Happy Beginnings for Gina & Steve

Gina and Steve had a beautiful, sweet ceremony at The Freedom Hall & Gardens in Santa Clara on Saturday.  Their first dance was wonderfully choreographed, and they looked great together.  Here's a little glimpse into the festivities. 

Hannah & Brandon Tie the Knot!

I had the great honor of being the photographer for Hannah & Brandon on Saturday at The Lodge in Tahoe Donner. The weather was beautiful, the atmosphere festive and loving, and the ceremony gorgeous, as were the bride & groom!  Their true love is so obvious for each other that I had to keep fighting off the tears as I was taking photos. Always a good thing. : ) My friend and fellow photographer Carlos Valentino assisted me, and was a great joy and help to have along.  He's posted some additional previews on his blog as well.  Enjoy them all.

Hannah & Brandon Engagement Session

What a gorgeous couple!  Their love brightened up a cloudy day in San Francisco.

The REAL Easter Bunny Brings Pictures

A cute Easter photo session for sisters Jenny and Colleen & their families

Maternity Session for H

H & D are expecting a baby girl.  H is due in 6 weeks, and I had the honor of taking her pregnancy photos.  You're gorgeous, H! Congrats!!

I Got a Sunburn at the Health Fair!

Granite Bay Montessori had it's 1st Annual Health Fair on Friday to celebrate the end of it's 1st Annual Health Week.  From noon to 3, kids and parents enjoyed a healthy lunch, Jamba Juice and lots of fun and games.  And I forgot to wear sunscreen.  Ouch!  Enjoy the slide show preview of the event.

Friends of Lloyd

I'm with Lloyd Dobler (Say Anything, 1989) when he said, "I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career.  I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought or processed.  You know, as a career, I don't want to do that."  

Call me an idealist.  It's true.  I'm not slick or tricky or pushy.  I don't want to sell anyone on anything.  It's not in my nature.  If you don't already know you want it, I don't want to convince you that you do.  I prefer to make myself available to those who already know that they want my services, and that what I have to offer is as valuable to them as it is to me.  It's a slower process, but more integral to who I am.  I can't see running my business any other way.  So, yes!  I want to you to buy my services and my images; I want to make a living doing what I love.  I just don't want to have to sell you on it.

Christmas Comes a Little Late...or a Lot Early!

I had a fun day at the park with this family just before Christmas.  The kids are so energetic and fun that a boring, run-of-the-mill slideshow just didn't seem to fit.  I just completed their family album & wanted to make a slide production to go with it.  This turned out perfectly!

Hey, Teach!

I was invited to teach a class on digital photography at Granite Bay Montessori for the upper elementary kids this summer.   I feel totally honored and excited about this.  I'm already thinking about making models that explain how ISO, aperture and shutter speed all affect light.   

I get to be a geek again!  I'm stoked!

A Stowaway Butter Knife, Rubber Chickens & How Dane Made Me Cry

Some things can only happen in Las Vegas. I just got back from the WPPI 2009 conference where I learned a ton of stuff, and had lots of fun. Even if I did skip the Pictage Studio 54 party.

I found a new way of taking notes.  Pictures are WAY easier than trying to write everything down.  Now why didn't I think of that in college?

Alison Stahl finally found a place to plug in her iPhone.

Carlos and Jeremy partied til all hours of the night, while Alison, Sharon & I had dinner and enjoyed a bit of wine, then turned in earlier than I ever thought possible in Vegas.  Midnight!  Can you imagine?!?

I got to hug the Kubota Action Hero.  Yummy!!!

The very first night we were there, I stuck a butter knife in my back pocket going through the buffet line after the Canon Welcome, promptly forgot about it, then discovered it later that night at the Finao (effin' awesome albums!) party.  Not wanting to seem too weird for taking a butter knife to a party, I put it in my purse, and there it stayed for the rest of the conference.  It came home with me, too.  I wonder what TSA thought....I found a little love note in my bag when I got home.  LOL!

There must of been a contest to see who could make Keri cry the most.  Dane Sanders and Amber Holritz were the winners.  Dane inspires me to keep being genuinely me, and Amber creates some of the most beautiful images of real life that I've ever seen.  Of course, then I went and offended Dane by saying he was a buddhist......let's just say that ketchup makes shoe leather taste pretty good.  But we made up, and I think I might even have a new friend.  Yay!

Tanja Lippert is a total Dork.  She's fun!  She's high-larious! She rocks!  And she encourages you to let your inner dork out--not that I need much encouragement. ; )  Her talk had a hula-hoop contest, a pink flamingo, a rubber chicken, and a lot of dancing mardi gras mask wearing people.  I did a chicken dance to win some swag.  Easily the most fun I've had at 8am!

I did cartwheels for swag, too.  Literally.  One can never have too much swag.  Yes, it's true.  I am a Swag Ho.

I am SO going back next year!

Dead Blog! Dead Blog!

I have to say I've been a rather bad blogger lately. But at least it's for a good reason! I had a booth at both Bridal Showcase San Jose on January 18th and Bridal Showcase Stockton on January 25th. It kept me busy, and I'd like to thank everyone who stopped by to browse my photos or just to register for a chance to win their wedding photography. I have another show coming up: Bridal Expo on Sunday, February 8th at the Radisson Hotel Sacramento. Brides will have one more chance to win their wedding photography, so stop by! Hope to see you there!

A Whole New Me!

I took Mitche Graf's advice when he said, "You should have a logo, not a font."  So here I am.  The lotus is one of the main Buddhist symbols.  It rises from the mud to become a beautiful flower, and represents the blooming of our true nature.  The red lotus in particular symbolizes the original nature of the heart (hrdaya).  It is the lotus of love, compassion, passion, activity and all the qualities of the heart.  This is both what photographing is for me, and what I can see in people and give back to them through my images.  I show them the beauty of themselves.

Happy New Year!

I like to think of resolutions not so much as tasks (lose 10 pounds, keep the house cleaner, be on time more often), but as greater opportunities to stretch myself beyond my comfort zone.  This year, I will live more courageously, and I will follow the advice of Eleanor Roosevelt:  "Do one thing every day that scares you."