BRANDON RUSSELL

& MINARET PHOTO

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My parents moved to Mammoth in 1969 and I grew up here so I suppose my family is pretty old school Eastern Sierra.

I live in Mammoth with my wife Jen, my best friend and companion in every aspect of life, as well as our three absurd and large chihuahua mixes. Jen is a teacher at Mammoth High School and we do almost everything together.

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I started traveling in college and I've been to 33 countries. If I had to pick, I'd say Argentina, Costa Rica and Spain are my top three.

I may not have the record for most ACL reconstructions, but I'm no slouch. I've had six such procedures done, all but one on the left knee. It's all from skiing and I'm going to keep going until I can't and I wouldn't change a thing.

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TRAVEL

Jen and I met studying abroad in San Sebastian, Spain, and travel has remained an integral part of life for us. Whenever she has breaks from school we do our best to get down to the tropical beaches and jungles in Central America or crystal clear waters of French Polynesia. We’ve gravitated towards that region for several years now, in part because we love the culture and geography, but also because it’s quick and easy to get there from Mammoth via LAX. If she’s got a week off of school, it’s likely you can find us chasing sloths in Costa Rica or shooting sunsets in Nicaragua.

IN THE WINTER, SKIING IS LIFE

I grew up ski racing before transitioning to freeride & terrain park riding at the birth of that type of skiing in the late 1990s. My knees ultimately weren't built for park jumps (I've torn more ACLs than almost anybody), but skiing is still life. These mountains are some of the world's best for steep and safe backcountry shredding. When the snow is good, chasing powder becomes the priority and I'll typically log 75-100 days on the snow per year.

I worked with Mammoth Mountain Ski Area founder Dave McCoy for ten years after college. I began with Dave when he was 90, after he sold the resort and wanted to get serious about photography in retirement. We spent our time capturing the Eastern Sierra in 4X4 vehicles and printing and framing his work to benefit his Mammoth Lakes Foundation

DECADE WITH A LEGEND

Dave died in 2020 at 104 years old, but he'll forever be remembered as the one who made Mammoth and a pioneer in the ski industry. I'll always cherish my years with him and although it wasn't time spent pursuing my passion, Dave imparted daily wisdom and life lessons that I wouldn't trade for anything.

FACTS:

I shot my first wedding in 2009, a few years after finishing degrees in print journalism and Spanish at The University of Nevada, Reno.

I shoot Canon and, although I have lenses for any situation, I do 90-percent of all my work with two lenses: 35mm & 85mm.

I've captured about 150 weddings across the United States as well as Mexico, Panama and Nicaragua.

I shoot A TON of images at every wedding--typically between 5k-10k. More images=more chances at nailing the decisive shot.

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Our approach is two-fold: candid wedding-day storytelling mixed with wild outdoor adventure art befitting of the places we shoot.

Epic portraits are just a small part of the process, especially on the wedding day. Capturing emotion-rich, unscripted moments are ultimately what drives me--the kind of imagery that makes you remember the way the wedding felt rather than just how it looked.

The Eastern Sierra is a land of hot spring-dotted high desert plains

leading into jagged snow-covered peaks (with some lovely alpine lakes and streams in between). Those outrageous landscape superlatives are the reason people come here for their wedding, engagement, elopement or portrait shoot.

For this reason wide-angle, location-establishing portraits are in my DNA and that’s what I love to do more than anything.