Ron + Kari | Coeur d’Alene, ID | 10.27.12

November 10, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

My last wedding of the year was right in my backyard — beautiful Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

Ron and Kari tied the knot at the old Fort Sherman Chapel, constructed in the late 1800s. I love the character of old buildings like this one.

The ceremony followed at the White House Event Center on Sherman. It was great to be able to use some of the fall colors in the background of a few of the portraits. The White House, another historic building in Coeur d’Alene, has great decor inside and out and worked out awesome for photos. Even though it was a fairly small group of mostly family, there were countless moments I was able to grab with my cameras. From dancing to laughing to an intense bouquet toss, there were plenty of moments to keep my happy and busy behind my viewfinder.

Kari and Ron were awesome people to share the day with and I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end the 2012 wedding year. Congrats guys!

Posted in Wedding Tagged Coeur d'Alene, coeur d'alene wedding photographer, Documentary Style wedding photography, Fort Sherman Chapel, ID | 10.27.12, McCall Media, Mike McCall, North Idaho Wedding Photographer, october wedding, Ron + Kari | Coeur d'Alene, Wedding, wedding photojournalist, White House Event Center |

Nick + Karin | Kingston, ID | 10.20.12

October 31, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

Well, I’ve shot a wedding in snow now.

Although flurries fell only momentarily at the end of Nick and Karin’s big day in Kingston, Idaho, it was still a reminder by mother nature that it is October… in North Idaho. Flurries aside, I couldn’t have been happier with the way things played out at French Gulch, a garden tucked away in the mountains where Nick and Karin tied the knot. The day begain with blue skies and sunshine, progressing to overcast conditions later in the day. Cloud cover may not sound ideal to most; however, for a photographer it provides some truly awesome lighting to work with. The lighting throughout the ceremony and reception was very soft and even, providing for some really great conditions for shooting.

The celebration felt very close and intimate, as it was a smaller gathering of close friends and family, which provided some really great moments to photograph. It’s the one thing that keeps me coming back to weddings and appreciating the chance to document some of the most meaningful moments in a couple’s life.

Nick and Karin were an outstanding couple to share the day with and I wish them the best in their journey through life together! Congrats!

Posted in Travel, Wedding Tagged Coeur d'Alene, Country Wedding, documentary wedding photography, french gulch wedding, ID, Idaho, idaho wedding, idaho wedding photographer, Idaho wedding photojournalist, kingston idaho, McCall Media, Mike McCall, Nick + Karin | Kingston.ID | 10.20.12, pacific northwest wedding, photography, Wedding, Wedding photography, wedding photojouranlist |

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis | Spokane.Wa | 10.16.12

October 19, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

Macklemore blew me away.

I shot the first three songs of Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ sold-out show at The Knit in Spokane Tuesday. I’ve been to several shows in Spokane that just didn’t feel like the artists gave it 100 percent. The crowd is smaller in comparison to the real big cities, and I think the energy from the band usually suffers.

Not at this show.

Macklemore played the Knitting Factory like he was headlining a major festival playing to 100,000 people. It may have been partly due to DJ/producer Ryan Lewis growing up in Spokane. Whatever it was, it was amazing. The amount of talent these guys possess is clearly evident in their live performance, not to mention their latest album which reached No. 1 on iTunes, something that’s unheard of for an independent artist.

It was a tricky one to photograph, as the lighting was pretty dim for the first two songs. Also, this guy moves fast! But I was able to walk away with a few frames I’m proud to share with you guys!

Posted in Music Tagged Hip-hop, Knitting Factory, Live Music, Macklemore, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis | Spokane.Wa | 10.16.12, McCall Media, Mike McCall, Sharkface Gang, Spokane, The Heist, Thrift Shop |

Drew + Maegan | Colbert.WA | 10.06.12

October 19, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

There’s nothin’ like a country wedding.

I had the pleasure of photographing Drew and Maegan’s engagement session at this same location where they ultimately tied the knot. Maegan’s parents have a lovely Victorian home nestled in the trees and farmlands of Colbert, Washington, where the big day took place. They constructed a huge white barn which provided an awesome place for the reception and dancing to take place, and a nice backdrop for the ceremony. There’s something special about having a wedding “at home” instead of a venue that really works out nicely. I had a blast documenting their celebration and couldn’t have asked for a better location to make some photographs. I commend their bravery in planning an outdoor wedding in October in the Northwest. You never know what the weather may be like this time of year, but luckily there was nothing but blue skies and sunshine all day.

Thanks for letting me tag along for the day and congrats guys!

Posted in Wedding Tagged Backyard Wedding, Colbert, Country Wedding, documentary photography, Drew + Maegan | Colbert.WA | 10.06.12, McCall Media, Mike McCall, Spokane, WA, Washington, Wedding, Wedding photography |

Ian + Tara | Bainbridge Island.WA | 09.22.12

October 6, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

We got lucky.

When I booked Ian and Tara’s September wedding across the Peugeot Sound on Bainbridge Island, I was definitely a little leery about the weather. Turns out, Seattle had a string of unusually sunny weather leading up to their wedding, and their big day was no exception.

The location was pretty much awesome. I forgot how green everything is near the coast; and their wedding and reception was literally overlooking the ocean. Soft light filtered through the towering pines and thick brush to make some insanely good light for the formal portraits. By the time the ceremony began the sun was shining in full force and it was clear no rain was in sight.

Ian and Tara planned so many fun details. From the bright yellow ties worn by the gentleman, to the pinata bashing following the ceremony, to the mason jars filled with sangria, it was visually a fun, color-filled day.

I’ll always remember this wedding as the wedding where literally everyone was on the dance floor. I’ve never seen so many people just straight getting down on the dance floor as I did at Ian and Tara’s celebration. After some time, Tara insisted I put the camera away and join them, which I did. Fun times.

Ian and Tara were just great to work with and I feel honored to be a small part of their day. Congrats guys!

Tomorrow I have a wedding in Colbert, Washington with Drew and Maegan. After their rockin’ engagement session out there this summer I’m confident tomorrow will be a blast. Stay tuned for their blog post soon!

Posted in Travel, Wedding Tagged Bainbridge Island, Ian + Tara | Bainbridge Island.WA | 09.22.12, Kitsap Memorial State Park, McCall Media, Mike McCall, photography, photojournalism, Seattle, WA, Washington, Wedding, Wedding photography |

Jake + Malia | Deer Park.WA | 09.15.12

September 27, 2012 by Mike McCall | 1 Comment

Jake and Malia’s wedding had a lot going for it.

A tree-lined, mountain backdrop deep in the heart of Deer Park, Washington; cool, unique details like old bottles with chalk writing for centerpieces and a whole bunch of fun family and friends surrounding them on their big day. Not to mention the sweet field down the road we snuck away to for some portraits.

The recent smoky skies may seem like a bummer to most people, but they provide excellent soft lighting for a photographer to work with, which came in handy throughout the day. I’ve also picked up a couple new lenses recently in which I used extensively this time. Both are prime lenses, one a 35mm f2 and the other a 100mm f2. Since that will sound like gibberish to many of you, I’ll explain. They are both prime lenses, which means they don’t zoom. But, they are “faster,” meaning they shoot in lower light and provide greater creative control of what is in focus and what’s out of focus. Prime lenses also tend to be sharper. I’m definitely growing fond of my new glass and the inability to zoom causes me to think more about my compositions.

It’s a never-ending process figuring out what gear works best and acquiring better stuff as you can afford it, but I’m getting there. Of course, the end product is only as great as the person behind the camera! I’m constantly pushing to better myself and notice ways in which I do so with each passing wedding.

Jake was a fellow Montanan, having lived in Missoula for some time, so naturally we got along great from the start! These two were super fun to work with and I wish them the best in their years together!

Posted in Wedding Tagged 100mm f2, 35mm f2, deer park, documentary wedding photographer, Jake + Malia | Deer Park.WA | 09.15.12, McCall Media, Mike McCall, photography, Spokane, WA, Washington, Wedding, Wedding photography |

Aaron + Audrey | Waikiki.Hawaii | 09.13.12

September 26, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

I’m sold.

I knew destination wedding photography is awesome, but until I shot Audrey and Aaron’s in beautiful Waikiki Beach, Hawaii, I didn’t realize how truly awesome it really is. You can’t beat traveling and doing what you love and being able to call it work!

These two kept it simple and had a small ceremony in Magic Island park along the water followed by a reception dinner downtown with family and close friends. I loved so much about shooting in this area — the palm trees. The deep blue skies. Waves crashing against rocks. Gorgeous sunsets. It truly is a visual playground for a photographer there.

I want to thank my friend and colleague Jake Donahue for referring me to shoot his sister (Audrey’s) wedding out here and for Audrey and Aaron for flying me out to make it happen! It was a quick trip but a blast nonetheless.

And of course I had to snap some frames around the area for myself in which I’ll be posting sometime soon. I took my newly-acquired Canon EOS-1 film body with me and shot a roll of Kodak Ektar 100 film as well which I will get developed soon to share on my blog as well.

Congrats Aaron and Andrew, and Mahalo for having me along for the ride!

Posted in Travel, Wedding Tagged Aaron + Audrey | Waikiki.Hawaii | 09.13.12, beach wedding, Color, destination wedding photographer, documentary wedding photography, hawaii, Hawaii wedding photography, magic island, McCall Media, Mike McCall, oahu, Ocean, palm trees, Travel, waikiki beach, wedding photojournalism |

Dustin + Alex | Spokane.Washington | 09.01.12

September 8, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

It feels good to be back home.

Well, I didn’t just get back from a trip or antything, but this last month has brought me to Montana every weekend for weddings, so it was sort of nice to drive a quick 45 minutes to be on location for Dustin and Alex’s big day. I had the pleasure to shoot these guys’ engagement session earlier this summer (well in May, actually. It’s crazy how fast time flies.)

The ceremony took place in a great little backyard of Dustin’s Aunt’s North Spokane home. I really enjoy the feeling that a location at a home provides for both preparation and ceremony shots. Just a bunch of family and friends at a down-to-earth wedding on a beautiful day in the Inland Northwest. I have to say, it feels nice to not be shooting in 90+ degree weather as most of the August weddings had been.

The reception followed at the German-American Society in Downtown Spokane. We were able to sneak out for a few quick portraits around the couple surrounding blocks. It’s always great to see the reactions from others when you go trucking around a city with a bride and groom.

Another awesome wedding in the books. Thank you Dustin and Alex for being such awesome people to spend such an important day with. Wish you to an awesome life together!

I take off Tuesday for a destination wedding in Hawaii. I’m a little excited. A very tropical blog post will be coming your way soon.

Posted in Wedding Tagged Backyard Wedding, coeur d'alene wedding photographer, documentary photography, Dustin + Alex | Spokane | 09.01.12, german-american society, McCall Media, Mike McCall, photography, Spokane, spokane wedding photographer, Wedding, Wedding photography |

Brian + Suzi | Missoula.MT | 08.25.12.

September 5, 2012 by Mike McCall | 3 Comments

Ever see a bride ride a chair lift in a wedding dress?

I hadn’t either, until Brian and Suzi’s wedding last weekend. These two each rode the chairs to the top of the mountain separately to have their “first look” at the top. Awesome idea.

I was able to get some of the most unique wedding photos I think I’ve ever taken, riding in front of Suzi on the chairlifts snapping frames of her high above the ground with the vast Missoula Valley as a backdrop. We snapped a few portraits at the top of the mountain before the two rode back down together and I rode behind taking shots of the them together.

I say this all the time but I swear I get the best clients in the world. It’s one of my favorite things about this job — meeting new people and getting to hang out with them to tell the story of one of the biggest days of their lives. Brian and Suzi’s family and friends were so much fun to spend the day with. I knew when Suzi and I first talked about shooting their wedding and she told me she and Brian had been to a combined 100-something Phish shows, we’d get along just fine. At the end of the night, when things were dying down, Brian offered to buy me a beer (they had a tasty local IPA on tap). I sat and talked music with a couple of their friends and Brian took hold of the mic and took a moment to send a toast my way, commending me on how great I did and how glad they were to have found me for their photographer. Pretty awesome. People who begin as strangers become friends by the end of the day. And that’s probably my favorite thing about doing this.

I think we walked away with some pretty great photos out in the mountains of Western Montana and I can’t thank Brian and Suzi enough for being so awesome.

Congrats guys and I wish you well in your travels overseas!

Posted in Photojournalism, Travel, Wedding Tagged Brian + Suzi | Missoula.MT | 08.25.12, chairlift, documentary, McCall Media, Mike McCall, Missoula, Montana, MT, phish, photography, photojournalism, ski hill, snowbowl, snowbowl lodge, Wedding photography |

“Fun” times

August 29, 2012 by Mike McCall | Leave a comment

I couldn’t help but use a horrible, cheesy pun for the title of this post.

I had the opportunity to shoot Fun.’s sold-out show at the Knitting Factory in Spokane Sunday. What a blast. I’ve been to a ridiculous amount of concerts (well over 100) and this show is one that will always stand out.

These cats have so much energy. It made for a pretty epic show, but a challenging one to photograph. It was always a struggle to get high enough shutter speeds to keep from motion blur. Access was the typical first three songs from the photo pit. Well, those first three songs flew by insanely fast. Luckily I got a few keepers.

I will definitely be seeing these guys again if I get the chance. Stay tuned to the blog for more concert shots. I’ll be photographing Allen Stone, the Avett Brothers and Dave Matthews Band this Sunday, The Memorials and Matisyahu in Seattle a couple weekends after that and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis later in October.

Posted in Music Tagged Fun at The Knit, Fun., Knitting Factory, Live Music, McCall Media, Mike McCall, Some Nights, Spokane, Washington, We Are Young |