Trystan Photography: An Intimate Portrait.

Please click the photo above or follow the link to view our favorite photos from Erika and Taylor’s wedding at Hillside Gardens and The Warehouse Restaurant.

Talk about some photo All-Stars!

We knew very early on, pretty much right after I met with Erika and Taylor, that they were going to be pretty darn fun to photograph.

…and then Char did their engagement session. Holy cow.

…and then Erika did her boudoir session with Char (which a surprising number of brides are adding to their packages for their loving and deserving future husbands!). ¡Ay Dios mio!

Finally, after all the great photos they’d given us, we came to their wedding day. Unfortunately, the weather was cloudy and really unseasonably cold. However, like all of our clients this year who have faced “less than ideal” weather on their big day, Erika and Taylor were shining examples of how to put on a good attitude and rock the photos!

When we photograph couples, we try and get them to just be themselves. Laugh, flirt, make-out, have fun: if I have to ask them to stop “or else I’m getting a hose” then we’re having a great day.

Thank you Erika and Taylor for being so enthusiastic about everything you did with Trystan Photography. We had so much fun with you two. We hope you did, too!

Please click the photo above or follow the link to view our favorite photos from Kevin and Taylor’s perfect wedding at Copper Mountain.

From Alaska with love.

So, Taylor and Kevin live in Alaska. But they were married in Colorado. Taylor’s sister lives in Colorado, but she got married in Alaska. Make sense?

Therefore, Taylor needed a little help coordinating all of this from the North, so her sister helped find us down here in Colorado. Great team effort, ladies (if I do say so myself)!

Taylor and Kevin are warm and laid back, and they planned a not-too-small and still intimate wedding at gorgeous Copper Mountain. One of the neatest things to experience in Colorado is the ghost-town-quality of a high country ski resort mid-summer. It is surreal to be some of the only people at the whole mountain. And while that emptiness might be a little disconcerting, an empty Copper means we’re not fighting to get people-less shots in all of those stunning backgrounds.

Taylor and Kevin had an easy love. They were comfortable with each other, which translated in to an ease in front of the camera. The weather was perfect. The wedding was perfect.

Thank you, you two, for letting Char and I capture your amazing day!

Click the photo or follow the link to view Crystal and Lucas’ perfect wedding at The USAFA Cadet Chapel and Officer’s Club.

What a stunning place to photograph a wedding! The Cadet Chapel at the Air Force Academy is simply amazing. With it’s kaleidoscope of colors shimmering in from the modern architecture, it’s awe inspiring grand scale, and it’s quiet and claming atmosphere, it is one of the most unique cermony venues in all of Colorado (if not the US)! And that’s the sad part about it: not everyone can use it. Chapel weddings are reserved for the hard-working men and women of our military, and if you haven’t made that commitment, that sacrafice to serve… tough nuts. You can’t use it.

Which is fine, becuase the military deserves little perks like that. So it’s not that often we find ourselves at the Chapel, but what a treat it is when we do!

Crytal and Lucas’ wedding was stellar. Crystal and Lucas were stunning together. They are the proto-typical All-American couple. Perfectly cute together, and really into each other. Crystal and Lucas’ smiles seemed to add even more light and color to the Chapel. In fact, I’ve never seen it so bright and colorful.

Their day went off perfectly with just the right amount of joy, love, tears and laughter. Except for their limo. It didn’t show for their “grand exit” at the end. I have no idea if it ever came. But they just pulled up dad’s car, turned up the wattage on their smiles, and everyone gave them a really great send-off, limo or not.

Thank you, Crystal and Lucas for choosing Trystan Photography to document your special day.  It was a real pleasure and an honor!

Click the photo above, or follow the link to view our favorite photographs from Mackenzie and Derek’s amazing wedding at Arrowhead Golf Course.

Yet another Spring wedding where Colorado decided to be a little difficult. In fact, the entire start of the 2010 wedding season was terrible, in terms of cold weather. Fortunately, Mackenzie and Derek’s wedding got sunshine, at least. You can’t tell from the photos (one of the many wonderful advantages of still photography), but the entire day was on the verge of being really cold.

In fact, the couple photos after the ceremony were downright freezing. But other than a little rosy color on the cheeks and nose that had to be retouched, it looks like a beautiful summer evening.

And did Mackenzie complain? Nope. I would venture to say, she and Derek were “quite warm”. They are one of those couples (like we should all try to be) who are really, really, REALLY, into each other and have no problem with PDA. I don’t want to get into too much detail here, but I knew from their engagement session that this was going to be HOT.

But their PDA isn’t that uncomfortable “get-a-room” kind, but rather that joyous “I’m-so-happy-I’ve-found-you-and-I’m-scared-if-I-let-you-go-I-might-wake-up-from-this-amazing-dream” kind of PDA. It’s inspiring and it made my heartache for Charlotte (my wife, who I work with, luckily), so I hugged her a lot that night.

Might I also point out, that Mackenzie  happens to have the official title of “Bride Most on Top of Her Game… Ever”. She booked us 2 years ago. Talk about planning ahead! And in the course of how we’ve grown over the last two years, our prices have increased rather tremendously, so she also saved herself quite a chunk of change booking that far ahead (hint, hint, wink, wink potential 2012 and 2013 brides…)

Thank you, Mack and Derek. Your wedding has been a long time coming, and it was pure joy to capture this day for you two. Thank you for giving us that honor and responsibility!

Click the photo or follow the link to view our favorite photos from Jocelyn and Chase’s stunning Palazzo Verdi wedding.

*The following video is an update from the amazing videographers at CueMotion Wedding Cinematography, who we worked with for Jocelyn and Chase’s wedding. They are amazing, a while they might be based in Lincoln, NE we’ve managed to work with them on a number of weddings in Colorado! We love working with them and highly recommend them. They are totally worth the travel fee! http://www.cuemotion.com

So here we are in April. Maybe, just maybe, Colorado will start playing nice in terms of weather? Nope. The day before this wedding, which was a HUGE wedding (all day unlimited photography, 300+ guests, at Palazzo Verdi…) I-25 was SHUT DOWN. I-25 is rarely shut down. The snow was coming in “sideways-like”. So, needless to say, we were quite nervous about this one!

The day of we left around 7 am, and things weren’t looking so hot. Monument and Castle Rock heading north were a nightmare. Snow was still coming in sideways. It was bitter cold, with gusts of wind that chilled your very soul. Once we got to Palazzo Verdi, things were better in the sense that Denver had no snow, but it had simply become a frozen, stinging rain with wind. Not good.

The second we got inside for the rehearsal, everything looked a lot brighter, regardless of what the weather was doing because Jocelyn and Chase were on cloud nine!

I don’t mean to beat a dead horse on this topic, but it really it paramount: the attitudes of our clients on the day of their weddings have been nothing short of inspiring. Nothing was gonna keep this wedding from being an absolute joy for Jocelyn and Chase.

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Please click the photo or follow the link to view our favorite photos from Sarah and Jon’s wedding at The Red Rocks Visitors Center.

Wind. Colorado is widely known for it’s picturesque vistas, perfect wilderness and mountain areas, blue-bird skies, and awe inspiring rock formations. A lesser known trait of Colorado, and one which has been on full display this year is: Colorado can be a very windy place. Most years there are a few notable wind storms, but Spring 2010 was the season of gale force winds. I hate them. They ruin hairstyles and blow hair into eyes. They blow dresses around in the most unflattering manner. They ruin equipment.

I’m not kidding about the equipment thing. This wedding will be forever remembered The Great Photography Equipment Destruction Day. The primary victims were our wireless lighting flashes that we use for our more dramatic shots. Even with sandbags, and wedding guests helping to hold the light stands, the hurricane force wind gusts STILL knocked the stands down. One almost nailed a flower girl (but missed, thank God) and I caught another with my head. Another collateral loss was our Manfrotto tri-pod. In the middle of all of this hustle and bustle we left it behind while shooting in the amphitheater, and 10 minutes later, it was gone (it’s a $400 tri-pod and head, so I’m sure it was a great prize for that piece of #$&* who stole it).

But here’s the amazing part of all of this: Sarah, the Unsinkable Bride. Gale-force freezing winds, blowing flowers, whipping dresses, uncomfortable guests, and hundreds of milling visitors constantly in the shot should have been enough to bum her out a little. I mean, she had every right to feel bad: over a year of planning, and your dream day is just this side of pure chaos because of the weather.

You know what? Not Sarah. She had the best attitude. When the wind howled, she’d laugh. When equipment crashed to the ground, she’d sigh and smile again. When we’d stop and have to ask people to “move along” she just smile and shrug. If you were to gauge what kind of day it was based on her photos, it was clearly the perfect day for a wedding. And that, my friends, is the indomitable power of positive attitude. Sarah and Jon turned what should have been chaotic, frustrating day into a joyous, loving, and perfect day, all with their amazing vibes and attitude.

Oh, and another thing: Sarah and Jon’s ceremony had the coolest little symbolic ceremony in it that I’ve ever seen. Instead of communion, or a unity candle, or a wine ceremony, they each drank and tasted different items as the officiant read about the stages of marriage and it’s symbolism: in the beginning everything is sweet like sugar, then it gets hot like pepper, then things can get a little sour like lemon, then things can get absolutely spoiled like vinegar, but then after you work through it all and learn to really love, share, and compromise, then it’s truly good and wholesome, like honey. And they ate and drank these things, experiencing together a little hint of what was to come. I love it when I see new couples treating marriage like it really is: the best, hardest, most up and down, loving, sad, inspiring and meaningful thing they will ever do in their lives. Couples that seem like they think everything is going to be singing birds and sunshine scare the crap out of me. If that’s what they really think marriage is, not only are they doomed, but they are missing the WHOLE POINT! Couples  like Sarah and Jon keep it real, and I know they will make it because they see marriage for the challenge and reward that is really is! And if they can handle the gale-force winds of their wedding day with such composure and joy, then they are going to be great with the trials of life…

Thank you so much, Sarah and Jon for sharing your incredible day with us. You two are inspiring and we had a blast photographing it!

This is heartbreaking. As of the time I’m writing this, Char and I were supposed to be at The Briarhurst shooting Schary and Greg’s wedding. But unfortunately Schary is very very sick and she is spending her wedding day in the hospital.

Can you imagine? All this planning and preparation, and instead of exchanging vows your exchanging fluids via IV.

We’ve heard it was her gall bladder bursting, but we still haven’t heard anything as of this morning, so it might be more serious than initially thought.

Please keep Schary and Greg in your prayers. We hope she’s okay!

Please click the photo or follow the link to view our favorite photos from Erinn and Kostas’ wedding at The Assumption of the Theotokos Greek Cathedral and Folsom Field Stadium Club.

Loyal blog readers might recognize Erinn and Kostas from their engagement photos a year ago. I declared in that blog post that this wedding was going to be legendary, and I am delighted to announce: it was.

This wedding was so much fun and truly epic (13 hours of photography), that I have struggled to even narrow it down to a reasonable size for our sample galleries. The result is: I feel like I skipped some of the funnest stuff in order to tell the story on the gallery. The solution? I will feature the ones that didn’t make it here.

In my mind, nothing captures the personality of these two than their engagement announcement (left). Out of all the photos I shot, they choose the one with Kostas acting crazy and Erinn quietly enjoying his insanity. But that is not to say that Erinn is boring; she is plenty fun. She just has more of a subtlety to her than, say… Kostas. (BTW, they were really miffed that some papers wouldn’t take their announcement because it “wasn’t an appropriate engagement shot”. Whatever. I think that’s a prime example of why nobody reads newspapers anymore!)

The day began, early in the morning in Boulder as the girls met up with Char and Kim at On Broadway, and I met up with the boys at The Village Coffee Shop. Like most groomsmen, our stud-muffins were showing a little sign of wear and tear from the night before, but they assured me that The Coffee Shop’s food had a magical, regenerative effect. They also demanded I had to order this monster breakfast: the chicken fried steak, or the Number 6. It was massive, and delicious, and an absolute gut bomb. So while everyone else came out of the restaurant with new spring in their step and lots of energy, I was reduced to a slightly green, over-stuffed and near-comatose zombie. I should have known something was up when nobody else ordered the #6. Now, don’t get me wrong: it’s an amazing breakfast. It’s the perfect breakfast if you’re hungover and have nothing to do for the entire day except lie on the couch and watch football. And that’s the problem: no hangover, no couch in sight. Just a whole day and night’s worth of being on my feet ahead…

Thank you, boys. I really appreciated your help that morning.

Thankfully, as I digested that densely calorie packed meal, it began to convert itself into super-fatboy energy, and within an hour I was not only healed, but better off. They weren’t lying: there is something magical about the food at The Village Coffee Shop. But, for about an hour, there is a heavy price to pay.

By the time the limo arrived, we were having so much fun that when we stopped to get liquor (hey, it’s got to be noon somewhere, right?), I was suddenly feeling very magnanimous, and went in with them to buy them a big bottle of Jameson. I tell you what: it’s the best thing you can ever do if your groomsmen like to get rowdy. Gifting that whiskey to them was akin to presenting fire to cavemen. They literally started grunting and slapping backs, giving high-fives, and any of them who were even in the slightest bit uneasy about this strange photographer infiltrating their man-group were instantly ingratiated to me. I’m seriously considering presenting a big bottle of alcohol to every grooms’ party I have from now on. It’s like catnip for grown men!

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Please click the photo or follow the link to view Jessica and Lee’s stunning wedding samples at Shove Chapel and Cheyenne Mountain Resort.

It’s dark. It’s very Gothic in it’s architecture. It’s one of the most feared places to shoot in Colorado Springs. Why? I have no idea.

All I know, is whenever I have a meeting about a wedding at Shove Chapel, the number one thing I hear is, “Other photographers say it’s really hard to shoot in there… and they’re photos look really dark. Why do yours look so bright?” Well, the short answer is we know how to push our cameras and capture the shot. The longer answer is: 1) we always make sure the altar lights are at full (they normally keep them at 1/2 power), 2) we have very steady hands so we’re not afraid to push the shutter way past the normal “lower threshold” (why hand-held? Because that place is HUGE and we are running all over to get the shot), and 3) we always shoot with our array of wireless remote Nikon speed-lights.

The most important factor of all  is the remote speed-lights. We’ve been shooting with remote lighting for 6 years now, and I would say they are the most important equipment I use. Having flexible, fast remote lighting allows us to shoot in otherwise impossible scenarios. Obviously, when it’s dark it allows us to create shots where there are none, but even when it’s light enough, they allow us to form the light, and add a sense of drama to an already attractive scene. I use remote lighting on 80% of my shots, and I personally think that I’ve gotten to the point where the extra lighting is very subtle on most of them. The lighting either mimics what’s already there, or at most seems like a complimentary element of the scene.

We love Shove Chapel, I can’t think of a cooler place to capture a ceremony. It has a sense of drama, and gives every wedding an epic scale, which I think lend themselves perfectly for the purposes of wedding photography. We use a 3 flash system, 2 on each side, either above in the side-balconies when we have assistants, or on the ground floor on 15′ light stands when I have to adjust them myself, and one master flash on the camera. I like to shoot across the aisle from the right side (facing the altar) during the processional. As soon as the bride walks up the altar stairs I flip the lights around towards the altar and use very subtle lighting to add detail to the subjects which are lit mostly from the stage lights. Those little Nikon Speed-lights are incredibly powerful for their size, and the fact I can whip them around ultra-fast and tuck them back into little hiding places to add stunning splashes of light is the winning aspect over more powerful strobes.

And then there was Lee and Jessica’s wedding. Not only are they a stunning couple, but Jess (and Lee) did an amazing job planning every detail of this wedding. Her dress was stunning, her flowers were elegant, the reception decor was impeccable, and the food? They didn’t choose. They simply had Cheyenne Mountain set up multiple stations with an amazing array of everything. Want pasta cooked with custom ingredients as you wait? Check. Oh, but you also need some prime rib? Why not? And a seafood & salad station? Sure. And they best part? They let us eat! THEY LET US EAT ANY OF IT! And boy, did I…

I know, you’re confused. But it’s a little known, and very dark fact that not every couple let’s us eat or offers us food. But it’s okay, we’ve only been running around on our feet for 8 hours… we’re fine. Don’t worry about us. My face is always this ashen and drawn…

But I digress (as usual). In closing, if you’re thinking about a wedding at Shove, but you’re worried about the different horror stories you’re hearing around town about how dark it is, book it with confidence. It is an amazing place for a wedding, and it really is worth the extra hard work to pull of the photography. But I’ll shut up about it now: the photos speak for themselves.

Click the photo or follow the link to view Anne and Tim’s Irish/Scottish Wedding at the Lower Lake Ranch near Conifer, CO.

I’ve been around enough people from Iowa that I’m convinced there isn’t much to do in Iowa except pick corn, go to Phish and Widespread Panic concerts… and PARTY. Iowans are officially the rowdiest people, given to lots of dancing, and can consume cocktails and beer like it’s the top of the nutritional food pyramid. And I don’t say this lightly and without evidence: my wife, in-laws, most of my family, and even myself (5 years as a kid) are from Iowa.

All of this consequently means that Iowans are the best people to know if you like to have fun. Anne and Tim’s wedding was a case study in this fact.

To start with, men in kilts and bow ties may seem to indicate a sense of formality, but if you really stop to think about it, it’s the exact opposite. I have never met a man capable of wearing that venerable warrior’s man-skirt who didn’t do so with a twinkle in his eye and frequent (and gratuitous) displays of what is (or isn’t), in fact, covered underneath. I’m not Scottish or Irish, but I have worn a kilt, and I do have to admit that I too felt the overpowering urge to flash and moon everyone I met that day. *shrug* It’s a guy thing.

Secondly, Anne and Tim held a very moving and very traditional Gaelic/Scottish ceremony, in which there was a classic moment where the couple shared a shot of whiskey with the first person they met, who for the ceremony’s purposes was their officiant (and Tim’s best friend). He quaffed that shot like a champion, which was probably for the best becuase he’d announced to the guests earlier that he was very nervous. Ahhh, whiskey! Liquid courage.

Third of all (thirdly?), Anne is a fountain of laughter and joyous energy. She literally bounds at times, and her energy infected the day with constant laughter and fun. She didn’t stop dancing all night long, and becuase of that, neither did her guests. They had an eclectic mix of danceable party music, from hip-hop to jam band and a lot of hard Scottish and Irish traditional/rock. It was a treat to photograph, and the best part was I can shoot some video now on the Nikon D300s and I was playing around with it, shooting a little video in between photos.

This is what I got, put to “Shipping Up to Boston” by the Dropkick Murphys, edited by me on my home computer. It’s pretty obvious that I should stick to my day-job (photography), and leave the videography to the professionals… but I still think it’s pretty cool!

http://www.vimeo.com/8980619