beach memories • the mallia family • manhattan beach, ca

beach, little ones, outdoors, we are family

I have had the wonderful chance to get connected with Amy & Joe Mallia through my husband & the awesomeness that is the CrossFit community. The Mallias have three gorgeous girls, & we love looking into our future a bit & seeing how a dynamic couple manages two careers plus parenting. It was a bittersweet portrait session with them & their extended family in Manhattan Beach; the Mallia family is off to new adventures on the East Coast! Hopefully these pictures will help them remember their home by the beach…& bring them back for visits soon! Here’s to new journeys & the gift of love & family…

mashawnta & razzaaq • a real engagement session • los angeles

engagements

I’ve been working on this post for the last couple weeks, because this session was made truly special by Razzaaq, the man who contacted me via a mutual friend (thanks, Dina!) to set up a portrait session for himself & the woman that he loves. I’ve been dying to share these pictures, & I wanted to make sure that I could tell the story of what unfolded during our session with the kind of cinematic drama & aesthetic beauty that would do this director-designer couple justice.

So our session began as a fun, fashion-y shoot–as planned by Razzaaq, to take into consideration Mashawnta’s taste for style & architecture. She is the producer of her own magazine, MASH. And Razzaaq carefully chose our location, knowing that its urban, industrial feel would be loved by Mash, because of her native Detroit sensibilities.

Scroll on through…you’ll see: mid-shoot it became a REAL engagement session…!!

thanks • the hsieh sisters & families • pacific palisades, ca

holidays, little ones, we are family

The last time I photographed Yvonne & Elaine & their families was two years ago. I was preparing myself for how much the kids must have grown since then, but I still couldn’t believe it when I saw them! Shae was still in grade school last time, but now he’s halfway through eighth grade (which makes him closer to being a high-schooler!). And little sister Mia is that blossom of a girl who is just super into soccer & probably has no idea how gorgeous a young lady she’s become. But they’re both still kids enough that snuggling Mom, Elaine, is still cool—which was the most endearing thing to see. And Yvonne’s oldest, Sonia, was just a baby a couple years ago; not so this year! She’s definitely the big girl-older sister to little Tessa, whose little teeth just made the best smile! Here’s to sisterhood, cousins, & being together for the holidays!

rain & shine • the byars family • palos verdes estates, ca

little ones, Uncategorized, we are family

I had a late afternoon session scheduled with the Byars family, & was grumbling to myself about the forecasted rain that had gotten heavier & heavier that day. But I love shooting in the plaza near my home, because it’s got old-world beauty & covered walkways, shielding us from any rare inclement weather. The Byars showed up after an already full day, all dressed & excited, & ready to go despite the wet weather. They were having a great time snuggling each other, dancing, & racing–& at the tail end of our session, I learned never to mistrust Mother Nature: The clouds split open & the most golden of golden lights radiated toward us, reflected on the wet ground. I couldn’t have planned for prettier light! And I thought, what a great symbol for Janis, who is so positive. She is always able to see the silver lining, always has a smile & an upbeat energy. She’s an elementary school teacher—& boy, are her students lucky to have her! The only luckier ones are her wonderful husband Brad (who just rebuilt their whole kitchen with his own two hands!), sweet, spunky Amy (who is really into dancing right now), & gentle, fun Ethan (who is a total lovebug). And would you believe it—we got to see a huge rainbow at the end of our session!