chrismaddoxblog » Portrait

Ashley | Senior Portrait

chris — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 07:18:48 +0000

A couple years back I did an internship with Food for the Hungry. While there I had the privilege of getting to know Pat, an extremely gifted leader and passionate man of God. In the years since I’ve been blessed to get to know his family too. So, when they contacted me to take senior portraits for Ashley, I was excited to do it!

For the shoot, we worked our way through Old Town Scottsdale, enjoying the beautiful weather as we went. I have to give a special shout out to Ashley’s mom who doubled as my lighting assistant for the day, doing a great job (she may have uncovered a hidden talent)! Ashley is extremely photogenic and was a blast to shoot. Ashley congratulations on this big step in life, and what it represents that is now just over the horizon. Best of luck in wherever you next steps take you!

Nathan & Taylor | Engagement

chris — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 20:52:59 +0000

You never know how the people you meet will end up crossing your path later in life. This can be something you avoid…or…it can be a pleasant surprise. This story happens to be one of those pleasant surprises! In 2009 during my two months in Rwanda I helped host a team of folks from a church in Scottsdale that is doing a development project in western Rwanda. One of the members on this team was Nathan. I was surprised with Nathan’s demeanor when I met him. At that point he was in his final year of high school, a gifted athelete and extremely well rounded guy. But more than that he was humble, and he cared about people. Impressive traits at that point in life! I saw Nathan periodically since Rwanda, but recently reconnected with him and his now fiance, Taylor.

Nathan recently proposed to Taylor and they are set to get married early next year. I’m so excited to reconnect with Nathan and get to know his equally amazing bride to be. We had a blast taking engagement pictures in downtown Phoenix, you can tell from the images that they do just fine in front of a camera! I also want to give a special thanks to April, who accompanied us on the shoot, helping me at many points along the way!

Nate and Taylor, I had a blast with the both of you, I’m so excited for the path you’ve chosen together and can’t wait to shoot your wedding!

Alex & Melissa | Maternity

chris — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 19:36:03 +0000

Alex and Melissa are two of my closest friends. We go WAY back! So, that makes the fact that they are expecting their first kid-o all that much more exciting! About a month ago we snuck out to the desert by their house and I snapped some pics of the parents to be, here are a few:

David & Brittani | The Proposal (no, not the movie… but better)

chris — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 01:26:32 +0000

So…

I am curious. What comes to mind when you look at the image above? Does it invoke any emotions, or can you relate to the expressions on the faces of the two people above? For those of you who know the people above, are these familiar expressions? Perhaps it would help to build context around the image so that you can better understand the joy and satisfaction that this image seems to be soaked in. I’ll start with their names.

Meet David and Brittani. I did that very thing this past year when I interned with Food for the Hungry. David and Brittani are part of the City Initiatives team of Food for the Hungry and spend a great deal of their time focusing on gospel driven issues of injustice and human poverty. They are very good at what they do, and above that, they are very good and including other people in what they do. Something that continues to build up the body of Christ in Phoenix and beyond. They are both incredibly gracious and fun loving people, the kind of folks who you just want to be around. So, all that to say these are two awesome people.

About a week and a half ago I got an e-mail from David sharing that he was ready to pop the question! He asked if I would be willing to photograph the proposal, of course I was. We met soon after to strategize, find the location, and set into place a sneaky plan that I’m confident would rival most military operations. So once we had poured over the detials it was just a matter of waiting. Eventually they day came.

The Day Of 12/15/2009:

2:08pm
David calls to make sure everything is a go. I barely recognize his voice as the excitment and anticipation are at their highest point yet!

4:00
I arrive to the top of South Mountain and place an empty bottle of coke as a marker to signal David where to stand.

4:09
David sends me a text asking how Mexico was (I was there the previous weekend). This is code for: We are now leaving Food for the Hungry)
I reply with a code meaning that everything is good to go.

4:46
David texts me ”Glad you had fun.” Translation…we are here!

I stayed hidden and out of sight waiting for them to approach. I soon saw David walking towards the coke bottle, a big smile on his face. Right behind him is Brittani, still not knowing what is about to happen. As they reach the spot they stand next to each other and talk for a moment. David takes her hand and they look out from South Mountain towards the city. It was then that I remembered why this is where David wanted to propose. ”South Mountain,” David had said, “is a special place for us. Our time there has always been meaningful. If there was any place in Phoenix that is our place it is South Mountain.” I smiled, and began to snap away. As I did the moment arrived and David took one knee.

After what was only moments, but I expect felt like ages, David finished his proposal. And guess what, she said YES!!! They caught their breath and hugged as the excitement was obviously overwhelming. After a moment David revealed another secret…”Say cheese Brittani!”

After giving Brittani some time to process everything that was happening we took the opportunity to snap some more pictures in the beautiful light being cast by the setting sun.

There are good days and there are great days. This was a great day. And, I suspect one that neither David or Brittani will soon forget. Again, congratulations to you both. It was a privilege to share that time with you! I’m so excited to see what’s next to come for the two of you, thanks for letting me be a small part of your journey together!

Baby Ellen | Portraits

chris — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 08:06:44 +0000

Meet baby Ellen. The proud bundle of joy of Amy and Sean. I know Amy through several ASU events that I photographed over the past couple of years and that she helped organize. She had Ellen just over three months ago and asked if I could do some portraits of her. For a three month old she was the best little model you could ask for. Outside of an aversion to laying on her back she was wide eyed and smiley. So, take a gander at a few of my favorite pictures from our session…enjoy!

Ciara | Goodbye College, Hello World

chris — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:01:09 +0000

Meet Ciara. I had the pleasure of doing just that recently as we spent an afternoon together taking some shots for her graduation announcements. Ciara is finishing her final semester at ASU’s downtown campus (yes same one I went too!), and she will leave with a degree in Tourism Development and Management. She was a blast to hang out with. We took advantage of some colorful backdrops, great weather, and a few wardrobe changes, all in an effort to get some great shots! A special thanks to Stephanie Horn for assisting on the shoot (also if you need any design work done check out Stephanie’s site, she does great work). Ciara it was great to meet you, I hope you had as much fun as we did and best of luck as you finish up at ASU!

FOR ALL SOON TO BE GRADUATES, NOW IS THE TIME TO GET YOUR PORTRAITS DONE. INQUIRE TODAY FOR PRICING AND BOOKING.

info@christophermaddoxphotography.com

Seeing the Light | Photography Workshop

chris — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:25:22 +0000

I had the recent pleasure of joining a great group of photographers for a two day workshop here in Phoenix. The workshop was called, “Seeing the Light” and was a dream that came to fruition from the mind of Tara Malouf of Seattle based Red Thread Photography. If you’d like to learn a bit more about each photographer who attended, she posted a great recap to the event here. Along with learning a variety of things ranging from technique to lighting, we also spent a day in the studio of Stuart Thurlkill of Eyes2See. I was introduced to Stuart a few years back by a mutual friend and have been grateful to have his input on my photography, as well as his friendship the past couple years. All in all it was a great time making new friends and sharing a passion for photography.

Here are a few shots from our time…

Brooklynn & Jaime | Portraits

chris — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 23:32:59 +0000

I met Jaime about a year and a half ago through a mutual friend when I needed someone to do hair and make-up on some models I was working with for a shoot. Since then I’ve had the pleasure of working with her at multiple weddings, seeing her do what she loves and does so well! Last week I got to catch up with Jaime and meet her spunky daughter Brooklynn who is nearing two years old and a bundle of pure energy. While we couldn’t get her to slow down for the camera, we still managed to get some great shots of her in action!

Jaime is preparing for the launch of her website. She needed a picture for her ‘About’ section, so we snapped a couple shots of her before the day was over.