New Year 2016 Resolutions {San Diego Wedding Photographer}

Gosh ! I can't believe another year has begun ! I guess I'll jump on the bandwagon and make a few general resolutions for the next year. 

Like a lot of creative professionals, I go through phases of self doubt and feelings of unworthiness, so I am going to try and work more on my self confidence. I am going to be more brave. If I want to try something, I'm going to try to set aside my embarrassment and introvertedness and just do it. I get bogged down with filling my time with either work or couch-sitting and TV watching and then feel guilty when I realized I've missed out on doing something I really love. I want to make time to sing, and maybe start playing an instrument again. I want to get outside and go camping more. I want to eat less carbs and sugar, eat more greens and exercise more. 

Ok, maybe I should stop there. Baby steps ...

Who's with me ? Let's be brave together this year !

PERSONAL: Easter Fun with the Family - April 2015

We are so fortunate here in San Diego to have gorgeous weather for Easter every year. And it is such a fun time for the kids: Easter egg hunts, visits to the Easter Bunny and of course, remembering the real meaning of the holiday, the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This year, we were invited to spend the day at my sister and her boyfriend's house. His niece and nephews came over for an egg hunt and we played horseshoes and had a delicious ham and Bunny Butt Cake for lunch. It really was a great day just chilling with the family and realizing how blessed we are to have such great people in our lives. Happy Easter from my family to yours. 

BellaDiva Baking - Trials and Errors {San Diego Wedding Photographer}

At the Shoot & Share United 2014 conference in February, Kaitlin Hebert talked about gifting your clients. I've been doing this for a while but just recently though about more branded ways to do it. Edible logo cookies sounded good ! And who doesn't like cookies ?!

The problem is that I don't really cook or bake that much. Cue the BellaDiva Mom ! She is always willing to let me destroy her house with a sewing, cooking or baking project ! My dad walked in half way through the project though and wondered why we weren't messing up the kitchen at MY house ! LOL
I ordered the logo frosting sheets from Edible Printing and got everything else at Michaels, except the ingredients of course ! 
By the end of the night, I was covered in sticky frosting and baking flour but he cookies looked cute. However, the border didn't dry and got all smushed and I ran out of pink sugar crystals ! So it's back to square one and Batch #2. 

Here's a short little video/slideshow of our evening !

Behind the Scenes: My office disaster - Stage 1 {Personal}

Ok, it's confession time. So, I'm not the neatest person. I'm probably about a week away from being a hoarder at any moment in time ! The only way I curb those tendencies is by having a maid service once a month (gotta tidy up so they don't judge me) and by watching episodes of Hoarders to scare myself straight ! 
Well, recently I decided it was finally time to tackle my home office. It has been a dumping zone for far too long and I miss the days I felt like an adult and would use it for editing ! So here is the first stage of my home office transformation. I've nicknamed it, "Ah, so there is a floor !". At least I can enter the room now without doing the landmine hop. I really want to pretty it up a la +Katelyn James's office. It's a good start, anyway. Stay tuned for updates !

Please excuse the crappy cellphone photos. Once it's all done, I'll bust out the "big camera" and take some fab detail shots.

San Felipe, Mexico Weekend Photo Safari {San Diego Lifestyle Photographer}

My folks are considering retiring in Mexico, so I tagged along on a house-hunting weekend to San Felipe, Mexico. According to Google Maps, it was supposed to take 4 1/2 hours. Close, we made it there in 5 hours. The last 2 hours in Mexico on straight, boring, desert roads. So glad we go there right at sunset. Driving at night would not have been fun. We's never been down this side of the Baja California, Mexico Peninsula before. It has a start desert beauty about it. The town of San Felipe itself is pretty small, with a 3 block downtown waterfront area of bars and restaurants. We stayed just south of town in a vacation rental condo. Not bad, but definitely not luxurious by US standards. Friday night we had a delicious seafood dinner at La Vaquita Marina Restaurant with pomegranate margaritas and my new favorite, tacos goberador. 

Saturday, after waking up early to watch the sun rise over the Sea of Cortez, was all about house hunting. We checked out several places, nasty and cheap as well as gorgeous and less cheap. I just loved all the places with water views and rooftop decks are a must ! Saturday afternoon, we headed down to the Malecon for some lunch at the Taco Factory and a bit of shopping. By the time we got back to the condo, it was after sunset, so we watch a bit of the Winter Olympics on TV and crashed ! 

Sunday, we packed up and headed out for breakfast at Juanito & Berry's just north of town. Great value for money and fabulous restrooms (important to know for roadtrips). Back in Mexicali at 2:30pm, we thought we were in time to beat the traffic at the border. But no, we sat in line for 2 hours anyway ! So the way back home to San Diego ended up being a 7 hour trip. All in all, a fun time though. Glad to be back in the US with reliable cellphone service and WiFi. LOL. Here are a few pics I managed to take between sips of fruity beverages and tours of homes.


The Malecon

Sunrise over the Sea of Cortez

  

Unfinished condo buildings everywhere !

My mom, such a dork ! LOL

Low tide beachcombers

Winnie loves (tolerates) Santa {Escondido Photographer Personal Post)

Other parents of fur-babies will understand where I'm coming from. This will be the 3rd Christmas since I adopted Winnie as an 8 week old pup from a rescue organization. In the absence of any human children of my own, much to my mother's chagrin, Winnie has become the sole grandogter of the family. And every year she has a photo taken with Santa. Personally, I think she is probably better behaved than 99% of children forced to take photos with Santa. She doesn't cry or have to be bribed. She just dons her new Christmas-themed outfit begrudgingly, looks at me with her patient eyes and lets me take her photo. And for this, I love you my Fluffy-Bum ! 

Thanksgiving photo session at the folks {Personal}

It's a rare occasion when I get the opportunity to be in front of the camera (not including selfies taken with my phone). At least once a year at Thanksgiving, I force my family to pose for an official "family photo". It is rough being on the other side of the lens, and I am super critical, but I know that even though, I may not be as thin as I want, or look as good in the photo as I want, it's important to document this time in my life. My family won't all be together forever, and I am going to want something to look back on to remember the fun times hanging out, laughing at my mom's bad jokes, eating her fabulous cooking or making fun of my dad's obsession with his backyard.  Good times ... 

5 Things I love ... this week

I know this is a pretty random post. But I wanted to share some random things I am loving this week ! 

Cheesy Romance Novel Series. I can inhale one of these per day !

Sweetleaf Liquid Stevia Vanilla Creme. Great in Oatmeal or Tea ! 

Cardstore.com. Awesome for customized greeting cards with photos ! Mailed direct to your family and friends ! Love it ! And the same price, if not cheaper than Hallmark !

Pringles Snack Stacks. 100 Calorie packs ! Just enough munchies to quench those crunchy, savory cravings !

Melissa McCarthy on SNL last Saturday ! She is so funny ! Like a modern day Lucille Ball !

Well, there we have it, the 5 things I love ... this week. Who are we kidding, I'll probably still love them next week, but next week I'll have another 5 things I'm obsessing about ! 

Stay tuned ...

Forward Pass ! Rugby time with the Saffas ! {Oceanside, CA}

Despite all of us having left South African behind for the fair shores of California several years ago, there is one pastime that can bring us all together on a Saturday morning over homemade Boerewors (South African Sausage) and fried tomatoes. And that, is Rugby. We don't all support the same  team and some of us (the women mostly, and those married into this clan) don't know all the rules, but it doesn't matter. We are all united in our love for this South African game. We shout at the ref when it seems appropriate and high five when "our team" scores ! We don't take the outcomes of the games as seriously as we used to, but it's a great time to round up the Saffas (South Africans) and catch up on each others' busy lives. After the game, we all sit around over instant coffee and Rooibos tea and chat about the old days and the days to come. Good times ...

Showit United 2013 Conference - Four Seasons Hotel Santa Barbara, CA

Last week, I drove 4 hours up the Coast to Santa Barbara to attend the Showit United 2013 Conference. All I knew about the conference was that a few of the photographers I admired were going to be there and there would be workshops and lectures. I didn't personally know anyone who was going to be there and I just hoped my somewhat outgoing personality could get me through the initial awkwardness that comes with situations like this. 

Well, initial awkwardness aside, it was a fantastic 3 days of learning from and socializing with other photographers from all across the country and the world ! More than 200 photographers in all stages of their career were there to learn and improve their craft and businesses. For me, it really got me thinking about the deeper purposes of my photography and business. How I want to use it to serve my clients and what greater purpose my business has, other than to make money.

I got some great tips on branding and posing from Katelyn James, Lightroom editing shortcuts from Trevor Dayley and Off Camera Lighting instruction from Justin Marantz. I could never have dreamed that so many of the photographers I admire would all be in one place at one time, never mind that they were there the whole time, sitting in the audience with us during the other speakers and having lunch with us every day. These people are some of the kindest and most giving people I have ever met ! And in chatting with several of them, it was great to find out that so many are Christians. I truly believe it was a God thing that I was at the conference this week. He is always so good to surround me with fellow Believers.

One of the most fun events I got to partake in this week was a Styled Yacht Shoot. Here are a few of the images I took during that shoot. 

Time (to) Travel - {Escondido Wedding & Photographer)

Today I was looking through old pics from the past 10 years and am amazed at all the places I went ... and on a shoestring budget ! I didn't let my limited means stop me from making a plan and going on a trip. Even if it was just to Los Angeles for the weekend. Or if I had to save for over a year to afford a trip back to South Africa. It's funny though, years later, now that I have more money to travel, I'm working two jobs and don't have the time ! Oh well, better get out that calendar and schedule myself some fun ! I am going to Santa Barbara in a couple weeks for a photography workshop. Does that count ? 
Anyway, here are some pics of my travels from the past decade or so. Enjoy ! 

Grand Canyon, AZ

Cape Town, South Africa

Lake Tahoe, CA

Los Angeles, CA

Solvang, CA

Hearst Castle - San Simeon, CA

Paris, France

London, England

Rome, Italy

Rosarito, Mexico

Yosemite, California

Stonehenge, England

  

Chichen Itza - Yucatan, Mexico

San Francisco, California

The Alamo - San Antonio, Texas

Northern Transvaal - South Africa

Big Bear, California

Washington DC