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Vegas Baby!

We won two tickets to the annual WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International) Convention in Las Vegas last month! More than 15,000 photographers convened at the MGM for this incredible experience of education, motivation, and trade show.

Of course, we were super-excited (who wouldn’t be?!)…not only to got to Vegas for a week, but to see all the new products being introduced (and win free stuff), hear some awesome speakers whom we admire (and steal their secrets of success), and learn from the best in the biz (and win free stuff)…and to eat at In-N-Out, of course (hey, I grew up in California!).

The whole trip was quite the experience, to say the least. We learned a lot about Vegas that week. Like, bring comfortable shoes – our room was a good 20 min. brisk walk from where the convention was and it was in the same hotel! Walgreen’s saves you money – they have a little deli section AND alcohol! Sleep is over-rated – BUT, there was a Starbuck’s on our “side of town” that had the shortest line of the other 2 in house. Get to the classes early – some had more than 1,000 people in them and were standing room only – that’s insane in the membrain!

It was two days before we saw any familiar faces. We ran into Art Heffron on the way to our first class – poor guy, he must have felt like we attacked him, we were really excited to see someone we knew! Anyway, he invited us out for drinks that night, and we met him and some other Denver Photographers (who I love now). Art, Belle, Autumn, and Kim – it’s on like Donkey Kong next year-woop!

We had a great time – learned A LOT – and didn’t sleep much. We were exhausted by the time we made it back to Denver, but it was WELL worth every second and penny. Can’t wait for WPPI 2013…

Here are a few snapshots from our adventures:

The endless hallway – no mirror at the end like we thought…

Taken with my phone – hey, I wanted it for Facebook…

Last night in town – back to the hotel

The Story of Us (Part 2)

I loooooove to hear the “proposal story”! It’s so sweet to hear how personable, and sometimes comical, the thoughtfulness of the Groom-to-Be can become. I can usually picture the scenario in my head as they describe it, and wish I was actually there with a camera!

Well, here’s how it went down with us, and hopefully you will be able to picture it for yourself…

It was about a year after I moved in with Jeff, and we decided to take a couple of weeks and go on vacation. We decided to spend our time in the mountains, by using the family cabin as “base”. There was a lot of things we wanted to do, but mainly it was to just get-away and spend some time together. It was right after Christmas, so it was cold making it the perfect opportunity to snuggle with my baby at the cabin.

We had planned several day trips around Colorado and since the cabin was in Buena Vista, it was perfect for our plan. One particular day trip was to Breckenridge to go snowboarding. If you didn’t know, Jeff is a Colorado native and has been skiing and snowboarding since he could walk. I, on the other hand, grew up in California and had only been snowboarding one other time. I picked it up rather quickly, but after falling one too many times on my poor little tail-bone, I was done.

Heading back to Buena Vista, I could only think of how wonderful those hot springs were going to make me feel. We had our favorite spot, the Mt. Princeton Hot Springs just outside of town. It was the type of hole-in-the-wall place that you had to hear about from a local. The type of place where you could either swim in the pool or lay in the river. Of course the river was our favorite spot, away from the other guests. It’s where you can move rocks around to change the shape of the pool you were laying in, or change the flow of the natural spring spilling in from the pool above you, and moving through the rocks to the pool below. One half of the river was hot, where there were large boulders making a string of pools along one side of the bank – the other side, a rushing river, only a few feet deep, and freezing cold!

Anyway, we could never remember how late the place stayed open, and seemed to always arrive and hour or less before they closed. This particular day, Jeff had mentioned that he called them before we left and that they had extended hours.

After dinner, we made our way over the Hot Springs, and I did think it was a little strange how quickly Jeff was driving to get there…he seemed rushed. Once we arrived, we stepped into the lobby area and Jeff ushered me into the locker room to get changed and that he would pay for us. Noticing this as well, but not thinking anything of it, I went ahead and changed, then we were on our way out to our river. As soon as he opened the door to go out, I noticed the candles surrounding one of the pools! How romantic! I didn’t know it at the time, but his father had been there right before us and had set it all up (we actually passed him on the road on the way out there). Appreciating my thoughtful boyfriend, we hung out in our favorite spot, now noticing that we were the only ones there – even better! That romantic guy of mine had rented out the entire place just for us!  We even had some music before the cd player got too cold and quit working.

It was beautiful out there that night.  So clear so you could see all the stars, and since it was cold, the hot spring water flooded the air with steam. It made for the perfect proposal ambiance!

We hung out for a while, soaking in the hot water and listening to the river going by. Jeff had gotten up to get something out of the backpack, and when he sat down, his arm was behind him in the most awkward position! I thought this was strange but he was being so romantic and thoughtful, who am I to judge?!  He began telling me how much he loved me, and then asked me to be his wife!!!! I couldn’t believe it! Never once on the way out here did I expect this to happen! Of course I said “Yes!” and then put the ring on my finger – it fit perfectly and was the most beautiful thing!

Jeff had designed it himself and had gotten it made through a jeweler friend. It’s one-of-a-kind, and not like any one elses. Again, another one of those flags! I had always known that my fiance-to-be would somehow make my ring and that it would be mine, and only mine.  I knew immediately that this was meant to be (as if I had any doubts!).

We were married 8 months later at the Denver Botanic Gardens, in the Romantic Garden….but you’ll have to wait for Part 3 to hear that story….

The Story of Us (Part 1)

It’s one of my favorite questions to ask a couple, “How did you guys meet?” Its a great way to open up the conversation and get to know the couple better. With the birth of our second child only weeks away, this morning I caught myself thinking about how in love with Jeff I am, and it got me thinking of how it all began. So I thought I would share how it came to be between myself and the love of my life….

Me & Jeff’s love story has always been “easy”, meaning that we both feel that it has been meant to be from the beginning! Everything just fell into place for us and that so many things have always been “known”. Of course, getting that ball rolling wasn’t easy at first.

I had just gotten home after being on tour for 6 months with a metal band (I was the Production Assistant) and needed a job asap. I landed a gig working for N.I.P.P., a local concert promoter at the Ogden Theater. I had been to the Ogden before for a show prior to going on tour (with my boyfriend at the time), and thought that one of the bartenders there was the hottest thing I had ever seen…but I had this boyfriend, so that’s all it was, “a noticing”. Well imagine how happy I was, now a single girl, working at the Ogden, and here was this bartender! It took me a good month before I got up enough guts to talk to this guy and used the excuse of getting my “shift drink” as a reason to open it up. I asked him, “If I give you my number, will you call me?” He replied (in a very cool manner), “Ya, I might call ya”. The ball was now in his court, but he hadn’t called. So every time we saw each other at a show, I asked him, “You haven’t called me yet – do you need my number again? Did you lose it – are you going to call me?” Finally at one show, he mentioned how we should go on a motorcycle ride sometime. So of course, every time I saw him I asked about that ride and if he still had my number, and if he was going to call me. You get the idea that I was very persistent, right? Finally, I realized that he probably had a girlfriend, after all, he was pretty hot. He said that he did, so every time I saw him after that I asked him if he was single yet, or if he had broken up with his girlfriend, etc. – you get the idea.

So FINALLY, one day I got a call from an unknown number but didn’t answer it. It was the hot bartender! Imagine how excited I was that he had finally invited me on that motorcycle ride.

The date arrived and he showed up on this loud, tough, mean custom Harley and I remember thinking, “Oh thank goodness it’s not a crotch rocket” (those just aren’t my style). So we went to Golden for pizza and then Morrison for ice cream and just talked the whole time. We had great conversation and it was completely innocent and sweet (the girlfriend was on her way out btw).

After a couple more dates, he invited me over to his loft on 8th & Santa Fe. As soon as I walked in, I was a little taken back by this HUGE painting on his wall that he had done. It was of a partial woman’s face and she had blue hair (I had blue hair at the time – remember, I was a little “metal” girl at the time)! I, of course, asked about it and he said that “she was his true love but he didn’t finish her face because when he painted it, he didn’t know who she was at the time”. WEIRD!

That was just one of quite a few little “flags” (not red ones) that made me raise an eyebrow. Ever since I was a kid, I had always known that my “true love” would be some sort of Artist, probably a photographer (you know what they say about girls “marrying their fathers”); live in a loft and have a big dog. I also knew that he would also be so much of an Artist that he would make or at least design my wedding ring (because I am not the type that would go to the jewelry store and just pick something out – it would have to be more unique than that – but more on that later). So, back to the big dog – when visiting the loft, that’s when I met Bubba for the first time, a Rhodesian Ridgeback of 90 lbs.! He and I hit it off right away and that was a good sign for the hot bartender/photographer/biker guy I liked so much, that I was “down”. If Bubba liked me, I was golden!

From then on, we were pretty much inseparable. He had bought a house and moved out of the loft about a month after our first date, and it was then I knew he was responsible – much different than all the losers I was used to being attracted to. He was the “bad-boy that grew up”. He came from a decent family and didn’t have any “babies’ mamas” or drama in his life, and that was important to me. Plus his tattoos were pretty cool too…

I moved in 4 months later and he asked me to marry him a year after that (I’ll save the “proposal story” for another BLOG post).

That was the beginning of “Jeff & Jewels” and our True Love.

The Indie Six / Gray Photography Calendar Release Party!

The Calendar Release party was a huge success! Hosted by Indie Six and Gray Photography, the party was held at Casselman’s Bar and Venue on December 3rd. Almost 500 people were there to witness the spectacular art show and entertainment of the night. Each photograph had it’s own installation, utilizing the props and costuming from each photo shoot, adding to the presentation. The Body Painting Contest was a big draw with a handful of professional Denver-based body painters competing for cash and prizes, and our boys in the band, Hit List kept everyone dancing till last call. Raffle prizes were generously donated by some of our friends/sponsors at Denver businesses, and some people even took home large prints for their winning bids in the Silent Auction. Everyone had a blast, including us and we couldn’t be more thankful to everyone that came out to support us!

Thank you to everyone who helped us put this together:

KBPI – Uncle Nasty & Matt Need, Casselman’s, Hit List & DJ Pat Hanson, Fashion Nation, Shotgun’s, Reinke Brothers, Bender’s Tavern, El Camino Tavern, Michael McConnell, Soren McCarthy, Sarah Grant, Brooke & Niki, Mulberries Flowers, Ian Rumley, Brave New World Tattoo, Jason Bach, Our Body Painters and Models (Mark Bueno, Alan Anderson, Jher, Quake, Wiser, and Ben), Community Skate & Snow, Indy Ink, Squire Lounge, Alexa Yontz (Rejuv Skin), and Keith Ellis.

Photo by Soren

Photo by Michael McConnell & Mike Cotton

Photos by Soren

Photo by Michael McConnell

Photo by Michael McConnell

Photo by Soren

Photo by Michael McConnell

Photo by Michael McConnell

Photo by Michael McConnell

Here’s looking at you 2011!

New Year’s always makes me think of the year behind us and the year ahead of us and what that means to “The Grays”.

2010 was the best year for our business, and we couldn’t be happier! In this economy, we are so thankful that clients continue to call, and chose us to photograph their special days and amazing events. In addition, we completed the 12 shoots of the Indie Six Calendar, with incredible results. We thank the girls at Indie Six Salon for their talents and for pushing us to make the photographs absolutely perfect in every way, from concept to print.

Gray Photography did more events, and sold more of our amazing product than ever before, and we owe it all to our wonderful colleagues and friends. Without them we would not be able to provide the level of service and exceptional pieces of art they come to expect from Gray Photography. Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for being in our circle. We will continue to sing your praises and refer your business at every opportunity.

In our family, 2010 made us some beautiful memories that we will cherish forever. In July, we found out that there will be another addition to “Team Gray”, with a daughter due at the end of March 2011 – one of each!

Halloween was, of course, epic as always. We attended our first-ever Zombie Crawl and had a great time! Even Johnny put on his best Zombie face!

Johnny also started pre-school and had so much fun that he threw the biggest tantrum to date because he didn’t want to leave! Through our travels and time together, our love for each other grows every day. We are so blessed…

2011 is finally here and we are excited to see what it has to offer! We continue to work every day to make Gray Photography better and better to provide our clients with exceptional customer service and a top of the line, unique product. We got into this business to be able to live our lives the way we choose so that we can focus on our family and quality of life.

We believe that “Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe, and enthusiastically act upon, must inevitably come to pass.” Therefore, we know in our hearts that 2011 will be even better than 2010!

A most Happy New Year to every one out there – may your hearts and lives be filled with joy and that you are thankful each day for the many blessings you have….

Much love and happiness,
Jeff, Jewels, & Johnny (and cupcake)

25 Things You Didn’t Know About Us…

1. We live for Halloween…

2. We were married at the Denver Botanic Gardens in the Romantic Garden.

3. Jeff’s hot rod magazine collection is out of control!

4. We have a son named Johnny Bones – really!

5. We met at the Ogden Theater while working in the music business.

6. Our 1st Date was a motorcycle ride through Golden & Morrison.

7. We are dog-lovers and have two Rhodesian Ridgebacks – Rumble & Daisy Mae.

8. We got engaged in the river at Mt. Princeton Hot Springs, Buena Vista, CO.

9. Growing up, Jeff was the bratty little brother, while Jewels was the oldest and ring-leader over 5 younger brothers.

10. We like all kinds of music – as long as it doesn’t suck.

11. We enjoy doing yard work together.

12. Lakeside is one of our most favorite hidden gems.

13. We are both addicted to Facebook.

14. We love breakfast at noon.

15. It’s our dream to have a house/studio/shop on acreage in the country.

16. We appreciate good tattoos.

17. We believe that life is a journey, not a destination – enjoy the ride!

18. “Our Song” is “We Belong Together” by Richie Valens.

19. We are huge basketball fans – go Nuggets!

20. We are Artists through & through and exploit our talents at every opportunity.

21. Jeff drives a 1951 Mercury and Jewels drives a 1954 Chevy pickup – both black!

22. Jeff is a Denver Native while Jewels is a California Girl.

23. Jeff has been a professional photographer since 1994, starting his career in the music & fashion industries.

24. Jewels is an Artist of hair, makeup, body painting, henna tattoos, and extreme makeup.

25. We love movies and consider ourselves quite the critics.

 

Brides have so much to be thankful for…

Brides planning weddings are fortunate there are so many possibilities. No one style is considered de rigor these days which allows each woman to plan her wedding in a way that best reflects her personal style. There are an abundance of great choices available to every bride in every budget category.

PHOTOGRAPHY: The creativity and quality of today’s photographers is a source of continuous amazement. Whether it is a sepia toned portrait, a time delayed light show or a reflective moment captured for posterity, the professional photographer offers today’s bride so many options for preserving the wonder of her wedding. Bound books, on-line albums and Hollywood style videos bring the wedding to life over and over.

How do you become a VIP?

For those of you looking for something special – you’ve found it!  This offer is in select places such as with our Preferred Vendor Partners, this BLOG, etc.  You can only receive this offer if you mention that you saw it here!

Recipients will receive a Complimentary Engagement Session and 1 8×10 in. professional print (with the purchase of any wedding package)!  (One hour of shooting time on location with both Jeff & Jewels, Online Proofing, and 1 8×10 professional print on your choice of paper i.e. Metallic, Linen, or Photographic Lustre.)

We appreciate your business as it allows us to continue to do what we love…

Frequently Asked Questions

www.jeffgrayart.com

1.  How long have you been in business? Jeff has been a professional Photographer since 1994, photographing mainly fashion and in the music business.  We have been shooting weddings since 2004.

2.  Are you a member of any professional organization? Yes – we are members of the Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (WPPI).

3.  Can I see the portfolio for the photographer that will shoot my wedding? We work as a team and do every wedding together – the portfolios we showcase are all done by us, therefore, we don’t have “associate photographers”.

4.  Are the dates I need available? We book clients on a first-come, first-served basis.  Call for pricing and availability.

5.  What type of deposit is required, and until what date can it be refunded? We require 50% of your package price to hold the date.  You are welcome to pay the balance at our final meeting or on the day of your wedding, prior to the ceremony.  Refunds are determined based on individual situations.

6.  What kind of equipment do you have and can you shoot in any light available? We use professional grade Nikon digital SLRs, lenses, and flash.  We also bring studio lighting, and use it when needed.  We are always prepared for any situation and have backups, just in case.

7.  What types of packages are available? All of our packages include:  2 photographers (Jeff & Jewels!), all editing time, the high-resolution digital negatives on disc, a Copyright Ownership Transfer letter, 4×6 in. proof prints in a stylish proof album, online viewing for 1 year, and the personal attention you deserve, since we only book one event per day.  Packages range from $2500 – $5000.  Please call for a personalized quote.

8.  How soon after the wedding will the proofs be ready? 4-6 weeks.

9. How long will you stay at the Ceremony/Reception? As long as you book us for…

10.  What sizes of prints are offered? Professional enlargements are available starting at the 4×6 size.  We offer different paper options (lustre, metallic, linen, and canvas).

11.  How many portraits and how many candids will you shoot? We will give you a list to fill out for the Formal Portraits.  It will have everyone’s name and relation on it, allowing us to be super-organized and call people by their names.  This makes the experience very efficient, organized, and fun!  We shoot away and try to get candids of everyone in attendance.

12.  Are the proofs included in a package, or can they be purchased? They are included along with the digital negatives on disc.

13.  How many months advanced notice is required to reserve you? The sooner, the better as clients are based on first-come, first-served.  We still have quite a few dates available for this season!

14.  What is the approximate cost? Our pricing is roughly $500/hour with a four hour minimum, starting at $2500.  Our average client invests about $4000.

15.  How will the photographer and crew be dressed? We dress according to your standards.  Usually it’s “dress-casual” so that we are comfortable and versatile, but we will dress according to the formality of the event.