Thursday, January 30, 2014

Tea time portrait session | Covina, Ca

Sometimes I get inspired to do a shoot when I see certain objects and things. Fortunately, today my sister was home and I was able to use her as my model. It can be discouraging when I have an idea in my head and I don't have a muse! My mom found this old wicker bench in the trash a couple days ago and decided to put it in her back yard. She is planning on repainting it but I liked the distressed look of it. She is really crafty. For some reason, I envisioned someone having tea on this wicker bench in some sort of gown. So with little to no preparation, I made my sister get into her prom dress and pose for me. It's always fun to have random photo shoots, keeps my passion for photography alive. Here are a few shoots I got before it started sprinkling outside. Enjoy!





Sunday, January 26, 2014

San Diego Mini Vacation

My sister and I have always talked about getting away and doing a bit of traveling. This weekend was a perfect opportunity to do just that. We thought of different places we could go, but San Diego became the winning choice since it's about two hours away and has quite a bit to offer. I was trying to think of fun and different things we could do. Since I no longer support Sea World, due to watching the documentary, Blackfish, we only had a few options to enjoy sealife. I instantly thought of Whale watching! Friday, we headed down to La Jolla Beach to enjoy looking at the Sea lions. I really wanted to just go up and grab one of them and take it home. I'm glad I didn't. Those animals can be quite smelly and loud. It was foggy when we got there and the sun was just about set but I managed to get a few photos. We then made our way to our hotel in San Diego and had some delicious food. We went to eat at Devine Pastabilities and stuffed ourselves with this unique pasta in bread creation. After dinner, we headed over to the gas lamp district, where there are restaurants, shops, and lots of bars, got ourselves a couple cupcakes from Heavenly Cupcakes and went back to the hotel to sleep for our exciting adventure the next day.
Saturday was the day I was looking forward to. I had been whale watching twice before, once here in the states and the next in Acapulco, Mexico. Seeing the magnificent creatures just living life is truly a gift. God has created some amazing creatures. Hey, he created us. ;) I was a little worried when we woke up to a gloomy day, but that quickly changed once we were on the water. It became such a beautiful day to be in San Diego. It wasn't long until we stopped four whales making their was down south. We got pretty close to them, which was really exciting. There were a few whales breaching,when whales jump fully out of the water usually for mating purposes, in the distance. It was a success to see any whales, let alone five or six. After that, we enjoyed some fresh fish at the local restaurant. We couldn't leave San Diego without checking out Sea port Village and the U.S.S Midway. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring out my camera, but sometimes it's nice to just enjoy the scenery without a camera in hand. At least, I like to tell myself that when I forget my camera.
Over all, it was a great couple of days to get away from every day life. The food was fantastic, nature was amazing, and my sister was the best company. Happy Sunday!!
Alyssa













Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Twin Oaks Garden Estate Wedding | D & C

As much as I love to be the lead photographer for my own weddings, I love second shooting. There is something about being able to photograph beautiful weddings with other photographers that I absolutely love. I have been privileged enough to shoot with some really amazing photographers. Richelle from Richelle Dante Photography allowed me to second with her at the cutest venue ever! Twin Oaks Garden Estate was too adorable! The bridal suite, decorated with beautiful vintage furniture, was originally a school house dating back to 1891. It was definitely one of my favorite venues of 2013. Here are a few favorites from Danny and Crystal's special day.










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