But can you blame me? Look how pretty it looks. And yes, in case you were wondering, it was delicious.

Did I pick that bowl out specifically because I planned to photograph my breakfast? Yes. I have priorities. And cereal is one of them. It is, though I’m a little ashamed to admit it, one of my absolute favorite foods. I’ve been known to skip dinner and eat a bowl before bed. I’d say it would be my “desert island” food but inevitably the milk would curdle in the hot tropical sun and then I’d be screwed.

What’s your favorite kind of cereal? Answer carefully — I’m judging you.

This one’s actually from last year. I was shooting long exposures out my back window while firing a giant manual speedlight from the side through a garden window. Apparently when I get cabin fever this is what happens. I’ve actually used this photo as the background on my phone all winter, because apparently the feet (plural) of snow outside isn’t enough of a reminder.

And another from last year, though not so snowy. Fog is one of my favorite photographic subjects, as well as one of my favorite things about winter and the cooler parts of the year in Oklahoma.

Also I apparently have a thing for the lines in the middle of roads or something. I’ve always liked this shot though, because if it weren’t for that bright yellow line this photo could pass for a black and white. Again, I dig that monochromatic quality that winter brings into our lives; having said that, I’ve had enough of it this year. Spring, we await you with open arms and short-sleeved t-shirts.

There’s just something about it.

Abandoned drive-in movie theater on old Route 66 west of Sapulpa, Oklahoma.

Abandoned building, Bartlesville, Oklahoma

That last one came out looking like something from a horror movie or something, which was totally unintentional, but I like it.

I was inspired to write one blog entry every day in February by my friend Erin — you should check out her blog (and amazing photography) here.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and yours. I hope you get everything you asked for and eat so much pie you can’t see straight.

-michael

Brides are quite possibly the portraitist’s dream.

When you shoot a wedding, it’s all about capturing moments in time: memories, details, cross-sections of day where a million tiny (and some not-so-tiny) things happen almost all at once. As a photographer you’ve got to be on top of the situation; you’ve got to get good shots, and you only get one chance. This is the rush of wedding photography: you’re part portrait photographer, part event coordinator and part photojournalist. It’s great fun, but there’s also something to be said for taking things a bit more…slowly.

Bridal portraiture really has one simple aim: make the bride look, and therefore feel, like a million bucks. Brides are beautiful people, and your job as a photographer is to capture that:  a beautiful person on their most beautiful day.

Instead of trying to be in three places at once like you will be on the big day, you take your time. You explore the many angles, textures and nuances of the person. You might even lie on the ground.

You’ve got the time and freedom to experiment, to play.

Brides are happy people, and effective bridal portraiture is happy work.

A lot of times you end up finding joy in the simple moments; in the details.

If weddings show photography at its most frenetic and exciting, then bridal portraiture is the art of subtlety and softness; of slowing down and capturing a not-so-everyday, once-in-a-lifetime kind of beauty.

There was a time in my life when I didn’t enjoy shooting weddings. I thought there was too much pressure, that they were too hectic, stressful. Now? I find them really enjoyable. I enjoy each one more than the last.

People make a big to-do about making sure everything is just right and goes according to plan, but what a wedding ends up being about is the moments shared between people. Parents and children, life-long friends, people very much in love. The beautiful things about weddings are almost always the ones you could never plan for.

Photographing a wedding isn’t just about knowing which events need to be captured. Sure, there’s a “list”: the kiss, the first dance, the cake. But it’s also about finding those little moments, the ones often happening when nobody knows you’re watching.

For me every wedding has an overarching theme: people in love, people being happy. Photographing a wedding is all about capturing those happy moments.

Congratulations to Josh and Natalie, and thanks for letting me be a part of your big day.

This is my presentation from IgniteOKC last week. Enjoy!

Started by Brady Forrest, Technology Evangelist for O’Reilly Media, and Bre Pettis of Etsy.com, formerly of MAKE Magazine, Ignite [...] speakers are given 20 slides, each shown for 15 seconds, giving each speaker 5 minutes of fame.

I’m giving a talk entitled “The Power of Visual Communication: Together, We Can Rid the World of Comic Sans” tonight at the Lyric Theater in OKC. I’ll be talking about how sloppy and thoughtless our communication has become in modern society, and giving some tips about what everyone can do to improve the quality of their own visual communication. Here’s a teaser:

The event sold out only hours after tickets were released, but there will be a live stream of the event and all talks will be posted to youtube later on. You can bet that, barring any really bad screw-ups, I’ll be posting said video here on the blog just as soon as it’s available.

This was my second annual submission to Living Arts Tulsa’s 24-hour Video Race back in February. We took the prize in the Experimental category.

Mostly did this one with Shane Hood of Tepera|Hood design (with additional help from a couple of Matts who don’t have websites) using a combination of Legos, Playskool people, found objects, fishing line, electric motors and stop-motion animation.

Check out my other video work here. Enjoy!