I was thrilled with the assignment of photographing food, portraits and environment for www.jmcarthurs.com The Grand Opening is tomorrow – July 10th, located at 3500 Watson. Visit them soon for some delicious local selections!
Author Archives: Ryansite
Had a crazy good time at Nathan and Kellie’s Wedding! I still can’t believe how great the timing worked out for the acapella shot in downtown St. Charles. I’m not sure what I’m going to do now that all the girls are married!
It was really special getting to photograph Mick and Kyla’s handsome baby boy Wyatt ! He’s family, and it’s been a while since I had a chance to hold a baby! Wyatt did AWESOME – even stayed awake to listen to Mick and Kyla from behind the camera. Congratulations Hendersons!
I was thrilled when my cousin Darren asked me to shoot his Wedding, and the day was so fun watching their joy and catching up with family! Amber and Darren thank you for being so open to my ideas ! See you soon!
Time with family + The beach + Creative freedom = The Perfect Week.
Barb’s boys made the holidays extra special for her by traveling from both the east and west coast to spend the holidays here in St. Louis. December isn’t the most colorful time of year, but the landscape design and architecture at The Missouri Botanical Garden provide some interesting options. It is also much less visited in the winter, so if...
I was so excited that Dan and Julie asked me to photograph Bennett shortly after he was born. I met Julie ten years ago during my first photography assignment while shooting photos at the S Bar F Scout Ranch. Below is one of my favorite shots from that summer – that’s Julie out there rowing the boat! As I remember...
My brother and his family live in Dodge City, Kansas. We convinced them to meet us in Colorado for a few days. We were also lucky enough to hang out with the Myers family. The time we get with you both is always too short! I’m also including some shots from our trip to the butterfly...
This year just flew by, so it was fun pretending it was still Fall while editing David and Emily’s session. I had fun shooting in to the sun for backlight and lens flare. David and Emily are really sweet and were so fun to work with, besides, I knew we would get along just fine because...
We selected old Sandy Creek Covered Bridge in Goldman, Missouri as the destination for the shoot. About a half a mile before the bridge, I saw an old white Chevy in great condition parked in front of a house. Most of the time I’ve found that classic car owners are really protective (as they should be), but I just couldn’t pass this up, so...
David and Katie gave me a chance to try out Creve Coeur Park for their engagement session, and since then I’ve been back a few times based on requests from other couples that saw their session. I couldn’t wait to work with David and Katie again on their ridiculously perfect fall Wedding day. I was also excited to see Melissa and...
Kyle and Melissa were excited for months about securing Graham Chapel at Washington University, as they should have been…you can’t reserve it more than 12 months in advance, but if you’re lucky enough to get a spot, the architecture and lighting are amazing. Kyle and Melissa took an opportunity to say thank you to their wedding...
Just driving down the windy roads was a fun start to shooting Annelise and Jake’s Wedding. We had a blast in the winter for their engagement session, so I knew their Wedding would be a great time. You’re never too old to get excited about hopping in an old fire truck, and I think I learned some...
This location was so unique and personal for Hannah and Jared. We had plenty of room to explore where Hannah’s parents live and their neighbors also welcomed us to use their lake and old castle like house. We had some trouble with an electric fence that definitely DID have electricity running through it! But sometimes you...
Alyssa and Danny challenged me to shoot a collection of their favorite places in Saint Louis. Before we headed out, I enjoyed seeing their historic St. Louis photos that were taken really close to where they live near the Delmar Loop. It was really neat to learn about how they met overseas in the Peace Corps and got to know each...
This session was so much fun… it started to rain halfway through, so we found cover at the Art Museum and got more creative! Ashley did a great job of selecting colors that pop, and its always easy to find different backgrounds in Forest Park. Ashley thank you for braving the weather – you look awesome!...
I hadn’t seen my younger cousin Darren in a while, so it was really nice to reunite now that he is grown up and ready to get married to his beautiful fiancé Amber. I’ve landed in St. Charles for shoots more than a few times in the last few years, so I wanted to explore some different ideas to keep the session...
Kellie and Nathan were up for anything, even getting cozy next to a huge barrel of hay! Nathan didn’t seem to mind since he’s around construction sites from time to time. We covered a lot of ground near their house, found some old abandoned barns (which are for sale by the way) and then explored some different areas...
What a cutie! Look at that hair!
David and Rachel traveled all the way from Tasmania, Australia to get married here in Saint Louis! Rachel is originally from Saint Louis and met David in Australia. Both are talented photographers… Rachel is a portrait photographer and David is a landscape photographer, and showcases his work in his art gallery. Check them out here: http://www.davidmurphyphotography.com/...
John and Kathleen had the perfect setting for a private ceremony at their garden in Webster. It was great to have close access for images of their vows, that they both came up with (and made it a really special moment). Talk about romantic… John surprised Kathleen after the ceremony with a horse and carriage...
I was really looking forward to Andy and Melissa’s Wedding ever since their smokin’ engagement session. The sporatic rain didn’t stop us, the Road Pony didn’t disappoint, and on this evening Grizzly Adams did have a beard.
Floyd and Stacey had a blast at their Friday evening Wedding with friends and family. They came to party too -they choreographed a dance that included disco, country, hip hop and an Irish jig. Take a look below…
We planned two locations for our evening shoot– Westport and Creve Coeur Lake. We took our time at Westport, then hurried over to the lake for sunset shots. In between shots at the lake while I was setting up lighting, Dave and Katie found a snake on the dock by the water, just a few feet from...
Had an awesome date night with Allison. It felt like October baseball. Chilly and windy = 3 hot chocolates!
It was a great privilege to work with Marcus Engel, along with Barb Dewalle, Jenny Aycock, and Marcus’s wife Marvelyne. Marcus is an inspiring speaker who has overcome great challenges. I personally connected with Marcus’s I’m Here Movement message, which demonstrates what a vital role health care professionals can play, simply by being present and...
I had a great time shooting corporate portraits with my friend Pam Ware, Treasurer for the It’s Not Too Late Scholarship organization. It’s Not Too Late Scholarship provides last-minute financial assistance to college students. Check out the site here: www.INTLScholarship.com
Had an awesome time with before and after photos for this event.
Had a great time listening to The Bittermen and playing around with off camera flash.
John and Pat Fechter just celebrated their 70th Wedding Anniversary. No typo here…you are reading that correctly – married 70 years and going strong! The Fechters attribute their long lasting marriage to their relationship with God. They had a great turnout for their ceremony and reception with family and friends. They even snuck away for...
Our good friends Andy and Betsy had some really exciting news , and a really creative idea for how they wanted to share it with the world. We had a great time nailing the shot. And yes, Ted Drewes is still amazing even when its freezing cold outside! Congratulations Andy and Betsy!
The Tappella kids surprised their Mom at Christmas with a photo shoot at the Missouri Botanical Gardens! What a great idea…not just the photos, but a chance for Mom to spend some time with her family.
Freezing weather forced us to push the shoot back a week, but it was worth the wait because we were able to use the snow for some wintery photos. I found out that the day of our shoot was also Jake and Annelise’s anniversary – how cool! Main street has its expected charming restaurants and...
Jason and Kelly headed to warm Riviera Maya for their Wedding ceremony, then continued their celebration back here in chilly Saint Louis with friends and family at Sqwires in Lafayette Square. I love getting to see different locations and venues for each assignment, and I really liked the cocktail layout for the night – plenty...
Melissa and Andy took care in choosing the location for their engagement session. They landed on Faust Park. Its a unique park – some areas feel country, while another area has a beach house feel to it.
Horseshoe Bend is the location where the Colorado River changes direction. Its near the Antelope Canyons in Page, Arizona. The Upper and Lower Antelope Canyons are run by the Navajo Indians. The Upper Canyons are easier to access – you just walk right in. The Lower Canyons are more of an adventure to navigate. A...
Jason and Kelly are headed to Mexico for fun in the sun on their Wedding day, and are also looking forward to their reception back home in STL in December. We explored the Lafayette Park area, also ventured towards Chouteau, then circled back towards the 44/55 highway entrance where we found an open field to...
I learned that Adam and Elizabeth started dating back when Adam was tutoring Elizabeth in school! They made the most of their Wedding day with an early morning start until the last song, and beyond, when Elizabeth’s family refused to leave the dance floor, and sang their own family songs for 15 minutes! To say they are party animals would...
What was looking to be a rainy day, turned in to a great opportunity for us to use soft lighting and color to our advantage. Greg and Charity are now settled in Chicago, but had an amazing Wedding day in Tower Grove Park and Lafayette Square/Sqwires. One of my favorite parts of the day was standing...
Chad and Jaime chose old Downtown St. Charles for their engagement session – a great location for different backgrounds, especially in the winter. I hadn’t been inside the old Soda Fountain Shop before, but when the owner invited us in, we couldn’t refuse. Enough of this cold weather… these two are off to Jamaica soon...
We headed downtown for this shoot at the Landing and the Archgrounds. Its easy to forget the rich architecture we have here in St. Louis until you take time to explore. Perfect timing at sunset helped us grab some great shots by the lake. I’m really looking forward to the Wedding in just a few...
This shoot at Bee Tree Park was a lot of fun, and you can tell there was lots of love shared between these four. We all tried to tame the crazy running Jaxon man, even big Sis Josie did her part, but we quickly realized there was no hope – so we just went with it!
John and Hannah met at Union Station, made the trek past Bush Stadium right before a Cardinals playoff game on their way to the Archgrounds, and then arrived at the Franklin Room for their reception. I also heard John woke up early the next day to get to a track meet – talk about covering...
Patrick and Becca brought some fun and clever ideas to their big day, which turned out great! I’m still not sure where they got those giant boxing gloves. They also chose an exciting venue for their reception – Home Nightclub at the Ameristar Casino.
I’m finally back to the blog, and am looking forward to posting a handful of sessions over the next few weeks. Let’s get this party started with Matt and Julie… who proved that a little rain shouldn’t stop the fun on your Wedding day.
