Gratitude...

One of my favorite quotes...

'Live your dream. Dream your life'

I'm not sure where or when I first heard it, but it's been my mantra for years... and not for all of which I had the courage to live by it. But I am getting better. It reminds me that anything and everything is possible. Whatever you can dream up, you can create in your life.

I live a wonderful life. I am so blessed to do what I love every day. Most of those days involve holding a camera and capturing moments... slivers of peoples' lives that I get to be a part of. This exchange fills me with so much gratitude. Never could I have imagined how rewarding it would be...

My clients invite me into their homes, their celebrations, their entire world, all the while trusting me and sharing themselves. This is an incredibly special space to be in. It is such an honor to be a part of it, and something I never take for granted. After every photoshoot, I have learned something, and I am changed because of it. This is such a gift.

Being the end of an incredibly busy and successful summer, I find myself reflecting on the hundreds of truly amazing people I met and worked with. I am also so grateful for my peers and mentors that support me, challenge me and make me a better individual and photographer. I have been embraced by some of the best in the city. Thank you!

My clients, mentors, peers and friends- I have cherished our experiences and I look forward to a future of amazing possibilities with you all!

I am left with so much gratitude... xoxo

death valley snaps

I haven't owned a point and shoot camera for at least 10 years. I bought an expensive underwater version a few years ago with visions of taking it surfing with my family... but it was the quality of images above water that I couldn't handle. So I returned it. 2 days later. But I don't always want to haul my professional camera around. Try getting a candid shot at a dinner party with a huge lens in someone's face. It's not going to happen. It's those random moments... like a wall mural that inspires you, or the way your puppy has fallen asleep.

Enter the iphone and all its wonderful apps. Right now I am loving instagram. I can take great photos... spontaneous, fun, IMPERFECT photos... and create a life diary of images that better represent how I live, versus what I do for a living. My professional camera has its place, and I cherish it like no other, but sometimes I just want to have the freedom to take random, carefree shots... and this allows me to do that.

Thank you instagram.

Here is a few from my recent trip to Death Valley...

road to you

Somewhere... there is a road that will take me to you. To the ends of the Earth and wherever we choose. Across oceans and deserts where lakes once lay, and all of the special fields along the way.

{ abandon }

Like a friend cast aside, like a child left to fend. With no-one's love, it was abandoned.

little man

I had the pleasure of hanging out with this little man recently. So full of wonder and adventure... he melts me. xoxo

Pilgrimage | Our Baja Adventure

Each year, we pack our surfboards and make the journey down Baja. It is a special time that allows us to slow down, live healthy and just be with each other and nature. Our property is remote and the habitat is extreme. It is desolate, yet packed with so much beauty. An orange ball of fire wakes us in the morning, warming the dewy sand. The turquoise waters are rich with life, sea turtles and dolphins visiting us in the surf. And the stars... this is where they come to rest, I have never seen so many in one sky.
This time for us is about laughing and loving... and living this one life. 

2010 Travel Favorites

2010 didn't hold as much travel as recent years, however it was enough to satisfy these wandering feet of mine. My trips were quite diverse. Twice I camped on the beach in Baja, waking up to orange sunrises, thousands of sea birds and crashing waves. I lived on fresh fish, tortillas, tapatio and coronas. Everyday I sat on my board, feet dangling below in crystal blue waters, waiting for the next wave. It was heaven.

On the opposite spectrum, I had two trips to Europe, both times visiting Switzerland and Italy. I experienced Venice swimming under a foot of water, which, in its emptiness was eerily mystical. I walked quaint Italian villages bordering the Alps, the streets lined with incredible shops stocked with salamis and cheeses, local fruits and vegetables, the side alleys winding back to vineyards and olive groves. I sat in the Zurich train station, watching hundreds of people walk by, their own world of where and who guiding them through their day. Here it is cobblestones, quaint coffee and chocolate shops, expensive fashion and restaurant tables lining the streets. I drove along country roads through lush green pastures, with only cows, batting their long lashes, necks laden with huge bells, to witness the massive, angular, snow-topped peaks jutting out of the land.

Of my days of travel, some were filled with only the best wines and cheeses and meats. On others I was fulfilled with only the goodness of the sun and the sea. But on each and every day, I never took for granted what a gift it was... what a luxury these experiences were, with loved ones or in solitude.