It's no secret that Red Rock Canyon here in Las Vegas is one of my favorite locations in Las Vegas. The red rocks, joshua trees, and the beautiful golden desert light make it pure magic. So when Rob and Marlies asked me and Bryen to do their elopement photo and video in Red Rock, it was an obvious and easy yes!
XOXO
HAYWAY
The first thing we think of when we hear the name Death Valley is definitely not the word romance, or even beauty, for that matter. And that's fine, but I am here trying to change your mind, because Death Valley isn't anything like it sounds. In fact, Death Valley is one of the most beautiful places on earth that people travel from all over the world to see. Not only is it super freaking cool, it is also one of the hottest places on earth during the summer. If you don't know what 115 degrees Fahrenheit feels like, #DeathValley is the place that can make all your wildest dreams come true, if those dreams involve melting and overheating without having to even move a muscle.
Being a wedding photographer in Las Vegas, I often look at places differently than most people would. Where you might see a dingy alleyway, I see beautiful light and leading lines that would make the most perfect and edgy photoshoot location. And when it comes to landscapes and outdoors, often the most simple backdrops make for the most breathtaking photos, like Badwater Basin. This giant #SaltFlat is the lowest point in America, about 282 ft. below sea level. And the picture below of a sunrise shot at #BadwaterBasin last month proves my point.
To me, the point of pictures is to tell a story by capturing a single moment in time. Every aspect of a picture - from the location to the posing, light, colors, and clothing are involved in this story. We woke up at 2 am to drive from #LasVegas to Death Valley to make it there by sunrise. Not only are sunrise and sunset the best times for pictures, sunrise is the coolest time of the day in the middle of the summer, so we wanted to get in early, and get out before it got dangerous. And we lucked out. Not only was the temperature perfect, but we had the ENTIRE SALT FLATS to ourself, and basically the entire park. I think we saw a total of 3 other cars during the entire time we were there. Bless the crazy hot summers in Death Valley.
All we needed to capture quality "adventurous engagement-like pictures" by ourselves was a DSLR, wide angle lens, tripod, IR shutter release, and of course, a knowledge of photography. But these are to show that, to me, the most beautiful backgrounds are usually the simplest, and the soft even light of sunrise is the absolute BEST time to shoot portraits.
These pictures were all taken at Badwater Basin and on the road that leads to it. After we enjoyed the sunrise and played around with some smoke bombs, we headed up to Dante's View. While there are so many awesome spots in Death Valley to see, like the Sand Dunes and the painted mountains, we only had time to pick two before the sun got scary hot. Below is one last pic at the Salt Flats of Bryen playing with a smoke bomb!
While dante's view was cool, the lack of clouds made for dull landscapes, so we stuck to taking pictures of each other taking pictures. But the cool thing about Dante's View is that it overlooks the Salt Flats from way up high, so we could see exactly where we had just been and it was pretty awesome.
And that's it for now! Death Valley is somewhere that is very diverse and freaking HUGE, making it difficult to see all in done day, especially during the summer. The best part is that we are so close living here in Vegas and could go whenever we want. I hope that some of these pictures inspired you to appreciate the largest national park in the lower 48 and maybe take your boo for those engagement or anniversary pics that you need to get!
XOXO,
HAYWAY
Back in January, I decided to have a little adventure and go on a photo walk at the Neon Museum in downtown Las Vegas. Another little solo adventure that was all about doing something that I wanted to do just for the heck of it! It's a really cool place where all the old neon signs from Las Vegas go to die. I paid $35 for an hour and a half (regular non photographer tickets are about $15), and had an amazing time. It was just me, my camera, and the quietness of being alone and doing what you enjoy. I knew I wanted to get pictures of all the letters in the alphabet so I could make custom picture collages with them (as shown at the end of the post), but I was lucky to get some other great shots that I am really proud of and happy with.
Wether you are from Las Vegas or just visiting, the neon museum is definitely a place you should check out! It's cool to see how they arrange all the signs to together to not only showcase each of the individual signs, but create a unique and beautiful work of art all on its own. I love this place so much this is where I took my senior pictures for my high school graduation almost ten years ago! This spot is also amazing if you are planning on eloping in Las Vegas, or even wanting to have a beautiful intimate wedding in front of some vintage neon signs. No matter what your fancy, as a wedding photographer in Las Vegas, I love this spot for engagements, maternity shoots, senior portraits and weddings!
So without further ado, here are some really fun vintage Vegas pictures, shot with a canon 5D mark IV and sigma art 50mm. If you know a little about photography, you know that it is very HARD to get good shots at night without a tripod, but with a super high ISO was able to catch a few that weren't blurry. They might not been as clear as most of my other pictures, but they are super retro and vintage looking, which is what I was trying to go for!
This is when the magic really comes alive. One of the coolest parts of this place is that some of the neon signs were either restored or still work! So once the sun begins to set, the lights come on, and you feel like you have been transported to another world. It's kind of like Disneyland, but way more vintage and way more VEGAS! For those signs that don't still work, they have led lights that shine up on them to make them glow at night as well. I mean who wouldn't want to get married or take some amazing wedding portraits in front of this spot?? One of the other crazy parts is that this venue isn't that much more expensive than going to one of the Chapels downtown, once you add in all the extra fees or pay extra just to have your own photographer because most don't allow any photography or make you pay extra for it. So depending on the time and day of your wedding, this should definitely be one of the places your think about when planning your Vegas Elopement!
Now for the letters, I knew I wanted to make people signs with their names spelled out. My nephew who just turned 6 LOVES Iron Man, so I wanted to make him one for his birthday. I could spend about $100 on a custom frame, but I decided to DIY. It was way harder than I excepted let me tell you... calculating, measuring, and cutting your own mat is a pain - but it was very fulfilling to say that I DID THAT! So here is a picture of the picture made out of red and gold Iron Man colors.
You can bet you will be seeing me use neon letters everywhere for a while. Have a birthday coming up? You get a name sign, you get a name sign, EVERYBODY GETS A NAME SIGN!
The best thing about living in Las Vegas is that not only do I have beautiful desert locations to shoot in, but I am able to book a last minute tour to a museum that people travel across the world to visit. Cheers to living in adult Disneyland!
XOXO,
Hayway