Hey look! Here I am!
We probably haven't met yet, but I'd like to say thank you for stopping by my website, looking through my work, and taking the time to learn a little bit about me. While I do love writing, I always find it so difficult to write about myself!
I am a California girl, born and raised! I lived in San Diego most of my life, where I was surrounded by palm tree lined beaches and gorgeous rays of warm sunshine. I like to think that my time in southern California has influenced my work in that I l-o-v-e light and warmth, and try to incorporate it into my work! I have always been a fan of music. My dad is a musician, and his probably too-loud-for-a-toddler band practices were my lullabies. I went through a little bit of a groupie phase in high school and college, and met my husband because he was in a punk band that I thought was cool. To this day I am constantly being inspired by music and images of rock-stars of the past.
These days I live in the San Francisco Bay Area (Oakland, specifically). My husband and I are proud to be owned by our rad dog Atari and our fat-cat Princess Zelda. When I am not photographing gorgeous weddings and people in love, I spend time as much time as I can with my husband exploring the world and enjoying the simple things in life. I am a big fan of craft beer, and will choose a good glass of beer at a dirty dive-bar over a fruity cocktail at the classiest of establishments any day. I am a writer. I am a blogger (check out The Lovely Bay, it's my side-baby!). I am a watcher of horrible television intended for teenage girls (can I get a woot for Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars, anyone?). I collect fonts and funny gif images (you'll see them sprinkled throughout my blog sometimes). I like exploring the world and seeing the beauty in things that most people don't look at twice. I tend to see the world in black and white, lights and shadows, but I absolutely adore color. I'm a girl making her way through the world with a camera in hand!
OH WAIT. You probably want to know about my photographic experience, too, don't you? It's easy. I have always been a photographer. I got my first camera when I begged my mom for one with Mickey on it at Disneyland when I was about six. In high school I took photography classes and learned all about composition, developing film, and producing killer black and white images (which is one of my specialties today!) I was highly involved with my high school's journalism program, and was the go-to girl for taking photos of anything and everything. In college I was a hot mess-- I bounced from major to major and studied journalism, film, art, interior design, art history and history. I finally got my degree in history. Sometimes people ask me if I regret not "using" my major. I say that I am-- every day. Let's face it-- creating photographs is contributing to your own history, and documenting the world as we see it, don't you think? My history background has led me to become a great storyteller of people and of life, and I do that with words and with images!
In college I worked as a part time photographer for a local DJ company in San Diego. My then-boyfriend-now-husband worked for them at the time, and they needed a photographer, so he asked if I would be interested. I had a camera, and I knew how to use it. It was as simple as that. For about five years I photographed proms, bar mitzvahs, quincineras, anniversary parties, and anything else that was needed. Eventually, a friend of a friend of a friend took a chance and asked me to photograph her wedding. I fell in love. Soon after, I made it my goal to focus my creative energy on the wonderful world of weddings. After a lot of hard work and learning, I started my own company in 2010, and here I am today!
This is so long... I'm sorry! If you read this all the way to here, wow, kudos to you! I award you with this:
