"Go Porg Pilot Go!!" :D

Fiancé <3 got to pick the vehicles - but I got to pick the drivers LOL ya!!
(I was also very happy to find that Sam's helmet fit on the Porg's head X).

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I'm not sure if we are in space or in the Grid LOL, but either way love the fact that his is the face of a serious pilot.

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LOL! So serious ~

LOL! So serious ~

Shinji has gotten me back into Legos needless to say hehe.

Taken outside of one of our favorite taco places La Paz Mexican Restaurant in El Segundo! Best Shredded Beef Crispy Tacos omg. Special shoutout to them :). 

Have an awesome day everybody, and May the Force Be With You -
~ e
 

The Mirror & Ms. Kelly Both Agree ;)

Thao - killin' it on her wedding day morning :). 
Love me some window light & an old wooden crate bookshelf hehe ~ Warhol is also watching out for us too from the looks of it Lol!

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Me: "Mirror, mirror on the wall!"
Mirror: "Thao is the fairest of them all!"
Me: :D!

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You agree, dontcha Grace? 

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Hehe I think so X).
Have a fabulous day everybody & stay awesome!
~ e

Flower Power :D w. Ellie & Ben

Flower Power :D w. Ellie &amp; Ben

We shot Ellie & Ben's engagement session where they had one of their first dates - love the idea of this because the shoot is already off the bat so sweet and personal :). It absolutely fit for them too because they love the outdoors & exploring together, and the flowers blooming all around us just were so much in harmony with what a playful and fun-loving couple they are! I had such a blast working with them omg.

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Why Nicole & Donnie are Awesome :D

I have been meaning to share this for such a long time because I just got the biggest kick out of it when I saw it XD.

And also because I so sincerely love this couple:

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You guys are sensational. 
So much peace & luv :) , 
~ e

A Very Happy Dad's Day <3

Happy Dad's Day to my Dad <3 & all the super amazing fathers out there :).  

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Special shoutout to one of my favorite families to work with: Rodney, Jenn, & 'ohana! I have shot their engagement, wedding, maternity, family portrait + second maternity sessions, and I just can't believe how time has flown by! Such an honor to be a part of your journey. So much Aloha, and I can't wait for your vow renewal on Kaua'i in 2020!! :D We are so there.

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Ya, I pretty much get it from my Dad LOL

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Lots of Love :),
~ e

2018 Best of the Knot Weddings Win :) ! Huge Thank you to all of our Awesome & Wonderful Couples!!

We would like to say a Huge traditional Erin Shimazu Photography After-Wedding Ramen "Thank you so much Omg :D!!!" to all of our amazing & ridiculously wonderful couples and the Knot for our 2018 The Knot Best of Weddings Win!!!

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It means so much to us! Most importantly though we are just so happy that we were able to be there for you and capture all the joy & awesomeness that you are, on one of your most memorable days :). 

Thank you so much again, and so much <3<3<3!!
xoxo,
~ e

And no blog would be complete without mention of: "The All Important After-Wedding Ramen Rule at Erin Shimazu Photography!"

This rule states that after each wedding we photograph, it is Always mandatory to enjoy delicious & amazing ramen! 
(Amendment: If it is necessary to do so, rain check ramen may be had on a later date, but the number of weddings & the number of ramens must always remain equal!)

We have our favorite spots, but always are down to try new places! Do hit us up if you have a favorite ramen joint that you think we should try :D! 

Purple Sky with Alice & Jimmy :)

Purple Sky with Alice &amp; Jimmy :)

Love, love, love Alice ~ she is such a sweet person, with so much spirit <3. Many, many congratulations to her and her hubby Jimmy! We were all so happy to be able to be blessed with a purple-sky sunset on their wedding day, and really could not think of a better way to end than a couples shoot on the beach :) .

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"Cannot Resist the Cute!" Entry 2: Zassou - He has big dreams :D. No matter that he is a weed Lol!

"Cannot Resist the Cute!" Entry 2: Zassou - He has big dreams :D. No matter that he is a weed Lol!

As I have mentioned before, I just cannot resist the cute. 
Things with little faces (especially tiny things) that look happily up at me bring me a very uncommon amount of joy LOL. 

Soooo......Meet Zassou :D!

Story: Zassou is a weed who admires florists and dreams of one day being featured in a bouquet. But because he is a weed it is said that this will probably never happen. However this does not get him down and according to Wikipedia he has "a positive attitude beside an unrelenting spirit for success!"

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Scouting w. Sunshine & Ken :D

Scouting w. Sunshine & Ken :D

No matter what, I always make a trip to scout out every one of my couples' wedding venues before their big day - just to become super familiar with the lay of the land and also the light during the time when we will be shooting. This way, we are super prepared ahead of time for the wedding day and have that much more time for more awesomeness :) ! I also always invite my couples to join me if they wish, so we can walk the venue together and talk about what is important to them and what they like!

Today's scout was with one of my super cool couples, Sunshine & Ken :D!

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Cloud Friend :D

Cloud friend with Jenny & Matthew on a very blustery day :) . It was so windy that it was hard to keep our hats on! Literally Lol. All of a sudden though everything got super quiet and peaceful, and this little guy came out to say "Hello" hehe.

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He stuck around for a little bit then joined his other homies in the sunset.  

I hope everybody has a very wonderful day :) ,
~ e

"Because...?"

Because rain! 
Because Thursday?
Bc Target?
Bc I'm easily amused XD Lol? 

Just Because, maybe :) . 

Have a wonderfully rainy day Everyone!
Much luv & stay dry,
~ e

Ps - Temporary vegetable tatoos = awesome LOL. Although I did forget the next day I had the carrot one on (basically bc it wasn't the one one my face lol), & was very confused when the teller at the bank and the person at the gym complimented me on my interesting "ink" XD....

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Just Vogue!

"Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire. Ginger Rogers, dance on air -
 They had style, they had grace -
'
Denise & Bridesmaids' gave good face! :D
Come on, Vogue. " 

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Also Ft. "Envy" the doggie :) . 

Love you Denise & Dale!! Your wedding was way too fun & you guys are too cool for school.
Blessings, 
~ e

So honored to be featured on Make-A-Wish's Donor Spotlight! (Aka: My goodness that's my face LOL! I think I'm more used to being behind the lens XD )

Make-A-Wish u r awesome-sauce!! 

For more info on how to volunteer, do check out their site!
http://wish.org/ways-to-help#sm.001fajc8e15jrcopzjq1m4xv7ofdx

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For the past several years or so I have had the honor and privilege of working with the amazing folks at Make-A-Wish - they seriously rock, and work so hard to bring joy to so many kids and their families. It really is such a humbling experience, and mostly I just feel so lucky to even be a small part. 

So much luv to Kara, my go-to person at Make-A-Wish OCIE!! She is always there if I ever need anything and really is da Best :) !!!

So much luv to everyone, & have a most awesome day!
~ e <3

Golden Light & Genmaicha

A little under the weather today (bleh!!) so I'm drinking my favorite tea (genmaicha hehe so good) out of my Baymax mug & thinking about beaches & golden light XD. 

Taken at Manhattan Beach ~ Michelle &amp; her lovely hat :)&nbsp;

Taken at Manhattan Beach ~ Michelle & her lovely hat :) 

I'm a very bad & impatient sick person lol and cannot wait until I'm well!! My god then the day better watch out for me that's for sure LOL :).

Stay well guys & happy sunset,
~ e

"Tree Rings" for Emi & David :)

"Tree Rings" for Emi & David :)

When I saw the star in the middle of this tree stump, I just couldn't pass it up :) . Being a botanist, Emi loves everything about the world of plants :D! This is why I wanted to be sure to incorporate her theme into her ring shots.

I have a great love of trees too, and the feeling and poetry around the whole idea of them, so it really was too much fun to run around the Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Garden with her and her hubby!

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We Jump for You! :D

We totally want to jump so high to say "Thank you sooo much!!" to all of our wonderful, awesome couples!! So although this is not technically a "Jumping Awkwardly in Front of Impressive Objects" addition, we are so grateful and humbled that we had the opportunity to work with all of you <3, so are totally sticking to tradition :) . 
(And I'm wearing my Porg shirt too bc it's a special occassion XD!)

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Thank you so much again guys, wishing you all the happiness :D!
xoxo,
~ e

Yay Natalie! We are "Miss November"! :D

So stoked for Natalie to have been chosen for one of the months of the Make-A-Wish America's 2017 Calendar!! She's the beautiful star ballerina in the middle :) , who totally rocked her wish btw - which was being able to perform live on a stage in front of all her family and friends!

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She is totally awesome and amazing, and it was an honor to be a small part and get to meet her and watch her dance. I have always admired ballet - for a little while our halau (or hula school) shared a studio with ballerinas, and the discipline shown and the beauty of the dance made it so cool to watch. I often sneaked a peak at their practice while I was running upstairs to mine XD. 

Plus it was really neat I thought to have toe-shoes & tutus and bare-feet & lei all under the same roof :) . 

Kara (my go-to person at Make-A-Wish), you so rock too omg. Thank you so much for allowing me to photograph this special day!!!
And as I say on all of my Make-A-Wish posts, it is so humbling, and always a true joy & honor. 

Blessings,
~ e

 

Aw! Meini & Kevin, Luv You Guys Too!!

Things like this really make my day :).

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Thank you so much Meini & Kevin for the Before-the-Wedding Thank you Card :D! You guys are too sweet omg.
I'm so grateful for all of my amazing couples, who continue to make me totally excited about shooting & honored to be a part of their happiness :).
<3
~ e

Thunderbolt & Lightning! Very, very frightening!!! (Actually mostly just awesome Lol)

So a couple days ago there was a lightning storm over the ocean :O!! 
Caught purely by chance, it was my first time ever trying to shoot lightning wahaha!! It's so unpredictable & crazy fast that I wasn't sure if I would even be able to catch anything in the frame LOL. Luckily, I have the most amazing boyfriend ever <3 so at 12am he drove me to the pier & waited with me in the dark while I propped up my camera on both of our jackets on the railing to shoot :) . 

Manhattan Beach Pier is a great tripod XD

Manhattan Beach Pier is a great tripod XD

Wahaha it went through 2 clouds!!

Wahaha it went through 2 clouds!!

Multi-bolts :)&nbsp;

Multi-bolts :) 

There were also people having bonfires down on the beach, & it was so funny to hear them cheering and yelling "Wow!!!" for the lightning too hehe - it was the best show in town that night, I really gotta say! Mother Nature, u r pretty badass.

\m/,
~ e