The show tells the story of two Iranian 15-year-olds accused and tried for homosexuality. It is based on actual events in Mashad, Iran in 2005. The show began in Chicago, and tomorrow evening is its west coast premiere.

We photographed the three leads (Andy Gala, Tamer Aziz, and Michael Tauzin) separately and together against a white seamless. I  lit to show plenty of definition and contrast, but it still was meant to make it easy for the graphic designer to alter the tones later for an implied hot desert environment.

The first image shows the three guys together:

The producers chose a different set of  images for the one sheet, and I really love how it came together! The final design actually reflects the relationships and story extraordinarily well (design by Noah Benjamin):

Surrounded by photo equipment after the shoot are produer Christopher Sepluveda (left), actors Andy Nala, Tamer Aziz, and Michael Tauzin, and producer Jeremy O’Keefe.

I went back to photograph setups this week. I was so impressed with the cohesiveness of the show, from the lighting to the costuming to the set design! And the actors really put their all into their parts, even though they were only performing their setups for my camera!

Tamer actually plays this scene (above and below, when he is put into prison) in silhouette, which is just right for what I think is one of the best-choreographed moments of the production. But a silhouette didn’t work as well for the photo — his lines and movement complete the visuals when he’s standing a few feet in front of you. So I took a little artistic license and added a kiss of light when he hit his mark (below), in hopes that it would play better as a still image. It turned out to be one of my favorites.

I urge you to make time to see this show! It is directed by Michael Matthews and produced by Jeremy O’Keefe and Christopher Sepulveda. For ticket info (it runs from March 5 to April 4 only), visit the Haram Iran Facebook event page or see the Celebration Theatre’s website.

Haram Iran on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=345262086252

Celebration Theatre – http://www.celebrationtheatre.com/

The next day, my high school buddy Mike — a real estate agent and one of the most versatile musicians I know — visited from Utah for a two-day musical writing workshop at Disney’s Burbank studios.  He could bring a lucky guest, so I sat in on some of the best readings of unfinished musical productions I’ve ever seen. After each performance, critics gave their notes to the writers and composers American-Idol-style. Each show had the potential for plenty of tweaks and improvements, but I noted one over-arching theme: Story Is King.

A musical can have the nuts and bolts in place to make the catchiest, most dramatic music imaginable, but if the story and character doesn’t develop with every breath or note, it’s all for naught as your audience floats away. It’s a variation on the same theme that rears its head with every creative turn I take. I learned it as a news photographer and again in cinematography courses at film school. It’s the key to that certain I-don’t-know-what that you feel when a narrative creative work hits you in all the right places.

It’s also my not-so-secret theme when photographing a wedding. Assuming a photographer has quality equipment and technical know-how, simply taking pictures at a wedding is pretty easy … but beware of stale results. Approaching it as an evolving day with romance, hope, fun, and a cast of loved ones turns snapshots into memorable storytelling photography. Even headshot or engagement session results are better when you can feel the personality or the relationship — call it character-building, if you will, or just subtle storytelling.  It’s a personal challenge that I’ve even written in the manifesto-of-sorts on my studio’s homepage: We take a fun, narrative approach to photography.

Anyway, two short days after I sent my trusty quality equipment to Canon, they had the lens back in my hands. I don’t know if they put their best eleven guys on it in a whirlwind of screwdrivers, vice grips, and blinker fluid, but that’s impressive turnaround time. So I asked Mike if he would model for me so I could give my lens some informal testing. And since blog posts are better with photos, here are the results. The lens is performing like a champ, by the way:

You should check out Mike’s musical, A Life Devine. It had a very successful run in Southern Utah last October, and Mike plans to improve the show even more using what he learned at the seminar.  Here’s the production’s website, where you can hear the music and watch the show: http://www.lifedevinemusical.com/

Thank you to Crumbs Bake Shop for some delicious red velvet. Have a very warm and happy holiday season, and we’ll see you in the new year!

Until now, I hadn’t noticed Zoey’s hand toying with Nick to keep the garter on!

It’s always fun to dig into the archives to see nuances from only a few years past — both with the lovely people in the photos and the evolution of my approach to shooting.

Happy 3rd anniversary, you two!

The stuff in Asia’s sketchbook proves she’s got some of the best raw natural drawing talent you’ll find anywhere. I remember her drawing running animals with accurate posture and legs when she was 12! The girl’s gonna get a call from Disney one of these days, no joke. And I’m not biased because she’s my niece.

Who wants to do a “trash the prom dress” session? We nearly did!

Heels in a tree swing? Crazy woman!

My dad and my brother built this treehouse for Asia and her sisters many years ago … AFTER I grew up, of course. But I’m not jealous.

A huge thank you to Shannon Martineau and the Shivwits Native American tribe for her help in letting us use the fantastic abandoned Mormon chapel and their land. The building created such great texture for Asia and the prom dress she wanted to wear!

Congrats, Asia, on a wonderful senior year!

When I first asked Alex his name, he told me “Bob.” That pretty much set the tone for the rest of the session.

That’s a big kid in that basket.

Jen and Bryan even sneaked in a photo of their own.

Dogpile!! This was Abby’s idea, which she whispered in my ear. Even with all the fidgeting knees in their backs, Jen and Bryan somehow kept smiling. I only got one photo of this moment as Savannah slipped lower between her dad and mom, but one was enough!

Thanks for such a fun session, y’all!

I want to share with you more photos from a fantastic,  stylish, marvelous couple I was honored to photograph in early October in New York City & New Jersey. René + Ed, both lawyers and world-travelers extraordinaire, met at a Halloween party in Louisiana. These two fit together like puzzle pieces, and they look good in front of a camera too.

True to their worldly ways, their two-part wedding spread over two states. Their official civil ceremony was in NYC …

after which we trolled the city for some photos.

My favorite shot took thirty seconds from start to finish, in which we borrowed a magazine stand from its grumpy-but-patient owner. My awesome assistant, NYC-local photographer Alejandro Duran, held a flash out of frame behind René on the right side. The natural light streaming into the plywood box from behind me, along with a fluorescent tube above Ed, did the rest of the work. Ha ha, I can find Buttman magazine — can you?

Afterwards, they had a small party at Café Asean in the West Village.

Then on Saturday, the girls (René, Catherine, and Zoey) got all dolled up in NYC, then hopped a limo two hours to Skillman, NJ.

René + Ed had their white wedding in his parents’ gorgeous backyard. The clouds, which had been threatening moisture, broke mid-day to become my favorite light, that lovely post-rain drama.

And then my favorite moment of the evening …after cutting (smearing?) the cake, Ed needed to clean his glasses! Inventive solution, if I say so myself.

Congratulations, René + Ed! May your many years be happy!

We were nearly done with the bride-and-groom session — and they were getting tired — when I spotted a tree trunk up a hill. It was a bit of a hike, so I gingerly suggested that I had one more crazy idea. I remember that Stephanie, though her feet were hurting, replied something to the effect of: if your wedding photographer has an idea, you should go with it. (Sound advice!) So we braved the hill, the ants, and the sticker bushes to make Ryan a Prince Valiant:

My other favorite image came at a very emotional moment during the ceremony. They had one of the most heartfelt ceremonies I’ve seen, and there was barely a dry eye in the crowd by the end. During a fantastic reading by her bridesmaid, Ann, Stephanie spontaneously reached for Ryan’s hand, then turned and looked at Ann. The moment gave me butterflies:

Happy one-year anniversary, you two! May you stay well!

I’ve just returned from a destination wedding of sorts (for me, anyway!).  Rene + Ed had a magnificent two-part wedding in New York and New Jersey, and I want to share a couple quick favorites:

More to come … sooo much more … these two were way too easy to photograph!