Aaliyah turns One!

February 2nd, 2011:

A couple weeks back Felicia and I headed out to Lacy Park in San Marino to shoot a session for Aaliyah right around her 1st birthday.

If you remember, I have photographed her a few times throughout the last year, starting as a baby and watched her grow quite rapidly. This session, she was on the move with her new found crawling/walking abilities (although to be fair, the walking was more of staggering a few steps, then falling on he backside).

So, although this was primarily supposed to be a shoot just for baby Aaliyah turning one, when her brother showed up dressed in his kenpo outfit then sat there and picked dandelions with the sun glowing behind him, I figured he looked too buddha-esque not to photograph!

San Marino, Pasadena, Los Angeles, Baby, Photography, Wedding, Engagement, Travel, Portrait, Family

Happy Birthday Aaliyah!

Fun Photowalk with Rob!

Spring 2011 Workshop:

As a professional photographer, I get questions all the time from photo enthusiasts who find themselves struggling to create the images they thought they would be able to get because they bought a better camera. I wish it were as easy as buying a new camera, but it’s not.

There is however, an easy way to start getting better!

Who:
If you recently upgraded to / acquired a DSLR camera, you probably know that you’re supposed to be getting better pictures, but somehow the pictures still aren’t quite what you had imagined, this workshop is for you. Do you shoot only on auto because you’re too nervous to change any settings and honestly don’t know what the heck all those buttons do or what those numbers on the screen mean?

Whether you’re a parent trying to get better photos of your children, a travel enthusiast who is frustrated that your pictures totally don’t do justice to the location, or just someone who wants to make the most out of the investment you’ve made into photography gear, come spend a day with us at this fun, interactive, hands-on workshop & photowalk! There will be lots of time to ask questions, socialize, learn, and spend a day taking pictures in beautiful Santa Monica! Did I mention you can also harass me all you want and badger me with questions? Go ahead.

What: Introductory DSLR Workshop & Photowalk
When: March 6, 2011, Sunday. 12.30pm – sunset.
Where: Santa Monica, California

Spots are limited to 10 participants, so grab a friend and sign up today!

…..

Get more information in a PDF here

…..

Death Valley

January 28th, 2011:

Death Valley has become some sort of annual pilgrimage for Daniel and I, where we run amok in the day doing boys’ stuff and sit around drinking beer at night. Good times.

This year, we brought the ladies with us, and we all got to run amok together! Woot!

Most of our driving was on dirt roads, where we left trails of dust churning behind us. At one point, we inadvertently dusted a silver Sebring convertible that was passing in the opposite direction. Ooops. [Sanja, we sure hope you weren’t adventuring in Death Valley a week ago. Were you?]

Mmmm…. beer brats roasting on an open fire…. (sort of)

We climbed the huge Eureka Sand Dunes. This is a view from the top. Notice how ridiculously tiny everything looks from way up here – using that dirt road as a reference point.

Last year, Daniel and I had hiked up the dunes, and, on a whim, slid down on a beef jerkey wrapper (the bag type from Costco). This year, I was more prepared with a snow sledding disk. Videographic evidence follows (now it may not look like I was going all that fast, but I promise you: I was hauling ass and covered in sand):

We poked around at Scotty’s Castle, an ostentatious property in the middle of Death Valley, then settled down to a mellow picnic lunch before heading off for Daniel & Scherrie’s epic engagement shoot.

Pikachu, our earnest travel buddy, takes a break after our hike to Darwin Falls, a modest perennial waterfall in Death Valley – quite a surprise for one of the hottest, driest places on earth.

Cupcake Coma!

January 25th, 2011:

Wedding, Photography, Thank, You

So. Remember that post from a mere 8 days ago where I started bragging about how this year I was going to eat better, exercise, yadda, yadda, yadda….?

Unfortunately, early yesterday afternoon a carrier came to my door with a package which would destroy all self control:

Baked goods… Cupcakes… Sprinkles Cupcakes… a full DOZEN of them. Tiny, beautiful, delectable, cakes.
From Dark Chocolate (where I started) and banana to coconut, german chocolate cake and vanilla and who knows what else! Even if I limit myself to one luscious cupcake a day (unlikely), it will take a week to finish this amazing assortment!

This delicious evil was delivered on behalf of Chris and Tracey as a surprise “Thank You” gift for Felicia & I for being part of their wedding day. Awww… seriously guys, thank you. Our greatest satisfaction is knowing that we’ve successfully documented a significant day in someone’s life and delivered images that they can truly enjoy for life. But once in a while, receiving a special Thank You in the form of irresistible cupcakes, or even a world-famous Sacher Torte sent all the way from Vienna, is just sublime.

I am glad I don’t have a wedding to shoot this weekend, because I have a feeling, on Saturday someone is going to have to roll me out of bed.

Wedding, Photography, Thank, You

I shouldn’t feel too bad. Thank You cupcakes are zero-calorie, guilt-free little morsels of reward, right?
(If you say no, you’re just jealous you don’t have a dozen Sprinkles cupcakes!)

Death Valley Engagement Session

January 24th, 2011:

Death Valley, Engagement, Photography, Destination, Wedding, National, Park

Daniel is one of my best friends. He was in my wedding in Singapore, and has a passion for life and sense of humor one rarely finds in this world. When he proposed to Scherrie last year, I had shot a paparazzi style shoot of the event followed by a quick, impromptu portrait session to commemorate the occasion.

Now that they have set the date for a wedding this summer, we had been talking about about where we would want to do a full engagement shoot for them. So when Daniel and I started planning our annual camping trip to Death Valley, this time with the ladies – it hit me right in the face. I essentially ordered Daniel to pack a suit and Scherrie to find an awesome dress so we could make use of such a stunning backdrop. Thankfully, I have pretty awesome friends who readily agreed to dress up in the middle of nowhere. Gear-wise, I packed a little extra over what I would normally take camping and we were on our way.

Death Valley, Engagement, Photography, Destination, Wedding, National, Park

Death Valley is known as one of the world’s hottest, driest, flattest terrains, but on this trip, the Badwater region was actually flooded with water – presumably from the storms a couple of months ago – and created a reflective surface that looked like an inland sea or a perfectly still lake.

Death Valley, Engagement, Photography, Destination, Wedding, National, Park

As Felicia puts it – “Epic Epicness!”. Miles of razor-sharp rocks stretching as far as the eye can see at The Devil’s Golf Course. Scherrie’s such a trooper, clambering over these rocks in her dainty bejeweled sandals without missing a beat!

Death Valley, Engagement, Photography, Destination, Wedding, National, Park

Thanks for being such great sports, Daniel & Scherrie!

Jenn + Dave: Married at Seven Degrees

January 20th, 2011:

Seven, Degrees, Wedding, Photography, Photographer, Laguna Beach, Orange County

January’s supposed to be winter in California, but last Saturday, on Jenn & Dave‘s big day, the sun was blazing, and the sky was clear blue: a perfect, beautiful day, for two beautiful people.

From the balcony of the apartment where Jenn was getting ready, we watched as throngs of paddle-boarders, kayakers and surfers joined the pods of dolphins and sea lions frolicking in the glistening sea. Perhaps it was a sign that the Heavens were smiling upon our lovely couple, who, after 10 years of dating, were entering a new phase of life together on this warm & wonderful SoCal day.

Seven, Degrees, Wedding, Photography, Photographer, Laguna Beach, Orange County

Good things come to those who wait, Dave!

Seven, Degrees, Wedding, Photography, Photographer, Laguna Beach, Orange County

Dave’s nephew & niece flew in from Arizona to do the honors as ring-bearer and flower girl. These kids are so self-assured and made their way down the aisle with poise, confidence, and style. Nice.

Seven, Degrees, Wedding, Photography, Photographer, Laguna Beach, Orange County

The sunlight was fading, but we managed to pull off a purple skyed session.

Seven, Degrees, Wedding, Photography, Photographer, Laguna Beach, Orange County

What an awesome wedding day! Felicia and I had a great time and are definitely thrilled for Dave & Jenn. Congrats again!

Jo + Red – About Downtown

January 19th, 2010:

Los Angeles, Photographer, Wedding, Photography, Engagement, Photos, Pictures, Downtown

When Jo emailed me and asked if I could manage a few “Bad Ass Rockstar photos”, I was totally up to the challenge. Felicia and I took a drive around the downtown Arts District in search of gritty spots – think trains, steel I-beams, graffiti and brick walls. After about an hour of stopping the car, jumping out, running around and giving thumbs up or thumbs down to a dozen locations, we had a plan.

Jo and Red arrived, totally chill about their session, and totally game to ‘climb on stuff’. I love that attitude!

Los Angeles, Photographer, Wedding, Photography, Engagement, Photos, Pictures, Downtown

Jo & Red met while Jo was working at the box office of the Colony Theatre in Burbank, and they gamely reenacted the ‘Hey, how are YOU doin’?’ bit in this random wooden shack we found.

Los Angeles, Photographer, Wedding, Photography, Engagement, Photos, Pictures, Downtown

We were able to spend about 8 minutes on the train tracks before a police car pulled up, and my heart sank. “Uh oh…. Crap!”
The cop took down my name and address (“…in case any terrorist activities happen.”), and…. surprise, surprise: told me it was ok to keep shooting but please be careful.

Wow. I thought we totally lucked out, but not 10 seconds after he was done talking to us, a Union Railroad official rolled up and chased us out. The cop just shrugged and told us to listen to the man, but helpfully suggested another spot about 5 blocks away where no one would bother us, and we would have a view of the city.

Unfortunately we didn’t managed to take his advice as the sun was already getting low, but I’m sure glad we didn’t get arrested or fined. We made one more quick stop in the Arts District, then made our way up to the 4th Street Bridge, which crosses the train tracks, to catch the fading daylight and a bit of twilight.

Los Angeles, Photographer, Wedding, Photography, Engagement, Photos, Pictures, Downtown

Jo and Red were awesome when I told them to hold still for the long exposures, with traffic rushing by and the blue of twilight in the skies.

Los Angeles, Photographer, Wedding, Photography, Engagement, Photos, Pictures, Downtown

Congratulations again! Felicia and I are both thrilled to be shooting your wedding in May!

Welcome 2011!

January 17th, 2011:

Image above: Food from our kitchen artfully arranged by my wife.
From left: Red/brown rice, Goji berries – used in Asian soups, whole wheat pasta, green mung beans. Yum!

Holy Crap! 2011 is not only here, we are already 2 weeks into January!

Over the past year I have started to notice something growing around my midsection…. swelling, jiggling and folding – pushing it’s way over my waistline. It never used to be there, but then, I never used to be married. I guess there is some truth behind that first year 15lbs that they talk about. I am happy, in love, content, and my waistline is starting to show it.

So with the end of the holiday cheese eating season (yes, I love my cheese), Felicia and I have decided to take control of this growing situation before it gets out of hand. For my own part, being fit is very important just to be able to go hiking, cycling, traveling and to keep up with a couple on their wedding day. Wedding Photography may not seem like the most laborious of careers, but I can spend a whole day on my feet running, squatting, climbing, and smiling, all whilst carrying a 5lb weight in my right hand and another 15lbs strapped to my back. I absolutely love my job, but after a 12 hour day I come home with cramped muscles and stiff joints (Now I sound like an old man…)

Anyhow – we have decided to just eat better. I have not put myself on a diet, or some strict exercise routine, I just want to stay active and eat better. This might include things like, but not limited too:

Not finishing Felicia’s leftovers after I have eaten my entire meal. (Probably responsible for 90% of my weight gain)
Avoiding buying snacks, treats, etc. (if they are not in the house, I won’t eat them)
Going with things like whole grain pasta and brown rice.
Etc, etc, etc… I am sure I could keep this list going all day, but you get the idea – Think before I eat.

Another 2011 first – the year that I became “That Neighbor.” I left my Christmas lights and tree up until the 8th or 9th of January, until shame finally forced me to take down the lights and drag a very dry Douglas out to the curb last week. Yes, I am a bad person.

More to come.

The Pre-game

January 14th, 2010:

Tomorrow Felicia and I are shooting Jenn and Dave’s wedding in Laguna Beach, so I thought today would be a great chance to give you a glimpse into my day before rituals before a wedding.

My work starts by brewing a giant pot of coffee, then charging that massive pile of lithium you see above:
We have 4 batteries for each of our Canon 5Ds and 3 Batteries for our Canon 7D. In addition, I charge 4 sets of 4 AAs to use in my flashes (this is all charging right this moment as I write this), and have a backup box of fresh AAs in the trunk of the car. We do our best to use as few non-rechargeable batteries as possible (a meager step in doing less harm to the planet), but I am compulsive and never want to run out of power for anything we use.

After I get the chargers humming, I go though and format all my memory cards (all 112GB of them) so they will be fresh and ready to go. When I have to change cards in the middle of a critical moment tomorrow, the last thing I want to do is stick the card in the camera and find it’s still full of images from last week’s shoot. While I have all three cameras in hand, I also check to be sure all the internal clocks are aligned, so when I import all the images from the wedding, the images will show up in chronological order, no matter which camera they were shot on. I proceed to clean all my lenses and get everything packed in our bags and ready to go, triple checking all the while. This process tends to takes up the entire living room floor.

By this point the coffee has started to churn in my stomach, so I head to the kitchen for some peanut butter toast, or a burrito or something (today though, it was a cup of Yoplait Blueberry Greek yogurt, which within 10 minutes I realized its paltry 130 calories isn’t going to to the trick).

After brunch, I return to my computer and make sure everything I have been working on is properly backed up and I have plenty of room for the 100GB+ of wedding photos that is coming its way. I also check the pair of 250GB drives that I take with me to wedding, to make sure they are empty so I can immediately double and triple backup everything that touches my laptop’s hard drive. This is VERY important for any of you aspiring photographers out there: everything, at all times, must be backed up in at LEAST 3 locations.

Once I am sure everything is in order, I make it my goal to relax the rest of the day – spend some time with my wife, catch a movie, go to the gym, cook us a nice dinner, etc. Anything to get me in a calm state of mind before tomorrow begins, because when it does, I know I will be on my feet for 15 hours, squatting, running, climbing, charming in-laws and other extended family members, shooting pictures until my index finger is raw (think playing to much Nintendo when you were a kid and your thumbs would get raw) and essentially pushing myself to 110% to do the best for our clients.

Sunday morning I will feel like I was hit by a bus, but I will still happily drag myself to my computer and eagerly look through the images of someone’s special day.

Adela + Brett in Santa Barbara

January 12th, 2011:

Santa Barbara, Courthouse, Fess Parker, Doubletree, Engagement Photography, Pictures, Photographer, Los Angeles, Destination

Last Sunday on an overcast and uncharacteristically gloomy California day, Felicia and I had an excuse to make our way up the coast to visit one of our favorite Californian places: Santa Barbara. We’re both very fond of the city’s character, small-town feel, mellow vibe, and collection of eclectic mom-and-pop stores instead of the usual retail behemoths. After an easy drive on the 101 including a scenic stretch with the boundless blue of the Pacific beside us, we met up with Adela and Brett to shoot an engagement session for them at the Santa Barbara Courthouse.

I had done some research and knew that the Spanish-style building was beautiful, but nothing beat being there in person. We wandered through the manicured lawns of the garden, dodging tourists and weekend warriors armed with their DSLRs, and worked our way into the brooding building. There was antique furniture lining the hallways, dark wood and imposing doors, and a whole range of architectural details to choose from. I confided in my wife before we started that the hardest part of this shoot was not having 4 hours to shoot every single angle of this place!

Adela & Brett showed up with a spring in their step and were ready to go with megawatt smiles. Beautiful people, beautiful locations, wow. Some days are just perfect!

Santa Barbara, Courthouse, Fess Parker, Doubletree, Engagement Photography, Pictures, Photographer, Los Angeles, Destination

These three pictures (the one above and two below), were shot at the Fess Parker Doubletree where Adela and Brett were first introduced to each other at an event. When we arrived, I made them take me to the EXACT spot where they first said “Hello”, then I had them start reminising about that night while I shot away.

Santa Barbara, Courthouse, Fess Parker, Doubletree, Engagement Photography, Pictures, Photographer, Los Angeles, Destination

This last shot is one of my favorites. The sun was over the horizon and twilight had started to settle in, and I somehow managed to convinced Brett and Adela to cross the street and let me capture a few last images (in the VERY icy wind) of them sitting by the shore. I slapped a CTO gel on my off-camera flash, shot it through an umbrella and set the camera’s white balanced to 3200K. I laid down in a patch of ice plant and this is very close to how the picture turned out, straight out of the camera!

Congrats again Adela + Brett!

Aaliyah turns One!

Fun Photowalk with Rob!

Get more information in a PDF here

Death Valley

Cupcake Coma!

Death Valley Engagement Session

Jenn + Dave: Married at Seven Degrees

Jo + Red – About Downtown

Welcome 2011!

The Pre-game

Adela + Brett in Santa Barbara

robertpaetz

Categories

Archives

Pin It on Pinterest

Aaliyah turns One!

Share:

Fun Photowalk with Rob!

Get more information in a PDF here

Share:

Death Valley

Share:

Cupcake Coma!

Share:

Death Valley Engagement Session

Share:

Jenn + Dave: Married at Seven Degrees

Share:

Jo + Red – About Downtown

Share:

Welcome 2011!

Share:

The Pre-game

Share:

Adela + Brett in Santa Barbara

Share:

robertpaetz

Categories

Archives

Pin It on Pinterest