after i shooting lesa & david's engagement session tonight, i realized their love for each other is out of this world. indeed, the force is strong with them.

i mean, how else can you explain a hovering light that appears when their heads meet?



no lightsabers flashlights or strobes were used here:


lesa & david met playing poker so we explored the casinos at blackhawk & central city in the mountains of colorado.


don't underestimate the Force.


may the force be with you both.

"sit still."  those words remind me too much of growing up. 

presidents, pharaohs, and peasants have all been told to "sit still" for hours to have their portraits painted with brushes on canvas.  "static portraiture" is nothing new.  this technique has been applied by painters, sculptures, other artists for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. you can see the results at national portrait gallery in washington, dc. after a visit to the coolest american museum dedicated to portraiture, i was inspired to light-paint inspired by the words, "sit still."

in photography, "sit still" isn't something we think about too much about.  perhaps it has something to do with the "click" of our shutter moving at 60 miles per hour 1/60 second or faster. sometimes it's nice to slow down to 20 seconds, which can feel like 1/8,000 of a second when you are in love :)

sunny & brian rock the party that rocks the pinyata.... and so the light-painting begins:


tight.



for some reason they went all jay-z on me.


--- back to "normal" programing ---

brian swept sunny off her feet when he proposed. here's the evil weapon of choice:


what a cute couple in great natural light!!


soweet.  


and version two all done up fancy dancy.




perfecto!


totally relaxed. totally fun.


when you have such pretty light, even the pavement is comfy :)


one thing i totally enjoyed about east coast light is the ability to predict timing the "golden minute," which happens when the light shoots through all the dense smog/fog/political atmosphere. in denver, our mountains block some of that light when you are in the shadows.

time to soak up the sun:


a pair of small video lights created illuminated the drama here:


and this was "officially" the latest engagement portrait ever shot by kern-photo (hint: the DC metro was almost closed).

luke & christie indulged in some boulder-licious engagem-atastic off-the-charts fun yesterday. my role? to make sure the camera lens didn't melt.

luckily, nikon goods are as strong as the bond between luke & christie (no, nikon didn't pay me to say that :)

oodles more fun is in store for their august wedding and we can't wait to be apart of it :)





the bling vs. "who let the dogs out..."


christie likes cute little piggies.


i love this next sequence.


roof-top parking garages are prime ingredients for signature-photo goodness.


both cheer in opposite directions during college football.


luke played for cu-boulder and christine is a longhorn fan...


... yet they don't let football differences stand in the way of their love (all together now: AWWWWWWWWW :)


then we found a little pocket of light and made funny scary faces.


fact: christie has a beautiful smile. fact: luke makes her smile.



luke + christie's hair =


click HERE to see a slideshow of more images.

wrapping up 2008 has brought back wonderful memories and has set the stage new growth in our photography and business. we couldn't have done it without the 100% trust of our clients who offered us a glimpse into their lives. between december 12 and january 1, we'll be revealing our kern-photo "best-of 2008 " awards.

and the winners are:

best portrait, male

best portrait, female

best engagement portrait

best pet portrait

best family portrait

best moment (wedding)

best wedding portrait

winning portraits exude personality, creativity, expression, and impact.

and here are the winners in the best portraits, engagements category of the best-of 2008 images by kern-photo (with a link to the original blog post & commentary):

#13. janae & derrick:


#12. nicole & kevin:


#11. amy & todd:


#10. carrie & nick:


#9. stephanie & jeff:


#8. jess & josh:


#7. katie & shawn:


#6. katrina & brian:


#5. carolyn & adam:


#4. julie & jru:


#3. angela & brian:


#2. danielle & chris:


and this portrait session was actually taken BEFORE they were engaged, but since taylor proposed (with a series of cupcakes spelling out "marry me") in april of this year, this images will still be considered official.

#1. lindsay & taylor:

this dynamic duo in love are good with numbers.

last saturday = [(engagement session - stress + chill) x (boy makes girl laugh)⁴] / 0

the answer, according to my TI-83: undefined.



if their love was represented by infinity, does infinity + infinity + infinity = infinity?



derrick gets the award for knowing how to make janae laugh.


what a cute burberry purse!


derrick does not know serious:


a favorite relaxed portrait.


a great colorado fall day:


the adventure begins:


a true cigar cattail aficionado:

a diamond engagement ring, clipped on a carabiner, and stashed inside a bathing suit at hot springs pool in glenwood springs seemed like the perfect ingredients for a proposal. and there was no doubt in kevin’s mind that it was perfect after nicole said “yes!”

and here are a few favorites from their engagement session earlier today:


and they brought janie, their four-legged little one, along with them during the shoot.


janie is quite a free-spirit :)



with red rocks in the distance...


some more janie fun, waiting for the ball:



good:


better:

midway on road to recovery from acl surgery from a ski accident, todd still got down on bended knee for a surprise early morning proposal at lookout mountain in colorado a few weeks ago. and the good news:  she said, ‘yes’!  

amy is a fellow classmate of nicole’s in PA school, so when they found out we had a knack with the camera, an engagement session was fresh on their ‘things-to-do-list’ once back from from a rural medicine PA school rotation in the phillipines.  outside of the medical field, amy prides herself on her wedding florist talents and todd is an accomplished aerial ski coach who i’m sure would have me sucking on a pacifer if i ever attempted a mid-air stunt on my snowboard.

amy & todd will be getting married in summer 2009 in the great evergreen state of washington.  they have some wonderful plans in the works (think huge greenhouse for their ceremony), and we’d look forward to seeing firsthand how it all turns out :)

eying the sentimental, here they are on location of their first kiss, inches from where it all started :)




with too many good shots of amy’s beautiful smile to choose from, i melted my two favorites together:


yes, they're goofy:


and a "quiet" experimental portrait:


another, with a twist of fun:


suave & sophisticated while practicing the twirl:


followed up by a sun-warmed kiss:

nick's steady persistence finally paid off when carrie said "yes," 'cause for the longest time, she didn't know what to do with him :)

august 23, 2008 will be a duezy of a day for carrie & nick when they take over her parents' backyard, "father of the bride" style.

they warmed up to the camera super quick on their engagement session in boulder this week. we all had a giddy ol' time in search of texture, color, and romantic spots. one special thing i enjoyed about this particular shoot was all the wonderful, colorful places in boulder we found with little effort that made for great backdrops. it's kinda like we take for granted so much of our surroundings, but then when hunting for something to boost the creative energies, quite often we have what we need around us (if we open our eyes and hearts to see it :)

to view more favorite images, click HERE to see a slideshow and sign-up to view more images on pictage HERE.


they hammed it up in front of this cool wall:

we found a field chock full of the world's biggest dandelions and had a mini-contest to see if they could blow them off... it is waaay harder than you'd think.

chasing the light up chautauqua trail in boulder proved to be an exhilarating way to connect and enjoy the scenery:

the right spot for a denim ad:

and a fun moment being kids again:

of course, some pg-13 time was needed:

and a gentle moment to say goodnight, the last shot of the evening:

while danielle relishes the first few days of summer away from the the kids as a school teacher, chris is a kid-at-heart who loves to get his hands dirty during at work (his landscaping biz) and at play (skating, snowboarding, climbing, fishing, you name it). we all had a blasteroni of a time during last night's engagement shoot right here in good ol' lakewood.

first off, chris, like most guys, was not super stoked to get his pretty picture taken. and to be honest, i am no different. i'd even pay good money to see him to hug-a-tree, senior-portrait style, and watch his reaction (just kidding:)

however, once we busted out the toys, his nervousness from "this whole picture session thing" wore off right away. and chris whipped up some really good location ideas on his own to make their photos uniquely "them." we're talkin' two different huge tractors, horses in a meadow, downhill skateboarding, and more cool stuff.

they both are dog lovers, and around the time they booked us last october for their september 20, 2008 wedding, chris' best dog buddy, domino, went up to doggie heaven after many faithful years at his side.

this kern-photo blog entry & photo session is dedicated in special memory of a man's best friend, domino. the furry guy is probably looking down on us, drooling with a tennis ball in his mouth :)



chris brought his sweet arbor longboard and let it all hang out:


skating aside, chris is also a horsewisperer. he called this quarter-horse from across a huge grazing field and the horse walked over almost immediately :)




danielle loved this iron gate...



chris shot out of this ditch imaginary canon and landed one piece :)


our very last shot of the evening, we lightpainted one of chris's favorite toys:

denver's art district along sante fe avenue provided prime color and atmosphere for angela & brian's engagement session on sunday. after a few drinks at the new santa fe tequila company we wandered the streets talking, exploring nooks & crannies, and following the light with some kern-photo fresh. modern. fun.

view their slideshow here.



as we raced to follow the light, we found this sliver of light peaking through a building. perfecto!


love this one!


angela loves to drag brian around town.... and brian was a good sport to let her.


practicing their dance moves.

side story: angela's father admitted to never being a good dancer, but promised to take lessons before their wedding, just so he could lead her around the dance floor... super sweet.




we ended up at a local high school on the football bleachers to catch sunset and some "sunday night lights." (two off-camera strobes)


some flash flavor added some dynamic punch to the sunset and reflections on the bleachers. me likey :)

katie & shawn gave 110% enthusiasm for life and their love of each other on their engagement shoot last week. we revisited the exact spot where shawn proposed on the 16th street mall then explored a few denver locations featuring great texture, perspective, and light.

we're excited to be at their side with their closest friends & family on 10.18.08!

katie booked us when sean was overseas, so we had to wait until his return from a tour in iraq to shoot them together (although he did get some seriously PG-13 comments from his superiors when they saw some of these photos printed and hanging on a wall in a non-disclosed location in iraq :)

shawn's got some sobering stories about his iraq experiences. however, i am proud there are fine soldiers like him on the front lines.

here's what we cooked up at 5280 feet at 70 degrees for a few hours:




spring is here :)







catch the lens flare cast on shawn's. gotta love those happy misteaks :)

jessica & josh share wonderful chemistry and i know they are looking forward to their catholic wedding on october 11 in denver. their new pooch, lucky, joined in on some of their engagment session action in fort collins a few days ago. here are a few of our favorites:



gotta love those puppy eyes :)


climbing up a wall of academia at colorado state university where they both graduated.


we chased the light for this fun shot in a random staircase on campus:


under a tree for a romantic moment.


as the sun was setting, i caught this reflection off a distant building window with our super wide 12-24 f/4 nikon lens.


who says you can't break the rules in a creative portrait?




these were a little creative experiment inspired by a simple shopping cart found on the side of the road, so we thought we'd toss in josh and tool around. here's the trio series:


just after sunset we found a random field to explore and catch great diffused light.


an old school taken on a classic moment :)

carolyn & adam are getting married in april, just around the corner and we are looking forward to photographing their big day! they are both super genuine, down-to-earth, and excited to be in love. they had an awesome engagement session yesterday and we wanted to post a few of our favorite images. ladies first, here's carolyn:


introducing adam:


when carolyn & adam were dating they visited this vista of boulder's flatirons (appearing in the background) and got a few romantic snaps. they were both eager to return to capture the beauty of denver's front range mountains for their engagement shoot. we drove to a picnic spot off highway 36 with a panoramic view of the flatirons and the rocky mountains in the distance. this shots is reminiscent of a 1965 ford mustang ad.


a classic vintage car & shoe shot:


'shirley,' the name of adam's mom, appears on the driver's door. what an awesome momento!


carolyn is beautiful and could easily fit in the pages of a j-crew catalog.


carolyn & adam are a cute couple.


carolyn's beautiful coat was warm enough for two sets of hands :)


adam ensured he warmed up & stretched out well before carolyn jumped on his back (adam played some big time football for the cu-boulder buffs, so he knows the routine :)


this is my favorite shot from our shoot:



a little wide-angle view with the front range in the background.


super sweet:


we drove around and found a perfect little field just outside of boulder which set the stage for some more creative portraits. we lucked out since the weather was super nice (high in the 60s) and the lighting overcast. out-of-focus shots force viewers to use their imaginations... which we like :)



we ended up at this really rustic barn in boulder's open space. jesh de rox inspired the composition and urge to experiment in the next two shots:



the experience of emotion & love is a wonderful thing to photograph:



on a final note, i was dummy enough to lock my keys in the car (the first time.... ever). adam was kind enough to call AAA. and today we can now call ourselves proud new members, so that in the event it happens again, we are covered :)

growing up 10 miles apart in rural nebraska, stephanie & jeff met through a friend and the rest is history. both are huge golf enthusiasts and their may wedding will be at the par 70 arrowhead golf course, designed by robert trent jones, jr (the only reason i know that is my litle cousin designs golf courses).

despite falling temperatures, these two were daring to have their engagment session in 30-degree temperatures. warm at heart, it didn't phase them much... they were pleasant, energetic, and very easy-going the entire shoot.

recently engaged, julie is a talented muscian and jru (pronounced "drew") is headed to the police academy. together they make a great couple. spirituality plays an important role in their relationship and witnessing their engagement giddiness was refreshing. with julie's violin and jru's collection of guns and cars, there'll be some mayhem to witness in their 'creatively-different' bridal portraits on june 27, 2008.

they became quickly confident and comfortable in front of the camera. 100% total photographic freedom ignited creative sparks bonfires and paved the road for photographic experimentation.




after hanging out near the denver rei, we headed to the downtown aquarium to explore.


a favorite shot of the day:

we met in wintery breckenridge just in time to see the final day of the international snow sculpture championships last sunday. talk about a fun time! we enjoyed exploring the sights and color of breckenridge, a quintessential colorado mountain ski town. if you've never seen a 20-foot snow sculpture of a giant lemonade stand, then carve out your schedule to see these sculptures at least once in your life! we'll be shooting their july wedding and look forward to being apart of their special day. karina grew up in brazil and most of her family lives there, so their wedding will be a true fusion of culture and religion. we started things off in a romantic horse-drawn carriage.

then explored the town in search of fine textured backgrounds...








then paid a visit to the courthouse.


i love the cross-processing effect of this simple image with brian's button and the stairs.


using an ultra-wide nikon 12-24mm lens to capture a quick candid with an alley perspective.


karina has huge, beautiful eyes that brian claims were the same size when she was little!


a real moment.


and some relaxed kern-photo style portraits :)


here's the huge ice sculture of a lemonade stand (with a blue gel filter in my sb-800 flash).


shooting through one of the ice sculptures:


this is my favorite image of the entire shoot, which has a mushy-gushy romantic comedy feel (in a good way, of course:)

we met raelean and j. d. at grand bahama island for their engagement shoot on the beach. they got engaged days before the shoot, so they were super excited to share the news with some photos with their loved ones. they both safely arrived back from iraq serving a tour of duty in the army and had some killer behind the scenes intelligence war stories to share. i told them to be prepared to get wet on their pg-13 rated tropical photo shoot, and they were easy going and enjoyable to be around. while their big date is not until october 11, 2008, they'll be sure to enjoy these before the big day.

what a stud!




nothing wrong with a little blurry shot illustrating a candid moment!

the big date is may 31, 2008 in beaver creek and we are giddy to document their special day :) we shared in a cutting-edge kern-photo e-sesson. despite 20 degrees and snow, spirits were warm and cheery. here are a few of the favorites from our outing in longmont, colorado:
:

after meeting of coffee, we explored the holiday decor in the streets.


we found a painted brink building which added a great backdrop for the following sequence:


one of their favorite romantic spots was mcintosh lake, near longmont, colorado.

june 13, 2008 will be a special day for high school sweethearts megan & jeff. we braved the winter cold in fort collins last weekend and headed to the colorado state university campus for some engagment extra-currricular activities. being a university of colorado-boulder alum (my master's), i had to keep my mouth shut about talking rival football smack, especially after cu-boulder's 31- 28 overtime win this year. regardless, megan & jeff were super spirited and eager to share some kern-photo 'fresh. modern. fun.' ladies first:


a genuine moment.


something matching and 'cute.'


and something 'different.'


strong backlite images are a favorite technique. it was about 40 degrees when these photos were taken... both megan & jeff were super troupers :)


we then headed into one of the academic buildings for some rated pg-13 posings.


this one was my favorite from the whole shoot.

without liz & ryan, our dash would have been a figment of our imagination. you see, great wonderful liz introduced us to the sporty vizla breed through her pooch, penny. it wasn't too much longer when we decided to adopt from the same breeder, dobson kennels, located in brookings, south dakota. our friendship with liz and ryan dates back to college days at nicole's alma mater, university of denver. we are so fortunate to be able to shoot their engagement photos in colorado and their wedding in south dakota on the big day of 06-07-08 (a hugely popular wedding date). in warm country style, and here they are....









and to round it all out, girls just being girls...

we hung out with emily & brian in ft. collins recently for their engagement shoot. they were very chill and relaxed, which made our job easy!
Check out the music slideshow by clicking here >>.



We love this color blue, which we stumbled upon in Old Town.


Emily and Brian seem so on the ball in organizing their wedding; they met with us over a year before their wedding! That made us feel really special.


Nothin' wrong with a little comic relief every now and then...


Emily and Brian love to rock climb, so we gave them a barefoot climbing challenge (which they easily conquered!).





They jump in style!




We caught this moment in a mirror reflection in our signature colorful style.


Such a romantic glow!


Cute, especially with the color in the sky!


Sunset glow on Brian & Emily.




Speed trap, ahead!


Shortly after this shot, we all filled up on ice cream in summertime style.

My bro's getting hitched to the love of his life, Molly! We couldn't give up the opportunity to shoot their engagement session up in Winter Park, Colorado during Christmas. See more in the gallery >>


It was cold, but we loved the ambiance it set...they were all dressed up in big, black down jackets...they looked so cute!


Sitting by the outside campfire at the base of the mountain.


Getting some dancing practice in!