desert

Brittney’s Outdoor Winter Bridal Portraits in Utah Desert

This weekend I’m photographing Brittney’s wedding here in Utah. So it’s a great time to share some of her bridal portraits that we did right here near my studio, outside in the Utah desert. We had a cold winter day which gave us some wonderful clouds to work with. I always love a dramatic sky because with the right lighting, I can make the sky pop and accentuate the bride.

She has a gorgeous dress that fits her perfectly. And the textures of her dress mixed with the rocky desert made for a wonderful combination.

Yellow is one of her favorite colors, so these roses were very apropos and added a nice color pop to these winter images.

As we were ending the shoot, more clouds rolled in and the sky loomed with a wonderful deep blue. This was a great way to end with a mix of color and b&w images.

And finally, here’s a trio showing off the details of her dress, lace, and ring. 

If you’re getting married, it’s a great time to book your time here at Bry Cox Studio. I’d love to create something wonderful for you. Give me a call at 801-728-3317.

And until next time, America.

Gorgeous Drone Video & Photos of the Spiral Jetty, Great Salt Lake, Utah

I’ve got so many great photos and shoots to share here on my blog. I photograph people of course, focusing on custom portraits that capture emotion and are extremely well lit. But sometimes I also like to photograph abstract shapes and the natural beauty of the world.

I live near the edge of the Great Salt Lake which gives me a variety of beautiful terrain in all directions. My studio location is in a forest of tall green trees, but a few miles away I’ve got salt flats, open desert space, waterfowl and wetland areas, and large open fields and marsh areas too. Twenty minutes away to the east and I’ve got tall mountains and rugged canyons. Heading south there’s all the gorgeous red rock often used in movie locations. And heading north (as we did with friends here) we can explore the north end of the lake, which is a mix of alkaline flats and shallow shores of the Great Salt Lake.

So at the beginning of Memorial Day weekend, a small group of friends of mine all went out to the Spiral Jetty. Some wanted to float in the extra high salinity of the northern end where the water is so dense, you can’t sink. Others wanted a fun excuse to enjoy the desert and great weather. I personally loved the idea of getting away from civilization, enjoying the beautiful air and open country, and I really wanted to fly over the area with my drone to photograph the colors and shapes from above.

Play this video above in full screen and in HD to see the gorgeous clarity. I especially love the moving water ripples, and the moving cloud shadows over top of all the wonderful and abstract shapes and colors. I also like the mix of very high shots (300-400 feet up) with video from very low, flying right over the water and photographing the reflections of the sky and clouds. And the music really makes this work, thanks to MusicByElise.com.

And here are some of my favorite photographs. If you look closely in this first one, you can see me standing at the very top of the spiral. I’ve got a colored landing pad (to protect the drone’s tiny parts from flying dust). You can see that pad as a small speck of color in the otherwise blue/gray dirt and rocks.

Here’s a photograph of some of my friends, out wading in the water. All of the alkaline and salt deposits create beautiful and abstract shapes that are best seen from above. I especially love the blue shapes in the bottom left corner juxtaposed with the warm colors, with a hint of blue sun reflecting in the top right corner.

More abstract colors and shapes.

Here is flying really low over the water. I love seeing the mix of mud and reflections in the water, along with the mountains in the distance.

Here are a couple long shots showing the distant mountain ranges that surround the Great Salt Lake, along with the mix of sand, water, and colors.

And closing the shoot with a drone-selfie before packing up our gear and heading to a favorite steak restaurant in the area.

It was a great day with friends to enjoy the open space of Utah in the warm spring weather.

If you need some drone photography or video for your business, give me a call, 801-728-3317. There are some legal requirements for shooting drone photos and video commercially, which people may not understand. However my dad is a long-time private pilot with the FAA, so with him on site for the shoot, we are good to go and can get some fantastic footage for you. Unique and artistic perspectives are always needed to stand out. And my artistic background in lighting and composition, mixed with the unique perspectives of a commercially flown drone means I can give you that and more.

And until next time, America.

Billy & Kim’s Destination Jewish Wedding in Scottsdale, Arizona

Earlier I shared a few sneak peek images from Billy & Kim’s destination Jewish wedding in Scottsdale, Arizona held at sunset on top of the Valley Ho Hotel. Well here is their entire wedding album. This video shows the outside cover, display box, and every page of the book.

It is best viewed full screen in HD.

And here are some of my favorite story-telling images from the book. But of course the video shows even more and puts these in context.

If you’re getting married, check out this info and then give me a call. 801-728-3317. Whether your wedding is here in Utah or requires travel, I’ll provide wonderful photographs of your day. I’ve been hired to shoot all over the USA and even in other countries. Why? Because you get someone you know you can trust (rather than hoping the local photographer will do a good job), and you get a great price. If you compare my prices to photographers with my same national rankings and skill level, you’ll see that I charge less and offer more.

My clients have found that the cost of flying me to their wedding actually saves them money, and it gives them peace of mind knowing that their exclusive and beautiful wedding will be perfectly and artistically captured.

And until next time, America.

Early Sneak Peak of Kim & Billy’s Jewish Wedding at the Valley Ho in Scottsdale, Arizona

Last week I had the honor of flying down to Scottsdale, Arizona to photography Kim and Billy’s wedding. It was a Jewish wedding at sunset on the roof of this very cool mid-century hotel, called Valley Ho. When you walk into the hotel’s front doors, you immediately feel like you’re on a set for Mad Men. The attention to detail is wonderful, so for the opening image, I decided to give this a retro film look – no filter however. I created this look from scratch.

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Before the ceremony we did a ‘first sight,’ where the groom sees the bride in her dress for the first time. I love his reaction. It’s perfect.brycox_valleyho_wedding_jewish_scottsdale_desert_2

While shooting some couple portraits, the wedding party watched from the top balcony and waved at us.brycox_valleyho_wedding_jewish_scottsdale_desert_3 brycox_valleyho_wedding_jewish_scottsdale_desert_4

Billy’s side of the family is Jewish and Kim’s family is LDS. I thought the Rabbi did a wonderful job. The ceremony was held on the roof of the hotel as the sun set in the distance.

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Immediately following the ceremony I stopped the couple for some beautiful images as the sun quickly disappeared.
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There is so much more to show so once the album is designed, I’ll have to share it as well. But for now, I hope these two are having a wonderful first week of marriage. Congrats, you two!

And if any of you are looking for great photography either here in Utah or out of state, give me a call. A cheap plane ticket isn’t much, especially when you know you have the photographer you want. My number is 801-728-3317.

And until next time, America.

Bry Cox’s Commercial Shoot of Death Valley

I feel honored to have been asked by a large corporation to create some artistic views of Death Valley. I shot for an entire day, starting early before sunrise and going until past dark shooting a variety of locations and places. I was accompanied by the company’s rep who took me to places I never would have been able to go without his unrestricted access to various areas off limits to everyone else.

I created more images than I expected during this full day of commercial landscape shooting, and even shot a number of bonus images – color infrared – which looked amazing and refreshingly interesting, especially in the middle of the day.

We started the morning around 5:30 am creating panoramas before sunrise.

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I found out that this was the spot where U2 shot their famous “Joshua Tree” album cover. After getting a number of images, the sun began to rise quite quickly behind us. I really like this image with the tops of the mountains in the distance being lit by the rising sun, and the various layers of color it created.

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And here is that area in full morning sun.

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In some areas there are some beautiful stretches of cracked earth. I liked these as abstract closeups.

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A lot of the areas required some vigorous hiking. At the end of the day I had logged a number of miles plus some big elevation changes on my watch – much more than expected. And these scenes we passed even as we hiked, were breathtakingly beautiful.

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Here, from one of my favorite lookouts, you could see a number of various rock formations which created bands of color and variety.

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This was also during the “super bloom” due to an earlier flood which caused a number of flowers to bloom, something very unusual for this area of the country.

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And in the more “civilized” areas of Death Valley, there’s some cool structures like this “Twenty-mule team” train, all part of the history of the Twenty-Mule Team Borax cleaner. I learned quite a bit about the history of the area as we drove around and hiked through the desert. It is all so much more interesting to me now, knowing some of the history of the place.

This particular train is surrounded by a fence to keep people from climbing on it, so some creative angles were necessary.

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And shooting it in color infrared also gave me some very unique ways of showcasing this local feature.

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Before shooting the Furnace Creek Resort up close, I wanted to get a long, distance shot of it to show how secluded it is, how tucked away in the middle of the desert it really is.

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Here it is up close. It was built on the site of a natural hot spring, and was famous for being the Hollywood hotspot getaway for celebrities. It’s an oasis in the middle of the hot desert.
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They have a beautiful pool, and here is the same angle but shot in color infrared.
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As the day neared an end, we re-hit some of our favorite spots to shoot them in completely different light. I love these vast landscapes, and the vibrant colors created by the evening sun.
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And here are a few more color infrared images from mid-day.

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And a few color infrared images created at sunset from a few of our favorite spots.

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This image below is one of my favorite color infrared images from the entire trip. It shows the sun setting in the distance, but the variety of colors created by infrared makes this such an interesting image to me.

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It was a very long day of shooting, but I like to make sure that people get more for their money than they expect. And I was surprised how many locations we were able to shoot and how many images I shot during this full day. It was far more than I expected which was a big bonus to the company. With so many beautiful images, I’m only sharing a small percentage here, and it was hard picking images to showcase. But I am grateful for the experience to shoot this job because I love the outdoors and I love creative photographic challenges, and making beautiful landscapes and images that people will appreciate for many years to come.

If your company needs some great photographs, give me a call. 801-728-3317. I’d love to chat with you about your photographic needs to see how I can help you out.

And until next time America.

Braden & Miranda’s Early Wedding Sneak Peek St. George Utah Temple

Braden and Miranda were married last weekend in the St. George Utah LDS temple, and they had me there to create some wonderful and romantic images for them. I love shooting wedding couples. I like the happiness, the romance, and the wonderful feelings at weddings, and I really like capturing that feeling in photographs that couples will keep for decades.

This particular morning was quiet and serene, and shooting earlier in the day also helped us beat the 100º desert heat that came later in the day. I’ve loved sorting through these portraits and wanted to share a few early favorites of mine in this sneak peek.

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I created a mix of color and black and white, full-lengths, close-ups, as well as images with both a classic and modern appeal. I especially like this emotional set built as a trio.

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The St. George Utah temple is set in a desert climate, and the stark white building with the direct desert sun makes for a great contrast against the blue sky. It’s a wonderful background for these romantic couple portraits.
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And this sequence of Braden “helping” with Miranda’s sunglasses made makes me laugh.
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If you’re getting married, give me a call at 801-728-3317. I’d love to create something artistic and romantic for you.

Photographs are the one thing we spend money on from a wedding that lasts. They are enjoyed by us, our children and future generations. Avoid the regrets of cheaper options and let me create something powerful and beautiful for you on your special day. I have price options ranging from partial coverage with an emphasis on romantic images to full-day coverage with multiple locations where I follow you throughout your day and tell your story in magnificent custom books. No matter your level, you’ll know you have images that you love now and for years to come.

Until next time, America.

Creating An Iconic Image, Artist of Light

This week I realized that I needed a really cool and iconic portrait that screamed, lighting is my specialty. It needed to be an image that could be used in a magazine, used for promoting speaking events, and used on my studio’s opening web page for all my clients to see. It had to be colorful and catch the eye and be completely different from anything else out there.

As I thought about it, the idea came. Being a specialist of light, I needed an image that said, “artist of light.”

I could envision the complete image, the location, the time of day and exposure I’d need for the right kind of blue sky, where the lights would be in the frame, and how I’d mix different lights with different color temperatures to create the right depth and mood. It would be a vertical image ready for a magazine, and I’d be holding the main light with one hand and firing off the camera with a remote in the other hand. And the kicker would be that the main light would be my flash-on-a-stick idea that I’ve been speaking about for the last few years (which is ideal for quick, manual, and very controllable custom lighting, and can be used a number of ways).

That was my idea; very detailed. So the next night I packed up my truck with all the gear I’d need and I headed out to my location. The end result not only matched exactly my idea, but turned out even better than I imagined.

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The key to any great image is lighting. I’m a PPA Master photographer and I speak all over training photographers on how to problem solve and create exquisite lighting using whatever gear you may have with you. It’s not about brand, or auto-settings, but about know-how.

There is a philosophy out there with photographers that lighting is just about exposure, making sure an image isn’t too dark or too light. People with this mindset think of adding a reflector or a flash only when someone’s face is dark or backlit, and even then no care is taken in terms of using light to flatter or sculpt people. Angles of light, choice of modifiers, and color temperature are not even thought of.

I want to be different. I want to create images that stand out from the crowd. I want images that pop with vibrance and emotion and that flatter people and look amazing, that feel three-dimensional, and are created on purpose with repeatable, controllable, manual settings.

I’m sure you need a really cool iconic image to promote you or your business. Let’s talk and create that for you. Or maybe your a bride or a mom and need something beautiful and timeless of your family or upcoming wedding. In either case, give me a call, 801-728-3317.

And until next time, America.

Blake’s Senior Portrait Sneak Preview

Because school is starting this week, I’m showing a sneak peek of Blake’s senior portraits. We did a Senior Mix Session with an additional location, and here’s what we got! Blake is a drummer, so to showcase that talent, we set up his drums along with a portable studio setup of lights and equipment out in one of my favorite desert locations. The jumping ones were my favorites and I really liked the storm clouds we had that day. It made for some great drama in the sky.

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We also did a full session in the studio with a number of different setups. Here is one of my favorites from his black and white series using a very unique lighting setup. The resulting look is hip, edgy, and modern.Cox_BJohnson-sr-114b-edge

This next image at the pool wasn’t shot at a pool at all, but actually created completely in the studio! Senior portraits should show who you are and what you like to do. Doing this image at the studio gives me the creativity to create the best image possible with the most custom lighting.

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And of course, senior portraits are always fun with a cap and gown.

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In 20 years looking back to today, what are you going to want to remember about your senior year? Let’s create a portrait for you that shows in a unique and professional way who you are right now.

If you are a high school senior and especially if you are a friend of Blake’s, I can create some amazing portraits of YOU, and right now is the BEST time to get in for some senior portraits! I have some awesome promotions going on, plus the weather is great for outdoor sessions.

Here’s what to do:

(1) Call me at the studio to set up a time, ask any questions you have, and let’s talk about some fun ideas for your shoot, 801-728-3317.

(2) Start thinking of fun outfits you may want to bring, maybe go shopping for a new outfit or two, and most importantly, don’t forget some props that say something about you, like wake boards, a basketball, musical instrument, skis, motorcycle helmet, dance shoes, …anything!

(3) Bring your mom or a friend to the shoot so they can be a part of the whole experience.

(4) And don’t forget your iPod so that you have your favorite music playing during the shoot.

I will post more images from Blake’s shoot soon! Keep tuned in!!

Big Yellow Moon on the Rise

The other night the moon was supposed to be extra big and bright (news story) which won’t happen again for two more decades. I set out to a secluded place near my home and set up my camera on a tripod to wait for the moon rise. It was a fun and cold night. I had just got back from Texas and was used to the warm weather, and the cool spring night here in Utah made for a fun adventure.

I started out shooting the sunset, as there was about a 15 minute difference from when the sun would set and the moon would rise. I shot for HDR which means you shoot a couple exposures to capture the shadow and highlight details and then sandwich the images together in one image, but ended up just using single exposures as my final images as I feel they look much more natural and esthetically pleasing. Here’s a pano looking west to the sunset.

During twilight, I created some long 30 second exposures of the ground and scenery around me. I really love the next two images and the blue in them.

I especially love the direction of light and the high horizon in this one below.

I was using an iPhone app which pointed to where the moon would rise. I waited for it to peak above the clouds and began to shoot. I really like this image. Everything is so blue.

I pulled back for another image, showing more foreground. I could have digitally enhanced and lightened the grass and foreground, but I prefer it like it is, feeling dark and cool like night.

I zoomed in to capture the moon, but by now it was climbing fast.

The higher moon gave me a bit more light to work with, and I took one more with a lot of foreground and a high horizon, hyper-focal focusing to get as much in sharp detail as possible, especially for such a long exposure.

I really like how these turned out, but nevertheless it was just fun to be outside and enjoying the cool night, looking at the moon. I also created a few images on my iPhone just for fun. Here’s when I first arrived…

My camera and the moon while creating the last image above…

Some weeds against the night sky. I shot this while walking back to my vehicle…

And one more of weeds that I sent from my iPhone to my iPad using PhotoStream, then edited on my iPad to create a pseudo painting. I really like the colors in this a lot.

Well, that was my Big Moon Adventure. If you love photography like I do, and you understand the value of a great image that can stand the test of time, then give me a call. Now is a great time to set up your Spring appointment for your family portrait. Give me a call at 801-728-3317 to schedule a time. And feel free to browse my main website at BryCox.com.

Beautiful Panoramas and Scenics from Southern Utah

I have so many things to blog about right now, but I’m so excited about these desert scenics I created last weekend in Southern Utah. I had this image in my mind of what I wanted, and passed many different mountain ranges because the clouds weren’t perfect. They would have just been a well executed photograph of beautiful scene, but nothing that would really grab you. But after some driving, we eventually did find this range with the perfect clouds and lighting! This image is my favorite, and I especially love how all the shapes and lines work together so well.

The line of the clouds, the angled rock in front, and the bush for balance in the bottom right corner — it all is so nice. And the detail in these images is incredible. Hopefully someday you’ll get to see them big where you can really get lost in them. I worry that small web versions just don’t do them justice.

On another day after a pretty hike up a ridge, we came across this valley at dusk. I originally shot this for black & white, but ended up liking it in color better. There was a cool wind blowing at us from this valley, and the scene was just surreal.

And here are some fun abstract vignettes taken near the first scenic. I really liked what the light was doing and thought these may work in a series of some kind. All of these images are finished with my new custom made edges that I’ve been working on too.

Soon I hope to have my online art store back up, and then I’ll offer some of these images on there. My store is down because I’ve been converting it to a new system and storefront which is taking longer than expected. But the new store should be better, more efficient and more versatile.

Would you like some new artwork for your home? Maybe some scenics like these or perhaps some new custom family portraits? Give me a call at 801-728-3317 and lets talk.

Underwater Photography & Music Videos

I recently created a few short music videos with a new camera capable of going underwater.  I’ve had other underwater cameras in the past, but this one is my new favorite!  I can shoot in true and high-def HD and can shoot in true slow-motion too, giving a terrific and smooth slow motion, rather than a jittery slow-mo that is created from just slowing down clip shot at normal speed.

Check out this demo video I created while testing this camera last weekend on my friend’s boat.  I love the abstractness of the bubbles and water.  I shot for that quite a bit.

During this underwater shoot, I securely mounted the camera to my wrist, my chest, and even to a pole.  I tested it in sunlight, underwater, with movement, and everything else I could think of.  I’m excited because I didn’t have to edit any of the clips.  All of what you see is exactly what I created in camera — no adjustments.

About a week before I also tested it for time lapse ability and also wanted to test the mount I got for it to secure it to the outside of a vehicle.  I wanted to see how it would hold up to the wind at freeway speeds.  Here’s what I created while driving from my house to 7600 South in Salt Lake.

I am very impressed and have a bunch of new ideas for using this camera now.  I really hope to use it on high school seniors.  Years ago I created music videos from weddings and seniors, but the time involved to produce the pieces was so time consuming, that the packages became very expensive.  Now though, with this camera and with the newest editing software that I’ve also been testing, I hope to be able to create these kinds of things again for seniors and wedding couple, but in a more cost-effective way, and with even greater production value.

If you’re a high school senior and want a hip music video that you can post on your facebook page, then give me a call!  NO ONE creates images like me!  My shoots are super artistic, fun, and I know just how to make you look great!  You will LOVE your images!

Give me a call to schedule your appointment.  801-728-3317.  And feel free to browse my main website, BryCox.com and my blog at BryCox.com/blog.