I know it’s only mid-March and I’m rushing Springtime… but recent days in LA have been gorgeous breezy and sunny – just like Spring! These shots from a recent kid’s shoot remind me of growing up in NJ and all the awesomeness of the different seasons… when glorious Spring arrived, there was nothing better than being outside on a windy day and playing in your backyard.
Here are a few of my favorite childhood moments in Springtime… scootin’ around and sporting your favorite boots!…
Laying in the grass… just happy to be outside…
Smelling flowers…
Oh, the excitement and anticipation of getting ready to climb a tree!…
And the fear and the thrill of it!…
Pausing for a snack of raisins…
The wind blowing…
…and being young enough to sport polka dot underwear and a ponytail…
I hope Springtime hurries to your neighborhood soon 🙂 and you take time to bask in the wonderful everyday moments even if you’re a big old grown-up.
xo,
Christa
Fall in love with this little yummy baby, Lila… it doesn’t get any easier than this recent family shoot. Their photo session was a breeze – the parents are loving, gorgeous and kind – and totally trusting (ie. up for any idea I came up with!). Baby Lila was so expressive, curious, cranky and giggly… which made for a wonderfully real shoot.
Some of my favorites…
A baby’s wonder at her own hand… beautiful moment.
Love.
Dad was nervous before the shoot, but he came around once he saw this smiling face!
This mother / daughter shot was inspired by one of my pics from the mom’s pregnancy session – part of my Brand-Spanking Newborn package…
Sweet and Silly faces…
Love these moments and how the baby is holding her mom’s hair…
First official family photograph 🙂
Switching it up on the blog this week – posting pics from my Downtown LA project and an exciting announcement… come back soon!
xoxo,
Christa
The sweet chaos of a family photo session… That’s what I was going for during my recent Workshop demo – I wanted all the Workshop attendee’s to see how I negotiate challenges, work with kids and parents, and manage to capture my signature pictures. So we got out of the studio and on our feet to a nearby home for some family photo fun…
…focusing on the necessity of play, creating action, capturing emotion, the beauty in details, the awesomeness of props, and much more… and sweet chaos ensued, as we ran around a tiny yard looking for great light, trying not to step in dog poo, and still capture great images.
…such as, the personality and sass of each child…
…kids being kids, and Rocking Out!..
…the beauty of everyday details…
…of course yummy happy close-ups!
…and how much fun, value and variety that simple props can add to a shoot…
Seriously, my Workshops are this fun 🙂
My last shoot of the year!... couldn’t have been more fun and full with feelings of sisterhood. I spent yesterday afternoon with the awesome energetic smart and sassy Rodriguez girls, four sisters who are visiting from Colorado and spending the holidays with their Dad here in LA. They wanted plenty of sun and fun for their shoot, so of course we went to the beach and Santa Monica Pier.
All-American girls… ages 15, 12, 17, and 9.
Here comes the sun!…
Their dad, John, is a firefighter, a hero, a big kid, and the girls’ biggest fan…
See what I mean?
Once we hit the beach, their competitive streaks really came out!…
It was so great to take a few moments in the midst of the holidays and get our feet wet, get a bit sandy, salty and sweaty… let loose and laugh together.
I had the best time with these girls!… They made me feel like their nutty 5th sister, and I have to say – I kinda liked that 🙂
Hope you have a beautiful and free-spirited end to 2009!
xoxo,
Christa
I love nakedness! Skin is so beautiful and a joy to photograph whether it’s boudoir, babies, or fine art nudes… it’s luminous, timeless, and my preferred wardrobe option. Here are the top ten pics from a recent newborn shoot…
Big brother and baby sis… Rolls and rolls of the good stuff!…
Too cute.
Lest you think baby shoots are sweetness and light, here’s a little dose of reality for you….
This was a fun follow-up to the mom’s pregnancy shoot, which you can view HERE.
More Photographer FAQ’s coming up tomorrow! You can see the last edition HERE.
xoxo,
Christa
I’ve been MIA on the blogging for a bit… the holiday crush for pictures has overwhelmed me this year, in a good way 🙂 I feel so fortunate to have shared in the lives of so many families, artists, models, moms, shoe-shiners, street musicians, and people from all walks of life. Creating a portrait of someone or someone’s family is an honor and gives me such a unique and intimate glimpse into their lives, and I couldn’t be more thankful this holiday season.
This is a quick peek from yesterday’s shoot at Disneyland. Thank you Juliette, David and little David for such a memorable day! ps. you may remember this guy as Yummy Empanada Feet… from this post HERE.
Be back soon!
xo,
Christa
Nothing like getting into trouble with your younger brother. Remember this little heartbreaker from my recent post “A Good Jewish Boy”… he looked all sweet with that flower, didn’t he?… But boy, he was a handful! and I think it was his sister who talked him into it 🙂
Tell me these two aren’t up for causing trouble!…
Two of my favorite moments from the shoot… Silly and Sweet…
Look at the body language on little miss thang…
Oh. My. Goodness. Now, I’m in trouble!
Here’s their newly born cousin, and you can tell he’s going to be looking for trouble soon too…
I love these faces! and I love capturing them with my camera – I feel like I’m squeezing their little cheeks with my lens 🙂
More cuteness, madness, and fabulous news soon…
Christa
Nothing like a cutie in blazer offering me a flower! This is my third shoot for this family, and I am completely charmed by this little guy every time. Just look at those eyes!
Pouting because he couldn’t get the flower to stay in his lapel… ugh, so cute!
This little songbird stole my heart. How can you resist?
I’ll post more pics of this gorgeous sweetheart and his family soon….
Once I recover from heartbreak 🙂
xo,
Christa
Busy Busy!… I’m so fortunate to be booked solid every holiday season with family portrait sessions, and this year is my busiest. I’ll catch up with postings this week. In the meantime, here’s a quick sneak peek of one of the most fun shoots this year.
Little 4 yr. old twins, Sarah and Aaron at Santa Monica Pier yesterday. It does not get any more adorable and sweet than these two…
More tasty cuteness on the blog tomorrow!
xoxo,
Christa
Family. No relationship like it. And it’s pretty safe to say no one knows how to make you laugh or press your buttons like your siblings. And I love photographing them! The bond is unique and special and should be honored and captured at every stage. Because these two brothers, Oliver and Matthew (Ollie and Matty), may not always giggle like this, hug like this, play like this… or who knows, maybe they will 🙂
I am just this funny. lol!! Actually, big brother Ollie is behind my head doing something silly to Matty’s delight.
Yeah, that’s him – that’s the guy causing all the trouble.
I love how you see the roles of “big brother” and “little brother” here…
…and here…
Ugh, this one gets me right here. My favorite of the shoot.
I always say you can’t get close enough!!!
Lol!! So much for a picture of the kids with Leo…
More family pics, art installments, portraits, nudes, and a HUGE announcement coming soon!… (waiting for it to be 100% solid before jinxing it 🙂
xoxo,
Christa
Let’s get married!!… I consider myself a lucky girl to be the sole guest in attendance at the most joyful loving silly wedding celebration ever… held during dress-up playtime at Saturday’s Alice in Wonderland birthday party.
Here’s how it went down: This little girl with the cutest short haircut tugged on my skirt and asked if I could help tie the bow on her “wedding dress”… You’re getting married?! I asked with a smile… Uh-huh she giggled back. To who? I asked the all important question… as she pointed across the garden to her friend putting on a wedding dress of her own.
Well, let’s do this! Playtime was ending soon, so I quickly grabbed a flower for each of them and made up a sweet and simple ceremony on the spot…
…which involved exchanging flowers….
…a kiss…
…twirling and cutting the cookie…
… and holding hands skipping off to the Moon Bounce and happily ever after!
This will always be my favorite wedding that I’ve been invited to and photographed! And I’m seriously considering having a little red heart drawn on my face when I walk down the aisle 🙂
Oh the wonderful silliness of it all!… Alexandra Johnston’s Alice in Wonderland 6th birthday party on Saturday was a flat-out non-stop super-fun crazy-zany hysterically exhausting affair! Everyone had a stupid silly time… Seriously, I think I had just as much fun, if not more, than the kids. I enjoyed tea amongst the little ones at the kids’ table; I flirted with Rabbit; I kicked back with the Mad Hatter; I rocked it in the Moon Bounce; I played dress up; and I did a mean hokey-pokey. Because that’s how I roll.
Oh, did I mention I took a couple of pictures?
Here’s the birthday girl and her mom, the fabulous hostess, Brigitte Johnston.
Silly hats were a must!…
Who knew the zany-ness that was going on outside this door?! The event was held at the beautiful and delicious Mick’s Cafe – my new favorite place to have a bite in the Palisades.
Can you tell which feet belong to the birthday girl?! Uh-huh.
A few details… How badly do I want to take that frog prince home? Oh wait, I already had one or two of those!
… and lastly, your’s truly. xoxo
Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post… the most adorable loving beautiful wedding I’ve ever been to and photographed!
