A Few things I Love About the WPJA Wed Elope Awards

1. They’ve given me a reason to look at weddings I photographed years ago.

2. They play to my strengths as storyteller.

3. They make me think about my use of the Life formula for photo stories when I look at coverage of prior weddings.

4. Which makes me think about how I will tell the whole story of the next wedding I photograph.

5. And how I can vary my subject to camera distance and use of wide and telephoto lenses.

Here are a few photos from my last Wed Elope award winning wedding.. I photographed Evan and Kati’s wedding in 2013.. The wedding took place at the Cultural Center in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

See more wedding photographs on my portfolio page.

Best of 2020: Part 1

Putting together a year-end summary of favorIte photos is always revealing.

While I don’t have as many photos to choose from in 2020 as I had in years before COVID, I still have several favorites. And the favorites tell a story.

Most folks won’t be surprised to find out that several of my favorites are from February, before things close down.

Here are a couple of award-winners from my son’s wedding reception at The White House in Biloxi. Thankfully, they planned their reception for February while folks could still gather safely.

Before COVID broke loose, I also had the chance to document the Elevate Conference created by K2 Productions for Bell Partners. Here are a couple of favorites.

In November, my friend Kim Jackson was elected state senator from the district I live in. I couldn’t be happier for her and for the citizens of the state of Georgia. Kim is a force for God’s work in the world. She is an Episcopal priest at the Church of the Common Ground. She serves worshippers who are unhoused. Here are a couple favorites from the weekly foot clinic, Common Soles, that was still taking place in February.

Once Georgians were asked to lockdown in April, I began a documentary project in my tiny city of Pine Lake. I took portraits of folks on their porches and asked them to write a paragraph or two about how they were thriving or at least surviving quarantine. Here are a couple of favorites from the project.

COVID weddings are precious and few

2020 has been a strange year for wedding photographers, as well as event planners, florists, cake artists, etc. Needless to say, COVID has cut deeply into our livelihood. The weddings we have photographed since March have been small. Many we had booked have been postponed or downsized.

That makes the few weddings we were able to photograph this year that much more special.

Here are a few recent award-winning images, the first two from a COVID-aware October wedding and the last from a February reception.

COVID 19 and a Few WPJA Documentary Award Winners for 1st Quarter 2020

2020 has been a difficult year for wedding photographers, and for wedding vendors in general. COVID-19 and the restrictions that have been put into place to try to stop the spread of the virus have caused people to cancel or postpone their weddings, or to drastically downsize their weddings.

As a result the Wedding Photojournalist Association changed the usual way they conduct contests. Rather than begin the regular documentary contests in April, they postponed the first contest deadline until the first of September. They also added a special contest for Wed Elopement stories.

With business limping along due to the slow down in weddings and the complete collapse of the corporate event industry, I’ve had extra time to look through my photographs searching for potential winners. At times, I must admit, I’ve become far too obsessed with finding winners in the midst of the chaos.

Today, I am honored to report that my obsession paid off. I won 6 documentary awards for photos entered into the first quarter 2020 WPJA Quarter.

Here are three.

The last photo is part of a WedElope award winning series.

I am honored.

Kevin and Jamie's White House Party

Last fall, Kevin proposed to Jamie in the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California, a state in Mexico.

The couple returned home to Biloxi, Mississippi where they headed to the local courthouse for a quiet wedding.

And then came the party!

Close friends and family were invited to the White House in Biloxi to celebrate with Kevin and Jamie. And, wow, did folks have fun or what? See photos below, for evidence.

Wedding photographer from Atlanta serving Mississippi and beyond

Storm's a Brewin' at Mississippi Beach Wedding

Early in May we were lucky enough to be invited to photograph the wedding of Michelle and Allen. One of Michelle's best friends from high school, Becka, was one of my students when I taught photojournalism at the University of southern Mississippi. Becka told Michelle she should hire us to photograph her wedding. Thanks Becka! What a fun wedding ... well, I should say two weddings. The first ceremony--a Persian Aghd--took place on Friday night.

The next day everyone headed for the sand in Long Beach, Mississippi where a storm was trying to blow in. It was actually rather nice to have the cloud cover for the wedding -- both for the cooling effect and for the quality of light created. Before the wedding began, the bride hid behind a cover of parasols. (You can see it from both angles above and below.) The grooms wore khaki pants and casual white shirts with sand dollar boutonniere.

Here are a few of our favorite photos from the day.

And I'm honored to report that this photograph of the kiss at the end of the ceremony won a Wedding Photojournalist Association award.

Michelle and Allen's Persian Aghd Ceremony in Mississippi

It's taken us a while, but we've finally gotten around to sharing ceremony and reception photos from the Persian Aghd we posted about earlier. What a fun ceremony. The bride gets to pretend like she doesn't hear the officiant who is asking her if she is ready for marriage. Guests are encouraged to say the bride is out picking flowers or enjoying the sunny weather or some such. The ceremony is one of the most playful I've ever experienced. The reception was filled with delightful moments as well. Family members throwing money and dancing with hankies and friends and family taking part in the "knife dance." Here are a few favorites from the ceremony and reception:

Persian Aghd in Mississippi

Aunt gives nephew advice at Persian Aghd

Bride and Groom at Persian Aghd

Sharing honey at Persian Aghd

Bride and Groom in mirror at Persian Aghd

Aunts surround the bride and groom before Persian Aghd

Packing up the wedding cake

Father and Daughter share an emotional moment

Dancing at Persian Wedding

More Dancing at Persian Aghd

Persian Aghd photographer

Mississippi Wedding Photographers