It's been a while.....

As I have done every summer since having my children. I went in to hiding. My boys and I played all day and all night. Built forts, lit fireworks in our backyard (daily:) went to museums (all museums in the metropolitan LA area), watched movies, took day trips (in the car) as well as week long vacays in the car and most importantly went to the beach every week. As awesome as our summer vacation was, and it truly was EPIC, I am so happy to go back into my boring old everyday routine. How much I have missed my schedules and lists, I love schedules and lists. This summer I through my legal notes out the window and partied till I dropped but I miss my order. I did mention boring in my last sentence, let me reassure you, my life is anything but boring.

Kingston starts Preschool on Monday. Yay!!! I am a HUGE fan of preschool. Kid's learn everything they need to know through play so why not be somewhere that it's totally cool to play, like all the time. There is nothing more unfun than having to beg your mom to get off the computer to play K'nex. But his preschool starts so late. Don't get me wrong, I love the quality time I've had with him. He's only 4 for so long and it seems like everyday is a new discovery with him, I'm just ready to work during the day and not into the weeeeee hours of the morning.

On that note I wanted to say hi. Hi from the tail end of my summer vacation. I am almost finished and soon I will be here once again dazling you with the most amazing photo sessions I have shot yet. Yes, I still photographed the most amazing women I just haven't blogged in FOREVER! I apologise. Life is crazy, life is full, life is awesome and I love every crazy second of it.

Peace out
Michele

Angels and Babies

Who doesn't love babies? Well beside my little Kingston

who has loudly protested to having more babies. He has often stated "I hate babies"

not sure where it came from or how long he will feel that way but I do not agree with his protest. I LOVE BABIES!

It truly is a blessing that after a few hard working, dedicated years of

figuring out my camera and this business of photography

that I have made a splash in the Newborn and Family Photography world. It is definitely my "calling" in life.

Of course being a mother of two and a preschool teacher has guided me into the

right mindset when working with children. I have an enormous amount of patience and I

have no problem acting like a fool with a three year old. When working with newborn, you are REQUIRED to be patient, quite, calm and most of all have warm hands. Cold hands will guarantee you to have a screaming baby........

Anyways, Introducing Another one of my fantastic clients and her beautiful baby girl.

Enjoy

Twins

I had the pleasure of shooting two little baby girls late last year. 3 week old twins named Reverie and Boheme. Could they be any cuter?

Our relationship started many years back, their mommy Rebecca and I met at our first born(s) preschool, then we each had a #2, her a girl and me another bouncing baby boy.

We talked often about having more kids, how expensive it is, difficult, rewarding, amazing, stupid, but how much we wanted more........ then she got pregnant. I was so excited and a bit jealous, honestly. Then she found out she was having TWINS!!! Could you imagine baby #3&4 wrapped up together? aaaahhhhh I was terrified for her. But if anyone can do it, Rebecca can, I thought. She comes from an amazing mother, strong, confident, educated and extremely supportive and loving. It is only natural that she is that way too.

So here is to you the beautiful mother of 793 (I mean 4) children and her husband Hal. May your love grow more and more each day.

My beautiful friend Rebecca with her 3 daughters. Check out her amazing blog at

http://www.girlsgonechild.net

A silly moment after a long day of baby rearing. Luv u R

Baby Boheme

Baby Reverie

Twins. Who doesn't want a moment like this?

Rev.

This is how our session got started. Wide eyed and very alert. I love shooting babies, I think I've mentioned that before, and twins? Ah it is like double the pleasure double the fun. Double the time.

These two are the most precious little souls I've come into contact with. In the 3 hours I spent with them I noticed they were very different even at the tender age of 3 weeks old. They look quite different too. It is such a miracle to watch these two come alive. They were so enchanting I couldn't keep my eyes off of them.

Bo and Rev you are so loved. Welcome to our world, and welcome to the BEST family you could have been given.

Play dates and pictures.....

Much fun is had when you meet your friends at the park. I love meeting young, fun families at parks. It's what kids love the most, to run free, and it gets us adults out of the house and off the computer. Everyone wins, especially me who gets to run along side everyone and capture some giggles, tears and very often a stolen kiss.

I met my new friend, Ian , at Ryan Park in Palos Verdes. It was a beautiful California December day. The sun was out, the ocean breeze blew in from time to time as if to remind us that it indeed is winter, perhaps somewhere else. The birds sang their holiday songs from the tips of the tallest trees. It was a magical day.

As most of you know I am a huge fan of kids. They are my muse, all of them. Doesn't matter the age, sex or attitude each is divine in their own unique way. Saying that, 18 month olds are a riot to work with. They can be shy one moment and the next they are running around in circles showing off their great athletic skills. Ian was all of the above. We started off playing on the playground but soon found that all the slides were too wet to play on so we moved to the large grassy field to play around and take some pictures. Ian found a stick and we became best buds, exploring the fallen branches and pine cones, climbing the sideways trees. You name it we did it:)

Here are a few fun shots from our session.

Beautiful Girls.....

Beautiful Girls

All over the world....

I'm the LUCKIEST photographer

Do you know why?

Because my maternity clients are beautiful, sexy, inspiring,

fun and vibrant.

Meet Amber.

Hands down one of the most beautiful woman I've had the pleasure to know and shoot.

As we spoke throughout the weeks leading up to our session Amber wanted to focus on the beauty of her body's transformation from woman to mother. How best to do that than with a

calm and relaxing session set up in my home studio.

We enjoyed an afternoon of catching up and swapping "I'm so pregnant" stories while

we created beautiful moments that captured her journey to motherhood.

I truly love the simplicity of this story.

A beautiful mother-to-be dressed in simple black and white silhouettes

overflowing with love and life.

I hope you enjoy it too.

Children's Portrait Photography Manhattan Beach

With Love and Lots of Laughter

I've had the pleasure of shooting Lucas and his mommies three times since I've started my business a little over 2 years ago. He is so much fun to play with, never shy always inquiring about how he looks on the display, acting silly and being friendly. He's a bundle of fun.

We shot at my favorite family photo session location. Manhattan Beach.

I know I know everyone shoots there but can you blame them? It's clean, pretty and has really cute (I mean nice) lifeguards, I'm not kidding they are adorable.

So with laughter in our hearts and sand beneath our toes

we ran around the shore on a cold winters morning.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Friends!

Gosh, 2012 is upon us and January is almost over. Time flies when you are having fun, no?

The end of 2011 was filled with so much love and laughter. I had the best time working with some amazing families for their holiday portraits sessions. From the beach to the backyard we had tears of joy and temper tantrums all wrapped up together. It's the best of both worlds in this business and capturing those special moments is what I strive to do best.

Over the course of the next few days (weeks really because we all know I don't BLOG as much as I should) I will welcome you into the lives of some of my most memorable sessions of the past year. I welcomed twins into the world, as you will see below, and captured intimate moments with my kids and their great-grandparents. After every session I am involved in I always come back with a heart full of smiles as I edit through the film. These memories are a gift for a lifetime. To those in the photos and to those who share in the gifts of the images, everyone goes away with a smile on their face.

Boheme (Bo)

Boheme and Reverie 4 weeks

Reverie