I have NO idea how it happened….but little courtney down the street grew up overnight, and is now a stunning young lady. In fact, I was going through my old box of pictures ( yes, the photographer has an old box of pictures that are totally unorganized) …lol any way……  I found a picture of Courtney and her brother sitting at my kitchen counter eating birthday cake. It was Robbie’s birthday  and all the kids had been outside playing ( at this point we had not lived there very long and had not met their parents), so I had them go home and ask if they could stay for birthday cake!  I think Courtney must have been in the 3rd or 4th grade. That was the beginning of of some really fun times. Before any of us had built in pools, I remember blow up pools in my front yard and all the kids splashing around, the dogs running wild, and me in a lawn chair trying to read a magazine! Ok….. enough of the trip down memory lane, lets get on with the GORGEOUS images of Little Courtney…

With two active boys under the age of 10, I knew better than to expect these kids to get excited about family pictures, football yes, pictures no! So that is exactly what we did. Played football. 
Even Grandma showed up to join in!


Thanks so much Doug and Sirena for letting me join in our your day of fun in the park!

There is something so magical about Mission Inn Weddings. I cant really explain it but there is just a certain grandiose aura that embraces its guests.  The Chapel   with its enormous doors, the gorgeous courtyard, with the pretty fountain and numerous picture perfect locations for photos. Every wedding I have shot here has been truly dreamy and this one was no exception! take a peek…

One of my favorite parts of shooting a wedding is watching the bride and groom open those special gifts they give to each other on their wedding day… usually the bride will receive a beautiful piece of jewelry, or a special family heirloom. The groom typically opens cufflinks, or I have even seen personalized cigars which were actually kinda cool. But how much more would he love images of his bride like this presented in a little black book? Hmmmm, cufflinks, little black book of his hot wife…. not really a hard decision is it? Bridal Boudoir… It’s Perfect!

One of the toughest things about having Portraits done is deciding what everyone should wear and what can my clients can do to make their portraits look just a little bit more special than their everyday look. So here is a casual solution perfect for Seniors, Brides and Moms.

Images and video curtisey of Megan. Love her blog!

I have this system after a shoot. first I download, I take out the CF card and put it in a certain spot, then after I backup the session I clear the card and it goes into another spot. Well somehow this card “with the pics” was put among the cleared cards and I found it some months later.. A delightful Wedding I second shot with my friend Cean at Ponte Winery in Temecula. Just thought I’d share….

When Josah first approached me about a Gangster themed wedding, I was thrilled with the idea right away. A bit curious I admit, about how she was going to pull it all off, however she did an amazing job getting the whole feel of it all with the Venue. The wedding took place at The Mitten building in Redlands. Its old brick exterior, the nearby train tracks and historical neighborhood was a convincing backdrop. Of course the guns helped too!

To say that I bond with my clients is quite an understatement. Amanda kinda feels like a niece to me. She is about the same age as a few of my nieces. I first shot her Senior Pictures a few years back. In fact I believe she was the very first client I drug a big ol vintage couch out to a deserted road for! lol Now I do it on a regular basis…. see what you started Amanda? lol Amanda was such a natural in front of the camera that I asked her several times just to go hang out with me and let me practice different techniques I was trying to master. Each and every time, I’d come away with the most fantastic images. I was just in awe of how she moved and knew just how to change things up with every click of the shutter. Amanda was my go to girl when I held my first “Shooting Event”, a mock wedding vintage style. Now its the hot thing, but back then I think vintage had a much different cognition. She became an exceedingly popular model for a variety of “Photography groups” and I stood back and watched like a proud mother hen! lol …..fast forward to today. She is about to have her own little chick. Baby Daddy is in the Army serving our country and has not been able to watch her bloom, so I said, “well lets do what me and you do best, lets make pretty pictures”! and that we did! He won’t be home to watch little Kaileigh be born and has no idea of how gorgeous Amanda is right now with that “Glow”. This is for you baby daddy, Mom and Dad, Grandparents, Dad and Jeannie, and for you Amanda, Im blessed to know you all! Your beautiful girl! And I can NOT wait to do newborn pics!

 

Property available for private shoots : Contact Joy at “The Vintage Rabbit“  Located in San Diego. Joy has pricing Private shoots only, Styled shoots, furniture and prop rental, and outerwear and accessories. (I was like a kid in a candy store)!

Home grown flowers provide by  “The Thrifty Gardener”

 

When Joyce contacted me to do engagement pictures for her and her fiance Jeff, she was half way across the U.S. going to school at Southern Advintist University. I thought wow!, Ive never been to Tennessee before, I pictured  portraits of the two of them riding on horse back into the sunset, cuz after all doesn’t everyone who lives in Tennessee have horses? No such luck! lol Joyce would be coming to town for Spring Break to spend time with her love Jeff, and we would be shooting at the beach. Not that thats a bad thing, I love the beach! and I cant imagine anything more romantic than romance in the sand.

Every once in a while its nice to get together with other photographers to learn, practice, and just hang out. This week I did just that at aScott Robert Lim workshop. The event was held at the Santa Anita Race Track
We studied natural light, what to look for, and its patterns, and off camera lighting using numerous strobes. So here are a just a few of my favorites using both natural light and off camera lighting.

A ver special thanks to Vivian Tran of “All Made Up” the make up was fantastic! I love to focus on the eyes and these girls had the most amazing eyes and lashes! You rock Vivian!

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