Weddings intimidated me. They scared me and I thought I could avoid loving them. Pshh I couldn't have been more wrong. When I began interning for my mentor and friend Kristen, with in the first couple of weeks I had the privilege of helping her at a wedding. I fluffed the dress, threw up the veil, reflected light, and as soon as the bride walked down the aisle I was a teary mess.

Yes, I cry at weddings...almost every time. I'm a hopeless romantic through and through. So after one year of helping Kristen, a wedding guru, I decided that maybe I could get back into it. And so this year I announced to everyone I know that I was officially shooting weddings.

Never did I think that Melissa & Cesar's wedding would have gone so smoothly. I was ready and creative and got some killer shots with good exposures and composition. Of course it was nice to have help from Alex Singh, who also shot.

Now I'm no professional veteran wedding photographer but the best advice I can give to any one emerging into this industry right off the bat is to really take interest in your clients. Know their story and know that when you leave at the end of the night they give you a big hug rather than a wave. Invest time getting to know their style and talk to them with a friendly professional demeanor. Because in the end I think that is the best way to give your clients the very best of you and your photography.

And this sneak peek is exactly how I felt after I left the reception. Fist pumping and all! More definitely to come after this one but I thought it was a fun image :)

Happy Tuesday!

She heard about a cute boy and the cute boy asked her out. Little did they know that their relationship would lead them down the aisle! Ruth and Mark met while in high school so we decided that part two would have to be shot at the old high school where all three of us graduated from.

Talk about nostalgic! But seriously, I thought it was such a great idea because it means so much more than just weird days of pimples, up and down hormones, and prom dresses. It was where the beginning happened.

Here are my faves from the day :)

Happy Thursday :)

On Tuesday, I spent half the day at the DMV. Yes, that dreadful place where you wait an hour to get to the door and then another hour to get to the START HERE desk and yet another hour for the screen to finally announce your number. Yes, that place.

As I waited around the corner from the front door, I was fortunate to meet a woman named Dreena. Dreena was this smiling, happy, always positive woman who seemed to make friends with the whole line. Everyone around her pulled into her energy, and I am glad I was one of those people. We got to talking and she, as an entrepreneur herself, began giving me advice.

"Take criticism from everyone, even the bum on the street."

"Think positive and live life because that's all we can do. Life is one big
playground, if you don't like the swings, go to the sandbox."

"Give to the universe. Because when you give to the universe, it means you
trust the universe and when you trust, it comes back to you."

I was like one great big sponge, absorbing everything she said. After two hours of waiting in line, she was still smiling, talking to everyone and giving back her wonderful positive energy.

Our two hour conversation resonated with me. So much so that I'm blogging about it today. I believe that what she offered to me was a helping hand. She was giving back to the universe and giving me something bigger. And after three years of becoming a serious photographer, finishing school, and trying to learn as much as I can, I am now beginning to trust the universe. And the universe, is beginning to give back.

Happy Friday!

When Ruth sent me a message asking to meet with me to go over wedding packages I was ecstatic. I met Ruth back in the good ol' days when we were in high school. What I didn't know, was that she met Mark in high school as well!

Being that they have had many years of togetherness and now have a beautiful child named Markie, they are gonna tie the knot next month!

I labeled this post as Part 1 because the Part 2 will be shot tomorrow and it's going to be awesome! More awesome than this sneak peek right here.

Happy Wednesday!

I love photographing families. Especially good looking families like the Martinez's. Jessica and I emailed back and fourth for weeks until finally we scheduled a date and location. Upon arriving my usual 30 minutes early, the sun would peek in and out from behind the clouds. It looked like we would be fortunate to have a sunny day rather than a rainy day like days prior.

Well, Mother Nature tricked us. As soon as Jessica and her family arrived, huge droplets of rain came pouring down with such ferocity. And we had to reschedule.

Luckily, we had amazing weather for the rescheduled shoot and got such cute photos! Here are some of my faves. Happy Monday :)

2010 has begun to be such an amazing year. This year will mark the first year that I am photographing weddings exclusively.

I am both excited and fearful. Excited because experiencing the love between two people is just magical. Weddings are magical and I have always loved to go to weddings. However, I did mention that I'm fearful. Fearful because of the pressure, the "one day to get it right," and the chance that something crazy might happen.

I have had a deep conversation with myself and I know that I can do it. Fearfully or excitedly, and I'm going to choose the latter.

My sister, Elanie, of In Your Face Beauty, asked me to shoot a bridal inspired shoot for her yesterday. Here is one of my favorites. You can see more on her blog HERE.




Happy Thursday! And if you're looking for a wedding photographer, holla at your girl!

I am so glad it stopped raining! At least for a day. I did fret a little when I saw how dark and ominous the clouds looked today at the site where I'd be photographing the beautiful Jaclene. Luckily, we shot in beautiful sunset light and with no rain.

Jaclene is a model and was looking to build her portfolio, so we did just that. We went with a railroad, cowgirl type of theme and I've gotta say, Jaclene, you are hott girlfriend! Definitely model material :).

Here are my favorites of the day!

Growing up, sometimes Sunday's were the days when my family would wake up at the butt-crack of dawn and go to the swapmeet with our parents. We would walk around the aisles marveling at all of the wonderful junk people were selling and getting rid of. We would even go crazy spending our $10 bucks at the space where a guy sold nothing but Lisa Frank. Yep that's right, I said Lisa Frank!

Then there were times when we would wake up to my dad yelling (in Spanish), "Ok, time to put your batteries on! Get up!" Which meant one thing and one thing only: Yard work.

When a man has the odds of three to one, you bet the two daughters are gonna grow up doing the things boys are supposed to do. I remember pushing the lawn mower on the bottom bar while my dad pushed it for real with the top bar. We even had old tennis shoes and "work" clothes. And after all was clean and done, we would reward our selves with food and a good movie.

Growing up brother-less was probably the best thing that could have happened to me. It is the reason why I am not afraid of getting dirty, can use a hammer (and other tools), clean a house, change a tire, and ride a motorcycle. My parents didn't spare us because we were girls, they made every effort to show us that because were girls, we could do anything we wanted. That we are just as good (and better) as our non-existent brothers would have been. And for that, I am grateful.

Happy Sunday!

I follow a lot of blogs. Not just two or three, I follow close to 20 blogs. Religiously. And every time I read one of those pro photog blogs, I feel like their life is so cool, like celebrity status cool. They touch on the personal, they connect with others, and they write so eliquently that it is almost poetic.

I, on the other hand, am not that cool. I laugh at my own jokes when no one else is and have no fashion sense. I don't have a husband, or a kid, and my dog tends to get dirty on the days I want to photograph him. I have been a student my whole life and am a little introverted. Soooo uncool, right? Nodding of the head will suffice.

Anyway, all of this made me think, maybe my life is uncool but at least I'm happy. I get to hang with my mother every day (mainly because we live with each other) and I have the best job ever. I may have no fashion sense but at least I'm comfortable. And even though my dog has a habit of getting dirty, he is very affectionate and when I need a little bit of love he's always there.

So, with this new realization, I have decided to get a little more personal and connect with you internet. But I will leave that to the next posts :). For now, I have the greatest pleasure of re-introducing my cousin's daughter as a 1 year old!

Happy Friday!

So, I realize I completely forgot to post yesterday's inspiration but I was so busy and caught up with life to-dos and I apologize! But I have an awesome sneak peek to make up for it :)

I do have to say that I attended the Inland Empire Professional Photographers & Videographer's meeting on Wednesday and was totally inspired. Kristen from Kristen Mary Photography invited me and I am so glad I was able to make. Kristen, by the way, was my internship photog and boy did I learn a great deal from her! Check her out, awesome stuff :)

Anyway, Mike Colon was the speaker that night and I don't think I have ever been so eager to go out and grab my dreams. Or rather go out there and tackle them down cowboy style. He spoke a little about marketing, a lot about buzz, and a bit about priorities and how to just go out there and make it happen. He was genuine and all about giving back to the industry. So I suppose he's our inspiration for the week! Well, that worked out nicely :). If you haven't had a chance to check him out...please do. And by that I mean... Now!

Alrighty, onto the photos! My uncle and his family have these amazingly beautiful Hacienda style home that I had been dying to shoot in for quite some time now. You'll see how beautiful it is in the photos in a bit.

Also, I had the great pleasure of working with my sister, Elanie, who is a fab hair and make up gal. Then Julie, a model who is just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. Definitely not the cliche model attitude; she's a joy to work with and definitely brought out some fierceness! I also had the pleasure of having Sal and a friend join me for the shoot. It is always nice to do what I love with other people who speak my language! Here are my faves of the day :)

Happy Friday!