Vendor Spotlight: Michelle Walker, San Francisco Wedding Photographer

Ever since Michelle Walker was a little girl bouncing on her Papa’s knee looking at his beautiful photography, she knew she wanted to follow in his footsteps. So many years later, she enrolled in San Francisco’s Academy of Art school for photography and in her final semester, assisted a wedding photojournalist. It was love at first snap for her. While Michelle feels fortunate to do travel photography on her time off from weddings, weddings are the real icing on the cake for her.

“I love the raw emotion,” she tells us, “and I get to spend the BEST day with people—brides are excited, nervous, stressed...it's awesome to capture those real emotions.” We asked her what inspires her and keeps her fresh and she tells us she just started a photo project called The 100andOne Project, created to keep her photography just that. It’s a pure, simple, elegant way to photograph portraits. 100 days only, one set, one prop and one light. Her goal is to get 100 different sessions and potentially turning it into a book.

So why do we love Michelle and her images? Beyond the fact that she’s delightful and witty, you can expect gorgeous, relaxed and fun photography of your Big Day. Her goal is to capture the emotions of the day rather than just a record of who was there and what events took place—she photographs in an unobtrusive style giving you the feeling that she wasn’t even there. And that’s kina what you want when you have a room full of guests swarming around you in awe.

Visit michellewalker.com to view her entire portfolio.

Vendor Spotlight: AV Consultants, Wedding & Events Videographer

Excited to feature our first videographer, we met Stu Sweetow of AV Consultants and figured he’d be a great first for us. We asked Stu all about his career and got some great responses. During his college years, he experimented with making movies as abstract art. He also took courses in filmmaking and even won first prize at his university’s film festival. He began working as an AV tech and video producer and went off on his own 25 years ago. AV Consultants was born.

Of all the events Stu enjoys shooting, he tells us, “The bride's procession is frequently emotional; we like to show expressions on family's faces. The minister sometimes has wise words to help couples navigate the rough seas ahead. Sometimes the bride and groom have loving messages to one another, and I love it when the groom gets teary. After the recessional, family and friends all share their joy with the couple. At the reception, I like when grandma and grandpa dance together and I ask them to speak on camera about what they wish for the couple.” Sounds like he’s seen it all!

View two sample videos here.

If you have Stu by your side on your Big Day, you can actually bet he won’t be exactly by your side. Stu says he and his team remain unobtrusive and avoid getting too close. He insists they show shots of their guests rather than only shots of the couple. They get reaction shots from parents during the first dance and father-daughter dance. And obviously, they pay careful attention to audio, during the ceremony and reception, so you can assure all the witty and beautiful sentiments will come through for years of enjoyment (and laughs!).

Stu is constantly learning and improving all he’s learned throughout his career. As a member of the Wedding and Event Videographers Association (WEVA), he screens some amazing wedding videos at conventions and online. Once he gets his main shots during the reception, he says he tries different things, such as tilting the camera unusual ways, holding it way up high over peoples' heads, fooling with the controls to create blur, and other effects. You can count on creativity and utmost professionalism should you book Stu and AV Consultants.

Kudos to his fantastic blog as well. Be sure to check it out. And should you have any concerns, questions or confusions about anything videography-related for your big day, Stu authored this incredibly helpful article. Totally Bridebound approved.