First things first, I don’t shoot weddings as the lead photographer - it’s not my jam. I really enjoy documenting moments as they unfold, using my photojournalistic background to capture those candid moments. 

So that being said, there’s nothing like shooting a wedding with a great lead - that’s Tammy Horton in the Bay Area. I know Tammy from my television production days back in 2002 or so (?) - we both were production assistants on the television show Ripley’s Believe It or Not! We reconnected about two years ago, both of us now photographers, and she’s been bringing me into the wedding mix. She’s great at what she does and the best thing about “working” with her is that we push each other in a creative way. 

This past weekend I worked my first wedding of the season with her and it’s going to be hard to beat. It took place at the Sequoia Retreat Center. Outdoors. Redwoods. Great light. Great couple. I don’t typically share stuff from weddings but why not, here’s my top picks. 

Congrats Chris and Claire. 

Some time ago I started thinking I’d like to work on a photo project for an extended amount of time, I just didn’t know what. In addition to that, I didn’t want to carry around my DSLR either, I wanted something smaller and less noticeable. 

That’s when I came across the Ricoh GRII, it’s a small point and shoot camera that fits in one’s pocket. Small, shoots fully manual, raw and even has some effects you can shoot with - high contrast black and white, retro, positive film… the list goes on, think Instagram filter-ish. So now that I found my camera, I needed a subject. 

My office is in Long Beach, just off Shoreline Drive near the Aquatic Park and Village, making for plenty of people watching and scenery. Many colleagues of mine often go on walks during their lunch breaks for exercise, I figured I’d go for walks of my own - kind of like a photo hunt. 

The following images were made during my lunch break while walking around the Shoreline are in Long Beach, unless otherwise noted in the caption. 

The Dude.

Queens Highway Bridge.

Aquarium Recess.

Lions Lighthouse.

Bike Lane.

Palm Freight.

Tour de Marina.

Palms Up.

Mr. Battle.

Navy Foot Beats.