For the glamorous bride...

...cut your cake in style. Seriously, aren't these amazing? I'm in love! Order your custom cutters here. (I did not take this photo.)

One Proud Mama

I'm such a proud mama right now. My oldest, who is 11, has been asking me to teach him how to take pictures for some time now. Of course I'm not the best mama, so I keep putting him off. Finally, a couple of months ago, I decided to give him my old Pentax camera to learn on. But...I never actually gave him the camera (sigh), because I'm not always good at doing things right away. It's a problem, I know.

Well, I owed my son a "date." In fact, it too was long overdue (do you see a pattern here I might fix?). I had promised him I'd take him to get ice cream during the weekend, when I realized it was the same weekend as the senior shootout. Rather than put him (or it) off, I decided it would be an ideal time for him to come hang out with me and play around with his camera.

So I put the camera on P mode, but I forgot to check the ISO, and it was still on 3200 from the last time I used it (oh boy). Still, the kiddo, who amazes me all the time, got some really amazing pictures. My two favorites are pictured below.

He asked me if I'd hire him to second shoot weddings with me. I told him to keep this up, and he'll need to hire me.

Thanks to everyone for letting him tag along, and to the models who were so sweet to him.

High School Grads | Utah Senior Photographer

I got to go out on Saturday with some other photographer friends to photograph some gorgeous high school seniors. It was such a blast. I only got to shoot for about an hour...so wish I could have stayed longer.

If you haven't gotten your custom senior pictures yet, contact me. I'd love to do them!

Beautiful Belly | Utah Maternity Photographer

This sweet couple was so great to work with. They are expecting their first in a few weeks and wanted to capture this time in their lives. They were both so great to work with (and SO patient with me when my lights started acting up and we had to figure out a work-around---thanks guys!), and seriously...could she be any more adorable? Perfect little baby belly. I was so excited when she said that she was up for anything and didn't mind getting all wrapped up for her maternity shots. I can't wait to photograph their new little one soon.

If you are interested in maternity portraits, the best time to schedule them is between 32 and 36 weeks. Contact me today to reserve a spot!

John and Brin | Oquirrh Mt. Temple Wedding | Utah Wedding Photographer

What more can I say than I love photographing weddings? Two people joining their lives, their hearts, their hopes, their dreams. It fills me to watch how sweetly a couple cares for one another (and every couple is so different). Each has their way of showing and sharing their love for the other, each person bringing such unique qualities to the relationship, and it's fascinating to watch their lives merge. Brin is strong, well-spoken, happy, and beautiful. John is those things too, yet in different ways, and I can see how they perfectly compliment, appreciate, and adore each other. I had such a wonderful time getting to meet and take part in their lives this day. They were surrounded by many friends that adore them, and many family members that cherish them. What a beautiful way to commence in their new adventure.

Much thanks to my assistant, Kelli Bramble, who helped with such a large family! I couldn't have done it without you!























Utah wedding photographer

Q&A Friday

One quick question for today:
How do you get consistent bang on focus.....with one it is fine but what about three, four, five or more people?
Thanks for sending in your question. I know that a lot of people have trouble understanding how to get focus when more than one subject is in the picture. There are mathematical ways to figure this out, but I'm not a mathematician, so I won't bore you with that. :) However there are some things to keep in mind, and some general rules that you can apply to achieve good results, and I've listed them below.

-When you stop down your aperture (the larger the number), the better results you'll have. For instance, when you open wide (say 1.4) you have a very shallow depth of field (DOF). This means that your focus point will be in focus, with fall-off of sharpness in front of and behind your focus point. However, when you stop down (say F11) that creates more sharpness throughout your focal plane.

-Focusing on the front person of the group will give you better focus, because focus tends to fall backward, rather than forward.

-As a general rule of thumb you could use an aperture at a similar number to the number of people you have. I usually stop down one more just to be sure everyone is in focus. I know this can be difficult with a large group, and may require you to bump your ISO and/or use another lighting source to expose properly. However, with a group of three, you could easily use 4.5 and be fine.

-Try to get the members of your group to bring their heads close together so that they are on the same or similar plane. When you have someone far in the background, they are more likely to fall out of focus than if you bring their heads close to the heads in the front.

-The closer you are to the subjects, the shallower the DOF. Try stepping back a couple of steps and you'll be amazed at how much better the results are.

Some great websites to look at for this is can be found here, here, and here. They might seem a little confusing at first, but read them slowly and try to digest the information. You'll learn a lot! Also, if you have an iPhone, check out this DOF calculator you can add! I love that you can put in your camera and lens to give you accurate results on the go.


If you have a question you'd like me to answer, please email me at joannataylorphotography at gmail dot com

WPPI #2

Another model bride from my trip to Vegas. She was so sweet and beautiful.