Ashley and I have been off the charts busy as of late. Not just with photo shoots and weddings, but around the house preparing for our new baby. So we have fallen dramatically behind on our blogging. That means.....blog overload. We are 8 shoots behind on the blog. I typically like to take time and talk about each photo shoot, how things went, and my general story. Unfortunately this far behind it will just have to be a photo bonanza...so here goes....

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 1:38 PM | Permalink

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Posted by Steve Nuzum at 12:00 AM | Permalink

Working on getting the Photo Station information up on the site. Here is a little slideshow preview.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 10:46 PM | Permalink

Wow, this is one wedding we have been anxious to shoot. Since the first day we met Nikki and Drew we knew they were a special couple. We instantly got along and everything clicked. That was reaffirmed by their engagement session and our getting to meet little Remy (who even made an appearance on the wedding day!) Throughout the entire planning process and the days leading up to the big day we were in constant communication and able to keep up on how things were going via Facebook. It's been a great tool for us to catch up with and stay in touch with all of our brides and grooms. (find us here, here, and here.)

The wedding was shot by Ashley, Levi, and Myself. Still can not believe how many shots we get with three photographers. It's unreal. The day had it's moments. I was constantly watching the weather as it turned from rainy to sunny to stormy to sunny. The ceremony was held at The Bridge in Johnston, IA. It was the first time we shot a wedding at this church, but it provided all the things we like about a ceremony location. Big, open, and lit. Immediately following the ceremony we headed out to take photos near the March building in Urbandale. It was a new location for us as well and was a great spot.

As you can see below we tried some fun stuff and had a great time. The wedding party was really into the photos and willing to do all the stuff we asked of them. Drew himself was up for a little jumping as you will see below. It was my idea, but he didn't hesitate when he said he'd do it. I think it was just chance, or perhaps Levi's fault for asking if we'd ever been down-poured on during a shoot, but as soon as Drew touched the ground on that shot some of the biggest rain drops I'd ever seen started falling from the sky. Photos done, bring on the rain.

We also had our photo station out for this wedding and will share some of those in a future blog post. We had an amazing day with Nikki and Drew. Congratulations to the newlyweds and their families. Below are a few of our favorites.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 12:29 PM | Permalink

This was the second time out with the photo station. If you'd like more info about it go here. We are really liking both the photos and EXPERIENCE that it is turning out for our brides, grooms, and their guests. Enjoy...(see if you can spot Ashley and I....and baby Nuzum #3)

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 11:46 AM | Permalink

This blog post is way behind....WAY behind for our normal time frame, but we are getting caught up pretty quick. Over the Memorial Day weekend I shot Laurie and Matt's wedding in West Bend, IA. If you follow us on Facebook at all you've seen my posts and talking about the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend. It was the first time I had ever seen anything like it. Laurie and Matt's wedding was held in the church located on the grounds of the Grotto. It was a beautiful location and everything turned out great.

The reception took place at the West Bend Golf & Country Club. The reception was amazing including a best man's speech that proved a care package to Laurie. A care package that came complete with everything needed to marry Matt. All the essentials were included. It was a funny and original best man's speech in an internet time when originality is rare.

It was a beautiful day with great weather and everything turned out perfect. Congratulations to Laurie, Matt, and family. Below are a few of our favorites from their big day.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 11:13 AM | Permalink

We've posted many times about how to search for a wedding photographer, how to know when you've found the right one, and what questions to ask. It's a good time of year to dig some of those up and share them. Our feelings haven't changed and won't. So Ashley and I thought we'd open up on ourselves a little more and also share these past posts.

Ashley and I act on one simple principle. We are your guests. Now certainly not all guests are expected to carry around the cameras and get the must have shots, but ultimately we must behave as though we are guests at your wedding or we create an unnecessary distraction. The wedding day is about 2 people coming together to form a life long bond to one another. Not about how great your photographer is or how close they can get to the bride and groom during the ceremony.

Ashley and I are incredibly laid back and easy going. We've done this enough that everything we do comes as second nature. We know how things will flow, we know what to expect, and we know how to react if things don't go as planned. We aren't intense. We aren't aggressive. We aren't over the top. We are really relaxed and expect every photo session to be the same. Weddings are stressful, and any bride will certainly attest to that at some point. We want things to be tension free and fun. That's our attitude when we shoot a wedding, and when we are not shooting weddings. For some people this attitude that we have is a bad thing. They need intense, aggressive, and over the top...but that is just not us.

Ashley and I have one goal. To capture your day as if we were never there. If you hadn't brought in a photographer to capture the day, things would happen a certain way. No one would cheese for the cameras and no one would hide from the cameras. So we do things and use our own "techniques" to avoid being seen a lot and causing people to have one of the reactions mentioned above. A natural reaction is the photographers holy grail. Being able to capture a moment in time that still evokes emotion years later is what we strive for.

Ashley and I like to get to know a little bit about you. We also want you to know about us. Who we are, what we are, and everything in between. Choosing your photographer is not always a business decision. It has to feel right and you have to matchup to that photographer. If personalities clash it may only lead to stress on your wedding day. Want to get to know us? Catch us on facebook.
Ashley Nuzum
Steve Nuzum
Nuzum Photo

Here are a few past blog posts that we've written up regarding asking questions and searching...
Hiring a Wedding Photographer
Questions to Ask Your Wedding Photographer
The Craig's List Conundrum

Have more questions about searching for a wedding photographer or what we do? Contact us online or ask a questions via formspring. Good luck with all of your planning!

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 8:20 AM | Permalink

We have rolled out the photo station twice now at no cost to two of our 2010 couples. We are still working out all the little details and still have one more free stop for the photo station this year. So for those who are more photo techie I will lay down the specifics of how it all works, for those who want to know the basics I will spell it out real simple.

The Basics:
Click, view, laugh. The photo station is a self shoot opportunity. Everyone loves taking pictures of themselves, a quick spin of Facebook will tell you that. In most photo stations it's four clicks and done. Here's your 2" x 6" strip of 1.5" x 1.5" photos. Not here. You will get to see the photos as they are taken on the TV screen. Take as many as you like! Then the bride and groom will get a CD of full res images! Print them, share them, upload them.

The Details (for photographers...or those curious):
The whole thing is triggered by pocket-wizards. The current setup uses 3 triggers. One in the hands of the guests, one on the camera, and one on the studio flash. The one in hand triggers everything. It first sends the signal to the on camera trigger which uses pocket-wizard pre-trigger cord for Canon cameras to trigger the shutter. The pocket-wizard on camera then waits for the hot shoe pulse from the camera to trigger the flash's pocket-wizard. The pocket-wizard on the flash is set to channel two to receive the signal with the correct timing. If it is not setup perfectly then the flash goes off before the camera's shutter is engaged and you get dark photos.

The details are still being worked out, but basically you can expect that this will be an add-on to any wedding package and in the future it will be included in some wedding packages. If you are interested today, then shoot us an email or give us a call.

So what is the Cheese Zone? That would be the area the guests are when they are taking the photos. Don't get too cheesy....seriously. Have fun, be creative, enjoy, but don't get all cheesy. Below is a mock-up of the whole layout and a few shots from Ashley and Paul's wedding.

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 1:04 PM | Permalink

The blog has three weddings backed up on it now...here is #1...

On May 22, Ashley, Chad and I photographed Kara and Michael's Blank Park Zoo wedding. This was the first really warm wedding day of the year. Pretty much ever wedding we photograph at the zoo is a trek. As we will go from one side of the zoo to the other and back. Maybe a couple times. That was the case on that day.

Kara and Michael did not want to see each other before the ceremony. What that meant for us was that we were going to be taking separate group pictures before the ceremony. Which meant trekking across the zoo a couple times. The good news is everyone was up for the pictures and didn't seem bothered by the weather or the journey. Ashley may have been a little wore down though. Being pregnant is starting to slow here down, but only a little! The day went great and we had an awesome time. Congratulations Kara and Michael!

Posted by Steve Nuzum at 9:38 AM | Permalink

This past Monday Ashley and I photographed...err...were photographed by our future sister-in-law Kaylee. As some of you know we are expecting baby Nuzum #3 mid-July. Baby Nuzum gave us a little scare so we rushed to get some maternity photos taken before they arrive. Kaylee did a great job. The boys, who are around the cameras enough to know how to operate them, just don't like having their picture taken when it's not on their own terms. They were in them though, so that is what matters. Below are a few of our favorites. THANKS Kaylee!

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