Many Thanks

I recently got a really nice thank you from a groom which is cool because not a lot of grooms take the time to send a thank you. (This is also a hint for my brides about how cool the Cinema Display can be)

Dear Chris,
Thank you so much for your hard and beautiful work during our wedding last weekend. I've already heard many of my friends and family rave about your images. Many guests commented on the coolness of your cinema display during the reception. I did not realize that you were showing images from THAT DAY until later when friends told me.
I've looked at the images on the website and am impressed. Moreover, you're a fun and professional guy to work with, and I will recommend you when I can. Kelly's mom, in particular, also mentioned how awesome you were. Thanks again
I've shot and attended a lot of weddings, and I've never seen a slideshow initiated by the photographer... especially one that includes photos from that day!
Thanks again, Chris. Good luck to you and yours!

Sincerely,

Erik

Kelly and Jose

Another weekend another wedding! Kelly and Jose were married at the FABULOUS Lakecliff Bed and Breakfast in Hood River on Saturday. This is a beautiful estate that over looks the Columbia river. It is perfect for weddings of up to 150 people. Kelly and Jose loved it so much that they came all the way from San Fransisco to be married there. I also got to work with some other great vendors for the first time. Premiere Catering in Portland did an amazing job on both the presentation and taste of their food, while Jamesjoy Video were a blast to work with. If you're looking for a videographer take a look at their site because it is pretty awesome.

One thing I really loved about this wedding were all the details. The colors were so vibrant that I had a hard time choosing a few pictures to turn black and white. Also check out the end of the slideshow as I tried a new technique for taking pictures at a dark dance. I place one of my speedlights on a stand and shot directly at it. I love the effect that it gives especially on the black and white ones of the couple at the end. Make sure you hit the play button so you can see it!

Big Blog Changes

As I said in a previous post, I'm always striving to get better. That includes blogging! I've been wanting to make my pictures bigger so that people could see them better for a while now. The new format will really throw off my other pictures in past posts. But I think you'll like seeing the new posts! This is Nyssa's second senior portrait session.

Website update!

I've been working a little on incorporating some of my most recent weddings into my main site. If you go to the weddings link you can see some new galleries. Check it out! There will be more to come!

A couple of weeks ago my cousin got married in L.A. She went to all the best photographers in the L.A. area and decided on Becker, a supertalented photographer and businessman. I spend a lot of time on Becker's site and blog looking for inspiriation. He did a great job on my cousin's wedding. Don't you think? Click here for the page and then scroll down to about the middle.

Stepping up

About a month ago a bride-to-be asked me what separates me from other photographers. The funny thing was that I had a difficult time answering her question, which seemed silly to me because it was something that of course I should know. The best I could come up with at the time was that I feel that I am able to relate well to many different kinds of people, that I'm able to interact with brides and grooms in a unique way that is relaxing yet professional and put them at ease.

After my last few weddings I have a new answer. I think what separates me from other photographers is that I have no ceiling. I haven't hit my peak yet. If you follow the blog regularly I think you'll notice that my photographs have gotten better and better. I think that is due to my desire to always improve, my innate sense of curiosity and creativity, pushing me to explore new options and provide my clients with the best possible experience. That's what sets me apart.

Kelly and Eric

Saturday we were back in action at the GORGEOUS Atavista Farms in Brownsville with catering provided by Cornucopia. Kelly and Eric had an amazingly well planned day, and their first dance was the coolest I have ever seen. They did this Rumba Latin-style dance that was just awesome! The sky was amazing last night too!

I'm Back!

What if you could spend a week in a tropical paradise with no cell phone, computer or internet, no agenda or time constraints or even a watch. Instead you have a river that winds itself through a mountainous jungle until it arrives at your private beach that is lined with exotic fruits and flowers. Well my friends, that is where I have been for the last ten days.

Kara Sofia and I went down to my family's property in Honduras and had about the best vacation ever. I don't think I have ever had a more relaxing time in my life. We stayed in a little cabin by the river and listened to the water at night. We ate mangos, and papaya and platanos. We napped in hammocks whenever we felt like it. We swam in the warm Caribbean Ocean and cooled off in the river. It was truly paradise. Maybe it was crazy to take off for almost two weeks in the middle of wedding season, but we really need this. These pictures are just snapshots. (I even chilled on the picture taking)

I'll be posting more soon. Stay tuned!

Gettin' Down and Dirty

A few months ago I shot Brent and Nancy's Wedding in Lebanon. Not Lebanon, Lebanon. Anyways, they had already recieved some great engagement pics from their Uncle Loic who is a photographer in the bay area, so I talked to them about maybe doing a trash the dress session after their wedding day.

For those of you not familiar with "Trash the Dress" the idea is that you are probably only going to wear that thing once so why not get your money's worth and get some amazing pictures out of it? Nancy's sister was also recently married so we brought them along too and headed over to Newport. Only problem was that when we got there it was really overcast and windy. So we didn't get the amazing sunset oranges and blues, but I think the overcast day kind of gave a really cool edginess to the pictures. We had so much fun! We were all soaked and full of sand by the end but I think these images were worth it!

If any of my brides out there are interested in adding a trash the dress session to your package let me know!

p.s. this was such a fun shoot I had to get a shot with the couples =)

Hawaiian Style

Yesterday I shot Shannon and Tony's wedding at the McNary Golf Course in Salem. This wedding was important to me because literally 80% of my current weddings can be traced back to Shannon. About a year ago, Shannon decided to post about me on theknot.com and that lead to probably about 5 or 6 brides booking me. Those brides have since referred me to others and the effect has just snowballed into a VERY busy summer this year and spilling into 2008. I am so grateful that she got everything rolling with a simple good review. I don't do any advertising and I am able to stay booked pretty much through word of mouth because of brides like Shannon. Needless to say I wanted to do a great job at her wedding.

We started the day off at the Hair Body and Sole Salon in Corvallis, and then headed up to Salem. The Hawaiian decorations were soooo cool and she even had Polynesian dancers provide entertainment. At sunset we headed out and got some spectacular pictures. And Rex at 1st Choice DJ Entertainment kept the party bumping like I've never seen. It was a great day.

Google Checkout

Wow 5 days of blogging in a row! So today I wanted to talk about google checkout. It is such a quick, easy and secure way for both the seller and buyer to exchange money using credit cards. I've been using Google Checkout for about six months and my clients and I think it is fantastic. The cool part is that google decided to provide the service free of charge for 2007, so feel free to put your deposit on a credit card and earn some skymiles while your at it!

Yes We Travel!

At the last few weddings I've shot I've had a lot of people come up to me and say things like "You are so fun to work with, and your images are so beautiful, to bad you don't live in (insert city here) because my cousin is getting married in 6 months."

Well the good news is that Becerra Photography is taking the show on the road! Whether you are interested in a destination wedding or are just not able to find the right photographer in your area, I am really looking forward to providing amazing pictures and service outside of Oregon.

In fact next week I'll be taking a trip down to visit some family members in Honduras. My family lives in La Ceiba which is a beautiful little city right on the carribiean. It is a perfect place for destination weddings so expect to see some sample pictures soon, and if you'd like to know more about a destination wedding package I am putting together shoot me an email!

Jef and Moriah

July 1st was a blast with Jef and Moriah! They booked their wedding at McMenamins Grand Lodge in Forest Grove. They booked the compass room which has these big beautiful windows on each side. If your a blog follower you know how much I love window light! It was a great place to take some beautiful pictures. The light was so soft and flattering. This was my first shoot McMenamins location, and I would recommend them to anyone. Their staff seemed very friendly. I think there were something like 5 weddings that weekend.