Schnack Studios Blog

Erin and Scott's Engagement Photos in La Jolla

Mon, 11 May 2009 20:00:00 +0000

After Erin and I wrapped up her bridal session--and we deftly negotiated La Jolla traffic while Scott unknowingly trailed us in his car--we met up with Scott and rolled right into the engagement session. Not surprisingly, Erin and Scott were great. After meandering the streets of La Jolla for a while, we headed to 9-10 for a quick cocktail. We finished up with some images on the beach. Enjoy!

Erin's Bridal Session | La Jolla, CA

Mon, 11 May 2009 11:50:00 +0000

This is the beautiful Erin. She booked me over a year ago for her upcoming wedding in June (I'm jealous of her proactiveness). She had booked both a bridal shoot and an engagement shoot. As we all know, life sometimes gets in the way of fun stuff. So, when it came down to schedule the shoots, Erin, drawing from her greuling days as a U of Michgan water polo player, wanted to tough it out and do both shoots on the same day. Back to back. Keep in mind that after a few hours at one of my engagement shoots, most couples are in desparate need of a cocktail and a nap, and not necessarily in that order.

But Erin was a rockstar, a total natural in front of the camera. The shoot started in downtown La Jolla, and after that we headed up to my new favorite spot by UCSD, broke out the strobe, and created some fun images amongst the trees.

Craig, Nicole, Ava and Addison

Mon, 04 May 2009 16:22:00 +0000

On Sunday afternoon I met up with Craig, Nicole, Ava and Addison to shoot some new images of their ever-growing family. The last time I photographed them, Ava was just about 6 months old. It was so great to see how she's grown into such a little princess. And Addison is giving her older sister some serious competition in the adorable-kid department. We first shot some images at the Ferry Landing on Coronado, then we headed down to the beach for some late-afternoon sweetness.

Soul Ryde

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 18:03:00 +0000

While surfing the Internet in my continuing journey to find interesting people to photograph, I came across the boys from Soul Ryde. Brian and Michael, the founders of Soul Ryde, have a cool little spot on Ray Street and specialize in custom, laser-engraved skateboards. Check them out onine or visit their store!

Some great thoughts on human interaction...

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 22:25:00 +0000

Came across these links from Rob Haggerty's blog. The ideas can be transferred to any part of life which requires interaction with another humman, not just the manager/employee relationship.

Top Ten Reasons Why Managers Become Great

and...

Top Ten Reasons Why Managers Become Assholes

Amanda and Steve's Wedding at the Rancho Bernardo Inn

Mon, 06 Apr 2009 17:30:00 +0000

Amanda and Steve were married on Friday at the Rancho Bernardo Inn. Amanda was referred to me by two previous clients, both of whom work with Amanda at a local technology company. If they refer another coworker to me, I may ask for some stock options as payment.

Amanda and Steve were so great, and their group of friend was classic. They had one of the biggest bridal parties I've ever photographed--10 on each side--which made the afternoon so much more fun. Steve is a total crack-up and is a natural with the microphone, and he had the crowd on its feet during his speech.

Special thanks to Eddie for the awesome second shooting. Also thanks to Lynn from Pure Planning for being her usual awesome self and making sure the evening ran smoothly.

Springtime in Cardiff

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 06:23:00 +0000

Friday and Saturday were absolutely gorgeous. It finally felt like spring. Last Friday my ladies and I decided to futz around at the tidepools at Tabletops, near Seaside in Cardiff, before heading out for a bite to eat. The tide was a little too high for Emme's marine biology lesson, but we had a blast nonetheless.

Some Grygera Portraits

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 06:17:00 +0000

More work on the Grygera project. I spent a few hours at their shop shooting boards for their online catalog. The board shots are boring, but Jeff also hammed it up for me in front of the camera.

In the second shot, notice the floating particles of dust? Those are pieces of the foam blanks that Jeff cuts to make the boards. We had tried to dust him off a bit and those particles just hung in the air and the strobes caught them. He kinda looks like Pig Pen from Peanuts.

Libby and Ravi's Wedding at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:31:00 +0000

Well, Libby and Ravi's wedding weekend is a wrap! And what a wedding it was. Libby and Ravi are two of the nicest people I've ever met--so cool, so sincere, and they give off such a great vibe. I am a huge fan!

The weekend started at their rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, held at the Ritz-Carlton and a nearby steakhouse, respectively. There were some really special moments at the rehearsal. Couples are so caught in the moment on their wedding day; the rehearsal gives them some time to reflect on all the time and energy they've spent leading up to the event. There were some fantastic speeches at the rehearsal dinner. It's so nice to see such a great couple surrounded by a great support system of family and friends.

Super-Saturday started at around 2 PM. I was greeted by Dan Boswell of dvArsitry, only the best wedding videographer in the country. Dan and I have worked together many times over the last several years, and I remember back in the day when Dan used to shoot by himself, sometimes bringing his lovely wife to help out. Now he's got a whole crew, the only thing that's missing is the craft services cart and the private trailer. I love working with Dan because we think alike and like to bust each other's chops. It was Dan who referred Libby and Ravi to me, so I am indebted to him, and knowing Dan that's not a good thing ;-) Dan worked his magic once again with an awe-inspiring Cinema Reale.

(A quick aside: Libby and Ravi both attended Yale, so Dan made sure he wore a Yale-blue shirt. Nice touch, bro. I need to get me some D-Boz charm.)

While Dan and I shot Libby and her bridesmaids, I sent kick-ass second shooter Eddie B. to shoot shooting Ravi and the guys. Shortly thereafter, Libby and Ravi did a first-sighting, which provided some really great moments. The rest of the day went off without a hitch and rather than bore you with words, I'd rather convey the story through pictures. Enjoy.

Special thanks to Michelle Weita of Details Details. Michelle and her crew did a fantastic job of making sure everything ran smoothly and attending to Libby and Ravi's every need. Also thanks to Dan of dvArtistry, whose awesome Cinema Reale at the end of the night had everyone cheering and Libby and Ravi feeling like movie stars. Also thanks to Sherry of On Location Beauty for her fantastic work on Libby and her bridesmaids and whoever else needed some primping. The floral work of Asiel Design was spectacular as well. A very special thanks to Eddie for such great work shooting with me.

And finally, thanks to Libby and Ravi for going with the flow and trusting my vision.

Vuori Clothing for Ranch and Coast Magazine

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 16:26:00 +0000

A few years back my longtime friend, Chad, started Vuori Clothing with his business partner. Vuori shirts are the most comfortable shirts I've ever worn, and coming from a lifelong t-shirt afficionado like me, that means a lot. They are hand-cut from organic cotton and feature Chad's unique designs. Some of these images will be featured in an upcoming piece on Vuori Clothing in Ranch and Coast Magazine.

Foreclosure Series continued...

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:42:00 +0000

Continuing with the Foreclosure series. Although I may have to change the name, because technically these lots aren't in foreclosure (I don't think), rather the developer ran out of money or pulled the plug on the project due to the housing/real estate slump. The first set of images were shot at an industrial/office lot in Carlsbad. I saw this lot on the way back from a meeting yesterday morning and was struck by the tractor-trailer with the billboard pasted on the side. The second set of images were again shot in Carlsbad, this time of a space that was set aside for a residential project.

Natalie and Dave's Engagement Photos

Mon, 16 Mar 2009 16:47:00 +0000

Yesterday I spent the afternoon shooting with Natalie and Dave, who are getting married next January at the Museum of Photographic Arts. We had a great time shooting at a new location I found, then we headed down to La Jolla to shoot some more downtown and at the beach. Natalie and Dave are super cool and I'm really looking forward to working with them more!

Gravis Video

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 19:54:00 +0000

If you remember the shoot of Kassia Meador I did for Gravis last week, I just got the finished video clip from superstar Pete Santa Maria. The video features a few of my images from the shoot. Hit the play button to see the vid.

Grygera and Sons Video

Wed, 11 Mar 2009 18:50:00 +0000

You may remember the images I posted a few weeks back of my shoot with Grygera and Sons Surfboards. The videographer who shot some content with me put together a cool little vignette of yours truly during the shoot. I need to work on my 'ums' and 'ahhs'. Hit the play buttom and enjoy.

Gravis Footwear--Kassia Meador

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 17:34:00 +0000

On Thursday I did a quick shoot of Kassia Meador for Gravis Footwear. The shoot is part of a project Gravis is doing to feature several of their riders and focus on each rider's artistic talents. The project will feature still images and video, which is being shot by the legendary Pete Santa Maria.

Kassia is a phenomenal professional longboarder and an accomplished artist. Most of her work involves large phtographic prints adhered to a wood frame, laminated in--what else--surfboard resin.