Ali Brown Photography: We love our pastors!

Today was Pastor appreciation day and I sat towards the front because I've been so stinkin' excited for this day to get here. I have had to keep this surprise on the down low because it was the gift for each of the pastors. Now I can finally post them!

Sue is such a sweet friends and she had asked me to consider honoring our pastors through my photography. I feel so blessed to be able to call myself a photographer so I thought why not bless the pastors. She wanted to capture the pastors operating in their gifting. She also liked the idea of the photojournalistic approach.

I was kind of nervous because our church building is the WORST place I have taken pictures in...but God is good and it all worked out. She also used a bunch of the shots that didn't make the cut for the big 20x20 Fine Art Canvas Gallery Wrap images. They were perfectly placed through the video as sweet hymns played in the background. Everyone was balling especially when it came to the part where folks from the church had submitted their photos of the pastor's marrying them and baptizing them. And this thought went through my mind...even though the submitted photos may all not have been perfectly exposed or composed and a bit noisy...the emotion evoked from each shot - with people coming up out of the water with huge smiles and in some cases tears mixed with chlorinated water, was what got us all thinking about how blessed we are to call these men our pastors. This emotion is what made each of these submitted photos so much better than the still shot of the communion cups I had given them to use. Real people with real emotions is what makes an image alive.

I started thinking about this in relation to the weddings I have coming up. I truly want to capture every REAL moment. Not a posed or perfect look. The real images are what will make the couple, in years to come...stir up those feelings again and TRULY remember their day. Their amazing day of becoming one.

So here is what each pastor received in a fabulous Canvas Gallery Wrap:

*Edited to add: The whole theme of Pastor's Appreciation was 50's nostalgic...so that's why the editing looks "old school."*

Pastor Nate - A heart for the next generation