jake lyell photography

Regardless of what type of photographer you are, you’re going to photograph at least one wedding during your career. I approach weddings mainly from a documentary point of view and greatly enjoy doing them. I try to capture the events as they unfold rather than spending most of the time posing people. The wedding I shot Saturday was that of Craig and Kathleen in Norfolk, VA. Kathleen, a fashion designer working in LA and her now husband Craig, an artist and designer, chose a vintage look for their wedding that made it so interesting to photograph. Kathleen designed her own dress. The guest book took the form of a vintage type-writer. To top it off, the couple was escorted in a 1962 black Cadillac for the day.


The wedding took place at the Women’s Club, a mansion in the Victorian neighborhood of Ghent in Norfolk. From the site, to the cake to the transportation, the style was thematically in sync.

Technical notes: TURN OFF THAT FLASH! About half of what I shoot are ambient exposures, pictures taken with available light. Flash can kill the mood of a photo like a cell phone ringing in church. Though you can’t always do it, I recommend shutting off the flash whenever possible.


All the best to Craig and Kathleen!

Yes, you always have Christmas with your family, but Easter is best spent with friends. This Sunday we spent the Resurrection holiday at Ross and Valerie’ house enjoying food, alcohol and each other’s company. Add in a little dominoes, Nintendo Wii and Billy Joel into the mix and Valerie was shewing us out the door by 1am…

A photo of my friend Justin, who is in 8th grade. He came to my apartment this afternoon to get help with his trigonometry homework. I sadly was of no help however, having forgotten everything to do with math the moment I graduated high school. I called my friend Ryan to come over. He answered all Justin’s questions, after-which we grilled turkey burgers (don’t get the pre-made frozen patties from Kroger).

The Canon 5D has to be the best camera for low-light photography. I’d say the best camera for any situation really. I shot these photos at 800ISO; there’s virtually no noise. 85mm, f1.8, 1/8oth.