Congratulations to the Wilson's who where married on the Carnival Dream. Had fun in the sun shooting some of their photos in the ocean on the Grand Cayman Islands. They were great sports about getting in the ocean fully dressed.

Using the Contractors Pyramid Will Help Your Decision a Lot.

It goes a little something like this:

Your product can be three things, Good, Fast & Cheap, but you can only have two out the three.

• If you want it Fast and Cheap, it won't be Good
• If you want it Cheap and Good, it won't be Fast
• If you want if Fast and Good, it won't be Cheap

  This picture isn't from the 4 weddings episode but it makes my point.

#Emotion-JournalismForever

#emoti-Journalist

Guess what, not only is that not the making of a portrait-journalist, in my opinion, it's also not the making of a photo-journalist. So what am I? I recently went back and was looking at some of my shots from previous weddings and I realized what I am, I had to coin a new name (it's new, I Googled it and found nothing concerning this word), I am a emoti-journalist or emotion-journalist, perfect!!! I will tell the story of how my clients looked, how they prepared, walked down the isle, said their vows, exchanged their ring and celebrated their love, but I'm going to tell a much deep story as well, the story of Love. How their fiends and family looked at them as they danced, so happy that they found each other, how they looked at each other falling in love over and over as the night progresses. 

That's me! That's ALL me! So now my journey begins with a reboot, branding myself as Thom Lodge of Lani Kai Photography, who specializes in Emoti-Journalism Wedding Photography.

Who says you have to spend tons of money to have the wedding of your dreams??? Your dream wedding is personal and intimate and for Amerah her dream wedding was bonding with her future husband wherever that may be.

That magical place became City Hall in downtown Chicago. 

Waterfall 25 minutes from downtown Chicago where I would love to shoot a Bridal Session and/or Engagement Session!

Any takers??? Lol!  

Thank You to all those who participated in Lani Kai's Pin it 2 win it giveaway!

Winners will be announced on July 4th.

This veil is just unbelievably stunning!!!!

Long, classic with beautiful details. To photograph a bride in this veil... #Envious

#BeautifulBride

Beautiful elegant traditional wedding dress featured by David's Bridal $649

This was shot in Downtown Chicago on the Riverwalk. There was a fountain there that I was able to hide inside. It was fun and Ben and Daiva are a wonderful couple. 

They're from D.C. and this was their first trip to Chicago.

Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot Paparazzi proposal engagement shoot

11/15/2013 Lani Kai Photography was honored to be the official photographer for SWANCC (Solid Waste Agency of Northern cook County) during their annual Trashy Fashion Show. The Barrington Courier Review an affiliate of the Chicago Sun Times issued a story on this wonderful organization and their goals. You can read this article at http://barrington.suntimes.com/news/tra_shy-GLA-11212013:article

Lani Kai Photography is very proud to announce it's support for the Wounded Warrior Project. The Wounded Warrior Project has been a staple charity for helping veterans and their families recover from devastating injuries inflicting while serving our country. Lani Kai is committed to doing what we can to tell our beloved men and women in uniform that they are appreciated, loved and never forgotten.

Effective November 2013, Lani Kai Photography with be making a donation in the name of every client that fulfills a package booked with us.

For more information contact Lani Kai photography at http://lanikaiphotography.zenfolio.com/contact.html

Another beautiful wedding dress for under $1000.

This dress is offered by David's Bridal Collection (In store Only) for $599.00

Congratulations to Amber Waters and Max Crowe on their engagement!!! I look forward to capturing their big day September 2014!

Hawaiian Giant Sea Turtle

Giant Sea Turtle basking in the sun of a Hawaiian black sand beach. Is it just me or does she seem to be giving me the cold stare?  

At first I blamed both the priest and

photographer for this incident, the

priest for not showing tact and the

photographer for not checking with

the priest and finding out what his

boundaries are. Upon further review

 this is 100% the photographers fault!

One, for not checking with the priest

about boundaries but more important,

for disrespecting the vow and prayer

session with loud rapid shutter click

aka "spray and pray". The

photographer should be as quiet and

respectful as possible. During this part of the ceremony I only fire my shutter

once, then move on. Never linger behind the officiant, for one it's very

distracting to the priest and two, you are in everybody's view. Get your shot

and get out! 

From an article on MSN Weddings - "Your wedding photos are not the type

of pictures you want to look back at and say, “What was I thinking?!” So

when it comes to your beauty look, keep it simple. You want to look like your

natural, gorgeous self—with a few minor enhancements, of course."

#BridalTips

Thank You For Your Service!

​*Some restrictions apply

What's your favorite style or brand?

I LOVE this Style

Draping is extra slimming; the spray of tulle on the bottom balances out a big bust.

Net fit-and-flare wedding dress, $649, Mori Lee by Madeline Gardner

Cascading ruffles are ultra-feminine—and if you're pear-

shaped, they can camouflage your lower half.

French Mikado wedding dress with crystal details,

$999, Stella York

I absolutely love this wedding gown, one of the best I ever had the privilege of Photographing. This was a gorgeous simple wedding shot at the Chicago Cultural Center located downtown on Michigan Avenue aka the Magnificent Mile. The Cultural Center is also right across the street from the famous Millennium Park. Thanks guys for letting me be your photographer! #BeautifulGown #BeautifulBride #BeautifulWedding

It can be simple and cheap but it won't be elegant

It can be cheap and elegant but it won't be simple

Or it can be simple and elegant but it won't be cheap

Sorry, these are life's rules not mine. I do wish you the very best though and a long happy marriage.

There's one thing that photographers say that drives me up the wall! "I shoot on professional". I always reply that I've never heard of that setting. For one, it doesn't exist, I know what they're talking about and it's called program auto. I don't understand how any professional can ever shoot on that setting constantly, the camera decides everything, the shutter speed, the aperture and more times than not, they got the ISO set to auto too, so that means your entire exposure is decided by the camera. That means I can set up a scene recognition program, program a typical wedding, make a robot platform like those robotic vacuums, hit start and just like that, I got you! If the camera makes all the decisions all you are is a platform to move around and point the camera at stuff. Where's your creativity, your style, your art, your passion? 

To the Client I ask: Would you invest in a piece of art from a painter that took an old spinning top, hollowed it out, filled it with paint and set it loose on the canvas for the top to spin, bounce and throw paint where it happened to go? Because if you hire a "I shoot on Professional" photographer, that's essentially what you did.

This is a Craigslist ad in search of a wedding photographer

 "Would love to give a chance to a Photographer & Videographer (DeKalb/Sycamore)

We are looking to work with art students who would like to take the opportunity to expand their portfolio by doing engagement photo sessions and cinematography as a save the date session with us. You don't have to be able to do both but we need one of each for sure. This is a non paying job initially for the engagement portion. If you do a satisfactory job and we want to go with that style concept you choose then we can work with you again for our wedding photos and video and pay you but only if you are one of the selected for our wedding day.

Please send us examples of your work. Based on your style we will determine who we would like to work with for our engagement photos for free and may ask to work with you again for our wedding photos but this time for pay. We may shoot with several artists to get a feel of the final versions of edit.

If you are just what we've been looking for we would also be interested in having you to attend our wedding and take photos and video. We would compensate with food ($80 value), some ($20) gas money, and some pocket money in exchange ($120) for our photos and videos. We would pay you after receiving the raw image of the photos upfront as well as your artistically edited photos and or edited video. The rights would belong to us and approved photos could be displayed on your website with our approval to ensure we get the okay from the individuals in the photo as to respect the privacy of our guests.

Feel free to contact me soon, the wedding will be either Sunday October 13th 2013 or Friday November 22, 2013! We could start doing the engagement session this week. This way you can start expanding your portfolio and we could decide much sooner! Please also include what type of equipment you own and what you will be using. It will be great to hear from you!
Thanks!
 

Recap:
Engagement photos and video = photos and video with no pay.
Wedding photos and video = food, gas money, pocket money = $80 value + $20 + $120 = $220 value for 8 hours of work after we receive all the photos and video

Rights belong to us you will have to sign a release form, with the raw copies of all photo and video upfront, approved photos are uploaded to your website. You create more value to yourself and portfolio. We both mutually benefit! Thank You!"

$140 plus a meal for a 2 hour engagement shoot and 6-8 hours wedding shoot, 10 hours before the post processing! BE STILL MY BEATING HEART!!! ADD 2 weeks of post processing and you are over 90 hours of time and dedication, 90 hours divided by $140 comes out to a whopping $1.55 per hour!!!! OMG! Where do I sign up? It's amazing how under appreciated photographers are especially when charged to capture one of the most important days of their life. I mean seriously, how much dedication and attention to detail do your really expect from me when you're paying me a meal and $1.55 an hour? Would you work for a $1.55 an hour? Then to make it so bad, this ad is written as though they're doing the photographer a great favor. And to demand the full rights to the picture?!? You can't be serious! This ad is too funny and pathetic. If this is the value you put on memories of your wedding and marriage you should honestly forget the photographer because you probably won't be married long.

Makeup. As a man I am not an expert on makeup at all, what I have seen in too many events, not just weddings, is the two toned face, where her face looks tanned to her ear but beyond that the tan is gone. The curse of cameras today is they pick up everything in great detail! Extra care and paying attention to details is vital now-a-days. So please, blend blend blend! Make sure your makeup is nice and even.  #BidalTips

Here's an F.Y.I for future Brides out there:

When looking for your perfect photographer and you run across one that says He/She is a "natural light" photographer. What that means is, they have no idea how to use a off camera flash. This could be devastating to your photos. If you have an indoor wedding the venue, it might be too dark, even for these advanced DSLR cameras today. Not using a flash will cause your pictures to be underexposed (dark) with little detail. If you have an outdoor venue, even with bright sunlight, the camera will meter the brightest part, the sun, and everything else will be underexposed, these photographers will tell you they will spot meter you, ok, so yes you will be exposed correctly but watch out, the sun is going supernova behind you! At least that's what it will look like. You have to use a flash to light face, dress details, etc. Of course the photographer could turn you toward the sun and use it as the light source, I hope you don't mind looking into the sun and have a bunch of photos with you squinting in them. Please make sure your photographer is equipped in using both natural light and well as off camera flash techniques.

One of my favorites is from an older lady when I was in Hawaii. I was shooting a model there so I brought some of my equipment. A couple days after the shoot I was still there and decided to shoot downtown Kona. I had my 70-200mm lens on my camera when a older lady and her husband came up to me and say "Now that's a camera! Can I ask, what do you shoot with that lens?" I couldn't help but smile and said "Everything".

Michael and Hannah Moore wedding shot by Thom Lodge of Lani Kai Photography

Here's another Golden hour Photo. No post processing at all

I took this shot of a silhouetted Bride. I love the contrast and light http://t.co/rUWtyPfE6S

Michael and Hannah Moore wedding shot by Thom Lodge of Lani Kai Photography

The hours when the sun is beginning to set are referred to as the Golden Hour and for good reason. One, the light cast is usually a beautiful gold and two, it adds an unimaginable beauty to any scene. I took this after the reception was almost over, the bride was exhausted and not in the mood for any more pictures and all the posing she could do was leaning against a tree. She only relented when told how beautiful the pictures would be. This shot was taken with minimum post processing, in fact all I did was add a little light to her face so you could see her more clearly. #WeddingPictures #BeautifulBride #GoldenHour #LaniKaiPhotography

What do you think? Do you like this light?

Tip 1: Whitening strips are a girls best friend. I don't mean any of my tips as an insult, just a matter of facts. The problem with these new professional grade cameras and lenses are, they pick up and enhance everything! If I take a picture of a small pimple, it becomes a big pimple, same with yellowish teeth. It doesn't have to be very yellow but in the pictures they will come out very yellow. A whitening strip before or on your wedding day will do wonders, especially if you want your wedding pictures displayed during the reception when we don't get a chance to edit the pictures. 

1. Who’s going to pay $3000 when they can pay $1,200 or less, especially since you still got to pay for reception hall, dinner, DJ, etc., and 

2. You are still going to Wal-Mart for your prints using cheap non-professional photo paper. 

So now the wedding couple settles. On their big day that they will only do once, they have to settle. 

Settle for getting their friend or family member that happens to have a decent camera but no experience to take the pictures.

Settle for Walmart photos which after only a few years begin to oxygenate and fade. 

This is why I wish print sells would come back. I hate the thought of a bride having to settle on one of the most important days of her life. If buying prints would make a comeback several thing would happen which I believe would greatly benefit clients. 

First: The booking fee would be reduced. This would free up money in the beginning that could be used to get those place settings they really wanted that were $200 over their budget, or the DJ they really connected with that was $300 outside their price margin. Most vendors require payment in full within 30 days of the wedding. That causes a lot of budget cutting and a lot of stress on the clients to make sure they stay within what they can afford. However, the photos are the only thing that won't be ready on the day of the event, in fact it won't be ready for at least two weeks after the event, so what's the rush? Let do a little short math, say the wedding budget is $10,000, on average at photographer's price is right around $3,000 that leaves only $7,000 for the venue, DJ, caterer, reception hall, etc., that's not a lot, but if the photographer only charged $600 upfront that leaves $9,400 for all those things. That's practically the full budget! After all has been paid in full for the event, the couple now had 45 days to recoup money to afford to start buying professional pictures printed on professional oxygenation resistant paper. I believe this would cause couples let stress and more freedom in booking their dream wedding. 

Second: This forces those faux-tographers I mentioned above to either master their craft or get out of the business. No one can survive shooting at rock bottom prices and only selling 5 pictures. This will give clients the confidence to know if they don't like the product they won't have to pay for the product. 

Third: The client will get more value. As said above the average photographer cost between $2,000 and $5,000, lets split the difference and say $3,000. That means if the client spent $2,400 dollars on photos, all they paid is about what they would have paid anyway. The difference is instead of a DVD where they would go get cheap prints from Walmart, Walgreens or CVS they would get a professionally done photobook, they could that wall mount to hang in the livingroom. What about metal prints? Yep, could get those too and countless 8x10's, 4x6's and wallets. All professionally done on professional paper that will last a lifetime. 

For all these reasons plus some I couldn't, I personally wish the trend would go back to selling prints. Again these are just my personal feelings. But I am curious what others think, especially clients. Do you think this would benefit clients in a positive way? Let me know.

Thank you for reading!

McCreadie Wedding shot by Lani Kai Photography

I wrote this just as an example of the mind of a professional photographer, how we think and what we see, also the importance of knowing our equipment and it's limitations.

Thank you for reading the story of this picture, and please feel free to comment or post a question.

Let's do the math:

Travel time to the event: 1 hour (1/2 hour each way)

The Event: 1 hour  - In that hour I would snap about 200-300 shots delivering between 100-150 photos

Here's the fun part: Digital editing and post production of 300 shots - let's say I did the bare minimum and only spent 2 minutes per shot that's 10 hours of work (I did the long math 2 minutes = 120 seconds, times 300 shots = 36000 seconds, 60 seconds in a minute, 600 minutes, 60 minutes in an hour 10 hours)

Delivering the finished product: 1 hour (1/2 hour each way)

Grand total 11 hours of labor = $13.63 per hour

It's just like the credits at the end of a movie, so much work goes into the production of it, the 2 hours you watched came about because of the months of work by a crew of hundreds. Most photographers have a crew of 1 or 2.