Is He One Already?

I've been photographing little Ryan and his family since he was still in his mommies belly. I can't believe how fast the year went and that we've already used all their sessions. I always have so much fun with these guys. Ryan's little personality is really coming out and he is a busy little guy! I think the pumpkin was a hit...he couldn't think about anything else...until we brought out the bubbles :) I can't wait until they have another little one so we can do it all over again!

Enjoy the show!

Teapot Parties & Children's Boutique

I honestly don't think I could love this store more! If you haven't yet been, it's this sweet and fun wonderland full of toys, books and cozy clothes. They also have this absolutely beautiful room upstairs for whimsical tea parties. They even have little dress up outfits so the party guests can be all frilly with white gloves or perfectly in character with Mad Hatter costumes. They even offer a super cool photographer to capture your party images ;) Check out the slide show by clicking on the last picture below. I can't wait until my daughter's birthday next year because she is definitely getting a Woodland Whimsy Tea party :) You can check out their site HERE you can check out their lovely store and party spot in downtown Santa Rosa on 4th st. in Railroad Square. While you're there, look up...you may see someone you know :)

Kelly and Rich

Probably the sweetest, most laid back couple ever! These two were so easy to work with and so full of love for each other. Kelly was beaming the whole day and I absolutely love all the images I captured of her... I don't think she could've been any happier! This couple once again showed me that my favorite time of any wedding day is the couple's portraits. After the ceremony's over and I get to move the couple away from all the guests, they finally get to relax and just enjoy actually being married. Kelly and Rich both just lit up during this time and the images are gorgeous!

Thank you both so much for having me be a part of your wonderful day! To view show larger, click HERE

My Exciting News (and why I haven't posted in forever!)

Sorry, I've been a little MIA lately...first I thought I had than flu, then I thought I was getting sick from stress...turns out, it's neither! It's really another baby turning me into a slacker :) Yay!! My husband and I are expecting our second little one in May and we couldn't be more excited!

I've been crazy booked these last couple of months and trying to get stuff edited and up for viewing. I'm a tad behind but will be getting some fun stuff up here soon! Thanks for checking in and I'll be back with the some slide shows soon, promise :)

Roller Derby!

My crazy sister decided she wanted to join our local roller derby team. So, we decided to all go check out a bout and see what she was getting into to. It looked like so much fun, I think we're all signed up now ;) Apparently, there's a huge following around here because the place was packed! We had a great time...those girls are tough... and of course ended the night with a serious record setting Rock Band concert!






See I was there too :)

Michelle and Andrew

What a "Perfect Pear"! This couple had such a sweet wedding, from the amazing gown to cute little pear place cards. Michelle thought of everything and her and Andrew really worked hard to bring it all together. Of course it all payed off and their wedding turned out absolutely beautiful! We were honored to capture this wonderful celebration. To enjoy the show larger, please click HERE

We're Going All Waldorf!

Ani's wonderful teacher gave us a copy of a great book at our visit yesterday..."You Are Your Child's First Teacher" by Rahima Baldwin Dancy. I really love how Waldorf education values the stage of a child's life when their imagination is over flowing. They acknowledge that make believe and fantasy play is not only beneficial but necessary in a child's development. I read the chapter about how to make your child's room welcoming to this type of play...get rid of toys that think for your child or direct them (play should be with no goal or direction...just imagination and tools), create play areas that are inviting (don't stuff the toys in cubbies), give them dolls that don't have defined features so they can create their own in their mind's eye, etc. We already had her room pretty close but we went through and boxed up a bunch of her babies that she doesn't play with. Got rid of a bunch of "junk"...you know the plastic, rubbery things that just seem to collect. Made a bunch of beds and blankets for her babies...we used odd baskets that we just had lying around and little pieces of material I had in a sewing box.

But, the best part was we made her a playhouse. I wanted her to have a little private area where she could do whatever she could play house, stage for a play, etc. I rummaged in our garage and found her old changing table...took the shelves off, ran an old window panel through a front rod and draped one over the top and WA LAH...it's not Martha but it's a playhouse that was free, fun to make and even more fun to play in :) Trust me, I'm not a crafty girl nor do I have a lot stuff lying around but I had enough to put this together so if I can do it, so can you...a great way to move a baby item into a kid item!

Visit Day!

My daughter, Ani, got to go visit her preschool today before she starts it later this week! We both absolutely adore this place. Ani felt comfortable as soon as she got there and took off to play. She got to rock the baby (her favorite part), grind wheat, pump the water and a bunch more fun stuff. Her symbol (it's a Waldorf thing) is the butterfly. It's such a sweet little place where kids get to play and make believe and just be kids. We are all so excited for her to spend her mornings here!

The Funnest Game Ever!

Amoung the many other brilliant things I learned at the McWorkshop, I learned that Rock Band is definitely the greatest game ever!! I'm notoriously anti video game and my husband is a notorious gamer...the cause of many many battles. But, Corey started this guy up and after 5 min. on the drum, I was logged into Amazon buying my own...unbelievable! It hadn't been in our house more than a few hours when I scheduled our first tournie. Even the most vocal hater..."that game is so stupid...I can't believe you're playing it" was a convert after 2 minutes strumming to Mississippi Queen. When I wasn't being a Diva (apparently, I wouldn't share the mic :), I got to experiment hand held shooting in a very very dark room...fun all around!

Rock Star McWorkshop

Ahhh...finally a minute to tell you all about my awesome week! I was lucky enough to get to fly allllll the way to North Carolina to learn from some of the industry's best, Corey McNabb and Amber Holritz. Both are extremely inspirational to me...not only in their photography but also their talents in business and client relationships. The week was crazy and the workshopees were even crazier - my wonderful (and overworked) roommate Jessica C, but she hates her site so don't check it for a few weeks:) My super chauffeur with the stupid GPS, Chris. Our favorite swamp girl, Maureen (can't wait to see her images from her next swamp adventure), Jessica who kept us on track and laughing. Our local ladies, Laurie and Jill and our lone guy, Will. We spent pretty much every minute of every day together and we all made it out alive.

The first few shoots were really uncomfortable for me and I'm not proud of the shots I got. We did group shooting and I was totally out of my element...I'm used to working by myself and it really threw me off to have a bunch of other shooters and to be watched by two photog. superstars. But, after I got used to all of them, I had no problem pushing them out of the way to get the shot I wanted :) We had some amazing models, Tara and her famous actor husband, Jonathon ;), Nicole and Tracy, Lindsey and John Bamber and an absolutely beautiful real bride, Lee Irvine (sorry we can't show her images until after her wedding). Thank you so much to our wonderful models...we really put them to work!

I can't thank the crew enough for the one of a kind experience I had! Corey and Amber taught me invaluable lessons that are really helping me move my business forward. The camaraderie between all the students was addicting and I can't wait to see them all again...WPPI, anyone? :)

Alright, on to the good stuff...here are my faves from the week. BTW, if you want to see pics of the actual workshop, check out Amber's site and Corey's blog...actually, maybe not...I had a thing for ordering giant food and the pics are not so pretty ;)













AND, I'm a contest winner...woo hoo...I took 3rd place for this baby, and I'm not bragging, but the competition was steep...there was some serious talent at this workshop so I'm stoked to have an image be a winner :)

Amazing Ally!

One of my favorite sessions ever!! I got to meet this precious little girl when she was only 3 days old. I love when I actually get to spend a lot of time with new parents. The "honeymoon" right after your baby is born is so special and I'm always honored to be a part of it. I love watching the new mom's and dad's be so natural and loving and yet always a bit overwhelmed and unsure. Learning what each cry means, how she likes to be held, what sounds soothe her...it's different for every baby and it so sweet to watch parents getting to know their little one.

Ally got to have her grandma's over and they're always so much fun...beaming from ear to ear, sitting on their hands that are just twitching to hold her. Then you get the three generations of women with a grandma getting to watch her daughter learn to be a mom...whew, talk about emotional. To top it off, they're a beautiful couple with a gorgeous house and an amazing nursery...it really doesn't get any better for us photog's :)

Thank you so much for having me over! To enjoy your show larger, click HERE

Thank Goodness for Bubbles!

I love large family shoots but you got to be ready for them...running shoes and lattes are definite musts! These kids were so excited to be with their cousins that there was no wrangling them. Good thing I like kids being "unwrangled" :) It was a lot of fun trying to come up with activities that would get all the kids in my lens at once...racing, wagon riding, book reading...but the favorite had to be the bubbles. Even parents turn into kids when they're blowing bubbles ;) This family was really wonderful to work with and I hope they enjoy their images as much as I enjoyed creating them!

To enjoy the show larger, click HERE

Matt and Carissa

What a gorgeous wedding! Carissa and Matt got married at a stunning small family winery in Sonoma. Their seven year courtship led to this beautiful union and I was honored to be a part of it. These two were absolutely wonderful to work with...fun, relaxed, happy and completely photogenic ;) Their families were equally awesome! There was so much love and life at this wedding that me and my assistants left all giddy!

Carissa and Matt, thank you so much for having me and I hope you enjoy your show. To view larger, click HERE

Gorgeous Mazie

What a fun and relaxed family to work with! When I first arrived, I was showed a collection of beautiful images that Mazie's dad had from when he was a kid. His mom had hired a photographer that shot in a very similar style to mine. The images were amazing and completely inspired me for this session. Remember those images from the 70's that had really strong black shadows and bright white highlights...they were totally unposed, used only sunlight and had that gorgeous rich film contrast? Those were the images I grew up loving and while I'm always inspired by those, today I shoot with a bit more modernization. But, for this session, I threw all that modern stuff away and tried to create images that compared to the one's her dad had. It was great...I let the family just go about their day with no (or very little) scene setting, embraced all the dark shadows I'm usually cautious of, and we had a great time! Of course, the deep blacks and sharp contrast really show up more on the prints but I think you'll see a bit of it in the show :) Thank you so much to Mazie's parents for having me over...can't wait to meet her new little sister! To view the show larger, click HERE

Beautiful Meher

I've worked with this beautiful family since before Meher was born. They are an absolute joy to work with and I love watching their little girl grow up! The last time I saw her, she was this petite little newborn and now she's starting to crawl and talking up a storm. Her little personality's coming out and it's so cute! This is one of the best parts of my job..thank you so much for letting me a part of this special time! To enjoy the show larger, click HERE

Is There Anything Better than Family?

You know that old saying about the cobbler's kids having no shoes...yep, that applies to my poor daughter (not to mention the rest of my family). They're horribly ignored by my camera because I just never want to take it out when I'm not working...that, and I know that we could always do it tomorrow, ya know? The sad news is that my sister in law and her amazing family are going to be moving far far far away soon (okay, not that far but definitely not 5 minutes from us anymore). The good news is that it got my bootie into gear and I've taken some much needed portraits. The first is the beautiful family that we'll miss seeing nearly every day and then we've got my little girl that's getting too big, too fast. To enjoy the shows larger, click HERE
and HERE

Nicole & Jason

What a gorgeous wedding! Not only were Nicole and Jason fabulous but they're attendants and guests were all so fun and friendly. I absolutely love weddings like this! Nicole was stunning..from her cathedral length veil, to her perfectly elegant dress. And she even had a gorgeous stoll when it got chilly out! Everyone had a great time and it was so obvious that this group is full of joy and love. I absolutely loved being a part of this wonderful celebration and can't thank Nicole and Jason enough for having me there. Here's a little treat for you guys :) To enjoy the show larger, click HERE

Yay...I love this family!

I got to work with these guys last year when the little one was just a babe! His older brother was so sweet and gentle with him and still is! They've turned into little friends and I really love watching them grow. I can't wait to do it again next year, or even sooner ;) To enjoy the show larger, please click HERE

Lucky Winners!

Whenever I'm asked, I try to donate something to fundraisers that I like to support. This was a drive for a local school that I'm a big fan of, so I donated an Artist Package session. This was the lucky family that got it and after many months of trying to coordinate our schedules, we finally met up. Unfortunately, the park was a little browner than we wanted but they were so much fun to work with, so we still got some great shots. Here are a few of my fave's!

Rachel & Spencer

Another beautiful couple! I had a lot of fun going around a great little neighborhood with these two. We wanted to have some fun, urban images and I think we got them. These two are so photogenic and great to work with...I can't wait for the wedding! To enjoy the show larger, click HERE