{Mr. & Mrs. Neville}

First off can I just say that I love destination weddings! Sometimes I cheat on my love for photography with my love of travel. So when the two loves collide, which they often do, it is like pure bliss. In this case Tripp (he’s a William Neville III) and Brooke were married just outside of Boston in a little town called Duxbury. Duxbury has a similar feel to the Cape and is only about a 30 minute drive from there. The streets of Duxbury are lined with amazing houses that are just oozing character and history. Tripp and Brooke’s parents both have houses on the water where there is just a calm sea that quietly crashes up on the shore. The town is just so peaceful. The beaches are beautiful and many of them have these great green tall fields of grass on the sand. I was able to photograph Brooke in front of this fantastic willow tree by her parents’ house. I wish we had more trees like that one in OC. Tripp and Brooke said their vows at a park that overlooks the bay. Then we headed over to have the reception at a venue that is actually an old house. It was a small quaint wedding filled with close family and friends. Brooke and her mom worked so hard to put this wedding together in just a couple of months! Be sure to check out Brooke’s flowers. She wrapped them in natural rope and then put them in vases. She pulled the idea after seeing a photo of another one of my bride’s bouquets and then she put her own twist on it. I love it when my bride’s inspire one another! To say the least it was a wonderful wedding and I always love a trip to one of my favorite cities, Boston. It was a pleasure photographing you Tripp and Brooke!

{Greg & Colette E-Session}

I love shooting in new places and I had the opportunity to do that with Greg and Colette. We did their engagement session in Santa Barbara. It was such a beautiful day which we filled with plenty of laughs, good conversation and fabulous photos. Greg and Colette are a hoot and holler to be around. They are hilarious and together I seriously think they could conquer the world! We spent part of the day up at Westmont College, where Greg and Colette met and became good friends. It wasn’t until after college that just being friends wasn’t cutting it anymore. So naturally they fell in love. If you have not been to Westmont you should know that it has a beautiful campus with neat earthy feel with lots of tall trees. They actually had this area with strings of hanging pine cones. I was a little obsessed with these (poor Greg, I think he thought I was crazy!). After spending time on campus we grabbed smoothies from one of Greg and Colette’s favorite places and then we headed to the beach for just a few quick photos. I really enjoyed this shoot. I was able to really get to know Greg and Colette much better and we just had a ton of fun together. Engagement shoots are so important because they don’t just serve the purpose of photos but the e-session really gives me a chance to get to know the bride and groom and they get to know me. E-sessions also give the bride and groom a chance to see how I shoot and how we will be working together at the wedding. It’s an ice breaker and a great warm up before the wedding!

I'm pretty sure God is just as humorous as we are :)

{The McKee Family}

This past family shoot was so much fun. I have to say this now (before I forget), Rachel’s kids are the first kids under the age of 5 that did not drop a single tear or commit an act of frustration through the entire shoot!! LOL I was so impressed by them. They were upbeat and loved the camera, not to say most of the kids I photograph don’t. But usually within a 1-2 hour shoot the little guys get “over it”. So round of applause to you McKee family! Rachel brought this really neat old chair that we incorporated into the shoot to set a homey atmosphere out in nature. We also used a sweet little chair that Kaeylin sat on which was Jeremy’s (their Dad) chair when he was a kid. I love using props or other creative extras that have meaning to my clients. Rachel and Jeremy brought along Rachel’s brother and Mom as well and it was really fun to have the whole family there. It was a fun shoot guys, thanks again for being amazing!!

This is one of my fav shots of the day!! Poor little guy kept getting gnats flying by him and he got one on his nose so he kept blowing air from his nose to get them out (it was so cute)! Here Mom and Dad are doing it with him and sweet little Kaelyn is looking right at me :)

{Calvary Senior Girls}

{Calvary Senior Girls}

This shoot was just before summer so I am quite late on this blog post (sorry!) but none the less I wanted to put some photos up these fabulous girls. My cousin leads a Bible study for a group of then high school seniors and now officially college freshmen. These young ladies were so fun to be around. Their young energy and enthusiasm was ultimately contagious! Seeing these ladies and hearing about their plans for college and their future kind of made me miss my high school days. I went to high school at Villa Park. I feel like I was just as busy then as I am now. I filled my high school days with high school and club soccer and volleyball. I was also on ASB and was the president of the Associated Women Students club. Between dances, football games and just hanging with friends on the weekend I was a very happy girl. As I have mentioned in past posts I am confident to say that I have the best friends ever. There is a group of us from high school that still has dinner, weekend runs to Palm Springs and Vegas and enjoys the occasional cocktail and piano bar night out. We have such a special bond and it is so neat to see such long friendships continue throughout the changes and chapters of our lives. I am so excited for these amazing young women that are just starting out on their newest adventure! Good luck ladies!