Engagement Session Giveaway winners! - Mo and Kent, Chinatown, San Francisco

Mo and Kent are the winners of my recent Engagement Session Giveaway Contest! I had a hard time picking a wedding idea - truly, because there were so many fabulous ones - but theirs got me the most excited, both visually and in my tastebuds! Here is a little excerpt from Mo's entry email, about their first date:





"... He charmed me with his dimples and soft spoken demeanor, and I somehow woo-ed him with my Buddy Holly glasses and fierce dedication to Bruce Campbell... we ended up eating a late-night dinner at a grimy hole in the wall noodle shop. Like any legitimate Asian eatery, it was dirty, cramped, and after you left the place, you (and your clothes) smelled like the food. It was teeny tiny so there were only two swivel chairs and a counter by a large window overlooking the street. We sat there eating noodles and talking until 2 in the morning, and I knew after that night that I had found someone special.





I would love to take our engagement pictures in one of the noodle restaurants in Chinatown... I think it'd be a nice commemoration of that night 7 years ago, and also a fun and kitschy way to have pictures of one of our shared interests: food. Because despite being two very different people, Kent and I completely bond over food...
It would also be fun to take some shots in Chinatown should the restaurant get super boring/smelly/uninspiring. We could even expand on the food idea...milk tea...dim sum...pink boxes from the Chinese bakery..."

I loved everything about this email! :)



We were planning to meet up to talk about their June 2010 wedding while they were in the Bay Area, anyway, so once I announced that they won, we decided to combine the wedding photography meeting with the engagement session, all in SF's Chinatown. Then, it seemed like it was going to start pouring, so we moved the exact meet up time around several times. Mo and Kent were wonderfully patient, mellow, and fun to get to know, and I think the shoot worked out perfectly! It was so much fun, and a great excuse for me to snack on some of my favorite Chinese treats: steamed sweet bean buns. Yum!





We wandered around a bit, dashing out in between cars to get some portraits with those lovely lanterns strung over the streets.



The sidewalks were busy with locals and tourists. Right after Mo asked if I often got asked questions about what I was doing when I shoot in public (and I said, "no, not often"), we had two separate strangers ask something about my camera! It was almost overwhelming to be photographing amongst the crowd, but it also kept us on our toes in a fun and unique way. I think I need to make it out of my little country town more often, to shoot in more urban environments.

I like this shot a lot for that reason - it was just a cool little moment of expression amid all of the hubbub:



This one too - Kent looks so happy and open, while Mo keeps a lookout for cars!







Mo had the cutest outfit on - they both looked fantastic! - and I particularly loved the big green belt with the poofy skirt. She had gotten several "superhero" comments from friends, but I thought it was perfect. Nothing wrong with a superheroine element now and again!



After wandering up Grant Avenue, we popped into Eastern Bakery, the first bakery in Chinatown. Yum, yum, yum!









Then we found this orange brick wall and did some more straightforward portraits to round out the day:







Kent got eager for some pastry before Mo had a chance to share:



So cute. I love the shots with the lanterns and bustling Chinatown streets, but these closer-up shots are some of my favorite from the day. Simple, colorful and adorable!

















Thank you, Mo and Kent, for such a wonderful day! I enjoyed meeting you, and our shoot, and all of our delicious snacks!

Liza's headshots

This is the last Portland-trip post, I swear!

Last monday, we had about 1/2 an hour until it was time to the leave for the airport, and we hadn't had time to work on Liza's headshots. So I said, "hey... let's just mess around for a few minutes and see what we come up with."



We shot for less than 1/2 an hour with only available light (no flash, no diffusion except the trees), inside her apartment and in front of a fence on her street. We got some fun lifestyle portraits and some new headshots for her modeling agency!


Here's the slideshow:

Food/ prop styling tests

This is my day to catch up on blog entries. I figure, it's gorgeous outside - why not stay in and work on the computer?

More from Portland. Liza is thinking about becoming a prop/ food photo stylist like our friend Martha from college, so we did some fun tests while I was up in Portland. Hopefully we can do some more if she comes to visit soon!

Liza has a huge archive of vintage clothing, furniture, dishes, props, etc. Narrowing it down to just a few to shoot with was hard, so we went to Pix Patisserie for chocolates and macaroons and candies and inspiration. One thing (of many) that I love about Portland is that I can almost always find a connection with people - for example, I visited my friend Ian and it turns out that his partner works at Pix. A restaurant Liza took me to is owned by someone from my hometown. Tons of people I know from college and high school live there, even though I went to school in Vermont and California. Portland is such a great community!

















I'm not a product/ still life photographer but it was pretty fun to play around.


Obviously she didn't syle the flowers but they were some of the first bright bulbs I'd seen this year:

Silly - E.T., Liza, and Me

My friend Liza in Portland horrified me with her talking, light-up (in the fingertip and heart areas, of course) E.T. doll. It doesn't look so scary in the photos but in person, when you don't expect E.T. to talk to you, it's pretty horrifying.



Also he looks kinda hip hop?:



I realize it's silly to be scared of a doll, but he seems strangely psychic. When you squeeze his hand, his heart or finger lights up and he says things like, "E.T. phone home", "run awayyyy", "(burp)", and other such sage advice. Maybe it was just the goofy slumber party element to us hanging out, but he seemed to always say something that was perfectly fitting - like an E.T. magic eightball!

Liza is my roommate from college. I have been good friends with her for now almost 11 years, but I realized that I still think of her as one of my "newer" friends since I didn't meet her until college. I don't see her enough but we always feel totally comfortable with each other when we get together. Plus I took a million photos of her during our weekend together... instead of photographing the sites and scenes of Portland (a city I love and adore), I took photos of Liza as she typed on the computer and talked on the phone (and in the drive thru for Burgerville, aka sustainable, fresh, local burger heaven) for my stock collection:

Evolve Into Nothing

that's the title of the song I put on this slideshow of my friends, The New Trust. The grammar in that sentence was awful but I've been staring at the computer all day so I'm going to just plow bravely on.

Anyway, while I was up in Portland, OR, this last weekend, a city I absolutely love and adore, I had the pleasure of seeing the 2nd night of my good friends' band, The New Trust, at a super cheesy bar in downtown PDX. They rocked the house as usual and there was a wonderful merging of all kinds of Sonoma County residents and alums, as well as Portlanders of all stripes.



I just took a few photos as I was there to rock out, have a beer (whee! even just one is a special occasion/ rarity for me), and meet up with all kinds of friends. Shouts-out to Natasha, Rachael, Liza, Ezra, Kim, Caitlin, and the band: Julia, Matthew, Josh and Sara.




Sara and Josh's wedding was the very first one I photographed (hey, I was also a bridesmaid - they have a lot of photographer friends) and thought, "this could be awesome". And it has been. Sara's an excellent photographer who pretty much taught me my stuff so it's hard to thrill them with photos of any kind, particularly considering how rad the inside of their new album is.

Anyway, their music is rad and they are all fine lookin' folks. Most of the photos are of Josh cause, hey, he stood in the light. Sorry Matthew, I didn't want to use a flash.

Here is the slideshow:



This is my favorite song on their new album! It's not the whole thing, though; sorry. Go to their website for more.