Oh my, what do I even say about these two???? I was in the middle of a whirlwind of craziness when we did their session and it was a much needed breath of sweet fresh air to spend the afternoon being nothing but creative. Jeff and Alex are not just clients, they are near and dear to both Tim and I (Jeff is in our bridal party!) so photographing them to mark their engagement was  no work and all play.

Alex and Jeff both hail from Madison, WI but didn’t start dating until they both nestled into the west coast- Jeff in Los Angeles and Alex finishing up medical school in San Francisco. They spent all of their dating years long distance, both wracking up the Southwest frequent flier drink coupons, – Jeff and I once passed each other in the Burbank airport, him coming from and me going to the bay are- and are finally enjoying being in the same city after Alex left the bay area (and me and Tim) behind to join Jeff down in Southern California. I can’t wait for their wedding in October (just two weeks before ours!) and to celebrate our marriage with them in November.

A few months ago I was reading some comments people had left on a blog post that featured some of my work and one comment someone made was, “These are nice but shouldn’t the subjects be smiling more- they are supposed to be in love!” Of course, criticism effects me so for the next couple of shoots I did everything I could to make my clients extra “smiley” and then it hit me- sometimes that is just not only not the look I want but it’s not how my clients respond to me. I tend to be a quiet shooter- I talk to my subjects quietly and prefer to evoke those types of expressions out of them- so to you, critic – not all love is boisterous, laughing, smiley love- sometimes love is intense,  quiet, and emotional …… I spent a little extra time working on these images and the styling for this shoot so we could achieve a certain vibe… Wish I could say this was all me but Jeff and Alex seriously know how to work the camera- although I am sure Alex would argue otherwise.

LOVE YOU GUYS!

My dear friend, Ewen Phelan, of The Last Forty Percent Photography recently asked me via his twitter account if I needed a hug. At first, I laughed- yes! … and then I stopped and thought- oh crap, I must sound awfully unhappy for Ewan to offer to fly out from Canada to give me a hug! I promise you, folks, I am not unhappy just pretty freaking busy – and while I absolutely thrive on this kind of pace I also am human, and get caught in that, “Things are spinning out on control! I have too many commitments! I can’t keep up!” downward spiral….If I was being 100% honest with myself, I would have to admit that ever since we moved I’ve been a bit of a stress case. (Sorry Timmy!) I’ve been here, there and everywhere since January and am really looking forward to finally getting a good solid month of home sweet home! 81 days I’ve been away from home for work  so far this year….

.. Anyways, I know some of my clients, past clients, future clients, friends, family, etc. follow my ups and downs and I want you all to know while I totally need, love, and appreciate those hugs I am loving life and am counting my blessings daily!

Thanks Ewan for kicking my attitude back into gear. – and check out his work bc it’ll blow you away… seriously.

Since Julia and Jake are getting married this Saturday I thought I should bust my butt and post their engagement images from early May! (Sorry, guys!) The three of us were troopers- battling reschedules due to the rain more than once- but we ended up with a perfectly lovely day up in the Santa Cruz mountains… love these two like crazy and can’t wait to document their love this weekend!

Jake’s last name and Julia’s last name are hidden within these images!

Hey crazy kids! Been shooting like mad all over the place- this coming weekend I’m in Santa Barbara and then the rest of my weddings for the summer are here at home in the bay area. I feel like I’ve been on a nonstop flight since January and am really looking forward to settling into the summer ….  and to hunkering down and finding my wedding shoes! Lusting after these pink Chanel’s … any idea where I can find them?! Promise to share wedding details soon!

(The composition of this shot really BUGS me…. via here.)

The world works in wonderful ways! When Tim and I moved into our current house, our new landlord, James mentioned that his brother in law was going to be tying the knot this year. He passed along my name, I met with Angela and Geoff, and now my photography is a part of their love story. Angela and Geoff are in Europe until July 1st- hope you guys are having an amazing trip! .. Also, Angela makes custom jewelry and designed all the pieces she is wearing in these photos- if anyone is interested in them email me and I’ll pass along her info! She specializes in taking old pieces (heirlooms, brooches, etc) and constructing them into something modern for brides.

UPDATE: CHECK OUT ANGELA’S GORGEOUS WORK HERE!

Onward!

Christine and I like to talk about how we’re on the same life path. We started out at Presentation High School together, singing in the jazz choir and doing theater. We spent one fateful weekend in Los Angeles together our summer of senior year drinking Long Island Iced Teas and hanging out with people we shouldn’t have been hanging out with. We both left San Jose for college in the Southern California Region…. and within months of each other, we met the man we were going to marry and they are both musicians. (Not to mention, we both fell in love with photography and somehow both ended up being wedding photographers! See Christine’s beautiful work here.) It’s uncanny, really. Here are some scans from some prints I had lying around …. high school days!

Well, Christine and Brian are tying the knot in Maui next month and, of course, being a wedding photographer I am booked on their date and will be able to attend- BUT I was more than thrilled to be able to do their engagement images. Brian and Christine met at Loyola Marymount so it was only fitting we started their session there! Onward!

I love you guys to pieces and wish you all the happiness in the world. And, Brian, I’m joining Christine’s mom’s fight to get you guys back to the bay area. Ice cream soon???

Happy Friday! This has been a trying week for me and I am so glad to welcome the weekend in with a beautiful wedding in Saratoga tomorrow. The sun is supposed to stay shining- loving this weather.. how boring, I am talking about the weather! Lets get right into Zuli and Rehan’s images shall we?

Zuli follows my blog and e-mailed me back in January about setting up a time to get some photos done of her and her hubby Rehan. They were married 6 years ago and haven’t had any professional photographs taken of them since. What a crime! We had such a magical time having our portraits taken that Tim and I, (well, okay mostly me) decided that we’d do a session of the two of us yearly from here on out and I hope that my clients leave our sessions feeling this way too. It’s so nice to see two people who are so connected, so about each other- the way Zuli and Rehan look at each other melts my heart and spending the afternoon with them in Palos Verdes was an absolute treat.

Zuli’s fabulous make up was done by some of my favorite girls in the business, Fiore Beauty