Eli's Photography Blog

Our Wedding Video!! – St. Thomas, Virgin Islands

When Leslie and I came back from our wedding in the Virgin Islands we were so crazy anxious to see our photos and video; we knew that our guys Collin Hughes, Matt Brue, and Spencer Combs had a real challenge on their hands with the weather. What should have been a super easy, beautiful beach wedding… turned out to be a monsoon on an island, haha. But we still couldn’t wait to see em’ and expected very rainy wedding video/photos. Of course would have loved it all the same, because it was our wedding, no matter how much rain there was it was beautiful to us….. However, when Matt sent us the trailer to our video, Leslie and I were completely blown away!!! I dimmed the lights, cranked up the volume on my computer, and Leslie sat in my lap. We waited for the video to fully download and then pressed play. From the very first frame, our jaws were on the floor.  We must have watched it like 50 times that night!!! I can honestly say that I am still in shock, can’t believe that it turned out to be that cool. I really can’t explain how Matt made this happen, all I know is if you need a wedding video, he’s your man!

Eli + Leslie // St. Thomas, VI from capture studios on Vimeo.

After our mind was completely blown by the video, then the photos started rolling in. Leslie and I were THRILLED!! Can’t tell you guys how happy we were to have picked photographers that we were comfortable with. My only advice that I have for new brides-to-be out there is to find the photographer that matches you. There are lots of super talented photographers out there. I personally know several, but the best decision that we made for our wedding was picking a photographer(s) that we had fun with. They made us feel at ease and worked their butts off the whole time. I have tons of respect for all of my brides and I promise to give you my all on your wedding day. I want you to feel the same way that Leslie and I did on ours. I vow to do everything I can to make your photos beautiful and unforgettable. We have so many photos that we absolutely love, but here are just a couple for you guys!! Enjoy! Don’t I have a beautiful bride!
The top two photos are from the incredible Spencer Combs!


These bottom two are from the amazing Collin Hughes!

Tuesdays with Eli – I’m Married!!

Well, I’m a married man now! Leslie and I got back from our honeymoon early Sunday morning about 2am. I’m sure most of you guys saw my Facebook post about the weather in St. Thomas. We planned for a beautiful, sunny, warm Island wedding and honeymoon, but apparently the weather had other plans. The locals on the island said that they have not received that much rain in 30 years. We were in the middle of some kind of record or something.  I’m telling you all of this not because I want everyone to feel sorry for us, haha. We did have 1 and a half days of sun, haha!
Leslie and I made the best of it. We rolled with the punches and got a little wet. To me, one of the most exciting things about photographing weddings is the unpredictability. Sometimes good, sometimes bad, but one thing is for sure, no matter how much you plan… things happen. It’s really just a great reminder that the wedding is not just about the plans and preparations. Weddings should be about the people and love. The time that you and your new bride or groom spend together and the experiences that you share.
I can tell you for sure that our wedding was definitely an experience, haha, but it was beautiful and I wouldn’t change a thing. Leslie and I so thankful to our families who could make it to the wedding and all of their help with everything. We are also super thankful for our photographers who had a bit of a challenge with all the rain. They stayed positive the whole time and worked hard to give us exactly what we were looking for. We cannot wait to see the images!
Until then, here are a few from my camera. I didn’t do a whole lot of shooting because I had people doing it for me, haha, but here’s a couple of my favorites! Also sorry for the cheesy/depressing videos, I only made them because I thought you guys would get a kick out of them, haha. Enjoy!

Our Honeymoon! from Eli Murray on Vimeo.

Tuesdays with Eli – Rehearsal Dinners

The rain last weekend keep me from going to the Buffalo River and camping with my family, so I had to come up with something else to blog for this Tuesdays with Eli. I’m hoping that I will have another free weekend at some point before it gets too unbearably hot to go camping, and I can share some photos with you guys. So yesterday I blogged my good friends Brent and Rachel’s wedding day. I was looking through all the photos that I also took on the rehearsal night and I thought, hey I can blog this right? Haha. I’m not sure how many other wedding photographers attend the rehearsal of the wedding ceremony. I assume, once you’ve done it enough it’s unnecessary. But I am still pretty new, plus I enjoy going to meet the rest of the family before the wedding day. As long as I don’t have anything holding me back from going, I sit in during the rehearsal of the wedding. I love weddings because of the environment. I love how happy everyone is. From my experience, the rehearsals are just as good. I can also scope out the venue for some cool locations to shoot. Plus, the best part, most of the time I get invited to the rehearsal dinner. I’m not gonna lie, I like to eat! And once again this gives me an opportunity to get to know everyone a little better and everyone can get to know me. What better place to open up to people that around a dinner table breaking bread? Most importantly, I want the bride to be comfortable with me on her big day, but it’s always nice if everyone else knows me too. Anyway, here are just a few photos from Brent and Rachel’s rehearsal dinner. I had a blast, even better, Leslie was able to join me for this one!


Brent, me, Leslie, and Rachel.


Brent and Rachel had this super great candy jar set up! They had some of their engagement photos framed on display and various candies for everyone to enjoy. Of course I just got my new iPad and I’m eager for new ways to use it. I just so happened to have Brent and Rachel’s engagement photos on it, so I put it on slideshow and let it roll. Of course everyone loved it. Maybe you’ll want one for your wedding?