B'not Mitzvah at Sky Lounge in Atlanta
/Friends and family gathered atop the Glenn Hotel in the Sky Lounge to celebrate Caitlin and Brittany’s B’not Mitzvah.
A resounding Mazel Tov to the twins!
Isaac's Game Night Bar Mitzvah Party
/Whenever I photograph a Bar, Bat or B’nai Mitzvah party, I decide every young adult should be celebrated in this way as they come of age. By that I don’t mean that everyone’s celebration should look the same, but rather that every young adult should be celebrated for who they are in a way they love.
A young man, like Isaac who loves games, should be celebrated with games, as he was.
In celebration of Isaac, the Silverbell Pavillion at the Emory Conference Center was turned into a game room, complete with a pool table, skeeball and basketball arcade games, and video games.
While some of Isaac’s friends were absorbed in a video games racing one another, others picked up a cue to shoot it out on the pool table.
Adults, including Isaac’s Mom could be found enjoying themselves at the basketball station.
At the skeeball station, Isaac’s grandmother scored big.
Isaac’s cousins and uncle helped with the celebration.
Even when he had been knocked off his feet, Isaac’s joy bubbled to the surface.
Have a child who’ll be celebrating their coming of age some time soon? I’d love to photograph your child’s Bar, Bat or B’nai Mitzvah. Give me a call at 404 298 6263 if you’d like more information.
Isaac's Bar Mitzvah Rehearsal at Congregation Shearith Israel
/Mozel Tov, Isaac! And thanks for the invite.
One of the many things I love about my job is that I get to attend and help celebrate once-in-a-lifetime spiritual events. Before leaving my job as a professor of photojournalism, I spent more than two years documenting religious diversity in Mississippi.
It’s a passion of mine, to document and experience religious events from across the religious spectrum. A nd not surprisingly, one of my favorites is the coming-of-age bar, bat or b’nai mitzvah.
While I wasn’t able to attend Isaac’s religious Bar Mitzvah service at Congregation Shearith Israel, everyone I spoke with told me what a wonderful job he did.
I’m not surprised. On Thursday, at his rehearsal, Isaac carried and dressed the Torah with care, and read his passage from it with sincerity.
Isaac laughed after he chose the hebrew word for “remember” from the Torah when the rabbi asked. Well, he actually laughed after he realized he had just barely missed choosing the word “sin.”
Now that, you will remember, Isaac.
Isaac with proud parents, Andrea and Michael.
If you, or someone you know, is looking for a photographer who is passionate about photographing Bar, Bat and B’nai Mitzvahs, send them to my Mitzvah portfolio/contact page.
“There are a million reasons that I thought you would be a great fit for Isaac’s Bar Mitzvah (academic background, brilliant eye, lovely laid-back personality, non-judgmental etc. etc.,) but one of the things I really loved was that you did not seem to have a pre-conceived notion of what a Bar Mitzvah “should” look like and seemed open to whatever was unique to Isaac.
That is a big deal to me.”
Our Latest B'not Mitzvah Shoot
/Here are a few favorites from the awesome B'not Mitzvah party we photographed at the Metropolitan Club in May. For those who aren't familiar, a boy celebrates a bar mitzvah, a girl celebrates a bat mitzvah. Twin girls celebrate a b'not mitzvah, the plural of bat mitzvah.
Reaching the age of bar or bat Mitzvah signifies becoming a full member of the Jewish community with the obligations that come with it. Friends and family usually celebrate this coming of age with a huge party. Here's how one family celebrated.
I love photographing young people celebrating this important life event.
Contact me if you'd like to find out more about our Mitzvah photography offerings.
Getting ready for a Bat Mitzvah shoot
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Camera gear for a wedding or bar mitzvah shoot
As I was checking out all my gear for this afternoon's shoot, I decided to take a photograph so you could see what I usually bring with me when I'm photographing a large event.
Canon 6D -- full sensor DSLR Canon 7D -- cropped sensor DSLR Canon 70D -- cropped sensor DSLR Canon 5D -- full sensor DSLR 70-200mm f 2.8 telephoto lens with image stabilzation 85mm f1.8 telephoto lens 50mm f1.4 normal lens 60mm f2.8 macro lens 16mm-35mm f2.8 wide angle zoom 24-70mm f2.8 wide to telephoto zoom 5 speedlight flash units 2 radio remotes 1 quantum flash Flash meter Video light CF and SD memory cards (about 100 GB total) Light stands, flash modifiers, umbrellas, etc. Altoids and Ibuprofen (not pictured)
In a perfect world, I spend the day before an event and/or the early part of the day of the event charging batteries, cleaning lenses and testing remote flash functioning.
Of course, in the real world it doesn't matter the gear you use or how often you clean your lenses, it's the results that count.Check out a few of my bar mitzvah photos here.
Getting ready for a Bat Mitzvah shoot
/As I was checking out all my gear for this afternoon's shoot, I decided to take a photograph so you could see what I usually bring with me when I'm photographing a large event.
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Canon 6D -- full sensor DSLR
Canon 7D -- cropped sensor DSLR
Canon 70D -- cropped sensor DSLR
Canon 5D -- full sensor DSLR
70-200mm f 2.8 telephoto lens with image stabilzation
85mm f1.8 telephoto lens
50mm f1.4 normal lens
60mm f2.8 macro lens
16mm-35mm f2.8 wide angle zoom
24-70mm f2.8 wide to telephoto zoom
5 speedlight flash units
2 radio remotes
1 quantum flash
Flash meter
Video light
CF and SD memory cards (about 100 GB total)
Light stands, flash modifiers, umbrellas, etc.
Altoids and Ibuprofen (not pictured)
In a perfect world, I spend the day before an event and/or the early part of the day of the event charging batteries, cleaning lenses and testing remote flash functioning.
Of course, in the real world it doesn't matter the gear you use or how often you clean your lenses, it's the results that count. Check out a few of my bar mitzvah photos here.
You can find more information about my passion for photographing people and events here.
Bar Mitzvah at The Temple and the Trolley Barn in Atlanta
/Sam's amazing Bar Mitzvah celebration started early one Saturday morning at The Temple and ended the next afternoon at his home in Oakhurst. The highlight of Saturday morning, Sam chanting the Torah and delivering his Dvar Torah, an interpretation of a passage from the Torah, took place away from the camera. (Photography is not allowed during Shabbat services.)
The party on Saturday night was a different story. Friends and family, as well as myself, took photographs of activities from beginning to end. And talk about awesome photo opportunities. Everywhere you looked folks were dancing, throwing confetti, lighting candles or jumping up and down for joy.
Activities slowed a bit on Sunday morning, but food and fun still abounded.
Here's a slideshow of favorites to give you a sense of how the two days went down.
The Love of Album Design | Bar Mitzvah Coffee Table Book
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The power of photographs to tell stories comes to full fruition in an album design. If I've done my job well when I my cameras are clicking, then my job creating a storytelling layout goes smoothly. Here are a few favorite spreads from a bar mitzvah album design:
