Jaimi and Catherine came up with the fashion- and beauty-centered shoot – a bachelorette weekend in – and I was so honored that they asked me to photograph it for them. The day was so much fun, and I am so happy with the images we were able to capture thanks to the amazing team and the lovely models.

Hair & makeup: Fiore Beauty

Styling: The Life Styled

Dresses provided by Shareen Vintage

Location: The London Hotel – West Hollywood

The daytime look. Our models from left to right: Elana, Mimi, Suzy and Cat.

Elana is a real life bride-to-be and was super excited to play the bachelorette for the shoot. Congrats to Elana!

How stunning is she? She looked amazing in this vintage red polka dot dress.

Suzy looking sassy.

Mimi was a natural in front of the camera and I loved this layered necklace look!

Cat looked so amazing in this vintage green lace dress! I just loved her energy.

Love.

The evening look. Elana was totally feeling this amazing vintage frock. Her hair was amazing!

A few bonus shots of Suzy in this amazing pink tulle explosion! I had so much fun with this.

What a great day and team of people. Thanks to everyone who made this possible and another thanks to Blair of Junebug Weddings for featuring the shoot! xo

Laurel

Laurel is an artist. She creates some of the most clever pieces and I would adore her work even if she wasn’t one of my best friends in the whole world. She is always drawing, painting or creating something… She is pretty much the best doodler in the world- I have a huge pile of doodled cocktail napkins to prove it.

She and I have had countless nights of fun and conversation, and we are constantly bonding over our similar, evolving perspectives of the world, as well as our similar desires to grow and learn, and create along the way. She is thoughtful, introspective, lively, energetic, kind, and beautiful, inside and out.

This is Laurel, as only I can see her…

Laurel- the champion of jumping photos.

Did I mention she is also inspired by divas? Beyonce in particular… we love Beyonce.

xoxo

At the start of 2010, I made it a goal to start and work on a personal photography project this year. While I absolutely love what I do for clients with weddings and portraits, I find it necessary to photograph just for myself sometimes in order to keep a fresh eye and to keep pushing the creativity in my work. I’ve always been the girl with the camera and frequently take photos on trips, at events with friends, at social gatherings… but I have never formally began an on-going personal photography project… before now.

In the past couple of months, I have photographed a couple of my friends in shoots that I considered “just for fun” at the time. This week, while working on a few edits from those informal shoots, I realized that I had began my personal photography project without even knowing it. The photos I took of these two great friends made me realize that I have captured images of parts of their personalities that only I can see, that these images are very personal and intimate, and portray them as they are through my eyes. The moment I realized that, I knew that these two shoots were the start of a project I want to continue, a series of portraits of people in my life… As Only I Can See Them.

________________

Meg

Meg is no stranger to this blog, she is a fellow photographer and one of my dearest and closest friends. We met living in the dorms our Freshman year of college, were roommates for about a year after college, began our businesses at about the same time, and have been through much, personally and professionally, together. About a month or so ago, Meg was back here in LA for a few days, so we decided to dedicate a few hours one day to taking portraits of each other. Our first priority was to just get creative and have fun, and maybe even take a few photos of each other to be used on our own Web sites. About an hour before we were about to get started, Meg was sitting on my couch when she received a phone call from her Mom that her Grandfather had passed away overnight. He had been ill for quite some time, so while it wasn’t entirely surprising, it was shocking and devastating. She cried. I tried to comfort her, but in times like those, words don’t carry much weight. After speaking more to her Mom and making a few phone calls, we sat there on the couch and talked. Her first instinct was to race home, but being five hours away and having a wedding here in LA the next day, that was out of the question. She would have to wait until the weekend was over to go home and be with family. Since we were all ready for the photo session, and because the alternative thing to do was sit in my apartment for the remainder of the day, she made the decision to carry on with the shoot we had planned.

I wasn’t going to tell that story when I originally decided to post the following images, but I know Meg really well, and these images don’t represent the everyday-Meg. There is something about them that feels different, and I know that is because of the news she received not two hours before these images were taken. I thought it was important to share that story because it gives context to the person who was in front of my camera that day. She was sad and in the beginning of the mourning process, but also thoughtful and grateful for her family. She was beautiful, as she always is, and she was just a little more vulnerable.

This is Meg, as only I can see her…

This is Amelia… in the snow.

Happy Monday!

More to follow soon.

Sophia is now six months old (I can’t believe how quickly time is flying by) and is such a joy. It’s amazing to see how early a personality develops… Just in the few hours I was with her, I can already see that she is compassionate, understanding, loving and so intelligent. She is a very special baby and I have no doubt she will grow into an exceptionally special person, with nothing but love and support from her entire family. When I got to Melissa & Todd’s house the day of the shoot, I asked them what they want to remember most about this moment in Sophia’s life, what they want to capture about her right now and remember forever. Melissa got a little teary-eyed when she told me she wants to remember most how happy she is, how small she is now, and the joy she brings… I hope these images will always remind you of that.

How cute is this pink tutu Melissa had for her??

I remember reading this story when I was little… such special moments.

A shot to emphasize just how small she is right now…

This was taken especially for Aunt Sam, who is a huge Disney fan and got these for baby Sophia.

Melissa and Todd got these flowers and bubble machine especially for the shoot! I love their planning and creativity!

Some simple family portraits… How gorgeous is Melissa??

And at the end of the shoot, Todd took this shot of me with Sophia. She is such a special girl and I look forward to seeing her grow up. We’re already planning to have a session every six months to document these times.

Love you and your whole family!

How cute is Kristin?? She worked it. And the light after all of the storms was superb.

It was fun to incorporate a few props into this shoot. I loved that she had Emily Post’s Etiquette book  just sitting on her desk in her office… every planner should own a copy.

We had a little fun with this awesome black and white striped ribbon… wedding planners always have extra ribbon laying around.

Kristin’s younger sister Chelsea (aka Choo Choo, as I learned during the shoot is Kristin’s main assistant, so we got a few photos with her as well.

I had a great time shooting the two ladies together. I have a younger sister and loved seeing the bond that these two have- I can relate to it.

They both had the greatest laughs!

Some basic portraits of the fabulous duo…

Love these last two of the lovely Kristin.

Kristin and Chelsea- you ladies were SO much fun! I had such a great time and I’m so looking forward to working with you in the near future!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

The relationship between sisters is very dear to me as I have one sister who is my best friend. These girls already have such a great bond… I hope I was able to capture that and that I can continue to document their lives as they grow older.

She was a little unsure what she was supposed to do…

One of my favorites!

From the Sneak Peek and another favorite: