In an effort to find new and interesting spots for E sessions, Shannon, Bill and I had a great time a couple of weeks ago shooting at Crissy Field...which has a similar view of the Golden Gate Bridge as Baker Beach does but from the opposite direction. This means all kinda cool silohuette shots, as well as a bit more variety in background and different lighting than the west side of the bridge has.
When we were walking around, I mentioned the Trash the Dress concept to Shannon--this is something I have seen other photographers do and I've been dying to find a bride who was into it. The "Trash the Dress" shoot gets it's inspiration from fashion photography, and the idea is to have a post wedding photo shoot in the wedding dress, once the wedding is over and the dress is no longer needed for wearing you are free to do all kinds of fun, wet, dirty, sandy, sexy things in the dress that you couldn't do before. This shoot can be with or without the groom, although if he comes along there is the opportunity for lots of very sexy shots of the two of you rolling around on the ground.
Brides who have done it say that the whole process is very cathartic, providing a nice coup de grace to the process of wedding planning and allowing them something unique and special that they can "do" with their dress, other than suffocating it in plastic for the next 20 years or making it into a throw pillow. Most women never really have the experience of doing the kinds of dramatic, illustrative photo shoot that high fashion models do on a regular basis--there is something about frolicking around in fancy clothes, not having to be careful or composed, that is very freeing...just like when you were a little girl and you went jumping in the mud puddle in your Sunday best. Obviously this unselfconsciousness is the ideal state of mind to have during the wedding day pictures, but after spending 3 hours in hair and makeup and with another 6 hours to go wearing all white, very few brides are able to achieve it.
The shoot doesn't HAVE to totally ruin the dress of course, it doesn't even have to involve water or the beach...but the idea is to be able to have fun in the shoot, without worrying about the fate of the garment.
Well anyway, sadly Shannon liked the idea of the shoot at first but changed her mind later once she saw the pics--so I'm still searching for a bride to do this with. Any takers?
Shannon and Bill's Engagement Session--Crissy Field!
New Website is Here!
I am so proud of this site! In addition to being much easier to update, and therefore consisting almost entirely of brand new work, it really represents a new era in the way I see my work.
Before I bought the site, I sat down tried to write out what exactly it is that characterizes my style of photography. This proved to be much harder than I thought--it's one thing to do it, it's quite another to be able to talk about it: I am so involved in my work that it was very hard to see it from the outside. But I got some feedback from Brian, who has seen my work evolve over the past 10 years and looks at everything I shoot, and that got me started in thinking about my work in a more detached way. I was able to make a list of all the things that I do well, those things that continually define my work and set me apart. Then I narrowed this list down to four key themes: real beauty, real emotion, real moments, and real decor; and divided all the images on the site into one of these four categories. I then wrote a "style" page that explains the four themes, what they mean to me and what they look like, and what they mean to those who hire me. And everything just kinda fell into place after that...
www.cohnfrankelphotography.com
Puppy Update, 3 weeks
Well, we finally got to visit--the last 3 weeks positively CRAWLED by, especially with only one wedding to shoot (no one gets married on Easter, apparently). Here are some pics of the puppies and mama at 3 weeks. It was really cute when we got home, Luna spent about 20 minutes sniffing us from head to toe and searching for the puppies. Finally she decided there weren't any in my shoes and gave up with a sigh. 
EDIT: 4.5 week individual pics are up on Carrie's website:it's a little too early to tell yet but so far we are leaning toward "Honor" or "Gizmo" as faves. They're all so consistent in quality, it is really hard to tell who is better than whom--I do believe Tonka really watched out for us in helping us find this amazing litter.
When we see them again next weekend (at 6.5 weeks) we should be much closer to knowing who we like best, although final evaluations and choice wont happen until 8 weeks. The puppy's coming is finally seeming like a reality, and I can't wait to get him home and start raising him!
Puppies!
Since Tonka died back in December (see the post here), we've been looking for another akita. Luna's really missed having a buddy around and we've missed having a second dog, and of course we wanted to pick up where we left off with our dreams of showing and finishing a dog, and eventually starting our own line of healthy, beautiful akitas that will improve the future of the breed.
(which incidentally is the only reason anyone should be breeding any dog in the first place, but that is a whole 'nother conversation...see here for details if you are entertaining any notions of breeding your dog, especially if you are doing it to make money or to "show the kids the miracle of life").
Well the point is that, because of our high hopes and plans for this dog, we were looking for something really specific, and it took a REALLY long time to find it, but it's finally here. Lexie had a litter of NINE healthy, beautiful puppies yesterday; 6 boys and 3 girls, and if all goes as it should one of those babies will be ours. The sire is Chrome, a gorgeous dog we have admired for some time, who is himself the son of Cuervo, who was the number one akita in the country in 2005 (for those of you non-dog people, that means he won a lot of shows).
That in itself doesn't really matter since it's the culmination of all the ancestors that determine (in part) the quality of the dog...but it sure sounds impressive so I'm mentioning it. More important (to me) are the health, beauty, type (akita-ness), temperament, and structural soundness of all the dogs in the pedigree.
Here is the link to Lexie's wonderful owner/breeder Carrie Holgate's website, and below you can see pics she took of the new babies. I'll post more as they grow, especially when we go down to visit them cuz I will definitely bring my camera. And once we know which one is going to be little "Winter" (yes we named him months ago), I'm sure this blog will be inundated with pics of him. And maybe some video. And a few bronzed paw imprints.
Come to think of it, I'll just replace all the pictures on my website with puppy pics. You guys don't mind, do you?
Winter will be coming home with us in May, and all of you are welcome to come over and help socialize him. And ya know if you wanna book a wedding or something too while you're here, I wont stop you... ;)
Edit: see the individual puppies and watch them grow here.
Lexie and her babies:
Domaine Chandon and St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church, Yountville CA
Since Bay Area weather is so changeable, I don't often have to shoot in the rain...but this time actually I kinda liked it! I especially loved the shot of Alanna under the umbrella, walking to the church, and how it stopped raining for *exactly* 15 minutes during the reception, just enough time for us to go out and explore the grounds of Domaine Chandon, a GORGEOUS winery in the Napa area. I really hope I get the chance to shoot there again when it is sunny and we can take full advantage of the scenery...hint hint, summer brides! ;)
Alanna was such a laid back, funny, awesome bride and a joy to be around, not to mention beautiful. When I showed the slideshow to Brian he said something about how you can see her immense inner beauty come through...her smile is just radiant. In fact her whole family was great and they managed to make a lunch reception more fun sans DJ and dancing than some of the best all-night receptions I've been to.
Notable events were the toasts, especially the toast by Alanna's sisters who took turns reading lines from a poem by e.e. cummings, which brought the whole room to tears (including me but I got to hide behind my camera so it was ok), and the Chandon staff cutting a ceremonial champagne bottle open with a sword-- which turned it into a geyser, fountaining champagne about 6 feet into the air. I think they shake it up first to heighten the effect--very dramatic.
Thanks to Deborah Simon of Grand Weddings and Events for putting on a beautiful, smooth running event and being so accomodating and wonderful to work with--even making sure us vendors got real food and a quiet place to eat it! Also Polly Harrington of Valley Flora made beautiful arrangements and decor. The food and service at Etoile at Domaine Chandon was excellent. And thanks to EJ Simpson for shooting second on this one with me, he got some excellent shots (the 2nd and 3rd from the last are his) and was a real help when I needed him.
Slideshow
Proofs
Conquering the world one publication at a time...
This is going to be a great year for my business...well I mean hey it pretty much already is! I've been published again, twice, this time in conjunction with the Knot Northern California wedding magazine and website.
First is a full page article detailing the Sacramento Market Party which I shot back in November, featuring about 8-10 of my pictures spread out over the whole page. I shot this party for the knot hoping to meet some cool vendors and get a little publicity, I was thinking maybe a little blurb with one photo or something...but nope, I got a whole page! And photo credit right at the top of the article--in the first sentence! I really can't thank Alicia Davis, owner of Forever After Wedding Consulting, enough for hooking me up with this gig.
You can see the link to the web version here but the layout and pictures really are SO much better in the actual printed magazine...so if you are in the Northern CA area you can go to your local Barnes and Noble to check it out, or you can order a copy online (or stop by and look at one of my ten copies...).
Second, and I'm not really sure which is better, is that one of my images is in first position on the front page of the knot's Northern CA website!
One of the things you need to understand about most wedding magazines is that there is a difference between paid advertising and editorial exposure: pretty much anyone can pay to have an ad (up to a full page) in the magazine's advertising section, or in the "Find a Vendor" area on the website--many business do this to attract clients and book weddings, and there is nothing wrong with that. But when they start choosing your pictures voluntarily, for editorials and articles in the other sections of the magazine and online, it is a much bigger deal. Hundreds if not thousands of photographers submit work every year for every issue, and getting picked is quite an honor and represents, to me, that that photographer is really going places (or has been there already).
My next goal: to make it into the "Real Weddings" section, where the magazine profiles actual weddings using many images in a multipage article, including interviews with the bride and groom and credits to all the vendors (and all images supplied by the photographer). I think I'm getting close...
Anyway the link to that page is here but I've posted a screenshot below so you can easily see which image is mine.
Also I need to give a big shout out to Michael Cuckler and Helen Fisher--the bride and groom in the image, one of my coolest couples of all time.
Helen is also one of the brides I used in my paid ad in the Knot magazine and she is currently one of the first brides you'll see on my website. In case you haven't seen it yet, check out their wedding slideshow here. They were married in September of last year. 
Claremont Resort and Spa Wedding, Berkeley CA
January 20, 2007
This wedding was just incredibly beautiful. The love, beauty, and visible emotion of everyone involved was evident and moving to photograph. What a great way to start off the new year!
I was originally a bit worried at the late day and the lack of light after the ceremony since I knew we would want to take some romantic pictures of the bride and groom alone outside (and Mikey the groom was ADAMANT that he would not see his bride before the ceremony), but shooting in the dark really pushed my creativity and we got some incredible atmospheric shots from that period of time, which we never would have gotten had we had normal daylight to work in. These shots ended up being some of my most cherished from the entire day.
Elaine Tobias and the folks at The Claremont gave me all the help I needed (including watching my expensive equipment for me, a golf cart to whizz us back and forth from the poolside area where we took romantic shots, and a guide to walk us there when said cart turned out to only have one seat!) and did a great job decking out the ceremony and reception rooms, and Mike from Red Carpet Entertainment did a great job keeping the party going into the wee hours. But most of all I want to thank the bride and groom for being so beautiful, so heartfelt, and so in love...you guys made my job easy.
Here are some shots:
One fave from their E session at the Sutro Baths Ruins in SF
both wrote their own vows
Aimee looking hot in window light
end of ceremony as the sun sets behind them
a private moment post-ceremony
walking out to do pics with me
some of those cool night shots I was referring to
Want to see more?
Slideshow
Proofs
