Jessica Claire's Shootsac Open House

Wednesday, 28 Apr 2010 | Event

I attended the Shootsac by Jessica Claire Open House during the Christmas season of 2009. I know, it was a long time ago, but I couldn't resist blogging about it because I really loved the decor and beautiful spread of delicious goodies she arranged for the event.

I loved the cool lighting.

This looked like a fairytale treat wonderland. Sweet treats were prepared by Sweet & Saucy Shop.

See how the brownies were adorned by the Shootsac logo?

My hot spiced apple cider was delicious!

Becker converses with guests at the Shootsac Open House.

Dane Sanders talks with Jessica Claire at the Shootsac Open House.

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Cerritos Wedding : Debbie & Kingston

Tuesday, 27 Apr 2010 | Wedding

Cerritos, California
Prince Seafood

Debbie and Kingston chose Prince Seafood in Cerritos as their Los Angeles wedding ceremony and reception venue, which made perfect sense since based on their Chinese heritage. When I think of Debbie and Kingston, I think of joy. I absolutely love how they both don't hold back when expressing their happiness. Although this couple looks sweet and friendly, which they definitely are, don't be fooled. They are both students of the Chinese martial art of Kung Fu. In fact, I am told Kingston has attained the level of black belt and instructs martial arts.

One of my favorite parts of this Chinese wedding was the Lion Dance. Skilled acrobatic artists don colorful lion outfits and perform for the bride, groom and their guests. Drummers beat out rhythmically as the lions dance more and more frantically. There is one part where the lions eats a head of lettuce dangled from a pole by the couple. It was a wonderful treat for me to witness this exciting ritual.

Based on the images I captured at their wedding, I feel confident Debbie and Kinston have many years of joy and happiness in store for them.

These bride and groom key chains were absolutely adorable.

Kingston may be a tough martial arts instructor, but he has a soft side as well.

See how delightful Debbie and Kingston were to work with?

Did I mention how Debbie and Kingston are so expressive? Debbie was so tickled with the lion dancers.

They sure know how to have fun. I love their free spirited attitude toward life.

Debbie is definitely not shy about showing her affection for Kingston.

The Chinese dresses worn by Debbie were so beautiful and ornate in their design. This dress had sentimental value as it was the wedding dress worn by Debbie's late mother.

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Palm Springs Engagement : Karen & Richard

Tuesday, 13 Apr 2010 | Engagement

Palm Springs, California
Ace Hotel

One day as I was going about my business, an email arrived in my inbox from a gentleman from West Sussex, England. He explained how he found me using an organic Google search on weddings in Palm Springs. He was planning a honeymoon with his fiance and would be in Palm Springs. Apparently he liked the images I captured at an Ace Hotel Wedding he saw on my blog. His name was Richard Ford. And it turns out he is a wedding photographer in the United Kingdom.

In his email, he asks if I'm avaible for an engagement shoot at the Ace Hotel. I checked my calendar and as luck would have it, our schedules aligned perfectly. I know I said they were on their honeymoon, but because of their schedule they decided to do things a little backwards and go on their honeymoon first and get married after returning home to England. Although I had agreed to do their engagement session, if I'm totally honest, I was wondering if this was some kind of hoax. I'd never had a photographer from another country contact me out of the blue to schedule an e-session.

When I arrived on the day of the shoot, there were magazine photographers at the Ace Hotel shooting with a crew and a bunch of heavy duty equipmentm, complete with an array of vintage cars and models. Well, it turns out the engagement shoot was for real; I saw Richard and his beautiful fiance Karen walk up to meet me at King's Highway, the hotel's restaurant.

My assistant and I put them at ease with a drink and a little conversation. I like to get to know my clients before beginning a session. It's important they feel comfortable. Karen and Richard were a bit camera shy at first, but warmed up to being photographed quickly They are both used to not being in front of the camera, so they told me by being models they had a better idea how their brides and grooms felt to be photographed.

It was great working with both of them. I loved their personalities and their accents too. I have a fascination with British and Austrailian accents. I could sit there all day and listen to them just talk about anything. Many thanks to Karen and Richard. It was a delight to meet and photograph you. I wish you many years of happiness together. Hopefully, our paths will cross again. Please promise to contact me whenever you return to Southern California. It woould be great to meet and catch up on your lives.

Thank you so much for choosing me and entrusting me to document your engagement. I will remember this session fondly always.

They look like the were made for each other!

I love how this one looks in black & white.

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San Diego Engagement : Annette & Ryan

Tuesday, 6 Apr 2010 | Engagement

San Diego, California
Balboa Park

I have been so excited to photograph Annette and Ryan's engagement session for some time now. Annette is a friend I met while volunteer shooting Ballet Folklorico at UC Riverside. She was one of the students working the event. I asked if she would like to pose for portaits in exchange for custom prints and she said yes! We did her session with her sister Stephanie at Balboa Park and they came out beautifully. All of the Navarro sisters are beautiful, so it's easy to make them look good.

Annette's initial photo shoot was years ago. So, when we thought of places to shoot Annette and Ryan's engagement pictures, Balboa Park came to mind. It's a wonderful place to take portraits because of its variety of architecture and foliage. I love it there!

Annette is a perfect blend of beauty, intellect and ambition. She's also very kind and giving. Ryan is one lucky guy, I can vouch for that. I have to admit I wanted to meet Ryan because I feel a little protective of Annette, in a father-like way. Ryan is a fire engineer and a very personable individual. I can say I feel very good about him. And I could tell he really loves Annette and she loves him too by the way they interact and look at each other.

I can hardly wait to photograph their wedding in July. I know it will be a pleasure and the photos will be wonderful because they are such lovely people inside and out. Thank you so much Annette and Ryan for honoring me with the privilege of photographing your most special day.

Don't they look unbelievably cute together?

This is the very definition of "adoring".

This one is very romantic and surreal.

I love capturing the joy shared by couples. It's one of the my most loved things about being a wedding photographer.

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