Our L.A. trip was so much more fun and memorable because we stayed with family when we were down there.  Let me tell you, with a great host like my aunt or “tita” Mila, no hotel can top her hospitality and her cooking…yummy!  Here are some photos taken just before they took us to the airport on our way back to the Bay Area.

The two kids you see here are my super smart and very nice niece and nephew….Lila and Toby….too bad mom and dad were just arriving from the airport from a convention, otherwise I would have snapped a photo of them as well.  And the rest, are my cousins and ofcourse , my kids…

The white garage door is a great backdrop…. for quick snapshots…

Demure and sweet as she is in real life…

Cute and smart..and very caring to boot

‘te Marilyn, this one is for you…

the kids’ laughter always makes the heartbeat stronger and healthier - u gotta love em’

one of my faves - this picture and the one following– i love how I get to capture not just the smiles but how and what they are feeling at a particular moment — their essence…. ofcourse Troy is beside his brother — safe and secure….

and ofcourse, the greatest hosts in the world: tita Mila and tito tony :)  Love ya!

I think I was much more excited than my kids when we went to Disneyland/ California Adventure a few weeks ago.  It was not something I planned for a long time…it was one of those…”I’d like to take the kids to Disney…” but never really planned anything concrete – and then an opportunity to go comes and boom! – We were on the plane by week’s end.  It was Troy’s first time and Joshua’s 2^nd time (well, third if you count Disneyworld). 

We had a blast!  I promised not to get focused on taking photos and instead, really spend quality time with the boys – but I did sneak a few….so here’s some….

And oh by the way…I saw Anne Geddes’ flagship store at Downtown Disney…oh my!  I am so in love with her store….its heavenly!  It’s a must on your list of things to do when you are in the area.  As for me, I am going to do a baby photo shoot soon so I’m so inspired….

Love to all.

Owen

I can’t exactly remember the moment when I decided I wanted to become a photographer.  I just know that the  “role” slowly grew into me…until it became a part of who I am.  I do remember however, when it all began. I was once an avid scrapbooker…(that’s an understatement! - I filed papers by manufacturers!) and placed  family pictures into 12×12 papers and decorated them with embellishments and journaling.  As time went by, I became more focused on the photographs and what messages my images conveyed and completely left Scrapbook Kingdom behind :(  As I looked at the photographs, I realized I was capturing miniature ’stories’, a fraction of time in the lives of my kids.  No long paragraphs, no embellishments…just a smile, a glance, and those candid moments that captured the relationship my boys have… oh how I thrive in that.  That’s when I knew, I love capturing the relationship, the connection that people share with each other.  Then getting that in a photograph…then later, showing them how what they have, what they share is truly beautiful.

Carlo and Stephanie are still relatively newly-weds…just like everybody else, they have their share of ups and downs.  But at the end of the day, the internal bond they share with each other, the comfort of being together, doing things together is something to be desired.  For the following photos,  the first few, I tinted to give it more of a dreamy, cold yet warm inside type of feeling..  The next set are more vibrant and vivid…Pogi is the name of their dog and he joined in on the photos as well –for he is family after all.

One Sunday morning….a photo session….of “US”

‘With Us and Pogi, our special dog….(He is special — ask Stephanie!)

Big trees always bring out the kid in everybody….

then a kiss….

and a moment….

Family picture, here we go!

Pogi, look here!!!

Oops…outtake…

and then they got their shot!

Last month, I photographed the wedding of Rachelle and Richard at the beautiful Casa Real at Ruby Hills Winery.  I could not have met a nicer couple than them….not to mention their families too! As a wedding photographer, I need to fall in love with the couple I photograph.  WIth Rachelle and Richard, that was NOT hard at all.   My shoes killed me that day -  for some reason, I decided to wear these old jazz boots I had when I was still in college- uh duh! the feet grows a size bigger after kids :(  but it was SOOOO worth it.  The couples, the families and the entire wedding entourage were just so nice,  accomodating and easy going that I had a fantastic time covering the event.   Everything was beautiful — from the bride, the wedding party, to the well thought out schedules and plans…love it!

And then the VENUE, what a great choice by the couple ….a mediterranean oasis in the heart of Livermore valley wine country-… Check out their website and everything that is written there is absolutely true…and to top that, the event managers that were there are at the top of their game….so for all the brides and grooms out there, if you want a place that is really romantic, warm and with an old world charm — this is a must place to consider!  And oh, did I say the food was amazing?

To Rachelle and Richard, your wedding was beautiful and perfect!  It is as beautiful as you are and the love you share with each other.  Congratulations and Best Wishes!  ~ Owen

Some pics…

Black and White Interpretation - love clean and simple lines…gives it a timeless look — its all about the subject…

A quick glance just before she descends the grand staircase….

Everybody awaits  in anticipation…and there she is…

Breathe…she looks down to see her party waiting for her…she is ready…

just a hint of mocha….

I like the fact that they are the only ones looking at me as the rest of the guests assemble around them…

I am doing a 12×12 album and here are some pages to share…now who wants to get married?  Or get married again….

Sometimes I go for the clean, modern look and sometimes, well, I just want to go romantic and vintage…

This was taken at around 7:30pm.  Just before the bouquet and garter toss, I took the couple out to the vineyard for just a couple of minutes of fresh air and some private time.  I had them walk for a bit, kiss for a bit…This was their last quiet moment that night because as soon as they went back to the grand hall, it was PARTY TIME!!!! (maybe I should post party pics…hmm)

I know I am posting pics in no order but sorry, if I don’t post now, I’ll probably not get to post at all….who knowsI’ll get to post more of their photos later…but for now…

Ok, I don’t like light switches or wall outlets so I always try my best to take those out…thanks to Photoshop!  Guess where the switch was on this photo?

That’s it!  Hope you like these!

Glad to be back and back to health as well - for me and one of my boys… My son Troy got better after a couple of days but it literally took me 2  plus weeks to actually recover to 100%.  Sometimes, we forget that we have our limits -  our body has limits and when we push hard, we get reminded that we DO need to give ourselves a break ….well - I got that message loud and clear.

A couple of weeks ago, I flew to  Orange County, to attend a joint lighting workshop by Lawrence Chan of Tofurious and the BUI Brothers at the Ritz Carlton in OC.  It’s been a while since I  met other photographers and thought that this was a good opportunity to do so at this event.   I had a great time at the workshop and even more fun at the dinner I had with some fellow photographers after the workshop. So fun, we finished late and I did not get back to my room until midnight…just a few hours before I need to wake up and get on the first plane back to the Bay Area.

Well, below  are some photos from the workshop using mostly strobes and Alien Bees.  And oh btw, we had some cameo appearances by some of the big names in the industry:  Gene Higa,  Ann Hamilton and Jules Bianchi.  They were there for an earlier workshop they did with the Bui brothers and Tofurious.

Graduations are sweeter when celebrated with friends. Shijina, Swati, Juanita, Vidya and Sarika completed  their masters program at the San Jose State University last month.  To celebrate the culmination of their hardwork and their 2-year friendship,  they asked me to capture this important time of their life.

Housemates for the past two years, the ladies have grown closer together and developed a  friendship that they only hope would continue to grow for years to come.  As they embark on their new journey as software engineers and instructional designer, they want to be able to look back at this time and say: “Hey, we did it and was it fun or what!” … and with pictures to boot too

Ladies, it was definitely a fun Sunday morning.  With 5 outfit changes, lots of posing and smiling, trying different things, moving from one location to the next, it was a production blast, I’m so glad to be a part of!

Monterey, California.  You don’t get a name like Star unless you are someone really special.  Meet Star from Monterey.  Star is a great daughter, a superb student and an amazing leader in her school.  For Star, not only is hitting the marks important, but being a role model as well as a leader is equally important to her.

Star wanted a unique set of senior portraits.  And that is what I love!  Setting that beautiful jewel-toned sofa chair on the beach, dressed in her prom dress, definitely made this shoot extraordinary and not to mention crazy fun.  We also had fun at the cafe/diner where we did the rest of her shots…some sexy, some retro and some that are just downright STAR!  Take a peek!

“A child fills a place in your heart that you never knew was empty”  - Author: Unknown

Congratulations to Cam and Noriko for their first born baby girl.  It is always a priviledge to photograph a baby.  For me, it is always a renewal of life, a reminder of how beautiful this world is when I am near a baby. And then I hold her in my arms, and as if the whole world is made perfect again. 

Did I take a break from the blogosphere or what!  Well, always for good reasons.  Sometimes, I allow myself to get caught up from my offline life that I go AWOL in the online world.  But fear not, everything is ok…in fact, everything is going great!   I’m still debating how much of what is going on in my offline world I will share with you but for now, I do have a couple of things to share within the next coming weeks.  For now, I want to surprise Pam with a video of some of her images from our photo shoot. 

So here’s to you Pam….hope you like it!

Here are some pictures taken from Pamela’s high school senior photo session.  I helped her put together some clothes to wear for the session and we came up with: her prom dress, an outfit that she feels describe her best :  ”This is so me” and one which you can see was taken outdoors at a park, that is more sweet and classic, which is also very Pam.   We went with a more natural make-up and relaxed hair style because this is what represents her best at this stage of her life…  I hope you like these images Pam…and I hope your dad and mom does too!