New Places, (Mostly) New Faces

One of  the fantastic things about photography is the new people, places and things I get to experience with my camera in hand, many of which I would never had been introduced to.  I mean to tell you I've met some really cool folks along the way and I can't wait to continue that trend.

Recently I was fortunate enough to be asked to photograph the 10th anniversary party for The Nova Studio.  They teach classes about making soap and other bath and beauty products with proper techniques and ingredients.



Better still, I got to do it with my friend Stephanie from Quiet Life of Violet. I have missed her and the drive was a great time of just chit chat, catching up and girl talk.



What a great group and event it was! The event was well organized and you could see the dedication of their students by how many people attended.

Everyone felt welcome, including me.  They had several "make and take" tables that guests could make something fun. I got to make eyeshadow and a bath soak. How cool was that for them to include me?

 Let me tell you, as the photographer, there is usually a handful of people at any event that avoid my lens like the plague. They see me coming and head for the proverbial hills, so to speak.  That was not the case here - everyone was having a great time and actually asking to have their photos taken! What?!?!?  Yes, I said it!

Here are some of my images from the event. It  was a great day and I wish many more Anniversaries for The Nova Studio!

All Portraits Are NOT Created Equal

I recently had the pleasure of handling a firearm for the first time. (My Dad swears I shot a .22 when I was a kid, but I honestly have no recollection so I'm starting over.) I went out to the range with some very close friends who also happen to be family. I haven't a clue why it's taken me so long to do this, but holy moly is it FUN!

Like any good Moment Preservationist, I brought my camera along with me. I decided to take a few shots (no pun intended) of J & J while we were there. J was really in his element out here and you could see him instantly relax the second we got out of the truck. I would have thought having a "new shooter" tagging along would have the opposite effect, but no.

At any rate, these are a couple of the images I snagged while we were there. This is what Moment Preservation means to me - this memory is so cool and important I want to keep it forever.

When was the last time you had a portrait done - family or otherwise - that really embodied who you are and what you love? If the answer is "never", then you and I need to talk.










*By the way, this marks my 40th post! I have a hard time sticking with things that I start, so it's kind of a big deal for me!

"I'm Too Excited to Sleep"

Remember the commercial for Disneyland that came out with the little kids saying "I'm too excited to sleep!" the night before they were leaving for the Magic Kingdom?

That, my friends, is how I feel right before a shoot.

I am getting super excited for a shoot I have coming up next weekend. So excited, in fact, that I'm going to have to put myself on a "Mommy Time-Out" this weekend for a little while. I think I'll actually get to start my Hands of Love project on Sunday. EEK!!!

Stay tuned for more to follow on that subject...

For now, I'll leave you with a fun shot from a while back that has continued to inspire me to think outside the box. Sometimes it's not about the light - but the absence thereof that makes a shot fun.

Happy Friday, Friends!

Portrait of a Toddler: Round Valley Regional Preserve

Last Friday our office closed early in advance of the President's Day Holiday and that allowed me just enough time to get home, grab my little family, and make it out to Round Valley Regional Preserve in Brentwood in time for the "golden hour" of light.

I didn't know about this place until a local photographer, Alicia Holder Photography, took some portraits there for us last year.  It was loads of fun and a great place for photographs.

She took a photo of our boy on a large boulder when he was 1, and I thought it would be fun to try and go back there again this year and take a photo on the same boulder.  I'm going to try and do it each year for as long as he'll let me.  Maybe someday we'll take his Senior Pictures there... whoa, gotta reel myself in!

At any rate, we made it to Round Valley and we had a great time looking at the cows and he ran, and ran, and ran some more.  Let me tell you, that boy is FAST!





It was all I could do to get him to sit still for a half a second on the boulder for the shot we came for:



We had another "boy meets" moment that day. I like to call this one "Boy Meets Horse...Manure!"



Thankfully, Daddy was there to lend me a hand.  I wouldn't have been able to do it by myself!







Thanks for sharing these moments with us.  I'm so glad we went that day, even if it seemed rushed  trying to get there before sundown.



-Samantha

Snow!

Being from the Bay Area, snow is not something I encounter on a day-to-day basis in the winter. I'm lucky if I make it to Lake Tahoe once a year to see the snow.

This year, we took our son for Boy Meets Snow.  It was absolutely thrilling.  I think my favorite part of being a parent is getting to see someone experience things for the first time, hence, the importance behind my "Boy Meets" album.

What I wasn't prepared for was the challenge of photographing in the snow.  I actually thought my camera was malfunctioning due to the cold, but it turns out I had left it on a 2 second delay from my night photography the previous evening.  Doh!

Here's what I came up with. With my minimal snow experience, I am pleased with the outcome.

Tractors + Pumpkins + Children = FALL!

It starts to feel like fall when the pumpkins are on the ground at Smith Family Farm. We took our annual trip over the weekend and we had so much fun! Our boy is growing like a weed and is finally able to really run around the farm and enjoy his surroundings. He was picking up some pretty heavy pumpkins all by himself.

There were so many cool sights to see.  There were old tractors on display that, much to my surprise, were actually fully-functional and used on the farm. How cool is that?

The produce stand was overflowing with the late bounty of this Indian Summer, and this basket of gourds was lit in an extraordinary fashion by the light coming in from the window.

When Bobby came across the group of giant pumpkins, he instantly fell in love.  And that, my friends, was a perfect ending to a perfect day at the pumpkin patch.

Portrait of a Toddler

Where better to capture the fun of being a toddler than at your local community park?  I had so much fun shooting my son last week.  It was really a blast and I'm sure you will all be sick of seeing my little boy sooner rather than later.

I don't know what it is about him, but he draws people in.  People gravitate to his presence - even strangers in public places can't resist him.  I don't know if it's like that for every small child, but it certainly is for mine.  What a fortunate little boy.

At any rate, here is what is likely to be the first of the series: Portrait of  a Toddler. Happy Thursday!