Why it's dangerous ...

to leave Big Dude home alone. On a weekend. With time on his hands.

He's quite likely to peruse the "sales" on Craigslist and rent a U-Haul to bring home the "treasures" he finds ...



Dangerous, I tell you.

Perfectly lovely evening ...

No wolf spider pictures, as promised ...



oh, and the cute pic of Big Dude & I? photo credit to Middle Dude!

gaudium vitae!

Joie de Vivre!





We found that perfect, glorious, evening light down in the canyon. Middle Dude found all sorts of natural goodies for me to photograph. More to come ...
Oh, and you can thank me now for NOT including the picture of the wolf spider with babies that he found ... you're welcome. ;-)

Orange County, Join Us for a Photowalk Across America!

iHeartFaces is sponsoring this great event, and I get to co-lead, along with the most fabulous Jen Johnson, the Orange County CA Walk which will be at the Dana Point Harbor on June 5th from 9-11am.  Come join us for beautiful scenery, friendly fellow photographers, fresh air, photographic fun, good food, and free prizes!

Tickets are cheap ($6.26 – can be purchased here) - there are just 9 7 0 spots remaining (but, there's a waitlist!).  Jen and I would love to have you join us!

Now, let’s see what this gorgeous place looks like in the light of day!  ;-)

Orange County Lifestyle Photographer

I make the dry tree flourish ...

Thus says the LORD GOD,
"I shall also take sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and set it out;
I shall pluck from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one,
and I shall plant it on a high and lofty mountain.
On the high mountain of Israel I shall plant it,
that it may bring forth boughs and bear fruit, and become a stately cedar.
And birds of every kind will nest under it;
they will dwell in the shade of its branches.
And all the trees of the field will know that I am the LORD;
I bring down the high tree,
exalt the low tree,
dry up the green tree,
and make the dry tree flourish.
I am the LORD;
I have spoken,
and I will perform it."

Ezekiel 17:22-24

Experimenting...

Earlier this week, Rita at the CoffeeShop posted a neat tutorial on using textures and tints. Here's my "play" off her tutorial. Below is my SOOC on the left, and my textured print using a free texture (CoverTexture) from Shadowhouse Creations on the right.

So Happy Together. :: Orange County Family Photographer

This family hails from South Africa, New Zealand and here! And it's clear that they enjoy their time together. They positively ooze happiness, joy, and playfulness. It was my pleasure to take pictures. :-)

Hot Off the Presses …

… a very sneak peek from last night’s beautiful beach session!

Such delight! I'm grinning my way thru the edits. :-)

Orange County Family Photographer

Sing Praises to the LORD ...

O sing to the LORD a new song,
For He has done wonderful things,
His right hand and His holy arm have gained the victory for Him.
The LORD has made known His salvation;
He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth;
Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises.
Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre;
Withe lyre and the sound of melody.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
Shout joyfully before the King, the LORD.

Let the sea roar and all it contains,
The world and those who dwell in it.
Let the rivers clap their hands;
Let the mountains sing together for joy
Before the LORD; for He is coming to judge the earth;
He will judge the world with righteousness,
And the peoples with equity.

Psalm 98

Joshua Tree – The Horizontal Version

Joshua Tree – The Vertical Edition

Darling Family - Orange County Newborn Photographer

Gonna let the photos speak for themselves ... beautiful family, beautiful babies, beautiful big sis ... and, oh-my-goodness!, if you saw this Mama walkin' down the street, you'd NEVER guess she'd delivered TWINS two weeks ago. And if you saw her walkin' down the street pushing a buggy with her babies, you'd guess she'd adopted! (which she didn't!) A whole lot of sweetness going on here...

Orange County Family Photography

Littlest Dude lost his first tooth!

All our dudes have this habit of growing their adult teeth behind their baby teeth. Our Ortho thanks us. Our future pocketbook sheds a tear or two...

Double the Sweetness :: Orange County Baby Photographer

A sneak peek from Saturday's shoot :-). More to come later this week...

Melt like Wax …

 

The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice;
let the many islands be glad.

Clouds and thick darkness surround him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

Fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side.

His lightning lights up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.

The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the LORD,
at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the peoples see His glory.

All who worship images are put to shame, those who boast in idols—
worship him, all you gods!

Zion hears and rejoices and the villages of Judah are glad
because of your judgments, O LORD.

For you, O LORD, are the Most High over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.

Let those who love the LORD hate evil,
for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

Light is sown like seed for the righteous. 
And gladness for the upright in heart.

Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and give thanks to His holy name.
Psalm 97

Rahab's testimony:

"For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon, and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. 

And when we heard it, our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath."
Joshua 2:10-11

Up. And Down.

from our Joshua Tree daytrip a couple weeks ago…

I Shoot Things out the Window ...

Desert roads are very verrrrrry long. And filled with fun dips.



Nope. Methinks we're a nation divided. But it's a nice idea...



Wind energy, just outside Palm Springs.





And some of the long desert roads are lined with miles of telephone poles.



If you want to be a dork like me, here are a couple tips: for any pictures taken out side windows, keep your shutter speed high (unless you want to show movement blur). If your travels mates don't mind (hehe - I get a couple seconds before one of the dudes starts protesting 'bout windyness!), roll your window down. For any pictures thru the front window, no need to worry about having a high shutter speed. Movement blur is not an issue (generally) when shooting straight ahead. And feel free to include that nice blue sunshade at the top of the window - it adds a nice sky gradient. :-)

Things that amuse Big Dude ...

Is this a command? a poor attempt at being polite? or just bad grammar?

Easter.

 

This year’s festivities included Papa-Dude’s traditional “ugly egg” (which wasn’t ugly at all this year!) and Eldest Dude’s nod to Avatar.  We also got our “craft on” (doesn’t happen often) with some Bird Nests and uber-yummy cinnamon rolls.

He is not here; He has risen!

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning,
the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered,
they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes
that gleamed like lightning stood beside them.
In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground,
but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead?
He is not here; He has risen!
Remember how He told you, while He was still with you in Galilee:
'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men,
be crucified and on the third day be raised again.' "
Then they remembered His words...
Luke 24:1-8

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance:
that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
that He was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,
and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.
After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living,
though some have fallen asleep.
Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles..

Christ has indeed been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.
For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.
But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits;
then, when He comes, those who belong to Him.
Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father
after He has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.
For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.
The last enemy to be destroyed is death...

"Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?"
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm.
Let nothing move you.
Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord,
because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
I Corinthians 15:3-7, 20-26, 55-58

He breathed His last.

... And they led Him out to crucify him. They brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull, and there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left...

1. Father forgive them, for they know not what they do (Luke 23:34).
2. Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise (Luke 23:43).
3. Woman, behold your son: behold your mother (John 19:26-27).
4. Eli Eli lama sabachthani? ("My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?", Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34).
5. I thirst (John 19:28).
6. It is finished (John 19:30).
7. Father, into your hands I commit my spirit (Luke 23:46).

And having said this, He bowed His head, He gave up His spirit, He breathed His last.

Then. And Now.

Then - I skipped sunblock lotion and used to lay on the dock and flip every 30 minutes. Y'know, for an "even" tan.

Now - 4 biopsies, 2 skin carcinomas removed, and $$$ medical bills later ... I wear SPF70. And stay in the shade. :-(


Then - I wore a small visor to keep my long tresses from blowing over my eyes as I drove the boat.

Now - I wear a huge, wide-brimmed hat over my quite short hair ... all the time. See above.




Then - I wore sunglasses because the sun was bright.

Now - I wear sunglasses because the sun is bright. And squinting makes all my wrinkles way more pronounced.


Then - my shorty wetsuit fit.

Now - not so much. (but hey, it did a bang-up job of keeping the water OUT!!! small mercies...)


Then - I could ski forever and ever without falling.

Now - I still don't fall, but I only ski til my muscles give out ... roughly 5 minutes (or less?) after I begin.


Then - My muscles screamed and ached the day after I skied.

Now - the same. Some things don't change. ;-)