Jennifer and Jason, Lange Farm Wedding

Jennifer and Jason were the second half of my wedding weekend last week. After shooting Bonnie and Kevin in Ybor Saturday night, it was off to the Lange Farm on Sunday for Jennifer and Jason (and Olivia...you'll see). Doug Decker from Grant Hemond & Associates kept the reception pumping.

It was a lovely day with nice blue skies so I used it as a background for both the bride and groom.

Lange Farm has some very beautiful areas, and Jennifer gave me plenty of time to just walk around and make pictures wherever the mood struck.

Some clouds rolled in and diffused the sunlight, so we took advantage of it and snapped a few close portraits.

And then the breeze kicked up so we just went with it.

After the ceremony, the guests headed back for the cocktail hour and we just strolled around the grounds at sunset making pictures. I always have to find a way to incorporate that trademark white fence in a few shots.

Jennifer asked if I could get a horse in the background of a few shots. But with the enticement of fresh flowers, this guy had no problem taking center stage for a few shots.

As we started our walk back to the reception, I noticed the setting sun was casting a lovely warm glow and backlighting the oak trees and her veil.

While snapping a few ring shots in the warm sunlight, I was intrigued by the way the light was hitting Jennifer's face. A quick composition choice and we were able to get a few more portraits that had a different look than the diffused light portraits from earlier in the day.

I had to at least throw in one reception shot. This group knew how to party. The groomsmen had camouflage tuxedo vests that eventually ended up on the girls. There was a whole lot of line dancing and booty shaking.

And here's Olivia, Jennifer and Jason's daughter. I got a few shots of her throughout the day, but I made sure to get a few of just her and mommy before leaving. What a doll!

Yee-haw! That's it for Jennifer and Jason. Congratulations you two, and thanks for being such great sports on your wedding day. I wish your family the best of everything in the years to come!

MSgt. Walker Retirement Ceremony

MSgt. Ivan Walker recently retired from the US Air Force and asked me to cover the event. Here are a few of my favorite shots from the event.

If I recall correctly, this is Ivan's daughter being recognized for her sacrifices that have allowed her father to dedicate so much of himself to serving his country.

The flag is opened in front of those attending the ceremony before it is folded.

The folded flag is presented to MSgt. Walker's mother.

Apparently, there were a few bets as to whether or not we would see some tears. My light was set up on the left side of the room. Shooting from the right side for a few frames produced a more dramatic effect, and paid off with this sincere moment with the US flag in the background.

There were plenty of tears in the crowd as well. With lots of family in attendance, and such emotion, it was obvious how special this occasion was.

And finally, a nice family moment. This was taken as a test shot before we actually started with the group shots. But as usual, my favorite shot is from when they are relaxed and not worrying about me.

Congratulations MSgt. Walker! Best of luck in your next journey.

Bonnie and Kevin, Don Vincente Wedding

Bonnie and Kevin kicked off my wedding weekend at the Don Vincente Inn, a lovely venue with lots of that local Ybor flavor. The coordination was handled by Georgia and her staff. I had never been to this location and I had lots of fun finding cool places to shoot. And as luck would have it, I'll be there again this weekend.

Bonnie poses by some lovely windows in her suite at the hotel.

We moved out into the lobby on the second floor and found some cool window light to play with.

There is this lovely staircase that I made sure to incorporate into a few photos.

A nice clean background outside in some great light was the perfect spot to snap a few shots of Kevin before the ceremony.

Bonnie and her father share a quiet moment before they descend the stairs to make their grand entrance at the ceremony.

After the ceremony, the fading evening light was just bright enough to allow some quick shots around some of that old Ybor architecture.

Love those arches!

Bonnie and Kevin make a great couple, and they were easy and fun to work with.

Somehow the groom always ends up carrying the bouquet!

Once it got too dark outside, we explored some other parts of the hotel while the guests were enjoying their cocktail hour.

Looking into each others' eyes.

I wasn't sure if this light would be bright enough to work, but I asked Bonnie to just stand under it for a test shot. Before I could direct her she was striking the perfect pose for the location. We can make any spot look glamorous (her right hand is on the bathroom door!).

Right before the couple was introduced into the reception I ran (literally) outside to snap a quick shot of the venue with that great dusk sky.

And we'll end on a funny note. I want to point out that Kevin was a gentleman when feeding Bonnie, but she decided to take a different approach. Remember guys, you go first, so the ladies get the last laugh.

Congratulations Bonnie and Kevin! Best of luck in the many years to come. Thanks for letting me be a part of your day, on behalf of all of us at Tampa Photo.

Prescribed Burn

I have more Vanessa pictures to come, but first I wanted to throw in some recent pictures from my day job. By day I work at MacDill Air Force Base with the Environmental Flight managing the base recycling program and helping out with some of the natural resources programs. I promised myself this would not become an environmental blog so I will keep the background short. Fire is an integral part of many Florida ecosystems. Suppressing wildfires can help protect homes and people, but the natural environment suffers. So in an effort to balance the needs of the plants, animals and people, environmental land managers have taken to burning pieces of land in a controlled situation. To learn more about prescribed (aka controlled) burns, visit http://www.fl-dof.com/wildfire/rx_index.html.

MacDill AFB has a nice chunk of land in the middle of Tampa Bay and is working to implement an ongoing prescribed burn program to efficiently manage the large areas of upland habitat. The FL Division of Forestry helped us out by executing a burn on a recent day when all the right weather conditions came together. These images were taken with our work camera/digicam and were not processed with any editing software.

A Forestry employee (lower right) sets a fire on the edge of some palmetto.

The saw palmettos burn extremely hot (lower right), and when the sabal palms have lots of dead fronds clinging to their trunk, the fire can sometimes creep up into the crown. These images may look devastating, but the burns trigger new growth and an overall rejuvenation of the ecosystem.

One of the benefits of fire is the maintenance of invasive species. This non-native cogan grass will creep into an area and take over, outcompeting the native species. After killing the grass with an herbicide, the fire will clear out all the plant material and allow new native colonizing species to move in and return balance to the habitat. (This is the before picture...see below)

The DOF employee lights the cogan grass.

The dead cogan grass went up fast and hot.

Here is the after picture. All that nasty cogan grass is gone and the slate is clean. Hopefully we'll see some nice native species popping up soon. Since native plants have evolved with fire, most of them develop deep root systems able to sustain the plant through tough droughts and wildfires. So although this area looks dead, there is life below the surface!

This is just a cool picture showing the fire moving back into the woods.

The piece of land that was burned is mostly open grassy scrub and some pine flatwoods, but there is an oak hammock there as well. The rain from the previous night still hadn't drained completely from this area so it didn't burn too well. But as the low fire crept through some areas, the smoke provided a nice filter for the falling afternoon sun to stream through the forest.

I hope I kept your attention through today's environmental lecture. Pictures of fire always help! More Vanessa pics to come and I have 3 weddings in the next two weeks, so there will be plenty to post. Check back soon!

Lt. Col. Coddington Promotion Ceremony

Major Elizabeth Coddington is now Lieutenant Colonel Elizabeth Coddington and she asked me to cover the ceremony honoring her promotion.

The Honor Guard presents the colors to begin the ceremony.

Col. Williamson was on hand and had plenty of good things to say about Lt. Col. Coddington's career thus far.

Lt. Col. Coddington's two daughters place the new silver oak leaf clusters that symbolize the rank of Lt. Col.

You may remember MSgt. Denby (ret) from his retirement ceremony.

Lt. Col. Coddington's parents also attended and participated in the ceremony.

Lt. Col. Coddington's husband, son and daughters pose for a shot after the ceremony. The patriotic balloons helped spruce up the plain backdrop.

Congratulations Lt. Col. Coddington. I wish you the best of luck as you continue your career in the U.S. Air Force, dedicating your time and energy to serving our country. (Thanks for that by the way!)

Dawn and Brent

Wow, I know it's been a while since I last posted. Thanks for hanging in there. Baby Vanessa has been keeping us busy, and yes, there will be more pics of her soon.

But first, we check in with Dawn and Brent who were married at the end of January at lovely Lange Farm. As a nature lover, I always enjoy shooting this venue. Kevin was there shooting video.

We started out with Dawn on the wrap-around porch before Brent arrived. She was a natural at striking a pose.

Then it was Brent's turn out on the balcony. The sun acted as a rim/hair light and the reflected light from the white building provided nice fill.

The newlyweds walk out of the ceremony that was held under this magnificent live oak.

As the guests move on to the party, Brent and Dawn share a few quiet moments.

A classic Lange Farm shot incorporating the white fences and even a horse in the background for good measure. The setting sun was providing us with a wonderful backlight.

I always love to highlight the huge trees in a few shots when at "the farm."

After the sun goes down, the warm lights of the reception stand out against the cool blue dusk sky.

As usual, I got a few safe "standard" cake shots before moving on to experimenting with some creative lighting. Here, a flash is placed on a stand directly behind the cake topper, aimed toward me. This produces that lovely edge light. The light-colored wall next to me bounced the light from the flash back on to the cake for an even exposure. I increased my shutter speed to make the background go black.

As a new father, I now find kids to be cuter than ever!

Congratulations Dawn and Brent! I had a blast shooting your wedding and I think we got some great shots. Best of luck from all of us at Tampa Photo!

And stay tuned for more pics! I will try to update again soon!