Two Nights in LA: Vegetarian Gyozas and Defying Gravity

The last two nights here in southern California have been cold, but thankfully I've been tucked away in my favorite Los Angeles spots enjoying life.

Last night JD and I scored some pretty golden tickets to a Clippers game and I was stoked because, well, I loooove basketball. We started the evening in Little Tokyo at one of our favorite Japanese restaurants. We know the restaurant is a little ghetto-fabulous, but there's no denying its take-no-caloric-prisoners quality and charm. And the best part is the fact that Suehiro offers vegetarian gyozas...people, is there even more to ask?! ;)


JD took the following picture of me. He often times pokes fun at the fact that I firmly believe collars should be fashionably flipped up, and never folded like a good school boy. As we were leaving the restaurant--after conquering a bowl of ramen--I put on my jacket and...flipped up my collar. Of course he made fun of me, so I just had to show him how a cool girl like me can work the collar :)

Later we made our way to the Staples Center and watched the Clippers beat the Charlotte Bobcats.
This is JD running from my camera (I was determined to get an equally dorky picture of him, but he runs fast)



And tonight, I'm just getting home from a fabulous night at the theater. My sister got JD and me tickets to Wicked for Christmas, and I just got home from seeing the best musical ever. Ever. I've seen many musicals, ballets, and operas before, but this show really takes the cake. It's even better than the hype, so I just want to thank my sister for being so wonderful and say good night because I'm beat.

Engagement: Becky and Drew

He saw her for the first time at a milk-chugging contest in college. He visited her freshman residence hall to view the strangely amusing lactose fanfare, but became smitten as she chugged her way through a gallon of milk. Although Becky was sick for the rest of the evening, Drew stood by her side and was inspired by her joie de vivre. Through the past two years, they've become friends, soul mates, and soon-to-be partners for life. As they made their way through the streets and sand of Laguna Beach, they spent most of their day laughing at whispered jokes and kissing as if no one was watching. They'll be married in May and I'm--like always--honored to be a part of their special day.

Here are a few of my favorites...





To view more pictures, CLICK HERE for their engagement slideshow!

Ford Model and Ford Commercial

Just wanted to give a lil blog lovin' to Felipe...again. I photographed him a couple months ago as he was building a modeling portfolio. Just this past week, I discovered he was casted for a national Ford Automobile commercial slated to air during baseball season. He'll be portraying a catcher, so be on the lookout for his good looks...oops, I meant...keep an eye out for his good acting abilities ;)

Tina and Rick

Sometime last year, I assisted Mike Colon with one of is Four-Day Intensive Workshops. While there, I met Jennifer Regruth and we got along quite well. While I was in Cabo a couple weeks ago, Jennifer emailed me and asked if I'd be able to shoot with her for a wedding here in Orange County. I wasn't able to shoot the entire day, but I was fortunate enough to meet up with Tina and Rick in Newport Beach.

Here are a few of my favorites...
The sky was absolutely breath-taking last Saturday






I can't fully express how wonderful it is when a bride and groom will set aside a time on their wedding day in order to get the type of images that are unique, beautiful, and define their wedding. Tina and Rick truly valued their photography and in turn made sure they organized their day to accommodate their desires...not only were they able to spend time along as husband and wife, they have pictures to prove just how beautiful is their love.

Breathe

Sometimes I get so caught up in what I'm doing I forget to breathe.

No, really, I forget to inhale and exhale. When I'm really stressed, or extremely focused, I can probably go minutes without coming up for air, so to speak. As a child, my dad would read to me at night, but he started noticing that if he read Nancy Drew Mysteries without periodically looking at me, I ran the risk of going entire chapter with my breath sucked deep in my lungs. That Nancy, whew, she was something else.

Still to this day, when I'm editing pictures late at night, I force myself to take vicious yoga-style breaths. It seems as of late that I've had quite a few projects to juggle...and juggling requires a keen sense of focus. And when I'm focused, I forget breathe. Sure, you may think that not breathing for two minutes is near to impossible, but, World, Meet My Lungs.

Yesterday, I received a small black box in the mail. I opened it to find a small gift and a note that read: Love, Mama and Dad


This was their reminder that come what may, I'm blessed and I need to remember to breathe. To take a deep breath and enjoy the smell of wet pavement, the smell of fresh laundry, and the smell of JD's nightly obsession with homemade chocolate chip cookies. I encourage you to do the same today :)

Gabrielle

I photographed a classic beauty a few days ago. Her maturity is beyond her 17 years and her intellect is staggering. She hopes to attend Stanford University after graduating in a few months, and I have no doubt she will accomplish every dream she aspires to acheive. At first shy, Gabrielle morphed into a true model before my very eyes and the camera was immediately smitten and lured into her captivating presence.

Here are a few of my favorites...

God Bless His Cotton Socks

God bless his cotton socks!*

Yesterday myself and a few other photographers had the pleasure of being invited to Mike Colon’s house for an Apple APERTURE demo. Apple’s Product Marketing Manager, Martin Gisborne, set up a swanky presentation in Mike’s beautiful living room, giving a demo and fielding questions—as well as [b]ecker’s occasional eternal pledge of Apple allegiance outbursts :)

The presentation was wonderful, but sitting in a room with such a talented bunch of people was an extra blessing. While Martin thoroughly answered our questions and comments, Mike was busy popping popcorn—and even making a cup of hot cocoa for Jessica--as well as providing chips and salsa, CornNuts, and juicy fruit snacks for everyone. He was such a humble host and an awesome example to his guests. If you’d like to read a wonderful account of the day, check out Joe Photo’s Blog.

I’ll be updating my blog in regard to my Aperture experience…although I’m pretty stoked at how wonderful this software is going to make my life. It’ll improve my workflow and I’m sure it’s an added benefit to my clients’ experiences.

Special thanks to Mike, Martin, and everyone who attended the workshop…it’s wonderful to be challenged to constantly raise the bar.

*The title for this entry is a literal quote from Martin. He's English. There were times when we had to stop him and ask for a quick translation because he has a unique way of speaking, as well as peculiar idioms and phrases...and the Brits claim we ruined the English language?!? ;)

Valentine's Starry Night

Flashback:
JD dropped me off at my favorite boutique and waited while I made figure-eights through the racks of clothing. Usually he’s my human shopping cart—organizing the shirts on one arm, juggling the pants on the other, keeping one hand free to hold the skirts—but on that Thursday evening three months ago, he loitered around the dressing rooms wallpapered with Vogue and W magazines. I’m going to take a walk, do you mind?

Forty-five minutes later, he returned with a beaming smile. Like the kind of smile one might see on a grandmother who’s just had her cat rescued from a tree. Elated, excited, ecstatic. He went on to tell me about an art store nearby that sells famous paintings, redone by local artists. Klimt, Rembrant, Matisse. JD told me he found Van Gogh’s Starry Night and insisted we buy it. When he told me the price, I scoffed. Literally, I made the sound of a scoff. Schoffschmeshpfft.

Why would you want to pay good money for a wannabe painting?!

Then I made the scoff sound again. Schoffschmeshpfft.

JD just stared at me. Then at the jeans I held closely to my chest. Then back at me. It’s funny how differently we value things JD tersely said. That painting costs less than that pair of jeans. I wanted to immediately apologize. I wanted to put up a fight. I wanted to be right. But I couldn’t and I wasn’t. Had the tables been turned, JD would have left the store in a nanosecond and purchased the painting. No questions asked. He’d do whatever to see me happy. And, well, I just scoff.

Today, Valentine’s Day 2007:
Our room was still grey. The sun was fighting to make its way into the window blinds when I woke. Happy Valentine’s, JD chirped from under his pillow. He always wakes happy. It’s gift time!! I whooped as I climbed off the bed. Although we agreed to not exchange gifts this year, I leaned under the bed and began rummaging. Jaz, I thought we were just going out for dinner?! JD groaned. I placed the large white package on his blanket-covered belly while he propped himself with pillows.

A minute later, Starry Night sat in his lap.



It was my way of saying sorry. It was my way of saying how much I love him. It was my way of ensuring he’ll always smile like an old grandma who’s found her lost cat.





Happy Valentine’s Day!

Marco and Hayley

The rain clouds lingered at a distance as Hayley dressed in her hotel room. She meandered around the chilled room by herself in complete silence. Her parents ate lunch in the adjacent room while the humming sound of CNN lingered in the air. She put on her makeup and styled her hair, steamed her dress, slipped on her shoes, and popped out the door. Just before she walked out of the room, she spun in a circle and sung, I'm so happy to be getting married...I'm so happy to be getting married!!

Hayley and Marco wed last Saturday in Studio City and then headed to the Universal City Sheraton Rooftop Garden Ballroom for the beautiful reception. The Ballroom overlooks the city lights, so the backdrop was stunning on such a clear Los Angeles night.

Surrounded by their friends and family, Marco and Hayley danced the night away to sounds of a mariachi band, one bumpin' DJ, and cheers of support.

Here are a few favorites from their day...
I'm such a sucker for shoes

Hayley's ring is a Parisian antique, and I fell in love with it at first sight!


The radiant Hayley


You can see the night lights in the background...

I snapped this picture in the Sheraton Staff Elevator...I guess they were happy to be alone! ;)







To see the wedding in its entirely, CLICK HERE for the slideshow

"Model" Turned Hobo

Coming home from Cabo and the Xtreme Seminar has been lovely, but I’m so tired from such a great time of learning and soakin’ up some rays...oops, I meant soakin’ up some knowledge. Yes, I meant knowledge. And knowledge makes me tired. Because it took me f.o.r.e.v.e.r. to get out of bed this morning, I went to church dressed like a chic hobo. Okay, maybe I wasn’t dressed chic—but the hobo part, that’s true. I rationalized my church wear because of the light rain, and convinced myself that God can forgive sins, even my fashion transgressions.

I visited Jessica’s Blog today and saw the pictures she took from the seminar of JD and me. For those of you who didn’t know, we were invited to the seminar to ‘model’. Now, we’re not models—nor do we ever, ever aspire to be—but we had such a great time being in front of the camera. Or should I say cameras? Being in front of 35 cameras simultaneously can be quite disconcerting, but everyone in the seminar was gracious and encouraging.

If I didn't say this before, then I'll say it here now: Thanks to Jessica and Liana for such an awesome seminar, thanks to Becker for always robbing my poker money (oh, yeah, and thanks for the new headshot, too!), thanks to the Florin's for just being fabulous, and thanks to all the fantastic photographers who made me fall more in love with photography.

Here are a few of Jessica’s blog favorites…
This is a candid shot she caught of me and JD, just outside of the villa kitchen

Xtremely Thankful

All is well in Villa Cortez this morning. Some people are packing bags, some are still sleeping, and I’m enjoying the orange and purple morning sky. We’re leaving Cabo today, but with us we take new friends and many memories…oh, yeah, and we also learned a lot too! ;) I can’t reiterate how fantastic the Xtreme Seminar fared and I’m not just saying this because Jessica Claire and Liana are my friends. It goes much deeper than that. They learned a lot from their last NYC seminar and they used what worked and created a new system to address what didn’t. The seminar was truly one of the best investments a photographer could’ve made and I’m quite sure every attendee echoes the same sentiment.

I’m extraordinarily blessed to have been invited by Jess and Liana to join them in Cabo and shackled to their kindness. Both JD and I were humbled by their offer and thankful to have spent so much time grounding our friendships.

I shoot my first wedding of the year tomorrow and I’m recharged, excited, and more in love being able to pursue my passion.

Here's one of becker's infamous self-portraits...along with everyone else who stayed in our villa...me, JD, Steven and Kristen Florin, [b], Jessica, and Liana...

Happy Birthday, Blog!

Dear Blog…

Happy Birthday! You’re a year old today and I can’t believe how we’ve grown together. You’ve changed your look (the old template did nothing for your sleek figure) and become a library of sorts. You catalogue my thoughts, fears and dreams and store them away for me to never forget how far we’ve come.

Who would’ve thought that only after a year of your inception, I’d be sitting in Cabo San Lucas with the very photographers I admired from a distance, only hoping of the chance to meet them. Life is beautiful.

Blog, please don’t let me rearrange history. You need to help me remember that starting my business was a nauseous cocktail of frustration, fear, with a splash of embarrassment. Shaken, not stirred. But times have changed. We’ve changed. My business has now become the second love of my life and that dreaded cocktail has morphed into the very drink that nourishes my soul. Blog, we’ve come a long way.

Here’s to many more entries, memories, mishaps, milestones, and adventures…

Limes and a Sugar Momma

Around 2 am this morning, I climbed into bed exhausted. Happy, but exhausted. Jess and Liana hosted the first day of what seems to be a very successful seminar. Everything is top notch and executed with the highest level of professionalism. Everyone is having a wonderful time and I’ve been so blessed to meet some incredible people.

Once everyone left the villa, [b]ecker hosted a poker game. First off, if you don’t know, [b] is a card shark. Like Vegas-style. Except he plays poker constantly on his iPod. So knowing this, we decided to raise the stakes Cabo-style. We played for limes and packets of sugar. Oh yeah, baby, we’re big time.


JD started off the game really well (probably because I was instructing him on what to do…I’m almost a professional poker player),but Jessica ‘Slick Hands’ Claire swooped on his game quick. Jess and [b] battled along, but Steve and Kristen didn’t back from the high stakes game. In the end, Kristen and [b]ecker went head-to-head…and Kristen….WON! Yup, fellas, I guess women aren’t just better photographers…they’re better at poker too! ;)

Here's the late night group: Liana, Jess, JD, Kristen, Steve, [b]...

[b] got really into the game..too bad he lost! ;)

Here's Jess in her professional poker player glasses...

I don't think you can tell in this picture, but JD was really nervous playing against Jess...she's a force to be reckoned with ;) hehe

Xtreme Day One

Wow. That's all I have to say right now. My trip started off with a bang and I feel SO blessed to be sitting where I am right now. Where am I sitting? Well, I'm lounging by the pool...and blogging. The villa Jessica and Liana rented is absolutely breathtaking. It's right off the coast, so the views are stunning and last night I fell asleep to the sounds of the crashing Pacific. I couldn't ask to be in a better place.
This morning I woke up early and while everyone else slept off remnants of last night's Super Bowl party, I was able to work. I opened the glass doors in my room to the poolside and watched the sun rise against the purple Mexican sky with my laptop chillin' on my bed. It was glorious.
Here are a few pictures...but more are to come once the internet connection is fixed...
An inside view of the villa

The lovely pool

A view from the back of the villa

I'm such a tourist ;)

Adios!

Hi!

I will be in Cabo San Lucas from Sunday, February 4 through Friday, February 9, 2007. Should you need to contact me, please do so via email.

I'm flying out today with [b]ecker and Jessica Claire and while I'm SO excited, I'm a little sad to...today is the Super Bowl and it'll be my first not watching it with JD. For almost 10 years, we've sat glued side-by-side cheering, eating, and laughing our way through the Super Bowl. This year we'll be doing the same...just in different countries. JD will be joining us on Tuesday, so I'll be counting the days until then! :)

I'll be posting from Mexico, so be sure to check back for Xtreme updates!!

Simple Photo Minute with the Boutwell's

Last week I had the phattest afternoon. When I walked into the Boutwell’s tri-level home and studio, I just knew I was in store for an awesome experience. If you’re not familiar with their work, you must check it out because its different and edgy and oozes cool. Like of like that kid in high school who wore a beret and dark-rimmed glasses and hung out in the art lab. Yup, exactly that cool.

I visited their studio because I was putting together a Simple Photo Minute episode. Before I went, however, I had to do my Indie and underground music research because Doug is reeeeeally into music. I, on the other hand, have a tendency to listen to Boy Bands who end their plurals with Zs. As I was editing the music for the SPM, I had to ask myself, WWBC? What Would a Boutwell Choose?

In the end, the episode fared well and I’m stoked I had the pleasure of hanging out with some absolutely amazing people.



If you’d like to see the episode, CLICK HERE