One Camera. One Lens. One Photo a Day.

Ladera Sunset…

Playing at “Log Park” with Kate and Sparky, I made this image from the top of the jungle jim, keeping an eye on the kids as they were playing in the waning light.

We had a good time — it was just us today — Nicki joined her friends in Palm Springs for a much needed (and probably too short, for her) “Girls’ Weekend”.

While they were sipping wine, we were taking in this sunset and then later went out for dinner to Kate’s favorite (well, one of them) — Ruby’s.

Looking bigger than ever…

I marveled at how grown up he looks in this photo.

Where did that baby go?  It wasn’t all that long ago.

Kevin and Jennifer…

This portrait was made at their gorgeous home in Anaheim.  Other portraits made were of their three kids who varied in age from 8 to 19 and we had a lot of fun, and really great light (always a plus!).

Tessa’s Shadow…

This afternoon I had a portrait of this little one and her family.

I hadn’t photographed Tessa since she was about 18 months old — shocked at how much she has changed and grown since then.

I know, I say it all the time, but it’s so true.

When I first photographed her she was a gorgeous toddler with short curly hair, now she’s a gorgeous little girl with a long mane of straight hair and full of spunk.

And of course, this time of day makes for just some amazing light.

Green Balloon, Messy Face…

Nicki is probably going to be upset that I posted this one.

Firstly because Sparky is a mess.  He had a treat at the store (where he got his green balloon, chosen by Ann at Albertson’s to match his outfit), and his shirt is strewn with remnants of his morning meal.  And finally because of the cover over the couch, which we do whenever it’s just us in order to keep us from having to wash the white covers every third day.

Oh well, I loved his energy, his movement and his little smile.  This is who my little boy is at this time of his life and it’s all a part of it.

“Freeze”

Had we known this, Lori and I would probably have used it earlier to slow down her three super-charged boys:  Jake, Dylan and Ashton.

Actually, how they were was perfect and that we were able to turn them into statues in the sand after the sun went down, worked out just fine.

In fact, I couldn’t have asked for a better situation.  As I was working the session earlier, I kept trying to find a way to place their profiles against the sky or the sea, in order to create a silhouette.

As we were leaving, the highlights on the sand created just the right opportunity for the silhouette, and was even better than I could have hoped or planned.

Jack and Sandi’s Tree…

Who says we don’t have autmn here?

Well, compared to the mountains, midwest and east coast, we don’t, but in our neighbor we have a few pockets of roaring color, including this tree by our neighbor’s home.

While it doesn’t have the same feel as you find back in those places, it does give you a sense that fall has indeed arrived.

I had photographed the tree a day or two before in different light and it had a different feel; today’s more subdued sky worked as well.

Tavin with “Watts”

This afternoon I had a unique kind of family portrait session for Jason and Jodi and their kids.

This was an extended portrait session at their home and I made a casual portrait of the family in front of the home, but also spent time photographing Jason playing with the kids in the front yard, and later interviewing them on camera for a new kind of family portrait session blending moving images and stills with sound and music.

This portrait of Tavin was made near the end when it seemed the session was “over”.  Just goes to show that sometimes the best photos are made “before” the session starts and “after” it’s over.  There’s something that seems to happen.  People let down their guard even more, thinking that it’s over.

Watts is a new addition to the family and named so because he’s so excited.  But he was pretty subdued and enjoyed hanging out on the family couch, no doubt relishing his luck to be adopted by such a great family.

Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony…

turned out to be a great reason to get together with friends and the kids.

Here Kate chases her buddies, Max, Marlee and Mia after the tree lighting.

We barely made the ceremony, still walking up the street from Katie and Matt’s when they threw the switch and turned on the lights.

We stayed for a bit letting both of the kids run around and despite the late hour they ran themselves ragged.

Sparky meet Santa…

Well, we tried.

We weren’t exactly sure just how he would react when he saw Santa for the first time (well, he actually was photographed with Santa last year, but it almost doesn’t count since he was only 2 months old back then).

This reminds me so much of a photo I made of Kate with Santa, when she was almost a year old.  And they both reacted almost the same.

We didn’t leave him there long — he certainly didn’t settle down.

Oh well, I’m certain that in a couple of years he will be totally changed when he realizes just what Santa means.