halloween fun

The two little guys got dressed up as Pirates for Halloween! My Mother and Bridget made the costumes for them. They are so cute!! Christian initally did not want the beard and mustache put on, until he saw Brayden with it. Then he wanted it. It definately added a touch of character to the costume. In spite of the rain, they still had fun and got a bunch of candy too! Click either pic to see a special slideshow!

been a while

I haven't posted in quite a while. Lots of good things going on, that is for sure. Had a very busy weekend. I took a quick trip to Atlanta, went to a few weekend Halloween Parties and celebrated some birthdays. My Grandfather (Pops), Father (Stonepa), Sister (Laurie) and Christian all had birthdays! Pops is on the 27th and the other 3 are on the 29th!! Happy Birthday to all, again :-) . I have to go through some pics and post pics of all of them.

Here are a few pics from my Atlanta trip:
The weather... I have never seen it rain so hard in Atlanta.


Captain Fred took me to Al's Diner. Here is a patron reading the morning paper.


This diner has all kinds of funny things littered around the place. Al is behind the counter.


This is Wild Man in his Civil War shop. I didn't care for the shop too much, but thought he made and interesting portrait :-) Those are 2 .45 caliber pistols on his belt!

WPJA Member!

Today is an exciting day for me! I was just accepted as a member to the WPJA, which stands for Wedding Photojournalist Association. What is it you ask? "A highly screened, critical organization. Less than 5% of wedding photographers out there qualify for membership. Leading the way in Wedding Photojournalism, WPJA represents the most discriminating talent around the world technically, creatively and visually. Qualified members hold industry-leading standards, skills and business integrity."

That's a mouthful! I am honored to be accepted and am very proud. There are so many amazing photographers in this Association! Check it out http://www.wpja.com .

Another Family Shoot

Sunday, after I was at Maura's home I went to Schenley Park to meet Susan and her family. Maura introduced Susan to us, so that is how we made the connection. We are always so grateful when our clients refer us to other people. That is what helps us grow. Thank you Maura!

We decided to meet at Schenley because of the variety of landscapes available to us. We ended up in a corner of the park where there were awesome trees, water fountain, lots of colors and of course, my favorite... open shade! We had a great time and I was able to capture a variety of shots. There were a total of 7 people to photograph. We got some group, some solo, some candid and some posed. I think we covered all bases! Again, this is another beautiful family, that I am honored to have the pleasure of meeting and working with.

Here are a few that I picked for this post:

The Boys


The Family


Playing Chase


The Girls

Family Favorites

One of our favorite clients, Maura, had me over to photograph her family for the fall. We had a shoot earlier this year (in the spring) with their extended family which was a lot of fun. This time though, it was more focused on the children, Riley and Mack. Brian and Maura welcomed me and we got the kids geared up to go outside. We were having so much fun in the leaves and on the swingset! We eventually moved inside to capture some more fun in the house. I was having so much fun, that I hated to leave. I had to get to another shoot (those double shoot days are a doozy :-) ).

You all know that kids are my favorite subjects. The picture opportunities are endless. When you just play and hang out with them they do the cutest things, naturally. That is when you click the shutter. I look forward to working with Maura, Brian, Riley and Mack in the many years to come! Thank you all for inviting me into your beautiful home to help create some lasting memories.

PS - I will post my other shoot tomorrow.

Here are a few:

Riley hiding in the tall grass:


Mack was telling me his prayer:


Climbin the Wall:


Family Shot (this was Riley's idea. She set it all up! I am going to hire her for posing expertise. Thanks Riley!)

Susan and Michael get married!

We had an awesome weekend! Saturday was the perfect autumn day. The sky was blue and the colors were poppin! Susan and Michael could not have asked for a better day for their wedding. Last month, we met down at Station Square for an engagement session (Click here to see). We had fun there, which was a great precursor for the wedding. Engagement sessions are key in our relationships with our clients. They really help us to connect, so when we show up on the wedding day, we are like old friends! Saturday was no exception, we showed up to Susan's parents home, fit right in and started shooting. We captured so many amazing images, that it is very hard to edit out files :-). Not that it is a bad thing!!

As the day moved on, we went to the church to meet Michael and his men. We hung out with them for a while and then headed inside while the guest were arriving, just grabbing a lot of candid shots. After the ceremony we headed to Valleybrook Country Club, in Peters Township for the reception. Once there we had an evening packed with lots of love and dancing!

All of their family and friends were so warming and loving. They made us feel like part of the family. We are so thankful that we have gotten to know Susan and Michael. They are off to North Carolina to begin their marriage together. We are hoping in the near future to connect again and hang out for an evening! Thank you all for trusting us with your precious day. Best wishes on a life of love and happiness. God Bless you all!!

Here are some things that we saw throughout the day. PS - below all of the images, there is a link to a slideshow that we showed during the reception. Little Bonus this Post! Enjoy!!!

Susan (backlight is my favorite!!)


This little girl kept looking back at me, isn't she adorable?


Picture of a Picture (Michael hugging his mother during the ceremony)


I love the look in Michael's eyes


B with her big Nikon!


The Sword Ceremony (Susan just got tapped on her behind by a sword, which is a part of the tradition)


Little Detail (Do you recognize the image? I love it!!)


Candid of Michael getting into the golf cart


These 3 little girls were patiently waiting to get back on the dance floor, during the first dance.


The Men


This couple was so cute and dancing like crazy all night!


Michael's mother got me to dance too :)


Here is the Slideshow we created at the reception.

ricci and greg slideshow

Click the picture to see a slideshow from last weekend.

Another Dylan

We had the chance to visit and capture another baby Dylan, last night! He is such a cutie. His hair reminds me of Brayden's when he was born. Hopefully Dylan keeps some of his :) . Dylan was born to Katie and Dan on October 10, so he is just a over a week old. This is such a great time to photograph newborns. Usually babies will sleep the whole time, but not this one! Dylan was ready to go, for the camera, the entire time. God Bless Him!

Anyways have to make this post quick, so I can get out the door. Have a great weekend!

Dylan

Our nephew, Dylan, turned 1 month this week! Happy 1 Month Dylan! So we wanted to post a few pics so everyone could see how much he has grown in a month. You can see him when he was 1 day old here. It is amazing to watch how quickly they change and grow. What an awesome experience!

We have another shoot this evening with another baby Dylan who is 1 week old! We are so lucky!! Stay tuned for pics of him as well.

Here are some of Darren and Erin's Dylan:

B and Dylan
















I snuck a few of Bray in here too. He seems like a Giant now!

Slideshow

I posted last week about Lynette and Cameron here. I just wanted to revisit this shoot with a slideshow to share. Again, there is nothing better than seeing the love between a mother and child. This is one of those shoots that really touched me and wanted to share with all of you. When I watch this, it reminds me how important it is to keep life simple. Moments like these are priceless so it is very important to cherish them while we can. Enjoy!

Click here for the slideshow

Portfolio Shoot

Sunday I had the pleasure of meeting Kami and her mother Tanya, down in Oakland for a portfolio shoot. We shot all around the Cathedral of Learning. The day was absolutely gorgeous. We had sunshine for backlighting and tons of open shade to work with. We spent about 2.5 hours together and had a wonderful time. I have a very small sample of images to show. I shot so many and it is going to be very hard to narrow down, because Kami does not take a bad shot! She is such a beautiful girl and I see her career going very far. Also I would like to note that the only Photoshop work I did on these was B&W Conversion and a little sharpening. That is it! Thank you Tanya and Kami for trusting in me to help with your portfolio! I had a great time working with you.

Take a look:

ricci and greg

Hi everyone! Sorry for the lack of posting last week. The Blog has taken a back seat to some other priorities as of lately. We have lots to catch up with on our blog, and hope to start posting more this week!

Saturday we had a wedding in Ligonier, PA with Ricci and Greg. We could not have asked for a more beautiful day! We LOVE the fall and Pennsylvania is most beautiful this time of year. The drive alone, was worth it :-) The rolling hills, colored trees, farms and fields are endless on the way and around Ligonier. We saw so many barns, and each one would make Bridget say, 'I wish we could get them to stop at a Barn for some pics!' haha Something about barns are so rustic and cool. We have yet to have the opportunity to shoot at a barn, but I know it is in our future! We are keeping our fingers crossed.

Back to the wedding. Ricci and Greg were married in a small church close to her parents home. The coolest thing about this church is the fact that the Pastor married Ricci's two older sisters and her parents! It was a very intimate ceremony and there was not a dry eye in the church. Seeing how much in love they are and how much their families love them is a true blessing. We had a great day and can't wait to share the images.

Here are a few:

Heeeeerre's Brodie! (He kept trying to bite me! haha.. He did not like the camera, but I got him to settle for a second)


The shoes


Bubbles


Bridget grabbed this great shot!


Some alone time


I love the scenery!


Flare :-)


A little sequence


I love hand shots


This was a view from the outside of the venue


This shot (no pun intended) cracks me up! I love the expression on Noah's face (he is the ring bearer)

A morning at the park

I love October! We really lucked out yesterday, Sunday Morning, with the weather. It was Sunny & Warm... A perfect day for a shoot. The leaves have already started to fall here in Pittsburgh, so we had some really great warm colors as well!

I met with Lynette and Cameron at a local park to capture Cameron and his Mommy. Lynette told me that it is impossible to get him to stay still. This actually works great for me, because I love capturing kids in true form. She didn't lie!! I was exhausted after running around with him for an hour. I had so much fun following him and trying to get in front of him when he set his sight on something new to run after.

I also was able to capture some incredible moments with Lynette and Cameron interacting with each other. There is nothing more special to me, than seeing the love between a mother and child.

Thanks for the great morning! It was a wonderful way to start off my day.

Here are a few from what I saw:

Let go Mom, I wanna run:


Watch me go:


I always come back:


Tickle Time:


Swingin:


What can I do next:


Spinnin:


Running again!:


Alas!! He stopped... for a second and gave me this! (My Favorite)

claire + marcus 10.07.06

Saturday was such a beautiful day! I started the day off by doing a charity shoot for the American Heart Association, which was really nice. It was great to see such a turnout for the Heart Walk. Hopefully I will be able to post some images later.

Then the day progressed to the wedding of Claire and Marcus. This couple is so much in love! Marcus and I go way back, so it was a joy for me to see him so happy. Claire is from Ireland. They met in the summer of '05 and immediately fell in love with each other. Unfortunately, Claire's visa was just about to expire when they met and she had to return to Ireland. They stuck it out and their love grew stronger during their 1 year separation.

It was awesome to see it all come together on Saturday. The love from both families and all of their friends is incredible. I had such a great time spending the day with everyone.

The ceremony was held at St. Francis of Assisi in Finleyville, PA and the reception at Peter's Place in Bridgeville. Everything was wonderful. Claire and Marcus, we wish you many many years of happiness and love. Thank you for letting us be a part of your day!

Here are some of the things I saw throughout the day.

The Bride:


Having some Fun:


All of the girls:


The Groom:


Sittin pretty before the ceremony:


The church (This image has not been enhanced. The sky was really that blue!)


Marcus sees Claire for the first time:


I love the motion here on thier exit:


A few casual moments:


Fun Portrait:


The Dance:

Charity, Wedding & Family Shoot Weekend.

I am off to start a very busy weekend this morning! Firstly, I am doing a charity shoot for the American Heart Association. My friend Dr. Tyson Swigart (the BEST Chiropractor around!) of Soutpointe Chiropractic asked me to take photographs for the Heart Walk he sponsors and organizes. I think giving is such an important part of our lives. When you give and expect nothing in return, the rewards are priceless. I am looking forward to it.

After the Heart Walk, I have just enough time to run home, download and double back up the images, charge some batteries and head out again for the wedding of Marcus and Claire. Looks to be a beautiful day today too!

Tomorrow morning I have a family shoot and then the rest of the day is to just enjoy my family! We are going to hang out and go to a Pumpkin Carving Party hosted by Heather.

Looks to be a great weekend, I am looking forward to getting started. Have a great weekend yourself!!

Get Pampered!

Our friend, Sally Kay Hunter, is hosting a Pampered Bride Clinic on Saturday October 14. If you are a bride to be, you should try to attend! The Clinic will feature Mary Kay Products and will demonstrate how you can achieve that beautiful glowing complexion. You will learn how to use the best makeup colors to bring out your natural beauty. Have you ever noticed how beautiful Bridget's skin is??? ( I notice everyday :-) ) That is because she only uses Mary Kay products. To be completely honest and let down some of my masculinity... hahaha I am a long time user of Mary Kay products as well!!! My sister, Amy, introduced me to Mary Kay products about 10 years ago. I used to say, 'I could be a spokesperson for MK!' I truly could not believe how good they made my skin feel. So, 'YES' they are great for guys too.. In the past I used 'Skin Management for Men' products, however they were discontinued so now I use a newer face-wash and lotion. Shhhhh don't tell my buddies! haha

It should be a lot of fun!

Check out this link to a downloadable pdf file for more information. Here is a link to Sally Kay Hunter's Site.

We also have 25% off gift certificates, so please send us an email to info@davidburkephoto.com if you are interested.

Proof vs. Finished Image

One of my favorite things about photography (especially Digital Photography) is finishing an image for Print. When we shoot a wedding, we typically shoot around 1500 images and narrow that down to the best of the best. This usually brings us to between 400-500 images to deliver to our clients. What we deliver are "proofs". Proofs are color corrected and are totally ready for print, however if an image is purchased for print, we put a little 'icing on the cake'.

This is where the Editing and Finishing process comes in. Any image that is purchased for print or placed in an album goes onto the Editing and Finishing Process. The reason that we do not 'Finish' 400-500 pictures for proofing is that it would take hours and hours to accomplish. Plus, it may be a waste of time to finish images that nobody wants printed.

When we look at an image, we have a vision for what it should look like when we are done. The image below (I used my son Damon :-) ) could be edited a number of different ways...

Proof:


My Favorite Finished Image (there is a lot of contrast in this image, so I chose to go B&W with a hint of blue tone.)


Lower Saturation, bump Contrast & Crop


Grainy B&W & Crop


Cross-Processed @50% & Crop

Laurie + Bill

This past week was not nearly as hectic as the few previous weeks, which was welcome :-). I shot a Greek Orthodox wedding with Heather on Saturday. It was my first Greek Orthodox wedding, so it was really nice to experience. Their reception was held at a club along the Allegheny River in Oakmont. Jessica and Rob are a great couple! Check out Heather's blog, later for some pics from the day. (I don't have any to post because I used Heather's memory cards to shoot!)

Sunday I met with Laurie and Bill at Schenley Park for an engagment session. They are getting married December 8, 2006. We had a great time and even fought off a little drizzle. The day, overall, was beautiful. Partly Cloudy, Partly Sunny, cool air and lots of laughter. Laughter always makes everything better!

Here are a few:

If you look closely in this pic, you can see a few rain drops...