the blog

Julie & Jeffery - Memphis!

2009-06-27T11:37:00.003-04:00

Julie and Jeffery convinced me it was a short walk from Clemson to Memphis.
I think maybe I'll Google it next time :)

This was a fun shoot! Two days to shoot and just hang out and take in the city.
And Julie and Jeffery were the perfect hosts. They shuttled me back and forth to my hotel and showed me the finer points (and less refined areas) of Memphis. We had time the second day to check out where Jeffery proposed to Julie; a huge public park where they brought out their dogs for some play time.
Then it was off to Graceland!
Even if you're not a huge Elvis fan you really ought to check out Graceland if you get the chance.
If you don't find it cool you'll at least find it interesting. I'm somewhere in the middle :)
And then they invited me to join them for Trivia Night with their group of friends.
A fun way to cap off a fun trip!

And FYI: James Stewart was the highest ranking military officer to win an Academy Award.
A Brigadier General in the United States Air Force Reserve!

Self portrait in Elvis' staircase leading to his basement. The guy liked mirrors.

Trivia Night!

Misty, Sandra & Marita

2009-06-26T13:15:00.000-04:00

Misty, Sandra and Marita made the drive out from Virginia Beach to Asheville just to shoot with me! How cool is that?!
This was a fun switch from the structure of a wedding day.
We grabbed some lunch and then drove around coming up with ideas for shots and wondering if the rain would cooperate with us!
Lots of shootin' - lots of outfit changes - and lots of fun!

Hop over to Facebook to checkout some more from this shoot!

Todd & Wendy's Wedding

2009-06-24T13:03:00.002-04:00

Following closely on the heals of my last post - it's Todd & Wendy's wedding!
The wedding was the very next day after all :)

My second shooter this weekend was April Poston. April and I also met while stationed in Germany.
She and her husband were stationed just down the road from where Todd & Wendy were getting married.
Very cool - Sweet pictures all weekend and a chance to meet up with a bunch of old friends!

Todd & Wendy's engagement shoot

2009-06-22T13:00:00.000-04:00

I'm so happy for Todd & Wendy (and Logan!)
I smiled the whole time I was editing these shots.
Todd's been a good friend since we were stationed together in Germany.
Two days to catch up in Florida was much too short!
We only had the day before the wedding to pull off an engagement shoot which transitioned into a shrimp boil party at the beach house!
Waiting on the shrimp, Todd used his celebratory cigar to pull off a pretty good Clint Eastwood!

Blake & Jennifer - Montreat and Bridals

2009-06-19T14:50:00.007-04:00

Here's the second engagement shoot I did with Blake & Jennifer. We met out in Montreat, North Carolina for a much warmer round of shooting than the first time around! A few weeks later Jen and I met at Asheville's Botanical Gardens to shoot her bridal portraits.
Blake & Jennifer were married this past weekend so now I'm safe to put a few of the bridals online :)

An Ode To The Wedding Photographer

2009-05-18T18:25:00.008-04:00

So I'm taking a shower this morning and thinking about what to post on Facebook.
I realize that last statement clearly makes me an addict, but let's keep going with the story...
I get a few ideas and then one of them seems to rhyme and I thought "pretty cool".
A little while later Jolene and I are chillin' in an oncology doctor's waiting room and I get a few more ideas.
So I start tapping them out on my iPhone.
Doctor visits can be kinda lengthy so I made pretty good progress as I sat there.
I emailed it to myself and finished nuancing it at home.

It became entirely too long for my Facebook status so my little poem about this past weekend's wedding has graduated to it's own blog post.
Without further ado...

An Ode To The Wedding Photographer

Heading to Mobile - a late decision to drive
It would be just a short 9 hours before I'd arrive
A baconator for breakfast with fries on the side
A diet coke to delude me as I continued my drive

Burgers and beer and shrimp & grits - some culinary highlights of my recent trip
We won't stop there, the memories are many - car crashes, alligators and chicks in bikinis!

The rain came in buckets for an hour or so,
I switched on my hazards so the guy behind would go slow!
The E-Myth Revisited on audiobook
I'd never got though it had it been a plane that I'd took.

Slow iTunes from iPhones had me growing tired
But a quick stop for a mocha and soon I was wired
I need to hit the road, but first a moment to pee
Despite all the photo-ops waiting for me

Mobile at last! My GPS didn't fail
The rehearsal dinner till eleven and then had to bail
My hotel room was decent, despite smelling like mold
gifts from guests past - their stories untold

Leno and Fallon do their thing on the tube
While I check my email before drifting to snooze

Up around ten and start to get dressed
a check on the weather has me distressed
Big chance of rain and in the 80's it'll run
dressed all in black - this should be fun

The elevator hits five and opens with a ding
I head down the hall - time to do my thing
Half-dressed girls fill the room, this isn't the first
But of all my jobs, this isn't the worst

Some wrapped in towels and some dressed in pink
Some with glittery sparkles but all with a drink
I pull out my camera from my bag by the dresser
And capture these ladies becoming prettier than ever

A detour to the pool to shoot a few friends
And then it's off to the church - before it begins
The bride's in her dress and she's ready to go
I glance at her mom as the tears start to roll

The bus with the guests and groom has arrived
The bride dashes to the garden - we're still shooting outside!
Tell the driver to keep going while we rush her inside
That was a close one - almost saw his new bride!

The guests, all seated, now start to stand
The bride looks lovely, her entrance is grand
I glance to the front, "where is the groom?"
He's still with the minister in the back room!

"no flash" the alter guild kept saying to me as a warning
perhaps now she'll get the groom, so we can get going
Some prayers and a hymn and a bit of communion
Two rings and a kiss - now it's a union!

I shoot away as they head down the aisle
Past all their friends all covered in smiles
Now friends and family gather in the shade
And I keep on clicking as memories are made

Getting to the reception this party is hummin'
I'm thinking about food - there's nothing in my oven
subtly scan the buffet to see what might be yummy
I guess it all was - nothing left for my tummy

no worries I guess, I've been hungry before
I keep unloading my gear and get ready for more
scanning the sky and checking the light
I pull out my softbox - we're doing this right

A few strobist tricks to amaze and amuse
It would seem wireless flash has been experienced by few
Switching to manual, my exposure dialed in
This is where the rockin' shots start to begin

Shots of the fellas and even more of the ladies
I'm loving this light - it's freakin' crazy!
Everyone's chimping my screen, it's going so well
The compliments roll in, my head's starting to swell

As the sun goes away we all head inside
With this group were still in for one wild ride
With beer and liquor flowing for all of the guests
The DJ is hit with a barrage of requests

The DJ is tapped as a solitary strummer
but the iPods come out - this party isn't over
The dancing is wild and karaoke's a hit
The reception is great - the partiers are lit

As Flo-Rida does his thing, a lone cop strolls in
It seems even the best parties must come to an end
I say my good-byes with hugs and best wishes
A few beer-goggled lovelies even offering kisses

As I drive back to my room and think back over the day
This was a good one - I gotta say
Tons of sweet shots with cool, creamy bokeh
But tomorrow's a long drive, I'm looking forward to that mocha.

An iPhone shot of my mocha :)

Julie & Jeffery - Clemson

2009-05-07T13:42:00.002-04:00

A little rain couldn't keep us from having some fun at Clemson stadium and getting some sweet shots!

Blake & Jennifer engagement shoots

2009-05-02T21:57:00.001-04:00

Has it really been two months since I updated the blog! I gotta get with it :)

Castle LadyHawke

2009-03-03T23:54:00.005-05:00

Castle LadyHawke is a new wedding venue just over an hour from Asheville, NC.
Aaron Hogsed asked me to come along with him to shoot some promotional images for the Castle - and I was happy to go!
Living in North Carolina, how many castles do I really get to shoot?!

Aaron put together a slideshow with images from both of us. Click here to check it out!

Aaron Morell from Grae Skye Studios was also on hand getting some video, so check it out as well.

Danielle & Barnabas @ Castle LadyHawke from Aaron Morrell on Vimeo.

stuff photographers think about

2009-03-01T19:23:00.003-05:00

I came across this video today and it resonated with me.
It's not exactly my story but I saw some shadows of mine in it.

This is Zac Arias out of Atlanta. I've learned a ton from this guy so it's interesting to hear his thoughts on stuff.
Like Zac, I've had some wonderful compliments on my photography which does tremendous things for my ego - but sometimes I'm just a guy trying not to suck.

Snow & Chris had a Rockin' Wedding!

2009-02-21T23:14:00.006-05:00

Hey everybody!
Sorry I've that I haven't posted anything for a few weeks - freakin' Facebook! It's got me addicted.
But that doesn't mean I don't have some sweet images for you.

Check out the beautiful and super fun Snow & Chris!
Snow still insists on being a Doctor instead of a model - what's 8 years of school when you're fabulous!
I suppose she can just treat the guys who's heart attacks she induced.
Good job security. Smart girl.
So is Chris smarter because he's a doctor too or for hooking up with Snow?
Not such a tough call there - I'm going with the latter.

DeAnn rocks the solo shoot!

2009-02-03T02:03:00.003-05:00

DeAnn flew out from California just to shoot with me!
How cool is that!
As an added bonus she got to visit her family and friends that all live in town. How convenient!

Going on two hours of sleep, DeAnn soldiered on as we shot for a few hours and and then braved the 20 degree weather to try out some cool night shots in downtown Asheville.
As is the case with most photographers - we don't have any good pictures of ourselves! But thanks to DeAnn taking the camera from me periodically while we shot, I've got some sweet shots to use with my webpage, facebook and whatever else I can come up with!

Normally I choose the images from a shoot that I think best represent my style - or that just came out freakin' sweet!
This time I let DeAnn choose - these are her favorites. Thanks for hooking me up with some cool shots!

Tell me that first shot isn't smokin' though!

My Brand New Website - zacthomas.com!

2009-01-21T01:29:00.010-05:00

Regular blog readers will know that the zac thomas clan has had a pretty eventful year - and the website kept getting pushed back.
Well, no more! I'm tired of my lame website that's been out there this whole time. It never worked well anyway.
Many nights have turned into the a.m. trying to get the new and improved www.zacthomas.com up and running.
Of course the whole thing would be pretty boring if I didn't have all my amazing clients to show off!
So, many thanks to all of you!
Leave me some comments - I'd love to know what you think!

Rock on!

Old School Christmas

2008-12-24T18:29:00.004-05:00

So I found a new program that's pretty sweet: Poladroid.
It takes your digital photos and transforms them into old-school polaroids!
I love the not-knowing-what-you'll-get aspect :) Funky colors and fades - sweetness.
The imperfection is the cool part.
I'm having to rethink how I'm taking pictures if I know I want to run them through the Poladroid.
Here's a few from this last week that I thought were fun.

Merry Christmas everybody!

The Three Amigos hit Miami

2008-12-11T11:00:00.000-05:00

Photographer extraordinaire Aaron Hogsed of Aaron Imaging recently asked me to tag along with him on a few shoots down in Florida.
Hmmm... let me think. Sure - I suppose I can squeeze that in.
Also making the trip down with us was the amazing Aaron Morrell of Grae Skye Studio.

not live TV

Here's a few of the tastiest images - I'm putting a few more than usual on the blog since we did quite a bit of shooting.
Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think!

This isn't the typical stained glass work I come across in churches.

I'm pretty sure Dana Carvey was playing the organ.

Jennifer - our awesome bride.

A fellow Zac rockin' out at the reception.

Aaron Hogsed still trying to wake up around noon.

Your's truly, waiting on breakfast in a funky little diner.

Aaron Morrell enjoying a break from the 23 degree weather we left in North Carolina.

And we did actually get around to trashing a dress - well, we scared it anyway.

A bit of the South Beach Strip.

Boobs - can't live with 'em...

2008-12-10T17:20:00.006-05:00

The posts on my blog usually go up as I write them but I've pre-scheduled a few to post throughout this week because I knew I'd be busy.
This one is coming to you in realtime though.

So my wife Jolene has breast cancer. I mentioned that at the end of a lengthier post a few weeks ago - but there it is again for any who may have missed it.
Jolene has blogged about it in more detail. For those of you who are interested you can check out her blog right here: Life Through Mommy Eyes.
This is the zac thomas quick rundown.

We've been to the doctor numerous times now and have had a multitude of tests. While this hasn't answered all of our questions it has narrowed down the cause to either cheap Walmart bras or a disagreeable enchilada. We're still waiting on pathology.
As is the case with cancer, it tends to localize itself in certain areas of the body before becoming widespread or systemic.
That's why you generally hear that people have brain cancer, lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, breast cancer, etc.
So, a logical course of action would be to remove the area with cancer, however that can have objectionable results - i.e. brain cancer.
But, since this is breast cancer we're dealing with - it seemed reasonable, if undesirable. So, that's what we did.
Jolene went in yesterday for a mastectomy. And, as expected, it was successful. That figures.
You tell doctors to get rid of your cancer and they'll try for years with wildly unpredictable results, you tell them to get rid of a boob and they nail it every time.

Breast cancer - no breast, no cancer - right?
Well, there's the possibility of encountering what's widely referred to as, "the rack of shoes".
Actually, I coined the term "rack of shoes" as it relates to breast cancer and, as such, it has only now begun to gain widespread acceptance among the medical community.
Suppose it's time for a wardrobe overhaul and all the shoes have to go. Though you have a perfectly lovely rack for your shoes, you decide to toss the rack and all the shoes with it. Job well done. But did you check under the bed...
At this point we've tossed a lovely rack.

We're back home today and Jolene is doing well.
We're very appreciative for all of the prayer that has been offered on our behalf as well as the outpouring of concern and support. It means a great deal to us.

Now then, what's a post without a few pictures?
I pulled over at a car wash in West Asheville rather spontaneously on Sunday afternoon and grabbed a few shots of the family.
A tripod and a timer make for rather uninspired family photos but, what can you do?

Even I use a cell phone camera sometimes!

I sympathize with Hitler

2008-12-10T14:22:00.003-05:00

My friend Corey McNabb had this video on his blog and I thought it was the funniest thing I'd seen in recent memory.
You may have to be a huge camera dork like myself to fully appreciate it but, I thought I would share it nonetheless.
I'm a Nikon shooter - I totally feel the Führer on this one :)

The Reverend and Mrs. Hayes

2008-12-08T11:59:00.000-05:00

Here's a fun shoot with Kevin and his lovely wife Angela.
The two smaller individuals are Kaelin and Tatum.
Kevin is the pastor of our church here in Asheville: the Underground.
Kevin and his clan are actually one of the few families I haven't shot from our church.
But we rectified that.
Now they've got some rockin' images to grace their Christmas cards and we never even got out of their yard!

Snow & Chris

2008-12-06T13:00:00.001-05:00

Check out the amazing Snow & Chris!
These two are both in the final stages of medical school but you couldn't tell it by how they rock in front of the camera!
I'm sure Snow was channeling her inner model the whole time. I tried to convince her that modeling was just as noble as being a doctor.
It won't be long before you'll have another chance to check out more sweet images of Snow & Chris, their wedding is on the 3rd of January.
Don't touch that dial!

Boys n Toys

2008-12-06T02:07:00.000-05:00

Here's another fun shoot from Tennessee!
Hank and his parents invited me up to capture some family images with their sweet toys.
Hanks' grandpa has a cool Russian made plane, a 1990's vintage if I remember right, along with a golf cart that snuck into a few shots.
And his dad did and awesome job restoring their 1974 VW bug.
We even borrowed the neighbors Piper Cub for a few images.
So, we put it all together and here is some of what we came away with!

Babies and Seniors

2008-11-30T13:10:00.000-05:00

This shoot was a bit different.
The day after Hillary and Wes' wedding, while we were still in Tennessee, I met up with Blake and his clan for a bit of a combo shoot.
On the agenda was family group shots, images of two month old Josie and senior pictures for the twins - Travis & Dakota.
We rolled the three shoots into one and had a great time.
Travis and Dakota were perfect; good looking guys who were up for trying anything.

The Return of HIllary & Wes

2008-11-25T14:04:00.002-05:00

Just when you thought HIllary and Wes couldn't get any more fabulous - they get married!
The fantabulous all went down in Shady Valley Tennessee, at Wes' parent's farm.
When you mix perfect weather, donkeys and carriages, and a bunch of friends - it makes for a pretty memorable occasion!

Our Anniversary - 13 Years!

2008-11-23T20:24:00.005-05:00

Wow!
It doesn't seem like 13 years - it seems like forever! But in a good way :)
I don't even remember what my life was like before I had Jolene in it. And that's probably because it's not worth remembering. My life found it's worth when I found Jolene.
It's been a wonderful, amazing, sweet, sometimes very hard, but always worthwhile journey.
This last year has been a mixture of both.
This has been the first full year for "zac thomas photographer" and I'm both excited and humbled by the feedback so many have shared with me. That so many people love what I do has made it easier to endure and visualize a time in the future when the financial burden of starting a new business won't be as acute.
This was only multiplied when, in January, one of our water pipes took an early retirement and flooded our entire house. After two and a half months in a hotel and construction that still continues by your's truly; we're reconsidering the benefits of renting.
In the midst of daily life, Jolene and I are filled with Joy as we watch our little Men - Gryphyn and Vahn - continue to grow and develop. We were as excited as any parent as we observed Vahn learning to walk this summer, and then we were heartbroken when he wondered onto the asphalt and burned and blistered his feet to the point he couldn't walk for weeks. Many of you poured out your sympathies and we're very grateful; no one is happier than we are to know that Vahn's feet have healed completely.
Jolene and I didn't have our boys until we had been married for 10 years but, for that whole time, we had our cats - Tigger and Cheyenne. For 12 years they were our family. Putting them to sleep was one of the hardest decisions I've ever made. Their loss was still too fresh when Jolene's dad, Bill, passed away a week later. October was a hard month.
November was progressing nicely until last week.
That's when we found out Jolene had breast cancer.
Didn't see that one coming.

My dad has always told me, "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans."
Can I get an Amen!

So, this has been one of the best years and one of the worst years for Jolene and I. But, it's one year out of many.
And when we compare our marriage to that of my grandparents who were married over 60 years - our story is still very much in the character development stages. You could miss this much and still enjoy the movie.
We're looking forward to the rest of the story...

Some Fun

2008-11-17T14:07:00.002-05:00

If it comes as a surprise to you that I'm into photography than you're probably on my blog by accident. So head back over to Google and try again - nice talking to you.
For the rest of you I'm also into all things Apple. Perhaps not a big surprise either.
Anyway, in my online journeys I occasionally come across some funny stuff - so I thought I'd share.

Crystal & Bradford got Married

2008-11-15T22:30:00.005-05:00

Crystal and Bradford had a simply awesome wedding in Hot Springs, North Carolina.
This is despite the fact that I had to roll my old bones out of bed to make the drive and start shooting at 8am.
Morning people... honestly.
By the time I had arrived Bradford had already gone running and, to everyone's relief, it was a round trip :)
After breakfast, things got rolling and we came away with some really sweet images!
Crystal and Bradford, both wanting great pictures, even set aside some time in the itinerary for me. You gotta love 'em!
We managed to work in a baby shoot in between all the wedding action as well.

She was a guest - not a catalyst. Just in case you're wondering.

I was digging this funky old mirror made from polished metal. Try doing your makeup in that one!