Seriously, my friends ROCK!

Happy Friday everyone!

In my quest to build my portfolio, I've scheduled a couple more shoots! I've been constantly asking myself, "How can I find willing subjects? How can I beef up my goods? What can I do?"

Well, it's been a little tricky. I'm the only one amongst my friends who is engaged. In fact, besides three good friends, of which two live far away (one in NC and the other in France), none of my close friends have serious relationships. Scrap engagement photos.

My sister just moved to college. She and her friends are somewhat out of reach to get some senior photos in. Maybe when she comes back for Thanksgiving, I'll bribe her with free movie tickets...Ah sisterhood.



My dogs, Frieda and Walter, are usually willing subjects at the cost of a dog treat. But even they get over it pretty quickly. I have to trick them just to get them to look at me sometimes. They must think, "there goes our crazy owner with that big hunk of metal!"



So what's a girl to do? Go out on a limb and ask more people!

My biggest *clients* have been my coworkers. The best part of my workplace is the people, the pay is a totally different story. I really like the people I work with, so I'm going to hang on until after the wedding. (Need to fund that wedding plus photography stuff!) My first engagement shoot was for my former coworker Sylvia. I have an Anniversary shoot at the end of October for my rockstar coworker Elizabeth.

Guess what? Another coworker obliged my offer for some Anytime photos. Yay! Beth rocks my socks! (literally!) She's a champion knitter from Rhode Island. Seriously, she can knit a beanie or socks like nobody's business. It'll be a blast hanging out with her and her husband Phil, soon to be Dr. Phil. (As in Ph.D., not the talk show host).

And the biggy! My bridesmaid's sister is having a small, simple ceremony in a month and she asked if I'd be interested in photographing it. Is there any other answer other than "YES!" I'm really excited about it because it's a wedding and it's my bridesmaid's sister and it'll help expand my portfolio beyond just my friends and pets.

Have a great weekend! Going to play with my 85mm 1.8!

Wow, so I think I've come to a realization. I think and write with a lot of exclamations. If you've met me, you know that's not necessarily the case. Oh well, it's all the exciting stuff coming up!!

New Kids on the Who?

I was preparing my breakfast this morning - Cheerios with sliced bananas - when my dad asked me a question.

"Who are these guys?" He pointed to the front page of the Entertainment section. It was a full color photo of NKOTB! Also fondly remembered as the New Kids on the Block.

"Those are the New Kids on the Block," I said.

"The Backstreet Boys?" he asked.

So maybe he thought I meant it as an expression, like, "Oh those are the new kids on the block," and not as in a band. As a kid I was never really exposed to popular music. I hate to admit it, but as a 3rd and 4th grader, my exposure to the "cool kids" music consisted of a Barbie cassette and a Simpsons cassette. It was all I had in my trusty Walkman. I don't think I could have even identified an NKOTB song on the radio. I just heard the other girls at school talking about it. I would just smile and nod. I remember my classmate Janelle was obsessed with them. She had a young mom who let her listen to all kinds of popular music. I never thought I was missing out though. I was just ignorant to that type of music. It was always Oldies on 99.7 KFRC or soft rock on KOIT 96.5. Hey, I was a kid, what can you do when you sit in the back seat and have no control over the radio?!

Back to this morning.

"No," I said, "those are the New Kids on the Block, the original boy band" (of my generation).

He replied, "Oh you mean, Making the Band?"

Here he was not referencing the Diddy-fied Making the Band, but the original version back like 10 years ago, when they created the now-defunct, O-Town.

"No Dad, it's the New Kids on the Block, the boy band from the late 80's and early 90's. They were like the first boy band, before the Backstreet Boys and NSYNC. They are having a reunion tour." (It said that on the front page.)

"Oh I see," my dad said.

A funny conversation to start off the day. The really funny thing is that my dad is all up in the celebrity stories. He reads Page 2 to get all the day's gossip. Sometimes he hears stuff before I do. I guess it's because I was never a real fan of NKOTB, mostly due to sheer ignorance that they existed, that my dad, now twenty years later, has no idea who they are either.

My Wordle

I created this little word inspiration board on Wordle. It's a fun little application to feed in anything you want really. I just used my blog and these are the words it pulled:

Happy Wednesday!

**created at Wordle.**

Back to the Blog!

I spent this weekend with my fiance at our Engaged Encounter retreat out in Danville. It's hosted by the Diocese of Oakland and a preparation requirement to get married in the Catholic Church. We both went in without any assumptions or expectations, and happily had a great time. It's so nice to just get away from it all, work, wedding planning, stresses, and just focus on each other.

The weekend isn't about sharing your personal life with strangers; rather it's a unique opportunity to discuss questions and issues with your fiance(e), that perhaps haven't been discussed before. Although the weekend was intense and tiring (we had to be up by 7am), we walked away feeling closer to each other than ever before, plus we received a "Certificate of Completion" and feel that much more prepared for the plunge!

Even if you do not practice a religion, I believe that anyone who is considering or preparing for marriage would benefit from this type of program or marriage preparation. Communication is key. It's the key to a lasting relationship and union. Like their tagline says, "A Wedding is a Day...A Marriage is a Lifetime". This is so true. I'm so glad that we had the chance to address topics with each other now, instead of later on down the road. We laughed, we cried, we really connected.



I'm getting ready for a whirlwind next week. I'll be flying out to Boston for work next Monday and meeting up with my cousins and a photo shoot!

[b]eing a good citizen

So, on my usual morning Google Reader updates, I found Jessica Claire's post to be rather intriguing. I don't wish to make my blog a forum for political discussion, but rather a source of encouragement to do your civic duty. This is a huge election, with some serious measures on board. If you have an opinion, vote. If you care about the future of your kids, vote. If you care about the environment, vote. No matter what your issues are, where you stand in the political spectrum, make your voice heard, and VOTE!

Come on people. It's that time of year again. REGISTER to vote. Time's a wastin'.  Regardless of who you are or what you believe in, if you want to make a difference, you'll need to get off your butt and vote. So register.

Thanks to Jessica Claire for posting this on her blog.



Thanks! End of soapbox speech.

More Shoots!

I'm excited that I will get some good shooting time next month, which starts tomorrow! I'm really amped about building my portfolio even more!

I have a family shoot, my family in fact, in Boston in October when I'm out there on "real job" business. I'll be visiting my family that lives south of the Boston area. They are a family of eight, with six kids, five cats, and a dog! The oldest, my cousin closest in age, has set out on her own adventure in New York City, so sadly won't be able to get in on the family fun. I know she's having a blast out there though!

I will hopefully be assisting Jennifer Hosler of Candid Moments Photography mid-month. Jennifer graciously offered me the opportunity to tag along with her on a wedding. I'm really excited! It will be my first wedding, NOT as a guest. It's funny to write that since most photographers get excited about BEING a guest. Well, here's to getting my feet wet! (That's such a weird expression when you think about it.)

Finally, I have a First Anniversary shoot towards the end of the month. I have worked with Elizabeth for the last year and a half or so, and since the first time I had lunch with her, I knew that we would be good friends. I watched as she planned her own wedding, with various conversations about her dress, the reception, and getting it all together for her Sweetest Day wedding. She's been so great helping me with suggestions for my own wedding planning. She and her husband Andrew are going to Maine to for their first anniversary. I asked her if she'd be interested in some photos to celebrate their anniversary, and she said yes! It'll be some good fun!

October is going to be fab!

New Mustang in the house!

No, not the car. A Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Mustang! My sister just started her freshman year of college at Cal Poly SLO. She's the baby in the family (well, there's only two of us), but it was a pretty big deal to see her off to college. They grow up so fast! Cliche, but so true!



I remember when she just started Kindergarten. We are seven years apart, so I was already in 7th grade when she lugged her backpack that was bigger than her and walked to the Kindergarten line at our little Catholic school. I used to help her with her homework and we would watch the Disney Channel together.

When I got my driver's license, I became the chauffeur. This wasn't really a problem considering that I was so over taking the bus. I was ready to drive on the open road and picking up my little sister from school let me drive that much more!

I left for college in the Fall of 2001. Literally days after the 9/11 attacks. Even though we have a big age gap, we've always been close. When I moved down to San Diego, to UCSD, I think she was devastated. Like when your best friend moves away or when a favorite teacher changes schools. That I'm-totally-going-to-miss-you-but-we'll-call-everyday feeling. But we survived. She called me every night and it was so nice that she did. Even if I didn't talk to my parents all the time, I still had my little sister to see how I was doing.



When I graduated from UCSD, she had just finished her first year in high school. High school! I still remember her as the pipsqueak in Kindergarten. After college I moved back home, so we clicked back into normal routine.  Then she started driving and going to proms and getting a boyfriend. But our dynamic has always been there. We have a great time just hanging out, going to movies, or out to eat. She's grown up into a beautiful young lady, who's really good in science and math, and loves to cook. I'm so proud!



I don't think I ever really realized what it was like for her when I moved away. But I found out. I miss you, sis! It's not the same without her here. No sister to watch a lame movie with. No sister to satisfy the craving for In-N-Out. No sister to drag on a random shopping expedition. I can't wait for her to come back for Thanksgiving.



Of course she had the option of staying at home, but I told her to move away. Learn some independence. Learn to fly on her own. So while I'm sad she's not home all the time, I'm so proud of her! Go Mustangs! Go Cal Poly! I know she's going to have a great time. Go Steph!




The picture of us together is from December '07. I can't believe I couldn't find something more recent. I need to fix that!!