…the light near Land’s End San Francisco, that is.  Went walking down the coastal trail with Heidi, Chris and Troy on Sunday.  I looked to my left as light was pouring through the trees and I started freaking out, grabbing my camera from my bag.  Nobody understood the fuss until I placed them in the light’s path and clicked the shutter … showed them the back of my camera.

Light like this is unreal.  I never find it in Wisconsin.  I wanted to plop an entire wedding in this light and make photos until it went away.  Instead, I took snapshot-style photos for 10 seconds.  I didn’t care what anyone was doing or how my compositions necessarily looked … I was concentrated on how the outlines of their bodies were glowing … how everyone looked to be traced with a glow-in-the-dark crayon.

Gave my camera to Troy and he snapped this photo of me:

Gave my camera to Heidi and she snapped these photos of Troy and I:

And I switched it up for my SF trip.  I used the 5D mkii + 50 1.2L.

I’m sitting at my desk for the first time in a week.  I’ve got Dan Deacon, Miike Snow, Paramore and The National powering me through the to-do lists before I leave again tomorrow morning for San Francisco.  My suitcase is conveniently still packed from my last trip; I live life with all my liquids in 3 oz bottles housed inside a plastic quart bag.

But this trip is a little different.  I’m bringing Troy with me, for one.  And the most exciting part is that I’m attending this wedding as a guest!  I’m packing 4 inch heels and a silk dress that I hope remains wrinkle-free.  I can’t WAIT to see some of my favorite people on the planet and to see my beautiful friend, Gladys, as a stunning, excited, and crying (of happiness) bride.

I’m not bringing a big camera.  I’m bringing the little one I barely know how to use.  I’m enjoying every minute of not carrying 140 pounds of gear on my right shoulder.

I’ll return next week Tuesday with tales and photos from the past month of plane rides, shooting, and new encounters with new and old friends.  Until then!

Photos of Gladys and Chris from this past May in Laguna Beach.

I met Liz and Bryan for the first time on the afternoon of their wedding day.  I immediately felt in my element photographing their sincere personalities and their awesome and welcoming friends in the wedding party.  Liz and Bryan were married in the scenic hill country of Austin, under a huge sun overlooking Lake Travis.  They opted to see each other before the ceremony to have enough time for photos and I was thrilled by how natural they were behind my lens.  So into each other.  They were both so happy.

Liz and Bryan, your wedding was gorgeous.  Thank you so much for flying me down to Austin to capture it.  It was an honor to work with you both!  Congrats!

Vendor shout-out:  Venue and catering–Vintage Villas, Hair & Make-up–Your Looks n’ Locks and Autumn Swinson Burns (note to my future brides — she is from Madison and seriously talented! Check her out; she drove down to Austin to do Liz’s hair)  , Florist–Bouquets of Austin, Cake–Simon Lee Bakery, Lighting–Ilios Lighting, Band–Top Choice.

I just got home from Minneapolis where I took Troy to see Mumford & Sons at First Ave.  These guys are the best current live band out there (Radiohead is still the best live show I have ever seen though) and they’re still playing to crowds of only 400 or so at tiny venues.  This show sold out in under 60 seconds and it blew my mind more than the first time we saw them.  Also in Minneapolis we saw some good friends, Mike and Rachel, and they took us to some amazing restaurants for blackberry mojitos, boar risotto, lamb lasagna, fig french toast and more.  I also had the most delicious Minnesota wild rice veggie burger at a local brew pub.

Before I was in Minneapolis, I was in Chicago and Ohio, where I also sought-out the best food.  When I travel alone I prefer small cafes with cute atmospheres.  My friend, Cydney, recommended TASI in Columbia and it was there that I had the best french toast of my entire life (this is saying a lot considering my brunch obsession).  Sara and Joshua took me to Northstar Cafe, where I had the Buddha Bowl (this place was super awesome too).

Now (in a few hours) I’m headed to shoot a destination wedding in Austin TX and I know there are plenty of awesome bars and cafes with unique menus and artsy atmospheres.  I’m anxious to visit them all and meet-up with some friends, both new and old.

Can’t wait to be in the same place for longer than 5 days!  That’s not happening until December though … I still have 4 big trips within the next 2.5 weeks.  Don’t get me wrong — I feel lucky and excited to travel so often for my job, but I’m starting to see why people who do this more often than me think flying is overrated :)

I’ll be back in the office on Tuesday, November 9th. I’ll leave you with some food to look at.  I love shooting food more than almost anything.  These are all straight-out-of-camera and shot while in Ohio with the 5D + 35L.

Ciao!