A-SESSION LOCATIONS- Mountains

I just love it when friends and clients refer me to families who are a perfect fit for my personality and photography style! That’s what happened here with this wonderful family of three from Sonoma who were referred to me by a long-term client of more than a decade. Marika, Virgilio, and their young son, Diangio, drove up after a brief camping trip, to play in my neck of the woods at Sly Park Lake. Marika is a part time NICU nurse and high school teacher  which must take some serious emotional energy. Meanwhile Virgilio teaches farming and was quite…

I have known Jacqueline and her family now for some time. Along with her two older sisters, Samantha and Kalene, Jacqueline has baby-sat my daughters over the years. In the early days, when my girls were toddlers and we would go on family camping trips, the even short moments of respite they provided my husband, Jeff, and I were MUCH appreciated. And now it’s Jacqueline’s turn to fly the coop, heading off to Philadelphia to study the science behind textiles. Such an interesting and different major. Jacqueline tells me that many graduates go on to work as consultants for companies like…

Jake graduates from El Dorado High this spring so it was the perfect time to get out to the lake and capture some photographs of him. As an avid wake boarder, the lake was a natural choice for him. I always joke with my senior male clients that the images we take are “not for you” but for “your mom”, so just be yourself so that she loves them. This tends to take off the pressure off this photo shoot being “all about them” and guys are able to relax into it more easily. Jake is a super sweet guy…

Last week I met up with local high school senior Abby and her mom, Alice to capture this life milestone in Abby’s life and talk about the beginning of the next one. Abby and Alice have a wonderful mother/daughter relationship and I enjoyed observing them both take it all in; Abby, clearly excited about what is next and Alice, also excited for her but still preparing to see her youngest leave home. These sessions can be a shared rite of passage and as a mom myself, beautiful to be a part of. With three college acceptances to choose from and graduation only a few short months away, Abby now gets to decide…

I’ve been watching Taylor and Ryan grow at basically the same rate as my own kids. You see, our children are about the same age and I have been photographing the Anderson family, annually since Ryan was an infant- perhaps for 9 or 10 years now? Jessica and Bret are so great about making time for this every single year despite their crazy schedules. They don’t even need to explain a cancellation/rescheduling as I’m living that same life too- kids running in various directions, working parents doing the same, soccer soccer soccer, family in town for a visit, I remember stitches one year,…

You know when you just click with someone? As a photographer, this is pure joy, especially if they are your subject. Nerves go away, trust prevails and that creative flow just happens- where you move from one idea to the next gently and confidently, and maybe a little giddily too. The Gimpel family came referred to me by the Little family(thanks Bob and Kim). Alison, Ross, Ayla(6) and Sage(4) said this was their first “real” family session. So, off we went climbing to through the bear clover to get to the top of the hill overlooking Jenkinson Lake, well, because there…

9.20.14: the wedding day of Jamie and Roman, and the infamous King Fire started just one week before. If you were getting married that weekend in the Pollock Pines area, you weren’t really sure where your wedding would be. After several days of thick smoke-filled skies, a bit of blue emerged through the billows for Jamie and Roman’s wedding at Sierra Banquet Center. Although the King Fire had pushed northeast settling our nerves down a bit locally, everyone’s knee-jerk reaction was to look up when they heard planes flying overhead to see what kind of aircraft it was; a jet dropping fire retardant,…

10 years ago, Chuck was listed as one of the top 10 most eligible bachelors in Sacramento Magazine (as was mentioned quietly to me when I inquired how they met). Then Chuck met Julie. On a perfect, breezy day on the North Shore, Chuck and Julie had a sweet, quaint wedding at the gorgeous backdrop of Christy Hill Resturant in Tahoe City. Fun-loving, light-hearted, they gathered their friends and family with lots of good food and joking around. What a great way to commemorate starting married life together! Julie and Chuck are active and like to bike and run together. They share a…

What a beautiful day, down at the river’s edge at Alder Creek Tract, just up Highway 50. The Bonzo family won an auction item of a free session that my business donated for a local fundraiser. As most sessions go, there is a period of warming up to each other, and of course, the kids, wondering…What have Mom and Dad gotten us into?! Well, I don’t want to put words in their mouths–but while those feelings may have existed–any worries soon subsided into a really fun and laid-back session. Lisa and Ed have raised completely delightful children: David, Emma, and…