I was going through the photos of Erin and Andrew’s St. Helena wedding, where I had the opportunity to second shoot with TJ Salsman, and I remembered Erin Oveis Brant’s post about pre-visualizing a special shot.

When I walked into the St. Helena Catholic Church, I saw the choir loft and knew the shot I had to have.  Sam Hassas was one of the first wedding photographers I started following two years ago after a friend posted her engagement photos on facebook.  One of the photos that has always stayed with me is actually one that a third shooter took – of the bride and her father walking down the aisle, shot from above.  I started playing the “what lens…”, “how to meter…”, “can I pull this off…” game while shooting photos of family arriving.  TJ okay’d my idea to shoot from the choir loft and quietly make my way back downstairs, so all I had to do was stayed focused and trust my instincts.

These two photos turned out to be my favorites of the day.  Just a simple story, told at most weddings, accented by Erin’s grace.

And just a note… TJ’s photos from Erin and Andrew’s wedding are delicious.  He captured the true spirit of Fall in Napa Valley.  I encourage you to take a look at his work and give him some comment (or facebook!) love!  I’m so lucky to have been connected with him and can’t wait to work with him more in 2012.