Wishing everybody lots of love today :) ,
~e
Natalie's Wish
Natalie's wish was to be a ballerina - so Make-A-Wish teamed up with Subaru USA to make it happen :) ! After a red carpet welcome and a few rehearsals, she danced on stage at the beautiful Orpheum Theater in downtown Los Angeles in front of a crowd of family and friends, alongside three amazing professional dancers. She was absolutely perfect. Rock that tutu, girl :D !!
It is always an honor and a joy to work with these wonderful people and all of the incredible wish kids! The experience is amazing and very humbling at the same time - and I always feel like I am gifted so much more from it than I give.
This is just one of my favorite shots of the day.
Much love,
~ e
#7 - Jump the Record-Setting Snow In Mammoth! (aka We Got Snowed In!!)
"Jumping Awkwardly In Front of Impressive Objects Until I'm 80"
"So. Although I don't take a lot of photos of people jumping, I started this collection a couple years back and am going to continue to do this until I'm 80 - so eventually there is going to be an 80-year-old woman jumping.
Not sure why, but that never stopped me before anyways Lol!"
Wow! I have never seen so much snow in Mammoth, not even from way back in the day when I used to go skiing with my folks. It was sooo pretty, but not very good for driving in Lol - Hwy 395 was completely closed for 2 days! But we got really, really good at digging out cars from the snowbanks and putting on chains XD! And what about the bread at Erik Schat's on the way back in Bishop, eh? Yay!
We also made a Snow Chicken! He lives in a snow cave LOL.
Powder for DAYS!!!
Stay warm :) ,
~ e
Best Pen Ever!! :D
Who wouldn't want to write with a little tuna roll?? All we had to do to win you was to eat 15 plates of sushi LOL!
My boyfriend took me to Kula Revolving Sushi Bar in Torrance, and I was very pleasantly impressed! Just the fact that I get to watch food revolve all around me pretty much makes it for me X) , but much of the sushi is quite tasty for the price (although our go-to in LA is still Sugarfish of course :), and there is also a really cool secondary conveyor belt: it's right alongside the regular one and delivers any made-to-order food right to your table! I want to go back and take a video of this, since right before your plate leaves the kitchen on the belt, you hear a "Ding-Dong!" doorbell sound lol!
Cannot resist the cute!!
~ e
#6 - Jump the Washington Monument! Preeti & Aman's Destination Wedding, Virginia
"Jumping Awkwardly In Front of Impressive Objects Until I'm 80"
"So. Although I don't take a lot of photos of people jumping, I started this collection a couple years back and am going to continue to do this until I'm 80 - so eventually there is going to be an 80-year-old woman jumping.
Not sure why, but that never stopped me before anyways Lol!"
We traveled to Virginia to work with one of our awesome couples, Preeti & Aman - I absolutely love them, they're so cool :) . About an hour or so after we landed, we were welcomed with open arms at the mehndi, where we were treated to homemade Indian food :D (Omg totally one of our favorite kinds of food - other than traditional after-wedding ramen of course Lol)! It was soooo good - we felt super lucky!!
We then took advantage of arriving three days before the wedding to shoot some detail shots of Preeti's jewelry and the couple's wedding outfits! From chatting with her I knew that she really loved nature and greenery, so I totally wanted to incorporate this theme into her photos as much as I could. It just so happened that there was a very lush forest-y area in the back of her parents' home which turned out to be really fun to work with! This still is one of my favorite wedding jewelry series I've done to date - can I take the forest with me on all of my shoots Lol? I would really, really like that.
The next two days of shooting were so much fun as well. We had a blast at both the Sangeet and on the Big Day, and were so grateful and honored to be a small part of this amazing celebration :) .
Thank you so much again Preeti & Aman! You guys are the best, and many congratulations again!
~ e
Italia! A Few More Post-Destination Wedding Adventures :)
"Scorps", our super rad scorpion car (aka the Fiat 595 Abarth hehe) took us on many an adventure after Matt & Michelle's amazing castle wedding. Here are just a few images from our travels :) .
After eating ALL of the gelato (lol see previous post!) we explored more of the beautiful city of Siena.
I have a thing for windows :).
We had to try it just once LOL. Courtesy of Adam's iPhone.
We totally wanted to stop here LOL!
Ciao for now!
~ e
The BEST Gelato EVER!!! Siena, Italy
In the castle town of Siena there is a magical place. A VERY magical place.
It is called La Vecchia Latteria. And inside there is the most AMAZING, Awesomest, most delicious gelato we have ever tasted!!! :O We don't claim to be gelato experts by any means, but all we know is that we believe it to be what all other gelato only dreams of being LOL.
OMG we went back literally 5 times in 2 days haha.
Ciao!
~ e
The Day When We Learned Archery in Italy! (Post Destination Wedding :)
I had always wanted to learn how to use a bow and arrow. I had No Idea the time when I would learn was at San Gimignano a castle city in Tuscany :D !
Here's Adam getting ready to go! He had shot before so wasn't a n00b like me hehe.
My badass gauntlet!
We live in a Tower in Firenze! We also travel to Cinque Terre :D
After saying goodbye to Castello di Gabbiano, we headed to Firenze! Our Airbnb was awesome, but we came to the conclusion that perhaps people were not as tall wayyyy back in the day during medieval times when they built it - lol or at least they were my height XD (as I am slightly vertically-challenged hehe).
We then drove Scorps to Cinque Terre, one of Italy's coastal towns - Omg unreal!
Nobody is getting into our place XD! Although it was not made for Adam-sized people LOL!!
"Scorps": Our Italian Scorpion Car
So. After shooting Matt & Michelle's amazing wedding at the Castello di Gabbiano, we got a Scorpion car!
And a pretty sweet parking spot too ; )
Scorps took us on many adventures, and soon we came to realize that Adam actually is actually an Italian driver at heart.
Short Post: "Italian Shaka"! And the Most Delicious Castle Sandwich Ever
Two things we learned:
If you ever travel to Italy and you give someone a shaka (the "hang loose" sign), it actually means you want to talk on the phone.
Also, we have learned that Castle-spec sandwiches are on a Whole other level. Omg. How are you so delicious only with tomato, basil, cheese, and pancetta?? Guess it just goes to show what amazing farm-fresh ingredients can do.
Ciao for now :) ,
~ e
#5 - Jump the Castello di Gabbiano! Destination Wedding, Italy :)
"Jumping Awkwardly In Front of Impressive Objects Until I'm 80"
So. Although I don't take a lot of photos of people jumping, I started this collection a couple years back and am going to continue to do this until I'm 80 - so eventually there is going to be an 80-year-old woman jumping.
Not sure why, but that never stopped me before anyways Lol!"
Ciao bella! Matt & Michelle had an awesome plan. Their plan was to get married. Their plan was to get married in a castle. In a castle in Italy :O ! Which they did. Which was amazing :D!!! Ahhhh!!!
We had so much fun adventuring and shooting in and around the Castello di Gabbiano, located roughly 30 minutes outside of Firenze. Myself and my amazing second photographer Adam shot their wonderful rehearsal dinner (after which any other tiramisu was ruined for the both of us forever LOL ) and the next day had a blast taking full photographic advantage of the surrounding olive groves, vineyards, and everything else this amazing piece of history had to offer. Adam even shot the groomsmen in the wine cellar, which was pretty darn cool too :) .
Matt, Michelle, and their friends and family were and are such a wonderful, nice group of people too - working with them all was a joy, and we are so happy to have the privilege of being a small part of their wedding celebration.
Grazie mille,
~ e
#4 - Jump the Street Art! Wien, Austria
"Jumping Awkwardly In Front of Impressive Objects Until I'm 80"
"So. Although I don't take a lot of photos of people jumping, I started this collection a couple years back and am going to continue to do this until I'm 80 - so eventually there is going to be an 80-year-old woman jumping.
Not sure why, but that never stopped me before anyways Lol!"
Vienna, you have kick butt street art - we took this one after happening across a huge stretch of seriously cool works on the Donaukanal (Danube Canal).
Here's Lookin' at You Kid! Cannot Resist the Cute Entry 1
Anyone who knows me knows how I love the Cute. Things that are also a fruit or baked good also get extra cute points right off the bat LOL!
In addition I love how the company is called Cotton Food XD. Cannot Resist!!! <3
Have a wonderful day everyone!
~ e
Go Go Power Rangers Shoot!!! Make-A-Wish
That day when you met the Power Rangers Super Megaforce :D
It's always such a great honor to shoot with this amazing group of people - and when 6 awesome Wish Kids want to become Rangers themselves, you know it's on Lol! After learning how to fight like a Ranger, they battled it out in front of a crowd at the Pasadena Convention Center to emerge strong and victorious. A day filled with Mighty Morphin Awesomeness all around :) .
To quote the kids, "Earth's Defenders Never Surrender!!"
And neither should we :D .
Rock on everyone,
~ e
To get involved in MAW, click here for more info!
#3 - Jump the Louvre! Paris, France (and Snails!)
"Jumping Awkwardly In Front of Impressive Objects Until I'm 80"
"So. Although I don't take a lot of photos of people jumping, I started this collection a couple years back and am going to continue to do this until I'm 80 - so eventually there is going to be an 80-year-old woman jumping.
Not sure why, but that never stopped me before anyways Lol!"
When this was taken it was my first time in Paris, and needless to say we had a most awesome time! We also visited Le Mont Saint-Michel, located in Normandy, which is a castle town on an island in the ocean. It was absolutely beautiful - I love to be anywhere by the sea really ~ it calms me down and revitalizes me anytime I feel stressed out or just need to take a breather.
Read MoreTotoro Cookies :D!
Thank you so much to Adam Dotson, my amazing Second Shooter, for bringing these macarons back from CrackleCreme in Vancouver!
I am a HUGE Miyazaki fan, and the very first film of his that I watched when I was a little girl was My Neighbor Totoro. My favorite is the little white-colored totoro (chibi-totoro), who manages to hold objects even though he has no hands LOL.
Cannot resist the cute!!!
~ e
#2 - Jump the Molamola! Barcelona, Spain (Plus: an Intro to the Mola :)
"Jumping Awkwardly In Front of Impressive Objects Until I'm 80"
(Like I said, I really don't think it would be a complete blog without this collection :D.)
"So. Although I don't take a lot of photos of people jumping, I started this collection a couple years back and am going to continue to do this until I'm 80 - so eventually there is going to be an 80-year-old woman jumping.
Not sure why, but that never stopped me before anyways Lol!"
For anyone who knows me, you know that I have a great <3 for sunfish (otherwise know as molamola). One might argue that they are not very impressive, but to me they are one of the most odd, endearingly awkward animals in the whole entire world, and I love them dearly for this very reason :) . This little guy was being cared for at L'Aquarium Barcelona, since he had gotten injuries from an incident with a motorboat (as their body shape may give away, they are not very fast lol...). After he recovers he will be released to swim another day. Yay!
I have some good friends who go fishing and/or paddling in the ocean and they have actually seen them in the wild! Many times you will see them sunbathing on their sides like this:
Many comments during first encounters include:
"Is that just a fish's head? Where's the rest of it?"
"OMG is it dead???"
"Oh, I thought it was just floating trash."
But really guys, they are pretty cool!!!
Fun Facts About the Mola!
They eat mostly jellyfish (which are btw about 95% water....lol) - as a result, the scientific community is actually becoming more interested in them because of the increase of jellyfish in our oceans due to climate change.
The mola is the largest bony fish in the world.
They are very curious, docile fish and actually like to get pet by divers.
They are also sometimes mistaken for sharks because their fins sometimes poke above the water like a shark's fin XD.
To learn more about them, here is a great TED Talk about them by a kindred spirit, marine biologist Tierney Thys!
There is just something about them that speaks to me and makes me ridiculously happy. Is this a good thing? LOL thaaaat could be debatable, but nonetheless they totally rock my world.
Have a wonderful rest of the day everyone, and stay fabulously different ; ) ,
~ e
#1 - Jump the Arc de Triomf! Barcelona, Spain
"Jumping Awkwardly In Front of Impressive Objects Until I'm 80"
(I really think that it wouldn't be a complete blog unless I included this collection XD. Here's the first one!!)
"So. Although I don't take a lot of photos of people jumping, I started this collection a couple years back and am going to continue to do this until I'm 80 - so eventually there is going to be an 80-year-old woman jumping.
Not sure why, but that never stopped me before anyways Lol!"
This was my first time traveling to Barcelona, and I must say I absolutely Loved it. One of my favorite experiences was actually getting to be a total fangirl of Gaudí's work in person :D . You know how sometimes when you see something or walk into a place and there are just no words (and that's saying a lot for me because I am known to be a talker Lol)? Well, that's how it was when I walked into the Sagrada Família:
Read More