2009

This year has been the most amazing year of my life. I cannot tell you how blessed I am to have experienced so many good things. I sometimes don't feel that I deserve all the good people/things that I'm surrounded with, but it feels great to know that I am doing something right. Every year. It just gets better, and better, and better.

I can't wait for what 2010 holds. The future is bright, and nothing is stopping me from continuing to follow my dreams. I wish I could see it all unfold before me, but the best part is the surprise :)

To end 2009, I have put together a slideshow of photos from fun, memorable events and good people that I've been so greatly blessed to be around. I love you all, and I wish you nothing but a fabulous New Year!

*please forgive me. some of the photos I just quickly grabbed from facebook so they are not the best quality. but here they are:

Wedding Wednesday: The Dress

First things first, I am not going to show you a picture of the dress. That would just be so stupid of me. If I wanted Chris to see it, I would just take him to Bridal Galleria and try it on for him to ask for his approval. But it doesn't work like that. He is not allowed to see it until November 19th, 2010. Some things are just worth waiting for ;)

Instead, I'll share with you the story. Earlier this month, Bridal Galleria announced a Jim Hjelm Trunk Show. When I received the email announcement, I immediately emailed my bridal party for a "let's search for my perfect wedding dress at the perfect jim hjelm trunk show" meeting. Ever since I got engaged, I have been stalking the Jim Hjelm website and have fallen madly in love with the dresses. I told myself that I'd have a Jim Hjelm wedding dress. No questions asked.

But I forgot. I forgot that sometimes, some relationships just don't work out. By relationships I mean, Jim and I weren't clicking. It was sad. I almost broke down right then and there. In the fitting room. In front of my mother, Hailey the consultant (best consultant EVER!), Sarah, and my Sister. I was disappointed when I realized I wasn't going to rock a Jim Hjelm dress on my wedding day. But you know what, when one door closes....Another one opens. And that other door is called Romona Keveza.

Romona and I clicked. We clicked a couple of times in fact. Many of the dresses that gave me the butterflies were Romona Keveza. One in particular was this stylish gown with an art deco design that made me feel so fabulous. Its from her Legends collection, and it is beautiful. So beautiful that I could have married myself. I seriously would have walked the miles to City Hall and married myself that day. It was just that good.

*photo from InStyle magazine

My heart was set on this dress. I wanted it. My mother loved it. And trust me, my mom made a lot of funny faces during the 20 something dresses I tried on :) Then Hailey did the unthinkable. She brought in one last dress for the heck of it. She's all "Here's one more, you don't have to try it on. But if you want you can!" And of course, I did. I mean HELLO, I love wedding dresses. I wish I could wear one everyday. So I just had to try it on. And party people, when I tried it on... It gave me this magical feeling and it whispered sweet nothings to my body. I think I heard Spice Girls "Two Become One" in the background when Hailey zipped it up. Just sayin ;) I think I also screamed something along the lines of, "Yes! I said Yes to the Dress!" Please don't judge me. I was excited.

I loved the dress I was originally going to get, but I am in-love with the one that I ended up getting. Who would have thought that I'd find THE DRESS that cold day in December. I am glad that Jim Hjelm and I didn't work out. It was for the best. I can't wait to walk down the aisle in my dress, and for Chris to see it!

Lastly, I have my parents to thank. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be wearing my dream wedding dress on my big day. Thanks Mom and Dad for making the trip out there to help me find/get the dress of my dreams! Love you both!

As for photos of the dress, you'll just have to wait until late November to see!

Happy Wednesday!

*Next week on Wedding Wednesday: My something blue!

Also: Future brides in the SF area. Make sure you check out Bridal Galleria when searching for a wedding dress. It's just lovely. Make sure to also ask for Hailey. She is the best consultant evaaa!

Baby Bump: Sarah and James

Funny, down to earth, and in love. Absolutely, positively, unconditionally in love. Those are the three words that best describe Sarah and James to me, and I couldn't be more in love with who they are. In January, they are expecting their first child. And I was honored when they asked me to take their maternity photos.

They want to be surprised with the sex of the baby, but I think it's going to be a handsome little guy. I just know it. But if I'm wrong, then we know it will be a beautiful little girl! Which I hope they'll name Gladys ;) Jokes jokes! But I am just so excited for their baby to come into the world. Well, because he or she is going to be loved so much by Sarah and James. Seriously. When you are around Sarah and James, you'll want them to adopt you. They are just that great, and so full of love. I mean hello, they got me a latte before the session! Awesome with a capital A! Times 5.

Sarah and James: Thank you for letting me into your home to take these photographs. I think the world of you both. You truly will make wonderful parents, and I can't wait to meet your baby in the New Year. Enjoy these pictures! Xoxo

Baby Manual. I lurrrve it.

Can you believe this lighting? Perfection!

Best book ever!!!

have you seen a more beautiful bump?

I love this one, and I know it means a lot to Sarah

Ok, seriously. I am in love with couples who look at each other just like this.

My goal: To look this amazing when I'm pregnant. You're absolutely beautiful Sarah!

Click here for a slideshow :)

Sneak Peek: Baby Bump

Today is Christmas Eve. And this morning I spent it shooting a beautiful couple that I am deeply fond of. In January, they will be receiving the best gift they could ever ask for, a baby! Yay!

Here is a sneak peek for you. I obviously won't be blogging for the next couple of days because of the Holidays. But I thought I'd share a lil somethin somethin ;)

Happy Holidays!!!

Wedding Wednesday: The Cupcakes

They're sweet. They're cute. They are fun size like myself, but better. They are CUPCAKES. Everyone knows about my love affair with the cutest cakes in all the land. In fact. If I had never met Chris, I would probably marry a cupcake. That my friends, is true love and devotion. But because I did meet Chris, I get to have the best of both worlds. And all I gotta say is that it's a sweet, sweet world.

For our wedding, Chris and I have decided to nix the wedding cake. Instead, we're going for my second true love. Cupcakes! Yep, cupcakes. An endless tier of cupcakes. Ok not endless, but there will be a ton. The lady at Sift where we had a cupcake tasting last month, said that 1 person averages about 1.5 cupcakes. But she clearly doesn't know me well enough. Because 1.5 for me isn't going to cut it. Especially if i'm diggin the flava flav. Dontchaknow?

We've decided to go to Sift Cupcakery for our Cupcakes. The flavors we've decided for our big day are as follows:

Pink Champagne- Fresh Raspberry Cake w/ Champagne Frosting

Ooh La La- Red Velvet Cake w/ Cream Cheese Frosting

Snickerdoodle - Vanilla Cake w/ Cream Cheese Frosting Covered w/ Cinnamon Sugar

My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Yes, it's 9:25 and I want cupcakes. I'm a cupcake-a-holic. If you can't find me on my wedding day, I guarantee I'll be at the cupcake stand. Just sayin.

Happy Wednesday!

Totally Rad!

Two things:

1. I finished my last class ever on Thursday night. No more signing up for classes. No more 1st days of school. No more tests. No more essays. No more SCHOOL! I graduate in May after a 12 week long internship in the spring. Can you believe it? It seems just like yesterday when I moved into my dorm room, now I'm done with classes forever. and ever. and ever. I'm all grown up, and ready to party ;)

2. If you click on this link, you'll see my name. Why? Because I got lucky! Oh so so so lucky! and I won a free seat to Chenin Boutwell's Style Lab Workshop! Oh party people, I've been dying to go to another workshop since Jasmine's in November. And I am so blessed to have won a free seat to Chenin's in January. Word on the street from one of my lovely photog friends, that Chenin's workshop is probably one of the best she's ever attended. And to top it off, I also won a camera strap from my funky camera. Hootie hoooooooo! Sure I entered for a chance to win, but the best part is that for every comment they receieve, they donate a dollar to NILMDTS! Totally Rad or what? ;) Thanks TRA for giving me the chance to go and a camera strap to boot!

Oh and last thing, here is a sneaka peeka of Chris' work. Yes, people! He is a photographer now. He quit his job at Equinox and is starting his own photog business called "I am better than my fiance" photography! :)

Ok, he didn't really quit. HE IS STILL A PERSONAL TRAINER! But isn't he good? I've taught him well.

Happy Saturday Loves!

Wedding Wednesday - Our Photographer

At Thanksgiving, Chris cousin Michelle mentioned her friend's blog which had a Wedding Wednesday feature. And I thought to myself, Wow! Why didn't I think of that? This girl gets major cool points for being so cool.

So in honor of Michelle's friends coolness, I am going to do my own little wedding wednesday feature. In which I will share with you details of my wedding which will be in exactly 338 days. Yes, my fiance and I count down. We're in love like that. But besides that, I'll also be sharing other wedding details which I hope will be an inspiration to future brides. So here it goes, my first wedding wednesday.

I've thought hard and long about what detail I'll share with you first. And I've come to the conclusion that because I am a photographer, I'd share with you who will be capturing our special day. It's still a bit unreal to me because when Chris and I got engaged, we knew who we wanted to photograph our wedding. At least I for sure did ;) We just didn't think it would actually happen.

The fabulous photographer who will be spending our big day with us is Jasmine Star. You should have known who it was after reading the word fabulous, but it's ok. I forgive you. Everyone and their mom knows how much I adore Jasmine's work. I've followed her since the day I clicked on her name on wedding cabaret because it sounded cool. And that she is, and more.

The short story: Chris contacted her behind my back and asked if she was available on November 5th, 2010 (Our first initial date) And she was booked. So Chris lets me know of this breaking news and I go online searching for other photographers that we could possibly get in contact with. I even posted a blog post here asking people for suggestions. But somewhere between all the searching, I texted Chris and I said "We need to have a talk, I really really really want Jasmine to be our photographer." So then. Over salads at Plutos, we came to the conclusion that we had to have Jasmine photograph our wedding. Right then and there he busted out his iPhone and sent her an email asking her what available dates she had for November. And that my friends, is how we decided on our date for November 19th, 2010. We are the only people I know that have decided on their wedding date based on the photographer's availability. 100 Brownie points for us.

Chris knows just how much I love photography, and how important it was for me to have a photographer that I really loved to capture our big day. Chris loves her too, so we are definitely excited to have her and her husband JD with us in Sonoma for our wedding. We know our photos will be nothing but fun, fresh, and fabulous ;)

*This photo was taken when I attended Jasmine's workshop in November

Happy Wednesday!

Just Dance Monday!

Hello Blog World! I hope all of you are having a wonderful Monday, and that your week is shaping up to be nothing but fantastic!

Tonight, Chris and I are going to see Lady Gaga in concert. I might not be a fan of Lady Gaga's crazy antics, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE her voice and music. She's a talented one, no doubt. I love it so much that I secretly dedicate at least 10 minutes of my day to a dance party by myself w/ her music playing loudly. Afterall, Just Dance. Riightt? Chris loves it too. He's never said that he loves it, but below is video proof...



This was a couple of months ago, but you can clearly see how Chris just loves singing and sit dancing to Lady Gaga's music. He rocks it even more than I do. Ellen will probably choose him over me to have a duet in the bathroom for her bathroom concert series. It's ok though, I know I'm the better dancer at the end of the day. I'm also better at Doodle Jump w/ a high score of 35,102

HAPPY MONDAY! and remember...Just Dance!

The Girl w/ the Red Umbrella

Drop after drop, the rain fell all around us. She danced without a care in the world. Tip, tap, happily in the rain. As the rain continued to fall, her attitude gave way for sunshine. She turned the endless sea of grey skies into a colorful world of joy. Her and her bright red umbrella.

Sara, I was honored when you asked me to take these photos of you for your special project. I love what you are doing with them, and I can't wait to see the end result ;) Though I had to re-sched one session this weekend because of the weather, I am glad that we continued yours in the rain. You and that perfect red umbrella. Xoxo

Here are some of my favorites...

Click here for a Slideshow

My Ornament

Chris' family has a tradition. Every Christmas, they put an ornament on the tree that represents something that has happened to their family that year. Ornaments range from a little drummer boy from when Chris was born, to a lawn mower for when Chris and Tim spent a summer at their favorite job ;) (hi tim!)

Last night, Lynn had us over for a yummy dinner. If you've never had cheesy corn, try it. Anyways, after dinner Lynn had us decorate the Christmas tree. I had so much fun getting to see all the different ornaments from year to year. When Chris and I finished, we were so dang proud of our work that I wished I had my camera so that I could take a snap shot.

And that wish came true. Except this camera can't take pictures. It does flash though, and it's fun size like me. This years ornament is a camera to represent myself because next year, I will officially be part of the Allen Family. I was so happy and so excited for my ornament on the tree, but even happier and more excited to become part of such a great family. Love you guys!

I didn't have my camera last night, so I used my iPhone to take the following photo.

I love my ornament. Thank You Lynn!

Happy Friday!

Thankful Thursday

Today I am Thankful for my Family.

They've been a constant support. With school, with the wedding, and with my dreams.

I love them so much, and I don't know what I'd do without them.

Happy Thursday!

P.S. My little brother is such a ham.

And the winner is...

I really don't even know where to start. I guess I can start with a thank you. A very big thanks to everyone who participated in my little blog contest. Near or far, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your responses were beautiful. Selfless. Filled with Love. They brought tears to my eyes, and a smile to my heart. You might not realize it, but you have given those in your lives the best gift of all. Your presence, and your love.

It was extremely difficult to choose the winners because everyone had such amazing answers. I truly wish I could declare everyone a winner, but I can only choose one.

And the winner of the free photo session goes to Jessica Rose from SF, CA. Congratulations Jessica!

Her response was:

...If I could give anyone anything, I would give my sister back her father for a day, so she could know him, and love him, and have what my other sister and I will most likely never have. She's had a rough life and has three kids, and she would totally deserve it.

Also, Congratulations to Kristy Uzelac from Salt Lake City, UT. She is the winner from afar, and will be receiving a special prize.

Again, Thank you to EVERYONE who participated. I truly do appreciate you, and your responses. I give you all big hugs, and best wishes!

Xoxo

That's what we do, We GIVE.

Man, time does sure fly by fast around here. Today marks the first day of December, and the beginning of the last month of the year. Decorations and lights are up. Christmas songs are on the radio. People are hitting their nearby shopping centers to make sure they have everything they need to give. Because that's what we do, we give.

On Sunday, Chris and I roamed the streets of downtown San Francisco taking photographs of anything, and everything. I usually shy away from taking photographs of people directly because I am afraid they will yell at me. But on Sunday, I somehow mustered up some courage and took photos of a couple of people. Afterwards, I made sure to tell them that I wanted to give them the photos through email. I loved it because once those words came out of my mind, it turned into a smile on their face. It made me happy because I get to share what I love with others. Because that's what we do, we give.

In the spirit of the Holidays and giving, I want to give more than just an email with a photo. I want to make someone smile. I want the chance to give, and I want to give others a chance to give. Because that's what we do, we give.

Who knows if people will even play, but I just wanted to post this to remind myself and everyone that the Holidays aren't about receiving. But all about giving. I hope that I can bring a smile to one person's face by doing this. If not, then I'll keep trying until I do.

THE CONTEST:

The Question: If you could give one person anything in the world, what would it be? Why?

The Rules:

Leave a comment below with your answer.
Must leave your name, and an email address for contact.
Be Creative.
One entry per person.
Deadline for entries is Friday, December 4th, 2009 at 10 AM.

Winner will be announced that weekend.

The prize is only open to entries from the Bay Area. Trust me, I wish I could travel all over.

But I'd still like to give something to those outside of the bay area, so I'll pick a second winner from afar and that person will receive a special prize :)

The Winner of the Contest wins a Free Photo-Session which includes:

1 to 1.5 hour session.

A disc of all high-res digital proofs including 10 images of your choice to be edited, and ready for printing.

And maybe a cupcake. Because I love cupcakes.

You can either win this session for yourself, or you can give it to someone as a gift this Christmas.

Because that is what we do, we give.

*Photos below are from Sunday.

Happy Tuesday! Happy December! and Happy Giving!

Through Chris' Eyes

We spent the day in the city shooting everything and anything. I love what I do, but I gotta say...I love it even more knowing that Chris is there shooting everything and anything with me. He used my old camera to shoot, and he handled it so well. Caressed it and worked it. Communicated with it. I'm so proud of him.

I'm also proud of myself for not getting frustrated at him while teaching

Today we were able to shoot with each other and just have fun. It was the best way to spend a beautiful Sunday.

I'll post my photos another time because I think Chris' photos deserve it's own post.

:)

These were touched up with my new Totally Rad Action set :) So glad they were on sale on Friday. I just had to get them.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have so much to be grateful for. Especially since so many things have happened to me this year.

I don't have much time to blog, but I just wanted to say that I'm thankful.

For the Lord, and for the people in my life.

My family, My friends, My Fiance, and everyone else. You know who you are.

I love you!

I'm also thankful for Turkeys. Though I'm not a big fan, I'm glad that everyone else has something to enjoy today!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

(I don't have any photos of Turkeys. So I googled it, and this is what I found! Ha!)

The Sweetest Thing

Oh Internet World. Let me tell you something, I am in-love. Absolutely positively happily foreverly everlastingly in-love with my fiance Chris. I'm sure the last two aren't really a word, but I'm so OCD that I had to keep the ly going or else I'd think something bad was going to happen.

I could go on and on and on about all the things I love about him. But let's just focus on one thing for now. And the one thing is...His never ending support, push, and willingness to share my passion with me.

After the photog shootout/dinner we had the night before the workshop, Chris sat me down and told me how excited he was to see me do what I love. The fact that he even came down there to be next to me and cheer me on that weekend was just up to my head amazing. I know I'm short, but just go with me on this ok? He constantly wants to be by my side, and constantly encourages me to keep on truckin. It makes my heart so happy.

But here is the best part. When we got back from our trip, he ordered the book understanding exposure to learn how to shoot. He wants to love it because I love it. Which makes me love him even more. On Sunday, I swear someone kidnapped me in my sleep and took me to funky town because I woke up feeling so funky. But then I saw Chris with camera in hand shooting flowers, my teddy bear from childhood (not!), and cars passing by. It made me so happy. So happy happy happy. Who knows? Maybe in the future, we will be a husband/wife photography team :)

Because a blizzog post is better with a photo, here is one of his shots. Awesome right?

The Jasmine Star Workshop

The Workshop. Oh, where do I even begin? Let's see. Hhm, If I could use a word to describe it, I'd definitely have to go with epicredibling. Yup, that's a word. I even spelled it correctly on the first try. Booyah! It's short for epic, incredible, and inspiring. But let's be honest, putting together those three words are not enough to fully describe what went down that day. Not enough. So here's a blog post for you ;)

The workshop was more than I could have ever asked for. I'm certain that I was at the happiest place on earth sans Mickey, Minnie, Rides, and the Fireworks. Doing what you love and spending the day with awesome people who love the same thing is better than Disneyland.

We started off the morning with warm welcomes from Jasmine, JD, and her mother Millie. I kid you not, the 3 of them are the kindest people you will ever meet. You can even ask Chris. He'll tell you the same and he wasn't even at the workshop. Once settled, Jasmine proceeded to share the story of how it all began. Everyone in the room had tears in their eyes. Not only did Jasmine share her heart, but she also shared her knowledge. She covered everything from client care, to post-processing, to lighting and use of natural reflectors, and branding. Anything I ever want to know, she covered.

After lunch, she took us out for a shoot. Ashley Rose and her husband were kind enough to model their beautiful faces for us in the heat. We went out at about 1PM and the lighting was harsh. But Jasmine took us out for a reason. To show us how we can use our surroundings as natural reflectors to get the photos we want, even with harsh lighting. During the shoot, we also had the chance to see how Jasmine interacts/poses her clients. It was so fun and refreshing to see how Jasmine works her camera and her clients. I stood back and I watched her do her thang. I learned so much just by watching and listening to her. After the shoot, we headed back and Jasmine shared her post-processing process. She ended the workshop with a Q&A session, and afterwards we all went to dinner.

I attended the workshop to learn and to better myself as a photographer. SO much I learned, but what resonates with me most is the importance of branding. When I got home, I made it a priority to change things up around here. Everyday, I've been searching and gathering inspiration. Change is in the air people. Look out for it. It might blow you away. Get it? Hahaha.

To sum it up, the experience was epicredibling. I am a firm believer that the Lord puts people in our lives for a reason. He doesn't give us the people we want, but rather the people we need to help us, to love us, to shape us in to the person we are to become. Jasmine is one of those people. And so are the 19 other photographers that I met and created a bond with that weekend. I walked away a better photographer, and a better person.

But what is a blog post without photos? During the shoot, Jasmine encouraged and challenged us to take our signature brand images. I shot a lot with the 85mm 1.2 I have never shot with this lens until the workshop. And I'm so glad that I did. I love the tight shots, I love the bokeh, I love it all. The 50mm 1.2 was also there by my side, and it never disappoints. My oh my, I love both of those glasses. Here are my gladys jem images.

Orange County has no doubt the best lighting in California. NO DOUBT! I'm moving down there.

Ashley is just gorgeous. And Jeff...He used to be an Abercrombie model.

Check out that bouquet! Isn't it beautiful? Lauryl Lane is the amazingness behind the florals.

Seriously, Ashley Rose. You are stunning! Vivian Tran of All Made Up is the goddess of Hair and Make-Up. I want her for my wedding.

I just had to post this last one. Makes me smile every time.

Jasmine and JD: Thank you for your kind hearts. You two are an everlasting inspiration to me. Every single second of that day meant more to me than you will ever know. Because of your inspiration, I've found my Joie De Vivre. Because of your workshop, I met 19 wonderful photographers/friends from all over the country and world. Forever, i'm inspired. I am so happy to know you both, and even happier that the workshop isn't the last time we will be together. Chris and I couldn't have chosen better people/photographers for the most important day of our lives. Thank you a million times. Xox!