Duane Peck Photography DigitalStudios.org

Please Check Out My New Blog

2010-06-03T18:27:00.000-07:00

I have moved my blog... my new site is digitalstudios.org/blog

Sorry, I know I have many many post here but I couldn't take the image quality issues I was haveing when uploading my images here and blog width settings. Hope u like the new blog.

Thanks, Duane.

Laura & Alex - McCormick Home Ranch - Camarillo CA

2010-05-21T07:18:00.000-07:00

I am really excited with the results from Laura’s wedding! The venue Mcormick Home Ranch had so many great locations for pictures. And Laura and Alex were willing to take extra time to shoot more poses and that is what we did.

Some of my favorite areas were the huge green barn, an avocado grove, classic garden, and little area under a pine tree next to a well. The rooms were very small but really pretty. There are countless little spots with cute backgrounds and old farm equipment too. I posted images from all of these areas.

Editing!

2010-05-20T16:21:00.000-07:00

Editing is so important! But is still think the main thing is emotional content so if Laura didn't look sooo happy at this moment this would just be her in a very pretty garden. But when I saw how happy she looked I wanted to use this as an editing example. Her new husband was right next to her and we were all saying things to her to get her to look happy and laugh. That's just something I do and really it was pretty easy. She just got married and was pretty happy! Super happy actually...

Editing- I lightened the garden and warmed up the colors till I felt this looked like a perfect warm summer afternoon. I also super saturated the colors and blured the garden to make it feel more love-e-dove-e haha.

The rest of Laura and Alex's pix will be up soon... They were married five days ago.
They were married at Mcormick Home Ranch.

Siobhan & Domenick's Shoot!

2010-05-17T13:11:00.000-07:00

So I shot they guys on Friday, three days ago. As u can see they were really excited and I love that about them. I asked them to bring balloons and unique outfits for some of the locations.

The shoot went really well but we got washed out of the beach by big waves :( but I got 4 great close-ups there and the groovy shot with the seagull flying in the background. I think the threat of being washed out to sea makes people really come to life.

My favorite is the 3rd from the bottom, this is right after a knee high wave just rolled by!

Mariza & Sal!

2010-05-14T10:56:00.000-07:00

I was just talking to Mariza and she said “Duane u didn’t write anything about my wedding on the blog, just pics” and I said yes I did but when I went to the blog I was wrong, I didn’t! Sorry, I thought I did.

So here we go... One of the most original things was that Mariza had 16 mariachis from Mexico. I love mariachis, they are great to photograph.

We did a first viewing before the ceremony and that went well, that is always a really fun thing to do. The ceremony pics are really nice. I didn’t use a flash for the walking down the isle pics and that is a risk when inside but it worked out and they are very pretty. I did have to slow the wedding party down, they are always in a hurry to get down the isle?

I thought we would have a big golf course to travel around but we were a little limited by where we could travel to and where there was shade so we stayed in the one really nice place where everyone could fit and there was a gazebo for a background. It turned out to be very pretty and the formal pics look very wedding-E and that is a good thing. Gazebos are happy things to have in the background. Sal and Mariza did come with me on the fairway for sunset pics and we have several really nice poses.

Favorite Pics-
1 the detail shot of the ring on flower- b&w
2 bride with vail and sunset- Love this shot, I am copying Susan Masseling here
3 bride dressing flower girl b&w

I am a big fan of my bride tight shots too. I love taking these and Mariza looks great in her’s. I did lighten her eyes so they really pop. Did u notice? Pop pop haha…

Kristin & James!

2010-05-11T19:38:00.000-07:00

I shot these Laker fans yesterday. We had fun. Great sunset too but it was high tide so I couldn’t got to the spots I like best because there were some big waves. A little seal came by, he was checking out the shoot. I had to get wet. I think I need to get some of those rubber shoes.

My favorite pic is the flowers one. It was fun…

Margaret & Joe's Beach Wedding!

2010-05-09T18:13:00.000-07:00

Margaret and Joe have been great clients and very willing photography subjects. We have had fun together. They had a weekday wedding in Oceanside on a beautiful but windy day. They rented a big house on the ocean with a roof top reception.

So I have some of my favorite moments from the day here…
Mom and bride, yes Duane has jokes but these two were easy targets for smiles
A moment before the first viewing of the bride
Joe walking the moms down the isle
Joe’s dad with his mom or grandma, and she has a tear on here cheek!
The happy couple after they were married looking at their family YAY
Margaret and her dad laughing, I forgot what I said to them to make them laugh
Margaret crying during the father daughter dance, awe…

I like my couple shots of them very much too. I personally feel that these moments that I captured will always be a super satisfying thing to see as they get old like me- haha.

Scary Kisses!

2010-05-02T16:48:00.000-07:00

The scary kiss pic is after this one... So here are my favorites from Leann's shoot Saturday. I am really happy with the results because the weather was very very difficult! You can't tell from the pics but I mean it was super windy and cold!

As u can see the poppies didn't open up :( they were too chilly, bad little flowers, but it doesn’t even matter there were so many of them and these guys did such a good job with their expressions and the poses I gave them.

We even had a last minute location change! These guys wanted to roam across the poppy reserve (that is big trouble if u get caught). We know who would have gotten in trouble for that one-yes the photographer. Instead we left the reserve and trespassed on private property! Well it doesn’t sound better now but trust me it was.

So these guys are trouble makers. They look all nice and sweet but they have some wild in them I found out.

You go Leann!
I was worried that Leann would get scared when I told her where I wanted her to go but I didn't let her know that. I just pointed and said - okay up there is where we will start. Daniel, my asst, will take u up. Okay guys, make sure u are close to the edge too, I will be down here...

Well I am very impressed! I did there shoot yesturday and because they were so brave I wanted to give them a teaser asap and here is a good one.

Ifeta & Andy!

2010-04-24T20:14:00.001-07:00

I shot Ifeta & Andy yesterday and we did some new stuff that I really liked. As I mentioned the Yellow flower field I had been using was plowed under recently. Last week I saw a new field, way up on a hill and right next to a road! The only difficult thing was the yellow flowered plants were taller than we were. They were huge, Africa huge. I even heard wild animals like elephants but I kept it to myself, you know I wanted them to look all relaxed and in love. I did slide down a hill, twice too. I’m not really a klutz so hmm….

On all of the tight shots I used my 200mm f2 lens. I am glad I brought it out again. You can tell by the nice blurring effect happening in the background. I only put up a couple of these images but they will get about 80 different tight shots to look at.

The first black and white is actually a infra red image converted to B&W. That is why the sky is dark and the plant life is white.

The truck shot was their idea and I am a big fan of putting couples in the back of trucks, sounds strange but it works really well.

We ended our shoot at the beach. We didn’t get into position before the sun went behind the marine layer but I put up some of what we got.

Oh, I forget to say that these guys are getting married this August!

Chanel & Oscar!

2010-04-19T11:43:00.000-07:00

Chanel and Oscar are very sweet and good listeners too, energy drinks make me chatty. They had flowers and lab coats and that was stuff we had talked about for their shoot and they worked great. Our shoot started at the train station and we all got warmed up and used to the camera, well they did. We did some closeups and played around with the flowers and I love getting that lantern/light.

Next was the Mission San Juan Capistrano. I go here often and clients really like it. We ran over to the yellow flower field but it was plowed under! Just dirt! So no running in the flowers but we didn't need it. We finished in Laguna

There are many good shots but my favorite fun shot is when the amtrack train came by and blew Chanel's hair over her eyes and she's laughing kinda. The moon in the last pic is pretty cool too, it is real I didn't fake it.

Katie & Ryan!

2010-04-18T14:28:00.000-07:00

Katie & Ryan were married at the The Turnip Rose. I took bunches of images of the girls in different locations around the grounds to incorporate the facility with the bridal party and over all wedding. I even used the IR camera with the girls and two of them made the blog here.

It was a pretty rushed wedding for me bacause I was alone and didn't want to skip any opportunities but one shooter just can't be everywhere, yet I really like how things came out.

Dennise & Mark!

2010-04-14T16:13:00.000-07:00

Dennise and Mark were married at the Reef in Long Beach. These are some of my favorite images. The Reef features a rooftop ceremony area that overlooks Long Beach and the Queen Marry. We were really lucky with great weather for the couple shots. We also did some night shots that were fun with Long Beach in the background.

We also did some shooting at Hotel Maya next to The Reef. A very cool hotel. I will try to add more soon.

Kevy & Nick Engagement Shoot!

2010-04-06T06:55:00.000-07:00

Kevy & Nick are so cute. We started at the fire station where Nick works. His truck was out so most of the images are in front of an older truck. I have found that some types of shots are better to start with than others but because we had the truck and Nick with his fire suit and helmet we did more posed stuff till the beach. For photography I don’t think there is a better uniform than a firefighter’s, well deep sea diver and astronaut but for romantic appeal I think the girls love the firemen. I know one that does.

Seal Beach was our 2nd location and it was just down the street. For me this is a forgotten beach. I never go here but I like it and it is unique. It was really cold and windy and poor Kevy was dressed for summer. The girls are so unlucky because their outfits are never warm but I was okay, sweat shirt and a nice fleece vest-haha.

Deanna & Ash!

2010-03-23T17:01:00.000-07:00

From my first meeting with Deanna I couldn’t wait for her wedding. One of my goals was to incorporate the unique and historic surroundings of Deanna's wedding into the photography. La Casa is a historic resort-home built in the 1920’s at the La Quinta Hotel. It was the favorite getaway for Movie stars many years ago, in particular Greta Garbo. It features one of a kind backdrops and a great vintage feel.

First a funny story... Okay... While I was posing Deanna with Ash I asked Ash if he had any jokes to make Deanna laugh, but he didn't (I figured everyone with an english acent had jokes) so the funny part was me warning them that I still had more jokes and I wasn't afraid to use them. It may not sound funny now but this is how I got them to laugh while in the street with the mountain in the background. See I knew this was special to Ash because he had been asking me all day for a pic with the mountian in the background and I kept telling him it was too bright (because it was) and secretely I was saving it for later... for a special moment between them... and FYI- I have no jokes!

I took full use of the location by first running off with the wedding dress and shoes to the historic bathroom featuring one of a kind green tile and iron lamps. Next I took a portrait of Deanna by herself in the large empty room of La Casa. In post I converted it to black and white. Across the courtyard I posed Ash in the kitchen leaning on an 80 year old stove with Deanna at his side. I placed the bouquet in a copper sauce pan and gave the image a custom vintage conversion FYI Ash is a chef. In the Cactus Room of La Casa there was a beautiful open window, its frame painted turquoise, this was the first place I photographed Ash. Another one of a kind feature of the cactus room was wallpaper with cacti and desert scenes. I took some fun shots of Ash with his best man leaning against the wall there.

The night shot featuring palms a mountain and the moon was the view that night. Finally the courtyard was lit with string lights and purple/blue LED’s. For style and uniqueness I loved La Quinta’s La Casa. Read more here at La Quinta's site...

Vanny's Wedding!

2010-03-18T13:48:00.001-07:00

Everyone was a little worried about Vanny's wedding because there was bad weather everywhere but we were lucky. We got nice pics with sunshine and fluffy white clouds and that is pretty cool for so cal. So this was the first time I saw hangers with the bride's maides names bent into them, very cute.

I used new efects on Vanny's pics and I hope people like them. I like to show a nice variety so clients get a feel for what can be made.

Adi's Engagement Shoot!

2010-03-16T11:34:00.000-07:00

Adi’s engagement shoot was so relaxed peaceful and she looks so happy! I wish I looked so happy… Funny note- all of the pics in the forest area were in this little valley opening area with 3 pick nick tables. There was a large family there and they sat around watching us the whole time, well I thought it was funny. I have to say that Adi was super cold at the beach and I wanted some pics of her wearing his coat so it was perfect. She really looks happy in that coat too.

Oh, so what's up with the cupcake? That is how she was proposed to, with a cupcake!
Also, these guys got me a cupcake! Super good job guys!

Married in the DR!

2010-03-12T15:50:00.001-08:00

I have been really busy but I wanted to put up my favorite pics from my recent wedding in the Dominican Republic. Kristi loved the doggies and I wanted to start with a fun pic so the first one is from our TTD shoot after the wedding.

The B&W images I really liked. The editing is a new style. Next are my wedding favorites and then the 2nd day trash the dress pics. We did some street shooting similar to what I do here in LA. A BIG difference is that in the DR this attracts attention and in the LA OC area knowbody really cares that much. I also added TTD images to the end of the slideshow that were fun.

Check out their Slideshow! 90 images!

Margaret & Joe's Engagement Shoot!

2010-02-25T19:24:00.000-08:00

Mackenzie's Party!

2010-02-15T19:17:00.001-08:00

It was Mackenzie's big first year birthday party Sunday. I photographed Jenny and Marshal's wedding and I was really excited to be envited back to photograph their daughter's first birthday.

Tracey & Anthony!

2010-02-15T09:53:00.001-08:00

Jenny & Vinnie!

2010-02-02T17:01:00.000-08:00

We decided on shooting at the Mission San Juan Capistrano and then Laguna Beach. Even though it was cool and kind of hazy Saturday the last 15 minutes at the beach were great and we had fun and were all cold- not as much fun. And this time I didn't get hit by a wave.

Bethany said yes!!!

2010-02-02T14:09:00.000-08:00

I was shooting Jenny's engagement session and all three of us noticed this couple about 50' away kissing and kissing and kissing! It was dark when we finished and were packing up when Trent & Bethany (the kissing couple) came up and said they just got engaged! and asked if I would take some pics for them. Of course I did and here are 4 of the 25 that are my favorites. Congratulations Bethany & Trent!

Keely & Chris!

2010-01-15T15:25:00.000-08:00

Check out their Slideshow! 37 of my favorite pics

Keely & Chris came down from San Jose Saturday for their engagement shoot. It was perfect weather as we went up into the forest. We had fun walking around and shooting. Keely had also gotten a retro outfit and I really liked it but I felt we kinda ran out of light so I envited them to my secret oak tree park the following day to make sure we got all that we wanted.

Katie & Ryan!

2009-12-26T07:30:00.001-08:00

And a special thanks to Katie's mom for making us lunch. We ate at the park, it was a nice break.

Nicole's Album Teasers!

2009-12-23T08:20:00.000-08:00

I am really excited about how their album is turning out. These guys are real photo addicts and we made sure to take lots on their wedding day. I remember taking them around to each of these colored walls and going over a whole set of poses over and over because I new eventually we could make a fun page like the top one below.

These are three of my favorite spreads. Their album is 12" x 12" and around 38 pages. Nicole said I could add all the pages I want so I did.

Want to see their wedding post click here

Red Dress!

2009-12-21T09:01:00.000-08:00

I invited Amber to the studio for some black background dress images, we did these Saturday afternoon. It is hard to photograph a bride in a red satin dress and on her wedding day we didn't have ideal lighting situations or backgrounds. Amber is also getting an album and I wanted her to have the option of dress images against a black background and that can't be shoot on the wedding day of course. Amber was looking at one of my photography books for some ideas and she liked one of an old hollywood movie star sitting with her dress around her. We took about 2 hours and these are my favorites.

Merry Christmas Lights!

2009-12-15T19:21:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas Everyone...
As my readers may have guessed, these are my crazy festive neighbors, well 3 of them anyway. These are the same homes that were featured on my blog posting last month Holloween Lights I love all the hard work they put into their homes. It is very pleasing to drive past these beautiful lights as I arrive home and if my family is reading, "I don't miss the snow- haha"

Donna & Justin's Preggy Shoot!

2009-12-10T13:29:00.000-08:00

Well Last weekend was all about Preggy pics for me. Donna & Justin came to see me on Sunday and she is a couple weeks further along than Art, my Saturday shoot Mommy to be. We shot at two parks in the city here where I live, RSM. The nature ones were across the street from my place and it was the first time I shot there too.

Art & Sev's Preggy Shoot!

2009-12-09T17:55:00.000-08:00

These guys are becoming old friends. I shot their wedding and eng shoot, both were on my web site for a long time. Then I shot her lil sister's wedding and eng shoot, both on this blog. Now Artineh (and Sev) are all preggy!... I would guess that I will eventually get some baby pics soon... She (sorry He) is due Feb 1st...

Kaylen & Jonathon!

2009-12-09T09:24:00.000-08:00

Kaylen's wedding was very fun. They had 3 ceremonies! Two tea and a western. Tea ceremonies are usually hard to photograph because there is not usually a good place for me to photograph from and what was crazy about their first tea ceremony is that the room was really small and the pics seemed even better because of it!

Check out their Slideshow!

Tracey's Engagement Album!

2009-12-05T09:36:00.000-08:00

I just finished their album revisions and it is almost ready for printing. We have to hurry because their wedding is in January and we want everyone to see their album at the reception. The album will be hardbound 8"W x 10"H coffee table style

Kate & John's Eng Shoot!

2009-12-02T11:51:00.000-08:00

Check out their Slideshow! here

Shot in Venice Monday afternoon... Now they have to wait until July 2010 before I see them again for more pics...

Dry Lakebed Shoot!

2009-11-30T20:50:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine, Paul, wanted to take some models out to the desert for a shoot and asked me if I wanted to do it together with him so I thought sure it would be fun. I never shoot fashion and the models are also new to this type of photography so I think things turned out well. I really really like the lakebed too and will be back with clients. Thanks to Paul and Kristi for having some cool furniture.

The last pic is the makeup and stylist girls and yes they were cold too...

Mariza & Sal's studio shoot!

2009-11-30T07:05:00.000-08:00

So we did this shoot last Tuesday evening. Can u tell I dig the purple outfits. They really have great smiles too. It was a studio night eng shoot. We tired Sal out by the end, awe... I used the white background but most of my favorites were with the black background. I still have two backgrounds I haven't used yet.

Tracey & Anthony's Studio Shoot!

2009-11-25T08:54:00.000-08:00

Tracey & Anthony wanted to talk about their Eng album pics and design and I thought it would be better if they just came to see me in my home studio and then we could do some Hollywood lighting pics and make the trip even more productive towards their album- no charge. Below are my favorites...

Studio shooting is new to me as all my weddings 200+ and eng shoots have been on location. Studio shoots seem more exacting so far. I have two preggy shoots very soon and I shot another couple's eng shoot last night so we shall see. We used the white background for some of theirs. I have 4 backgrounds, black, white, gray storm clouds and orange storm clouds. I do like the black so far.

Jenny's Wedding!

2009-11-14T08:17:00.000-08:00

Check out their Slideshow! 90 pics...

Jenny's wedding day started out really fast. So fast that we had to do the quickie girl hug pics in a little room with cartoon wallpaper everywhere, so I made them B&W for the slideshow. Jenny had eight bride's maids and they were very fun.

The ceremony was long and I really like that for pics. Everyone re-grouped for wedding party football and pics on campus before the big party. These guys really like to dance too... really!

Jenny's wedding has a series of shots that I love, and are really hard to get and hers are just the best I have gotten. They are of them walking down the aisle after being married! I don't even mind that Father was wiping his nose in the background, let's just say he was crying. Awe that's sweet.

If u are curious about the first pic in the slideshow- Anthony is a police man... and those are the smallest handcuffs I have ever seen.

Halloween on Duane's Street!

2009-11-11T08:44:00.000-08:00

Check out my crazy festive neighbors! Their houses are awesome and that damn spider creeps me out. They do all the work themselves too. They worked on their houses for days. I just moved here in July, my first house. I would like to say that my house is one of the cool ones but sadly my house was the un-decorated one... I was a little lazy I know. I will put up some Christmas lights.

I have been told Christmas is an even bigger deal for home decoration! Great...

Brook's Sunset Shoot!

2009-11-09T18:20:00.000-08:00

It had been 2 or 3 years since I had been to the beach during such clear conditions with clients. It was just a dream sunset and I was so happy for them to get such a rare backdrop. In fact I kept them on the beach long after everyone else had left. As always I had my off camera flash and we just keep flashing away! It was sooo clear u can see Catalina in the background of the last 4 pics! I think u can see people there too? Maybe…

Amber & Daniel!

2009-11-08T12:59:00.000-08:00

Amber's Wedding was really different. The pre-wedding, wedding and reception were indoors, and she wore a beautiful red dress. The only location for outside pics was next to the hotel, that is really unusual too for a wedding in that we didn't have what u would call a scenic picture location. So she kinda stressed me out but we really planned the pic schedule well and I think she will be happy and they had a fun wedding.

Trash The Dress! Erin & Mark

2009-11-05T12:32:00.000-08:00

Here is my new TTD Album layout of Erin & Mark’s TTD shoot.

There were 4 locations, all in the high desert about 120 miles from LA. All top secret - I blindfolded Erin & Mark! Actually I just talked all the time because I was drinking a giant Monster - haha...

We shot all day. We started at In & Out Burger for a big pre shoot meal of burgers, fries and shakes-YAY! Double YAY!

I used new lighting techniques that allowed for a more commercial look and I am really happy with the results.

The album is 10” wide by 8” tall, and the spreads below show layouts as the book is open.

Hollywood Lighting Shoot!

2009-10-28T14:52:00.000-07:00

My Hollywood Lighting Shoot was something I had looked forward to for awhile. The lighting is a hard focused light that is very dramatic.
In the first pic I used 2 lights
In the 2nd pic I used 3 lights

Victoria's Hotel Bel Air Wedding!

2009-10-28T14:14:00.000-07:00

Mariana & Hansen!

2009-10-28T14:03:00.000-07:00

Monique & Chris!

2009-10-08T12:11:00.000-07:00

Check out their Slideshow!

Katie & Colin!

2009-10-04T15:00:00.000-07:00

Erin's TTD Shoot!

2009-09-30T13:24:00.000-07:00

Jennifer & Kenny!

2009-09-21T10:10:00.000-07:00

Erin & Mark!

2009-09-17T14:54:00.000-07:00

Cherise & Eric Wedding Teasers!

2009-09-16T19:28:00.000-07:00

Tracey & Anthony's Eng Shoot!

2009-09-14T13:18:00.000-07:00

I talked these guys into the mission for our first location and even though it was very crowded we found our little spots. We went to the Montage for beach pics but it was not a good sunset day and of course I got wet "again" by a wave. Oh, the scarry wave pic where Tracey screamed- it was not really as big as it looks. I know it looks like that may have been the end of Tracey and Anthony but we only got a little wet :)

Jennifer & Dave!

2009-09-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

Check out their Slideshow!

Alex's Wedding Teasers!

2009-08-27T16:08:00.000-07:00

Nicki & Eric!

2009-08-25T07:26:00.000-07:00

Check out Nicki's Slideshow!

Nicki's wedding was super fun. It was at the Catamaran Resort in San Diego and it felt like a vacation for everyone but poor duane- just kidding. Every time I paused I couldn't help be taken over by the perfect weather and bay that was only feet from Nicki's room. Their were many nice moments and I used like 100 images in their slideshow to show this. Favorite pics for me are the bamboo ones! And taking these must have looked like 4 crazy people to anyone watching us. Their were small patches of bamboo next to some rooms with tiny openings and I new I had to get them in there! I remember pointing at a small area and saying okay stand right and then I would follow them in. It was fun. My 2nd shooter Kim was also a big help, we held bamboo back for each other's pics...

Hey I found a new song for the slideshow "finally" hope u like Coldplay...

Christine & Christapher!

2009-08-24T10:37:00.000-07:00

Aphrodite & Mike!

2009-08-01T16:24:00.000-07:00

Aphrodite & Mike were married at Seven-Degrees in Laguna Beach, CA.
It was a great wedding for me to shoot. I hope the family like the blog pics guys.
Thanks again, Duane.

Nicole & Jeff!

2009-07-28T09:14:00.000-07:00

Nicole's Slideshow!

Nicole & Jeff have been awesome clients. I have photographed them more than any other couple so I wanted to make them a special slideshow. Hope u guys like…

Kaylen & Jonathon!

2009-07-25T15:24:00.000-07:00

Andrea & Anthony!

2009-07-24T13:13:00.000-07:00