Ava + Augustino . Manhattan Beach children's photographer

Oh, how I love these kiddos!  I met their momma in a "mommy and me" class when our older ones were 2.  I love the memories from those early classes, and those first friendships are irreplaceable.  So much happens in such a short amount of time...in the past five years, we have both had our second child, and our older ones are in 2nd grade, playing team sports, and having sleepovers!  Wow, how time flies.  We had some fun hiking around Terranea Resort, which is a favorite location in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA that has such a beautiful combination of rocks, beach, and green backgrounds.  

The holiday photo taking season is in FULL swing!  If you haven't booked yours yet, now is a good time to do it.  I love that this momma wanted holiday photos of just her kids.  That is a perfect way to share your love with your family...by giving them gifts of photos of the kids in your life.

Adeline, Keegan + Brennan . Manhattan Beach family photographer

Mother Nature had its way on this day...not a speck of sun, and the fog was heavy and thick.  BUT, that didn't stop this gorgeous family session from happening.  I love that they wore black, white and denim (and the cutest pageboy cap on Keegan) ~ their wardrobe seemed to "go" with the mood of the weather.  

I photographed this family about a year and a half ago, when their youngest, Brennan, was still brewing in mommy's tummy.  Now, Brennan is walking, giggling, and even gave me a hug when we met.  What a little darling.

Christie loves pictures.  She is SO good at keeping up with getting the family photographed.  She had great ideas for additions to the shoot...she brought beautiful yellow sunflowers, metal pails for the kids to collect rocks, and shells for them to hold.  Precious family!

Jack + Brooke . Manhattan Beach children's photographer

This is most likely one of my favorite sessions to date. I love all my sessions (and clients)...but this one is right up there at the top.  This one tells a story.  We started out in their gorgeous home, and everyone got to show me their stuff.  Jack showed me how his Iron Man toy works... Brooke was so darling showing me her new cosmetics, lip gloss and pretty bed.  

We all took a walk around their neighborhood, and up to the "green belt", a tree lined path that runs the entire length of Manhattan Beach... a popular place for runners and walkers.  I love the photos of the kids by the wood fence... you would think we were in the middle of a pasture, right?  

We ended the photos with the family wearing their Arizona State University gear... the parents' alma mater, and the family's favorite football team. 

Enjoy the photos.  I sure do!

  

Ellen DeGeneres Show . I was there!

I think, like every woman in this country, I have been wanting to be in the audience of the Ellen DeGeneres show for years.  I have tried and tried to get tickets, but was never successful.  So, one day, I put a post on Facebook....who out there can tell me how to get tickets to her show!?  With my almost 600 friends, I figured that at least one of them would have the secret information. And then there was an email from an old college buddy of mine...."I have a friend that has a friend that works in the prop department on the Ellen show."  When do you want to go, and how many tickets do you need?WHAT?!?  How cool is that?  So, my sister, Abigail and I went.  

Right on course with the Los Angeles traffic, it "only" took us 2 1/2 hours to drive about 40 miles to get there.  We showed up about 10 minutes late, but were still able to get signed in, and were escorted directly into the VIP area.  Wow.  What an experience to walk right up to the front, and to have that coveted plastic placard with the red letters, VIP!

I have never smiled, laughed or clapped more in my life.  The "warm up guy" had us dancing (of course), clapping, whooting, smiling, etc.  Then there was Ellen...she is so petite, cute and funny!  I honestly was a little star struck.  My sis and I sat in the 2nd row on Ellen's left side.  SO, if you are watching the show on Oct. 24th, be sure to look for us!  Oh, and leave me a comment if you do.  

Let Them Be Little . I Heart Faces photo challenge

Seriously?  This little dude is wearing a button down, vest, and a sweet tie!  Are you in love yet?  He was sooooo cute...I caught this one of him in a more pensive moment, and I couldn't resist.  He was scooping up sand in his shell, and pouring it onto his jeans.  Ah, the little things, right?

I Heart Faces' challenge this week is "Let Them Be Little", and this is my entry.  Enjoy!

Cole + Abby . Rancho Palos Verdes family photographer

Can you say beautiful?  What a great looking family...both inside and out!  The kids brought their favorite items from home...Cole brought a Star Wars book, and a lego airship, and Abby brought her sparkly box of jewelry and make-up.  She even put on her Rapunzel dress up gown! I loved their wardrobe choices, too....royal blue, black and white. Cole and Abby's mom is a friend of mine that I met when we took our oldest kids to the same toddler music class years ago.  I have loved keeping in touch with her over the years, and watching her kids grow.  

Tickled Pink . I Heart Faces photo challenge

I Heart Faces photo challenge theme this week is "Tickled Pink".  I had a great photo session with this family this past weekend.  This young girl LOVES this book, Pinkalicious, which is perfect for this week's entry.

Will + Alex . Hermosa Beach children's photographer

This session was a blast! These boys were ready to meet me in their matching Come Together, John Lennon tee shirts.  So, what would any normal person do?  Why, sing the song, of course....but, they hadn't heard it and did not know what I was singing.  They might have thought that I had a little bit of the crazies...and that is how we started this session!

We did a few photos outside of their gorgeous home in Hermosa Beach. Then, we took a walk down to the beach and between building sand castles, climbing on the life guard stand and running up and down the beach, we did take a few photos.

My favorite parts of this session:

• I loved getting to know them a little better, Alex is in the same kindergarten class as my youngest daughter.  
• I loved "bribing" Will with $1,000,000,000 (doll-HAIRS) to get just a few more shots of him.  

Enjoy!

Raise Your Hands . I Heart Faces photo challenge

This week I Heart Faces is hosting another photo challenge, the theme is "raise your hands"...they do specify that the photos of hands don't have to be "raised", however.  I love this photo of Abby, a friend's daughter, that I took yesterday at their photo session.  I asked her mom to bring items that meant something to the kids, and Abby brought her sparkly box of jewelry.  I love the pen marks on her hands, and the concentration on her face as she tries to untangle her precious gems.

Nicola . Pacific Palisades children's photographer

I have been thinking so much about my style in the last few months.  I am loving more and more capturing the realness of the people on the other side of my lens.  Yes, there will be some posed shots, where everyone will be looking at the camera, but, I must say that the interactions and genuineness between a family is becoming more and more important as my goal in a successful shoot.  

I took these images a few weeks back, and had initially passed them by in my first round of selecting photos to edit.  I went back through them today, with a different perspective in mind....to select and edit the images that show genuine emotion and realness.  I am so happy I did, as this series of mom and daughter is something to cherish.  Can't you just picture these on their wall?  I would smile each time I walked by them.  

What to wear for a photography session? Fall 2011

As we are launching into holiday photo session time, I will repost my advice on What To Wear!  New color palettes shown: neutrals with a pop of dark orange, navy and teal, and grey with a pop of muted tangerine. 

I suggest that you start with your children's outfits.  Dress them in comfortable clothes that fit their personality.  For girls ~ I love dresses or a skirt/shirt combo; you could add tights & boots, or a hat.  Baby girls look adorable in headbands, tutu's or the "baby" version of the older sister's outfit (think Gymboree or Janie and Jack).  For boys ~ I love layering tee shirts, or a tee shirt layered underneath a casual button down, cool jeans, and a hat as well.  Women ~ pick something that works with the color palette of your kids' outfits.  If your daughter has 4 colors in her clothing, pick one of the colors that you like, and wear that with your favorite pair of jeans, a long skirt, or whatever you feel great in!  Layer on a shaped jacket, or lightweight scarf.  Men ~ pick one of the more neutral colors that your kids are wearing, and wear with jeans or cool khakis.  Don't be afraid to wear vivid colors!

Here is a list of my favorite stores for great items to wear for your photo shoot:

Kids:

Gap Kids

Crew Cuts

Nordstrom
Old Navy

Women:

J. Crew

Nordstrom

Gap

Anthropologie

Men:

Nordstrom

J. Crew

Lucky

Gap

Props are another element of a successful photo shoot.  By props, I mean items that mean something to you or your kids.  The little ones may love Thomas the Train, baby dolls, or a favorite book.  The older ones may love their Polly Pocket collection, legos, or a special keepsake.  I love to highlight and capture what they love.  Skateboards, hula hoops, bikes...use your imagination, maybe it is a favorite chair, an antique quilt, or a treasured art project.  Photographing their personality is part of the fun and success of a great photo shoot!

Carsten, Nicola + Mako . Pacific Palisades family photographer

What a lovely group of people!  I headed up to Pacific Palisades a few weekends ago to take photos of the Holt/Zieger families....9 people.  Extended family photo shoots are fun, it gives everyone an excuse to get together, have a meal or just hang out.  

My favorite parts of this session?  All 3 kids LOVED playing with the sticks that were all over the ground at this little park.  Sooooooo, we took one "photo" (click) with the stick, and one (or 20) without!  I also loved how Grandma had a specific request for photos of the grandkids together.  These cousins just love each other so much...that was an easy request to fill.

Enjoy the photos!

Preserving the Past . Your family's history

One of my favorite things to do is look through old photographs.  I love this one of my mom, her sister and parents which was taken at the cabin that my grandfather built in Big Bear, California, in the early 1960's. It immediately takes me back to when my family used to visit my grandparents there. The stairs, the view from the window, the smell of yellow wild flowers that grow everywhere, the swing set that my sisters and I spent hours swinging on. All these thoughts, just from one photograph?  Just think where an entire album of photographs can take you, the memories and places your mind goes when looking through them....

It is so easy to take pictures with our cell phones, and snap photo after photo with our digital cameras, and then forget about them.  Do you have favorite photos on your hard drives?   It's time to think about those images.  Maybe even take an hour or 2 to upload them to a Kodak Gallery or Shutterfly and have them printed.  Choose your top 10 or 20 favorites from each season, from birthday parties, and photos of your family and vacations and print them out.  I like to print 2 of my top favorites, and put the second copy in a frame.  

This post is about photographs.  It's about taking pictures of you and your family, printing them and storing them, maybe even putting them in photo albums or photo boxes.  It's about giving your future family members something to look at and take their own walk down memory lane.  Your future grand children and great grand children will see what your lives were like, what their grandparents looked like in the "old days".