The Shore Family | Lake Hodges

My favorite shoots are the families that I have photographed through all the seasons. The Shore Family is just that. My first pictures of them were long before there were babies in the picture, and then when Penny was in the belly, and then when she was born, and again and again. Sadly, they moved a ways away and so I wasn’t able to photograph little Lula’s newborn pictures but we made it work for their Christmas picture. They drove down, I drove up, and these pictures were taken! Liz and Trent are the best- as authentic as two people could possibly be. So easy to photograph, flexible and up for anything. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t super bummed when they moved up North. But I am grateful that it worked out for us to take these pictures.

Liz, I hope you love the images and the memories! Can’t wait for the next time!

The Friedeck Family Portrait Session | Felicita Park, Escondido

This is the third family portrait session that I have done for the Friedeck Family and it has been so much fun to watch their little family grow! We have had kids at the same time, even with similar names haha- Milo and Mila. :) And we have shot all the way from Old Town, up to Sunset Beach and now all the way up to Felicita Park in Escondido. When I am photographing Tammy I feel like I am with an old friend, more fun than work.

Felicita Park was amazing! I feel like I could shoot here over and over again and still find a million new places to shoot. I will definitely be coming back to this location again!

Tammy I hope you love the pics!

Vicenta Turns 90 | Private Estate

What an honor it was to photograph this family in honor of Vicenta’s 90th birthday. This family was full of love and you could tell that Vicenta was a blessed woman. I love being able to take part in capturing such precious memories. Linette reached out to me with a lot of questions- she was doing her research! I gave her lots of details about what it is like for me to photograph an event for you. What I said was- I create the whole process from beginning to end to be what I would want in a photographer. That part is very important to me. Linette has the sweetest heart and just has a special light inside of her. It was a joy to work with her!

But this photoshoot got even better. After emailing back and forth with Linette we came to realize that I had photographed her brother’s wedding! It was so special to photograph Steph and Andy again! It felt so incredibly natural. This time their family had expanded to include a little fur child- Louis with his one blue eye and one brown.

To Vicenta and family- I hope that you love these pictures!

The Street Family | Marian Bear Park

I have been taking pictures of Ashley’s family since Kelsie was just a baby. Ashley and I worked together at the same elementary school and have had our babies at the same time two times in a row. In fact, our mom tribe formed naturally as 4 of us teachers became moms all around the same time. Since that time, our tribe has moved to different parts, gotten new jobs, and added more babies. I miss being able to see each other down the hall at work, but so blessed to call Ashley and the rest of our tribe friends.

Ashley, I hope you enjoy the pictures!

Lucas Turns One | Balboa Park Family Portrait Shoot

Lucas’ Mommy is a fellow teacher, colleague, and much more- one of my close friends. We taught together on the same team for only two years, but in those two years we depended on each other ( and our team greatly) to be the best teachers possible to our students. It was such a joy to find out that Lucas was on the way when Linda was first pregnant. And although Covid has kept us from being together as often as I would like, I have a special love in my heart for him and am so blessed to be able to photograph him.

We started our day early in the morning- yes very early, 6:30 am- at Balboa Park and then made our way back to their house to shoot some traditional Korean One Year Pictures. Except for me accidentally popping the balloon at the end, the day felt like a success and Lucas did great.

Part 2

For Part 2 we headed back to their house and shot Lucas in a traditional Korean first birthday outfit. And look, he is still smiling even after going on the third hour of shooting. What a trooper!

Part 3

And lastly, we ended our shoot with a little cake smash!

Baby Penelope Newborn Session

Going back in time here a bit, Penelope is a big one year old now but she was the sweetest little newborn. I always say that newborn shoots are the hardest of all types of photography but I have to say, Penelope was probably the easiest of all the newborn shoots I have done. She did exactly what we needed- slept pretty much the whole time.

I love watching Liz as a mom- she rocks it. Not only is she a hot mama but she is raising one strong, independent woman that could conquer the world, because that is exactly what Liz is teaching her. Liz is also so stylish, making her family even more fun to photograph. And Trent is the perfect support for her, super chill and go with the flow and always a sport when it comes to taking pictures. You have no idea how much easier that makes my job.

Since this photoshoot I have shot pictures of their little family many times. But these still are some of my favorites!

The Papapietro Family at Presidio Park

This special family are no strangers to my blog- in fact, this fall I did pictures of Amanda’s family by themselves and Liz’s family by themselves. But I absolutely love that every year Katie, Amanda and Liz’s mom, makes it a priority to get them all together and do what I refer to as “the big family shoot”. It is always eventful- full of laughing, crying (mostly the toddler but sometimes the mom chasing the toddler lol), and lots of singing/dancing/yelling/hooting/anything to get the kids’ attention.

I love this family, each and everyone of them. I can’t imagine a single year where we don’t do this. I hope it never stops.