headshots

on-trend • kyle austin • palos verdes estates, ca

fashion, headshots

My cousin’s son Kyle is an extraordinary young man (I can’t really call him a “kid” anymore since he is entering high school in a matter of days). For one, he’s a gorgeous creature. And two, he has demonstrated a penchant for style for as long as I can remember. I think he was three years old, when I found myself discussing with him what my future wedding dress might look like while we were having dinner one time. He suggested it be blue (which is amazing now that I recall it, because I did end up choosing a pale, pale blue dress!). He has always had a terrific sense of what to wear, without seeming overly affected (as we all know, that is very hard to achieve as a junior high-schooler). While I know most of us look back on our high-school days of fashion as fodder for jokes, Kyle might very well look back & see the seeds of creative genius. I’m banking on him being the youngest competitor on Project Runway! Few of us are ever so lucky as to have such an affinity & a vocation (literally a “calling”) so early. I just know that he’ll be making his mark in the world of style one day…And then I will never again have to wonder what to wear; I’ll just ask the guy who advised me about my bridal gown.

emily derenzis • actor • palos verdes estates, ca

headshots

It’s funny: When you become a mom & hang in a circle of other stay-at-home moms, you don’t always know what careers women had before motherhood. I met Emily through our mutual friend Loren, & I’ve gotten to catch up with her when we run into each other at Loren’s parties. And running around after our kids doesn’t always lend itself to conversations with beginnings, middles, & ends, so I never knew that, in addition to being an all-around hilarious, sexy, & intelligent woman & doting mom of two, she’s also an actor–a pursuit that she had taken time off from while growing her family. Well, now she’s set for a return, & new headshots are part of her new (fabulously gorgeous!) manifestation. She’s ready for her close-up, & I can’t wait to see her future projects! {Special thank you to Zoe Franklin for fantastic make-up!}

joanne choi • mom/food blogger • headshots • santa monica, ca

headshots

It’s hard to believe that Joanne & I have known each other since 1994! That was long ago, when we were both in the graduate teacher’s program at Stanford–before embarking our beloved careers teaching English, before finding Love & getting married, before becoming moms, & before starting second careers. And seeing her for the first time in a decade this last weekend was just like seeing family–we just fell right into step with each other, talking like not a minute had passed since our last face-to-face conversation (which was incidentally, probably very quick, since it was at her wedding!). We met up in Santa Monica, where she was visiting her brother & his family. I finally got to meet her three beautiful kids, which is like a glimpse into my future, because she also has two daughters & a son, a couple years ahead of me.

Joanne is a food blogger with her amazing Week of Menus. This is doubly impressive to me, because in addition to raising her three children while her hard-working hubby works far away, she is able to blog…about cooking. Do you realize that involves: 1) grocery shopping, 2) actually cooking, & 3) writing about cooking, & 4) taking pictures of what you’ve cooked! Anyone who knows me knows that cooking is as foreign to me as raising alpaca, shoeing horses, & learning Swahili. I just don’t have a knack for it–or any concept of how to begin. It’s an art, a language, a way of being–and I just never got the bug. Joanne has quite the following, & it’s easy to see why, because her writing is wonderful to read, & her recipes are delicious. I’m proud to say that recently one of her blog posts included a snippet of a conversation we were having over Facebook; too be included in one of her reflections is a true compliment!

One of my favorite things Joanne does is that she’ll ask her Facebook fans: What do you have in your fridge right now? And then she’ll give them ideas to create something yummy out of those ingredients! (If you think you could use that kind of Cooking Fairy Godmother, then find her on Facebook!)

Joanne also has a love for photography & is always so supportive of my work. It was a treat for me to be able to “play” & do some headshots for her. I can’t wait to shoot her whole family. And next time, hopefully a full-blown environmental portrait with her in action.

bob uslander, md • headshots • palos verdes estates, ca

headshots

Bob’s son & my daughters go to the same preschool, & I have so enjoyed getting to know their family. This last weekend, just before Bob & Sandy are relocating, we fit in a spirited headshot/portrait session. Bob already has some more formal headshots, but he was looking for something a little more organic, more relaxed. I love these two in particular, because I think they reflect his easy-going, positive, approachable personality. Bob is a doctor who helps other doctors find purpose & mastery in their work & in their lives…I think that’s about as high a purpose as anyone can have!