I gave myself a fun little challenge – one camera, one lens and one film stock. Then lens wasn’t even a zoom and there was no digital “crutch”. Below are a few favorites with minimal commentary -

Above – St. George, Grenada. Below, my father at the helm and Brooke taking her first turn.

Sailing has it’s own language. Unless you speak it, things can get really confusing.

My brother moving us through the water at six knots, and Brooke taking a sunset swim.

Pulling into Hillsborough Harbor on Carriacou Island at sunset.

My brother waiting at the fish market while our Dorado was cleaned at fileted.

We almost made Peter the new masthead on the boat.

Above – colors from Clifton Harbor on Union Island. Below – Angelo photobombing my brother.

Above – Happy Island and rum punches. Also my brother making some iphonography.

Above- Brooke looking radiant at Happy Island and back on the boat.

Above and below – Mopion Island, which might be the most photographed island in the world. The island is tiny and the single umbrella is perfect. We left our mark, albeit in temporary charcoal. I can say one thing – the island definitely needs a bottle opener.

Sunset dinner of spiny lobster in the Tobago Cays.

Detail of a fishing boat and sunset in Hillborough above.

Above – pulling back into St. George and the Timoneer, the largest sail boat I have ever seen. Below, enjoying one last Carib in St. George.

See y'all soon,
Hunter

After meeting Paul and his family at their home, I realized that working with a peer was only one benefit of the session. Paul’s family is absolutely wonderful. His kids are polite, but spontaneous. They are complete individuals and a dream to work with. Paul’s son mirrors his father and loves Harry Potter (hence the constant presence of a homemade wand). Paul’s daughter is a complete ham and loves the camera. No surprise – she is the daughter of a photographer. The best laugh I had all day is when the young girl said “but he’s using a Nikon, and Nikon is evil”. I guess Paul must shoot Canon, which is evil .

The weather and location could not have been better. It was a cool summer evening with a never-ending sunset. Paul thankfully requested Holden Arboretum for the location, which is one of my all-time favorites. His family has been members for years, dating back to Paul’s father. They even have a dedicated bench at the arboretum.

I love family portrait sessions, and below is a visual example of why -

The first young girl I have met who actively searches for snails at the park.

Above is a great example of the blue and golden hour. At dusk, most of the light comes from the blue sky, making for amazing portrait photographs. The setting sun then adds highlights of orange and peach.

What you can’t see is that his magic spell worked like a charm – his sister was turned into a toad (temporarily of course).

Given how much the kids love Harry Potter, I guess bringing sparklers along was a good idea. Personally, I love alliteration, but I clearly use it too much. The next time I use an alliterative title, it’s time for an intervention.

See y'all soon,
Hunter

Their wedding ceremony was held in the open air, right on top of the viaduct. From that vantage point, the wedding ceremony featured an amazing city skyline backdrop. Following the ceremony, a gorgeous reception commenced inside Ponte Vecchio, which was just a few feet away. Since that time, I have revisited the viaduct many times, using the location for a couple great engagement sessions.

Katie and Rob are also a great example of how a well-planned wedding can be both amazingly gorgeous and sensibly affordable. They brought together great vendors, locations, decorations, friends and family to make a truly memorable event. Everything was beautifully modest and clean, creating a well integrated setting. Heck, I almost felt like setting down the camera, grabbing a drink and joining the obvious fun.

Below are just a few of my favorites from their city skyline wedding. Further below are some additional details about their wonderful wedding -

“Butters” the dog. I didn’t get the rabbits name.

While waiting for her family, Katie stood peacefully in her living room. The above-right shot is my favorite, because it is natural.

Katie and Rob chose to do a First Look before the ceremony. It worked wonderfully and further convinced me a First Look is the way to go.

Downtown Cleveland is one of my favorite places for formal photos. It offers great backgrounds and unique locations all within walking distance.

Above is a scene from the Superior Viaduct. I just love the cool tones of the building in the background, and the wonderful shadow it creates.

The wedding design inside Ponte Vecchio was to my liking perfectly – simple, clean and beautiful.

One thing I really liked about the wedding was a great opportunity to shoot the food during prep, and the service as well.

Towards the end of the night, when the light was just perfect, we headed outside for a few more portraits. I like to do this whenever possible. The light at sun-down just makes for the most amazing photos.

Why YES, that is too men locked arm-in-arm while drinking Appletini’s! Why do you ask?

Clearly from the above, a good location and some great planning can make for a wonderful wedding. Katie and Rob definitely found a great team. Speaking of which, big thanks to Amy Hissa from At Last Event Planning for amazing wedding plan, design and for being a wonderful host. Off Broadway Flowers provide some really gorgeous arrangements and A Cookie & A Cupcake delivered some amazing treats. Last, the team from Something New Entertainment really got the crowd rocking after dinner. Thank you all for such a wonderful time!

See y'all soon,
Hunter

Their wedding was in Fairflied, Ohio, which is a bit of suburbia near Cincinnati. Suburbia can be good and bad for photos. The good – nice open spaces. The bad – it can look a little like, well, suburbia. We were discussing possible location ideas weeks before the wedding. Fairfield is on the other side of the state, so I couldn’t scout locations and provide advice as I normally do. We had kicked around some good ideas, but trouble was, they were just “good.” Katie and Jerry really deserved GREAT! With a little trust, they let me run with some location ideas.

I contacted a horse farm not far the other wedding locations. After just a couple emails, the farm was happy to let us use their property. I recommended the horse farm as a wedding location for a few reasons. It offered open spaces and great structure. As well, Jerry had rented a vintage Ford Model-A sedan for transportation. I thought the mix of horses and horsepower would work well. In the end, Jerry and Katie loved the location, and the photographs even more so. The farm ended up really fitting well with the flow of the entire wedding.

My clients usually give me a little trust from the start. I think this is because most of them find me through personal recommendations from friends and family. After that, I work hard to build trust and am thankful for every ounce. Hopefully, you can see below why trust works and a little influence can make a big difference -

The note above was written by Katie’s grandmother and the necklace is “Something Old”. I hear from the family that Katie’s grandmother teared up a little when she saw this picture. She loved the photo so much because she was unable to attend the wedding in person.

Katie was kind enough to get prepared in her sister’s old bedroom. The white walls really made for a nice, clean background.

Above you can see why I love the idea of sharing love letters before the wedding. Certainly, Katie’s were tears of joy.

Above, Jerry reading a note from Katie while awaiting her arrival for the first look.

I love the curious nature of horses. When we arrived, they were all back in their stalls eating oats. Within just minutes, they were checking out the new visitors.

Above are just a couple of Katie and Jerry’s first look photos. More are available in a post specifically about the first look.

Jerry chose the perfect tuxedo. It was not a rental, but a custom tailored suit.

Vintage car for the get-away – yes please!

The emotion above is priceless for the grand entrance. The little bit of motion blur really helps to convey the energy.

A funny Best Man’s toast is easy. Jerry’s best man gave the most amazing toast I have ever heard. It was funny and sincerely heart felt. I’m still amazed.

I think Jerry was amazed by the toast as well. His brother left no doubt that he loves Jerry very much.

Yes, that is an auto racing themed cake topper. There’s nothing wrong with that. Oh, time for some dancing!

Shout, Shout, Shout Shout!

Believe it or not, the above dancing shots all took place in just 20 minutes. Katie and Jerry really got the room hopping from the start!

There was one other thing really unique about this wedding for me. I normally work with the same great second photographer all the time. However, Michael needed a substitute for this wedding. Lisa of Brightside was kind enough to step in. She really was amazing the entire weekend. I will be forever thankful for her amazing help.  Also big thanks to the wonderful people at Walnut Creek Stables. They were amazingly generous with their time and so courteous.

See y'all soon,
Hunter

Equally amazing is Cyndi’s family – Lee, Jordan, and Natalie. The two girls are brilliant beyond their years and truly hysterical! They threw themselves into the event and had a great day. As we were wrapping up the session, Jordan asked “So, I’ll see you next year?” A little perplexed, I responded “Sure, what for?” Jordan jumped in with “Senior portraits, silly!” I just melted and have been in a good mood ever since. What an amazing vote of confidence in my work.

So here are just a few of my favorites, and I certainly hope you enjoy. Judging by Cyndi’s early reaction, I think the Dillard’s will just love their new portraits.

Working with the Dillard’s was such fun that I have decided more family lifestyle portrait sessions need to be in my future. Weddings are great, but I certainly love doing both. Thankfully, I have another family session coming up in August. Check back soon to see more.

See y'all soon,
Hunter

Lindsay and Patrick met as members of a business fraternity while attending Kent State University. At first they knew each other as friends. They grew closer and by Lindsay’s 21st birthday their relationship was moving in fast forward. After a stint of long distance dating, they have finally found themselves in the same city again and soon to be the same family. For their engagement session, we thought nothing could be better than to return to where it all began.

While just a bit chilly, we were happy to have some beautiful March weather. The Kent State University campus is gorgeous. Not to mention, there is a very interesting rock on the campus. Well, more like a boulder…a very pretty boulder. Traditionally, people paint the boulder on a regular basis. Lindsay and Patrick even took their turn. By regular basis, I mean nearly hourly. By the time we left, Lindsay and Patrick’s message was painted over.

Here are just a few of my favs from the day, including some hot painting action -

This next one is on film and it’s definitely a favorite

Lindsay and Patrick took me to one of their favorite college dive bars. Thankfully with permission (and some added light) we were able to get some nice pictures inside

See y'all soon,
Hunter

The way Monica and Eric first met is becoming more and more common – online dating. They got to know each other remotely, before finally meeting in person. Thereafter, their relationship took off like rockets and they will be married this year. We planned out something very personal for their engagement session. They first met at the Moosehead in North Olmsted, just outside of Cleveland. For their session, we returned to Moosehead for a portion of the engagement session.

After Moosehead and with snow falling all around, we headed into a local park to take advantage of the scenery and weather. Below are a few favorites, again including some film images and digital.

That last shot is from a famous train parked in downtown Olmsted Falls. I could not resist including the color for a nice wide-angle shot. The bright red just pops out perfectly.

This might be the last winter engagement for this year. For whatever reason, they were hot with my clients, but remained cold with me! I love the winter, but the cold weather just gets into your bones after awhile.

What to do next? Consider visiting our Facebook page or stopping by Twitter to say hello!

See y'all soon,
Hunter

After some back and forth with Jesi and Alex, we decided using the studio for some formal shots would be best. Cleveland winters and little black cocktail dresses don’t mix, so starting inside would be smart. I don’t normally use the studio as I highly prefer getting out on location, but the studio was perfect for this session. I set out to build a custom set just for them. I wanted gorgeous light all around, so we let natural light pour into the studio and shot on a white background with minimal styling to highlight them.

Afterwards, it was off to the Cleveland Art Museum and the Case Western campus for some shots at sunset. I’ve mentioned this before…shooting in the evening during the winter is my favorite light. Everything is bathed in bluish light from the sky with orange and yellow highlights coming from the setting sun.

Here are just a few of my favorites, which feature a mix of digital and film. I think you will spot the film images because of the amazing colors and dynamic range.

As you can see, it got a little cold over by the Cleveland Art Museum. Just a couple days before the session, the temperatures had fallen into the single digits. Jesi is living in Houston at the moment, so I am sure the weather was a little bit of a shock.

For photographer’s following along, I thought I would offer more details on the film images. They are all medium format for the best possible detail. When working, I primarily shoot a Mamiya 645 AFD loaded with Fuji Pro 400h 120. However, some of the images above are the new Kodak Portra 400. I am just starting to test the Portra, but it has proven to be amazing. If you are interested in shooting film (and who isn’t), let me know and I will pass along some tips.

So that’s all for today. Take some time to stop by our Facebook page or come say hello on Twitter!

See y'all soon,
Hunter

Just before Christmas, we spent the day shooting in Little Italy, at Case Western Reserve University and in downtown. Jennifer and Chris wanted a little Christmas in their photos, but not too much. So we saved the Christmas light for the end and spent the rest of the time enjoying the great light.

Here are just a few of my favorites from the day -

Coffee break! When it is this cold outside, you just have to stop and get warmed up from time to time. So, we ducked into a local deli for something hot.

Yes, for those that recognize it, this is the Barking Spider over by CWRU. It’s one of my favorite places to shoot during the day. The green carriage doors make a great backdrop and the lighting during the winter is fantastic.

PSST…check out Jennifer’s amazing ring!

The last one is my favorite. The light is wonderful and Chris’ expression is priceless. Not long after the shoot, Jennifer contacted me for a special project. She wanted to feature her engagement photos in a custom save the date card. Make sure to have a look at their simple and elegant custom cards.

That’s all for the moment, but would you believe it, I had another winter engagement shoot this weekend. Those will be coming soon.

See y'all soon,
Hunter

Bailee and Aaron’s friends and family – find all the wedding images here

Bailee and Aaron had managed to reserve the Cleveland Botanical Gardens on a Sunday. Not only that, but their wedding was held in early June. The gardens were in full bloom. The rose were red, the violets were blue, Aaron love Bailee its true. On my scouting trip to the gardens the day before, I realized just how special their ceremony would be.

You’ve gotta believe too! The forecast said rain, rain, rain all week. However, by the time we stepped into the Cleveland Botanical Gardens for the big event, the skies had cleared and it was just another beautiful sunny wedding day in Cleveland.

Here are a few of my favorite photographs from the ceremony and reception -

I absolutely love the photograph above of Bailee dancing with her father. The expression on his face is so priceless. Not to mention, he is genuinely a nice man. Funny too! By the way, one last wedding tip for the photographers. If you ask your subject to wave their hands in the air, give them a sound effect. Weeeeeee!

See y'all soon,
Hunter