The Ideal Portraits
It’s my love of the natural world that drives me. When not in the studio I am outside where real life happens. I strive for days exploring new trails and sights; to bask in the beauty of the world around us and enjoy the simple things. Life doesn’t have to be complicated.
In the same way, I want my photographs to reveal the real love and joy of a couple having the time of their lives; lost in the moment and surrounded by this beautiful place. Uncomplicated, unhindered and free to experience Yosemtie.
Wedding Philosophy
After twenty years of wedding photography, I've learned quite a few tricks along the way. Those years of experience have also forced me to reflect and learn, not only about photography, but about life, love, and the world around us all. It's necessary to look not only at your wedding day, but also past your wedding day because the simple choice we make now affect your future together.
- Your wedding day experience comes first. Everything about your wedding should serve the experience of your wedding day. Talk with your partner now to talk about how you want your wedding day to feel and make your wedding plans based on that. Your happiness and enjoyment, your wedding day experience is my priority. I will do whatever I can to be flexible and adjust to events outside of our control to ensure your wedding day experience. Besides a happy couple looks better in portraits.
- A great wedding need not bury you in financial debt. Debt is a terrible way to start a healthy marriage. Instead the hand of the one you love is what you really need. Let the beauty of Yosemite and the simplicity of nature be the perfect setting for your wedding.
- We must continually ask ourselves how our actions impact the environment and do our best to minimize this impact. We will follow Leave No Trace Principles on your wedding day. Not only does this ensure that the park will remain pristine for future enjoyment, but also gives you more open nature to enjoy on your day.
Photographic Vision
Yosemite is big. Not just in square miles, but a deeply humbling big. Standing high above Yosemite Valley on a granite ledge, peering down to what seems to be impossible below, serves as a reminder to us all that we are a small part of the larger puzzle. For newlyweds, it reaffirms the vastness of a life together stretching out into the future. That is one of the exact reasons that I believe Yosemite is the perfect location for a wedding.
Of course there are always the amazing views that Yosemite is known for. From Tunnel View to Glacier Point, or hidden lakes deep in the backcountry, Yosemite offers incredible vistas and outdoor experiences with incredible ease. The kind of places that leave you with a sense of wonder and a smile stuck on your face.
This amazing landscape fits me perfectly. Open space to stretch out and humble ourselves. Wilderness to explore and escape into. I am drawn to Yosemite’s grand scale, dwarfing us with ease and proving that the world is wildly bigger than us.
I appreciate the constant ever-present change in Yosemite. No two days are ever the same. In visiting the exact same locations day after day, new details will reveal themselves to those willing to be patient. It’s a place of continual evolution, giving us something new to enjoy each day.
The natural world and weddings have become so intertwined to me it is as if they are one. I tend to see full realized photographs in my mind before I touch my camera, photographs just waiting for my clients to step into. Together we unite that sense of wonder and amazement of this place, your love for each other on your wedding day, and it completes the photograph. It truly is collaborative art.
It’s no wonder I tend to create dramatic portraits, full of rich vibrant colors, and the range of light only found in Yosemite. Portraits that you will enjoy for decades to come as they daily pull you right back to Yosemite.
About Patrick
Born to Los Angeles, I spent the early part of my life exploring the city’s hidden outdoor gems. I would spend my days seeking the shelter of open trails or finding solitude in the ocean. It was a life of duality - the opportunities that big city life brings mixed with open expanses that few reached out to.
In my youth I discovered an old underwater camera hiding in a family closet. Instantly I was transfixed by the device, with it’s bright yellow color and numerous dials it was a tactile mystery. But it was the magic of the viewfinder that locked me in. The ability for me to decide what would be in the frame and what wouldn’t, to imagine and construct a scene, to compose a photograph - these learned skills remain in me today.
It was 2001 when I photographed my first wedding and I haven’t looked back since. Perhaps the most rewarding aspect over the past twenty years is that my skill set is never complete, there is always more to learn and another challenge. I rarely draw on other wedding photographers for inspiration, instead looking to the more structured disciplines of editorial photography and cinematography. Bridging these with portrait photography in the ever changing beauty of Yosemite has become second nature to me. I tend to see photographs in much larger scope, resulting in stunning imagery of couples truly enjoying themselves in Yosemite.
Since 2005 I have chosen to live in Mariposa, just outside of Yosemite’s park boundary. When I’m not working in the park, I’m outside exploring the Yosemite area with my family. Everyday I wake up and look out over the Sierra and am mesmerized by the beauty of the light washing over these mountains. Experiencing Yosemite throughout the year reveals hidden gems and special unique opportunities.
Local Experience is the Difference
01. Experience
Living in Yosemite has given me incredible access to explore the park, and it's unique weather conditions, revealing an often unseen beauty. It also means that I'm ready to draw on that experience, to share that beauty, no matter what happens on your day.
We're ready for anything
02. Yosemite Local
I live here year round. There are never any travel fees. If for any reason you need to reschedule your wedding (what if Yosemite floods?), rest assured knowing that I will be here.
I also have inside local knowledge for the park and the surrounding areas.
Develop Your Vision
03. Tailored Equipement
The photography equipment I use has been carefully selected to be dependable and produce the results I demand no matter the weather. Currently, I am using Fujifilm GFX Medium Format cameras and lenses for their exacting detail and color reproduction.