1/1600 sec at f / 1.4 ISO 1600, 50mm 2:35PM

We’ve got a fair number of fans who are pretty geeky when it comes to photography, and we get asked many questions about ‘how’ we shot something. You know us – we don’t like post-processing. We can’t remember the last time we opened up actual Photoshop, and we (and our clients) tend to think that processed / filtered photos belong on Instagram (though we’re admitted addicts!) and not in a wedding album. So – we chose this photo this afternoon to simply give the technical aspects behind the art.

This beautiful Chicago bride did her bridal prep in a very dim cabin, and even in the early afternoon, the light was quite low. The camera was set with a high ISO to be safe, in this case, 1600 on a Nikon D3. The D3 is famous for low noise at high ISO, so even pushing this higher would not have been too much of a noise-risk. The lens in this shot is a Nikkor 50mm that is opened up all the way to f/1.4 – again, because it was so dark, but also because it is a compact lens, and gives a super-pleasing depth of field – buttery almost. Its not the most cost-effective lens, and we recommend the f/1.8 for most beginner / intermediate shooters, but ANYWAY…

This shot was unplanned. The previous shot was a feature shot at 1/100 of a second in a dark part of cabin (thus the high ISO!) and when we quietly ran into the bedroom for this single, fleeting moment – the sunshine in the window forced a scroll of the shutter wheel up to 1/1600 to not blow out the whole thing. The shot was so fleeting in fact, that there are only two shots of this moment, so thanks to Nikon for the fast focus and good metering. Even if the camera had been in a non-manual mode however, the electronics would have forced an exposure that would have darkened the image more than what was intended. Much like a point & shoot trying to capture a portrait against a bright window, flagship bodies are susceptible to the same flaws. Just like the ability to drive fast in the winter requires disabling the traction control system, a camera needs to be completely controlled by the photographer to get the result they want.

In terms of post-processing, the image history on this shot includes:

- import
- a profile assignment – which includes a lens profile, some noise reduction, and black clipping
- a preset assignment – which includes a caramel tone and a contrast tweak

Vignetting is not added and is deliberately removed from the lens profile to keep the flaw in the shot. The 50mm is a film lens and the D3′s sensor is FX, which is the same footprint as 35mm film – so the effect is natural.

(And what a dress!)

Email us with questions, or if this has piqued your interest in photography, join us for a workshop!

Now… THIS is how you do a wedding. We’ve been working with Mairi and Ben for a while, helping them shape their day with our favorite vendors and locations, but they needed help with little else. A highly organized couple, they are tied for first place for ‘most organized’ this season. Google docs, a website, a wedding email address, etc. Wow. Add to this a kick-off with wish lanterns (SO cool) on their pre-party at a lakeside cabin the night before, a beach wedding, post-wedding tour via trolley, a unique location for a reception, AND a sparkler-lit exit at the end of the night. Phew…. Oh, did we mention that Mairi and Ben are completely gorgeous?

Rhian HY started their morning with her mad makeup skills, then transitioned to gear sherpa and stuck with our crew until the early night. And what a crew – in addition to Rhian, Louisa shot second, relying heavily on a full-frame D700 and a fast lens, and King shot HD video with an arsenal of Canon DSLRs. It was a maze of logistics, so special thanks as always for Meghan who served as home base / coordinator for not only this crew, but our B team that was shooting another all-day wedding too! Only to Meghan can you text her, asking for a shot list, and it appears in 120 seconds…

Mairi was a nicely relaxed morning bride – working through makeup, hair, and dressing like a pro. Her girls were equally compliant, and we shot them in formal and candid shots around the cabin while Louisa chased the guys around the beach as they setup for the ceremony. Oh – completely random: we’d be remiss not to thank Rhian for cleaning up the background in one of the formal setups at the cabin which included touching a spider. She doesn’t do that for just anybody. Due to construction and a trolley that had to travel twice from each side of the Keweenaw we were pretty far behind schedule. But that’s the beauty of a beach wedding. Nobody really cares – or at least their concern vanishes when a trolley full of a dozen beautiful, screaming, dancing girls shows up. Come to think of it… that would fix just about anything.

The beach ceremony was elegant and brief, and we spent probably twice the ceremony time playing in the fog that rolled up on the Lake Superior shoreline. Fog is fun. You can get lots of different effects depending on focal length, distance, and direction to the sun, and both Mairi and Ben were great sports about a variety of scenes – even allowing us to pull their lips apart from each other for a few of them. Bar hopping resulted in tours of the Cliff Bar, the KBC (where beer appears as if by magic for the photogs,) and the Dog. Bubba said he’s never seen a rush on pickled eggs before. Shots, yes. Eggs, never.

The newly restored Brownstone Hall and its stage, its retro-glitter walls, and its full kitchen allowed for great photography, and a fully plated dinner. We stole the bride and groom for some more photos nearby, danced with them, and wished them well as they passed under an arch of sparklers at their dramatic exit. Well done, guys! Beautiful in all respects.

All shots were with Nikkor glass on full-frame bodies, and we used remote strobes inside Brownstone. All other light was natural / reflected, and in some cases – dim enough that ISO 6400 and an f/1.4 was required (and enjoyed!)

launching wish lanterns

a solitary wish lantern over the portage

Rhian HY at work

everyone was waiting for the trolley

saying hello without techinically seeing each other

playing with fog

entertaining the locals

relaying her speech to the emcee

ISO 6400

everyone wants to be carried, right?

A very beautiful wedding at Castle Farms in Charlevoix, MI. Larry and Alison did great at their engagement session, so we had no worries that they’d be a very photogenic couple. Add a location like Castle Farms, and pretty much all we had to do was point the camera in their general direction and hold the release down. Thanks so much to Kristi Bauer from Rogers City for assisting in Charlevoix. This part of the state is great – sand dunes, breakfast diners, cherries, and a nice breeze off of Lake Michigan.

Castle Farms has an interesting history: it was constructed in 1918 by Albert Loeb, who was the President of Sears, Roebuck and Company, and it was designed by Arthur Heun. Loeb built Castle Farms as a model farm to showcase livestock in addition to new farm equipment that was sold by his company^. in 1927, the farm was closed and rented out for storage until 1965. It was then turned into an art studio by John Van Haver. In 1969, it was sold to Arthur and Erwina Reibel and was mainly used for rock concerts^. If you were around at this time, you might vaguely remember acts like Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, or The Beach Boys. Its a crazy place for sure.

Many congrats to Larry and Alison – you guys had a beautiful day!

Check out their slideshow, or view some highlights below…

Anyone following Brockit on Twitter or Facebook knew that this was a fun project for our studio. It had all the right ingredients: incredible people, photogenic location, high energy, and some unique challenges. I finished a week of work in the Detroit & Ann Arbor area and headed to San Francisco to meet awesome Brockit assistant Emma at SFO. Though we made the assistant call-out on the Brockit Facebook group, the stars aligned and Emma, who worked most of our Lake Superior weddings last year, was in the area and served as chauffeur and assistant for a couple days. Satish and Vani were a great couple to work with! Let me back up – not only were they great, their family was incredible. We were so well received, accommodated, and pampered with Indian food and drinks, that we felt completely at home. I think Vani’s family was surprised at our ability to eat hot food though – everyone kept on saying, ‘be careful, you know that is very spicy, even we don’t eat those peppers!’

We started in the morning with some traditional ceremonies inside the house, then moved to a traditional ‘American’ setting and attire for the early afternoon. Beautiful locations and not a cloud in the sky! After a long lunch we watched the transformation of Vani as she was adorned and clothed in traditional and ceremonial markings, jewelry, and clothing. I’ve captured many a bride’s transformation, but there was certainly something magical about Vani’s. The flowers sewn into her hair, the gold thread in her sarong, the henna on her hands… beautiful, beautiful.

Going long on these preparations, small caravan raced at a disturbing (even for me) pace out to the temple through California rush hour traffic. Unlike an ‘American’ wedding, there is no slipping the time in a Hindu wedding. Stars and planets do not care about traffic… On to the temple and the non-stop ceremony. If you haven’t been to a Hindu wedding, woah…. incense and rice in the air, along with the smells of insanely good food, kids running everywhere, and non-stop ritual on stage. Thanks so much to Gowtham aka: @sgowtham in Houghton who for the price of a couple beers at the KBC gave me all the tips on Kanya Daan, Panigrahana Hathlewa, Saptapadi, etc… I don’t think I missed a thing! Emma switched lenses like a pro for me as the scenes changed quickly, and Vani’s family guided my barefoot self around the stage like I was a sibling.

Technically I shot most of the day with natural light. I added a strobe for the outdoor, afternoon scenes, but kept the aperture open and focal length as long as possible for the intense ceremonial action on the stage. I was surprised to fill 24GB pretty quickly, so thanks again to Emma for fast CF card swapping, and thank goodness the D3 has dual slots.

I couldn’t help but spend a few extra days out in CA. While my friends in Northern Michigan had snow, I had 74 degrees, sunshine, and not a cloud in sight for days… ahhh…

— GALLERY —

Highlight and storefront galleries here, and some selections below.

With the new blog up, there are some gaps to fill, but I thought I’d post some summer & fall 2008 wedding highlights. While it was hard to choose, they were a blast to shoot, and each has its own crazy story, they all have beautiful brides and beautiful locations in common!

Check them out -

krista werner

laura merz

paula rechner

megan becker

jessie dux

meghan mcgee

jessica kerr

alycia o'parka