The Great Outdoors

Hiya folks! I took the weekend off two weekends ago for a family camping trip with dear friends of ours at Henry Cowell State Park in the Santa Cruz mountains. We figured we'd better go before it gets too cold this year. Gina, Jk, and I showed up last as the last minute to-do's pushed us way back into the evening, but we managed to get the tent up in the dark after some struggles. :-) But there's a very important fact I feel you must know: If we go camping, we go CAMPING. Nathan & Dawn and Sam & Ashleigh had some very cute little tents to keep snuggled in, but a couple of years ago we purchased the Steelman Family Tent, aka "The Ritz in the Woods". Man, did I forget the size of this baby! Our tent sleeps like a zillion people, has a ping pong table, pool, and an espresso machine! Hahaha, okay, so it's just big. I didn't really get a picture of the whole thing, but you can see that Jk found the doggy door, or whatever it was. He loved his own little entrance! Isn't he so freaking cute??We had a blast, despite the campground being under a red flag warning which means NO CAMPFIRE! (Can you believe that? Camping with no fire? augh.) My friends decided to do a very small fire for the girls and smores, because really, what is camping without any smores? Come to find out, if we would have been caught, the fine would have been around $600! (Can you see me smiling right now?)

After packin' up camp, we went down to the Roaring Railroads and snapped a few fun pictures. NOTE: THERE WAS NO IMMINENT DANGER WHEN CHILD WAS ON TRACKS! Just thought I'd let you know, just in case. Haha. Next time we're going on the train ride for sure. They had some type of harvest festival going on, where the kids could make scarecrows, fun silly hats, and what not. We ended this fun excursion with a tailgate party - Yes, we tailgated in the public parking lot with chairs and all, and devoured some mean delicious sandwiches and beverages made from grain, wheat, water etc...
It's a good thing to balance family time for sure, because at the end of the day, what is it that really matters? Who are you going to impress the most? Get out there and go camping. Or something else...and have fun!!

Happy Monday!

Yes folks, it's true...I am blogging! I seem to be in a cat and mouse game with the time monster, but I am on top of it today. I kid around saying that I need a personal assistant, but there is so much truth in it. Please don't get me wrong, my wife is one heck of a supermom, superwife, amazing, wonderous spectacular woman indeed, and a fantastic assistant in life, but I don't want to overload her or anything. :) haha. 

Anyway, back on track, in the attempt to post recent photographs, here is a senior portrait session I did for Jessica. She's the daughter of one of my early-on wedding clients and now dear friends. I love it when it comes full circle. To be the family's photographer is such a title that I do not take for granted. I've said it before and I'll say it again, what an honor. Go ahead, check 'em out. 

Lots Goin On!

Happy Friday to you! Last weekend I got the privilege to photograph Taylor & Dan's wedding at Chaminade in Santa Cruz, and am excited to share some images with you...more to come, but here's a sneak peak! I'm taking the weekend off to go camping with my family, and am stoked to be able to spend time with them. We're going somewhere in the Santa Cruz mountains, and may or may not get cell reception. But, know that I'll be checking messages here and there, and will definitely get back to you if you're trying to get a hold of me. I look forward to a refreshing and re-energizing time with my wife and son, and close friends! God Bless, and enjoy your weekend!

Taylor & Dan!

I'm ba-aack! Okay everyone, the long lost blogger has returned from lala land trying to catch up! :) I had the privilege of photographing Taylor & Dan's engagement last weekend, just in time for their wedding this coming Saturday. These two are so cute together...The connection between them is amazing, and it's a pleasure to capture those special moments! We met earlier this year, and I can't beieve how fast time has flown by. I'm really looking forward to their wedding at Chaminade in Santa Cruz, and also a creative bridal session after. For now, check out some of their beauty together...















These shots were taken in Monterey and shot on the cooler side to grasp the raw feeling of the rustic walls and such, yet warm enough to accentuate the lovebirds. Hope you enjoyed!

To my faithful and awesome blogaholics: THANK YOU for following me! Last week I was out of town at Pictage's PartnerCon conference and a quick trip to San Diego, and am back in town trying to put together a new and improved office studio. We moved spaces, and as many of you can attest, moving sucks. But, the ultimate outcome is wonderful! (or will be). I can't wait to share new pics when we are done, so just hang on there. First things first: A beautiful wedding in Pebble Beach this weekend followed by Senior Portraits...and then back to creating the experience at the MSP studio.

I do try to post an image here and there (haha), so here is a funny shot of my fantastic son JK. Yeah, it's a little weird, but we all have weird sides, right? :)

Thanks again, and I look forward to sharing this life with you!!

Total Truth Tour

Some of the best genuine people around! (poor iPhone pic, sorry!) Robert Evans, Sarah France, Carlos Baez, Me Ra Koh, & Dane Sanders. All of these industry leaders opened up to share their tips and beliefs from being authentic and real to practical things like digital workflow. If you're a photographer, be sure to go to www.fasttrackphotographer.com and www.photographymentor.com to learn more. After a long and sometimes fast motorcycle ride down to SoCal, this was a great way to kick off tomorrow's conference here in Los Angeles. :)

Christine's Senior Portraits

Here is Christine, one of our awesome family friends and fantastic babysitter. She is graduating this year, and honored me with the opportunity to photograph her senior portraits. She wanted something traditional, yet not quite the same as every one else. Our approach was quite simple, really. Let's leave my studio and take a walk around several blocks here in downtown Monterey...and see what we come up with! We had fun, and her mom did too. It was refreshing for her mom to see us in action, a far cry from the traditional studio portraiture and posing. I really like to do my best to capture the essence of my clients, and not make them look like something that they're not. That's my style. Real. :)









I'm off to Los Angeles first thing tomorrow morning for a photographer conference with my partnered photo lab Pictage and will be gone for nearly a week. I'm also going down to San Diego to see some friends and make some new ones. All of this on my motorcycle...how am I going to transport my dry cleaned shirts? haha... I wish you all a great week, and look forward to random blog posts from my iphone. (I won't have my computer, but I'll survive I think.)

Daddy Day break at Starbucks

Jk likes his apple juice!