Okay, for a while we've been wanting to post some of our favorite photos that aren't from the wedding, engagement, family, and baby stuff that we shoot. More than that, we have some pretty dark humor and off-beat taste. Our favorite images can be a little nuts, frankly.

Well, we decided to give those images a forum, and what better day than Friday? So we give you the first installment of TGIF: our probably-not-quite-weekly-to-be-perfectly-honest post to share images that tickle a funny spot in our shared brain. We also have a growing number of photographer friends frequenting the blog, so it's possible that we'll use these posts to geek-out a bit on camera stuff :)

With that, I give you our good friend Chris:

Remember Kristen and Andrew's wedding? Well, when we heard the reception was going to be a pool party, the first thing that I thought of was bridesmaids' dresses underwater. No way we'd missing out on that!

After looking into our options for underwater camera rigs, the Mrs. and I decided to kill a number of birds with one stone, and we picked up a Canon G9. It's the first point-and-shoot we've purchased since starting the business, and we love it!

The SLRs we lug around have gotten bigger, heavier, and more accessory-laden. As a result, we've found ourselves taking far fewer photos at social events, and we've been a bit bummed about it, frankly! I looked around for a portable option, and the G9 just kept popping up. To make things even better, Canon makes a pretty neat water housing for it!

In addition to its duties in party photography, the poor G9 has taken on the role as a seriously over-engineered light meter for our toy and medium format film cameras.

So... back to the photo.

The camera and housing arrived a few days before the wedding. Whenever we do something new, we like to shoot some tests. You just can't imagine the things you haven't thought of, right? So our good friends Chris and Lila let us come over and take a dip in their pool. Good thing they did, too. Within about thirty seconds of getting in the water, I discovered the first thing that we'd overlooked.

Goggles.

Haha. Right? No goggles = no seeing underwater. Great catch, Mr.

We shot a bunch of images, but this one is a particular favorite. There's something really peaceful & haunting about it.

We had the honor of photographing the Christopher family this this weekend. They're some great looking people!

Some of the family came from out of town, and we had a blast hanging out with them in the garden while they enjoyed strawberries, champagne, and cameras in their faces. Results below!

We've known Kristen for quite a while and haven't seen her for some time because she moved to Texas to start a life with Andrew not too long ago. Mel and I were so excited when she got in touch with us about shooting her wedding in San Diego! For one thing, we got to photograph one of the most unique and beautiful events we could have imagined...

Ceremony on the cliffs at Cabrillo National Monument, followed by a pool-party reception at the Pearl?

Um, that's a recipe for awesome.

Even more exciting than the details of the event though was Kristen's voice on the phone. Anyone who's had a friend find someone really amazing can probably relate. The mix of joy and peace was infectious. Meeting Andrew only cemented our happiness for the both of them and our confidence that they've both found something really special!

The entire wedding was amazing. Their guests and family were all amazing to be around (and great looking to boot!). How can you beat a wedding reception where the first dance takes place in the pool? Speaking of, if you haven't been to the Pearl, we highly recommend you do. Even if you're not looking to stay in Point Loma anytime soon, they're food is amazing, they've got a great happy hour, and you can watch movies from the pool on Wednesdays!

The entire event was amazing, and we can't wait to visit the couple in the Lonestar State sometime very soon!

P.S. Nikki & Dave? Melanie & Aaron? You're now riding at top of our praying-they-call-us-soon list! Way too much fun to take photographs of. We're in the book!