Chicago Wedding and Portrait Photographer

WE'VE MOVED!!!!!

2009-10-01T12:21:00.000-05:00

JAY'S BLOG HAS MOVED TO A NEW HOME ON THE WEB:

WWW.JAYSPHOTOBLOG.COM

Navy Pier Crystal Gardens - Katie & Rob

2009-09-22T09:30:00.001-05:00

Who would've thought that sending a drink to a young lady across the bar at Shenanigan's House of Beer on Division St. would lead to eventually getting married at Navy Pier!

It happens at every wedding at Navy Pier's Crystal Gardens...the kids just can't resist the jumping water display!

This was a bit different, but very cool.....Rob didn't want to see Katie until the very last minute, so during the procession, he stood with his back to the aisle, only turning around just as Katy and her Mom finished walking up.

Rob's best man absolutely skewered the groom with his toast/speech. Rob, his family and his groomsmen are all from London, so "Whitey" felt the need to "translate" a lot of his speech for the American Yanks in attendance. For those of you who weren't there, here's a quick re-cap:

Yanks = Americans
Gents = Mens Bathroom
Cupboard = Closet
Arse = Ass
Pissed = Drunk
"Did a Maths" = "Majored in Mathematics"

Westin Lombard Wedding-Rachel & Constantine

2009-09-18T10:11:00.002-05:00

The amazing decor which transformed the Westin Hotel Lombard was provided by Yanni Design Studio of Glenview. Be sure to keep an eye on the WEtv network because Rachel & Constantine's wedding is soon to be featured on the show Platinum Weddings!

Swissotel Chicago Wedding-Glenn & Charlie

2009-09-16T20:23:00.012-05:00

So wedding #2 from last weekend found me with Charlie & Glenn. The 11am ceremony time atChicago's Holy Name Cathedral sounds ridiculously early, however the payoff is having over 4 hours to ride around with the bridal party taking pictures between the ceremony and their reception at the Swissotel Chicago. Makes for a long day, but more than worth it when it comes to the pictures!

Pheasant Run Resort Wedding-Grace & Jeff

2009-09-15T15:22:00.006-05:00

This was the first wedding I've shot at the Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but this cool re-creation of New Orleans' Bourbon Street offered some pretty sweet opportunities for portraits.....(check out the next to last one below.....)

I find it odd that people always say stuff like "here comes the paparazzi" when they see me walk in to the ceremony area.....but then you see stuff like this. Excuse me.....Mr. Pot...this is Mr. Kettle.....guess what...you're black!

Brides always worry about crying when they first see their fiance on their wedding day....but it's always the speech by the maid-of-honor that turns on the waterworks.

Cantigny Wedding-Sarah & Arrick

2009-09-14T14:44:00.005-05:00

I love this picture of Sarah watching her Dad signing their Ketubah. After Sarah and Arrick signed, and just as her Dad began to sign his name, she reached over and grabbed onto Arrick. Holding on to her new husband while watching her father provide his approval with his signature on a traditional marriage document.

Hyatt Lodge McDonalds Wedding - Amy & Steve

2009-09-08T15:50:00.005-05:00

So here's the REAL wedding pictures from Amy & Steve's wedding at The Hyatt Lodge at McDonald's Rather than post a long line of images...I went the slideshow route on this one....Take a look below the two "normal" pictures.....

Amy & Steve from Jay Crihfield on Vimeo.

Welcome Home!

2009-09-08T15:45:00.002-05:00

Jack came home from his late summer vacation last night, so in order to give Mom a break for a bit, we went out for ice cream! MMMMMMMMMmmmmmm, Thin Mint Blizzard from Dairy Queen

How Ironic......

2009-09-06T08:34:00.005-05:00

I couldn't help but laugh when I got home last night from Amy & Steve's wedding to find this bad-boy left-over from my photographer's get-together evening the night before!

What's ironic about the gigantic cheeseburger cake provided by Jason Kaczorowski is that Amy & Steve were married at The Hyatt Lodge at McDonald's Campus! I couldn't help but wonder if the catering director at the Hyatt has ever had a bride & groom ask for a super size version of a cake like this for their actual wedding cake!

Stay tuned for a few preview images from Amy & Steve's wedding!

Light it up!

2009-09-04T07:33:00.004-05:00

This one's more for the photographers who check out my blog, but for the Brides, it might give you some insight into how my background influences what I'm doing today.

Lately I've been implementing more off-camera flash into my wedding coverage, especially the bride & groom portraits. Everyone wants to shoot with "available" light because, let's face it, you don't have to set anything up, and it's much faster to simply shoot with what you have. While this is always my preferred way of working, I don't always have any control over the location or the weather, so I'm not going to let that be an excuse for crappy images simply because of crappy conditions.

Not every wedding is going to give you awesome, golden, radiant natural light. In the past when I worked on editorial jobs, it was normal to set up studio strobes, reflectors, scrims, and anything else that was needed to give the image more dimension and interest rather than simply using "available" light. The biggest problem with those types of techniques is you need several cases of equipment, power, extension cords, and assistants to pull it off. Now there are several systems (Radio Popper, Pocket Wizard, are two that come to mind) which allow the photographer to use their smaller shoe mounted flashes in ways that give the same effects as larger, studio type strobes.

All the images below are shot using some type of flash off the camera, and none of these images required an assistant, or more importantly, much more time to set up than any other wedding portrait I might shoot on any given weekend.

These next two are a good example. The first image is what you get with purely "available" or "natural" light. It isn't THAT bad, and could probably be saved with a lot of photoshop and post production work. However why risk being able to "save" an image when you can get it right the first time? So instead I had a couple of flash units "available" and added those into the mix in the 2nd shot.

This last one might not look like much, but when you combine an image with three dark complected gentlemen, in dark tuxedos, in a very, very, very dark chapel (First United Methodist Church, Evanston) with a really high ceiling that makes it very difficult to bounce anything off of, you're going to waste a lot of time waiting for your flash batteries to re-cycle. What's the easy solution....double your light using a 2nd flash, off camera. Double the output, keeps your recycle time down, fast portraits and onto the reception!

Lori & John

2009-08-31T13:10:00.003-05:00

Flashes of Hope

2009-08-26T10:59:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I had the privilege to donate my time to photograph children at University of Chicago's Comer Children's Hospital for Flashes of Hope. Flashes of Hope is a non-for-profit organization dedicated to creating and powerful, uplifting portraits of children fighting cancer and other life threatening illnesses.

Hopefully when you look at these images you don't see ill-children.....hopefully you'll see faces filled with spirit, determination, soul, optimism, and most importantly, hope.

To learn more about Flashes of Hope, please visit their website HERE

Standard Club Wedding - Julie & Ryan - 1 year later!

2009-08-24T10:23:00.011-05:00

Almost one year to the day I posted Julie & Ryan's Northwestern University themed engagement session. Well this past weekend everything came together for their spectacular wedding at the Standard Club.

The floral centerpieces created by Virginia Wolff were the talk of the reception....(at least until the bride walked in!)

Mary Winslow of Take the Cake was commissioned to create Julie's contemporary Northwestern themed purple and white wedding cake

If you're looking for a live band at your wedding or event, your search should begin and end with Entourage. These guys can seriously bring it...I don't think the dance floor was even close to empty all night!

Huge thanks go out to everyone else involved with Julie & Ryan's special day. Venue lighting and design provided by Frost Lighting, and last but not least, event co-ordination by Mindy from Affairs With Linda made sure every detail was in place and everything ran on time! Thanks again!

Renaissance NorthShore Wedding - Caitlin & Craig

2009-08-20T08:18:00.007-05:00

I thought Craig's Spiderman cufflinks were pretty cool, definitely one of the more unique cufflink ideas I've seen this season........

But then I realized that ALL of the groomsmen had comic book/superhero/action figure type cufflinks! Pictured above are Superman, Batman, Spiderman, Transformers, something from the game Halo, and one I'm not sure about. I was a bit surprised nobody had a secret decoder ring to give to the bride!

Apparently Craig really got into the whole Spiderman thing before we started his portraits!

I have no idea what was going on here.....but it's a funny picture!

As if the cufflinks weren't enough....the bridal party entrance was a "Pirates of the Caribbean" theme complete with sword fighting bridesmaids!

Aubyn Beth

2009-08-19T09:32:00.003-05:00

After shooting Melissa & Dave's Wedding back in June, I found out that not only was Melissa's maid-of-honor, Aubyn, a kick-ass MOH and veil holder, but she's also a pretty talented singer as well. So what better way to combine the two by putting a few of Melissa's images together with one of Aubyn's tracks!

If you're interested in more info about Aubyn's group, check her out on MySpace by clicking HERE

Evanston Hotel Orrington Wedding - Tammy & Kurt

2009-08-18T13:37:00.007-05:00

This past Sunday's wedding was full of nostalgia because Tammy and Kurt were married at the same church my wife and I were married in, and their reception was at the gorgeous Hotel Orrington which is about two blocks from where I used to live in Evanston. It was pretty cool to stand at the back of the chapel and hear Tammy and Kurt recite the same vows that my wife and I recited several years ago.

ISPWP Summer 2009 contest

2009-08-17T15:30:00.004-05:00

The Summer 2009 contest results from the International Society of Professional Wedding Photographers were announced today, and luckily I was fortunate enough to place one image from Megan and Michael's wedding earlier this year! My summer crop of images didn't place overall as well as my spring entries, however considering the serious talent associated with this group, it's pretty cool to see your name alongside some of the best in the business no matter how many times you place!

White Eagle Country Club Wedding - Thaiany & Alex

2009-07-31T22:40:00.007-05:00

Nicole & Stevan

2009-07-27T13:10:00.004-05:00

I love this last picture because it's all JCP Brides & Grooms, past, present, and future! If you're a loyal follower of the blog you might remember Jen and William (left), and stay tuned for Stacie and Mike (right) who are getting married later this year!

Kristin & Howard

2009-07-21T13:23:00.005-05:00

Kristin & Howard were married this past weekend at the ridiculously gorgeous Cuneo Museum and Gardens in Vernon Hills. If you've never been here before, regardless of whether you're planning a wedding or not, definitely check it out to see how the "other half" lived back in the roaring 20's!

I think it's cool when the bride lets the bridesmaids pick out their own shoes......

Splish Splash!

2009-07-19T13:03:00.001-05:00

Vicki & Scott

2009-07-16T21:04:00.002-05:00

The Redfield Estate Wedding - Julie & Todd

2009-07-14T22:20:00.007-05:00

I thought this was so cool how Todd had his two sons wait with him to see Julie for the first time!

Catered By Design showed off their really cool champagne flute tree which greeted the guests following the ceremony.....

.....and my 2nd shooter Kasey K totally nailed this great shot of Julie through the champagne tree.....

and if you can't drink champagne, I guess you're just left to blow bubbles!

Roxanne's Senior portraits

2009-07-13T22:22:00.002-05:00

Day at the beach

2009-07-07T15:10:00.002-05:00

'Bugga didn't quite understand what the big deal was.....he's a pro at this beach stuff......

3 weddings....3 days.....

2009-06-30T22:54:00.001-05:00

So this past weekend I shot three weddings three days in a row. Here's a quick recap slideshow with some of the highlights. Congratulations to Jessica & AJ, Sharon & JP, and Jennifer & Norm!

Untitled from Jay Crihfield on Vimeo.

Bored this weekend?

2009-06-25T21:10:00.005-05:00

Last Saturday I spent the morning with Melissa and her bridal party while they got ready at the Salon Cocole in Lake Zurich. Obviously they do an awesome job catering to brides and bridal parties, but the one thing that really caught my attention was their upcoming Save A Pet Dog Adoption Day this weekend!.

If you read the blog enough you know that I love our dog Otis almost as much as I do Jack. So if you're looking for something to do this Saturday, head out to Lake Zurich between 11am and 2pm and check out the Salon's 2nd annual event. Even if you can't find it in your heart to adopt a new friend, animal lovers can still check out some other ways to pamper your pet the same way you pamper yourself!

The Salon is located at 591 North Rand Road, Lake Zurich, Il. 847-540-7006

Little Jack's new "Big Boy" room!

2009-06-24T21:16:00.003-05:00

Little Jack moved into his new "choo-choo" themed room, and the finishing pieces arrived last week in the form of three custom painted frames from Wild Sorbet. I wasn't really sure how these were going to look, but needless to say I'm stoked about how these turned out, and can't wait to find some more opportunities to use their really unique and funky product line!

Oh, and for the techie minded peeps out there. Each print is an 11x14 mounted print framed in a 6 inch border frame. So each piece of art has a total size of 23 x 27.

Chevy Chase Golf Club Wedding - Melissa & Dave

2009-06-22T22:09:00.007-05:00

Baby Addison

2009-06-18T21:55:00.004-05:00

OK so before I get a ton of grief over this one, this was not totally my idea. I saw the empty keg in the back yard and jokingly said, "hey, how about one with her on the keg?" Well as my luck would have it Addison's Mom called my bluff said "absolutely." She loved the pictures so much at the viewing that there's a good chance one of these may end up on her birth announcements!

Navy Pier Crystal Gardens - Carrie & Brian

2009-06-17T17:10:00.005-05:00

You can't get married at Navy Pier and not go for a ride on the ferris wheel!

They say everything comes in 3's....well this is the third couple in the last 12 months named Carrie & Brian! You can see the other two here from last Novemberand also here from last August

Maybe I should run a contest to see who the viewer's favorite "Carrie & Brian" couple is/was........

Odyssey Country Club - Lindsey & Josh

2009-06-16T20:38:00.005-05:00

Sarah & Arrick, the engagement

2009-06-15T07:04:00.005-05:00

Kristin & Mike

2009-06-07T21:08:00.004-05:00

Shika & Shridhar

2009-06-04T21:56:00.002-05:00

Last weekend I got to hang out with Shika, Shridhar, and about 500 of their closest family and friends during their wedding celebration. There were too many good images to choose from for this blog entry, so I went the multi-media route and put together the following slideshow!

Shika and Shridhar from Jay Crihfield on Vimeo.

Alexandra & Dominic

2009-05-21T07:17:00.005-05:00

Wedding #2 from this past weekend was Alexandra & Dominick who got married at the very elegant and vintage Redfield Estate at the Grove in Glenview.

It rained most of the day, but you wouldn't be able to tell from looking at the Bride & Groom!

Natalie & Steve

2009-05-19T07:08:00.006-05:00

So despite the small slip-up with the wedding cake I mentioned yesterday, Natalie and Steve actually had a very small, intimate, and elegant wedding and lunch reception at the Hotel Baker in St. Charles.

Oops......

2009-05-18T11:10:00.006-05:00

Anyone who follows my Twitter Feed may have seen the tease for this one on Saturday, so here's the proof.

Natalie and Steve had just cut their wedding cake, and were traditionally feeding each other a piece of cake......

....EXCEPT the groom was a bit careless with his fork and ended up dropping a decent sized chunk of cake down the front of Natalie's dress.......

....Luckily Natalie was a really good sport about it. In fact it SHE was the one who said I had to put this on the blog!

I'll have some more images from their wedding later this week!

ISPWP Spring 2009 Contest results

2009-05-14T06:30:00.004-05:00

Even though going back to real life after vacation totally sucks, it was nice to come home and find out that three of my images placed in the International Society of Professional Wedding Photographers (ISPWP) spring 2009 contest!

The following images placed 7th, 9th, and 6th in their respective categories.

Back to life.......

2009-05-05T20:45:00.005-05:00

We got back yesterday after spending a week on the island of Kauai. There will be more pictures to come, but I thought I'd throw this one up for now. How grumpy would you be after leaving scenes like this behind......

The view is courtesy of the Beach House Restaurant on Kaui....believe me, the food is just as good as the sunset!

Megan and Michael

2009-04-20T10:57:00.008-05:00

Easter Sunday

2009-04-14T07:06:00.008-05:00

Little Jack wasn't too into the whole Easter Egg thing on Sunday, but he did like running around with the baseball he found in the back yard.....

...Maybe golf is his game......

"quiet on the tee please......."

"hmmm.....looks like this putt breaks a bit to the left....."

"Well that was fun.....let's head inside"

"What's up ladies.....when's dinner?

All in the family

2009-04-13T06:47:00.007-05:00

Saturday morning I headed out to Cantigny to meet Petite and her family for a multi generational session. Easter weekend is usually pretty popular for these types of sessions because everyone is town, and who knows when the next time everyone is going to be together again.....

Lauren & Patrick

2009-04-06T16:51:00.003-05:00

Pot 'O gold.....

2009-04-01T06:29:00.002-05:00

Despite all the crappy weather yesterday, I guess something good came out of it.......

Lindsay & Justin

2009-03-30T11:47:00.006-05:00

..."OK, I'm ready, let's get married!"

One of the cool features of the Danada House is the bride's room overlooks the entrance to the house so the bride can see her guests arriving while waiting for the ceremony to start.

Catering and design courtesy of My Chef Catering

Everyone made sure they took a turn in the photobooth

First Impressions....

2009-03-23T12:17:00.003-05:00

Do you rely on your personality to help sell your services? Is the person behind your business just as important as the products and services you provide? Is the first impression your clients form of you based on an image that's several years old?

Even if you're not exactly climbing the corporate ladder, consider having a professional portrait made for your social media marketing efforts for sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, Twitter, or even Match.com or E-Harmony.

And for the photographers out there....take a look at the four pictures above and see if you can tell which one was shot in a studio, which one was shot on location in the client's office, and which one was shot in my basement? Bonus points if you can tell me what the lighting setup was on these

Power Breakfast

2009-03-19T09:21:00.003-05:00

Little Jack decided to kick off the day with a meeting of his executive stuffed animal advisory committee (ESAAC). Picture above from left to right are Ravina "Bear-i-Tone" bear, "Gobble-Gobble" the turkey, "Bunny" the bunny rabbit and Little Jack. Not pictured but also present (under the table) were "Flips" the sea turtle, and "Tux" the panda bear.

If only he knew......

2009-03-14T20:50:00.002-05:00

So today the weather gave us a taste of spring, and Jack decided to sport the Cubs cap outside. Unfortunately he doesn't realize how pointless it is to get your hopes up this early in the year.

I'll give you exactly 30 seconds to take this picture.....

2009-03-06T06:16:00.004-06:00

There are lots of stories in the photography world of celebrity photographers who spend hours setting up a shot, and then are only allowed a total of 5 minutes to work with their subject, and have to create an amazing portrait in such a limited time. Well toddlers aren't much different, but it's not because they have to get on their private jet and fly off to their latest rehab stint, or meet with their divorce attorney.

I wanted to take some new pictures of Little Jack, and he "cooperated" long enough for me to shoot exactly three frames....the three frames you see here...

then it was back to eating fruit chews and watching the stock market continue to fall. I think he's secretly waiting for the commercial where even the E-Trade baby can't take it anymore!

Play Ball!!!

2009-03-05T16:10:00.004-06:00

.....It's 60 degrees outside, and 'bugga is just itching to start watching the White Sox. I guess I'll have to cut him some slack for being a Sox fan.......

Showin' Ally the ropes.....

2009-02-28T21:13:00.003-06:00

"Stick with me kid, this "life" stuff isn't too hard. I mean if that creepy baby on the E-Trade commercials can buy and sell stock, how hard can it really be...I'll help ya figure it all out...."

The "first look"...before or at the ceremony?

2009-02-25T12:30:00.006-06:00

One of the first, and most important questions I have for a bride is "are you going to see your fiance before your ceremony, or will he see you for the first time at the altar?" While I'm not going to tell anyone how to set things up on their wedding day, there are advantages and dis-advantages regardless of how you answer this question.....

On the one hand, if you wait until the ceremony, you get images like Meghan and Nathan did above. Completely natural, unscripted, emotional responses from the groom as he sees his bride for the first time on their wedding day. It's also more traditional and some would say it's bad karma to see your husband/wife on your wedding day before the ceremony starts. The only down-side to this approach is the photographer is limited by everything from the church, the way the chairs/pews are set up, other guests who might jump into the aisle, to even the Bride's father who might slightly move one way or the other and block the shot. It's also difficult to get the bride's reaction without the use of a 2nd photographer.

Or you can go the route of Carrie & Brian and Tracey & Trent. They saw each other prior to their ceremonies, but we were able to set it up in a way that still created some suspense, and resulted in some great reactions between the two. Because the situation is a bit more controlled, you tend to end up with more pictures of the "first look" which makes for a great storyboard type layout in their wedding albums.

Again, there's nothing right or wrong with either approach. The decision is completely up to the bride & groom and I have no qualms with either option, as long as everyone understands the advantages and disadvantages of each choice.

Ally & Gracie....3 months

2009-02-24T13:23:00.003-06:00

Speak Up! Let's hear what YOU think about wedding photography......

2009-02-23T06:39:00.003-06:00

I talk to A LOT of photographers, and we all have our own ideas on what should be important to wedding clients. However I want to hear what the CLIENT actually thinks! Brides, Grooms, Planners, here's your chance. I want to hear what you really think about wedding photography and wedding photographers. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Simply post your responses in the comments section of this post.

Some ways to approach this very informal and entirely non-scientific survey:

-If you're a Bride planning a wedding, what was the most important thing you looked for in a photographer, and what types of things drove you nuts about looking for a photographer?

-If you're a married Bride, what would you do differently with your photography now that you're married and the wedding is over?

-Wedding Planners, the same things go for you. What do you advise your clients to look for and/or stay away from when selecting a photographer? What drives you nuts on the wedding day?

-Or, feel free to add anything else, as long as it's relevant to the topic!

If you'd like to post anonymously that's OK, however please post where you got married. What flies in California might not necessarily go over well in New York. I also am not concerned with who your photographer was/is, the point is to be able to learn from your experiences in order to create a better experience for our clients down the road.

Thanks in advance, looking forward to hearing your responses. If you'd like to keep the conversation going on Twitter, just click the link on the right side of this page to follow my twitter feed.

2009 WeddingWire Brides Choice!!!

2009-02-13T14:43:00.002-06:00

WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, just announced that Jay Crihfield Photography has won the 2009 Bride’s Choice Awards™!

In its inaugural year, the Bride’s Choice Awards recognizes and honors vendors from the WeddingWire Network that demonstrate excellent quality of service, responsiveness, professionalism, value of cost and flexibility. This year’s recipients represent the top three percent of WeddingWire’s vendor community, which includes over 100,000 wedding vendors from across the US. That means JCP is one of the very best Photographers in the Chicago area!

Unlike other awards in which winners are selected by the company, the Bride’s Choice Awards are determined exclusively by recent newlyweds through surveys and reviews.

“We are excited to launch this annual award program to honor high-performing vendors based solely on the experiences of our WeddingWire community,” according to Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer. “This year’s recipients have set the bar high, exhibiting excellent service and expertise in the wedding industry.”

Oh, and in case you missed out....click the bad boy emblem above and leave a new review for me!

25 things

2009-02-11T11:16:00.001-06:00

In the interest of full disclosure, this idea originated from Jessica Claire's blog and not facebook!. So in order to let you know a bit more about me other than the the fact that I'm some random guy who takes pictures of pretty brides and cute kids, here are 25 things that I love as well as 25 things that I can't stand......

I love....
1. My wife Amy and Son Jack
2. Still, clear, quiet, cold nights outside
3. People who are always trying to be part of the solution to problems
4. Riding my bike on a crisp fall morning in the country
5. Downtown Chicago at night
6. A perfectly struck golf tee shot (doesn't happen very often)
7. Spicy wings and cheddar chips from Buffalo Joes in Evanston
8. Driving through the Napa Valley tasting wine
9. The way our dog, Otis, cocks his head to the side when he looks at you
10. Lionel trains
11. Curious George
12. Listening to novels as audiobooks and trying to visualize the stories as movies
13. Watching the snow fall while listening to Jim Brickman albums
14. Road trips
15. When my Son points to a picture of Big Bird or Elmo holding a camera and says "Da-Da"
17. My clients
18. "The Office"
19. Just about anything on the Discovery Channel
20. Coffee
21. Most foods that will clog your arteries and raise your cholesterol
22. Cherry, grape, orange Tootsie Pops
23. Old school "90210" not that new stuff....I can't believe I actually used the phrase "old school" in conjunction with 90210!
24. Being able to figure things out on my own.
25. Receiving comments on my blog *hint* *hint* *wink* *wink*

I'm not so fond of....
1. Impatient people
2. Wind chill
3. Humidity
4. Coffee drinks that you need a translator to order properly
5. Mayonaise
6. Post-it notes
7. Negative vibes
8. Shoveling snow
9. Yard work
10. Hospitals
11. Television shows/channels that are not high-definition
12. Paying any kind of Illinois state tax or fee that supports a goverment as corrupt as Illinois'
13. The electoral college
14. The stupid dancing robot character on Fox NFL games....what does a robot have to do with football?
15. Being a fan of Chicago sports teams....they all are terrible and not worth watching!
16. The way actors in movies hold coffee cups that are supposed to be full as if there's nothing in them.....at least ACT like there's hot liquid that will spill all over when you flail it around like a conductors baton!
17. When my Son points to a picture of Telly (the fat, grumpy, worry-wart muppett) and says "Da-Da"
18. Heidi and Spencer
19. Decaf. Coffee
20. Most movies and TV shows that my wife likes to watch
21. Going to the gym only to find the Food Network on the TV...I don't understand the point of working out while watching someone prepare fattening food...just seems a bit counterproductive.
22. Chocolate Tootsie Pops
23. Life moving too fast
24. Most of the TV shows that my wife watches, including but not limited to "Wife Swap", "Big Love", "Greys Anatomy", "Private Practice," and "The Hills"
25. The sound of a vacum cleaner that I'm not the one operating....it's like nails on a chalkboard to me.

No more bare walls......

2009-02-10T14:13:00.005-06:00

A few weeks ago I featured a way to use composite images to eat up more empty wall space while still displaying a large number of images from a portrait session. Here's another way to decorate your walls using a handfull of smaller 12x12 mounted images, and several floating shelves, available at outlets such as The Container Store

The beauty of this type of display is its versatility. Since the prints simply stand, or lean against the wall on the ledges, they are easily interchanged as you add new prints from each year's session. Since we have 12 images currently on the wall, as Little Jack gets older we can display a fresh image from each year until he's 12 years old...then we've gotta come up with a new plan!

It's not ALL about the art.....

2009-02-05T09:53:00.008-06:00

Every now and then I get the question from a client (usually from a parent) "is it OK if we take a few family/posed/formal photos?" My answer, "ABSOLUTELY!" Unless you make a habit of dressing up in bridal gown and tuxedo on a regular basis, and asking your closest friends and family to do the same, chances are you're not going to look this spectacular all the time, and it's worth a few quick seconds to knock out a "formal" photo or two. I don't feature these types of images on my site or on the blog, but I definitely realize the importance of these pictures not only for the Bride & Groom, but for the parents and extended family as well. So if there's any doubt as to what's included with my coverage, take a look at a few family pictures from this past season......

...I doubt these will be winning any awards any time soon, however it's important to make sure you have enough time built into your schedule to accomodate these pictures, because even though the creative, artistic, documentary style images are what I'm typically hired for, the family and bridal party pictures are an equally important part to a complete wedding photographic coverage.

ISPWP Featured Photographer....

2009-02-04T17:07:00.003-06:00

Today I found out I'm the current featured photographer on the International Society of Professional Wedding Photographers (ISPWP) site. Interviews like this are always weird because I always seem to come up with better answers to some of the questions after the interview is over! Either way, it's pretty cool to be featured on a site that boasts some pretty prestigious names in the wedding photography world among its members.

Click here to take a look!

Practice makes perfect......

2009-01-29T08:01:00.000-06:00

My mom is an accomplished pianist, and I took 8 years of classical piano lessons, but it looks like Jack is getting a head start on both of us.

I have a problem....

2009-01-28T12:57:00.000-06:00

The funny thing is I don't really have a sweet tooth, and I don't care for Tootsie Roll candies, however I am completely addicted to Tootsie Pop lolli-pops thanks to my friends at a certain photo lab who include these devilish confections in each package along with the prints they ship me. At least Tootsie Roll Industries is a Chicago based company, so I'm doing my part to buy local. Oh, and for the record, cherry, grape, and orange, are the best....the other colors can stay in the bag.

Favorite wedding images of 2008 Part 1.....

2009-01-26T16:00:00.001-06:00

Before 2008 is a distant memory, I wanted to show off (for the second time in some cases) a few of my favorite images from the 2008 wedding season. Even though I post a handfull of my favorites from each wedding here on the blog, some images just seem to resonate a bit more with me and are worthy of one more look until the 2009 season gets going.....

I like this image of Shane with his Dad before the ceremony is about to start. I don't care how cool and confident a groom looks, they're always pretty nervous!

Jennifer & William were so much fun because they made pictures like this one so easy to make. They actually came up to me during their reception and said "can we get out of here for a bit...we kinda need a break!" So we just scooted off to the lounge at Starved Rock State Resort and they plopped down on the couch. I just backed off and let them relax and was able to capture this fantastic reaction of the two of them just enjoying each other's company on their wedding day!

Christine threw me a bit of a curve ball on this one because I didn't know exactly what the location she had picked out was like. All she told me was "I want something edgy and badass" and said we were going to an abandoned car dealership. At first I wasn't sure, but I've received a lot of positive feedback on this one, and now it's one of my favorites, mostly because the location is pretty different. But ultimately, it reflects the bride and her personality perfectly!

Carrie & Brian were married on Carrie's parents' farm, and her Mom spent a lot of time hanging these lighted jars in the large tree that greets visitors as you pull up the driveway. I like the way the form of the tree and the lights frames the couple.

This is one of those images where you're actually trying to do one thing, but end up with something totally different. I get a lot of requests to do "cool stuff with the veils" and had a different idea in mind with Emily and Danny. But when Emily asked if she could just get rid of it instead, I said to just go ahead and toss it away and see what happens. Luckily the veil made a nice curve that contrasts against the red farm house.

That's all for now, stay tuned I'll have some more favorites up in the next couple of days......

Yes we can

2009-01-23T12:15:00.000-06:00

So the White House announced yesterday that President Obama is the first US President to have regular access to email and a cell phone via his beloved Blackberry. Since I apparantly lost the lobbying effort in the first dog sweepstakes by backing the Border Terrier after election day, I'd like to take a crack at convincing the Commander-in-Chief to give some serious consideration to adopting the iPhone as his prefered method of staff communication rather than the Blackberry.

I recently traded out my desktop PC for a Mac, however I'm actually more in love with my iPhone rather than my Mac (just ask my wife how hard it is to pry the phone out of my hands after dinner when we're watching TV). My only regret is Apple will probably release a newer version pretty soon and I'll have to fight off upgrade fever!

Where were you when......

2009-01-20T09:18:00.000-06:00

Does today's inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States qualify as a "Where were you When?" moment? I'm not old enough to say where I was during a lot of the more popular WWYW moments such as Kennedy's assasination, the first moon landing, or Nixon's resignation. However I firmly believe that today was one of those day's we'll all tell our children and grandchildren about "where we were" when President Obama was sworn in.

With today's 24hr news cycle, it can be difficult to pin down what qualifies as a WWYW moment. However a few moments I was around for were:

-The Shuttle Challenger explosion: I was in 6th grade at Nichols Middle School watching the event live on television.
-The OJ white Bronco chase: Working at a Blockbuster video, upset that we couldn't watch the Bull's playoff game because the network interrupted the game to follow the Bronco.
-9/11: pouring coffee in my kitchen when the news broke to the story in NY
-The death of Princess Diana: waking up in a hotel room in Pittsburgh getting ready to cover a Steelers/Cowboys game for Sport Magazine...walking through the parking I was called a "Princess Killer" by several "liquidated" Steeler fans who had heard the paparazzi photographers were involved in the crash.

and finally

-the Obama Inauguration: Waiting in the parking lot to pick up my nephew from pre-school.

You can take a look at some more memorable moments in this book at Amazon.com

Oh yeah, and in case you missed it this morning....here it is again

Looking Back....Looking Forward

2009-01-19T12:00:00.000-06:00

A lot of people think I went to a photography or art school and majored in photography. The real truth is I majored in modern American history at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, and have still maintained an interest in that historical period (just ask my wife about my attention span when a post-WWII history show comes on the Discovery or History channels).

I've been working on a few personal projects as a way to become more familiar with Apple's iPhoto and iMovie programs on my Mac, and the historical significance of the juxtaposition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day today and the inauguration of our country's first African American President tomorrow couldn't be more striking. I've been working on this idea ever since I realized that Obama accepted the Democratic nomination on the 45th anniversary of Dr. King's "I have a Dream" speech. I looked at the 2009 calendar and saw the connection between the inauguration and Martin Luther King Jr. day, and immediately thought about the significance if Obama were to win the general election. It just took me awhile to actually figure out how to do something with the idea.

Regardless of whether your political views are red or blue, hopefully the incoming President can shed some light towards a brighter future for this country.

From MLK to BHO from Jay Crihfield on Vimeo.

It's safe to say I'm not going to be giving Ken Burns a run for his money anytime soon, but personal projects like this are a fun way for me to stay creative outside the world of wedding and portrait photography!

Composites

2009-01-16T15:55:00.000-06:00

Too many good pictures from an event or session, and not enough places to put them? One way to approach this issue is by combining images into a single composite work of art. One thing to keep in mind with these types of pieces is not to get shy about the final size. For example, if you printed the piece above as a 10x10, each of the images would only be less than 2x2, that's smaller than some wallet size prints! Likewise at 20x20 you're up to just under 4x4 for each image.

My recommendation for any piece or artwork that features two or more images is to order something that is no less than 16in on the longest size. And if you're not sure about how big you'd like to go, simply measure your walls before ordering! You'll be surprised how much space you really have, and how small even an 11x14 will look when you hang it@

Something's in the water.....

2009-01-15T11:22:00.001-06:00

Yesterday I headed out in the snow, ice and cold to photograph a pair of twins who were born two days before my twin nieces. They also live about 10min away from my niece's house. Are twins becoming more common? Kinda crazy.....

Pictures of the little babies are definitely cute, but the first two are the ones that really hit home with me. Maybe it's because Little Jack is getting so big, but there's something about seeing a Dad with his newborn son, or a Mom with her newborn daughter that really turns my crank.

Stay tuned, I'll probably have some more from this session in the next couple of days!

Bear Down......

2009-01-14T07:19:00.001-06:00

I guess when it's 1 degree outside you have to get a bit creative in how you transport newborns. Looks like Ally and Gracie have the right idea when you dress up as a bear....hibernate!

2008 in review

2009-01-12T15:29:00.000-06:00

I guess you're supposed to publish your 2008 year-in-review specials BEFORE the end of the year, but it took me a bit longer to get around to this one than I thought. Rather than put up a fancy slideshow, or extended blog post about how my year went, I decided to simply put together a quick montage image showing each bride that I was lucky enough to photograph this past year. After all, if it wasn't for the 35 ladies pictured below, I wouldn't be in business! (click the image for a larger version)

Thanks again, you all made 2008 a year to remember!

Jack's Back!

2009-01-11T17:02:00.000-06:00

This is not another post about Little Jack, my son. I'm just excited that the show "24" is back tonight! I started watching the older seasons the summer that Jack was born (and no, I didn't name my kid after the main character in the show), and was excited for the next season that was supposed to start last January. Instead we had to wait out the writers strike and Kiefer Sutherland going to rehab for a new season to be back on the air

If you build it.......

2009-01-08T12:22:00.000-06:00

Jack, Amy and I recently headed over to The Streets of Woodfield shopping center to check out the new LegoLand Discovery Centre (I love it when "centers" are spelled "centre," it sounds so sophisticated).

If you have a kid, or ever played with Lego's as a kid, you have to check this place out....

But the coolest part of this place is the 1.5 million Legos that form a replica of downtown Chicago.

a new "friend" for Otis & Jack

2009-01-06T06:19:00.000-06:00

Little Jack loves stuffed animals almost as much as he loves Otis, so we combined the two for Christmas and brought home a large stuffed puppy. I don't think Otis was too keen on the idea however...hopefully Otis won't chew Jack's new buddy to pieces.

That's a wrap.....

2009-01-05T05:54:00.000-06:00

I was fortunate enough to end 2008 with Tara & Matt's wedding two days after Christmas.

The world's worst uncle.....

2009-01-04T17:24:00.000-06:00

OK, so with the holidays, and trying to get all my year end stuff finished up, I think I locked up the award for world's worst uncle because I almost forgot to post a picture of my two new twin Nieces, Ally and Gracie!

And here was their official birth announcement/Christmas card.....

Happy New Year!

2008-12-31T13:00:00.000-06:00

I'm a big fan of the Goo Goo Dolls, and after everything that has happened in the world in 2008, I can't think of a year where the lyrics to their song "Better Days" are more appropriate. Hope everyone has a safe a prosperous 2009!

Oh the weather outside is frightful.......

2008-12-29T20:29:00.000-06:00

So even though the snow is now just a bunch of grey slushy goo, that wasn't the case last week before Christmas. Unfortunately it was a bit too late to add a snowblower to my Christmas list. Take a look at the video below and you'll see what I mean.......

will it ever stop from Jay Crihfield on Vimeo.

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-22T10:39:00.000-06:00

So this year's holiday card looks somewhat similar to last year's, but unfortunately I didn't have as much cooperation from my modeling talent as I would've liked (it was supposed to be Santa plus an Elf). Oh, and the outfits I ordered weren't exactly in the sizes that I was expecting either...but I think the end result worked out OK.

Winter Wonderland

2008-12-10T07:19:00.001-06:00

Little Jack finally got to try out his snow pants and boots in last night's snowstorm.....

Jack was a bit more excited about the snow than his Dad....little does he know that eventually HE will have to do all the shoveling!

Twitterific!

2008-12-02T14:23:00.000-06:00

It seems like most people have at least some kind of MySpace and/or a Facebook page these days, but a new site I've recently stumbled upon (along with all my photographer friends) is Twitter. The cool thing about Twitter is it shares one simple feature with a site like Facebook, and that's the "status update" section. Twitter allows you to keep connected with anyone who's following your feed through the exchange of answers to one question "what are you doing now" You can even set up Facebook and Myspace to access the Twitter feed, so whenver Twitter is updated, the other sites are updated at the same time.

See for yourself and follow my Twitter Feed here

PS. If you use the feature that allows the feed updates to be sent to your phone....make sure you have a messaging plan with unlimited texting or you will end up with quite a surprise on your next bill!

Zach & Connor

2008-11-20T07:43:00.000-06:00

Lauren & Ryan

2008-11-10T13:17:00.001-06:00

Despite the fact that Lauren & Ryan currently live in Philadelphia, they are both graduates of the University of Chicago, and decided to come back here to get married. Needless to say, the Hyde Park area and Chicago have a special place in their hearts!.......

The real winner last night......

2008-11-05T07:54:00.000-06:00

Regardless of how significant last night's election victory by Barack Obama is, the real winners are Obama's two daughters Malia and Natasha. They obviously drove a hard bargain when their Dad said during his acceptance speech that they can now get a puppy!

Apparently the President Elect has allergies which has prevented them from bringing home a dog up until now. The rumors are they are considering a LabraDoodle, however I'd like to ask the President Elect and his daughters to consider real canine change and bring a Border Terrier as their companion to Washington. I have allergies as well, and have never had as much as a sniffle or a sneeze since bringing our Border home from Windward Farms a few years ago.

Nicole & Stevan

2008-11-04T14:34:00.000-06:00

Carrie & Brian

2008-11-03T08:05:00.001-06:00

"McDroolie" and "Ladder 49"

2008-10-31T19:49:00.001-05:00

So since Little Jack has to put up with his Mom watching "Grey's Anatomy" every week, he decided to dress up as a doctor for halloween.....

...and I guess "Ladder 49" is a popular movie at 'Bugga's house because he wanted to be a firemanllll

Jack-O-Lantern

2008-10-28T14:06:00.000-05:00

Little Jack wanted to go to the pumpkin patch to pick out his pumpkin...but seemed more interested in the cardboard cutout variety.....

..but he was actually pretty interested in what was inside....

Be sure to check back next week for his Halloween pictures!

Tracey & Trent

2008-10-21T22:15:00.000-05:00

Mellisa & Steve

2008-10-16T06:51:00.000-05:00

Rita & Christian

2008-10-15T07:36:00.001-05:00

I think Christian was a bit surprised at just how high the guys were trying to throw him!

Sheila & Bill

2008-10-14T09:02:00.000-05:00

Patrick & Emily

2008-09-30T07:36:00.000-05:00

The grandparents were so cute waiting for the reception to start.

...YeeeHaaaaww...."Save a horse....."

"...Ride a Cowboy!" Patrick is actually a really talented musician and music producer. You can check him out at his MySpace page here

Emily & Tony

2008-09-25T20:22:00.000-05:00

Day at the races

2008-09-22T15:03:00.001-05:00

Little Jack wanted to bet the Pony's at Arlington Park this weekend......

...I have no idea why he's smiling when NONE of his "picks" came in. But I guess he had a good time.

Erin & Brad

2008-09-16T20:38:00.001-05:00

Allie & Josh, one year later....

2008-09-12T06:40:00.001-05:00

Actually it was one year ago this week that Allie and Josh were married. Check out the slideshow below to re-live their day. Congratulations guys, it's amazing how fast a year can go by!

Allie & Josh One Year Later from Jay Crihfield Photography

Amy, Jack & Jay

2008-09-11T19:29:00.001-05:00

So since Little Jack is now more than a year old and we have virtually NO pictures of the three of us together, we enlisted the help of John and Jeff from Burdick and Lee Photographers to take some family pictures.....

JCP goes "green"....

2008-09-10T16:55:00.001-05:00

Well, sort of. More like one of my recent brides has gone green. Christine and Greg had their wedding featured on a site called The Green Bride Guide and published a few of my pictures. This is a great site if you're planning a wedding and trying to make it as "green" as possible.

They even figured out another use for an abanandoned car dealership...photo location!

Meridith & Brian

2008-09-08T07:42:00.000-05:00

Aimee & Michael

2008-09-05T10:37:00.000-05:00

So when you get married at Brookfield Zoo, the shoes have to have an animal theme....

No hugs or handshakes here....just a fist-bump from Michael's future Father-in-Law....

Here kitty, kitty......