December 28th, 2010
You can try to pose toddlers. You can coax them, bribe them, aim them, distract them, or resort to squeeky toys. At the end of the day, they do what they want to – and that sometimes involves posing themselves in ways that are far more entertaining than the original plan.
This is Peter – and it’s the second time I’ve had the honor of photographing him and the rest of his family. The first time I took Peter’s picture was a year ago – and it was amazing to see what a little man he has become. Peter did a great job during the photo session held on a snowy Saturday morning at the Como Park Conservatory. He wasn’t very excited to sit calmly with Mommy and Daddy – but if he was left to his own devices, he’d do some awfully cute things. This is the shot that I call his homage to the Dos Equis commercials – he is
The Most Interesting Kid in the World
- His business card simply says ‘I’ll call you.’
- Sharks have a week dedicated to him.
- Bulls flat out refuse to fight him.
- His personality is so magnetic, he is unable to carry credit cards.
- His mother has a tattoo that reads.. “son”
- He could disarm you with his looks… or his hands. Either way.
- He lives vicariously through himself.
I actually couldn’t stop laughing as I processed this picture – because it’s so unbelievably suave’. We also let him do some wandering – which worked out well for him. Well, mostly:
I once had an awkward moment just to see what it was like..
Of course, we did some very nice family photos with Peter’s mommy and daddy in the picture as well.
I really like to do pictures that include a lot of the surroundings – it gives a sense of scale and environment as well as adds visual interest to the photo. Using wide angle lenses allows me to expand the view and show the grandness of the Christmas display of poinsettias and other festive flowers surrounding the family in holiday cheer.
Thanks a ton to John, Melissa and Peter for letting me take their 2010 Christmas picture.
Go Somewhere Special…
Tags: Como Park Conservatory, Family, flowers, holiday, portrait, toddler
Posted in Family, Holiday | 1 Comment »
December 13th, 2010
There is beauty everywhere you look. Beauty of a bride on her wedding day.. beauty of nature.. beauty of a bride on her wedding day in nature.. even in some of the less scenic suburbs in the Minneapolis area. LeAnna, the bride, really wanted to get some beautiful outdoor photos on her wedding day. She warned me in advance that the church was in a pretty industrial part of Brooklyn Center – and there wasn’t enough time on the wedding day to travel more than a few miles from the church.
I always pre-scout a wedding location – I visit the church, meet the clergy, find the best angles.. then I find nice outdoor locations. I’ll admit – this one was a challenge. There were several city parks nearby – but they were all 150′x150′ squares of grass with a swing set. I finally noticed when I studied the map of the area that there was a community college nearby – and every other community college in the metro area has nice grounds, so I reasoned this one would too. When I drove past – it was instantly obvious this was going to be perfect.. this little bridge was just 10′ from the road!
I also did a few shots in the second chapel in the church which is now being used as a gym. It was totally dark in there – but there was a HUGE stained glass window in the back with glorious light streaming through it. I set up my portable wireless lighting gear, placed LeAnna and Jared in the scene, and got some really dramatic shots:
Of course.. we had to shoot some fun shots too! The reception was held at Canterbury Park in Shakopee – and I was able to get the bridesmaids to parade on the parade walk:
A big congratulations and a huge thanks to LeAnna and Jared for hiring me to capture the memories of their wedding day.
Go Somewhere Special…
Tags: bride, brooklyn center, canterbury, cinematic, groom, leaves, minneapolis, nature, shakopee, trees, wedding, window
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November 2nd, 2010
I had the pleasure of doing Amy and Brian’s engagement shoot a few weeks ago at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. It was one of those picture-perfect fall days in Minnesota with cool crisp air and lots of fall color. It was right in the midst of a month-long stretch of some of the best weather Minnesota has to offer. Amy and Brian were able to do the session on a weekday morning – so we had the place to ourselves. Anybody that has ever been to the Arboretum during peak colors will agree that having it yourself is a very rare treat.
Amy and Brian were a ton of fun to shoot with – they are a very playful couple and VERY much in love. Amy joking put on Facebook the day before the shoot that she was a bit apprehensive about having to go kiss on camera for a couple of hours – but it didn’t take more than a couple of frames and I didn’t have to give them any direction.
I have the honor of photographing their wedding in November, 2011 – one year and counting! It’s going to be a great day..
Go Somewhere Special!
Tags: Chanhassen, colors, Engagement, fall, leaves, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
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October 13th, 2010
It’s peak color in Minnesota! When the Sheards booked a family portrait session in mid-Summer, none of us knew the weekend that we picked would not only be peak color in Minnesota – it would be near 90 degrees! The original plans for the session was for typical ‘fall in Minnesota’ garb – i.e. sweaters, jackets, etc. Who knew sweat and mosquitos were going to be a factor?
Regardless.. it was a perfect day to be outdoors in Minnesota and I think just about every photographer in the metro area was at the Arboretum shooting. Since I never shoot at any of the stereotypical places in the Arboretum and prefer to head to the ‘outback’, we were able to escape the crowds and go for some beautiful fall shots.
The above shot is one that I’ve been envisioning for a couple of years and was never in the right place at the right time to make it happen. I could tell when we got there that the timing and the lighting conditions were going to be perfect – and the Sheards were up for it. I think it turned out better than I hoped.
I’m pretty sure I’m the only photographer at the Arboretum dragging around light stands and umbrellas – but it makes such a huge difference in the quality of the portrait. I’m able to add some punch to the photo and create perfect light just about anywhere. The net result is a portrait with more impact and doesn’t look like a portrait. It’s more effort – but it’s so worth it!
Of course, I do natural light ‘lifestyle’ portraits too – I love seeing families laughing and playing together. The resulting pictures show off their personality and their relationship. How can you be at the Arboretum in the fall without taking pictures of walking through the woods?
Schedule your family sessions now starting at $250.
Go Somewhere Special…
Tags: Chanhassen, Family, landscape arboretum, leaves, lifestyle, portrait
Posted in Family, Lifestyle | No Comments »
October 7th, 2010
It’s so neat when a wedding is wrapped in traditions beyond the standard “Something Borrowed, Something Blue…” things. Kaitlin and Donald’s wedding in early September had so much personal meaning and family tradition that it really was a perfect expression of the two of them.
Every wedding has a ‘do-or-die’ shot – for Kaitlin and Donald, it was a picture of them in front of the huge stained glass window in Sacred Heart Church in Waseca. Everyone in Kaitlin’s family has the same picture from when they got married at Sacred Heart. Even the location is special to them – and it goes much deeper than it being their family church. It really is their family’s church – Kaitlin’s great-great-great-grandfather (give or take a great or two) was one of the men that built this church. Let’s stop for a moment and look at what he created:
The bride also comes from a strongly Irish family – and they went full-tilt boogie on the Irish traditions. All of the dresses, flowers, ribbons, and even lighting at the reception were Irish colors.
Even the groomsmen were sporting Irish green vests and bowties.. and one little orange butterfly realized he was the perfect color and got into the act!
Though not exactly Irish, they had a really sweet getaway car courtesy of a relative of Kaitlin’s.. and a perfect day to cruise with the top down..
The green lighting at the reception made it interesting to take pictures of people.. but it sure looked cool on the cake..
A big congratulations to Kaitlin and Donald and a big thanks for sharing your special day with Mark Teskey Photography!
Go Somewhere Special…
Tags: bride, groom, irish, sacred heart church, waseca, wedding
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September 3rd, 2010
Each time I process a wedding, I reserve a few images and give them some special extra processing to make them into a fine art piece. I wanted to take a moment and share a couple of my signature images from Mike and Sarah’s wedding.
This is a unique composite image using a technique that I tried for the first time on this image. It’s something I came up with while playing around with an image that I knew could be a great shot but needed a little extra help. I processed this image twice. Once got a standard photographic treatment, nothing special. This gave me the nice pretty images of Mike and Sarah. The second shot I went for broke.. I wildly changed the coloring and I boosted the detail a lot using HDR techniques. This gave me the ‘gritty’ background that makes all the water and bricks jump out of the scene. I blended the two in Photoshop and the ‘sweet and salty’ image above is the result.
This signature image used multiple images as well.. but this time it was a pair of textures that I overlaid and blended into the image to give it the warm, vintage, slightly scratchy abused look that you see. It’s a timeless look – this picture could have been taken anytime in the last 50 years. The trick in creating this image was subtlety.. less is more! I wanted just a whisper of texture.. any more and it would have become distracting. It’s also important to make sure to edit the texture away from the skin – no bride wants blotches on her perfect complexion!
This last image got no special treatment, nor did it need to. It got multiple copies ordered instantly from the preview on the back of the camera. I had to push this fun-loving bunch to give me the attitude I needed for the shot.. but as soon as they saw the results they got it. Trust me – every group of groomsmen deep down wants to look like tough guys!
Tags: bride, groom, HDR, landmark center, signature, st. paul, texture, wedding
Posted in wedding | 1 Comment »
August 25th, 2010
Nothing like a picture that tells a story, is there? But.. what is the story? There’s a few possibilities..
- Our femme fatale has a taste for muscle cars. Truth to be told.. she might be tougher than the guy in the passenger seat!
- It’s Daddy’s car.. and his little princess is learning how to drive a stick. In a cocktail dress.
- Bonnie and Clyde are making a getaway.. with Bonnie behind the wheel. Bonnie is angry because Clyde took too many risks and almost got them busted
My favorite version is 1. There’s nothing that says “Don’t mess with me” like 750 horsepower.
This is a set that I shot on back in June with Martin Graham-Dunn, Dan Davis, and a few others. It was a really technical setup with about 15 lights scattered around the car, in the car, in the engine, under the seats, and everywhere that needed a highlight. The car is gorgeous.. it’s a tricked-out ’57 Chevy dragster with chrome and performance parts all over the place. I’ll almost certainly post some more shots from this session.
I wanted to post this one today.. because it had been too long since I’ve posted an artistic piece. I’ve been putting this aside for a special occasion since it required a LOT of editing to finish it off. Today seemed like the right day.. and I’m glad that I can share this with you.
Tags: attitude, fashion, hotrod, muscle car, portrait
Posted in Fashion | 1 Comment »
August 19th, 2010
I absolutely love wedding albums.. they are the culmination of the photographic efforts for the entire wedding day. Properly done, a wedding album is a heirloom to be enjoyed for generations to come. It tells the story of the day, captures the emotion, and documents the details in a way that prints or snapshots simply can’t. It also is a nice concise way to share the best moments of the day since the 20-40 pages of the album is ideally matched to the average person’s attention span.
I also love to see albums BIG. A 12×12-inch album (or larger!) has the ‘coffee table book’ effect where each page is a large wall-sized portrait. The large pages have a huge impact on the viewer that small images don’t. They also feel so substantial.. when I hoist a full-sized album, the quality is obvious.
These are a few two-page spreads from a wedding album that I delivered to the bride earlier today. It was 20 two-sided 12×12-inch pages with a charcoal leather cover, printed on pearl paper. The images practically jumped off of the page with the richness of color and the added dimension that the pearl paper imparted to the book. I designed the album and worked with the bride through several proof iterations to get it exactly how she wanted the album to look. After the final round of proofs to make sure it was perfect, I delivered it to be printed early last week.
The bride absolutely loved it at the big unveiling today. Even though she had worked with me through all of the proofing, the final book surprised her with how beautiful it was. She couldn’t wait to get home to start proudly displaying it to friends and family.. and she’ll be able to do so for the rest of her life.
Did you get an album with your wedding pictures? Can I help you with an album? Drop me a line at: mark@markteskey.com and I’d be happy to consult with you about how Mark Teskey Photography can put one together for you.
Go Somewhere Special..
Tags: album, bride, groom, wedding
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August 9th, 2010
This is Kara Cuka – and she’s one of the best mortgage brokers in the state. So much so that she is going to be featured in Mpls. St. Paul Magazine as a Top Broker. That’s a big honor and it’ll hopefully bring her a lot more mortgage business.
As part of the magazine feature, Kara needed professional headshots on very short notice. Kara found my work online and felt that it was the style that she was looking for. I was able to shuffle my schedule to do the session less than 24 hours later at her office in the beautiful Centennial Lakes complex in Edina.
My job was simple.. Kara is gorgeous and her personality shines. We spent about an hour playing around her office complex in several locations with a variety of poses and backgrounds. Lots of laughs and many corny jokes were shared.. and before we knew it, I had a couple of hundred shots to choose from.
I’m sharing a couple of our favorites.. I love how they turned out! She specifically wanted pictures that portrayed her as a friendly and fun professional to work with.. and I think we nailed it.
Can I do headshots to improve your image? Click on the Contact Us link above to schedule a session!
Tags: Corporate, edina, headshots, magazine, mortgage
Posted in Corporate, Headshot | No Comments »
June 15th, 2010
Happy is the bride that rain falls on – excerpt from Irish Wedding Prayer
On Saturday I had the privilege of photographing Sarah and Mike’s wedding at the Landmark Center in St. Paul, MN. The plan had been to spend a lot of time shooting outdoors on location in Rice Park. Heavy rains moved in late morning and didn’t let up all afternoon making that plan a little too.. soggy. During the reception, the weather broke and we had our chance. I grabbed a pair of party guests to act as light stands and we were able to go out after dark to get some night shots in front of the Landmark Center – and I love how they turned out!
We did brave the rain to get a bunch of great images at the Como Park Conservatory and the historical carousel. Sarah has been getting photographed at the carousel since she was a little girl – and it meant a lot to her and her mother to get photographed there on her wedding day. A huge thanks to all the volunteers at the carousel that helped make it happen.
You spin me right round baby right round..
All in all, it was a wonderful day for everyone. Sarah and Mike were surrounded by love in a spectacular location.. both from each other and a large group of guests that obviously cared deeply for them. It is such a treat to have an all-access pass to a day like that!
It was a morning-til-night affair – and between the beauty of the bride and the beauty of the location, I could have photographed for days and not had to repeat.
The White Waterfall at Landmark Center, St. Paul
Thanks again and Congratulations to Mike and Sarah!
Tags: landmark center, rice park, st. paul, wedding
Posted in wedding | No Comments »
