As we enter 2012 I wanted to take a minute and look back a few of my favorite wedding images last year. I’ve had the good fortune to work with and learn from the extremely awesome Jason Miczek as well as shoot a few on my own. Thank you to all the incredible brides and grooms who let me share their most memorable day.  I’m looking forward to growing the wedding side of my photography in 2012.

Click on the photo above to see a full gallery or check out a few more images on the jump.

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It’s not Christmas without “The Nutcracker.” At least that’s how Rebecca and Daniel Wiley feel. Each year the husband and wife dance teachers take a group of students and volunteers (ages 4 to 40+) and put on a production of the classic holiday ballet that seems to rival professional dance companies. I joined them for a dress rehearsal of the ballet last weekend and put together a short video. I had the nice problem of having too much stuff to jam into the 3 minutes and looking back there is even more I could have explored if I spent more time with them. Rebecca and Daniel were a joy to meet and hang out with for an afternoon and who knows, maybe next year I can spend more time documenting this wonderful production (They start rehearsals in September)

There are more photos on the jump …

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Each year as November comes around, there’s one question my girlfriend always asks me … “is football over yet?” She is referring to the one thing that keeps my Friday nights tied up from August through sometime in November or December. I’ve covered three playoff games in the last two weeks. As of this post, there are still two teams in my newspaper’s coverage area left in the hunt. Both Concord and Kannapolis have tough matchup this weekend, but in the playoffs anything can happen.

A few of my favorites from the first couple of weeks on the jump.

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When ever someone ask you “want to ride on a B-17,” the answer is yes. I tired out my new D7000 DSLR video camera on a trip over Cabarrus County in a World War II-era bomber. Outside of some modern updates in the flight deck, this thing transported you back in time. Tall guys like me would not have worked out very well on long missions and I’m still I was able to squeeze through some of the tight spots on it.

Here’s the video I produced.

It’s easy to forget how much fun a Renaissance Festival can be. A couple weeks back, my colleague and friend Michael Knox approached me about working on a video project about the festival the the local actors who bring it to life. The three actors we met up with put a tremendous amount of time and research into their characters. Sure they can be silly and make you laugh, but these guys do an incredible job of transporting you into their fantasy world, no matter how old you are.

Check out Michael’s story here.

More photos on the jump…

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My girlfriend Meaghan and I just got back from a week-long trip along coastal Georgia. While the bulk of our trip was to St. Simons Island (where I used to live while shooting for The Brunswick News), we also visited Savannah, Jekyll Island and the Cumberland Island National Seashore. I did carry my other cameras, but found myself having fun shooting with my iPhone and the Hipstamatic app. Here are a few images from the trip. (I’ve done nothing after the images were made, all toning was done automatically by the app)

For the past four year, Memorial Day Weekend and May have meant NASCAR to me. Concord (and Charlotte) are in the heart of NASCAR county and the area is invaded every year about this time for two of NASCAR’s signature events … the Sprint All Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600.

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I was completely shocked and humbled last week when the North Carolina Press Association named me as the 2010 Hugh Morton Photographer of the Year for their community division. (The NCPA breaks all the newspapers in the state into two categories, daily and community. My friend Andrew Craft was named the daily POY.)

It was a nice honor and I don’t think it’s completely set in yet. The Independent Tribune has been tremendous in supporting my photography career.

Instead of turning this into an “I’m thankful for” list, here is the winning portfolio I submitted to the NCPA.

Here are a few of my favorites from the high school basketball season so far …