portrait photography
On a drizzly San Francisco afternoon, Clarissa and Khadijah met me at the top of San Francisco to take these dreamy engagement photos. When the drizzle stopped, the diffusion of sun through the clouds brought these Sophia-Coppola-Marie-Antoinette vibes to life. A wonderful way to celebrate love with dear friends!
Victoria’s back! And this time, she brought Julian. I was so excited to celebrate their engagement. I had a vision of the two of them in front of a wall of plants, so when we realized that the Conservatory of Flowers would be closed, I didn’t realize it was a blessing in disguise. Instead of sticking to the one building, we explored the surrounding park and got this rainbow of backdrops. Between the location and the beautiful golden hour, the photos came out *chef’s kiss*
When Fernando’s niece asked me to take her senior portraits, my first reaction was “I am cool enough for Gen Z!!” We planned our date around the holidays and got to work. The Claremont colleges served as our backdrop, and they put in work providing beautiful old architecture and maintained greenery for the photos. Mayra came in the cutest preppy outfit that paired nicely with her surroundings. And I have to say, she started out a little camera shy, but after an hour she was hitting poses like it was no one’s business! I am honored to have had a little part in her celebration of this milestone (and I am really looking forward to coming back to this campus to take more photos)!
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!
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!
Fernando is notoriously camera shy, but he graced me with his presence in front of the camera because after months of bar studying I was itching to take some portraits. We headed to Indian Rock Park in Berkeley to get the rocky, bright light backdrop I was looking for. We also found some beautiful plants near by so we had to take advantage of those, too.
Some photos of Edward that I took in January. Forgot how beautiful these were.
My favorite shots from my first grad session of the season! When Sara emailed that she had been waiting to book since she saw my photos I was flattered (and a little bit anxious to perform). I am so glad that she enjoyed her photos! Now that “Boalt Hall” has been removed from the school’s walls, I foresee my favorite location being that graphic corner or Heyman Terrace.
Thank you, Sara, for being so open and flexible to all of my ideas! And thank you to Sara’s partner and pupperoni for being the cherries on top of this gorgeous shoot!
It wasn’t long after I began law school for the idea for this project to come about. Due to a history of exclusivity reinforced through laws and in the legal profession, law school was not always an option for someone like me. Despite Berkeley Law’s best efforts at increasing diversity and fostering inclusion, I did not immediately feel comfortable at school -- until I walked into my first Womxn of Color Collective meeting. The WOCC community finally made me feel like I belonged at Berkeley. Hopefully, these portraits and words make you feel more at home here, too.
WOCC members inspire me every day through their passion, resilience, and drive. This project is intended to add our vibrant colors to the halls of Berkeley Law. It is intended to show how diverse our diversity is and how our stories make us stronger. It is intended to show you that, even though it may feel like it, you are never alone.
Thank you to all of the chingonas who shared their time, faces, and stories with me. Thank you to three generations of WOCC co-chairs: Farrah Vasquez & Monica Ramsy who encouraged me to turn my into reality, Liv Gee & Sana Mayat who helped me organize and carry out my vision, and Jessica Williams & Maya Campbell for crossing the finish line with me. Thank you to Dean Chemerinsky and Dean Vanden Heuvel for getting these portraits on these walls. Thank you to my sister, because of you I will never be “the only one.” And thank you to all the revolutionaries who fought to crack open Berkeley Law’s doors; we will fight like hell to bust them down.
In community,
Anya (‘20)
These days were indeed spent relaxing so I didn’t take out my camera too much, but here are some snapshots from when I did.
A cat, a gecko, and my sister in Auraville, a nearby experimental township
My sister in the Pondicherry Botanical Garden
A fisherman’s village near Pondicherry
My sister at Arkiramedu, Roman ruins near Pondicherry
A goat at Mahabalipuram Monuments near Chennai
My sister
After a four hour drive from Agra and a stop at the Monkey Temple, we made it to Jaipur! After an evening of rest, we spent the whole day viewing sights.
First we stopped at Jantar Mantar, the collection of astrological instruments belonging to one of the founders of Jaipur. We got to see the biggest sundial in the world! Then, we went to the City Palace of Jaipur to see the Maharaja of Jaipur’s family museum. After the museum, we drove to Amer Fort. This Fort was built in the 900s and our guide told us that some of the design elements of the Fort were even incorporated into the Taj Mahal!
After the sight seeing we got to the best part - Elephant Village! Here we spent the rest of the day feeding, painting, brushing, showering, and playing with Nena. It was my first, and probably only, time feeling an elephant’s trunk and feeding her bananas and bundles of grass. I will certainly never forget it (ha!).
The last leg of our trip is ten days in Pondicherry. I am looking forward to many days of lounging, reading, and swimming. Coming soon!
So on the way from Agra to Jaipur there is a place called Monkey Temple… need I say more?
For more details check out Discovery Channel’s coverage of one of the greatest places I have ever visited.
After two days in New Delhi we drove four hours to Agra, the city of the Taj Mahal. We arrived around noon and after a quick lunch of curry, kofta, and rice we headed to the palace. To protect the palace and gardens from pollution we had to get out of our van and take an electric gold cart to the entrance. The Taj truly is as majestic as it seems. And the gates and other ancient buildings around it were designed to create optical illusions, always drawing your attention to the beautiful memorial of a queen from her king.
🔘 6/7 wonders of the world
⚪️ Big Jesus in Brazil
After the Taj Mahal we went to Agra Fort. Our guide showed us the house arrest cell where the king who built the Taj Mahal was jailed by son after he tried to build a second Taj. On our way in we saw a dozen money’s crossing the wall and many more inside! Such monkey, big fan.
After the Fort we headed back to the hotel to relax before another day of travel to the final point of The Golden Triangle.
We’re in India! I’ve been wanting to visit this country for a loooong time. Why you may ask? Easy:
Cows
Food
Taj Mahal
So far, I have two out of three boxes checked and the third is coming tomorrow! Even after all of the boxes are checked, though, we’re still going to hang out for another two weeks. And that just means more food!
Our first few days are going to be spent traveling around the Golden Triangle (two days in New Delhi, one day in Agra, one day in Jaipur). Then we’re flying from Jaipur to Chany and driving four hours to Pondicherry. We’re going to stay in Pondicherry for two weeks and come home just in time for the start of my third (and last) year of law school!
Anyway, now that that’s all covered. Here’s a quick recap of what we saw in Delhi and New Delhi.
Jama Mosque
Ghandi’s Tomb
Humayun’s Tomb
India Gate & Prime Minister’s Residence
Qutub Minar
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.
And, here is Part II. For these shots we went to one of my favorite places on Berkeley campus near Moffitt Library. I loved playing with the shadows and rays of natural light to create these edgy fashion shots. The depth of field in these also adds to the dramatic vibe; my 50mm 1.4 is a real one.
I had the pleasure of getting to shoot Kennedy & Morgan Mason again. The last time we shot, Morgan and Kennedy met me in downtown Oakland we took advantage of all of the graffiti and brick walls in Old Oakland. This time, we ventured into downtown Berkeley to find a good backdrop for their colorful outfits. The exterior of the new BAM/PFA building gave us some interesting looks and, of course, I had to throw in some shots against a white wall. I love how these photos turned out; the definitely captured the vibe I was going for: angular, fashion-y, and just a little bit weird.
Stay tuned for part II.
