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March 31, 2010

Omaha Zoo 2010

Ashley and I have always made it a point to visit the Omaha Zoo once a year. It started when we were in high school and has continued now that we have kids. Having kids just makes the visit that much more enjoyable. We now visit each year on our second son's birthday. It's a fun way to start a new family tradition and gives us an excuse to take ridiculous amounts of photos of anything and everything at the zoo. Here are a few variations of two photos from this week's trip.





Posted by Steve Nuzum at 10:27 PM |

Planning

Always an important item on the agenda.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 6:46 PM |

March 30, 2010

Photo Stations

Starting very soon Ashley and I are going to be offering photo stations for your wedding. Thinking about having a photo booth? This is an awesome alternative to photo booths...kind of...it's really just different. Here's how it works...

Ashley and I will bring in a studio like setup. Camera, lighting, remote trigger, and TV to view the photos on as they are taken. We will setup all the gear in an area at your reception. Then leave your guests all to themselves. Guests will be able to head over to the station and take their own fun photos. With the remote trigger for the camera you won't have someone there just snapping photos of them as they walk up to the station. Instead your guests get to take their own photos, as many as they'd like. They can then view them one by one as they are taken on the TV next to the camera. Then after the wedding we turn all the photos over to you on disc.

As we said we are still working out the details of pricing and logistics. HOWEVER, if you are a current bride or groom for a 2010 wedding and are interested in having a photo station at your wedding for FREE....shoot me an email. Steve@myfrozenmoment.com. We won't be doing all of them, but will likely select a few names out of hat if they are interested.

This photo has nothing to do with the above post....but I try to put a photo on every post. These are a few photos from before photo shoots last year as Ashley and I were messing around.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 7:21 AM |

March 25, 2010

Earth Hour 2010

Steve and I will be taking part in the upcoming Earth Hour on Saturday night. Not only will we be personally taking part, but we've also been asked to capture the Iowa State Government's involvement on behalf of the World Wildlife Fund. They will be shutting off the lights to the State Capitol Building and dome. Check out the site and video below for how you can get involved in Earth Hour 2010. We will post pictures after the event.

Earth Hour 2010



Posted by Ashley Nuzum at 1:48 PM |

March 24, 2010

Bryce


Bryce is the son of Erika and Matt. We have known Erika a long time. Erika and I went to the same school and were in the same grade. It was great to hear from her when they asked us to get some photos of her son. Ashley always does little kids and indoor family sessions so I tend to miss out on those, but she said this one was fun and a breeze. Bryce was pretty excited throughout the shoot. Below are a few of our favorites.













Posted by Steve Nuzum at 11:24 PM |

Caleb












Posted by Steve Nuzum at 11:22 PM |

Leilani and Landen


On Saturday Ashley photographed Leilani and Landen. These two were unique in many ways. Leilani was born for photo shoots. She was an awesome poser and came ready to shoot shoot shoot. The key to any good photo shoot is how well your dress flares when you spin, just ask Leilani. Landon on the other hand wasn't too interested in the shoot, but as with any kid a little bribing always works. In this case it was taking photos of Leilani that got him to take his own. Below are a few of our favorites.













Posted by Steve Nuzum at 11:19 PM |

Lindsay












Posted by Steve Nuzum at 11:15 PM |

March 20, 2010

St. Patrick's Day Parade


This past Wednesday on St. Patrick's Day Ashley and I took out two boys out to the St. Patrick's Day Parade in downtown Des Moines. Of all the parades that pass through downtown this one is definitely one of the funnest. Most participants and viewers have a had a little to drink and everyone has a great time. We saw a little of everything...from a drunken Care Bear to a happy pirate to happy and unhappy clowns. And if there was something in the parade, there was at least one green version. Green dogs, green hats, green shoes, green beer, green beads, green tractors, green cars, and well you get the point. Below are a few of our favorites shots and all of the shots can be viewed here.





















Posted by Steve Nuzum at 9:59 PM |

March 19, 2010

Tiffany and Kevin

This past Saturday, Steve and I photographed Tiffany and Kevin's wedding. Kevin is US Air Force and stationed outside of Iowa. During the planning time Tiffany was also outside Iowa. Planning a wedding from a distance can be a tough challenge, but luckily these two have awesome families who helped out here while they were away. You might remember them from a recent blog post in which we photographed their engagement photos....just last Thursday. We worked with these two for just a short time, but they were awesome to work with.

They were married at a church on the south side of Des Moines with reception following at Toad Valley (one of our favorite places.) Evey thing came together great and everyone was a pleasure to work with. Below are a few of our favorites and all the photos can be viewed here. Congratulations Tiffany and Kevin!























Posted by Ashley Nuzum at 11:43 AM |

March 16, 2010

Calen


On Sunday I shot 6 month photos for little Calen. He was great to have in studio. Calen couldn't stop smiling and was a breeze to take photos of. Mom and Dad wanted to get some shots with Calen in jeans, but unfortunately forgot the jeans....luckily we have two young boys and 6-month jeans were dug out of a rubber-maid in no time. Below are a few of my favorites.

















Posted by Ashley Nuzum at 7:49 AM |

March 15, 2010

Jolie


Last Friday I photographed little Jolie. She was exactly two weeks old on the day of the shoot. She was also WIDE awake. Typically we can get a newborn to sleep for at least a little bit so we can capture them in their natural sleeping habitat. Not this time. The shoot did require a little improvisation....aka....pacifier. It's hard not to take great photos of newborns. Everything is a new experience to them. Every moment something new. Beautiful. Below are a few of my favorites.



















Posted by Ashley Nuzum at 12:47 PM |

DMJuice and IKONIX Studios Photo Contest


Be sure to check out all the entries in the DMJuice and IKONIX Studios photo contest. While there vote for your favorite.....of course I'm hoping that's mine.

You can check out my entry "Window of Opportunity" below. Click below to go vote.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 12:16 AM |

March 14, 2010

We need you...


Ashley and I are looking for an understudy....an intern...a second shooter...a colleague...you get the point. Ashley and I continue to grow as Nuzum Photo. Shooting 25 weddings in 2008, 36 in 2009, and scheduled to shoot 27 weddings this year. That's 88 weddings in the last three years. A rocket start to Nuzum Photo. This doesn't include any of the other kid, family, newborn, senior, sports, or any other shoots. Point.....we're busy.

What that means is we are looking for someone to help out this upcoming summer. Help will mostly be on weekends and predominately shooting with us at weddings. The time frame will be heavily from July on, but will have some early work as well. We are looking for someone that is willing to learn, listen, and work by our side. You have to buy into what Ashley and I do and how we do it. Believe me, it is a HUGE step for us to let anyone step into our little bubble. We love to have our hands around anything that has the name Nuzum on it.

The perfect candidate would be someone looking to get into wedding photography and willing to work as an understudy. The position will be unpaid. This would be great for someone looking to build their portfolio and get some experience working along side us. There are a lot of details to discuss that I won't get into here. But here comes the info you want. Please send an email to Intern@myfrozenmoment.com that has your name, email, phone number, and a link to some of your work. We've had many people contact us regarding a similar position in the past, but the help just wasn't needed yet. Well, today is the day. Look forward to hearing from you.

-Steve and Ashley Nuzum

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 2:33 PM |

March 12, 2010

Tiffany and Kevin


Last night Ashley and I had a fun and interesting engagement shoot with Tiffany and Kevin. With time of the most importance this was the ONE day that we could get the shots in as they are getting married tomorrow! These two were fun and up for whatever stupid idea we had at the time. We probably circled the botanical center 5 times. Luckily the skies were overcast as shooting inside the botanical center when it's sunny can be a challenge with hot spots. After making our laps and hanging out with the giant purple chair for a while we headed outside for a few quick shots. The temp gauge said 42, but it felt like 22....or just 2. Great time and looking forward to this weekend. Check out some of our favorites below!













Posted by Steve Nuzum at 12:26 PM |

March 11, 2010

Weston


Last night I photographed little Weston, who was all smiles to start off the session, but between outfit changes a missing a nap quickly lost his interest in cheesing it for the camera. Still we managed to get a few great shoots of Weston with mom and dad.















Posted by Steve Nuzum at 1:30 PM |

Carsen, Erin, and Evan


Erin, Evan and Carsen came in for a session late Friday evening. The twins recently turned 6 months old and Carsen just turned 4. Carsen was everything you would expect a 4 year old to be in a photo shoot...ultra posing and ready to be done. With those two things combined his part of the session was quickly completed. Happy 4th birthday Carsen.



















Posted by Steve Nuzum at 1:28 PM |

Ethan


Mom and Dad always come prepared and this time was no exception. Once again we got some great shoots with little Ethan.













Posted by Steve Nuzum at 1:26 PM |

Presley


She is the second little girl I have photographed in the last month who turned 2 on the 29th of February. She was quite the little ballerina for me...once mom and dad offered her jelly beans. Happy 2nd birthday Presley.











Posted by Steve Nuzum at 1:22 PM |

March 4, 2010

Roadside Families



Ashley and I came across this site where photographers across America are paying it forward to other photographers. As photographers we all find it hard to get in front of the camera. We are always busy shooting photos of everyone else to find time for family photographs of our own. The Roadside Families project is working to help photographers get great family photos. So how does it work...well a photographer will go out and shoot family photos for another photographer. To pay that back, that photographer will go out and shoot family photos for another photographer and so on. This way photographers across the country are able to get family photos. No money is ever exchanged and it is all done by photographers for photographers. Be sure to check out the website and the page on how to join in with the project.

We thought it was a great idea. If there are any local Des Moines or Iowa photographers interested in getting involved, we'd love to get it started here in Iowa. Shoot us an email or give us a call. We'd love to shoot your family photos and give you a disc with all the images as well as a print for your home.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 2:58 PM |

March 3, 2010

Family Photos - Melanie


On Saturday Ashley and I photographed family photos for Melanie. We started out at the Botanical Center in Des Moines. In the winter this can be a tough place to shoot photos. There are a lot of people in a small space and lots of photographers love to go there for photos, professional and amateur. We ran across at least 5 other photo sessions that were going on. After shooting what we could there, without getting too many people in the backgrounds of the photos, we headed to the studio where the two girls wore custom make tutus. Mom spent a lot of time putting them together and they looked great in the photos. Ashley selected a few of her favorites to share below.





















Posted by Steve Nuzum at 9:35 AM |

March 1, 2010

Old Fashioned Photos


This is the first in a recurring set of blog posts where I'll be exploring out of date, old fashioned, and usually, just ugly photos. I'll be exploring what is trendy in photography today, mistakes new photographers make, and techniques that some photographers just can't let go of. This could get interesting.....

Today's first out of date technique is the Oval Office. It is a framing technique used to draw attention directly to the subject of the photo. It is out of date and makes your photos look like they are right out of the 70's. Newer techniques achieve a more subtle drawing of attention to the face. Some white vignette is acceptable, but over done is just plain ugly.

Below you see three different photos. All three of these are edits of the same photo. The photo was shot at IKONIX Studio with our Canon EOS 7D with our EF24-70 lens at 70mm, 1/200 at f/5.6. The edit on the left shows the extreme white vignette edit. Gives me the shivers. The second shows a lighter and less obtrusive edit. The third shows an edit we would do today to still draw attention to the subject, but not overwhelm it.



Stay tuned as next time I tackle.....dun dun dun.....selective color.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 10:42 PM |

All images on this blog are copyright of Nuzum Photo per USC Title 17 (US Copyright Law). Do not use or copy any images without written permission.

Steve@nuzumphoto.com | Ashley@nuzumphoto.com
(c) 2011 Nuzum Photo: Des Moines, Iowa, and Midwest Photographer

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