How To Give A Good Wedding Toast

We have all been there. The time of the evening where someone from the wedding party attempts to make an entertaining speech about the newlyweds; only they fail. Miserably. We have been on the other side of the coin as well where we are so moved and inspired by a speech at a reception; our feelings get the best of us. Tears, laughter, and joy overcome us.

5 Things I Learned In 2014

With the year 2014 coming to a close, I always find it interesting to do a little self reflection and see the different ways that I have grown both personally and professionally. For example, my discovery of Cafe Rio was a huge growth marker for me getting out of my Chipotle phase! :) There are always things that I find I have learned, things that I could have done better as well as things I felt I did well. 2014 marked a big milestone in that I became a father. It has been one heck of a ride so far, but I wouldn't trade that for anything. I am extremely blessed in my life to be able to have the blessings that I have. With all that being said, through my reflection, I found 5 things that I learned in 2014 that I want to take with me to make 2015 the best year yet. As I strive to become the best version of myself, as Matthew Kelly puts it, in all areas of my life, I have no doubt that these items will play a huge part in that goal.

New Horizons in 2015!

There is something awesome about setting goals and changing things around in your life with the dawn of a new year. Resolutions are made, memories are rekindled, and we set our sights on new accomplishments and horizons. I have done quite a bit of self reflection towards the end of 2014, and was able to uncover a lot.

I took a deep look at my strengths and weaknesses and it wasn't that there were necessarily surprises that I uncovered, but there definitely were items that made me think, "what are you doing about this Josh? You know this to be true and you are letting it sit there." I saw that some of my strengths were working with people and coincidentally one of my weaknesses was taking the time to build up my relationships. One of my strengths was serving people, but one of my weaknesses was going above and beyond to serve someone. As I reflected, I realized the sad depravity of our generation. We have lost our drive. We have become complacent. We have accepted that doing the minimum amount required is satisfactory, and what's worse, we are OK with that.

Choosing the Right Photographer | Santa Clarita Wedding Tips

We are in a dilemma these days in that there a so many options of everything! When you go out to eat for example you have to figure out the style of food that you want and then you have to figure out the restaurant that you want to eat at and then you have to decide on a meal. As a people in general, we have gotten very good at making decisions with just about everything.  

iOS 7 - Advancing Photography for the Consumer

Holy Cow! Every year phone technology gets better. The apps, the call capabilities. Apple really struck one heck of a movement when it comes to really putting a lot of tools in the palm, literally the PALM of your hand! This has meant a lot of interesting things for industry professional. There are even "Photoshop" like apps that allow you to edit your photos and really create some compelling editing on the phone!

I was recently out with some friends who posed the question, "do you ever think that wedding photographers will become obsolete?" I really thought about it for a second and there are some great points to pay attention to here. You have a camera on your iPhone that can take 8MP photos and for most people who are posting just to their Facebook or creating a smaller than 8x10 print, that is more than enough! I remember the days when the camera I used for weddings and headshots as a young professional Santa Clarita photographer was 8MP! On top of that, these photo editing applications make things extremely easy to edit photos! CRAZY!

I looked at my friends dead in the eye and said I honestly see where you are going with this, however I don’t believe that wedding photographers will ever be replaced. Why? Think about all that you are paying for. It takes more than a good camera to take a good photo and those skills are something that you will never be able to learn in a day. It takes years of experience to really hone the skills necessary to be able to adjust your camera settings just by looking at a scene in a split second. Or to see the light in a scene and know just how to reposition your subject to get that right lighting, and framing, and composition. Knowledge is really what is missed out on.

So in an ever changing world where technology is becoming easier and easier to use, photographers appear to be less and less needed, but the truth is, the experience that you receive from a true professional completely outweighs the benefits of a nice phone. And THAT experience is the exact same reason that you hire a Santa Clarita photographer for your wedding, and your anniversary, and your maternity photos, and your family photos, and your life events, because life is worth more than just a simple phone photo. Life memories are worth capturing in their BEST light. So let's Shed Light....

Sorry... I just had to say it... My verbal jargon was on a roll!!! Cheers!

Which Lens Which Lens? | Photography Tips

So how is everyone’s summer going? Photographing a lot? GREAT! My wife, brother, and brother’s girlfriend recently went up to Lake Tahoe for a short vacation. It was so nice to get out of town. But not long enough! There are so many Lake Tahoe photography opportunities to capture that it was a shame we had to head back home for work.

This week, I thought that we would dive into a little camera lens selection. You will hear a lot of critics that say your equipment is only as good as your glass. This is true… sort of. Let me explain. If you have done any research on camera bodies, you might have thought at some point, wow, this Canon T2i looks like it has the same sensor and processor as the Canon 7D! And its half the price! While that is true, from a camera body perspective, you are forgoing the custom features when you go with a consumer level camera. What that statement really means though is that if you were to have the settings the same on both cameras, and you put the same lens on both, you will get the same image. However, the lens that you put on the camera plays a huge part.

If you have ever shopped for a Canon L series lens, you can be assured that your jaw will drop at some of the prices. Canon’s lenses are top of the line. They don’t get much better, but you can be assured that you are going to pay for it! That being said, there are several awesome options for 3rd party manufacturers that make some awesome lenses for a fraction of the cost. Sigma is definitely one of the leaders in my opinion for 3rd party manufacturers.

So what’s in your wallet? Or in this case your camera bag? I am a huge fan of fast lenses, that is, lenses with wide open apertures. I also get annoyed when my aperture auto adjusts itself when I zoom. So I am definitely an advocate of fixed aperture lenses. For what to buy, you need to look at what you shoot. As a Santa Clarita wedding photographer, you really need a wide variety of lenses. You definitely want to get a long zoom lens such as a 70-200mm lens for those intimate close-ups. I would also have a short zoom, such as a 24-70mm. And no matter what you shoot, EVERYONE can benefit from a trust ‘ol 50mm lens. It is a great all around lens for your kit.

If you have lens questions, don’t hesitate to ask!

iPhone Headshots! | How To Take Stellar Photos On An iPhone

Taking a Good Photo on a Budget

Let me preface this by letting you know that this article is geared towards business professionals. I happen to work with lawyers and attorneys and is astonishes me how little attention they give their professional headshot. One thing I always tell them is that if you are going to take a photo yourself, at least take a good one!

So you do realize that a good photo can be the difference between actually booking a client and not booking that client right? I figure that we should start there because this simple truth is the basis and foundation for this article.

Why Are Photographers So Expensive?

For those of you that don’t know, I was an aspiring actor and model at one point. Seriously! That was my pursuant. I used to go on auditions all the time, walk the big studio lot, get rejected for parts, and even get cast in parts. Although I still dabble in the acting realm from time to time, my focus has obviously switched. I found a second love, another passion behind the camera. This switch occurred when I was looking for a good headshot photographer. I looked high and low, far and wide. I found some amazing ones and I found some… well… not so amazing ones. And with every photographer I looked at, I had the same thought to myself: I can do that.