A few years after I moved to Idaho and had my photo business up and running, I was asked by a high school student, Noilyn, if I would be her senior project mentor. Always eager to jump into something I’ve never done before, I agreed. Noilyn bought a film camera for her project and over the course of three months created a great collection of images and received many accolades from her teachers, friends, and yours truly. After graduation, Noilyn stayed local and kept with her interest in photography. She was my first intern in 2010 and improved with every gig.

Throughout my relationship with Noilyn, I kept hearing about her beau, Rob. Stories about him piloting bush planes in Alaska to take fly fishermen deep into remote canyons, being a rippin’ skier, their adventures wake surfing the local lakes, and impromptu dates/flights around the West to places like Carmel or Scottsdale, lent Rob this iconic, Indiana Jones, reputation. Well, to be honest, after meeting him and spending time with him, the reputation held true. Only, you should add in there his generosity, kindness, and interest in others to round out Rob’s character; I should say these traits are equaled by Noilyn.

Noilyn is a native of Costa Rica and most of her family still resides near San Jose. When these two began planning their wedding, I was overjoyed when they asked if I would join in the celebration and be their photographer. Two weeks ago, their amazing wedding took place on the small Playa Azucar in the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica with 60 or so friends and family in attendance. Noilyn and Rob planned a stunning wedding and feast for my cameras with fire dancers, lanterns, an amazing sunset, and colorful ambient lights. Noilyn’s family brought some tasty moonshine with them that went down easy and reminded you later how many shots you’d had! It was the perfect celebration. Congrats Noi and Rob! Pura vida!

Jimmy and Leah were married last Thursday at the phenomenal Cabo Azul resort which is located in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico. About fifty of their closest friends and family flew down to party with them for the week and attend their beautiful wedding. Just like my time photographing their engagement session (here), photographing Jimmy and Leah’s wedding was fun and adventurous. They are always up for any and all portrait ideas and rallied the morning after their wedding so we could hit the beach and pool for a Trash the Dress session. Congratulations Jimmy & Leah!

The Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation asked if I would volunteer and photograph the first day of their Janss Pro-Am Ski Classic. As I have a kid in their nordic program, I gladly donated my time. Little did I know that I would be photographing grapes, horse and jockey, hippies, and a myriad of other characters skiing a tight slalom course! It was a fun afternoon and looked like a great turnout for SVSEF’s largest fundraiser.

One of the crazy aspects of working as a photographer is how we often times jump into events and ask those around us their trust with capturing their image. This is especially true for wedding gigs as we get right into a highly emotional day often times only knowing our clients for a few hours prior. A week and a half ago, I photographed for Brad and Kat here in Sun Valley and prior to their wedding day, had only spent an hour with them at Grumpy’s getting their final schedule and details organized. As with most couples the last few weeks before their wedding, there was a hint of stress at our initial meeting. However, these two were all smiles and full of happiness on their wedding day. They, and their guests, were such fun to be around; easy going, sincere, and ready for a party. Their exuberance was contagious and their family and friends followed their lead throughout the day and into the night. Congrats Brad and Kat! I hope your honeymoon time on the Pacific was off the charts!

Yesterday began as Saturdays often do, mellow and uneventful; relaxing. A warm night had kept the passing storm from leaving snow in the lower elevations, Bellevue included. Almost all night the tattering of rain on our metal roof made for a nostalgic sound hinting that Spring was drawing near. After breakfast my family took advantage of the soggy morning to clean up the house and by 11am or so my wife noticed on Facebook that our Mayor was requesting help on the North end of town as some homes were being flooded.

Homes being flooded on the North end didn’t register as something to be concerned about. All that was North of town was a large field; no creeks, lakes, no reason to connect this area with flooding. By noon my curiosity got the better of me and I drove my eight year old daughter, Kaia, to see what the story was. Within a minute of arriving, I had a shovel in my hand and Kaia was holding open the sandbags as we filled one after another. Breaks between filling bags were hauling and stacking them along the street to keep the field’s rapidly melting snow from draining into town.

We worked until a line had been created and then I grabbed my camera to capture some of the final moments. I stopped back by to catch the fire and city works departments wrapping up the dredge line they were using to help channel the water toward storm drains located on main street.

The Wood River Valley, home to my home town, Bellevue, is about as far removed from natural disasters as I thought possible. While, the occasional avalanche rips down a mountain side or a minor earthquake rumbles the ground, I didn’t think I’d be sandbagging with my neighbors where town met pasture.

I spent yesterday in the mountains north of Ketchum with a group of ski guides who work for Sun Valley Trekking. They were out reviewing techniques that both aid their guests while traveling on snow and how to rescue them if an injury were to occur. The guide’s seriousness toward their occupation was equally matched by their love of being in the mountains; not to mention their knowledge of weather, geology, and all things technical. I learned a lot and had a blast scrambling around photographing these athletes as they moved through their environment.

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