Beach Day – Family Fun Photographer

Once-in-a-lifetime photos.  I love capturing life as it happens, because the moment will never happen quite the same ever again.  Check it out:

Brittany and Derik – 4th of July Wedding – Via Cabrillo Marina, San Pedro

The 4th of July started off pretty cloudy for most of the morning, but in the afternoon the sun started to shine on the Cabrillo Marina just in time for Brittany and Derik’s wedding!  The day was beautiful just like this lovely newly married couple!!!  Brittany and Derik, congratulations, I’m so happy for you both and it was an honor to be a part of your day!

Are you ready for the longest blog post ever?  Check it out:

How gorgeous is this view from her room:

Britt, you are beautiful!!!!

Had to get the flag in there for Derik:

He always makes her laugh:

Whitney, my second shooter, got a bunch of great shots, like the following five!

Since it was 4th of July with a fireworks show at the Marina, the police had a large detail there to make sure everyone had a safe time.  Of course we could not pass up the opportunity (well, really we had to beg them) to have them in some photos!  Thanks Whitney!

Gorgeous!!!  Love the pink and the blue and the good lookin’ crew!

This ring bearer was all about hamming it up for the camera!

Forgot to mention that it was a little windy that day!

Any bets on who would win the race?

Just the beginning.  And I’m sure you will see them on the blog again in the future!

Beach day with friends!

Last week a friend and I got together for a day at the beach.  Our first beach day since last summer!  It ended up being a slightly overcast day, but we made the best of it and got caught up on life!  Check out a few pics of Andrea.  In case you didn’t know or haven’t heard me mention lately… I LOVE KIDS and I LOVE photographing them as they play.  Their personality is SO evident in play and during the early years a lot of their learning takes place as they play.  Love it!

Friday’s Thoughts

When you get your photos taken, what is your expectation of how many photos you will get in return?  Ten?  Fifty?  A hundred?  Why?  Why do you have that expectation?

I love taking pictures and might give you one hundred pictures.  <smile> But in all honesty, it is all about the ONE photo for me.  When everything lines up just right and I can capture the moment completely… I love it.  My heart sings and I am happy if I get just one shot that says it all.  This last engagement shoot was amazing!  I had not only one “the ONE”, but two.

When processing the photos though, this one felt more like the “ONE”:

Many more awesome pictures to come!  But if these were the only two – it would be enough for me!

Friday’s Thoughts

So how many of you know what yesterday was?  Besides the fact that it was Thursday.  Did you do anything different yesterday, were you made more aware of a certain issue, did you walk away from yesterday making a change?  No?  But yesterday was “Earth Day”.  Now, I’m not big into things like that, nor am I a tree hugger.  However, I can certainly appreciate the fact we are called to be stewards of this earth that we live on and if it takes “Earth Day” to cause some people to be more mindful, then so be it.

Did you know that there is an island of plastic floating between California and Hawaii that is twice the size of Texas called the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch“?   And plastic is not water-soluble; it’s not biodegradable.  It’s not going anywhere! In fact, each year we add about 20 billion pounds to it.  This is only one issue out of the many, but this is one that I can do something about.

What can I do?  I can inconvenience myself a little bit by taking reusable bags to the store when I go.  every. time.  Not just once a month when I remember.  It is worth it for the future generations.  It is worth it for the environment.  And since I have posted it here for all to read and hold me accountable, I will take my reusable bags to the store.  every. time.

p.s. I should probably stop buying plastic water bottles!  But at least I do recycle them.  Hmmm…  One thing at a time!

******edited to add****

WOW!  A day after I posted this I met with a client to deliver her photos and she surprised me greatly by giving me a stainless steel water bottle!!!  You are the best Leelee!  Thanks much!

Also…when I went grocery shopping I discovered that I did not bring any bags with me, therefore I bought two new ones and will be using them as promised!  (Thank you iphone for being SO easy to use for snapshots!)

White Christmas in Orange County

Who says you can’t have a white Christmas in Orange County!?  You just have to get creative!  :)  Enjoy.