Venue:  Holland Ranch, San Luis Obispo

Katie Jimenez and I met on the most unusual of terms; a story that I will reserve for only her, Anthony, and myself.  Admittedly, I think it must have been all for the best.   Once I met Katie and her soon-to-be husband, we could tell all the kinks were going to work out just fine.  Of course, there was the LaCaro connection, but I believe it was much more than that.  I was very honored to shoot photos of Katie and Anthony mostly because of Katie’s love for photography and the significance that she held for her wedding day.  It seemed to be a perfect formula for the reason why I enjoy wedding photography, as well.  The unique images that we all created during their wedding day are sure to fit in to the “timeless” category that I strive to provide for clients with.  I hope you all enjoy the few teasers that have been posted within this blog.  And look out, because I think that Katie will soon be out shooting photos of others who are planning their “big day.”  Afterall, you should see the size of Katie’s wedding planner binder; it was ginormous.

Cheers to both Katie and Anthony for such a beautiful event…..  – jon

On August 29, 2009 San Luis Obispo was experiencing one of the gnarliest heat waves that I have seen in recent time – temperatures exceeding 100 degrees.  I have to admit, my excitement at Santa Margarita Ranch that day was less than optimal.  So, before the wedding, I got a quick surf earlier in the morning to cool myself down before the big day.  Then around 1 pm I met up with the groom and the groomsman at the Johnson Ranch, where one of the groom’s good buddies happens to live with his wife.  The place was very cool and rustic as you can imagine.  As I walked up to the property to meet the guys, I saw surfboards and wetsuits all over the place.  Seems that they had the same idea for day, having surfed the same spot that morning as well.  Ironically enough after panning the room for the first time, I saw a few faces that looked familiar.  I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised, this is San Luis Obispo and all.  Anyway, their humor and positive vibes for the day persevered any uncomfortable heat that we were all experiencing that day.  Nick was especially jubilant, not letting any detail distract him from the big day.  He took everything in great stride.  Besides the stifling heat, my most memorable experience from the day was the speeches during the evening hours.  Nick and Michele (and their friends and family) each had some really incredible stories about experiences that they’ve created together; and, some of the most sincere and honest compliments to share with one another.

After staring at my work computer for an undocumented amount of time yesterday, I checked the old email personnel email account to see if I had any thing good in there.  Hmmm… only one message was in there (hey, at least it was something). Thankfully, it wasn’t from anyone trying sell me anything or try to make me anatomically superior; rather, it was from my old co-worker and friend, Vanessa Amerson.  After opening up the email, I was flattered that she asked me to take some snapshots at an local event she has organized, called Kidical Mass (http://www.slokidicalmass.blogspot.com/).  Given the 2 degrees of seperation that San Luis Obispo invokes on it’s inhabitants, I had heard of this event somewhere before but I had no idea that it was Vanessa that masterminded the event for our town.  Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised and proud of her.  Kidical Mass is a really fantastic event that gets families outside and enjoying bicycles as a group, and hopefully incorporating it into their daily transportation.  To me, the event is like a “Hello Kitty” motorcycle rally.  And as a photographer (and pedestrian) it was hard to keep up with this rough and tough group during the ride, just to get a couple of shots.  At times, I felt like a CIA Agent running along the presidential motorcade.  But from my perspective, it really enjoyed looking over and catching the glimpses of the kids expressions the faces as they past me by at 5 mph.  You can check out some shots from the day at:  www.jonclaxton.com/events/kidical_mass_june.  If your a parent/attendee, feel free to right click and download what ever photo you want.  If you need a high res photo for any reason, just let me know.

I was walking down the street to this morning, having my a.m. epiphany (true story..ya know, things just pop into your head sometimes).  I was thinking…..hmmmm…..wouldn’t it be great to be really good at something.  I mean, like, really good at something.  We’ll I’ve always prided myself as being the jack of all trades, master of none; but, for some reason, I was thinking about the other side of the coin this morning.  To give you the long and short of it, I spent the whole day behind the desk at work and then wrapped up my day at SLO Brew….oops, I meant Downtown Brew….where I ended up hanging out with two guys who are “really good” at something: my buddy Lucas (www.myspace.com/lucasohio) and Jackie Greene (www.jackiegreene.com).  While I watched both of these guys play, I realized that they kinda fit my epiphany of the morning; I mean, they were really good at something, and it felt great to watch them do their thang.  I wonder if they would be as entertained my typing skills?  Anyway, this blog goes out to both of these guys for entertaining the crowd tonight at Downtown Brew.  I feel fortunate enough to have gone back stage to enjoy a couple of special moments between these two artists.  The PJ-style photo (above) was one of my favs.

Last Saturday marked my first wedding of the season shooting with Katie DiSimone (www.katiedisimone.com).  Shooting a wedding at the Mission in San Luis Obispo was a great way to start the year off.  Even better, Marisa and Philippe were two really incredibly cool people.  I can’t wait to run into these folks again on the streets of San Luis Obispo.

Engagement session appointment, take two…

Katie, Anthony, and I have been dodging the ridiculous Spring winds of the Central Coast for a while now.  However, we finally found a window of time last Friday to get outside and grab some shots of these two lovebirds before the next gale force winds blow through our area.  With Bachi the wonder dog in tow, we met up for what was to be a rad photo shoot (that’s right, I’m going to bring “rad” back).  We blasted through a variety of spots throughout San Luis Obispo, and at each one, it was obvious these two monkeys were ready for anything.  There was plenty of laughing, kissing, and joking going on (note: I was not kissing anyone but buckwheat, thank you).  Overall, Katie and Anthony were truly cool to hang with.  Take home message:  If your reading this and you don’t get a wedding invitation from these two people, you might want to either befriending this couple in a hurry, or consider crashing their wedding because I’m guaranteeing it is going to insane!