As you may have read earlier on the blog, Owen and I photographed Angie & Zach's reception at the Alden Hotel on 6/7/08. Well we had a quick turnaround and early Sunday morning we flew to New York to photograph Candace & Terrance's wedding at the Inn at New Hyde Park in New York.

I actually got to know Candace through my friend Matt and I was very excited to head to some new surroundings for a change. Because of the tight timetable, I unfortunately didn't see much of New York besides their wedding venue and JFK airport, but I have another wedding in New York coming up and should be able to fit some tourism in during that time.

First we met the ladies and got some great shots of them preparing for the ceremony. A few of them...um...had to get used to us being so active (and getting close) to get those interesting angles but I think they got used to it after a while. ;)

Here's one of my favorites--Owen delivered a cool shot here.

The Inn at New Hyde Park was a gorgeous, elegant venue and I cannot say enough positive things about their staff. They went above and beyond for the couple (and for us!) numerous times throughout the day. A big thanks to Angel and his staff.

We seem to be catching a lot of the flashes going off from guests' digital cameras. It really makes for a cool effect.

You can see my friend Matt here getting his own shot during the ceremony.

The couple share their first dance

I loved the ambiance of the venue.

Minor miscue before the bouquet toss.

Candace's mother wrote a poem for the couple--definitely one of the more tender moments of the day

Candace's sorority sisters sing the Delta Sigma Theta sweetheart song.

I loved how the bride was having a wonderful time on her day and wasn't afraid to let it show.

Candace, Terrance--we had a great time spending the day with you and hope you enjoy your photos! Matt, thanks for hooking us up with such a lovely couple.

A couple of weekends ago, Owen and I had a busy weekend photographing two events back-to-back.  Angie & Zach's wedding reception on Saturday the 7th and a wedding in New York the following day (which I'll share a little later on).

Angie & Zach were married in Prague (how cool is that) so they wanted to host an event for their friends and family that couldn't join them as they became husband and wife. They chose the Alden Hotel for the event and I really enjoyed their choice! The hotel is very modern and stylish plus their staff was very friendly and accommodating.

I kidnapped the guys and girls for a quick series of posed photos and then we sat back and let them do their thing on a Saturday night.

Here are some of my favorites from the night...

I also bumped into Alex (who is Angie's cousin) and Nick who were obviously enjoying each other's company.

Angie, Zach: Thanks for inviting us to document the fun at your party and I appreciate the awesome hospitality.

Big ups to Owen for capturing some great frames as well.

I got some cool news recently that I wanted to share with you. Two of my photos placed in the top 10 of their respective categories in the quarterly Wedding Photojournalist Association contest, which includes many talented photographers from across the country.

Got to send thanks to Ken Luallen for even notifying me I had placed...ha!

Kelly and Kevin were married at The Woodlands Resort and Conference Center a couple of weeks ago and I wanted to post some images from their wedding day. I was excited about this wedding since it would be my first trip to this venue plus Kevin is a photography enthusiast himself. Prior to the wedding we talked and I quickly realized we'd be on the same page. I was more than happy to capture the memorable moments from their day. Before I present some of the photos, I wanted to give a quick shout to my friend and fellow photographer David who contributed some great shots as well, particularly of the guys. The event was coordinated by Jennifer Wright of the Woodlands Resort staff who helped everything run smoothly.

And now, the photos....

My friend and fellow photographer, Carolyn invited me to be the second photographer for Briana & Bobby's wedding last month at the Plaza Club downtown. The couple, their families and their friends made me feel comfortable and had a great time taking in the joy of the day. There were quite a few characters at this wedding which made for great candid captures of interactions and expressions. Here are a selected few:

Some of the guys—pre-ceremony...

A quick one of the ladies...

I really like the closeness and juxtaposition of father and daughter. I really enjoyed capturing their time together just prior to the ceremony.

Kids being kids always leads to interesting images...

Having some fun downtown with the newlyweds.

Briana & Bobby make their intro as husband and wife.

Great light from the windows streamed into the Plaza Club

The view from the 49th floor was outstanding

And now the reception...

These fireworks from another downtown event were visible from the Plaza Club above.

The couple make their exit...

Back in February, I was the second photographer for Stacy Reeves (yes, again--ha!) and helped her photograph Alex & Nick's wedding at the Hotel Derek. The ambiance was very impressive, featuring the work of Mike of Darryl Murchison's Darryl & Co. Here are some of my favorite moments and details.

I'll be photographing the wedding reception of Alex's cousin, Angie today at the Alden Hotel. Stay tuned to the blog for some of those images.

Christiana & Olu are getting married this October so we got together to shoot their engagement photos at the Sugar Land Town Square. We stepped outside the box and went up and down the commercial district scouting new areas and trying new ideas. Here are a few of my favorites:

They were an awesome couple and I'm looking forward to their wedding this fall.

After photographing them during their incredible engagement session, Celine and Justin asked me to come document a party at the Westin Hotel to celebrate their engagement.

It was a wonderful evening with their friends and family and I was happy to spend time around warm and friendly people.

I just photographed a wedding this past weekend Saturday (and I'll be posting all about it soon), which officially marks the wedding season picking back up for me. With that in mind, I figured I'd start adding some more wedding-related posts to the blog as I continue catching up with older images.

Celine, a friend from middle school, her fiancé Justin and I went on a nearly two-hour long tour through downtown Houston, midtown, and the Hotel ZaZa. I'm really excited to show the photos from this session: they have a great sense of humor and are naturals in front of the camera. In addition to being willing to try almost any idea I threw at them, they also had some of their own (including a "dip" shot that continues to stop people in their tracks).

Celine wanted a shot of a dip in the middle of the street, so we waited for the traffic behind them to be halted by a red light. We are right in front of the Magnolia Hotel here.

We rode the light rail train back to the midtown area and continued to take photos. :)

This image was taken by the Contemporary Arts Museum

I love this sequence by the Mecom fountain:

Finally we head to the Hotel ZaZa, which had special significance for them. They celebrated here the night of their engagement.

There's a bit of cool background with this next set of photos. The staff saw we were taking their engagement photos and helped us set the mood by bringing by a complimentary bottle of champagne and some strawberries. How awesome is that?

Keep an eye out tomorrow as I'll post images from the couple's engagement party where they celebrated the occasion with friends.

Since both of the Democratic presidential hopefuls are still in the headlines these days, I wanted to present some photos from the small portion of the debate I was able to get access to during the February Debate that took place at the University of Texas. The debate was coordinated by CNN and Univision.

The throng of photographers waiting for the Senators to make their appearance

CNN's Campbell Brown speaks to the audience

Campbell Brown, Univision's Jorge Ramos, and John King of CNN

Senator Hillary Clinton greets the audience

Senator Barack Obama

A view of the press filing center where members of the debate live-blogged, worked on stories, and transmit images.

Here was my view.

Members of the media swarm Mark Penn in the "spin room"

Definitely close quarters...

Still working on catching up with the many images to add to the blog. Look for continuous updates over the course of the next few days. :)