Malibu Beach Inn Wedding

Loved photographing at Malibu Beach Inn (They have a live ocean camera on their website!)  My bride, Sloane, was introduced to her new husband, Craig, by his father.  Intimate.  Classic.  Coastal.  My kind of wedding :)  HERE is their slide show.

Wedding season

Been quite a busy summer and I haven't been blogging much!  Wiggy Ranch today!  The couple was so cute and quite a nice venue!  I'd photographed the bride's brothers' wedding almost two years ago, so it was nice to catch up with the family!  Even though I only live 25 minutes south of Santa Barbara, my heart belongs there!

Limoneira Ranch. Shannon and Jeremy

This summer was full of new places to explore and photograph.  Shannon and Jeremy had chosen Limoneira Ranch for their wedding and me, as their photographer.  Soo nice!  We had great light and great people to make beautiful memories for them.  HERE is their slide show if you would like to see more!  Such nice light!  From the people as well as the location!

Pipeline

So much of my work requires that I interact with people and with nature. Good thing I love to do both. Here is a shot of Davey Smith at Pipeline, on the North Shore of Oahu.   Dave is a goofy foot, (Right foot forward) so was a good location to showcase his talent. Remember being taken aback as to how many people were in the water at the time, competing for these giant, left barrels.  It was as if nature had created a ride for their amusement.  The photo was shot on Kodachrome 64 slide film of which I have recently been scanning.  Quite a project!

Tianna and Ryan at Hartley Botanical Gardens

Having shot many times at Hartleys, one of the most beautiful gardens for weddings in this area, I was thrilled when Tianna and Ryan chose me to photograph their day.  It was a perfect fit for this couple who loved a beautiful, natural environment to surround them and their families on this perfect day.  The Packard belongs to Tianna's father, who collects cars.  It fit beautifully with it's green colors and vintage touch.  Click HERE if you want to see more from their wedding.

Summertime!

Kangaroos at Anglesea, Torquay, Australia

Stubbies Surf Contest, Burleigh Heads, NSW, Australia

My son's father, David Pu'u at Duranbah, Coolangatta, Australia

This is Davey Smith.  He is an awesome surfer and taught my kids how to surf!  Haleiwa, Hawaii.  North Shore

It's finally summer and I'm super excited for all of the amazing weddings that I will get to photograph this year.  Just finishing up one for Tianna and Ryan at Hartley Botanical Garden.  Such a beautiful location and couple.  Then there is Jennifer and Josh's wedding on the Scarlett Belle. Another project that I'm working on is the scanning all of my slides.  When I first started in photography, my favorite subject was surfers and the ocean.  There were no digital cameras and Kodachrome 64 (slide film) was my film of choice.  It was how magazines wanted shots submitted to them.  Since the slides are now termed 'vintage,' the magazines have expressed an interest in reviewing the photo for print, but want them submitted digitally.  It's quite a task, so this year, I was able to have them done at ScanCafe.  Still waiting for some to come back (There were hundreds!) and then will begin sorting and identifying them.  Above photos are from those slides.  They are photos from about 30 years ago in Hawaii and Australia.  Looking forward to seeing more soon!

The month just flew by!  Proms season, with a few weddings and engagements sprinkled in.  And maternity!  Got invited to a baby shower for one of my brides, Roxanna and another bride, Lydia, was there!  Glad to squeeze in a maternity session with Roxanna before she delivered baby Luna, just yesterday!  We took them during last Sunday's luner eclipse!  Beautiful light!

One of my favorite places in the world and why

My fascination with a piers came at an early age.  I remember my feet could hardly pull me forward as they inched over the rough wood and held onto my Mother's hand. This was part of our Sunday afternoon ritual, growing up in Santa Barbara.  I'm sure my brothers were entertained as cried.  Really thought my body would just slip through the cracks into the sea. as my parents forced me to walk out over the calm, ocean water.  I was scared to death! To this day, I can picture in my mind the color of the water, under my toes. as they clenched to hold on to my life.  Surely, at any given time, I was going to fall through the cracks, to that water below?   Couldn't we just stay safely at the bottom of the pier, where they sold pinwheels and Cracker Jacks?  Adrenalin and beauty.  All in one spot.  No wonder they are now my favorite place to be at any given time!

Fast forward decades of my life, a pier now holds a safe facination for my mind.  I still can tell when I walk on any pier as the ground below me transitions from sand to water. Even with my eyes shut.  On any given day, you will find me there, on one of them.  One of my favorite places on this earth to be, with my body holding close, as it walks over the sea.

Alex and Tiffany's Wedding

We were so excited to photograph at the Pierpont Inn!  It's always soo pretty and the room that they provide for getting the bride ready is, well, perfect! ... and it's filled with vintage furniture and an ocean view.  What more could you ask for? Tiffany and Alex were so easy to photograph and the light just made it that much easier!   The wedding was scheduled to take place in the garden, but the rain came and plans got changed, but the wedding, well, it went the way it was supposed to go.   The Pierpont changed the location to the Vickers Estate.  Warm fires, candles and music were perfect!  The rain even let up enough for us to go to the pier as planned.  And as the rain came back, it was in just in time to head to the reception where dancing, candy and fun was had by all!  HERE is the slide show!  Thank you so much Alex and Tiffany for letting me share in your day!

Heading into the holiday weekend.  Trying to catch up on editing and I wanted to share these, because, they just make me happy!  Tiffany and Alex were married at the Pierpont Inn, on a rainy day, but we were able to sneak out to the Ventura Pier for a few shots between the showers.  The pier is one of my favorite places to be in the world to be and since the Pierpont is only minutes away, was so glad that the weather cooperated enough for us to get these shots, although this couple would look good photographed anywhere!

Will post the slideshow later this week!