After a much too long break from shooting, Kevin Le Vu, Jessie Valdivia and I, met up in Downtown Fullerton where we joined Brittany and Mike for their engagement session on what was an absolutely beautiful day.  And after Saturday’s rain it was a wonder, but that’s Socal for ya, and I gotta say, I was loving every minute of the sun’s rays.

Mike and Brittany are a young couple, going to be married later this year and it’s always so captivating getting to know two people from naught and for however long we’re with them, we get to see a little snapshot of their lives, how they met, the love that flows from their eyes; it’s really quite sweet.

Anyway, it was clear from the beginning that the next three hours were going to be easy with these two.  They were perfectly willing to get down and dirty with us during this shoot and I’ve gotta say, that this so far, has been the most physical of our shoots to date.  But no worries, with my new boots, (that I proudly got on sale) I was well equipped for any weeds, barbed wire or slippery slope that came my way.   And I always love the end of shooting when the sun is just about to disappear and its light illuminates everything with such a look that it can only be captured in that moment and then it’s gone till tomorrow.

As I was editing these photos, I noticed that I took much more vertical shots than anything, which I really didn’t realize while I was shooting.  So when posting I had to pick two pictures that would pair nicely to each other or so I thought.  As you guys scroll down, lemme know what your opinions are—professional or not, how you would pair two pictures together.  All in all: great weather—great couple—great company.  I even ended the day with fresh baked cookies and a hot cup of coffee…now how ‘bout that.

Today was a pretty good day.  Winding down my weekend with the family, Valentine’s Day offered flowers from my Dad and very sweet letter and a very sweet cookie cake from Kevin.  Kayden even got a new sweater, and then gave me the stink eye, which was hilarious. Anyway, I hope that everyone had themselves a fun and loving Valentine’s Day.

Today I woke up at 6:30am on a Saturday just so I could race back to my home of homes.  Taking Kayden with me, it was easy ride with easy music, and an hour and half up to my hometown, Palmdale.  Coming home usually begins with washing my car, lots of food, and disney movies.  I’ll be missing Kevin this weekend, but fortunately I had a chance to take the camera and do some family time shots in our very own backyard. Here’s a few of my favorites.  Good things!

The first wedding of this season was Mr. and Mrs. Mark and Ridi Pok, a young couple from Norwalk, who celebrated their vows to each other in the old fashioned way. Surrounded by the same structures and people they loved in the city where they grew up, I assisted Kevin Le Vu and Jessie in this rich and diverse marriage. From beginning to end this wedding was a event to behold; it even gave us a chance to utilize our photo booth, (which was more like a chaos booth) where wedding guests young and old could let their hair down and be crazy for a moment before returning the beautiful cultural festivities of the evening.

That day I concentrated on the details and the ceremony of this wedding. The photo booth was a chance for me to work with some studio lighting, without the help of a straight on camera flash, which could’ve helped in the shots with a huge groups, but nonetheless, I think the effect was achieved: let it all hang out, have fun and please stop asking me to make you look good–you do that all by yourself. Good things!

Actually Kevin and I don’t drink anymore, but I still wear his ‘key to my heart’ for special occasions.  I’ve held onto the packaging and the corks for some time and didn’t know how I was going to showcase them, until now–how fitting.  I don’t even remember what month we were in our relationship when he gave this to me, but it was pretty early I believe… How weird that it didn’t feel weird.  I remember that everything was fast with us, but at the same time completely natural.

These shots were kinda left over and weren’t strong enough to stand on their own, so I lined them up in a collage which works much better.

These guys drive me crazy! One’s always crying while one’s always whiney. But that’s our boys and they’re hilarious and cute to make up for it. It’s really nice that they’ve finally grown on each other and are true “brothers” now.

Lately I’ve been feeling quite reminiscent.  A year ago I was trying to establish myself in Orange County and still going to school.  A year ago I met Kevin in my Asian American Studies class and not until the end of the semester did we start talking.  I was totally clueless, even when he wanted to sit in with me during my Political Science class that lasted a painful three hours.  And a year ago I knew I had found my partner in life as I walked up the stairs to find a candle lit room, the most beautiful cake I’d ever seen and a serenading suitor…

And so began a love and partnership that flourishes in and between all the aspects of our lives both separate and together.  I thank you, my dear, from the bottom of my heart.

It’s almost the end of January and thank God it’s starting to warm up.  After a long week of full time work I was more than happy to get outdoors and start shooting.  Kevin and I had a blast running around down here, and despite hidden doggie surprises we made the best of this water reservoir and had ourselves a little photo shoot of our own.

Today Josh Yu and I assisted Kevin Le Vu Photography shooting one of his clients in a very sunny Santa Monica after a slew of crazy storms just the week before. And apparently everyone is a photographer here. Despite the common place we found our niche in some seemingly uncommon spots that made Santa Monica unique in a less obvious sort of way. And I guess that’s the job of a photographer, every location is beautiful, or rather, every location can be made beautiful—if you have the eye for it. What a concept that is…

These guys were great sports.  We headed down the street to our very own Old Towne Yorba Linda for some old fashioned shots with fellow shooter Jessie.  Kevin was there to assist us as we made our way through run down houses, off limits locations and stagnant trains.  Last year we went on a trip up north with these two which was great fun, so it was good times hanging out with them again in the new year.  God bless Ali for wearing that in what felt like 50 degree weather.