Archive for 2010

This has been a really great year…thank you to all of my wonderful clients! I’ve posted some of my favorites below from each wedding or session. Of course the term “favorites” is relative – it’s like trying to pick your favorite child :)

On another note…this was my first year in business. I set a goal at the beginning of the year to shoot 10 sessions and 3 weddings. Unbelievably, I shot 4 weddings and 24 sessions. No wonder I felt so busy! :)

Ali + Stephen’s wedding:

Beata + Thomas’ engagement session in Rancho Santa Margarita:

Christine + Damon’s session in Aliso Viejo:

Christina + Mike’s session at Peters Canyon Park:

Erin + Patrick’s engagement session in Trabuco Canyon:

My very first senior session with the lovely Hayley in San Clemente:

A fun family session with Jahana, Fred and Jordan in Laguna Beach:

A Balboa Island family session with the wan family:

2 events for Kelli, Remi and Bella! First a family session in Fullerton:

And just a few weeks later, their surprise wedding!

Kim, Corey and Madison…what am I going to do with you?!? I’ve been so honored to take pictures of you guys 3 times this year. First a lovely Baptism:

And then Madison’s one-year pictures:

And then Christmas photos!

Kristin and Rob’s Long Beach wedding:

Liz, Bill, Delilah and Jackson’s family session:

Lucy, Russ, Grant and Alec’s family session in Laguna Beach:

2 sessions with Mackenzie + Justin! One at Alta Laguna Park in Laguna Beach:

And the second in Newport Beach:

And let’s not forget the proposal I ran into while photographing Mackenzie and Justin! So exciting to capture the moment!

Nicole + Chris’ beautiful La Palapa wedding:

Nicole’s maternity session:

Roxanna’s + Charles’ Orange engagement session:

Sarah + Brian’s Irvine engagement session:

Stephanie, Mike and Andrew’s Lake Forest family session:

Stephanie + Ed’s San Juan Capistrano engagement session:

And last, but certainly not least, the Watson family!

Thank you all for an incredible year!

I like NEW things. New clothes and shoes mainly…although I am somewhat addicted to finding new beauty products (thankyouverymuch www.makeupalley.com) as well and am constantly finding something else that will REVOLUTIONIZE my hair, skin, personality, etc.

Therefore it came as a rather unpleasant surprise that I have an antique in my possession. I mean, my husband has joked I should go ahead and donate my iPod to the Smithsonian already. Sure, I’ve had it 4 years. But it still works, so why replace it? However, the cold harsh reality hit me recently when my dad visited and asked to recharge his iPod on my computer. The differences were staggering.

Mine’s a little worse for the wear, as you can see. I could believe how light and tiny my dad’s was!

The thing is there’s always something ELSE I’d rather buy. And although this should motivate me, and in fact make me feel embarrassed next time I head to the gym, now it’s almost a challenge. How long can I make this thing last? :)

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday with their loved ones!

I think it’s a little easier to create Christmas traditions when you have kids. As adults…well, we put the tree and decorations up after Thanksgiving, and we make a point to watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Other than that, though, we don’t set out cookies for Santa or carrots for Rudolph.

This, however, may become a new tradition:

For those who watch Eastbound and Down on HBO, you’ll recognize the mug of the infamous Kenny Powers. Kevin told me he had ordered a Kenny Powers bobblehead, but it was a surprise to see him hanging out in our stockings. But you know what? I bet he’s hardcore Christmas spirit.

So I guess we have a new tradition. Kenny Powers is $#!*& in…our Christmas stockings.

Thanksgiving seems so long ago now, with Christmas just a few days away, but I’ve been meaning to blog this trip in spite of all the craziness going on the past few months! Kevin and I really love going to Vegas. We’re not big gamblers or anything – we just like to be in a place with multiple entertainment and shopping options, without ever getting into a car. The previous few times we haven’t gambled at ALL, although last time I did put $20 on black. And I won! And then I decided to let it ride, and I lost. Sadness.

We also went to Vegas last Thanksgiving and WHAT a disaster that was! Unbeknownst to us, Thanksgiving is one of the busiest times of the year in Sin City. It took us about 6 hours to get out there, and 7 hours to get home. Then we had the grand idea to go see Hoover Dam, and that was a 4-hour round trip as well.

We wised up this time and left at 7:00 on Wednesday and FLEW there. We left around 8:00 Saturday to get home and also had a traffic-free trip. I think this will continue to be our Thanksgiving tradition :)

In any case, pictures! That’s what you’re here for, right?

I must say I have no pictures of the strip. Kevin and I counted, and we’ve been there 9 times. Whew! So I really can’t get it up for a lot of pictures I’ve taken before.

We always stay at Planet Hollywood. Centrally located, plus it’s connected to a mall, which is really convenient. The lobby has these really pretty chandeliers.

We were in the Kingpin room! Holla!

Poor Kevin. I always have the camera attached to my face. I was trying to take a picture and he was yelling, “I’M MESSING UP YOUR METERING!!!” Poor guy, that he even now knows what metering is!

We’re suckers for live music. This band was playing for a few nights at one of the bars in Planet Hollywood. Very enjoyable! They played “Smells Like Teen Spirit” when I requested the song. Bonus points for them!

We may have had a few of these.

One of the highlights of the trip was seeing old Vegas. I had never been there, and having stayed in Vegas a few times now, it’s crazy how TINY it is. Like, the hotels seem miniature. And kind of cheesy.

I’m pretty sure this was the sign the kid destroyed in “Honey, I Blew Up the Kids,” right? Am I wrong? Maybe?

Or maybe this guy? Definitely not the Glitter Gulch girl, though.

My version of “girl taking a picture of herself in a mirror.” I like how my camera’s as big as my head. This was right before we went to the Studio 54 club in MGM, my favorite club evaaaaaah!

We went to this GIGANTIC car museum at the Imperial Palace. I think Kevin was a lot more excited than I was. Here’s my next car:

Just kidding. HERE’S my next car:

Until next time – which will be in February for Kevin’s big 4-0!

I practically “Squeeeeeeed!” right out of my chair when I saw this picture Nicole sent me. It’s such a thrill to realize pictures you took are hanging in someone else’s house!

At the same time, it seems like a lot of people don’t buy prints anymore. I think Facebook has really killed the print business. People used to print all their pictures, put them in albums, and take those albums to family events. Now you can just as easily share your weekend events without having to print anything.

So I wonder how often people actually DISPLAY prints. I’m a big believer in having prints in your home. Exhibit A:

Yep, that’s a LOT of pictures of me and Kevin. Sometimes I worry that we look like the most narcissistic people with this little display, but hey, we paid good money for our engagement and wedding photography, and I really love having those prints up. They display a very important part of our lives. I don’t know if that wall will stay like that forever, but I love it as is right now.

We also have another wall in the house for silly snapshots and family photos:

One thing that definitely needs to be considered is WHERE you get your photos printed. Sure, I’m guilty of running to Costco to pick up some pictures, but in general, I don’t recommend getting your photos printed at a drugstore, supermarket or the like. The reason is those photo printers typically are not calibrated on a regular basis. This can mean color casts on your photos, or photos that look a little off. I prefer to order my prints online from Kodak Gallery, or better yet, Mpix.

Whichever print supplier you choose, it is very important to de-select ANY “auto color correction” option. VERY IMPORTANT! If you are paying a professional, you are paying them to adjust color and sharpness so they are ready to print as-is once delivered. You may in fact undo all that work by allowing a printer to auto correct colors, which could result in warm or cold casts.

In either case, display those photos! It sounds cheesy, but to me, it really makes a house a home :)