Rodrigo's Engagment...

As I eluded to yesterday . .I had the pleasure of taking part in the sweetest photo shoot. Rodrigo contacted me about 6 weeks ago and asked me to photograph the moment he proposed to his sweet Emily!! I of course jumped at the chance... how often do you get to have a front row seat to a moment like that...

But man I must admit I was a bit nervous ... you only get one chance to catch that moment ... I was shaking (seriously) ...partly because I was nervous for Rodrigo . . .and partly because I was nervous for myself... Do you know how hard it is to hold a 200 mm lens steady when you are excited and nervous and shaking all at the same time... luckily all went well . . SHE SAID YES. . . and the pictures turned out adorably sweet and touching.

A note to all you men out there... take a lesson from Rodrigo... notice the knee... the smiles... and of course the ring (nice job buddy.. and without any help no less) ... and how smart to hire a photographer to capture that once in a lifetime moment!!

Congratulations you two . . .I truly feel honored that you would allow me to share in that moment!!
I don't even have to ask how the rest of your weekend went. . . I'm sure you were both on cloud 9

Love,
A

Just check out the slide show and you can see the play by play...

Click here for Slide Show

My Birthday... 2nd Annual 30th... 1920's style

Okay... so during my one month hiatus from my blog last month . .I did have a lot going on.. but to be honest I've been waiting for friends to give me pics . . . guess that's what happens when the photographer leaves her camera at home for once...
So back in mid-October I celebrated my 2nd Annual 30th birthday... not because I have some issue with being 31 (that came the following week when I found my first grey hair-did I really just share that--yikes)... but because last year I threw a wonderful and amazing 30th Murder Mystery party on the island but seeing that it was on an island in northern Michigan most of my California family couldn't make it. SO this year I decided to do it again . . . only Cali style...

It was an awesome night of Murder Mystery and Mayhem ... with a lot of laughter thrown in. We had Chief Carl the cross dressing chief of police. .. Drama Tessa . . .actually Drama Kevin the very "manly" looking Flapper... there were gangs of mobsters. . . groups of scandalous flappers... all visiting . .. my ("Rosie Marie's") little known speakeasy... The Juice Joint

It was an amazing night that I will never forget... and will always hold dear to my heart... thank you to all of you who came!! (now send me those darn pictures) ;)

To all the people in my life... those that made it to the first round... and those who were there for the second annual... you all create my life... you support me, love me, help me. . . and even scold me when I need it. . . and for all these things I love you forever . .. you all make me who I am. And for that I am forever thankful!

Love,
A

(And to Aubrei . . . it's sad that you posted this before I did... and even worse that I stole your collage off your blog (check it out it's pretty great) . . so THANK YOU . . .and again . . .where are my pics?

Oh and I must pay special props to Felicia & Matt... the night wold not have been able to happen without Bougainvillea and Statemynt!!! You guys rock!!

The Knot Magazine...

Oh my goodness. . .I can't believe I forgot to mention that The Knot just recently contacted me and will be featuring one of my weddings "Sara & Dan" in one of their upcoming issues and on their website

I am sooo excited... I've always had The Knot as one of my goals. It's funny that the minute you reach one goal you take about a day to celebrate... WOOO HOOO... then it's on to the next. . . guess that's what keeps us all moving forward.

The spread will be featuring Sara and Dan. They are such an amazing couple. They were married this past July at the St. Anne's Church and the Inn at Stonecliffe on Mackinac. I'll let you know when it hits the newstands!!

Hope you are all having a beautiful weekend!! I know I am, 75 degrees and sunny... friends visiting from out of town... and an AWESOME and unique shoot today (just wait. .. you'll hear about it tomorrow)

May you all feel the thrill of attaining a goal . . .and start reaching for the next!!

Love,
A

Tea Fire Aftermath...

So one week ago the "Tea Fire" came barreling over the hills surrounding Santa Barbara.

I went out yesterday to shoot some of the devastation... what I realized... there is a reason I am a wedding photographer. I couldn't bring myself to shoot images of someone else's heartbreak... what right do I have to make art out of some else's pain when I can go home to my house which was untouched and my office (which was close . . .sooo close . . . 400 feet close) but still untouched. My heart ached for these neighbors as they stood in the middle of a pile of rubble which once was their home. I drove up one street and was shocked by the indiscriminate path the fire took... one house would be burned to the ground... and the next door neighbors' untouched.

I was also moved by the sense of camaraderie on the streets. . .as I stood on a eerily quite ledge photographing the canyon... a truck stopped and with a heavy heart asked what my relation to the fire was... turns out he had built most of the homes in the area and was driving to see how many were detstroyed... his eyes teared up as he told me his very favorite was now just a chimney and ash. As I drove down a street that was once a normal neighborhood I saw people helping out everywhere. . .I saw a group of kids sitting on a sidewalk taking a break from helping a teacher pick up the pieces. It was these images that I couldn't photograph but will forever be etched in my mind.

I think yesterday just solidified more that I will stick to the happy moments in peoples' lives. . . the joy, the laughter, the moments that people really want to have captured. The images that in times of sorrow can serve as a reminder of what's important in life... the joy they once felt and will most likely feel again.

Love,
A

(here are just a few images... they really don't it justice this is just the sight... but there was also the the warmth of the air, the smell of the smoke... the sound of the firetrucks all still hanging on in the area from last week...

Tea Fire...

So, I know . . . again I have been a slacker with the blogging but it's been one of those times when it's been insanely crazy and yet not at the same time (and to be honest I have had complete writers block)... But the last couple days have been a little different. For those of you that haven't heard we've been having a wildfire burn across Santa Barbara. Luckily now it seems to be contained... but for a little bit there it was definitely touch and go.

Thursday night around 6pm I was getting ready to leave my office in Montecito and walked out to a wall of flames. I must say, being a mid-west girl with lack of fire knowledge except for "stop drop and roll", I had NEVER experienced such a thing. To make a long story short, after a very long and somewhat emotional night of being glued to a friends TV (our power was out)... I was sure the office was gone along with a very close friend's home. At that point I felt such sadness and emotion for a place that was not even mine that I couldn't imagine what the 100's of people who have lost their homes must be going through right now.... or even worse for those that still don't know if their house is standing.

Luckily as the smoke cleared Friday morning, my office and friend's place was still standing. That day I became a little rebellious and cross the evacuation line to stand on the roof in the heart of the evacutation zone to try and capture what was occuring. My pictures don't due justice. I did however capture the helicopters and fire crew dropping water in preparation for what could have been another long night. It was quite surreal to be so close to such destruction.

I realize that this was not the largest fire this year, but it was the closest to my heart and I can now truely understand the rollercoaster of emations and thoughts that can run through one's mind in such a time.

To all those who have lost their homes my heart truly goes out to you... and to all the firefighters, and police... you have been doing an AMAZING job. I am so proud of our community and the emergency system they have in place.

I have truly had my eyes opened to the indiscriminate power of this type of disaster.

May all of you be safe and happy . . . and appreciative for everything and everyone you have in your lives. . . I know I am today!!

Love,
A

Also, my thoughts and prayers are with all those in LA who are currently fighting more fires and more winds.

Codie's Senior Pics .. Island Style

This past weekend I had so much fun shooting Codie's senior pics with her mom Marie. It's amazing the different backgrounds you can find within a Mackinac Island block. They were so cute together. . . you can tell by her laughter. . . how much fun she has laughing . . .with (or at) her mom...

Congrats Codie. . . and it was so fun to meet you. I wish we could have had more time. . . darn those boat schedules...

Good luck with V-ball!!

Love,
A
BTW... who would of thought it would look like a summer day in the middle of October!!

A Dream Destination...

It was an amazing weekend. The M.I. Tourism Bureau held it's 3rd annual Dream Destination Wedding Weekend. This is unlike any wedding expo. It gives each couple the opportunity to see every venue for themselves and meet every vendor face to face. How many destination locations offer that as an option? It makes planning a destination wedding so much easier.

I had such a blast... I met so many amazing people. I hope they all make it back to the island for their weddings. I get so stoked talking about wedding photography . . .that I may have talked a few people's ears off. . .Well, At least they got these cute little boxes that contained a Mackinac photo book I made & personalized mm's how cool is that... check it out anyone can do it... my m&m's

Registration took place at Mission Church . . . just check this pic out. . . . how cool does it look all lit up at night... so fallish ... the church is so historic that it doesn't have any electric lights inside, so they brought in construction lights to light it for the event... (not to mention in the daylight it is a GORGEOUS place to get married)



Thanks to all the brides, grooms, families, friends and vendors for attending this year. . . and a very special thank you to the tourism bureau for doing such an amazing job at putting it all together!!

Good luck with all the planning!!

Love,
A

BTW. . . if you happened to make it this past weekend leave me a comment.. say hello and let me know your favorite part of the weekend... was it the reception at MP, the cake tastings all day long, the gobs of information, the horses. . . or that pub crawl you decided to do late Satuday night . . . ;)

Amy & Michael... An International Love Affair

(Above . . . some well traveled shoes)

Well, I must say this was one of the hardest couple to keep track of. . . I met Amy and Michael last year at the Dream Destination Wedding Weekend on Mackinac (location #1)... then we chatted and discovered we lived just a few hours away in Cali (location #2) . . . as we spoke more, I discovered Michael is from Australia. . .and they split their time there as well (location #3) . . .and now the kicker. . . over the past year as the three of us would email back and forth I came to realize that most of the time they were in Asia (location #4) . . pheewww. . .and I thought I traveled a lot...

And that was just the beginning. . . I could go on for hours about this couple, their wedding, their guests. . . everything... but I'll try and keep it short... To sum it up Amy and Michael along with Cameron and Matthew ("the boys") ... truly created an amazing family. I feel blessed to have been such a part of it.

As you can tell I love details, . . but when the details are meaningful and closely connected to the heart as they were that day... the love shines through even brighter (and I get even more teary eyed). Amy and Michael used this beautiful day to honor not only each other but their families, their friends, their ancestors and their traditions. It was truly inspiring!

Click here for the slide show

Okay . . .last thing. . .I MUST pay props to the wonderful team of vendors that pulled this event together.

The cake. . . by the AMAZING and talented Bella e Dolce

The flowers . . . by the talented Weber's Floral and Gifts

The event planner. . . Carole Erbel (For the Love of Mackinac) . . . words cannot even come close to express my appreciation for this woman's talent and skill

and. . . a very very very special thank you . . to my AWESOME assistant Britain... (there is no way I could have done this without you)... you rock!! (just look at her with the camera... you go girl)

Love, A