I’m proud to say that I was hired by one of my favorite local Portland string bands SugarCane to do a series of publicity and promotional photographs to go along with their new album “Soulgrass Review“.  Since their band consists of 6 members, some who live out of town, it was a challenge getting everyone together with enough time to do the shoot.  Having scheduling conflicts is never an easy challenge to overcome, but thankfully SugarCane plays plenty of shows in town, so it was just a matter of finding one that worked out the best.

Fortunately, we were able to get everyone together before a gig of theirs at East Burn.  We headed across the street where I had gotten all set up to shoot them within a fantastic community garden.  We took some group photos and each band member got a few individual shots as well.  I highly recommend checking these guys out live.  They put on a hell of a performance and their music is fantastic.  Take a look at SugarCane’s upcoming show dates so you don’t miss this band!

If your band needs promotional material, feel free to contact me for a quote.   Enjoy the full gallery!

I got to know my friends Michelle and Mark last summer through music festivals.  When I was developing my technique shooting fire spinning and LED spinning photos, Michelle always seemed willing to lend her talents with poi and hooping.  When they trusted me to shoot wedding photos, I knew I had to step up my game.  For such a loving and bright couple, I had to make sure I provided them with the best images of their wedding I could create. Anyone who knows this couple knows that they deserve nothing short of a life of love, warmth, and happiness.

They planned their wedding around an outdoor ceremony at McMenamins Edgefield, a drop-dead gorgeous location to hold a wedding.  But even before the wedding day arrived, the weather became a problem.  The day before, it was like the rain would not stop.  Not a good sign when the wedding is planned to be outdoors.  They made the decision to move the wedding inside, to a quaint little attic ballroom that just dripped with character.  All of us behind-the-scenes at the wedding had to improvise to adapt to the new location and lighting challenges.  But wouldn’t you know it, the wedding day arrived, and there wasn’t a drop of rain.  Oh well, sometimes you have to roll with it.

Their location being Edgefield, we had an infinite number of possible locations to hold our photo shoots.  I am always thankful when working with such a rich palette on which to create images of someone’s special day.  Between the ceremony and reception. Michelle and Mark allowed me to steal them away to try and lock in the magic of their day in photographs. We found balconies, gardens, vineyards, and other beautiful locations we did our best to really use in the photos. The evening came with incredibly warm light, and we did our best to capture it for them.

Michelle and Mark are a musical couple.  Both figuratively and literally.  Their lives, much like my own, revolve around music.  So, of course, once the music started up, the party really started going.  There wasn’t a person in that room without a smile on their face as people danced, danced, danced!  I was thrilled to be there to both witness it and capture the memories of their special day forever.

Please browse through the full gallery, or view below for a short selection of photos.  Thank you Michelle and Mark!

This year’s Northwest String Summit was nothing short of incredible.  It’s an annual bluegrass music festival during which I shot photos last year, but in order to fully enjoy the weekend, I only had my camera in hand for one of the days… the last day.  All year I felt a slight regret for that fact.  This year, my goal was to shoot as much as possible, but still find the balance with seeing the fun through my own eyes instead of the lens.

String Summit is held at one of my favorite places to shoot, Horning’s Hideout in North Plains, Oregon.  To me personally, it’s one of those places that holds a lot of history and magic.  As a photographer, it is one of those places that looks beautiful in even the harshest of mid-day light.  The only problem is that it is also a notoriously dusty place.   This meant that if I wanted to shoot all weekend, I would have to keep it protected.  So I decided to do a test run of Think Tank Photo’s Digital Holster 50.  It’s features also let me keep my camera ready to fire, even with my longest lens, the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8, even with the lens hood attached.  This new bag allowed me to conveniently carry my camera around the festival, with total confidence that it would be protected, but still instantly ready for shooting.  All I had to do was pull it out of the bag and fire away.

So.. camera in hand, I decided my focus would be on the people and scene of String Summit, not necessarily the music. The first of which was the annual String Summit Tutu Mafia, which had grown in size significantly since last year.  I was impressed with the turnout and the abundance of pure style shown within this year’s Mafia.  We managed to get in a photo shoot in at camp before heading to the venue.  The glamor was in full effect as the tutus waved and fluttered in the sun. This year we were treated with tutus of orange, blue, pink, red, yellow, and many other different colors worn by a wide range of people. Which Tutu Mafia member is your favorite?

The always adorable kids’ parade was Saturday afternooon.  The young ones worked so hard creating their costumes and decorations to show off in their parade, and their efforts did not go unnoticed.  Led by Tyler Fuqua in his incredible custom-made dragon costume, they proudly wandered through the crowd.  Some were more nervous than others, but it was my friend Amelia who was shining the brightest, towering above all others on her stilts! How can you not love the kids’ parade?

A couple of tiny lost creatures found their way into our camp at one point during the festival, and I couldn’t resist taking out the macro lens to get some good close-up shots.  One was a small but beautiful butterfly who seemed very interested in our camp flowers.  She fluttered around each blossom, not minding that myself and fellow photographer Carlton Ward fussed about trying to get the right shot. The other was a tiny little inchworm crawling across a friend’s finger.  That little guy didn’t have a care in the world as he slowly explored the ins and outs of his new friend’s hand. We were careful not to drop him as I snapped frame after frame, trying to keep him in sharp focus.  I guess String Summit isn’t always just about the people and music!

Horning’s was as magical as ever through that weekend.  I saw everything from a didgeridoo playing rooster to a team of fun loving people calling themselves Gang Green.  I was honored to receive a green star on my belly by a real-life Sneetch, and I stunningly read our manaquin’s jail release papers. Who knew he was such a criminal?  I left the weekend thankful I live so close to a wonderful scene, fulfilled musically by all the incredibly talented artists, and so very grateful I got to share it with my amazing group of friends.   Until next year, Strummit!

Here are a few more sample photos, but feel free to skip straight to the full gallery!