Local Love: Mark Kegans

I thought it would be nice to sprinkle around some Local Love* posts for the some of the fabulous vendors Socialize has had the opportunity to work with and probably some of those we hope to work with in Central Iowa!

For the inaugural Local Love post - I am actually going with someone I worked with on a more personal level - my wedding photographer, Mark Kegans. But don't worry -I had already been in the event biz for three years by the time I worked with him so he was carefully evaluated with my already developed event planning eye!

All photos are the work of Mark Kegans. This photo is of my lovely friend, Alexson. In the background is Iowa's great State Capitol building in the Des Moines East Village.

Mark truly is a photojournalist at heart. What keeps him busy these days is his wedding business but he'll still to things for some small-time publications; like the New York Times. I think explaining Mark's style is best put in his own words (from the "What the FAQ" section of his website). 

"You get dressed up, say your vows, party, dance and fall in love all over again. I take pictures. Documentary, photojournalistic, reportage, lifestyle, candid, ninja, whatever you want to call it, it means that I work as the proverbial 'fly on the wall.' I don’t direct. I don’t work off of preconceived 'must-have' shot lists. My goal is to capture your wedding and all its glorious, messy reality."

Mark takes beautiful, REAL images away from whatever he shoots. He understands the importance of the obligatory formal shots but his true talent shines through when he is telling the story of your day in his images. Don't worry brides - he will follow your must-take shots but the more free and photojournalistic you allow him to be - the more you are going to love your photos.

Mark searches for the quirk and humor in the day and I think generally, the human experience. But I think his favorite part of what he does is that he gets to capture a day full of love. This means his shots of the new bride and groom try to capture all of the emotion and beauty of the day.

 

I still pull Mark's photos from my wedding day out at least once a month. Each one reminds me of some special moment or image that I treasure from that day and get to re-live, just a little. (For anyone who want to see more of what those in the biz like to call "wedding porn" - you can check more of my very own wedding shots here: http://mkegans.zenfolio.com/p39223348/   password: shinkunas)

As Mark's website states, "If you really, truly, madly, deeply love good photography and gotta have it for your wedding or family;" contact him. I highly recommend that you do!

*Socialize blog's Local Love posts are not sponsored and will not be available for sponsorship.