Back in July I was invited to spend the day with this truly warm and inviting family at their Carpinteria beach house.  It was such a perfect day, and getting to know the whole clan, who had come in from far and wide, was wonderful.  I felt like one of the family and enjoyed every minute.

One of the most remarkable parts of this family is quite obviously the triplets and their big brother…who is only 15 months older…yikes! They all had completely unique personalities already and were so cute to watch together and apart, have fun Mom & Dad!  It was fantastic photographing candid moments on the beach, each familiy group on their own and then the whole crew.  I wish every day was this much fun!  Thank you all for such a great summer memory!

Wow, Belly to Baby before I could even blink, one of my favorite session combinations!!  I feel like it was yesterday when Brian and Heather came in for their maternity session.  Before I knew it they went from this:

to this:

They named their daughter Rilyn, which I of course loved because our son is named Jace Rylin.  Rylin was a combo of our middle names Ryan and Lyn – wish I had thought of it for a girl’s name…super cute!  Here are a couple of other favs from our session, I will post the announcement soon, it is in the works now!  Congrats Heather & Brian, you are adorable and sweet people and if its possible, you are even sweeter parents, Rilyn is very lucky!!

Sorry all faithful readers!  I have been getting a lot of grief lately for not keeping up with the blog, I apologize!  I had to get over some personal tradgedies, get through a move, and some very busy times.  I figured I had better get caught up though before real busy season starts…the holidays!!  Stay tuned…

I know all you other Californians are rolling your eyes at me right now, but I have to say I am loving this weather.  We got this great rain outfit from a close family friend a couple of years ago, thanks Kath, and just had to try it out with Jace even though it is supposed to be for a 5 year old! Check out the boots and hilarious umbrella…so cute!!  We have been having so much fun jumping in puddles, floating leaves down the gutters, and just standing around feeling the rain hit our faces!  I feel like we are finally having our winter around here; I haven’t seen the sun much for a week and I must say, I am not bothered in the least.  I guess my genetic background might help here, most of my family lives in England and I was born and lived there till I was 3 or 4.  I supposed I was destined for a life of crummy weather and just happened to get lucky and have adventurous parents who decided to move to California.  Don’t worry guys, the sun will come back soon!

Sidney and I did a photo shoot honoring his upcoming graduation and we had a fantastic time.  I don’t work with high school seniors much but I really do enjoy photographing these fresh young faces who have everything to look forward to and their whole lives ahead of them.  I had heard so much about Sidney from a family friend prior to meeting him and everything she said was true…super sweet, kind, and the most amazing heart.  Thank you so much for coming in and congratulations on such a great accomplishment!

Jamie and Jon got married a few years back.  They had a magnificant wedding at the Villa Del Sol D’Oro in Sierra Madre and came back to see me last weekend to introduce me to Alex Taylor! We had a great time reminiscing about their wedding and oohhing and ahhhing over the newest addition to the family…she was really sweet and so cute! I have included a couple of my favorites from the session here.

Now I know everyone has seen the head in the hands shot but I thought this was especially profound since Firefighter & Paramadic Daddy helped bring Alex into the world with his own two hands… so amazing!  I love hearing the birth stories from my new parents and this one was especially breath-taking!  The Dr. let Jon deliver the baby, obviously with some guidance and a watchful eye, but isn’t that just awesome?  Way to go guys, she is going to love that story one day!

Congratulations on your new little one, she is gorgeous and before you know it will be up and running with her stunning big sister Morgan!  Don’t cha just love sisters!

θρησκευτικός γάμος or church wedding is exactly what happened last Sunday at St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Church, where all present witnessed the marriage of Theoni & Pete. I couldn’t help but be jealous of all the wonderful Greek traditions that accompanied this superb wedding day. Every moment was savored and treasured by all and I cried more than once watching Theoni & Pete celebrate their love with their closest family and friends.

This was my first time photographing a Greek Orthodox wedding ceremony and reception so Theoni thought it was only fitting that I start the day off with a shot of Ouzo…woo hoo…so tasty, if you like anise (black licorice), which I adore! I stopped at one shot, which I think was wise, because the videographer looked at me like I was about to get lost in an Ouzo haze and not resurface until the next day. His reaction actually made me a little nervous, but truthfully I never did feel any effect from it…phew – typically I don’t drink a drop on wedding days!! Soon after this, the dancing began…and they danced, and danced, and danced – it was fantastic. Take a look at the slideshow, this was an action packed day: drinks, details, dancing, clarino, ceremony traditions, photo booth, amazing florals & decor, a fantastic reception, lots of guests, lots of money throwing, tons of family, and more dancing!!

Thank you so much Theoni & Pete, I adore you both and hope your lives are as rich with tradition and love as your wedding day was. Thank you also to all the lovely people that made such an amazing day possible:

My team: Meredith and Camilla
Ceremony Site: St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Church
Reception Site: Langham Huntington Hotel and Spa
Coordination: Hellenic Designs – Georgia Covell
Florals: Design by Ashley
Invitation: KC Hopper
Hair: Daphne from Salon Sessions – Pasadena
Makeup: Monique Powers

Lynda reminded me last Saturday, during her getting-ready shots, that we had known each other for almost 10 years…I couldn’t believe it!  Had we really started our photography careers 10 years ago at Brooks, wow time flies?  Lynda is an incredibly talented fine art photographer in Los Angeles and has had an amazing post-graduation life, which includes a successful career, a beautiful baby girl, and now a wonderful and loving husband.

It was my first time meeting Jerry that day and I was absolutely blown away by the love between them, it is what I wish for all of my friends and family…a tender, caring, and passionate love.  The whole day was incredible, from the first detail to the last moment.   Thank you so much for including me in such a special day, I hope your trip is fantastic!

A couple of weeks ago I got to spend an afternoon with the Hart girls, it was fantastic!  Rachel is just about to graduate and her Mom thought it would be great to get some portraits done before she heads off to college.  During our shoot I couldn’t help but reflect back to when my sisters and I were still in high school and how much we had ahead of us.  Even though these girls were very mature, there was something really sweet and innocent about them and I missed being in my teen years for a couple of hours. I wouldn’t trade my life now to go back, I love my life now, but I remember my high school days fondly and feel lucky I had such a wonderful childhood.  Thanks for a wonderful shoot girls!

Thanks to Perlette & Jake’s wedding centerpieces, I went home April 25th with a pet fish for my son.  I always wondered what happened with those centerpieces at the end of the night!!  I was hesitant at first, because I have about all the responsibility I can handle right now with a business, a toddler, and trying to sell my house…but I was guilt tripped by one of the wedding guests about how much my son would love a fish.  As it turns out, he was right and we have had many a morning of precious memories together taking care of “Chelsea” fish.  Just thought I should introduce you guys to the newest member of the family!