Yay Panama City!

Zach and I rented a scooter and scooted around for 4 hours yesterday!




We ate lunch at Five Guys




Did some shopping, and got some cold dots at Dippin' Dots!





It was a fun afternoon! It's so crazy to think that our time here is almost over... We are excited because after we get back we have the wedding of Jeremy and Ashley on Saturday, a week from today!!!

On Location: Day After Session, Destin, FL

A few days ago we got special access to shoot a post wedding session on the grounds and private beach on the all-inclusive Henderson Park Inn Bed & Breakfast in Destin, Florida. This place is amazing and so beautiful, and we definitely recommend it as a great, private, get-a-way spot. InStyle Weddings will be shooting at this location very soon.





And here are some of the shots!



We love shooting brides and grooms on the beach!



We really love Warren's khaki suit - it's perfect for a beach wedding!

New Professions...

So as much as fulfillment that Zach I get out of being Nashville-based wedding photographers, we think we are going to have to change our professions to Professional Beach Bums. Seriously, this vacation is wonderful and just the thing we need. We’ve been here in Destin, Florida since Monday and our days have been filled with chillin’ on the beach, playing in the waves, and eating great food!

The condo where we are staying at is pretty awesome! It has two bedrooms, two full baths and has bunkbeds in another area if you happen to bring kids or something. The best part is we are staying right on the stinkin’ beach. As I type, the sand is spread out in front of me with the ocean roaring right past it.

This is the view from our balcony... ahh...

Today our plans consist of renting a scooter (something that Zach has had his little heart set on for the last month) and hitting some stores and going out to lunch together somewhere cool. We’ll probably head out back to the beach early evening and then who knows where we will eat!

While we are down here we are doing a Day After Lifestyle Portrait Session with a couple (yes, we are KIND-OF working on vacation...) right on the beach here in Destin, FL, but we are totally excited about it and can’t wait to see how they turn out. It’s going to be awesome.

Just Married: Britt + Allison 4-ever

Congrats to Britt & Allison! They are officially married and are off to the Dominican Republic for their honeymoon! Their wedding was beautiful and we had a really great time. Here are a couple photos to hold you over until we get a chance to post more.

Their summer wedding took place at Carnton Plantation in Franklin, TN.

We want to end this post with a note saying we are off to the great state of Florida for a week to enjoy a long, overdue vacation (we haven’t had one since we have been married)!! We leave tomorrow morning with some friends of ours and are really excited! Stay tuned – we might post some photos of us enjoying the sandy beaches and everything else that Panama City has to offer…. : )

Chairs are Heavy!

So Zach and I are SUPER excited for tomorrow! Why, you may ask? Because Britt & Allison are getting married!!! We showed a few of their engagement photos at the beginning of this blog (remember water fountain photos?). Tonight we had the rehearsal, and then we were invited to the rehearsal dinner as guests at Britt's parent's house. It was lovely and we cannot wait for tomorrow!! We love these guys...

Enjoy a quick few shots from this evening's wedding rehearsal at Carnton Plantation in Franklin, Tennessee...











Zach has taken over the blog now to add his witty comments...


Sometimes, in the glamorous world of Rock and Roll wedding photography, you can't be afraid to get your hands dirty and help out a little at a rehearsal. We can't always sit around eating only the red M&M's in the green room, you know?





After this little workout, the groom and I did some push-ups and then drove our big trucks home...

That's all for now!

Day After Sessions – What a great idea!

An interesting challenge we often face is couples not wanting to see each other before the ceremony. We accommodate to whatever our bride and grooms want to do (when we got married – we didn’t want to see each other beforehand either...), however it never fails that they always end up feeling a bit rushed to get to the reception and therefore tend to cut short the time that is left to get the romantic and fun photos of them together – which are the most important!

We recently had the privilege of shooting a beautiful rooftop wedding downtown Nashville, Tennessee for a really great couple named Casey and Carmen.

As you can see, their ceremony took place after sunset and they wanted to immediately go into their reception after a few quick photos together and family shots. Due to the lack of available light and time, it was decided (before the wedding day) to have a Day After (or “Post”) Session two weeks later.

The Day After lifestyle portrait session took place in the morning around the area where they live in downtown Nashville at the capitol plaza. Everyone was relaxed, and we all had a blast taking our time and getting the shots that Casey and Carmen were really wanting of them two together.

Here are some of the really cool shots we were able to get!

and one you might recognize...

Please notice the killer polka-dot Valentino shoes and how well they compliments her wedding dress!

So Post Sessions are a great alternative for those weddings where a lot of time is not being scheduled in the day to take photos.

*In planning out the timeframe of your wedding day, always make sure to talk with your photographer, and remember – your wedding day is about you and what you want! Not about what anyone else wants. This is the one day where you call the shots and everyone can wait on you… Enjoy it while it lasts! :o)

Bat Weekend Concludes

So we saw the 7:30 Batman showing on Friday! I’m embarrassed to admit that we were 2nd in line. I kept telling Zach it was a bit silly to get in line an HOUR early to get good seats, but when we arrived at the movie theater I ate my words… This was the line for the 7:00 showing… I have never seen a line this long in a theater before! Good thing I happened to have our dinky camera on us to capture the insanity!!

Here are our professional reviews as self-deemed critics :)

The Dark Knight
PG-13, 2 hr. 32 min.

ZACH’s Take
5 out of 5 Stars

Batman... Who is he really? Has he brought good, or more death, destruction and evil to this Gotham City? The Joker.... Is he truly a madman who cares only to bring death and chaos to everyone around him so that he can face the reality that is his life? Is he truly evil? Rachel (Batman’s love who he will only have when the city of Gotham no longer needs him)... Can she escape the clutches of the Joker and his evil henchmen? Can the Bat save her from a terrible doom? The answers to all of these questions can be found in the latest addition to the series of Bat movies entitled, Batman - The Dark Knight.

This film will keep you on the edge of your seat throughout its entire 2 ½ hours. The film is very dark from the opening credits to the suspenseful ending and I found myself clenching my seat through the whole ride (or was that Jody clutching my seat? :). It is definitely the best film that I have seen this year and Heath Ledger does not disappoint in his final role. The depth of the Joker portrayed in this film is truly vast. The coldness and detachment that you feel emanating from his character is a bit frightening and this film is definitely not for children (or even young teens). It is a menacing film especially when you realize that you do not know the fate of our beloved Batman! This was a great film (that should have been rated R) and I highly recommend it to anyone that is over the age of 17 who liked the first film in the series.

I give Batman – The Dark Night 5 stars!

JODY’s Take
4.5 out of 5 Stars

Overall this was definitely a great film. Very suspenseful, kept me entertained, though by the end my rear end was getting a bit numb from sitting so long... I was beginning to feel like I was stuck in a seat on my 12 hour flight to Japan again :)

Things I liked:
- Christian Bale as Batman
- Heath’s performance – I bet he’ll get an Oscar nomination…
- I really liked it how they brought back the same people to play the same characters… I appreciate that sort of consistency in sequels!

Things I didn’t like so much:
- Maggie Gillynhall did a great of a job of Rachel, though it was weird adjusting to her from Katie Holmes. I wish Katie still played the role.
- I like intense & suspenseful films (when I’m in the mood) but I’m not into the creepiness and cruelty that the Joker brought. Ugh. I can’t watch that kind of stuff! Zach loved it though, because it made me hang onto him closer : )

Last Note: A lot of younger kids went to see this, I’m sure, and I bet some of them are having nightmares! I wish a film that captures the interest of so many different generations could be a little more kid-friendly to some of the younger fans. Doesn’t have to be dumbed-down or lame, but it’s definitely not a kid-friendly film. If I had a child I wouldn’t let him/her see it until he/she was a bit older.

Thanks for taking the time to read the reviews from Zach & Jody Gray – highly acclaimed critical reviewers!

Stay tuned for…. A Day After session with Casey & Carmen!!!

The Bat Weekend Begins...

Before I type any further I need to make a very important clarification. Regarding the bowling blog below that Zach posted - it's lies!!! All lies!!! I did NOT get lots of gutter balls and he did not get lots of strikes!! Ok, well, maybe he did get a lot of strikes (go babe!), but I was not Gutter Queen, and I think it's important to tell the truth that he was the first to bowl a gutter ball. As a matter of fact - the first frame we bowled, I got a spare, and he guttered - not one ball but both! ... And then he preceeded to kick my rear and win that round and the following, but still... Ok, just had to get that off my chest... he he he ;) Way to beat me with grace, babe!

And now we head into the weekend with anticipation - not because of a wedding this time, but because of....



We are going to see the new Batman with some friends of ours we have made recently - Dustin & Lindsey - and we are excited and can't wait!! The best part about going to the movies is extra buttery popcorn and cherry SLUSHIES!! Woo hoo!!

Hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Tall Boys

So while my wife spent the week in Japan I decided that I did not want to be bored all week (and be alone here in Nashville :( ), so I booked a flight and went to see my Dad and little brothers in Lake Geneva, WI! I love visiting because I do not get to see that side of family as often as I would like and I really love spending time with my brothers.

We had plenty of time getting to know the X-Box and all the cool games that I never get to play where you shoot a lot of people and win wars (women do not understand this part of manhood), and we also got to spend plenty of time outside the house doing things like going to the Milwaukee Brewers baseball game, swimming at the neighbors pool, and having a big party in the huge backyard at my Dad’s house! It was super fun! Below are some shots of the pool - some of my stepsisters' kids and brothers.









Frolicking in the water...


Noah looking like his cool self...


Sam looking like a stud...


As you can probably tell from the above photos, I brought a lot of our camera gear with me. I had really been wanting to get some photos of my little brothers before they are all out of the house and gone. Their ages are 14, 15 and 17 and the oldest one is turning 18 this fall and is planning on moving out of the house. So this was really important for me to capture some images of them all together before they move apart. I'm impressed with the boys because they got up the last day that I was there at the great hour of 6:30 am.

Here we have the one and only Jedidiah (Jed)


Samuel (Sam)


Noah (Noah)


What studs...




So glad I could come and visit. It definitely made the time go by fast! Another trip will soon be in the works!