A summer roundup

I can’t believe that summer is officially over by next week. I feel like my oldest, Elliott, just got out of school. He starts back up again in exactly one week. It’s been a sort of uneventful summer for us travel wise, but not so much in family and career aspects.

While I was in Tennessee this summer, we found out that we needed to look for another home. I think I can officially say I’m over moving. This will be our FIFTH move in 14 months. We’re not nomads, promise. We decided to purchase a home here in MD! We are so excited about our new house, and of course, I’m extra excited about my new studio. We will be moving in just two weeks! So nerve wracking! I hope we don’t have to move for at least another year or more.

Also, this was the summer of awards and publications. I would have not thought to have had this many print publications! I remember when I was first just starting out, which honestly just feels like yesterday, I thought how cool it would be to see my work on print. I still pinch myself. The feeling is intense with all the publications that I have been able to see my work in!

The first one to open up this summer with was Beauty Revived and The Snap Society’s 50 most inspiring photographers.
You can read about my feature HERE. I was so flabbergasted when I saw my name on that list. I have to thank my sweet students that have nominated me. They truly remind me why I love mentoring.It’s been the most rewarding experience I have done in my photography career, besides being able to cater and create for my clients. That list is a star studded list, and I personally look up like crazy to a lot of them. For my name to be mentioned in the same list is just an honor.

Here’s my face when I received my magazine copy!

Along with this, I also received a copy of my March feature with Beyond the Wanderlust.
This feature just means so much to me. When I first moved here to MD, I was feeling creatively down. It was a new place, it was winter, it was snowing everywhere. I just needed to shoot for myself. I was glad this was something I was able to do, and it was able to be on print along with all the talents. I mentioned this today, but the feeling of seeing photos on print is just total euphoria. Nothing else can describe it. Chills run up and down my spine when I see these. It’s a feeling that never gets old. It’s a feeling that I always dreamed about, and that I am so lucky that I get to have it in my reality. This session, I’m so emotionally attached to it. I feel like it enliven my spirits again. I was just caught in the chaos of all our moves, that it was nice to have something to do for myself. The snow was peaceful, Danielle rocked all the poses, and it uplifting. Seeing it in a magazine is just even more uplifiting.

ANOTHER magazine I got this summer is the August Child edition for Lemonade and Lenses. Here’s my face cheesin’ with my feature!

I think this may be one of my most favorites I’ve ever written. I think because this one speaks from my heart. Not just as a mom, but as a photographer, the hardest thing was always trying to nail that one shot with my kids. Photo days have always been stressful. It wasn’t until a couple years ago when I decided to just let the kids just do their thing. A couple poses are fine, but letting them do their thing, and just observing and learning their little quirks would prove to be a better and more successful result for us. That’s what this article is about. I have been so happy I have embraced bridging that gap between portrait and lifestyle. Also, seeing my kiddies in a magazine, total mommy goggles, I know, but I couldn’t help but to be all giddy. Those are my little humans along with an article I wrote!

I still haven’t gotten my copy as we are moving pretty soon, so I will wait till I’m at the new house for this one, but last month, the ever so dear Tina Krafts of Tina Krafts Photography messaged me. She had suffered from an injury, and unable to photograph Kate for her session. I was very happy to be able to help them out! Thank you Tina for entrusting this session with me <3. With the help of Kate’s mom, Anne, we were able to complete such a beautiful story for Kate and to help enlighten the journey that kids with type 1 diabetes go through. I am so happy to be part of the first two editions of Beauty Revived’s new magazine!

Also, in the past week, this image was picked by not just one, but two blogs! Thank you to In Beauty & Chaos and Beyond the Wanderlust for picking this image. I am so excited to have placed first and second place! This was an on a whim session with my adorable neighbors! With the summer dwindling down, and that beautiful light changing soon, I wanted to take advantage of the light. I’m so excited they were featured in some of my favorite publications / blogs this week!

Also, this summer, I wrote this fun little article for Clickin Moms.

I almost always forget to bring a reflector with me. This has been one of those Photoshop hacks I’ve formulated for my style, but a lot of my workshop girls have also told me that this works for them so I thought I should share the technique also! I’ve been so happy with all the wonderful feedback I’ve gotten for it! I’m thinking maybe I’ll give away the action one of these days for those that don’t want to do it from scratch.

Last but not the least, I can put another contest won under my belt. A few months ago, on a whim and encouragement by my friend Bonnie of Bonnie Hussey Photography, I entered the Clickin Moms Voice competition. Now I’ve never entered any major publication contests. Well, maybe one. I entered a photo of Elliott one time for the San Francisco Gate “get well soon” Buster Posey article. Does that count? I knew my odds are super small with this one, specially since there are so many talents that I’m sure were going to join. It was a lot. It ended up having 18,000 entries. When CM emailed me a few months ago letting me know I made the second round of judging, I was so ecstatic since I thought my chances were still pretty slim. I got an email this week letting me know I made it to the final round! Not only did I get one photo in, but TWO! Two photos of mine are featured out of 220 images that were the final total images! My 2 images, the ones below, will be featured at an art exhibit at this year’s Click Away. If you’re going to San Antonio for the conference this year, can you all pretty please send me a pic!? Please! <3 <3.  You can view the images under “Connection” and “Human Faces” HERE.

Whew! I think that’s it! Four Magazines, Two weekly features in top places, one tutorial, and 2 Art Exhibit features! I like to look at things that even when things get thrown with a wedge, which stressing out about moving from our rental, and trying to figure out where we would like to reside right after was definitely the wedge, that there’s still a brighter side to things. This summer, though lacking in vacations and travels, made sure it wasn’t dull. What it was is blessed, and I am grateful. I put so much of my heart and my soul into my work, and I am grateful it is seen. I live and breathe being a wife, a mother, but second to that, I cannot ask for a better career. This time last year, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. I thought moving away from California would be the demise of my business. I thought that since I’m a creature of habit, that I would not thrive outside of the west coast. I think that made me work a little bit harder, took on more chances, and I think those are definitely paying off. I have met some of the best clients here in Maryland also, still proving that I am just so lucky to always have the nicest and most beautiful inside and out clients.

Whenever I’m asked what my goal is for the next year, or next five years, I always say that I’d be happy if I can just get back to my normal back when I was in California. I know it’s unrealistic to have it be exactly what it was like, but I am very happy and comfortable where I’m at right now. It is better than I would have hoped it could ever be. Dare I say, I think this is my new normal, and I love it. All these doors opened, and I’m glad I took chances, and I’m so glad I leaped. Here’s to you, East Coast. You’re making me fall in-love with you, and I think with our first summer here, I would say, it isn’t too shabby. I love it.