Flash Back Friday…... THANK YOU

I love to look back at how far I've come. This road was never easy and it is nice to see the progress I have made and developed over these past few years as a photographer.

Back in my early days of shooting I would hunt down my friends and friends of friends for free sessions to hone my skills. Not everyone would oblige, they always had excuses but a few took up the opportunity and I am very thankful for that. Without all of you I wouldn't be anywhere near the amazing photographer I am now….haha that was a joke.

One of my very first newborn sessions was of a very good and very old dear (sorry Aaron) friend of mine and his beautiful newborn baby girl Isabella. 

I had no idea what I was doing…..

Newborn photography is an entirely different beast than crazy little three year olds and fashion models. I brought my "props" the few I had and we went with the flow. A & J were very accommodating, I'm not sure if they smelled my fear but I was terrified.

This little Princess is about to turn 3!!!!

 

As I look back on these past three years I can smile and say that I have accomplished something I never knew I could do. I run a successful photo business and I am building an empire from nothing. All I had was my husband's camera and a desire to have a career. I was terrified of being a "Stay at Home Mom" I needed an outlet. I went to college to be a teacher, not a photographer. When I picked up my camera and looked through the lens for the first time as a "Photographer" I wasn't necessarily hooked but I could see my future through that lens. I took one giant leap after another and now I have a body of work that I am extremely proud of. 

Thank you to all of my first subjects for letting me come and practice on your loved ones. I hope that each of you look back at your "memories" and smile remembering what you did for me and what I gave to you. This right here is why I do this. To give each parent out there a memory that will last their lifetime. 

Thank You!!!

Baby Girl Hockey Newborn Session with a Fairy Tale twist

Meet little Mikayla.

She was about 3 weeks when we sat down to shoot her newborn session in Valencia.

Dad is an avid Hockey fan/player and had already purchased her first set of skates.

Mikayla was a great model. 

She slept when we asked her too and was all too happy to oblige us in our primping and prepping as we set her up for a dreamy fairy tale photo session mixed with a little hockey superstar!!!!

Happy 1st Birthday Mason

I love watching my clients families grow. 

Families go from 1 to 2 then 3 and almost always 4. If I am lucky I get to watch every milestone. 

First Breath, First Smile, 1st Birthdays, 5th birthdays, High School Graduation. Being a "Family" Photographer is just that, being with family. I have a close relationship with my families. They call me for each scenario that they want to remember and this my friends was one of those moments.

I photographed Treena while she was expecting. Her images came out so amazing, I was really proud of my work. That was over a year ago……..

Now little Mason is ONE!!!!

Happy Birthday Little GUY!!!!!!

Mama looking beautiful. Like the cover of Vanity Fair.

Newborn Session Nautical Theme

I LOVE getting an assignment that is well thought out and planned., As opposed to heading over to someones house to "improvise" a shoot. I love to gather props, look for inspiration and stick to a theme while shooting little tykes.

This session was loads of fun to produce. Little Leo has a "Nautical" themed nursery so I started collecting props and colors for our fun little session. I went to Etsy, Ebay, Amazon, Marshall's, Ross, Target, 99 cent and probably 10 other places and gathered all types of goodies for my newborn session.

Here is the final outcome….

Union Station Engagement Session

Naturally when you plan a destination wedding there are many facets

that need to be coordinated. Hotels, Family, Travel, Save the Dates, Location, Weather, Food, Honeymoon, everything has to be planned.

When J & T contacted me to shoot their engagement session I was ecstatic. I pulled out my "concept" board and got to work scouting locations that went along with a "Destination Wedding" idea. Their wedding will be held in Palm Springs this spring so naturally I thought about a Union Station get-a-way concept.

Then we jetted over to Griffith Park to catch the sunset and shoot a few more "fun" shots.

Woman of India plus a hidden gem.

The women of India are breathtaking.
Their colorful Sari's and dark mysterious eyes, I
was captivated by their beauty throughout my trip last summer.
Whether draped in diamonds and expensive fabrics or
standing on the side of the road in rags of vibrant shades of red & yellow I couldn't help but look and smile at them. Their beauty was everywhere.

During our trip through Rajastan the adults took a day trip to the magical Jain Temple,
Ranakpur. If you ever visit India it is one of the MUST SEE DESTINATIONS on my list. The road was long and steep and extremely narrow, we got into an accident (head on) in our bus and as you find out quickly the men don't exchange insurance information, they fight than go their separate ways. It was very dramatic.

Upon our return from the forest as we slowly made our way back to civilization we stopped for a cold drink and stumbled upon this group of young women mixing concrete. They all stopped when we exited the bus and watched us walk towards them, cameras in hand. My husband (luckily for us he speaks Hindi) asked the men if we could take a few photos of the girls and they nodded and smiled.

The girls kept giggling. I thought they were beautiful. They thought we were strange.

The rag on the girls head is for the bowl of concrete that she will carry down the road to the site of construction. 

This photo courtesy of Payal's iPhone

Ranakpur was the highlight of my trip. Well I had many highlights, all of which I will share here, someday. But Ranakpur was so amazing in that I had absolutely no idea what to expect. My mother-in-law insisted that we (Me, hubby, father-in-law, sister-in-law and brother-in-law) take the day and drive to Ranakpur, she would stay home with the children so they could play in the pool and have one day off from being dragged around town. None of us researched where we were going. About an hour into our drive we slipped off the main highway onto a very narrow road and crept deep into the forest.

The road in and out of Ranakpur.

As you can see in the map here Ranakpur is very isolated. Our guide/priest explained that the temple was abandoned and all the villages surrounding it were destroyed by the Mughals some 500 years ago. It was cut off from life until this road was built. I believe it has been in the past 40 years that people can access it by car. It was amazing.

Our Desination: Ranakpur

The Jain's built the temple around this magical  tree.

Each column was hand carved and no two were the same. There are over 1444 marble pillars. It is said it is impossible to count them. We didn't try.

 Feed Me.