Early this year, Steve called the studio wanting to surprise his wife with beautiful photos of the two of them in honor of their 10 year anniversary. I loved this idea and we immediately jumped into planning. We discussed where they were staying, what his vision for the photos looked like, and many different locations in the valley, eventually landing on one of my favorite places - a private winery north of Napa. After going over location details and providing Steve with tips for the session, the day of the shoot arrived.
Courtney and David’s wedding ceremony and reception took place at the always beautiful gardens of Brix Restaurant in the Napa Valley. I photograph often at Brix; from the incredible food and gorgeous grounds to the great team of people, this location never disappoints. This day was no exception! It was a beautiful warm day for a beautiful wedding.
My relationship with this lovely bride-to-be began very early of this year when she contacted me regarding engagement photos. Sheyanne, a Texas girl and her fiance Jamie, a Scottish lad, were incredible subjects. Their mutual love for life and each other was very easily captured through photography on a beautifully foggy day in January. Truly magical images resulted from that day - ones that they, and I, have since showcased.
Engagement sessions are a wonderful way to capture the essence of everyday love. The anticipation and romance is always very high, and is communicated naturally through the photographs. These sessions are generally an hour long, and they can take place at some really amazing locations. Even though I am able to suggest places, I love to hear the input of each couple because they usually have somewhere that is very significant to them already in mind. Most of the couples I work with choose to travel to San Francisco or to a local spot within the Napa Valley. The ideal time to do engagement sessions is on a weekday when wineries aren't packed with people, ensuring a more intimate moment.
I was recently asked back to Napa Wealth Management to photograph the staff in order to augment their rebranding initiative and give a clearer picture of their personal and professional commitment to managing family finances. After our initial meeting before the session, George McCuen, founder and president, asked me to use my artistic vision to capture formal and casual photographs showcasing the personality of each individual member in order to create a more personable feel. He also wanted to refresh their group shot that included their place of business, a beautifully renovated building located in downtown Napa. For this project, striking that balance between personal and professional would be the key.
I was thrilled to fly to Quebec to visit my sister, Cecile, her life partner David and their newborn son, Malwen. He was just 15 days old. He is quite the little man, and I was able to capture his adorableness on film.
Because Malwen is my nephew, I was able to experiment with new ideas, and new techniques I have been yearning to explore. … Read more »
I recently had a fun photo shoot with Chad Blower, a young Napa guitar player who has become quite the local celebrity playing in bands, and most notably playing guitar for Terry Bradford at Silos on Main Street in downtown Napa.
His musical career is really taking off, and I was thrilled to have the opportunity to photograph him. We had a fantastic time together. … Read more »
The air is warm, apple trees are in full bloom, my cat just had her kittens, we have new chicks in the coop, and it is the perfect time to take pregnancy photographs in Napa Valley! This past weekend I was privileged to photograph Annabel, one of my former brides, in her pregnancy glory. It was a gorgeous day, and we had so much fun … Read more »
Rosemary Kempton has written a lovely article about me and my life’s work of photography, published on the front page of the Arts & Entertainment section of the Napa Valley Register, April 19, 2012. The article is titled, “The world through his lens: Napa photographer of French descent tries to uplift people.”
In the article, Kempton discusses how, through the art of photography, I give … Read more »