use real butter

our first proper snow storm

filled out

turned in

admiring the latest in italian (telemark) footwear

bought some fabric

and notions

driving boulder canyon

going for a trail run (should have brought our skis)

running in the snow is invigorating!

it’s snuggy weather

had an idea

pins

sewing

ready for halloween!

Recipe: chocolate bourbon cake

Ask any of the people who know me well or even a little bit and they’ll tell you that I am rarely silent. It’s just that I had a marathon session of photo processing to finish before the snow storm arrived. YES. There is a snow storm dumping snow in my yard as I type and I intend to ski the bajeezus out of it come daybreak. As some of you know, after Jason and I visited Yosemite, we photographed a wedding in Northern California. I don’t typically shoot weddings… I’m not a wedding photographer. But this nice young woman – a long-time use real butter reader – asked so sweetly and her wedding sounded so cool that it was hard to say no. I later learned it’s not just me! No one is really capable of saying no to Selina.

mother of the bride looks on while the bride’s maids adjust the wedding gown

bridal party

The wedding took place at Capay Organic Farm west of Sacramento and was catered by gourmet food trucks: RoliRoti and Volks Waffle. How fun is that?! Selina and Dean are incredibly nice people. More than that, they are super chill in that awesome geeky way. No bridezillas. No Drama. Their families and friends were delightful. Everyone was so supportive of these two that it made the job a true pleasure.

selina got many honks from passing cars

a token “peace out, suckers!” shot because selina had read my blog post that morning!

the lovely couple

I am actually the last person anyone should consider to shoot their wedding because I don’t even know the basic logistics of these events. Jason schooled me on how weddings typically go down. “What about the speeches?” he asked me, to which I replied, “Speeches?” Yeah, it was like that. I could not have done this without Jason’s help (thanks, man!). And a huge thanks to my friends at Pro Photo Rental for outfitting us with additional lenses and bodies so we could both work the double-slinging action.

flower girls waiting for their cue

selina smiles at her dad as he escorts her to the aisle

an intimate and gorgeous venue

checking out the ceremony

And yes, there were speeches. Both fathers spoke heartfelt words that brought tears to many eyes. As the sun dropped behind the mountains, the maid of honor lit Selina’s father’s speech with her smart phone so he could read it in the waning light of that special day. First he spoke in English, then he spoke in Chinese. Even though my Chinese sucks, I understood what he was saying. It was getting tough to focus the camera on the bride, because my vision was blurred with tears.

dean’s father jokingly unfurls his “speech”

selina dabs at her tears as her father speaks

toasting the happy couple

Congratulations, Selina and Dean. Thank you for allowing us to document your special day. Thank you for sharing yourselves with us and letting us into your circle. Also? I especially loved how you exited the altar to the Star Wars theme. Rock on.

may your road lead to every happiness together

Are you ready for some cake now? I hope so. And booze. This is a boozy cake! Please don’t ask me what liquid you should use to substitute for the bourbon, because then it won’t be a chocolate bourbon cake anymore. If you don’t like bourbon, don’t make this cake. Make some other cake. I wouldn’t make this for children either. It’s got a lot of bourbon in the cake AND the icing. Booyah.

flour, butter, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking soda, salt, eggs, sugar, bourbon, vanilla

melt the chocolate

**Jump for more butter**

I’m in California right now for a work trip with my shooting partner and buddy, Jason. We flew out a couple of days early since Jason had never been to Yosemite National Park. I thought we should remedy that. We even ran into my friend and mentor, Michael Frye, at the Whoa Nellie Deli in Lee Vining after we figured we wouldn’t be able to meet up! I love it when that happens.

Jason and I spent just over 24 hours seeing many of Yosemite’s popular attractions before heading back north to shoot a wedding this weekend on a farm near wine country. We also made a quick detour to Reno – a pilgrimage, you might say. So here’s our trip (thus far) in photos, some on iphone and others with the D700. Hope you are all having a great weekend!

the giant bunny at the sacramento airport is about to pounce on jason’s head

requisite stop at taqueria la estrella in manteca (carnitas taco and chile relleno)

made it to yosemite just before sunset

sunrise over half dome

“peace out, suckers!” at glacier point

fallen giant sequoia at mariposa grove

checking out the tree rings

“peace out, suckers!” at the grizzly giant (sequoia tree)

“peace out, suckers!” at el capitan

“peace out, suckers!” at olmstead point

“peace out, suckers!” at tuolumne meadows

self-portrait in my tent

“peace out, suckers!” at the whoa nellie deli/mobil gas station

we made a detour to the patagonia outlet in reno

“peace out, suckers!” at the patagonia outlet

lunch at in-n-out burger