Dave, you are a lucky son of a gun.

If you cannot see the flash slideshow below, you can click here to see the album on my facebook page.

Shane & Amanda - Engagement Session

Shot at the City of Rocks in southern Idaho in May, we were trying to capture the unique combination of sophistication and natural simplicity. Shane and Amanda are a young, dynamic couple who love a night under the stars just as much as a night on the town. We traveled to their very favorite camping spot to shoot their engagement session. Amanda mentioned that she looked through about 38 pages of photographers on Google. I'm so glad that they chose me! We've become such good friends. Their wedding is all processed and still to come so keep an eye on the blog.

If you are on a smart phone or can't see the slideshow below, click here to go to the gallery on facebook.

IKEA Engagement Photos - Can Life Get Any Better?

I admit it. I love IKEA. I love that it's a huge maze. I love that their designs are innovative. I love that they have revolutionized the furniture industry in an interesting way. I love that they set up full apartments in the store, and hello...Swedish meatballs RIGHT IN THE STORE!?! How can you not love that!?
Of course, Ali and Eric didn't know this when we were discussing their engagements and they sheepishly asked if I would be willing to shoot at Ikea. WILLING? I I knew we were meant to be.
Don't worry, there's a backstory. Eric lives a good hour away from Ali and they needed somewhere in the middle that they could meet and hang out for a while when they got the chance...Ikea was perfect. You can sit on the couch and chat, when you get bored, you just switch rooms! You can eat all sorts of Scandanavian confections like, um, chicken nuggets. There's even a dark corner here and there, (wink, wink, nudge, nudge, know what I mean, know what I mean...)
So we did it. I was excited about the creative opportunity to shoot somewhere different.
It was actually quite the lighting challenge with so many different types of light going on at once. We couldn't go too crazy on the setup because it's still a working store and we didn't want to disrupt. We worked with a couple speedlights and had a really great time. I am really looking forward to shooting their wedding in December!

Brittnie & Alex -- Engagements

Brittnie and Alex. What to say? We went up to Tremonton, Utah and shot in Brittnie's back yard. I kept shooting close-ups because WOW, those are some eyes! We had a blast and things turned out wonderfully. I give them props for all the shots in the open field. They were dodging mosquitoes and cow pies the whole time. I love these images. This is one of my favorite engagement sessions EVER.

Video of Photography -- Who knew it could be so fun?

I just got the video of John and Maree's engagement session out on the salt flats and I love it! The videographer is Aub Marie productions. She was fun to work with and you can see that the final result is awesome! I have quickly become a big fan. I like how she integrated the photos within the context of the video to tell the whole story of what was a crazy, fun, wind-swept shoot.
The back of my head makes an appearance or two...I desperately needed a haircut.

AubMarie Productions
www.aubmarieproductions.blogspot.com

Photos by Jon Woodbury
www.jonwoodbury.com

John & Maree - Engagements on the Bonneville Salt Flats

I'm so excited to finally post these! We went out to the Salt Flats in Utah's West Desert with certain expectations. As seems to always happen, nature had something totally different in mind. Instead of a calm, blue sky type of day we got wind, wind, and more wind. The sky was blue one minute. then yellow or black the next. To their credit, John and Maree just went with it and had a good time. It turned out to be a bit of a waste of money for the hair stylist as that was ruined the second Maree stepped out of the car but the wind made for dynamic, fun, stylized photos and in the end, that's the goal anyway, isn't it?
We brought a whole bunch of water balloons in their wedding colors as well as a candlelight picnic. We used the balloons but couldn't get the picnic set up in the wind. Most of the time I used either one off-camera speedlight on a stand or totally natural light. You'll notice the point at the end when I added a second speedlight with a small honeycomb grid as an accent light.
This shoot has a much more commercial feel than most of what I've done before. It seems to be a trend in the way I've been shooting lately. (See Ixchels' Bridals)
I had a hard time cutting down the numbers so it's a big gallery. I hope you like them!

Summer & JD - The Star Mill

Meet Summer and JD. Yes, they are as much fun as their names imply. They are eclectic, effervescent, effusive, and energetic so no ordinary location would do for their engagement session. The Star Mill in American Fork, Utah fit the bill. It's the kind of location that could explode the noggin of some unsuspecting photographer who thinks it's a mere antique store. It has variety beyond variety...it has all varieties of variety. (Would you say it has a plethora of variety?)
Anyway, Summer and JD were the perfect couple to wade through the wealth of offerings. So, without further ado (Yeah, I know, that was way too much ado.)...
Summer and JD.

Tacobilly, Anyone? -- Sonia and Anthony Engagments

Q:What do you get when you mix classic Rockabilly attitude with a road-side taco stand?
A: You get Anthony and Sonia's engagement shoot! (Cue the rim shot.)
I was excited to shoot Sonia and Anthony from the first day we met them. Coming from Oregon, they were looking for a certain feel from a photographer and I was thrilled that I was it. They have the kind of style and attitude that can turn any ordinary location into killer images. Speaking of locations, I can't BELIEVE I didn't know about the Jitterbug Coffee Hop in Salt Lake City! What a fun place! Not only do I want to shoot there again, I want to do lunch there every day. It could possibly be the best-kept secret in Salt Lake City. Who knew it has been there 11 years? It's across the street from Liberty park on 700 East so GO THERE. Tell him Jon Woodbury sent you. (It won't get you anything but maybe it will get ME a delicious free milkshake the next time I drop by...)
Anyway, after shooting at the Jitterbug we went downtown to the best taco stand on the planet. Don't pretend you don't go there, it's the one by Sears on State Street and 800 South. I got so into eating I almost forgot that I was supposed to be taking pictures. Fortunately, I came to myself and we got some pretty sweet shots.

Mariana & Carlos

Things are crazy around here! I don't have much time to blog but I want to keep posting some of the amazing shoots I've done lately!
Here are Mariana and Carlos. Mariana is from Brazil and Carlos is from Spain. They met dancing and I'm pretty sure they haven't stopped since. We shot at some of my very favorite spots downtown. I think the results are classy and unique. After shooting these guys there are two things for sure-
1) They have far more energy than anyone really has a right to, and
2) They adore each other.

Sarah & Kerry - Engagements

Sarah and Kerry wanted something different and artistic. I decided to do the entire shoot with an colored flash. I'd never done it before--but that's what I love about the challenge to "be artistic". Art is inherently risky. You have to try something new that may or may not work. If it's tried and proven that means everyone's already doing it. I wanted to get a really warm light but mix it with the bluish daylight and dusk lighting. I didn't end up using it the whole shoot but when I did I loved the results. Mostly it's pretty subtle but there are definitely a few where it's noticeable. Once we got Kerry out of his I'm-taking-a-picture smile you can see that even he had a good time. (Dude, I'm telling nobody.)

Brittany & Janssen

I am continuously AMAZED at the incredibly COOL people I get to shoot. In my head (not to mention on the outside) I'm this chubby red-headed kid with geeky tendencies and some pretty cool toys. It still amazes me that such fun, interesting, attractive people continue to work with me. All of our couples are just flat awesome. We don't get bridezillas or divas. We get intelligent, dynamic brides and grooms who know what they want and trust in me that I can get them what they envision as their dream wedding photos. All I can say is thank you for letting me be a part of your lives.

The post for today fits the previous thought because the event I am posting is one of those couples. I've already shot some great weddings so far this year that you'll begin to see more of as I finish the post production on them. Brittany and Janssen are no different. They are getting married at the end of May.
This is their engagement shoot.

Click here to see more of their images in my featured events on my website.

Colleen & Derek - Engagements

More fun couples! I am so excited about the new batch of brides and grooms booking us for this year. Days are filling up fast and we are going to have to limit the numbers for the busier months. We really get the pick of the litter when it comes to interesting, dynamic, happy couples.
Colleen and Derek's engagement shoot was nothing if not energetic. An unforseen Boy Scout activity that covered Murray Park with hundreds of 12 year-olds allowed us to really get creative and shoot in less conventional directions. I loved it. Check out my favorites below then click the link to Collages.net to see the whole shoot.