January
The past year and a half or so, I have been doing a ton of photo shoots for practice, fun, and now, my business. For Christmas 2010, I received a new lens for my Canon Rebel and was eager to try it out. The young lady in this photo is "Artemis", an enthusiastic and motivated model who has collaborated with me on many of shoots. For this shoot in particular, I borrowed multiple outfits from a Bay area boutique so that we could do our first fashion shoot together. Everything was going well until I realized I locked my keys in the car... while waiting for AAA to arrive, we decided to snap a few closeups! The rest of the day went on without further incident. We ended up shooting five outfits in six hours, in forty degree weather. Artemis never complained once! Did I mention she was enthusiastic (and possibly Alaskan)?
February
In February, I was lucky enough to be one of the photographers at Sacramento Fashion Week. The event was one of my highlights of the year! I met so many talented people and got to enjoy the glamor of runway designer fashion, up close and personal. This shot was taken backstage on the first night. Models everywhere were getting their hair and makeup done, touchups, getting fitted, dressed and donning their accessories. You'd be surprised how many were actually sewn into their garments, a la Olivia Newton John in Grease! And yes, for some that meant having butterflies sewn onto them. One of the side benefits of hanging with the models is picking up tips such as "to keep from falling down on the runway, spray hairspray on the bottom of your nylons so that your feet don't slip in your shoes." And now you know.
March
At the end of March, Gary and I kicked off the start of camping season and headed to Mendocino for a glorious get away weekend. The California coast is truly one of the natural treasures of the world! Gary and I both find our time in nature to be so refreshing, enjoyable and encouraging.
April
This is one of my favorite shots from a photo shoot with an aspiring model / musician named Jvion. I can be a bit apprehensive about shooting with male models, as (being a girl, myself) I don't feel I can provide much direction or insight about how to look manly in a photo! Maybe I should take up reading men's fashion magazines??? No worries with Jvion. He has a great personality and always has lots of ideas to incorporate into a photo shoot, including his experience in martial arts.
May
This image is from my first shoot with an agency model, Brian Francis from City Model Management, at the Vizcaya in downtown Sacramento. Have I mentioned that my year was full of photo shoots?
June
This bunch of special folks is the first small group that Gary and I participated in at Gateway Fellowship, before launching the one that we now lead. We were celebrating the very special occasion of Jim's 96th birthday! Jim is one of those people that within a short time became one of my favorite people in the whole world. I'm looking forward to celebrating his #97!
July
In July, I participated in a photo shoot at The Old Sugar Mill, a unique place in the Sacramento area. I snapped this pic which was eventually published in N Magazine as a finalist in their annual photo contest.
August
In August, we hosted a reunion BBQ for our friends from Jacob's Well, the special church plant that ran a couple of years when we first married and moved to Sacramento. This picture is us with a few of the youth that must have been about 11 or 12 when we started up the youth group back in the day! What a blessing to see them blossoming into amazing young adults.
September
On September 3rd, 2011, dreams came true when Gary's brother (known to many of you as "Bonus") married his sweetheart, Liz. I can't imagine a better, more well suited person for Bonus to spend his life with, and I am thrilled to call Liz not only friend, but sister!
October
Yep, our little Shih Tzu Billy is still amusing us with his antics. He's ancient now (11? 12?) but still finding new perches from which to observe the world around him. Life's tough when you're only eight inches tall! I usually find him curled up on some kind of cushion/blanket/pillow, but on this day in October he showed off a new preferred role: centerpiece!
November
We hosted Thanksgiving in Sacramento this year, and part of the weekend festivities were devoted to the creation of an application video to the Amazing Race! My husband and mother are hoping to take part as the first "in-law" team on the show! Wouldn't that be something? Keep your eyes peeled as they may be racing by you any day now!
December
Many thanks to my good friend Wendy St. Clair for taking some great portrait shots of Gary and I! Due to Gary and I both getting sick in December, we weren't able to get picture cards made up for family and friends, but now you can enjoy our cuteness right here on the blog! We've been married twelve and a half years now, and are just as in love as ever!
