Oakland
Another engagement session with one of my favorites! This is now my third session with Maya; we previously shot photos for the Womxn of Color Collective Portrait Project and her law school graduation. It was such a treat to feel the love the between these two. The only one who loves Maya more than Jason, is the camera!
Will and Haley are my first good friends from high school to get engaged, and I jumped at the chance to take their engagement photos. They worked around my moving schedule, and we were able to find a day to meet at one of my favorite photo locations, Joaquin Miller Park, to celebrate their engagement and new puppy. Juno definitely stole the show!
Marsha and I met through her twin sister years ago when I was working on Flavors of Oakland. Since then, Marsha moved to Hawaii, got her yoga instructor certification, and her massage therapy license. She recently moved back to the Bay and was looking to do some branding for her business so she reached out to me. We put together a concept for a serene, outdoor vibe, and I love how these turned out! S/o to Marsha and her model for getting up early for these sunrise shots.
Check out my photos in action at: https://www.marsharosenblatt.com
A full circle moment! Ryan was one of the first senior portrait sessions I ever did, and this year I had the honor of taking photos for his little sister. She loved the idea of going to the same park and recreating some of the looks we did for Ryan. I love watching my work evolve over time. But more importantly, I love watching my relationships with clients involve into genuine friendships!
Happy Valentine’s Day! Baby Lynnox celebrated the occasion with her first solo photo session. She brought four ‘fits and countless bows. After serving laughs and smiles, she had a snack break and took a nap before getting back to it. Lynnie is definitely a superstar baby model, so we have to start building her portfolio to become the next Gerber baby!
Chanel is back, but this time with a PLUS ONE! 2020 was quite a year to be born into, but we tried not to let the craziness dim the holiday spirit. Lynnox got all dressed up in her Christmas fit and we headed to Lake Merritt to take a few holiday photos.
This was my first shoot with my Sigma 35mm lens and I was nervous to see how it would handle focus (especially in low light). I am glad to report, it worked like a dream. I am loving how this wide angled look changes the vibe of my photos and I cannot wait to keep putting miles on my lens.
Happy holidays, everyone and here’s to more photos in 2021!
This past weekend was my little sister’s birthday. Obviously, we did a session to celebrate the big occasion. Looking at these pictures threw me my start in photography when she served as one my first models. Through my photos you can see her hair evolution, fashion evolution, and confidence evolution. I love seeing folks bloom behind the camera, and no subject more special than this baby.
Also, this shoot was a test of the Canon 35mm f/2. I loved the focal length, but definitely missed my low aperture. My Sigma 35mm f/1.4 should be coming in soon, so stay tuned to see those sample shots!
When your friend has a baby and she looks this cute, you must capture the moment. I have loved watching Karla go from slaying in law school to growing and blooming as a mother. Getting surprise pictures of her baby girl are what keep me going weekly! In the era of COVID, it is hard to figure out how to safely capture special moments, but wearing masks, employing the outdoors, and utilizing a zoom lens, we made it work. Welcome to the world, Idalia!
My last session before truly buckling down to study for the bar exam was Chanel’s maternity photos because baby Lynnox was not going to wait for me to pass the licensing exam. Chanel, of course, came through with tons of ideas but she also let me recreate THE most iconic maternity photo of all time (coming soon on my Instagram). I am so excited to meet her baby girl! And you know we are going to have baby model pictures coming soon!
Some photos of Edward that I took in January. Forgot how beautiful these were.
I met Prince when I started working at Peet’s five years ago. I met Vern when Prince shared his Salmon burger recipe with me a few months later. Now, two of my favorite people are getting married and I could not be more excited. And, obviously, I was going to take their engagement photos.
Prince was going for a Beyonce & Jay Z On The Run-feel, so it had to be black and white. We chose Joaquin Miller Park to emulate the big empty fields in the original. And, of course, the outfits were on point.
I love how sweet these photos turned out and I am counting down the days until the wedding.
While we were shooting the concept I had in mind, we figured we might try some other looks too.
Shot with Chanel again! I had in mind some very pink, sparkly beauty shots, and she definitely delivered.
One of my faves came back home over winter break! Sho texted me in December letting me know that she’d be back in town for break and we had to shoot. I scoped out this beautiful corner in West Oakland and boom! we had all the backgrounds we needed. Sho was a gem as always and we had a great time catching up and taking photos.
Edward's back! This time I was going for punchy colors and contrast that would make my photos jump off the page. Did I achieve it?
I am pretty happy with how these turned out. I used some of the tips I learned at the Dirtbag workshop and messed around a bunch with vibrance. My favorite location was the beautiful poppy wall! And my favorite shot is the one of Edward laughing in front of the brick wall.
Overall, it was great to catch up and hang out and Edward's outfits are always 10/10.
April 13, 2018
This Friday was Barrister's (Bearister's) Ball, or basically law school prom. I couldn't go because I was arguing in the Ninth Circuit (!!) the next day, but I wan't to celebrate with my friends who will be graduating this year. I took some super cute "prom" pics for them and (of course) took advantage of golden hour. I've been really into backlit golden hour portraits recently... I don't know why but I'm digging it! I've also been testing out some new editing styles so we'll see if they stick.
It took so much effort to get Eli to get out of the house and let me take some photos but I am so glad he did. These are some of my favorite portraits of him that I have ever taken! All it took was a prime lens and golden hour! I love how warm these are and the beautiful ring of light around his hair!
Also, in case you are wondering I rediscovered my VSCO presets and this is the Film series.
I took pictures of Prince again and they might just be my favorites yet! We went to the botanical garden at Lake Merritt and used my 85mm 1.8 and prism.
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