…i just took about an hour or so, and went through all my images from 2008. lots of portrait sessions, weddings, and personal work. but, I thought I’d just boil it down to mostly weddings, and tell you why i picked the images i picked.
weddings are such emotional events. and, it’s difficult to pick one image. in many cases, i was really torn. usually, moments happen in a series of images. this is the main reason i truly think every client should have an album, and not just digital images on a disk, or a stack of 4×6 prints with static images. weddings are about story telling. however, for this exercise, i just tried to pick one image that was meaningful in some way.
i want to take a moment and thank all of my clients for your sincere belief and trust in me.
Annette & Kyle, Union Station, Los Angeles: I really love the look and feel of this image. As I shoot the bride & groom portrait session, I always look for that one moment where they just slip away into eachother and forget I am there. I felt that this was one of those shots.
Casey & Josh. Wedding at Bethany Lutheran Church, Long Beach. Reception at Old Ranch Country Club in Seal Beach. The thing I love about this shot is that the groom was sitting in a chair on the dance floor, and all the women just started attcking him. It was hilarious. I thought this image caught the situation pretty well. 
Elizabeth & Jeremy at the Long Beach Museum of Art. This was another one of those moment where I think they just forgot about me, and had a small moment to themselves. I love the way this image feels.
Heather & David. The Garden Room, Garden Grove, CA. At the reception, one of the brides maids gave a speech and could barely get through it. Emotions always run high during the speeches. It’s almost overwhelming, even for me.
Kristin & Alfonso. Wedding: American Martyrs Catholic Church. Reception: Marriott, Marina Del Rey, CA. This shot is just amazing to me. I just keep staring at it. I guess I keep wondering what she was thinking about. But, everyone’s expression is different, and it’s just very real. They were getting ready to pose, and I grabbed this shot in between.
Karen & Demetrios. Wedding: Assumption Greek Orthodox Church, Long Beach, CA. Reception: Alamitos Bay Yacht Club. Another of the emotional moments is the father/daughter dance. I love this shot of Karen and her dad.
Katie & Mitch. Long Beach Museum of Art. I always like to add a creative flair to the bride and groom portrait session, if I can. I just dig the way the wind blew her veil like that.
Laura & Corey. Wedding: St. Cornelius Catholic Church, Long Beach, CA. Reception: Eagles Nest Clubhouse at Naval Golf Course in Cypress, CA. If you’re on this blog, you’ve seen this photo. As always, at every wedding, I take some images for me. I realize that I am working for my client, but often it’s a win-win situation. I just really like the look and feel of this image. The light for this bride and groom portrait session was just beautiful.
Maggie & Iain. The Sunset Restaurant, Malibu, CA. I don’t normally show these kind of shots in my portfolio, but I am making an exception here. I just love this one. For one thing, it was extremely challenging with the bright sun. Clients don’t realize how difficult this is. Although I love it, and pull it off everytime, I’m always thinking, ‘there’s just no way I can do this’. But, what I like about this one is the candid look and feel of it. I try to achieve this in all my ‘formal’ images. This one is exemplary of what I am usually going for.
Melissa & Kresna. Wedding: First Christian Church, Long Beach, CA. Reception: Double Tree Hotel, Anaheim, CA. What I love about this image is I think it’s soooo them. Kresna is kind of a silly guy, and I mean that in a loving way. He has a great sense of humor. And, Melissa loves that about him. I dig this shot because it really reminds me of them.
Natalie & Luke. Tennessee Gardens, Redlands, CA. This image was a surprise to me. I didn’t know I had it until later when I was editing. The thing about this is tome, it really exemplfies them. They love it to and it did wind up in their album. The old brick building that says Western Star, and their heads in the corner I really think is a bitchin’ image. Downtown Redlands is a pretty rad place to shoot.
Phoebe & Tony. Rancho Capistrano, CA. These next 2 shots are just great fun. We were just cracking up and having such a good time. Sometimes, that’s all it’s about. When I see these I just crack up, not because the images themselves are funny, but because the whole situation was a riot.
Sophi & Lane. Westlake Village Inn, Westlake Village, CA. I really, really love this image. Sophi was getting emotional while getting ready and waiting for the wedding to start, and her bridesmaids were trying to console her. As I said earlier, it’s hard to show in a single image, the next few images, the bridesmaids were holding her and hugging her and trying to make her feel better. But, this one, I think, tells the story the best.
Tiffany & Luis. The Reef, Long Beach, CA. This shot was taken because we were being crazy in the middle of a highway. I like images like this because any time you can get a road in a wedding image, you know can say a lot with that image; where they are going, where they’ve been, what lies ahead of them, etc. I really like this one, and I hope they do to.
New Orleans. What can you say about Max? I think this image says it all.
This is only a selection of weddings from this year. I couldn’t show them all due to certain araingements that were made regarding privacy. However, of the ones I can show, these are some of my best of images. 2008 has been an incredible year for me. One of my favorite moments this year was doing the Valentines Day shoot at City Hall. I just went down with my camera and shot 4 weddings. Obviously, they were just small weddings, usually with maybe just one family member. But, the couples were in love, and I was able to capture them saying “I Do” as well as take them outside and do a mini portrait session for them to have. It was a very rewarding experience for me.
I have many plans for 2009, and if I can accomplish half of them, I’ll be way ahead of myself. 
If any of my current clients have favorite a single favorite image, please submit it to me, and tell me what meaning it has for you. I’ll post the image here as well as your description. It could be fun. It doesn’t have to be from 2008. It could be from anything. Any image I’ve ever taken that has meaning for you and that you would like to share with the world!
I am so proud of all my accomplishments up to this point in my life. And I am also so humbled by all of my clients who love me and entrust me with important moments in their lives. It means a lot to me to have all of you in my life.
I wish each and every one of you a safe, heathly, and prosperous New Year.
Cheers,
Jerry Frazier