During the last two photo sessions here, I learned how to utilize and maximize a small area within one location. It was so much fun running down the residential area a few steps from downtown San Juan Capistrano. Such a cute little area, I’ve photograped a wedding at the Mission nearby last year and keep forgetting to come back to explore more.

Again, I really want their accessories oh and their braids are super fun.

Love the sweetness that was captured here.

I must learn how to smile with my eyes like Kristin.

Dang, she makes that floor look so good. Love her confidence!

Credits

VENUE: The Tangled Vine http://www.thetangledvineonlosrios.com/

LEADERS:

Matthew Saville www.matthewsaville.com

Erin and Gavin Wade www.gavinwadephoto.com

Pye Jirsa www.linandjirsa.com

Joe Barnet www.barnetworkshops.com

Salvador Ceja www.studioceja.com

Corina Shauntele www.photogsunleashed.com

VIDEO: Kiera Faye and Joshua Voelker of Jakfoto Productions www.jakfoto.com

STYLISTS:

~ For Models: Heather Skelton www.thesoundoflace.blogspot.com

~ For Tablescapes/Venue: Kaylee Sizemore http://www.twoworldsphotographyandart.com/

HAIR AND MAKEUP:

Makeup –

Jeanette Pulecio  – www.jennettepulecio.com

Heather Renee – http://www.mirroredimages.org/

Hair -

Diego Ortega – http://DiegoOrtega.net

Assisted by: Kristen Macchio

My friend Melissa had told me about it first because she knows this is totally up my alley. A Gypsy themed photo workshop? Yes, please. In the past I’ve always been skeptical about using models versus ordinary people that are not models. However, after attending this workshop I am a little more open to it, depending on what I am learning. I’m amazed at how much I picked up new tricks from some of the fabulous leaders that day. Plus, these models really bring on the posing skills and I really learned tons in that department, something that is always helpful when posing your clients. Love their confidence. It’s great to see women with so much confidence in their own skin.

I came home so inspired by all the jewelry and hair-dos that I braided my hair the next day, photos soon. The hubby loves it, if I dressed like a hippy or gypsy everyday he would be super happy! If only I could own half of the accessories… the stylest for this shoot said that it is mostly from her personal collection, mostly from Spain! Not jealous at all.

For Blayke’s shoot I learned how to use my custom white balance to adjust for the blues and green that I would get shooting on auto white balance, so simple and amazing! Thanks to Erin and Gavin Wade. Check out her loveliness, such a nice & sweet gal too on every level.

This is Maisha, her eyes are to die for! I thought I was confident… this girl just exudes confidence every moment. During this session I learned how to meter my light to get an exact exposure on the first try. Thanks to Pye of SLR Lounge.

Credits

VENUE: The Tangled Vine http://www.thetangledvineonlosrios.com/

LEADERS:

Matthew Saville www.matthewsaville.com

Erin and Gavin Wade www.gavinwadephoto.com

Pye Jirsa www.linandjirsa.com

Joe Barnet www.barnetworkshops.com

Salvador Ceja www.studioceja.com

Corina Shauntele www.photogsunleashed.com

VIDEO: Kiera Faye and Joshua Voelker of Jakfoto Productions www.jakfoto.com

STYLISTS:

~ For Models: Heather Skelton www.thesoundoflace.blogspot.com

~ For Tablescapes/Venue: Kaylee Sizemore http://www.twoworldsphotographyandart.com/

HAIR AND MAKEUP:

Makeup –

Jeanette Pulecio  – www.jennettepulecio.com

Heather Renee – http://www.mirroredimages.org/

Hair -

Diego Ortega – http://DiegoOrtega.net

Assisted by: Kristen Macchio

This sweet girl has the most beautiful brown eyes I have ever captured, seriously Mackenzie? I was really touched by the relationship she has with her older sister, Kim. She knows what she wants and wants to have fun along the way. Her style and pretty braid in her hair makes me want to play dress up. I had so much fun with her because not only did she crack me up with saying her ears hurt from smiling, but she just knew how to rock the camera and have fun with it – SCORE!

So proud to add her to my portfolio.

My favorite. Mackenzie, you so pretty!

Anyone else thinking to themselves “I want a re-do my senior portraits?”, these gals make it look so darn good!

Mackenzie, thank you for introducing me to SOULTRY, you sure know how to smile with your eyes! Love it. Wishing you the best in the next venture in your life.

xo

Her sweetness and maturity have always amazed me, her smile contagious and her demeanor, admirable. Kim is one of those sweet gals that you crush over. You know, the girl next door and did  I mention she’s a good baker? Triple threat, right?

My heart practically melted as I edited these photos because I see much more than just the photo and if you look close enough, you feel as though you could reach out and touch her soul. Once again, the power of really knowing or getting to know your subject; a very organic and beautiful result if I do say so myself. The day had beautiful light, but partly cloudy as well so I love the contrast in colors we got from shooting in an urban setting then ending in the lovely trails of Fullerton.

Enjoy all the gorgeousness.

Kim, you are onto some great things and I’m rooting for you all the way! I hope these photos allow you to celebrate the greatness of this special time in your life. Plus, it will make mom and dad real happy to have one over the mantle, just guessing.

Much love!

Dale and Sherry are good people and I am blessed to know them.  They are committed to their family and that is always very admirable. Their girls are so sophisticated and fun, it was great to see both of their personalities play out. Especially since my last memories of them are from babysitting them when they were toddlers.

The shoot took place at Stevens Square in Tustin, where they were first married back in 1996. How special to tour the place with their two daughters.

Dale and Sherry, I hope you enjoy these photos as much as I do.  And Dale I expect our next reunion will involve tacos?

Katie is Betty Lang’s sister, the wedding coordinator I work with from time to time. When she mentioned that she had not done any senior portraits we knew we had a great opportunity to shoot some for her and have lot’s of fun with it, immediately I knew I wanted to shoot at The Lab in Costa Mesa and the OC Fair nearby since they live in the area.

I absolutely love the way the photos turned out. Although Katie was a little nervous at first we quickly pimped her attitude and made her laugh a ton by being dorks and telling her lame jokes that shall not be repeated ever again. We had lot’s of bystanders and people even came up to ask if she was a model. We were like “yeah, she totally is and she’s big in Australia” or something funny like that. Way to go for Katie and your supermodel fabulousness!

So funny, he joined in the fun to make her laugh… these always make great photos.

Katie, you so pretty!

She really is as much fun as she looks, so glad I was able to check off something else on the wish list of places to shoot. Congrats Katie, enjoy your college years and pursue your dreams-go get ‘em!

She is so talented and as she calls it has “ career ADD” because she enjoys many creative outlets. With a design background she enjoys design, event planning and photography. Aside from that she is just sassy!

Last week we decided we needed some creative mojo and so off shooting we went. Afterwards we enjoyed some happy hour at the Memphis Café in Costa Mesa minus the cocktails. When on a budget, food comes first. It is no surprise Betty and I work well together. She is on her game, organized, talented and most importantly a foodie of healthy food – perfect match. We then attended the OC Smug Mug meeting to hear Roberto Valenzuela speak (the man is a photo genius) and I learned so much from him in the short period of time.

Our shooting venture took place at Newport Back Bay, it was my idea since I needed to scout out the location for a family shoot next month. Finding new locations is almost just as fun as shooting the subjects.

Just beautiful, love her natural beauty.

I love movement and dance, these are some of my favorites.

Betty you are so fabulous, so glad to have met you and that we connected. Look forward to working with you in the near future, thank you for all the magic you brought to my camera. Artists just get it don’t they? 

I can’t believe how big the boys are, still can remember babysitting them when they were like 5 and harder to believe is what a diva Isabella AKA Bella is becoming. Like where does she get it from? It’s fun seeing them all grow into their own personalities. Josh being the joker, Isaac being thoughtful and more reserved while Bella steals the show with her bold personality. But I love that all the kids love their parents very dearly, that is apparent and most importantly that they are very sweet and loving. It’s always fun talking to Carol and Manny because we talk the language of wine and food. They are also very committed to their kids and that is very admirable.

As it turns out this day was cloudy, very gloomy and cold. However, the kids were ready to go and excited to check out downtown Seal Beach so we decided to do a practice shoot keeping in mind that we will be shooting again in early July once the family comes back from vacation all tanned and in the summer spirit. We started the day with an early dinner at Woody’s Diner mostly because it was kid friendly, they serve breakfast all day and the 50′s decor made for some great photos.

Boys will be boys, the first photo they posed for, go figure.

Bella’s “mermaid pose”, whatever that means, hilarious!

That is one happy mama if I ever saw one.

I can’t wait to do this again in July when we can have some guaranteed sunshine. Carol and Manny, I hope these photos bring a smile to your face. You have a beautiful family and these kids have so much love to give, can’t help but think that you might have had something to do with that. Un abrazo y beso!

Fun, right? I just couldn’t help but share a few photos since I’m previewing and processing with big smiles on my face because I had so much fun with this couple over the weekend. Of course it couldn’t have been possible without my photog friend, Lori of The Purple Tree Photography whom allowed me to second shoot along her side. It couldn’t have been a more gorgeous day on Saturday.

I hope you all have a great Monday, and remember JUST DANCE!

This was shot in the mid-day on the Saturday before easter so there was an easter egg hunt, easter bunny and games going on on the other side of the giant backyard. It was super fun to watch the kiddos get all excited over the easter bunny and running around with their easter baskets. And yes, like with most events I shoot, there was some yummy, super delicious cupcakes, strawberries and other great food. I love how I’m attracting all this good stuff.

I just melt seeing these photos, George and Natalie are so easy and fun to photograph… their emotion and connection is so organic and I love capturing it. Again, knowing the subject helps tremendously!

Big props to Bells’ grandma for getting her this super cute bonnet for her easter photos.

Yup, Bells still has that strawberry blond hair.

Thank you George for making this photo extra fun.

Beautiful yellow poppies.

Natalie’s official trademark.

I love baby feet and hands, you’ll just have to deal.

My favorite of Bells. She is so cute, I wanted to pinch her cheeks and give her lot’s of kisses.

Proof of their amazing and most loving connection. They were given no direction, they just interacted naturally and I snapped away. Love how comfortable they are in front of the camera.

If you’re not officially in love with Bells after seeing these photos then I’m not sure what will do the trick.

Nat and George, I am so grateful to you for allowing me to capture these family moments for you. I love working with you and never in a million years did I imagine that we would go from sharing cubicle space, office meetings, excel spreadsheets to sharing your precious moments while I document them and you support my venture. What a lovely family you’ve created, I am very happy for the both of you. I hope to try that Malbec you gifted me very soon, I’ve got nothing but love for you babes!

Leave some comment love for Bells if you’re a fan, up next a newborn session.