Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind.  ~Seneca

Truer words were never spoken. We have BIG plans for the summer.  Hint, hint, the above photo (taken by Keith in 2004) might have something to do with it. Stay tuned.

“In the end, it’s not going to matter how many breaths you took, but how many moments took your breath away” – Shing Xiong

After spending time with this couple I get the distinct impression that they live each day to its fullest and love each other like a beautiful love story with many, many moments that are breathtaking!

They have been together for the better part of a decade (click here to see their engagement session at Lake Arrowhead for more of their story) and seem as easy going around each other as you should be after all those years together yet they maintain a sense of excitement, like they just started this fun adventure together.

The genuine emotion of the day displayed itself through intimate moments alone, tears, kind words, laughs, and lots of humor.  A couple so happy together. Another moment, another day in their lives together that took their breath away.

The day started at The Sanctuary. Ollie the Trolley transported everyone to The Paradise Valley Country Club. The bride chose this venue for their stunning view of Camelback Mountain. Such a gorgeous backdrop for the ceremony and wedding celebration. Lauren Crump of Victoria Canada Wedding and Events overlooked no details in making the day just perfect.

{enjoy the digital preview – a sneak peek while we wait for the film!}

Venue: Paradise Valley Country Club

Coordinator:  Victoria Canada Weddings and Events

Flowers: Petal Pusher

Photo booth: The Live Photobooth

Video: Serendipity

Transportation: Ollie the Trolley

DJ:  DJ Slippe

NOTE: the images in this feed have been downsized or removed for copyright reasons. To see them in their unmodified state, please view the original post by clicking here.

“Life is a flower of which love is the honey” – Victor Hugo

[Sneak peek Part 2, continued from our previous post! We can't wait to get the film back...this is just our digital preview!]

A Jewish wedding is full of meaningful rituals: from signing the Ketubah (the gorgeous wedding contract pictured above), to the chuppah, which symbolically establishes a house in public to represent that the bride and groom’s lives will be spent together, to the breaking of glass, which reminds us that even in the midst of such a happy occasion we should not forget how fragile life truly is.

Tradition. Foundation. Love and partnership. Families joined together. A new beginning.

A successfully festive day.

Mazel Tov!

Click here to see a slideshow of the wedding

Venue:  The Phoenix Art Museum

Coordinator:  Amina Michele – Some Like it Classic Wedding & Event Design

Second Photographer: Ray Talamantes

“Love is life. And if you miss love, you miss life.” Leo Buscaglia

Last week Keith had the good fortune of photographing an absolutely lovely couple. The day was glorious. A Sikh wedding ceremony in the morning followed by a Jewish wedding ceremony in the afternoon. An eventful day dedicated to colorful tradition, love and marriage.

To wed is defined as becoming united in a formal ceremony. When you unite two religions, the end result is a day steeped in traditions accompanied by lots of love.

The Sikh marriage ceremony was performed at the Gurdwara – the Sikh Temple in Glendale.  From the lively Baraat, the groom’s wedding procession to the colorful bride’s Chunni to the groom’s Sehra – exciting Indian wedding rituals that together paint such a joyous and festive wedding story.

Two lovely families joined together through love and tradition.  A blissful union.

Coordinator:  Amina Michele of  Some Like it Classic Wedding and Event Design

(Stay tuned for part 2, the Jewish wedding ceremony at The Phoenix Art Museum)

“Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.” - Emile Bronte

I could tell that this was exactly true for this special couple. The way the two interact with one another it is obvious that they have found in each other a soul mate, a life long partner. There is nothing more beautiful.

Not a typical Arizona day, a threat of rain hung in the air. The ceremony was at The Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Scottsdale. This is such a pretty church to photograph a wedding, tons of natural light, ceilings painted in bright colors, stark white walls.

Weddings with Greek traditions are so much fun. The reception at Sassi did not disappoint. Family. Dancing. Traditional Music. Toasts. Plate breaking. Lots of plate breaking. Laughing. Smiles. Happiness filled the room.

To a lifetime of love and happiness.

[The bride has an art background and embraced the idea of Keith incorporating some classic cameras into the day - some medium format, old film cameras - the results were just gorgeous.]

Many, if not most photographers deem a photograph successful if it is well exposed and sharply focused. If it accurately represents the subject in front of the camera then it is sellable (if that is their goal). I personally know a photographer whose pride rested on how sharp his photos of weddings were. He mentioned it every time you talked about his work.  None of this is bad necessarily. Many purchasers of photography consider the accurate representation of the scene to be desirable. Out of focus subjects, film grain, muted or inaccurate colors and any number of other factors that may not have been present in the original scene may lead these people to believe there is something wrong with the image and therefore not want it. What may be missed by the people in the previous examples is that photography can convey a mood and feeling that has little to do with the accurate reproduction of a scene. Photographers can purposely distort reality in any number of ways to convey anything they want. That is of course good too. Remember that all photography is an abstraction in one way or another. The rendering of three dimensions in two is the first level of abstraction. Another is the removal of color. You can go further and further until your head hurts thinking about it.

The Pictorialists were a group of photographers that chose not to be bound by the constraints of the camera as most had. They didn’t want to be mistaken for casual snapshooters who just took photos of what was in their way. The movement led to the photo secessionist movement and eventually disbanded. The principles that the movement stood for are still valid of course. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder as they say.

What do you think?

P.S. The photos in this post were taken in 2010 and 2009 respectively by Keith Pitts Photography. They were exposed (not captured) with a Holga on Kodak PlusX  120 film.

Thank you Kelly for such a lovely post on the Phoenix Bride and Groom blog! Sarah and Johnny are such a fun couple and I think it shows through in their engagement pictures.  They were up for anything – just running around having a great time.  Downtown Phoenix is a great spot – so diverse.  Their wedding took place at The Heard Museum – and was beautiful!

As a wedding photographer you certainly get to see your fair share of weddings. Like everything else in life, weddings come in all shapes and sizes. This wedding was one of the most intimate, heartfelt I have ever been a part of.

Last week, we had the good fortune of being part of a very special wedding at The Royal Palms Resort. Rhonda Rush of Impact Events put together one great wedding full of love and lots of amazing detail. The couple resides in Canada, the groom is South African, the parents of the bride reside part time in beautiful Arizona – so why not have a gorgeous wedding at The Royal Palms? Canada is just too chilly this time of year anyway. And South Africa just too far away on short notice.

The day was just delightful.  The weather was perfect. The family was fun and relaxed. The bride and groom were gorgeous. The flowers were exquisite. (Avant Garde out did themselves!) The music set the perfect mood. Camelback was the scenic backdrop.  A lovely ceremony with an even lovelier family.

And Serendipity Video was able to set up a Skype connection so that the groom’s mom in South Africa and the groom’s brother in London could see the ceremony first hand. Two computers viewing the ceremony. So touching. I have used Skype before, but that was my first experience seeing it incorporated into the actual ceremony. Technology. To think the Jetsons used to talk about stuff like this.

From beginning to end, this was the perfect wedding.

Did I mention how much I cried during the toasts?

OK, OK – I keep getting asked why there haven’t been any blog posts lately – I’ve even heard it from my mother! Well without making any excuses, we have been a bit busy.  We have been out there documenting some really cool stuff, great families, lovely weddings and all sorts of other fun stuff.

{Side Bar} We would like to thank Arizona Bride Magazine and all the fabulous voters out there who voted for us in the BEST OF 2011.  We are finalists in not one, but two categories:  Best Photographer AND Best Photo Booth.  How exciting. And we didn’t even know about it until another photographer brought it to our attention.  Had I known that we were in the running, I would have shamelessly begged you blog readers for some votes!  I think the winners are announced in July when the next issue hits the newstand.  Cross your fingers.

I love vintage style weddings. Details, charm, nostalgia. I just love her dress – it reminds me of something a Hollywood star from the 40′s would be wearing. Downtown Phoenix made the perfect backdrop for this lovely day.

The Roosevelt Tavern (of Matt’s Big Breakfast’s fame) was a great choice for this intimate wedding. Friends and family + great location + the sweetest bride & groom = a cool wedding day!  A cool wedding day = lots and lots of great wedding photographs!

Keith had the good fortune of photographing the bride’s sister’s wedding earlier this year. Unique, intimate weddings seem to be something these two sisters do really, really well.

Thank you for including us on your special day!