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!

Believe

While I waited for my white chocolate peppermint mocha, I browsed through the different drinkware and holiday collectibles that Starbucks had on display. Upon the excitement of seeing their cold to-go tumblers with candy cane straws, I stumbled upon a book. I have no idea what it's called. I forgot to look at the cover. I blame it on the candy cane straws for distracting me.

Anyways, one page particularly made me smile. It was...

(I took a photo of this page with my iPhone)

Believe.

The start to a better world is our belief that it is possible.

Believe in your dreams.

Believe in today.

Believe that you are loved.

Believe that you make a difference.

Believe we can build a better world.

Believe when others might not.

Believe that there's a light at the end of the tunnel.

Believe that you might be that light for someone.

Believe that the best is yet to be.

Believe in each other.

Believe in yourself.

I believe in you.

-Kobi Yamada

I hope that by blogging this, I am able to make someone out there smile. Because at the end of the day, you just have to believe in you :)

Happy Sunday!