Sarah and Mark - more images from their engagement shoot.

Sarah and Mark video 2

Sarah and Mark - show

Sarah and Mark

December proved to be a very busy month.  These are a few images from Sarah and Mark's engagement shoot.  We met at the Merrick Art Gallery in New Brighton and spent approximately two hours and captured over 70 beautiful images.  They were a very fun and easy couple to photograph which made the selection process tougher.

Over the next few blog posts, I will display not only other images from Sarah and Mark's shoot but images from within the gallery.

All the images were shot with the Nikon D300 and a variety of lenses utilizing both off camera flash and available light. 


Have a great Christmas and remember to capture the beauty of life!

Silent Night

This video my son in law created utilizing a few of my pix, music from his mom, and a very special child.




Enjoy!

Church Photos

It has been a fun filled busy year.  I am finally starting to catch up.  These images are from one of the oldest churches I photographed in this year.  The beauty is amazing and I hope the images portray its beauty.  The church is the Bellevue Presbyterian Church.

They were all taken with the Nikon D300 and the Nikon 10.5 fish eye lens.  It is a very fun lens to use and it creates amazing images.  The first image I processed in both Lightroom and Topaz Adjust.  The other two images were processed in Lightroom.

Double the fun

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to photograph the cutest twins ever.  I told their mom that she will be fighting off the girls as her boys grow up.


Enjoy a fast glimpse into their day!


Double the Fun from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Lindsey and Andrew Engagement Shoot

I had a great time capturing an evening with Lindsey and Andrew.  We took a few shots on the path leading up to the falls @ Buttermilk Falls then finished with a few shots near and on the train tracks that run above the falls.





Lindsey and Andrew - Engagement from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Emily & Matt's Wedding

Emily and Matt were married on October 10, 2009 in Bellevue, PA.

This is a quick show of their fun filled day. Watch this blog for more information.



Emily and Matt Wedding show from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Suzanne and Sean Engagement Photos

On a chilly October day, Suzanne and Sean braved the weather and added fun and laughter to an overcast day in Pittsburgh.  I had a blast shooting their engagement pictures for their wedding in 2010.

Images taken with the Nikon D300 and the Tamron 70-200 f/2.8

Suzanne and Sean Engagement Pix from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Lisa and her boys

I had the opportunity to spend time with Lisa and her boys, documenting a brief moment in time.  Her boys are very playful and enjoyed the time in the 'woods'.

The images were shot with the Nikon D300 & Tamron 70-200 f/2.8. I used spot metering and and a fill flash when needed to put some light on their faces. The flash was set to -2 ISO 200 - 800. Depending where we were and as the evening progressed, a higher ISO was needed.

This little show will display some of the 'energy' the boys displayed.  Enjoy :-D



Lisa and boys from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Engagement shoot: Christy - Matt

Wow!  Christy and Matt are a very fun couple!  They are very playful and easy to photograph.

They are getting married in July 2010 and we spent a few hours having fun and capturing a brief span of time in their life.  Thank you for the fun afternoon!



Christy & Matt Engagement Pix from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Gi Gi H.S. Senior Portraits Animated Show

Earlier in the summer, I had the opportunity to capture a brief moment in history of another beautiful H.S. senior - Gi Gi., - Class of 2010

Gi Gi Class of 2010 from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Jen - H.S. Senior Portraits

Recently, I had the opportunity to capture a brief moment in history of another beautiful H.S. Senior, Jen - class of 2010.  She brought her niece along and we captured a few shots with the two of them together.  


Best wishes to Jen and the class of 2010!


Jen - H.S. Senior Portraits class of 2010 from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Polo for the cure

Post Gazette Article

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to shoot a few images at the Ligonier Polo for the Cure match.


In the article above, notice one of my images were used in the PG article. The day was overcast which caused the sky diver show to be canceled.  However, the overcast day enabled some great photographs to be shot.  

If you want to view them, they are available on my site:
Polo gallery 2
The food and the table settings were amazing!

Food pix

As always, get out and enjoy the beauty of life!

Erin and Justin's Wedding

Another fun wedding from this summer.  Both the wedding and the reception were in Baden, PA.  When viewing if the show is choppy, please turn off the HD.  This is a ten minute show.  More from this wedding to follow.  Enjoy!


Erin - Justin Wedding - updated from Frank Kendralla on Vimeo.

Hopewell Class of 74 - 35th reunion

Wow! What a wild and busy summer. I am far behind on posting events and images to my blog. A recent event that I shot was the class reunion for Hopewell High School - ' 74. It was held at the Double Tree Hotel in Moon Twp, PA




Hopewell Class of 74 Reunion

Laura and Wes Wedding Slide Show

Here is a small peak into the Laura and Wes's special day.

Another spin on the log cabin.

While processing the images from the recent wedding, I went back to this shot and 'played' with this image.  I wanted to create an image something different.  Therefore, I created two layers.  The log cabin, is processed as a strong contrast black and white with the flowers processed in very vivid colors.  I cropped the image tighter than the original post. 

Shot with the Nikon D300 @ ISO 200 hand held.  Processed in Photoshop using Topaz Adjust.

Laura and Wes - wedding part 1

Another fun wedding this past weekend. The wedding was held at the Grace Bible Church in Harmony, PA and the reception at Shakespeare's resturant. This is the first of many images I plan to post from Laura and Wes's wedding. These were shot in front of the log cabin near the Grace Church in Harmony, PA. The first is a very 'fun' shot. Laura was sneaking a kiss as they road off from their wedding. :-D I used Topaz adjust for both images and layer masking to ensure the skin tones did not end up looking like a cartoon character.

Both images were shot with the Nikon D300 - 17-50mm f/2.8. ISO 200

Log Cabin Shots

While driving to the rehearsal of Laura and Wes's wedding and looking at the addresses to ensure I didn't pass up the church, I noticed an amazing building.  I thought wow, this would make a great back drop for wedding pictures.  Then I realized this log cabin with the amazing textures is in the parking lot of the church I am shooting the wedding. 




I am not sure how many shots I took of this building filled with character and stories.  I could have spent all eventing taking pictures of this great building.  Not only would this make a great backdrop for wedding portraits but imagine the look that could be achieved while taking senior portraits.  


Some adjustments made in Lightroom and Topaz Adjust.

The images were shot with the Nikon D300 - 17-50 f/2.8 ISO 200

What is the price of a picture?

What is the value of a picture? Thirteen cents paid to print a 4x6 at Costco? $1 paid for a larger print? $1000 paid to the photographer that shoots your family portraits? $1500 - $25k for wedding photography packages? What is the value? I believe there are certain pictures that are priceless. Consider the value of the only images of your child or your favorite pet. The pictures you find of your grandparents wedding in a box in the attic are priceless. What is the value of the images of your loved one that passed away or the funny pictures of your friends in leisure suits?

Very touching blog post

What is the value of childhood memories captured in a photo?

Recently, I finished portraits sessions of married couples ranging from 16 years of marriage to 67 years of marriage. One of the saddest truths learned in this project is the fact that most couples never get any portraits done after their wedding as a couple.

I hope this post is not depressing. My intent is to challenge you to get out and capture the beauty of life! Those pictures your photographer captures has a value that many times only you can realize. When your special day is captured and documented - your album is more than just a collection of pictures. It is a timeless piece of history for you to pass on to your family. Who knows who will pick up your album, twenty, thirty, fifty, or more years from now and smile, knowing that they have a piece of their history in their hands.

Please do not ever underestimate the value of photographing that special day in your life!

Detail shots

Many years ago I had a blog going of our 'rehab' project that we decided to take on.  (However, due to a lack of time, I didn't keep the blog current.)  Over the course of our marriage, my wife and I did a few 'rehab' projects.  Yes, the houses advertised as "TLC" or as my wife calls them.  Terrible Living Conditions.  Yes, our current house was one of them.  We bought it over five years ago from a bank and the house was in slightly run down, ok, terrible condition.  I won't go into the entire story today but through a tremendous amount of work and God's grace, the house looks nice. 

A few of these images are detail shots from our yard.  We have four acres of property and decided to make our front yard a haven for decorations.  :-D

Every year we bought trees and decorations for the yard and before we knew it, we were consumed with creating a beautiful front yard.

Each statue represented someone or something in our life.  The eagle is my favorite bird and we recently added the base for the eagle to rest on.

The little kids represent our oldest grandkids.

The marine represents our son in law and is a tribute to all those who serve this great country.  We have many other items and trees in the yard and over time, I will post them for everyone to enjoy.  Never in our wildest imagination did we believe the beauty that would develop in our front yard.

{To give this any significant meaning, prior to this project, we did very little yard work.  :-D }

As always, get out and enjoy the beauty of Life!

Hotel lobby detail shots

This was taken in the lobby of the Embassy Suites in Cleveland, Ohio.  I was up very early and was walking around the hotel and noticed many items in the lobby to shoot.  Plus, I was looking for interesting places to shoot a few group photos.

In a few hours this lobby would be filled with people talking, laughing, and children running and playing.

I have been playing with a plug-in for Photoshop, Topaz Adjust and liked its effect on this scene.

The second image is the location where I shot a few group photos.  Above this very interesting structure is a wide open sky light which provided an outdoor feel.

The forth image was taken from the third floor, immediately outside my hotel room.  I used Topaz Adjust to give the scene a 'different' artistic look.  The final image is a shot of some beautiful flowers taken outside the front door of the hotel.

As always, get out and enjoy the beauty of life!

Laura and Wes engagement shoot

Wow! Another fun engagement session completed with a great couple. Laura and Wes are very playful and a complete joy to photograph. Both are very athletic and open to fun portraits.




When we arrived, the weather was not cooperating. However, after a brief delay, the rain stopped and we were able to get some amazing shots. We shot until nearly dark when the bugs were looking for a late night snack.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
This was shot with the Nikon D300 and the 85 mm f/1.8
 

 


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Isn't she beautiful?
 
Over the weekend, I worked on a documentary project with Victory Family Church of photographing couples married 10+ years. I photographed a couple that was married nearly 70 years on Sunday and they were very spunky and fun to photograph. Since it is a private project, I doubt I will be posting many if any of the images to this blog. However, I will keep you informed how the project is going.




Get out and capture the beauty of life!

Expect the unexpected

Nikon D300, Tamron 17-50 f/2.8

One of the best parts when shooting an event such as a wedding is to expect the unexpected. People do the funniest things at weddings. In this sequence of images, the DJ begins to give the instructions to the guy who caught the garder. Just as the DJ started to talk the guy did a standing back flip on the dance floor. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him start to do the back flip and I turned and fired off a few shots. The camera was at waist height and the lens zoomed out to 17 mm. This all happened in a blink of the eye. Notice the motion blur and how close he was to the floor. He performed a perfect (in my eyes) back flip. Immediately, I turned to the young lady who caught the boquet earlier to capture her reaction. The next image is when he started and the last image is when he was finishing. A few images in between are not shown.


One of the best parts when shooting an event such as a wedding is to expect the unexpected. People do the funniest things at weddings. Years ago I learned to expect the unexpected. Regardless, if the event is a wedding, party, corporate event, or sporting event, always expect the unexpected. In this sequence of images, the DJ begins to give the instructions to the guy who caught the garder. Just as the DJ started to talk the guy did a standing back flip on the dance floor. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him start to do the back flip and I turned and fired off a few shots. The camera was at waist height and the lens zoomed out to 17 mm. This all happened in a blink of the eye. Notice the motion blur and how close he was to the floor. He performed a perfect (in my eyes) back flip. Immediately, I turned to the young lady who caught the bouquet earlier to capture her reaction. The next image is when he started and the last image is when he was finishing. A few images in between are not shown.

One of the most amazing items I find about a wedding is that even thought the outline is very similar. Non of the weddings are the same. There is always so much emotion that takes place and so many types of photography available. From the candids when the bride is getting ready before the wedding to the emotions flowing when the bride and groom see each other for the first time. Then a quick pan to the bride and groom's family as we capture the smiles and tears. Wow! The emotion that takes place is unreal. Then we slow down some for the formal portraits but the emotion kicks in again when we take all of the fun portraits. The entrance into the reception hall brings more fun activities and emotion. Oh, so much fun. Until next time, get out and enjoy the beauty of life!

Sara & Dustin Wedding Relaxing by the fireplace

Due to a very busy schedule, I have not kept up my blog. Ouch! I have another very busy week with portraits and events. Hopefully, I will get a few more images posted from recent shoots.Thats it for now.  Get out and capture the beauty of life! 




This image I took toward the end of the day and converted it to a 'drawing' in Photoshop. Due to a very busy schedule, I have not kept up my blog. Ouch! I have another very busy week with portraits and events. I hope that I will get a few more images posted from recent shoots.



This image I took toward the end of the day and converted it to a 'drawing' in Photoshop. Both the original and this image, I love! The setting is in the lobby of the venue and created a very 'homey' feel. We had to move quickly since there were people walking through the lobby. I lit the scene with an SB 800 fired through an umbrella to my right and above the couple. My goal was to create a relaxing fun image and ensure the ambient light was maintained.

Both the original and this image, I love! The setting is in the lobby of the venue and created a very 'homey' feel. We had to move quickly since there were people walking through the lobby. I lit the scene with an SB 800 fired through an umbrella to my right and above the couple. My goal was to create a relaxing fun image and ensure the ambient light was maintained.

Sara and Dustin's wedding

Another great and fun wedding:

Sara and Dustin - who are from the Cleveland area in Ohio were married at the 100th Bomber Restaurant near the Cleveland Hopkins Airport.

Check out this four minute slide show of the highlights from their special day.  It starts with a few shots from Friday night's rehearsal/dinner and into their wedding day.   Wow!  What a great time we had.

Emily & Matt - Engagement Session

Emily and Matt will be married later this fall with the wedding ceremony to be held at the United Presbyterian Church with a wedding reception to follow at the Fez in Hopewell twp. PA. We had a great time shooting their ‘engagement’ portraits at the North Park in the North Hills of Pittsburgh.

A few of the photos were taken on Marshall Island, which created a great backdrop for the portraits. The sun was setting over the water and it created a great back lighting situation. Emily looked beautiful with the light causing her beautiful hair to glow in the setting sun.

After a few shots on Marshall Island, we headed off to a second destination in North Park, the ‘School House’. It is an old shelter with tremendous character. I found it earlier in the day when I was driving through the park looking for buildings with character. Inside the shelter are two stone fireplaces with an amazing look. Under the shelter were many arched entranceways that enabled creating great images a ‘breeze’.

Emily and Matt are faithful Pittsburghers and brought along their Pittsburgh Steelers jerseys to wear in few portraits.

I had a tremendous time spending a couple hours with Emily and Matt, discussing the wedding and taking a few fun portraits.

The images were shot with the Nikon D300 and a variety of lenses including the Nikon 70-300 vr, Tamron 70-200 and 17-55 f/2.8. The lighting was an off camera SB800 shot through a white umbrella.

As always, get out and capture the beauty of life, 'one click at a time'.

Malaya - Congrats to Shannon and Ryan

Not long ago I had the privilege of shooting Shannon and Ryan's baby shower. Next I had the privilege of capturing their litte girl's first day of life! Isn't she cute? I had Ryan hold her close to the window and I used the soft side light that was coming in through the large sliding window. I used the 85 mm @ f 4 with an ISO of 800 on my Nikon D300.

Enjoy!

Rachel and Mike's wedding slide show

Beaver County Wedding Photographer Frank Kendralla presents a slide show covering the highlights of Rachel and Mike's wedding.





I had a great time capturing their special day for them to remember for years to come! Thank you for the opportunity!

Rachel & Mike ~ May 22, 09

Wow! What a great wedding. Rachel and Mike were married on May 22, 09 at Victory Family Church in Cranberry Twp. PA and the reception was held at the Mayernik off Camp Horne Road.

Rachel and Mike are a fun couple to photograph and I count it an honor and privilege that I was able to capture their special day for them
.

The dance floors were filled and fun music filled the air. I wish you both the best in life! May the Lord bless you abundantly!

Some of the portraits were taken at Buttermilk Falls in Beaver Falls, PA

Women's Tea - Cranberry Twp, PA

I had the privilege of capturing the images for Victory Family Church's "Woman's Tea" held at the Marriott in Cranberry Twp. Pa.  These are the three images that took the top three honor's.   Over 500 ladies attended the event and all the tables were very nice.  I am glad I did not have to judge the tables.

This was taken on our patio after the 'kids' were playing. They set up camp and this lonely bug holder caught my eye. I exposed for the sun to silhouette the kids and used a flash to light it. The sun was very bright and setting directly in front of me. This caused a 'dual' sun burst.

This was shot with the 17-50 f/2.8 @ 17 mm

Proms are everywhere part 2

This is another design I did in fotofusion. I used a picture of Gianna's flowers as a background to the design and placed the three images on top. Notice how the borders are based on the color of her dress. Try this technique in your design software of choice. It makes a very nice design and adds a nice touch to the finished product.