Denver Wedding Photographer, Colorado Wedding Photographer, Chad Morgan

Project 365 :: Northern Colorado

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 11:44:24 -0700

I wanted to share this one. My wee little family and I took a short trip to north-eastern Colorado and as we were driving back home, we came across this small little house in the middle of absolutely nowhere. There's nothing particularly unique about this picture. But for me, it captures a part of Colorado that I just love. The deep, deep, deep blue skies during this time of year, the clarity of the air, the smell of the grass, the sound of the wind--everything.

It was crazy to snoop around the house for a bit and imagine what type of life was lived there. The plaster that was originally on the ceiling was decayed and all over the floor. The electricity that was there was from yester-era. It had one 10x10 bedroom, a bathroom, and a very small kitchenette. I can't imagine braving a cold Colorado winter inside this small home. Crazy.

Geek note: this was shot with a Canon G10 (point-and-shoot). The only post process are some minor contrast curves. Pretty darn good from a PNS if you ask me.

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Coming Up for Air

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 11:06:43 -0700

My sister said to me earlier this week: "My motto for this year: simplify." I couldn't agree more. The last couple week's made my life feel...heavy. You know those times when what normally would be a small moment, like the gas light going on in your car, turns into a breaking-point? Well, I've a had a few of those break-down moments over the last couple weeks. With my wife ending up in the hospital the weekend before last, and trying to keep all of the plates in my life spinning, things have been a bit rough.

But, we're starting to come up for air. After having many conversations with the universe, and choosing to focus on hope and prosperity, the light is beginning to creep back in. Sometimes I find that I just have to remember not to get held down by the "things" in my life, focus on what's really important, and remember that no matter what happens our lives, we'll all be okay. As cliche as it is to say, what's really important is having each other.

And my sister's advice is key. How many of those darn plates do I really need anyway? Not nearly as many as I think.

Unfortunately, my "little" project, the Project 365 took a major back seat. But, I haven't forgotten about it. And, I'm not going to feel guilty for not being able to uphold my goal for a short period of time. Rather, it's time to get back on the horse, and move on. So, Project 365 is back on track, and I'll post soon.

In unrelated news, did anyone see the Denny's commercials last night during the Super Bowl? If you missed them, man did you miss out. I haven't laughed that hard in quite a while. Not sure why these tickle me so much, but these are right up my humor-alley. Check out the commercials on NFL.com:

Chickens (notice the secret-service chickens at the end of the first link):
My favorite 2010 Super Bowl ad
Another good Denny's ad

And, check out Google's Super Bowl ad. I thought this was pretty darn smart.

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My Project 365, Photo-Style

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:00:00 -0700

I'm not really sure where I first heard of "Project 365," but I recall being inspired and thinking to my self, "one day I'll do a project 365." Well, that day is today. I guess I'm starting a couple weeks late, if we're counting from the beginning of the year. But, project 351 just doesn't have the same ring to it. So, ignore this small discrepancy, m'kay?

If you're not familiar with what Project 365 is, let me spend a few moments to explain:

Project 365 is any project you commit to doing once a day for an entire year. The one I originally encountered was a photographer. But, I suppose this could really be applied to anything you want to do more of in your life that you don't do, or do very little of now. For me, taking a picture a day is a big undertaking. I'm a husband, father, and a graphic designer. All of those things take up time, and can easily overwhelm me to a point where adding another "something" into my life seems impossible. This project, however, it's something I need. I need to expand my creative horizons, and take time to slow down. And, I want to reap the benefits of taking a picture a day for an entire year. If you're wondering why I might embark on such a thing, here's some benefits I hope to experience:

I look forward to looking back after the year has passed, and seeing all the pictures I've taken--all the people I've met, places I've been, things I've eaten, experiences I've gone through.

As I said, I'm excited to make the world slow down. It seems that ever since I've had my kid, life moves 2x faster than it did BE (before Ella). And, it was already clipping along pretty quickly beforehand. Being able to take in the world around me in a conscious manner will certainly help. As Ferris Bueller said it, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you might miss it."

And lastly, I've been told that taking a photo a day will make me a better photographer. I guess this goes without saying. No matter where anyone is in their artistic endeavors, practice makes "perfect." For me, I think this will push my creative potential; Forcing my self to find something new to photograph every day will undoubtedly squeeze out my creative juices.

So, here's how I plan on making my Project 365 a reality:

I'm going to take a camera everywhere. It's not practical for me to take my "professional" camera everywhere. But I will when I can.

When I can, I'm going to go on theme shoots. I'll go shoot red doors, or dogs, or nature stuff.

And lastly, I'm going to blog the week's favorite pic on the blog, and I'm not going to let it slip. Knowing who I am, I won't follow through if I get overwhelmed. Staying on top of the posts, is imperative. So, if you see me slipping, send me a nasty-gram.

With that, here's picture #1. A sorta self-portrait--of my raggedy tennis shoes.

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Susan & Justin :: Kohler, Wisconsin Wedding

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 11:05:23 -0700

Okay first, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I haven't updated my blog regularly in quite some time. My life has taken some rough turns, and has required my full attention at times, and haven't been able to sit down share everything that's been going on.

Without going into too much detail, my wife has been diagnosed with a life-long illness, and coming to grips with what that means for her, and us as a family has been a steep learning curve. Doctor's visits, lots of reading and thinking, talking, and figuring out what the rest of our lives together is going to look like has been a full-time job as of late. We're not out of the woods yet, but I think I see a small light at the end of the tunnel.

Nevertheless, it feels good to sit down and write. And, I'm excited to finally post a wedding I photographed back in October in Kohler, Wisconsin. So with that...

Susan and Justin came to me through a friend of a friend. And when Susan called me for the first time, she couldn't stop talking about how much she loved my style. And, Susan and I got along from the get-go. So naturally, it wasn't too hard to convince me to fly up to Kohler, Wisconsin for their wedding last October.

When I got there, I had the opportunity to shoot their rehearsal dinner, and was able to meet Susan and Justin face-to-face before the wedding, which was great. When Susan walked through the door to the restaurant, she said a couple obligatory "hello's," and made a b-line right for me. "Are you Chad," she asked. "Susan?" I replied. A smile ran from ear to ear on both our faces and we talked about how excited we both were for the wedding the following day.

Kohler, if you haven't been there, is absolutely stunning. It's an old town that was originally developed solely for the purpose of housing the workers at the Kohler plant (the place where they design and produce Kohler sinks and such). But today, it's a darling town of 2000+, where the streets are lined with 100-year old trees, and the houses are from the turn of the century (the earlier one, anyway). To boot, we were there in October, and the leaves were turning. So, beautiful.

On the wedding day, it was a tad cold, to say the least. Okay, it was frickin' freezing and breezy. Kohler is only a few miles west of Lake Michigan. So, on top of being cold and breezy, it was humid. And humid cold is way colder than dry cold like it is here in Colorado. But, that didn't seem to get anyone down. Susan and Justin were both excited and anxious, and ready. And other than my trigger finger getting a bit chilly during the ceremony, all went off without a hitch.

The ceremony and reception were both at The American Club. I could go on and on about how beautiful this venue was, but I've rambled enough. Here are a few of my faves from the day.

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Happy Thanksgiving!

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:54:24 -0700

To everyone I had the pleasure of photographing this year, and to all of my future brides and grooms, and to everyone in my life: I wish you all very thankful Thanksgiving with full bellies, good laughs, and lots of love.

And because a post is always better with a photograph, here's one of the cutest kids in the whole wide world, Princess Ella.

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My Family :: Sara France Shoot

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:20:00 -0700

Back in July we visited San Diego for our annual vacay out there, and had the omni-talented Sara France do a fashion-y shoot with my gorgeous wife, and a short portrait session with my little family (see the pictures here). I had heard great things about Miss France, and she didn't disappoint! Sara was so sweet and kind, and creative, and inventive, and exciting, and, and...we just couldn't have been happier with everything we received.

Thank you Sara for giving us such a wonderful experience--and beautiful images of course!

Hope to see you soon!

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Sam & Emily :: Wedding

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:58:59 -0700

Sam and Emily came to me through Heather at Calluna Events, and I'm so grateful to have been a part of their day. Sam and Emily have actually been married for a few years, but decided to celebrate their marriage with friends and family in Boulder, Colorado at the Sacred Hearth church, and Chautauqua Dining Hall.

We were blessed with absolutely stunning light that afternoon, and a beautiful evening--I'm so happy that they'll have the memories to share forever.

Sam and Emily, I'm so grateful to have meet both of you, and to be part of your wedding day. I wish you both a life full of wonder and excitement.

Cheers.

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Brooke :: Maternity

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:32:30 -0700

I'm so happy to finally be sharing these pictures. I met up with Brooke and her husband, Hawk, back in September when Brooke was 36 weeks, if I remember correctly. They've since given birth to a beautiful and healthy little boy.

Brooke and Hawk, thank you for allowing me into your home and getting some beautiful shots of the three of you. I wish you both the best of the best!

Cheers.

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Jason & Christa :: Wedding

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:39:29 -0700

Oh, it's been way too long since my last post. Lots goin' on here at the Morgan household.

But, I'm so happy to finally post a wedding from mid-September. Christa and Jason were one of my most beloved couples this year. The both of them carried themselves with such confidence, and calm energy, and carried with them a great deal of hope for the future. And the fun these two have with each other is inspiring (and cute, too!).

Jason and Christa, I wish you both the very, very best. The future holds bright things for you!

Cheers.

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Kelli & John :: Wedding

Sat, 19 Sep 2009 10:22:03 -0700

"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real..."

Kelli and John's hands were clenched tight as they listened to a reading from the Velveteen Rabbit, their attention drifting between the reader and each other. Cool air pushed dangling branches of weeping willows from side to side, the sun poking through every so often to dance on their skin. It was as graceful as a scene from Gone with the Wind. It was elegant, touching, and real--especially for me.

Just three years ago, on the same labor day weekend, my wife read that exact passage to me on my wedding day. So Kelli and John, I wish you the same joy and partnership that I've been graced with, and hope you "lose all your fur." And that the "sawdust inside you feels like it's going to burst."

Kelli and John were married at the Hudson Gardens in Denver, Colorado.

Thank you to Kevin Von Qualen for assisting me at this wedding.

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Elaina & Patrick :: Wedding

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 15:21:16 -0700

When Kevin and I walked into the bride's room, everyone's smile ran from ear to ear. And the laughter was infectious. The bride sat casually on the bed; her hair full of rollers. One of her bridesmaids sat in a chair near the window getting her makeup done. Others mingled with champagne and cheese in their hands. It was clear that these women shared a bond that ran deep; the compassion they had for one another was palpable.

Patrick's energy was a perfect balance to Elaina's. He was calm, steady, and cool, like 007. The other men in the room sat casually around the living room with beers in their hands. As he slid into his suit jacket, checking in the mirror, a humble confidence washed over his face. Patrick was ready.

And when these two are together, it's clear they understand each other. It's obvious that their love and friendship run deep. They enjoy ever second of each other's company, and are excited about their future together.

Elaina and Patrick, you two share a special bond. I'm grateful for the opportunity to be a part of your wedding, and wish you the very best in your future.

Cheers!

Elaina and Patrick were married at Boettcher Mansion in Golden, Colorado.
A big thank you to Kevin Von Qualen for assisting me at this wedding!

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Jeremy Cowart :: Help Portrait

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 15:55:28 -0700

Public service announcement.

This is a great idea pulled together by fellow photog Jeremy Cowart, someone I've been following on Twitter for a little over a year. His message is simple: on December 12, 2009 we all grab our cameras, find people in need, and take their pictures. And when the prints are ready, we deliver them to those people. It's about helping people who never dreamed of having their portrait made.

So, what is this all about? It's not about you. It's about them. It's about helping people see the beauty of who they are, and exposing their greatness.

For more information, visit Help Portrait.

If you're planning on helping, please say so here. It may inspire others to get out there.

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Cody Serrette :: Senior Portraits

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 10:51:57 -0700

Cody might be a little upset about me posting some of his senior pictures. But, he's my nephew, and he'll just have to deal. Earlier this week Cody and I wondered around some local abandoned buildings, running into some very interesting people during our shoot. But, we had some good fun. Cody is a good kid, has great sense of humor, and is an upstanding dude--gonna turn out to be some good peeps.

Cody, congrats on your senior year. Don't let it go by too fast--it's a great time in your life!

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Photo Safari

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 20:20:14 -0700

Today, I had a little free time, and went out for a little photo safari. Longmont has a lot more abandoned, old, funky buildings than I really knew about. They're cool, and erie, and odd, and creepy, and with the dark clouds rolling in over the mountains, I felt like I was about to hear (in a echo-y, quiet voice) "jay-jay-jay-son-son-son." Freaked me out. Good news: I survived. Here are a couple of my favorite pics from my outing.

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Image Du Jour :: Wedding Favorite

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 14:24:43 -0700

Another wedding favorite from a few weeks ago. Lindsay and Jason got married at Taharaa lodge in Estes Park, Colorado. The venue is a amazing. Beautiful views, gorgeous reception hall--all around wonderful. Enjoy!

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