I want to showcase your story.
I want to document milestones.
I want to freeze a tender moment.
I want to capture love in all forms.
As an 80s kid growing up pre-digital age, photographs were hard to come by because films and prints were expensive. To take a decent photo, you needed to know how to set the camera in manual mode and focus. I never truly appreciated my dad's skills as a photography hobbyist until I went off to UCLA for college. Looking back, my point-and-click pictures with a digital camera in college didn't make the grade.
After I graduated from college, I pursued a career in the clinical laboratory (for those who are wondering, I'm the allied health professional that runs COVID and other diagnostic tests). Everything was going great professionally and personally, but the COVID-19 pandemic hit the Bay Area in early 2020. Life as we knew it turned upside down. Around the same time, my daughter turned one in June of 2020. We had hoped to celebrate her 1st birthday with a big party and a family portrait session with one of our favorite local photographers. Unfortunately, that could not come to fruition because of the pandemic. Sadly, I downgraded her birthday party to a ZOOM smash cake "meeting party" with friends and family. I was most upset about not being able to take our family portraits. She was growing up too fast, and I wanted to remember this significant milestone with professional photos. It was then that I realized I needed to do what my dad did for our family growing up - learn to take great photos, and capture the moments myself!
So, I picked up my dusty old digital camera but soon realized how technical it is to operate a digital camera. There are endless modes and options. With shelter in place and a pandemic still raging on, I invested in photography shooting, editing, and posing courses. With each lesson, I was evolving into a better photographer. Practicing with my toddler and getting great images was rewarding. I was getting better with every click! In March 2021, a friend asked me about wanting a few photos for her daughter's 1st birthday. It was nerve-racking, but since it was not a paid session, I set their expectations low and mine even lower! The session turned out magical!
It is true what they say: Do what you love, and you'll never work another day in your life.
I hope I have the opportunity to photograph your story, your love, your milestones.