A Simple Country Wedding

Southern Comfort

In March I got a phone call from Jared asking if I had the 14th of July available to shoot his and Dawn's wedding. Hearing to Jared's easy going Missouri accent over the phone made me a little home sick for the south, and I knew that he and I were going to hit it off when we when we finally get the chance to meet face to face. I lived in Texas for all of the 1990s, but coming from the west coast I never felt at home living in the south. Looking back on my southern experience I now realize how much the south has shaped me into who I am today.

Old fashioned Wedding

The ceremony was heald in a small coutry church surrounded by corn and soybean fields, and on one of the hottest days of the summer, the church had no air conditioning. Even thought I sweated completely through my clothes, everyone else seamed reasonably cool and comfortable. Jared's family and his groom's men all came form Missouri, so of course thay were all wearing St. Louis Cardinals jerseys. Dawn's family are all Brewers fans, but it looks to me like they've worked through their differences.

My twenty-year career as a commercial and editorial photographer has allowed me to work for clients in such major markets as Dallas, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Washington DC. 

My wedding portfolio can be seen at ingenuepix.com.

Link over to my Senior Pictures blog to see samples of my high energy and fashion oriented senior pictures.

To see my commercial and fashion work visit hethornphotography.com.

The 20-Minute Bridal Session

Beauty Can Be Found Anywhere

Emma and Jason came to me last July to be the photographer for their 2012 wedding. We shot a lively engagement session last summer and I've been looking forward to shooting their wedding knowing that it will be a showcase event for my portfolio.

Emma and I got together last weekend to go over the final details leading up to her wedding, now just a week away. With such packed schedules we never arranged a bridal session. I had just about an hour of time to do the shot on Tuesday morning. The simple solution: put up a black background and shoot on the north-facing side of her house.

Emma was dressed in her gown when I arrived. Her sisters were there to help (wearing rubber gloves so as not to get any fingerprints on the dress). Once Emma was out in front of the background it only took us 15 minutes to snap off 99 frames. The pictures are being printed today and a framed bridal portrait will be ready in time to stand on an easel at their reception.

My twenty-year career as a commercial and editorial photographer has allowed me to work for clients in such major markets as Dallas, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Washington DC. 

My wedding portfolio can be seen at ingenuepix.com.

Link over to my Senior Pictures blog to see samples of my high energy and fashion oriented senior pictures.

To see my commercial and fashion work visit hethornphotography.com.

Joie de Vivre

All weddings should be as fun as Laura and Adam's. The bride and bride's maids were gorgeous and sexy, and the groom and his groom's men were cool, hip and very fun.

Laura's beautiful gown was perfectly accented (like an exclamation mark) by her hot pink shoes. Those shoes made their way into many pictures, and without them some of the pictures just wouldn't have been as interesting. 

What I enjoyed most about Laura and Adam's wedding was how spontaneous they were, and how comfortable they felt with me keeping the camera on them for twelve hours.

The bride's maids and groom's men had fantastic personalities. I could clearly see they were all great friends. All had a fun sense of humor that really came through in the pictures.

Laura and Adam's wedding was a blend of both elegance and spontaneity. They celebrated their love for for each other, and also for their love for their friends who's personalities really made for a great day of photography. 

My twenty-year career as a commercial and editorial photographer has allowed me to work for clients in such major markets as Dallas, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Washington DC. 

My wedding portfolio can be seen at ingenuepix.com.

Link over to my Senior Pictures blog to see samples of my high energy and fashion oriented senior pictures.

To see my commercial and fashion work visit hethornphotography.com.

Attitude Is Everything!

 Amanda has Attitude!

I shot a bridal session with Amanda this past Saturday. It was a beautiful warm afternoon with just enough breeze to bring her dress and hair to life. Amanda has attitude. Sure, she's beautiful, but it's her fun and care-free personality that makes her pictures so great.  All brides should bring to their shoot Amanda's relaxed, confident and playful style.

We met up in Plymouth. I had my step daughter Uka with me as my assistant. Amanda had her sister and maid of honor Becky along with Jenny her wedding coordinator to help with her dress and the many props we brought for the shoot. Coming from a commercial photo-graphy background I liked that Jenny was acting almost as art director. The collaborative process always works well for me so Jenny's input was a welcomed contribution. 

Barn Doors

The five of us piled into the mini van along with my camera gear and all of the photo props which included among other things paper umbrellas, helium filled balloons picture frames and an enormous antique trunk.

Our first stop was an old dairy farm just outside of Plymouth. We couldn't stay long because the farm was busy bailing hay and putting it away in the hay loft. The light just inside the barn doors made for perfect beauty lighting.  This is my favorite lighting scenario, and I seek it out whenever I'm shooting with natural light on location. I look for a place where the model can be out of the direct sunlight yet still lit by the bright open sky and the sun reflecting off the ground and opposing walls. For me there is no lighting better than this for natural beauty.

The next stop on our photography adventure was 20 minutes down the road to Saint Cloud where we found yet another old barn. On this stop we made use of a few of the props Jenny packed in the back of the van.

Work is Fun

Honestly, I just want to have fun. When I'm having fun my models are having fun, and it shows in their pictures. I like to push my subjects out of their comfort zone. I do what ever I can to distract them from "posing." I'm always looking for that moment when everything looks perfectly natural and believable. 

Fly Away
By the end of the day we made our way back to Plymouth and down to the Mullet River.
We all were getting into the shoot. Everyone was suggesting angles and backgrounds, and Amanda was going along with all of it. We had her running in her dress, sitting in tall grass and even climbing on rocks.

I took this picture while standing in water well over knee deep in the middle of the Mullet river. I needed to be in the river to get the best angle for the shot. Losing the balloons and seeing them drifting away was a fitting end to a fantastic day of photography.

photo by Uranbelig Bavuudorj

My twenty-year career as a commercial and editorial photographer has allowed me to work for clients in such major markets as Dallas, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Washington DC. 

My wedding portfolio can be seen at ingenuepix.com.

Link over to my Senior Pictures blog to see samples of my high energy and fashion oriented senior pictures.

To see my commercial and fashion work visit hethornphotography.com.

Mrs. Wisconsin, USA

Inspiration for all of you under achievers out there: Meet Jamie Valeri. She and her husband Rick are the owners of a very successful business, she's the mother of six adorable children, and now Jamie has been crowned Mrs. Wisconsin, USA. 

Yesterday I had the pleasure of shooting with Mrs. Wisconsin in Appleton. Pictured here with Jamie is my favorite make up artist; the highly talented Jai Schmidt. Check out Jai's amazing work at her website refashionedbyjai.com (or you could just look at my portfolio, she's all over it). 


Next stop for Jamie is the national competition in Las Vegas this coming July.

Ingenue Pictures, located in Sheboygan, serves all of Wisconsin and the upper midwest from Door County to Chicago and beyond

My twenty-year career as a commercial and editorial photographer has allowed me to work for clients in such major markets as Dallas, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Washington DC. 

My wedding portfolio can be seen at ingenuepix.com.

Link over to my Senior Pictures blog to see samples of my high energy and fashion oriented senior pictures.

To see my commercial and fashion work visit hethornphotography.com.

Wisconsin Wedding Photography

I moved to Wisconsin from Miami in 2006 to shoot lifestyle photography for a commercial studio in Green Bay. I've since left Green Bay have settled in beautiful Sheboygan. I continue to shoot commercial photography for my clients in Appleton and Green Bay under John Hethorn Photography, but this past year I started shooting weddings and senior pictures under the name Ingenue Pictures.  

make up and styling by Jai Schmidt: refashionedbyjai.com

I love shooting weddings, especially when the bride and groom are willing to take the 
photography to new creative levels. It gives me the opportunity to step back into my fashion background and do something that can be elegant and beautiful or crazy and editorial. 

For many years I shot lifestyle and fashion photography for magazines and apparel catalogs. When I'm shooting brides I imagine every situation as a possible magazine cover or fashion spread.

With the groom's men I think cd covers and band pictures. I look for the attitude and cockiness that comes out when young men get dressed up in tuxedos (or kilts). The little James Bond or Frank Sinatra inside emerges, and when they break out the cigars the attitude becomes priceless.

When done right the pictures should tell a story of both a special day and the many personalities that shaped that day. We love our friends for how good that make us feel, not how well they pose for a picture. Having a keen sense of storytelling is the key to a successful wedding album.

My twenty-year career as a commercial and editorial photographer has allowed me to work for clients in such major markets as Dallas, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Washington DC. 

My wedding portfolio can be seen at ingenuepix.com.

Link over to my Senior Pictures blog to see samples of my high energy and fashion oriented senior pictures.

To see my commercial and fashion work visit hethornphotography.com.