High Gloss Article: My work in "print"

I'm so pleased to announce that my photography is featured in this month's High Gloss Magazine!  I shot the article for designer and friend, Emily Ruddo, a few months back and am thrilled to see the final product.  The entire project was fantastic and you can see even more of Emily's work (and my photography!) on her site.  Emily, is a fabulous and talented designer that I met last year and have worked with ever since.  She has an amazing eye and I adore her playful, yet elegant use of color and pattern.  


Seeing the magazine today has been thrilling and I'm so excited to share it with everyone I know.  What's even more fabulous, is that my mentor and business partner, Grey Crawford, has his work featured in the article directly before mine.  So, please check out my photos in the HG article on page 55 & let me know your thoughts. What an amazing day!  Enjoy!

Flowers in Frazier Park

As my mom and I pulled off the 5 Freeway, we found ourselves in a town that I have often passed on my way to SF and wondered, "who the hell lives here??".  With a Prius full of flowers, three sets of sheers and more than enough ribbon, tulle, and pins for an ballerina stampede, we headed into the desert unsure of where we were going to find ourselves.  The ranch where we ended up was spectacular.  Heather, my mom's friend who is also an artist, was marrying her long time sweet heart on her parent's ranch.  My sweet mom volunteered to do all the flowers to keep costs low.  Now, it's important to know that my mom is not a florist.  And while I style flowers on photo shoots, a wedding bouquet and centerpieces are a totally different story.  To keep in line with the DIY theme and ranch feel, Heather's family had been collecting jars all year to use as centerpieces.  The different colored glass in various sizes looked amazing with the wildflower bouquets.  They added the perfect amount of color and happiness to the desert on a fabulous day. So while we didn't come entirely prepared for how much work we were taking on, with the help of a few innocent bystanders and a lot of running around, we definitely added to the transformation of the ranch.  Congrats D + H!!

I Paid to Take a Nap….

I know, I can't believe it either…

On Saturday I met some girlfriends at a bath house in Korea Town…and it was quite the experience.  First off, there was a lot of nakedness in this place.  When I walked in, I was beyond shocked by the lack of shyness and went from a nervous partaker to eventually sitting naked on a plastic stool with Korean grandmas sitting on either side of me.  Everyone was sitting around a trough of water, scrubbing down their skin with a mitt and pouring buckets of water on their heads.  No one seemed to care about how they looked, if anyone was watching, or what their bodies looked like…as an American woman bombarded by images of "perfect" women in the media, the whole experience was completely and wholly healing. A few times throughout the day I actually had to remind myself that I was in the United States and not on some trip in Asia.  Honestly, I feel so lucky to live in LA and experience so many different cultures without leaving a 30 mile radius - it's pretty astonishing.

So, after the scrub down and tea baths, my friends and I took a break from our exhausting day (insert dripping sarcastic overtone here), and so, we did what seemed normal, and took a nap.  Yep, you read that right, in our paper thin robes, on a heated marble platform floor, we grabbed some blankets and head rests and passed out in a room with 15 strangers.  Basically, we had nap time just like you remember from Kindergarten…and it was blissful!  It was the end to a perfect day of relaxation, acceptance, and completely new experiences.  I mean, honestly, who can resist nap time?

If you're curious about this amazing bath house experience, check them out:

http://olympicspala.com/

Cooking for Pops

Father's Day with my family wouldn't be complete without cooking.  In fact, most occasions with my family are completely centered around what's happening in the kitchen.  This year we took to the bbq and created a mini feast…While I didn't end up photographing much since I was helping (wo)man the grill, I was able to snap a few shots of some of my favorite items.

The biggest problem with photographing food around my family is that no one wants to wait for me to finish with the photos.  They are constantly trying to snatch up whatever hot food is around because we are a family of vultures.  We descend upon everything edible and basically hoover it down and continue on with bizarre and fact filled banter.  It's always an evening to remember...

stuffed jalapenos the healthy way…

we scooped the peppers and stuffed them with goat cheese and blue cheese.  

*Beware* these were legit!  Super hot and delicious!!

a scrumptious appetizer made by our friend Shanti…

paired perfectly with her homemade spicy mint chutney

grilled veggies to pair with…everything!

Costa Rican Dreams: A Peak Inside our killer condo

I cannot believe that it's been 3 months since I was in Costa Rica with my friends and all I can say is…WOW.  How is it possible for time to literally fly by?  I am a little shocked by the fact that it is already summer and I'm just now finding time to retouch the photos of the condo we stayed at in Manuel Antonio.  I mean, how could I go on vacation and not take photos of the place we stayed?!  But what's worse is that it took me forever to post them!  So, these are all shot without a tripod.  Because I didn't drag lights down to CR, there are two photos that I shot handheld and put together as a composite in photoshop.  As you can see, the condo was beautiful, but what made this place spectacular was the view…unreal.
So, here are a few of the shots I took of the condo that we fell in LOVE with the second we walked in...

Want to stay here??  We had the best in Manuel Antonio - such a gorgeous spot in the world…

Check out their vrbo site for availability - http://www.vrbo.com/167354 

Portraits a la Playa: Part 1

My good friend Jaymi and I were goofing off after a very satisfying Memorial Day BBQ and found ourselves striking a pose at the beach near the pier in Santa Monica.  She has posted some fabulous photos this week on her blog, Live Love Travel, and I thought I should post some of my favorites from behind my lens.  I always have so much fun shooting with her & it was fantastic photographing her while the light fell across her face…

I am actually falling in love with California more and more as I've moved back...the light quality here is so different than the midwest.  There's a warmth that I missed. During the magic hour, while the sun waits to set, I'm completely content with my camera and any subject that will let me photograph them.
Trying to capture that warmth is the least I can do….

I love how contemplative she looks while setting up her perfect shot

the way every good day should end - with jumping...

Want to check out Jaymi's blog?  http://jaymiblog.blogspot.com/