They make it look easy.

Somehow this mother/father duo – both of ‘em, lawyers – manage to excel at their respective jobs, stay physically fit (Dad is super active in a soccer league and Mom continues her running/Pilates/fitness regimen without fail), remain social with friends and most importantly of all … having recently added another baby to the mix, they now find themselves raising two sweet and adorable little boys. These guys are naturals at the family thing. And while I know it’s not, they make the whole family/work/life balance thing look so easy. Mary, if only we could bottle up your “Superwoman Capabilities” and sell it like Bettheny Frankel sells her Skinnygirl Margaritas … we would have it made!!

Until I can figure out how to do that, I’ll stick to photography. And while I can’t bottle up your superwoman traits, I hope I manage to capture the essence of your family in these images. I hope that when your boys look at these photos down the road, they’ll see evidence of your love and devotion.

What a handsome, sweet, fun and silly little dude. Love him! Had so much fun playing with him.

This little guy has his Daddy’s mouth and smile. At five months old, this guy was a non-stop smiler! Adorable.

Love you guys! Will send out the pics of your Superfamily soon. xoxo

A few weekends ago, I had the pleasure of snuggling the most adorable little baby girl. She’s the newest addition to a family near and dear to our heart. The father in this family and my husband go back many years, having gone to Loyola High School together. Throughout the years, these guys have stood next to each other throughout many of life’s greatest milestones. The best ones being him adding all these fabulous girls to his family – first his wife, then their first daughter and now, baby sis.

This little one’s got the best cheeks (I just want to eat ‘em up!) and cute little rolls, reminding me so much of her older sister when her sis was that age. Just a few I wanted to share of Baby Kaia.

Kaia, in an outfit from her auntie. This should make auntie smile, yes?

Here are the two sisters, side by side, both of them at four months old:

And here’s big sister today:

She’s grown up so much! You can see pics of her at eight weeks, four months and six months. (Looks like I forgot to blog her one year pics.)

M & JJ, enjoy your sweet girls at this precious stage! Erich and I look forward to celebrating the girls’ milestones throughout their lifetimes as well. xoxo

I felt right at home when I met my new clients on Friday. Not only were mom and dad absolutely down to earth, friendly and relaxed but my very first conversations with the boys (ages three and six) revolved around Luke Skywalker, Stormtroopers and Padawan training. Anyone that knows me and my family can attest to the fact that 90% of the conversations in my own household revolve around Star Wars characters and trivia. So like I said, I felt right at home.

Boys and jedi knights aside now, I should mention that the impetus for that day’s session was actually the recent arrival of a new little family member. She was born about a month ago and when mom realized how quickly the days and weeks were passing by, she called me up (thanks to a referral from this awesome family) and asked if we could schedule something asap. We coordinated calendars and in a few short days, we met up and documented the little babe at five weeks young.

We begin with a smile.

Now get ready for some adorable baby blues and some silky smooth, doll-like newborn skin. There’s nothing like newborn baby skin, is there?

Look at the dimples.

Mommy and daughter spend some time together.

Sweet big brothers surround baby sis with some love and kisses.

Daddy and daughter have a little heart to heart here.

Little fingers.

And last but not least, a little quiet-time and snuggle.

Hope you enjoyed a little glimpse into life at home with this awesome family. S&J, enjoy your first peek! I’ll look forward to scheduling a playdate for our boys soon.

When I need a moment or two of peace and quiet (let’s say I actually want to hold a conversation on the phone or something), I let the boys have my iPhone and play some of the free games I’ve downloaded. It’s not uncommon for them to then misplace it. I’ll find it under a throw pillow, underneath a blanket, on the bookshelf, next to their lunchbox … the possibilities are endless. But we always manage to find it.

Yesterday was different. They swore they had left the phone on the kitchen floor right where they had been playing it. As it was nowhere to be seen on the kitchen floor … and they seemed to have no luck finding it (while wandering aimlessly through the house), I threatened to never let them play with my phone again. I thought the threat of never seeing my phone would jar them into suddenly remembering where they had last left my phone. But no new info emerged. They kept insisting it was last seen on the kitchen floor.

As the search to find my phone dragged on and on (calling it didn’t help since the battery was dead), I got more and more frustrated.

I yelled at the boys.
I gave them time outs.
I made them search high and low (and clean up the rest of the house during their search!).
I refused to let them outside to ride bikes with Michael and Cate until they told me where they’d hid it.
I yelled at them. Again.

And then …. for some reason, I had this inclination to take a walk outside and see if it ended up out there. And in the middle of the grass, I saw it. My beloved phone. And then the pieces started fitting together. The boys had left the phone on the kitchen floor next to the sliding glass door. But it appears our mischievous little pooch snatched the device and took it out on the grass where he always goes to gnaw on stolen goods from the home.

OOPS. I felt SO guilty for yelling at the boys and accusing them of “not trying hard enough to remember where they’d left my phone” …

Granted, they still need to learn to put my phone on the counter where it belongs and not on the floor …!

Patience. It’s not just a virtue, it’s a requirement. When it comes to photographing 1.5 year old children — twins, in particular — you need to make sure that in addition to bringing your cameras and lenses, you come stocked with patience. A lot of it. Kids at this age aren’t the easiest to direct, no matter their personality or gender. When you’re trying to capture two of them together, though, the patience requirements are exponentially greater as you work to synchronize temperaments, appetites, locations and the like. It can be a while before you find your groove and start capturing those picture-perfect shots.

Last week, I arrived at Johnny Carson Park, excited to shoot and armed with patience. Good thing as I needed to draw from the reserves right away. Parking was hard to come by and it took rounds and rounds of circling to secure a spot. Once we were settled into our location, we then had to wait for what seemed like every single commercial landscape maintenance worker in Burbank to do his job. There were commercial lawnmowers, leaf blowers, you-name-it in the works. Fortunately, I got to use this downtime to catch up a bit with the beautiful, fit and active mom, Lauren of Nutri-Savvy. As much as I enjoy and value Facebook (we see each other there regularly), there is simply no replacement for face-to-face interaction.

So together, we played with the kids. We chitted and we chatted. And eventually we eased into our photography session.

It was a pleasure reconnecting with these darling baby girls. The last time we got together, they had a lot less hair, teeth and mobility. Maybe you’ll remember them from our photo session in Griffith Park last year? Or perhaps you’ve seen them on HBO’s Big Love (they play baby Nell). And if you’re new to the blog, let me introduce you to these gorgeous, hard-working babes.

Meet Ailish.

Her sister, Julia.

One of my favorite things to capture with my camera is the relationship between siblings. Twins, especially, have an extraordinary and unique connection. Here are a few storyboards of the girls having fun together.

These eyes are just to die for!

Serious about their work, these girls even have their own website. Check it out: The Official Website for Ailish and Julia O’Connor. I love seeing my photos all over the site!

I’m looking forward to watching Ailish and Julia grow and wonder what role we’ll see them in next …

I had intended to start scheduling sessions beginning in February but when one of my sweetest clients asked if there was any way I could get something on the books earlier, I couldn’t refuse. We moved her session from March to January and I couldn’t be happier. What a great way to kick off 2010 sessions!

I’m running out the door but since I had to get this photo up for a deadline, I thought I’d go ahead and blog it as well. These twin girls are just too gorgeous not to share with all of you. I’ll be back today or tomorrow with a “real” post and more from our session. For now … enjoy these beauties.

This image sort of takes your breath away, doesn’t it?

I’m excited to announce that viviZ has partnered with Tiny Prints this year to offer some fantastic holiday cards. If you’re shopping for holiday cards, look no further. Tiny Prints has an amazing selection and at a variety of pricepoints. There really is something for everyone here.

viviZ clients placing their orders by 11/30 will receive a special promotional price for use of files from your viviZ session. As most of my clients already know, digital files are $100 per file but for a limited time, I will be allowing you to select up to four (count ‘em FOUR!) images from your photo session to use in a Tiny Prints card. So, take advantage. You already invested in your session earlier this year … you might as well show off your investment to your friends and family.

And if we didn’t actually get together for a photo session this year, I still highly recommend you check out the site below. Click on the link and use one of your own photos. (Just consider coming to see me in 2010!)

Lastly, viviZ clients will also have access to exclusive designs offered only through professional photographers. Emails will be on their way shortly …

It took some coordination to get this session completed but in the end, we got it done. Beautifully, at that. After a few reschedules (yeah, I would take last minute tickets to a U2 concert over a photo session anyday, too!!) and after a lot of back-and-forth on location choices (beach or backyard? backyard or beach?), we finally were able to nail down a firm date and collectively decide to motivate for a beach session. I’m SO glad we did.

Our session was a fun little adventure resulting in some fun and beautiful images. Just wait ’til you see the awesome outfits K pulled together for her family. They were all dressed in these beautiful shades of blue (which complemented their amazing blue eyes, I must say) and I loved the way it all came together. A lot of people are hesitant to wear patterns (especially varying ones) and have been trained to only wear solids and non-distracting patterns for a portrait session. It takes a lot of thoughtful consideration to pull off a wardrobe like this one here. It truly isn’t easy. In fact, I know it can be quite frustrating at times so I understand it’s not for everyone. But I hope that by way of this blog — and showcasing the awesome outfits my clients choose — you can get an idea and some inspiration for new things to try. Ways to ‘change it up’ and make your family portrait unique and personal.

I really enjoyed my time photographing these guys. While my family and I get to see them off and on at social events (my husband plays golf regularly with Dad, I get to see Mom at parties and book club, etc. and the kids get to play together every now and then), the feeling is different when it’s just me being present to document their time together as a family. I get to know them in a different way. And I truly value and enjoy that experience.

You know it’s gonna be a great session when one of the first photos you snap is this:

Dad and big(gest) brother J had fun tossing around the football for a while. Keep an eye out for this guy, by the way. He’s only ten but is a fast-rising star in the world of water polo. He plays on THREE teams and is very dedicated to his sport.

I thought this photo was just so cool. It feels so peaceful and serene. And it also conveys a sense of us actually being a small part of this large, beautiful landscape. So nice to be able to enjoy and capture that.

Loved this photo of Dad and the boys. (And reference the picture above to see where they are sitting. Yes, I was climbing and scaling that rock to get this image. Anything for a great shot, right?)

I thought it would be a cool image if I gave it an old school sort of look.

Brothers having fun, goofing around:

There was a lot of this going on with baby brother:

Sweet moment with Dad and the little guy:

And then some “money shots”. (At least, I hope Mom and Dad will feel that way about some of these. And if not, there will be more in your gallery.) Dad and I were joking around about the money shot. It all started when we saw a group of tourists — at the most gorgeous beach — taking some photos. Facing the WRONG WAY. They were facing the ocean which meant their carefully posed group photo would contain a parking lot and a dude drinking a Pabst Blue Ribbon in their background. Not exactly the “money shot” for their scrapbook. At least not in my book. But here are a few that I think might qualify for the E family:

And I think this might be my absolute favorite! It shows how little this guy is right now (and will be fun to look at someday when he’s big and tall)) and it also shows off all of those awesome blues!

K&C, I hope you had as much fun as I did. And I hope that you’ll like your first peek. K, I’ll see you this afternoon!

The title of my blog isn’t in reference to Saturday’s photo session with an awesome family (although it could be) nor is it in reference to Stanford’s 51-42 victory over No.8 Oregon Ducks (go Cardinal!). No, the title doesn’t refer to my client’s achievements or careers (she’s a local gastrointestinal doctor and he’s an ambitious and motivated entrepreneur) either. No, my friends. And I do mean, friends. I’m referring to Facebook. Ha! Seriously.

When I first started tinkering around with Facebook, I was pretty skeptical. I felt like it had all sorts of stalkerish vibes and I felt weird seeing everyone’s photos even if they weren’t necessarily intended for me. But I was curious so I signed up. And shortly thereafter, got sucked in. And while I’m not the heaviest frequenter, I am a professed convert and I do love having the ability to keep up with friends and family on an at-a-glance basis. It really does help me feel somewhat connected in this busy day and age. The fact that Facebook has successfully connected me with some friends from the past is icing on the cake. And seriously, who doesn’t love icing?? (I guess that would be my husband. He doesn’t share my love for sweets and he is definitely a Facebook holdout. Although I do see him glancing at my page every now and then ….)

My friend/client (or “fri-ent” as I like to call them) from Saturday’s session is a classic example. She and I were friends back in the college days and lost touch upon graduation. But thanks to Facebook, we somehow got reconnected fourteen (!!) years later only to learn that we now live one exit away from each other. We’ve been able to get together with our kids on a few occasions since then and have had a great time hanging out in this new chapter of our lives. We laughed together as we labeled our reconnection a classic “Facebook success story”.

So without further adieu, below is a sneak peek of some images we captured on Saturday. And yes, these ARE going up on Facebook.

Daddy and A share some quiet reading time in the library. A has a love for the “Where’s Waldo” series and located the books in about five seconds. It was so darling to see her and her Daddy cuddling up on the floor and searching for the guy in the red & white striped shirt. And by the way, K … did you see that even Waldo has his own Facebook page? Tee hee.

A was seriously SO MUCH fun to photograph. K&D, I really, really enjoyed having her has my model! Fun, sweet and adorable.

This is what I mean by FUN. (We were just boppin’ around, dancin’ and singin’ while her parents were attending to baby brother. Here she is, joining me in some disco dancing. If I’m not mistaken, I believe this was “Stayin’ Alive” …

Some awesome family shots:

Mom hushes and soothes Baby E …

… while Daddy tickles and revs up big sis:

Baby E has the most incredible blue eyes. Fortunately for us, he proudly showed off those baby blues for pretty much the entire session. I think he looks like such a gentle, wise old soul.

We have a ton of awesome photos of E. But I know mom will want to see this one. We worked hard to capture this!

I am having a hard time cutting myself off. There are honestly so many great photos from the session that jumped out at me! Last one, I promise. But it’s sort of fun because I do know I have several blog readers who also know this client so I thought I’d show off her beautiful family for them to enjoy as well!

And since we’ve talked about Facebook to death, I might as well leverage that and provide you with a link to my fan page on the off chance any of you might want to be come a viviZ fan. Starting in 2010, I will start posting specials there and maybe even photography tips and pointers.

We had a threw curve balls thrown our way during yesterday’s session but I’m happy to report we (somewhat) successfully dodged them! Mission accomplished.

==> 90+ degree heat? No problem, we’ll find shade and drink lots of water.

==> 3,000 other people hanging out at Balboa Park? Pshaaaw, no sweat. We’ll drive around and find our own secluded park off the beaten path.

==> Meeting up the day after a busy and festive Halloween? Nothing to worry about. We’ll just use that candy as bribery. Perfect!

==> Daylight savings time throwing off the nap schedules? Hmmmm … I have to admit, this one was a bit tougher to overcome. But never fear, we adults all worked hard to appease, entertain and play with our young models, sixteen month old twins and their three year old sister. You should have seen us. I’m sure it was a ridiculous sight. We were fake-sneezing, hootin’ and hollerin’, jumping and clapping, singing and laughing, shouting at the top of our lungs … but all for a good cause as you will soon see.

L&J, it was great fun meeting up with you and your family yesterday. I really enjoyed your company and appreciated your playful, easygoing and relaxed nature. Thank you so much for working hard to keep the girls happy, position them in the right lighting (then bolting out of the camera frame!) and just trusting me that our time together would result in some worthwhile shots. And L, I am still laughing at your ambition! After a busy session chasing after the kiddos, L mentioned that she was also thinking of shooting some portraits with more of the extended family next time … I’m definitely up for it if you are. It would be fun. I can tell that any activities with the S family are bound to be a good time. So sign me up!

In the meantime, I wanted to share a few pics with you. I hope that we accomplished all the goals you had set for our session. We’ll evaluate when we see your full gallery.

Can you believe it? A family shot with all eyes on ME!

As great as it is having all eyes on the camera in the last photo, I have to say I might prefer this one. I just love the smiles, laughter and movement in this one.

How adorable is H? I love her playful personality and sweet nature. And the backlighting in her hair is just gorgeous! Loved this shot.

No words necessary for this one of L. OK, maybe just one. GORGEOUS.

And don’t you just love this sweet shot of H? Here she is in those moments right after we rehydrated her!

This isn’t necessarily the best picture (from a technical photography perspective), but I just absolutely love the twins’ smiles!! And heck, who knows. Maybe Gerber will love the product placement with the little toddler snacks that H is holding.

Big sis, H, is so sweet and darling here. Holding her baby sisters’ hands, helping L stand up.

SWEEEEET!

(This pic is representative of our entire session, right?)

OK, I’m off to set my DVR to record Days now. I gotta find out if EJ will take Nicole and Sydney back … Sound random, blog readers? Not sure what I’m talkin’ about? Well, those adorable twins are regulars on Days of Our Lives and have a pretty big, recurring role right now. Check out the video below for a peek at one of the twins in action! (Click HERE if you don’t see the embedded video.)

Enjoy!