Brayden and Lexie - October 19th, 2011

Love this couple. Funniest groom in a long time. Enough said.

This was shot at the Salt Lake Temple. The song is licensed through Triple Scoop.

Tyler and Kelsey's "Two" Story"

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Tyler and Kelsey nailed this. Whenever I go into these couple stories, I always worry about the pair feeling comfortable. This one just worked. They knew their stories and they just had no problem sharing them with me.

Loved doing this.

Matt and Emily - August 18th, 2011

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I can almost guarantee this is a first. A second blog post within a few days of the last one. I confess I'm behind. My summers get so busy with weddings, family, etc. Blogging takes an occasional backseat. I feel like my video posts on Facebook are "sort of" blogging, but not really.

So here goes.

I've been asked by couples on numerous occasions to see an entire wedding film of mine. From start to finish. I think some couples have concerns about length, what goes in, how the whole package fits together, etc. So here's a complete - from start to finish - wedding film I did for Matt and Emily. Really great couple. And an amazing backyard. This really pretty stream on the west side of the house pours out into this massive pond. Tons of grass. Really fun wedding. As I stated in my last blog post, I'm really into wedding receptions with room to breathe. I've noticed people tend to stay longer if they can stretch their arms and just chill out.

Anyway, here's the complete edit.

Tanner and Victoria - July 1st, 2011

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I think the gardens at Thanksgiving Point must be grossly underutilized for weddings. The reason I believe this is because I'm on rounds two, three and four of every location, with the exception of Thanksgiving Point. I've only shoot in these gardens twice - in 4 years. Too long.

My point being, they're beautiful. And I wish more couples would have their weddings there. Amazing background and lots of "running around" space.

Here's a teaser of Tanner and Victoria's wedding at the Salt Lake Temple, with a reception to follow at those "oh so amazing" gardens.

Josh and Heidi - Belay On

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I'm not sure what to say about this couple's story. It's genuinely one of the most personal stories I've ever done. You really have to listen to what these two are saying. It's very specific and very moving. You can really tell that finding each other was not a chance meeting. It helps me to understand that, for whatever purpose, some things just happen for a reason. These two were meant to be together.

This was quite possibly my scariest shoot. Up the side of a canyon, on a steep incline, with no solid footing underneath. I was thinking any minute I was going to take a dive with camera gear in tow. However, Heidi will attest to my excitement when they said they wanted to go rock climbing. I was grateful they wanted to include something in this film that was enjoyable to them. Not just something to fill in the "gaps". Something to consider when you book me for one of these.

Again, One of my most personal experiences with a couple. Love these two.

Ryan

Caleb + Paige - Draper Temple - Same Day Edit

So here's Caleb and Paige's same day edit from a few weeks ago. I've been slow to post to the blog because of the busy wedding pace this year. Double from last year, very busy.

Anyway, not much to say that I haven't already said in the past. Great couple to work with. Really willing to work with us and really excited to be married. A fun day.

I did a little vintage look on this wedding. They saw a previous post and fell in love with the coloring that I did. I colored all of this post-same-day-edit, as it takes me some tweaking that can't really be done in the few hours between events.

Enjoy.

John and Gisel - San Antonio Texas

I flew down to San Antonio at the end of April for an amazing LDS wedding. They called me because they couldn't find anyone in Texas to shot a mormon wedding! How crazy is this? Someone is missing out on business down there!

Anyway, this was one of those magical wedding moments for me. A night and a full day with the couple, their family and their friends. Truly moving. I feel like they are part of my life now - it was that emotional for me.

This is a teaser of the entire day. A short wedding highlight culled from the larger video. When you book me, you may want to think of your wedding day as a much larger event. There is hair and makeup, there are family breakfasts, there are parties the night before. There is even the set up and the coordination of the reception. These things add so much depth to a wedding video. Keep that in mind.

Enjoy this. I revisit this wedding video often. If you can be inspired by your own work, then well, I feel inspired.

Ryan and Danielle at The Pond.

I had seen this area from Legacy Highway many times before. Always curious about a fishing hole sitting off the side of the freeway. I finally checked it out.

A perfect spot for a couple's story, albeit a little windy. That explains the black fuzzy thingy on Ryan's shirt. It's a windscreen for the microphone. An essential "fuzzy" accessory in a pinch.

This couple was great. Willing to branch out, play with a theme for their couple's story. It's always a good idea to bring your ideas with you. Make these things your own.

Brian and Carolyn - A Wink and A Smile

This month has been busy with couples stories. 4 shoots in 4 weeks. Busy, busy, busy.

Here's the 3rd of 4. Brian and Carolyn. A really awesome couple. Just genuinely good people and genuinely in love. A total pleasure to shoot.

Watch for the personal moments between the two. Sometimes I just let the camera run in between takes. I get good "outtakes" that become part of the intimate nature of these pieces. Really special.

Enjoy.

Sam and Jenna - The Mood Piece

This is my mood piece for the month. I thank Sam and Jenna for picking the most perfect song for this same-day edit. A song by The Frames called Lay Me Down. If you've seen the movie Once, you know the lead singer's voice (his name is Glen Hansard). Amazing song, that really creates a very moody feel to the piece. It just worked with what we shot.

This was a pre-shoot combined with a temple-day shoot. A great way to really plan for some more complex shots and not feel rushed. Something to consider if time is tight on your wedding day.

Genuinely nice couple. A treat to work with. Thanks for having me.

Brady and Kassia - Memories of Summer

Right now, Utah is a flood plain. The weather is wet and just plain unpredictable. Everyone is looking forward to warm weather and a dryer summer.

To warm things up for you, here's a teaser of a wedding from last summer. Brady and Kassia disappeared on me for a long spell and I finally got some music suggestions from them. Thus the delay in getting this finished.

I have couples ask me why I only put teasers of the entire wedding on my blog. I will respond to their answers with another question. Do you honestly want to watch an extended segment of Brady and Kassia's guests eating Navajo tacos. Honestly?

Enjoy this little treat and think of ice cream cones and cool summer nights.

Tanner + McKenzie - Everything New is Old Again

I'm getting a lot of requests for the vintage look. A lot. Just to clarify, this isn't an attempt to make your wedding film look like old Super 8mm film. Rather, it's a look akin to rediscovering an old weathered movie in an attic. It's kind of a "Grindhouse" look - an old B movie that has been sitting shelved in a run-down theater closet for years. Scratches, variations in saturation, skips in film, burns from being to close to the projector light, etc. I love doing this. It gives me a creative outlet in the editing process, which for many is the tedious side of doing wedding films.

Anyway, Tanner and Mckenzie asked me for this look and I was happy to oblige. This was by far the coldest wedding I have ever shot, and somehow we got some smiles out of them. I swear McKenzie got choked up a few times with the cold. She was the least "covered up" that afternoon.

This wedding highlight benefits a lot from the couple's choice of music. This Iron and Wine song fit beautifully with the aged effect. I just love it. Enjoy the flick.

Jason and Lauren Osmond - Decorative Towels and Orchards

Osmonds are cool. So very cool. Jason is cool. Lauren is cool. Decorative towels are cool. You'll just have to watch this couple's story to figure out what I mean.

I confess having a more than passing fascination with the Osmond family. I distinctly remember two events from my childhood. One was getting up from bed and asking my parents if I could watch the Donnie and Marie show. They said yes, and I was ecstatic. The other was being down in Provo and stopping off at the now-defunct Osmond Studios. I felt like there was something magical about that day. Driving up to the gates. Very famous Mormons just inside. Can't really explain it.

I do remember too that I met a gal on my LDS mission to Florida that said she joined the church because of the Osmond family. At first I thought that was a little interesting, but she had been a faithful Mormon for 15 years. What I'm getting at is that the Osmond family has a lot of love and I'm sure she felt that.

Jason and Lauren are no different. A lot of love here. Spending a day with these two was really a dream. I wish them all of the best and am so grateful for the opportunity to do this.

Shooting in orchards is way cool too.

The Provo Double Header

It's a "twofer" day today. Two wedding films for one blog post. They're for the same couple, so it made sense.

Brent and Lisa's wedding was last week at the Provo Temple. My first time shooting there and I don't anticipate shooting there much. Lisa has some really important family connections to that temple and she does temple work there, so it was an obvious choice for her. Here's their wedding film from their time at the temple. It really shows off the personality of these two. There's a lot of love in that couple. Really nice families too. Lisa's father talked "Canon Camera Shop" with me for a few minutes at the reception, which was nice.

I also had the opportunity to shoot a couple's story for Brent and Lisa. Weather was not on our side, so I called up one of my connections and got permission to use the Sharon room at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. We only had one day to shoot this thing, so doing the interviews indoors saved us. During a brief break in the weather, we went outside and got some good additional footage for the story. You'll notice that I include a lot of photos in these couples stories. Yes, I shoot them. And no, I'm not a wedding "photographer". I leave that to "them". I do however fire off some stills for these couple's stories. It gives each piece a unique assortment of imagery for me to pull from. I'm a big fan of still photography, even with my decision to shoot wedding films. And since my cameras do both, I use both for these pieces.

I really love this story. A really seamless piece.

Style Me Pretty

Yeah, it may be a small thing to you. But big to me.

I recently shot a wedding with Lindsey Stewart from Green Apple Photography here in Utah. The totally cool wedding of Crismon and Lauren. The one in the awesome front yard, with barbeque and real Chinese lanterns (the ones with real flames!). Just so awesome. Here's the wedding highlights edit I did for the site.

Anyway, Crismon and Lauren's wedding photos (shot by Lindsey) were recently was featured on the very classy website, StyleMePretty . They look amazing!

The best part? Lindsey remembered me in the vendor credits. How so totally nice, and classy.

Here's the post - StyleMePretty.com .

Here's her website - GreenApplePhotography.

Thank you so much Lindsey. A small thing to you perhaps. But big to me.

Best, Ryan

Two Sisters Married - 7 Days Apart

I don't imagine I will see this again. Who knows...

Two sisters married exactly 7 days apart. Older sister Lizzie, followed by her younger sister Jessie the following week. And they both asked me to do their wedding film. How cool is that? When you shoot multiple weddings in the same family, you get to know the family pretty well. I also did a couple's story for Clark and Lizzie - see one of my previous posts - so I saw a lot of those two.

Here's the teaser edit I threw together as a "bonus" chapter on the DVD's. I couldn't resist. You may want to click the arrows on the play bar under the video to see this in full screen mode.

The chances of this happening again are next to never. Although I would love to be wrong...

Anthony and Brett - Or How to Get Married During a Blizzard.

It snows in Utah. And people get married in the winter. It's true. But snow? It looks seriously cool at a wedding. Not so fun to shoot, but fun to watch. It gets even better in black and white.

Anthony and Brett...what can I say. Just love this couple. Love their energy around each other. Infectious energy. Anthony had me laughing more than any other groom I've ever worked with. Period. He's just a funny dude.

And Brett is awesome. Nice, happy, generous and really loves Anthony's young kids.

The shot of the temple at the beginning is unfiltered, save for desaturating it and adjusting the black levels a bit. A total wall of snow.

Enjoy the bad weather.

Carson and Hillary's Super Old Wedding Film

A few months back I posted a wedding film that I had made to look "vintage". Add some film grain, pull back on the colors, darken the blacks, add some hairs and "damage" to the video. Essentially make it an old-looking, new wedding video.

Well, Hillary and Carson wanted this look. So I took on the challenge again. This time with a much more pronounced effect. I wanted this to look like the real deal. I was in film school way back when 16mm film was our format and I remember doing a lot of 8mm film on my own. My office is littered with these old cameras in varying degrees of workability. Yet, as much as I love the look, I understand that the limitations in resolution can be very closely mimicked in the color correction process I do after the wedding. It also frees me up to modify the look later, as HD video is very high resolution. With HD, I have a lot of information to use. I can mess with colors, film grain, etc. Enough said. Tech talk here.

I spent a lot of time on their requested "vintage" look. This is a short teaser from the entire day. Their wedding was at the Salt Lake Temple with a reception that followed at the Provo City Library.

Enjoy.

Blake and Jane - Salt Lake Country Club

What more can I say. I love this wedding film. Love the weather, loved the location, loved the couple. It's true. Sometimes weddings just work for you. You scramble around and everything you shoot just works.

This is a highlight of a much larger highlight video that was delivered to them. Wanted to give you a taste of it all.

Love it.

Clark and Lizzie's Snow Day

I think in all of the years I have done wedding cinema/videography/filmmaking I was looking for something that's my niche.

These couples stories are my niche. I love the collaboration between me and the couple, the ability to control the content and I can exercise those creative chops I picked up in film school. Digital cinema is much like shooting motion picture film. There is audio to consider, lighting, shutter speed, white balance - all of those things coming together. Couples stories are like mini documentaries of everything up to this point in time (whatever and whenever that is).

Don't get me wrong, we can still shoot a fantastic wedding video. That's what we do.

This is Clark and Lizzie's story. We shot this on a frigid Saturday afternoon in Memory Grove. 3 hours and frozen toes.

Worth. Every. Minute. Click those 4 little arrows and watch this full screen. The snow and the scenery just pops!

Crismon and Lauren's Front Yard Wedding

Yes, this was the front yard. A beautiful front yard, with a pond and lots of trees.

A few details about the wedding. An amazing guitarist name Jeff Proctor, BBQ from a smoker parked outside, chocolate mustaches and authentic Chinese lanterns. Incredible.

This wedding was a referral from an old friend, so thanks for that. Here's Jeff Proctor's website. Hire this guy. He's amazing.

I can still smell that barbeque...

Anthony and Brett - Dogs and Runners

I can't tell you how many dog walkers and runners interrupted this shoot. At one point, a guy even approached me and ruined a shot.

Memory Grove is a popular place, so I guess we knew the risks. Aside from the long shoot, I can't say enough about this couple. Amazing, amazing, amazing. I've never laughed so hard than I did during this shoot. Everything just worked here. You hope for that. Well spoken, funny, obviously in love. Things that matter in making these stories come to life.

Watch and enjoy.

And laugh.