Emily and Josh 5/25/09

Josh and Emily Halu, now honeymooning in Jamaica, just finished a whirlwind week. Josh just graduated from West Point and two days later he's married. In the family there was also a dental school graduation and more and more. I was amazed how well everyone was holding up, calm and smiling. The couple got married at the Hilton in Short Hills. Josh had his buddies from the Army be the saber bearers, which made for an excellent exit from the ceremony. Lots of tears and laughter all day. They are off to Alabama where Josh will learn to fly for the USA. Best of everything to them!

Music Images

Off to a meeting with some music people and had to throw together a printed portfolio in a few hours (since all my stuff in online), so thanks to the local CVS who bailed me out with their print station, ha! Hopefully this will be the connection to a summer of lots of live music photography. These were printed in a verticle 8x10" format. enjoy

While I'm not much of a blogger, as you can see, I did want to offer up a quick look at the latest album design. This is a link to the ALBUM. I get a lot questions about the Albums and there are so many choices ... this is the more popular size and style. This one is designed to be a 10" x 10" Panoramic layout. That means the 10 inch square page often uses a full 20" x 10" work area incorporating both pages for the design. Some pages stand on their own while others use the full 20" spread. The company I'm now using has the smallest seam between pages in the business. This album will also have a high grade dark brown leather cover. although black has been the color of choice lately. The pages are a board-style, meaning they do not bend and have very little flex to them. This album is slightly larger than the standard 18 page (36 side) book. This one used 20 pages and 40 sides to tell the story. This album is in the $1200 range. There are at least 15 different colors available and some different sizes too. I offer this as most couples use this size and style. Parent and smaller albums are available. Different cover and page materials greatly effect the price. thank you for looking.

Late sumer music festivals

I had the pleasure of shooting Vigin's Vfest in Baltimore (thanks Mark for the hook-up) ... and Point Pleasant Beach's own DeLeo brother's (Dean left) with the Stone Temple Pilots. A totally solid set. Bob Dylan and NIN and Kanye were all head-liners but, STP and Paramore killed it. There's a full gallery of the show in the music section of my site and some crowds shots .. which make the show for me. Vfest Slideshow.


Also shot the Van's Warped Tour in Englishtown, NJ. Little bummed that the Bouncing Souls stopped in Camden, but we'll catch them later this fall. That show was good stuff and a very photo friendly day. Low stages, cool security and good images everywhere you turned. Full Slidehshow is HERE.

Busy

I guess summer's on the Jersey Shore are as hectic for those of us that live here as those trying to pack in two weeks worth of fun into a one week vacation. Updates have been slow in coming, my apologies, but I have been busy. A few things to check out would be the four new wedding slideshows posted in the gallery section, the links are below, just click the photo. These four are very different ... one laid back surfer wedding, one country club, etc.

Blondie

I had the honor of shooting Deborah Harry and Blondie at the historic Count Basie Theater last night. She may be in her sixties, but she is still putting it out there. The band was tight and she looked really good. The images won't be on the street for a couple of months and will appear in the new magazine 40-74.
I shot a dance theater in the present issue of 40-74. The top two shots are mine.

Bamboozle Concert

I shot the final day of the Bamboozle East Coast Concert at the Meadowlands recently. Eleven hours of shooting, but I had a blast. Coheed & Cambria and Panic at the Disco headlined ... and, there were killer photos to made everywhere I turned. Check out this 70 photo slideshow and it will give you a good feel of what it was like to be there ... not just those on stage, but in the pit and against the wall. Enjoy the Show

Come'on Spring ...

Spring is desperately trying to take hold here in NJ. I found this new flower on one of the local cherry trees and while it was pretty, it really came alive when I shot through it into the sun's reflection off a nearby pane of glass. Bring on the warm weather.

Album Page Samples 10"x10" Panoramic Layout

The kids are coming ...

Just bought another Canon 5D camera body and have been shooting a little bit of everything. Been doing a lot of test shots and really like it. I'm also getting together some children's portraits and will be launching into some shooting options/sessions. I'm shooting them in their environment. No studio and minimal lighting. I'm also putting together some maternity shots and newborns. While I set this up I will be looking for some "expecting" couples that are looking for photographs of themselves together and the soon-to-be mom alone. I will gladly shoot the session at no charge. I would also like to shoot the baby as early as possible after delivery. Not the type of shots the hospital offers, but emotional, artistic shots and again no charge as I put this all together. So, if you expecting and are excited about photography, contact me. tomspader@comcast.net