K-State Vet School Gingerbread House Contest

Every year, students from the various clinical rotations at the vet school participate in a Gingerbread House Contest which evidently becomes more of a rivalry between clinicians than anything else! A decent number of the fourth year students participate (including, my wife, of course) and I was absolutely astounded/amazed/overwhelmed/awestruck/etc/etc by the exquisite details and creativity of the "houses"! With apologies to my wife, my favorite was the horse carousal. Unbelievable! Check out the horses and it rotates too! Plus everything on it was edible! The event even included a secret judge as well as visits by the dean of the vet school and the head hospital administrator! 

Jenny & Casey - Love in Lawrence, KS

Jenny and Casey introduced me to the gorgeous University of Kansas campus when we did their rockin engagement session way back when :) And so I was extremely excited to meet up with them again for their wedding day! From the very beginning, everyone and I mean everyone was so laid-back and just not stressed about one of the typically most stressful days of a person's life! Seriously, Jenny and Casey were both so at ease with everything...getting dressed, taking pictures, essentially the whole day and after listening to Jenny's father's toast as well as the toasts by the maid of honor and the best man, I knew exactly why: everyone knew how much they loved each other and no ceremony or reception was going to define or label them as a couple. They are truly and deeply in love.

Jenny + Casey = Love through and through

And really there's nothing more to say than that.

Enjoy the slideshow :)

Amie & Paul - Love in Manhattan, KS

After our initial meeting at Radina's Coffeehouse, I was super hopeful that I would be able to work with Amie and Paul because they are so easy-going and awesome! When we met for our engagement session and they braved the ridiculous heat and swarming mosquitoes, I knew without a doubt that they are troopers and that their wedding would be a photographer's dream: beautiful couple, laid-back personalities and the willingness to do anything!

And I was right (which doesn't happen too often, just ask my wife). Sarah and I started our morning with the ladies at the salon and from the beginning we got a glimpse of the sweet relationships shared between Amie, her mom and her four sisters! Then, we headed over to the gorgeous First United Methodist Church where everyone ate, dressed and prepared for the big day! We went a little photo happy with Amie, well, because, she looked absolutely radiant! And I doubt anyone will disagree with me! She looked like a princess and she was just so abundantly full of joy that it infected everyone that saw her instantaneously!

The reception was just awesome. Plain and simply awesome :) We busted out a faux photobooth and took some suh-weet pictures of the guests, but we were definitely not prepared for the madness on the dance floor! From the "lawnmower" to "makin it rain", it was literally non-stop laughs, smiles and happiness on the dance floor!!! One of the numerous highlights of the evening was when Amie cleared the dance floor for her sister and her husband to have their "first dance" because they didn't have one at their own wedding. So thoughtful and considerate and so Amie!

Congrats again to Amie and Paul and thank you thank you for opening up your families and friends to Sarah and me! Many blessings to you both!

OpLove - Dexters

Whew. This one was a doozy. I've been talking to Mona for what seemed like months about her husband's homecoming and when the time came, the stars aligned and everything worked out perfectly. The timing of his homecoming ceremony, Sarah and my availability, the weather, just everything was ideal!
And then Sarah and I started driving. We left about 45 minutes early so that we could set up before the ceremony started and we were laughing and joking and having a good time. We pull up to the gate to enter Fort Riley and the military patrolman says that we can't use this gate after hours :( So he gave us directions on where we could go. At this point, we still have plenty of time. I call Mona and let her know what's going on and she apologizes profusely for the mix up. Sarah and I arrive at the other entrance only to find that we need government issued IDs or else we can't get in. Unfortunately, Sarah lost her driver's license earlier that week and so we had to turn around and leave. Now, it's homecoming ceremony time. So I whip the car around and drop Sarah off at the Junction City Walmart (which probably wasn't the best idea, but there was no was I was going to miss the entire ceremony) and sped back to Fort Riley.
After getting through the entrance, I had no idea where to go. I drove around aimlessly for about 20 minutes (after 1) asking the military patrolman for directions and 2) asking a military police officer for directions to no avail), I saw a line of cars leaving one building and I knew that is where I needed to be!
So after reading all of that, you're probably thinking that I missed everything and I am just a bitter grumpy old man! But no! Fortunately for me, the Dexters (Mona, Chris, Tyler, Jake & Garrett) were still there and I was able to grab some candids as well as some posed shots of them before they took off! It was awesome seeing the whole family reunited! You might recognize the Dexters from previous sessions here and here and so I really wanted to be there for them for this momentous occasion!
Welcome home Chris! And thank you for doing all that you do for our country and our freedom!

Ellie Jo & Parents :)

My friend Mandy recently had a beautiful baby girl named Ellie Jo and due to Ellie Jo's amazing birth and continuing development (which you can follow here), I offered Mandy a free photo session whenever the time was right for them. So after getting home from the hospital, Mandy contacted me to take me up on the offer and I was ecstatic that she did! Sarah and I made our way over to the Gramkows' apartment and we had a blast hanging out with the Mandy, Ben and Ellie!

You can see from the slideshow that Mandy and Ben are just hilarious together! So complementary and so much in love, it was hard not to laugh with them :) We took a TON of pictures in our short time together because we wanted them to have as many to choose from as possible as well as to keep for themselves! Sarah took a few of the little details shots and some of Mandy and Ben together and I focused on the beautiful blue eyed Ellie Jo! Mandy wanted some Anne Geddes-esque shots and I was happy to do whatever they wanted :)

Congrats to your gorgeous baby girl and Brisa and I will be praying for her continued health and spirit!

Emily & Tony (and Gus) - Attraction

Emily, Tony and Gus. Should really be GUS, emily and tony. He simply stole the show. If I wasn't taking pictures of Gus, he would try to run into the pictures. If I was trying to hold him while taking pictures, he would yank my arm so that the pictures would come all all blurry. If we tied him up, he would make friends with other dogs and draw all sorts of people near us. Gus owned us, literally. And I loved it. Come on, I mean, look how cute and fun he is! How could you not love that face? Seriously!

Recently, I had the sweet opportunity to take pictures of Emily, Tony and Gus at City Park (the home of their very first kiss!) and it was SUH-WEET (yes, i did use "sweet" twice in the same sentence, but spelled differently = all gravy)! I had them jumping, skipping, lying down, dipping, sliding and running around all afternoon (thanks for being so easy to work with)! We roamed around City Park and my favorite shots were the ones taken on the steps and at the little playhouse in the playground. I just love how they look and interact with each other! And please notice Emily's gorgeous eyes! I mean, how could you not notice them, but in case you glazed passed them, do yourself a favor and look at the slideshow again. Absolutely amazing!

Thanks again guys for selecting me as your photographer and best of luck with your Oregon wedding and the rest of your lives together!

Enjoy the rockin slideshow!

Ewing Family - Joy

The Ewings are by far my favorite Wamegoans. For those of you don't know where Wamego (or what it) is, here's a nifty map to give you some context. It's the home of the Wizard of Oz Museum as well as probably my favorite Mexican food restaurant in the area, Toto's Tacoz. Yes, that's what it is really called and we still love it!

Any who, back to the Ewings. Why are they my favorite Wamegoans, you ask? Well because they are super cool. They essentially run a B&B for all of their kids, their kids' friends and all of their animals! I met Mary nearly two years ago and our ridiculously sarcastic sense of humor made us fast friends and we've been bantering back and forth ever since!

So during the holiday break, Mary asked if I could take some quick family portraits while all of her children were home and I happily obliged! A supposed 15 minute photo shoot turned into about an hour, but hey, do what you gotta do, right? Based on the photos, you'll notice that the entire family is just hilarious. Always ready with a quick insult or a nasty look, I love hanging out with the Ewings because you just never know what is going to happen next. From JR combing his beard to Mary laughing and crying uncontrollably during a "serious pose", you just gotta love the Ewings. They are some of the most thoughtful and considerate people I know and I am a better person for knowing them :)

Enjoy the quick slideshow!

New Year's Resolution

When I first started La Brisa Photography, I wanted everything to be extremely sophisticated and first rate; hence, my blog posts were a little sterile and not very personal. I used "we" and "our" instead of "I" and "my" and I realized that I want people to learn more about me and to get more personal with you! So from now on, I'll be blogging in the first person as I should have done from the very beginning!

You will quickly realize that I:

• have a ridiculously lame sense of humor (which I owe to my lovely older pregnant sister)
  
• use the words "awesome, amazing, beautiful, definitely and gorgeous" many many times (I'm trying to work on that)
• I absolutely adore sports and pets, especially dogs!
• I love dining out (terrible for the pocket and for the waist I know, but so much easier than cooking)
  
• my faith and my wife and my family are my most treasured things.

Lastly, if you haven't already made a New Year's resolution, try this...write. Start a blog or a journal. As a formal English major, the ability to write well is extremely helpful in any place of your life! And the more you write, the more you become comfortable writing and your true style and tone are found! If you are reading this and you have a blog of some sort, leave me a comment with the link! I am a professional blog-stalker :)

Happy New Year everyone!!!

Niki & Josh - Love in Manhattan, KS

You may recall Niki and Josh from their beautiful engagement session, but the one thing that Sarah and I were not prepared for was how they loved to have fun! Seriously, all throughout the day we were all laughing hysterically as Josh would crack jokes or make fun of his brothers and dad! Can you say hilarious? ....(hilarious, i know you said it again in your head after reading it :)

We spent the morning with the ladies at the Gallery for Hair and then we headed over to the Church of Christ. Ceremony was gorgeous and very much in tune with Niki and Josh's personalties: sentimental, simple and sweet. The highlight of the day was definitely the reception at the Clarion Hotel! Josh and Niki definitely owned the dance floor! From their first dance, to their garter and bouquet toss, to Niki doing some amazing two-steppin with her brother to Josh getting so low that none of his hands or feet were touching the dance floor! Talk about getting down!

Congrats again to Niki and Josh and thanks for selecting La Brisa Photography! Many blessings to you and your future together!

Now please enjoy the slideshow!!!

Happy New Year

In my first full year of running La Brisa Photography, everything exceeded my wildest expectations. From my equipment collection, to my learning curve of photography, to figuring out how to run a business, to my absolutely phenomenal clients of whom many I consider friends today, to my wonderful familiy and friends, but nothing compares to the support and love of my wife who has given me the strength and the opportunity to succeed. I cannot thank her enough for everything that she has done and the sacrifices she has made in order for me to pursue my passion!

In 2008, there were 9,448 visits to this blog and 5,009 visits to the main labrisaphotography.com site. Unreal. I am totally blown away. Nearly 15,000 people have shown some sort of interest and I am speechless. Never in my wildest imaginations could I have come up with a number like that! For the blog, there were 16,525 total hits and for the main site there were 6,024 total hits. Again, unbelievable. God has truly blessed me with photography and I am so pleased that I am able to share it with so many of you!

I am super excited about 2009! The most exciting aspect for this upcoming year is that I have taken on an assistant photographer, Sarah of www.sarahjeannephotography.com and she has been shooting with me for several weddings, engagment and family sessions already! She has an amazing eye for photography and I truly believe she is well on her way to becoming one of the best photographers in Kansas. Seriously, her natural ability is THAT awesome! Check out her site and take advantage of her lower rates during her initial startup because they definitely will not last long!

Happy New Year everyone and thanks again for all of your love and support of La Brisa Photography!!!

p.s. i'll be blogging a TON of sessions soon!