We spent the weekend in Tahoe so we decided to head out to the mountains and take some family photos in the early morning light. There's nothing like autumn, morning, mountain light to get a photographer excited! Unfortunately the kids only lasted about a half hour before melting down but it turned out to be plenty of time to capture some cute photos. That's why I'm offering mini sessions this season! 30 minutes is the perfect amount of time for young families.
Love these guys! <3
My friend and I decided on a studio shoot for Samuel's 1 year photos. I have to say, the studio is not my strongest area. I always have all these lofty ambitions when it comes to studio lighting but when you add an active 1 year old they go right out the window! Why? Well, you set up some nice lighting for one specific spot and then they move. So, I try to light the whole scene as best I can. Luckily Samuel is the happiest little kid ever! He made this soooo easy on me. Plus, those big brown eyes and those curls are just to die for! This kid seriously can not take a bad photo!
Tried going for a Dr. Seuss theme, but that didn't last long... I had these ideas of him standing, holding onto the chair with the Dr. Seuss animals around him... haha yeah, right! He's 1! Way to put me in my place, Samuel! How quickly this mommy forgot what it's like to have a 1 year old.
That hair! Someone took his hat off and then tried to put it back on, resulting in the cutest hair I've ever seen!
Just dying over this expression!
Couldn't get him to stand holding onto the chair so Samuel's Mom suggested an activity table! Thank goodness I had one. What a lifesaver! Thanks Deanna! And can we please talk about those cute suspenders?!?!
After he had it with the studio, we let him crawl around. He went to the back door to watch my dog, Piper. He loved her! Couldn't resist snapping a few natural light shots :)
Those big brown eyes!
These two!! Ahhh! What an incredible wedding at Byington Winery and Vineyard! I actually met these two the day they got engaged in Halfmoon Bay. They stopped me while I was hiking with my sisters and asked me if I could take a photo of them. Of course I said yes, and the rest is history! A serendipitous meeting, if ever there was one :)
The couple said private vows to each other before the ceremony. It was beautiful!
Moody wine cellar lighting! My favorite!
Such a short but sweet ceremony full of love and laughter!
Seriously, the best first dance I've ever seen!
In the vineyard at sunset. :)
Cocktail hour in the wine cellar!
Eating out under the sky! What a beautiful setting!
Walking through the vineyard once the sun set.
Despite the crazy heat, this was an awesome day! You can't help but notice how much these two love each other. Melts my heart editing these photos. They just have so much fun together and their friends and family have the most incredible love for them too. It was infectious!
I have to give an extra big shout out to Whitney for helping me again. Especially on this one since I had just got back from Norway and was fighting some pretty rough jet lag. Couldn't have done it without you!!
I'd also like to mention that they had some incredible vendors. If you're ever looking for any of these services for your big day, these guys come highly recommended! Great working with all of you!
DJ -- www.thewarrenwong.com-- warren@thewarrenwong.com
Byington Winery -- http://byington.com/events/ -- bbauer@byington.com
Photobooth -- http://photobombsj.com/ -- louisxngo@gmail.com
Videography -- www.sworksdesign.com -- sworksdesign.films@gmail.com
Me and my little dude.
As promised (albeit a little late), a blog post about traveling across the country with my two year old (and flying one way without the husband!) and kicking it for two weeks (solo parenting for one of those weeks) with my little dude.
Honestly, it didn't come without its challenges but I have to admit that it was one of my favorite trips so far. As you'll hopefully see from the pictures below, the kids had a fantastic time! My stained clothes and exhaustion are testament!
A side note: No we aren't traveling all the time even though social media makes it look like that. I'm just a busy working Mom so my photos tend to go up wayyyy after because I can never find sufficient time to sort through them right away. So for reference, this trip was taken July 1-13. Ya know, a month ago now...
Checking out the planes at the airport. iPhone photo.
I'll be the first to admit that two is a tough age to travel with. Lee is going through an "independent" stage where he insists (sometimes super loudly) that he get his way. Along with that comes the "I'm just going to randomly run away from you" phase. So how'd the flights go? Surprisingly well. I set my expectations about as low as they could go. I've seen kids throwing tantrums for up to 30 minutes on planes before. I expected at least one if not two or three of those. Luckily, we got away without any major tantrums. I still can't believe it. In the moment, every loud protestation seemed like the end of the world to me but looking back I have to laugh at myself and say "damn, woman, you have an easy kid."
First class luxury. This kid is unbelievably lucky and super spoiled when it comes to travel... unfortunately we spend many nights away from Daddy for this kind of status to be obtained. Thanks for the upgrades, Daddy! iPhone photo
Alright, so my mantra when I travel is "the journey cannot last forever." And insert whatever word in place of "journey" that you need to... like "tantrum." I also like to replace most of it with "he cannot stay awake forever." And while these help, they are also true. My other method of coping is giving up all "rules" I previously held at home and letting the kid get his way almost all of the time. Now, I put my foot down when it comes to respecting other people and being kind but rules on screen time and snack time do not apply when on an aircraft. He can watch as much Paw Patrol and eat whatever he wants on the airplane. Although I say he can eat whatever he wants, I really only bring his favorite healthy snacks... popcorn, cheese sticks and fruit. Lots of fruit is key, actually. I have a theory that he would be a worse kid if he didn't poop. A lot of times when traveling you can get a bit backed up. Not the case for this kid. He has a knack for pooping when we take off. Almost. Every. Single. Time. Super inconvenient for Mommy (yes, I changed his diaper on the seat in first class because storms wouldn't allow anyone to get out of their seat for most of the flight and I wasn't about to deal with the fallout from a diaper rash... plus, it stunk!). You do what you have to do. Most everyone I've ever encountered on a plane flight understands this. Oh, and bring dog poop bags. They are super handy to put dirty clothes in, if there's a blowout, or you're forced to change a diaper on a seat...
Living a life of luxury. #somuchlegroom iPhone photo
Now I'll give you just a few specifics on how the flight by myself with him went. We arrived at the airport with plenty of time so I didn't have to worry about that. Lugging our luggage and him to the counter was tough. I stuck him in his hiking backpack and lugged a roller bag, camera bag, his car seat and his diaper bag from the rental car garage to the terminal. I'm superwoman. I should have gotten a cart but I'm cheap...
This kid wouldn't wear pants... even in first class... oh well, not worth the fight! iPhone photo
Check in and security went smoothly. My little runner didn't allow me to get coffee or food but I had a strong feeling that would be the case so I got some food on the plane. At the gate I had to give up on preventing him from climbing on the window sill (aka the vents for the terminal) so he could see the planes. After he was up there he was super happy and we made it to boarding with no major issues. Waiting in line to board was a bit of an issue. He kept running off because he wanted to go down the "jetway tunnel." Luckily people in line thought it was amusing and saved my spot while I ran after him a total of 3 times. Once on board he was content with his iPad. We have shows and movies and games for him. He has a short attention span so he flits between all three. Then he pooped as we were taking off. Changed his diaper in the seat... I was repulsed but no one else seemed to be. The first leg to Chicago was pretty short so he was happy with his iPad and snacks the whole time.
Nap time on flight number two. iPhone photo
Transitioning to flight number two wasn't bad, behavior wise, but I had trouble keeping up with him and convincing him he couldn't ride on all the passenger carts. On top of that, there was a lot of construction equipment because of renovations that he was interested in... dragging him away tended to lead to a few loud shouts of disapproval. But we made it on the second plane and he fell asleep immediately. I got 1 hour and 20 minutes to eat lunch and re-charge. I credit a bigger seat for this. He was able to readjust mid-nap without waking up. This flight was around 4 hours. The last hour and a half he was super antsy. There were the occasional shouts of disapproval (like when I told him he couldn't crawl under the seat in front of us...) but after dozens of trips walking/running up and down the aisles, he was mostly well behaved. We arrived tired but in one piece.
Overall, not an experience I'd jump into every day but one that is worth it for all the fun we had at the lake. Please enjoy the photos of our lake adventures below, and let me know in the comments section if you have any questions!
Our trip overlapped with my cousin Shane and his family. Here's Lee with his cousins Logan and Parker and his second cousins Emmie and Molly! iPhone photo
Logan jumping into the lake with her Dad.
Climbing down into the green abyss...
Paddle boarding
Playing naked on the dock at sunset with water guns. Best 4th of July ever!
Cousins! They love each other, I promise...
Exactly how I'd like to spend every day.
Big brown eyes.
Miss Logan and her sparkler.
Showing off his safe sparkler holding.
Look, Daddy!
Miss Logan's hair catching the sunset light.
Family paddleboat ride!
Lee and the Schraders heading off into the sunset.
Lee's little hand holding the sparkler.
Happy Fourth of July!! Lee liked these way better than the "scary, loud" fireworks.
Happiness is looking for frogs with Daddy.
My boys! Sooo in love!!
My little, big guy.
Mr. Parkie-Man hamming it up!
Reading stories from little Echo Bay library box with the neighborhood kids.
Uh...
The perils of carrying a two year old on your shoulders..
Awwwwww
Matt took my camera so I could be in a few photos. The kids decided to take a break in the middle of the road. Thank goodness there aren't many cars...
Miss Logan cracking us up!
"Carry me, Mama!" OK! I won't be able to do it long!
This girl is trouble! Clever, strong, beautiful and kind. And her hair!
Garden spider
These were weeds growing next to our driveway.
Sailing with Daddy
Parker!
Suns out, tongues out?
Handsome little Parkie Man
That face! Ah! Love it!
Playing with grandpa!
There's a slight resemblence to Lee at that age... don't ya think?
Ha!
Indoor volleyball.
Trying to shoot the water in his mouth...
Enjoying the view at our campsite
:)
Right to the face!
That's a serious s'amore face!
Grandpa snuggles!
Kisses from Mommy!
A happy evening on the dock!
Fading light.
Rising Moon.
Back to the frog pond! (something we did almost every day)
Finally got the nerve up to touch the frog and it natrually jumped away from him...
Ducking under fences.
When I photograph kids I always try to get down on their level. After a few minutes at the frog pond I had fallen into the pond up to mid-calf and both knees were muddy. Worth it. I love these photos! The higher angle photos work best for me when the kids are looking up. For me, it gives the image a hopeful feeling - looking to the future!
As a photographer, I'm always chasing light and story. Both seem to allude me. It's like chasing down my two year old... always one step behind and when I catch up, it's a fight. Worth every second. The learning curve both as a photographer and a parent (albeit on different levels) is super steep. Keep climbing, parents and artists! There's got to be a fair number of great views on the way to the top! :)
Hair blowing in the wind.
Nap time on the boat.
Our beloved Echo Bay, where I (arguably) became the person I am today thanks to many adventures and awesome friends and family.
We got back from a trip to Hagerman Lake in Michigan a week ago now. I'll try to get a post up about that before I leave for Norway on Friday. Follow me on Instagram if you want to see some photos from both those trips before I get the blog posts up! I'm going kid free for this one and I'll be battling some rain on some pretty remote islands. Should be interesting... might get a lot of interesting shots or maybe none at all. We shall see!
I challenged myself to take underwater photos while on my trip to Lake George, NY this year. In some ways I was successful and in many other ways, I struggled. I'll, of course, explain below...
The edges of an abandoned beaver lodge in Paradise Bay.
I am completely in love with underwater photography. I've done so little of it but I'm totally obsessed. The draw for me is that there are so few people on this earth that even know what it looks like under the surface of most bodies of water. In fact the ocean is truly the last frontier on earth. It's beautiful and scary and surreal. It's like a whole other planet exists right under our noses and we barely notice.
The draw for me to take photos under the surface of Lake George is multifaceted. One, I LOVE Lake George. It's possibly my favorite lake on this planet. I grew up there in the summers. I know the surface of it like the back of my hand. I can close my eyes and tell you where every buoy on the lake from the village up through the narrows is. As a kid (and still as an adult) I love to dive down deep and open my eyes (with or without a mask) and just listen to the underwater sounds and watch the light dance. It's truly the most peaceful and strangely turbulent world I've ever had the privileged of falling in love with. I did a little research and found very few underwater photographs of the lake. Knowing that on good days the visibility is about 30 feet, I figured I'd take a stab at photographing it. I rented a Canon 8-15mm fisheye lens and brought it along. My previous underwater photography adventures included a 50mm macro lens. I wanted to try something new and see if I could master underwater landscapes. As you'll see, it didn't come without challenges (even 30ft of visibility is hard to get sharp wide angle images). But despite it's challenges, I had a blast!
This stick had fallen in our swim area. I was going to pull it out but after observing it underwater I noticed it had been there for a while. So I let it be.
So while I botched this one (soft focus on the log) this image is exactly what I think of when I think of the bottom of Lake George. It's a very common scene in shallow bays.
Lily pads growing in our swim area next to the dock.
More lily pads.
Nesting bluegill
One dedicated Mama!
Please don't feed the wildlife! These ducks are so used to being fed by humans they came right up to me when my husband threw grass into the water in front of me. I appreciate the interesting photo op but I'd rather these ducks not get so used to being fed!
Ducks on top, fish underneath.
Fallen leaves in Paradise Bay
More images of the abandoned beaver lodge, now home to fish and algea!
One of my favorite images from a framing standpoint but once again I botched the focus! Grrrr!
From a little further back... focus is much better on this one.
Beavers sure are hard workers
Crazy reflections
Drifting weeds
OK, so here's where I tried to capture the dancing light underwater. Paradise bay is quite deep. I asked my twin sister to dive down while I took some photos. With our kids losing their shit on the boat, we had very little time for this. But I captured a couple neat photos. I suppose I'll always be chasing that perfect underwater photo - the one that captures all the wonderment and peace I experience when I dive down deep in this beautiful and clear lake. So, screaming kids or no, I'll be attempting many versions of these photos in the future.
Mermaid Bri watching the dancing light. So close to what I was hoping to capture, but not quite there yet!
Halo of bubbles
So this is the part where I talk about all my failures and fears. Boy are there A LOT! They all led to some valuable lessons but I really could have done without them...
First off, like most people, I think that all successful photographers and successful creatives of all types have no fears. They are successful, why would they doubt themselves? Only people like me doubt themselves. Well, I'm 31 now and I realize what a bunch of bullshit that is. We are all afraid. I am afraid all the time. Especially when it comes to my work. I don't want to fail. Failure blows. I'm scared of it all the time! It's stopped me in my tracks. It's terrible. It causes endless procrastination. That fear and self-doubt is the number one reason I seem lazy and the only reason I have not reached the goals I've set for myself. And even being aware of this, I still can't always face the fear and keep working. Because, shit, it's hard to believe in yourself when the judgement of your work is soooo subjective. The only thing that keeps me going is the work itself. When I can manage to drag my butt off the couch and go out and shoot, I lose myself in it. I mean my husband had to drag me out of the water on numerous occasions to remind me that my other slightly more important job of being a mother, needed to be tended to. I heard somewhere (can't remember where) that when it comes to photography, if you don't love the journey you're never going to survive. Why? Because there really isn't a destination. It's a fluid medium. There's no point at which you're going to say, "I've made it. I don't need to learn or create anymore images." That's just ridiculous. So for me, I realized I DO love the journey. So much so that I'm willing to battle the fear almost every day. Sometimes its an easy battle, but most days it's really f'ing hard.
Now that we've gotten the fear part out of the way, let's talk about my failures on this trip! The biggest thing was thinking things would be easier than they ended up being. I underestimated the challenges of shooting wide angle with only 30 ft. of visibility. While it's doable, it's not easy to get sharp images. I also did a good job of mucking up the water for myself. Especially if I was hovering in the same spot for a while trying to get the nesting fish. Second, I was staying relatively close to the surface to use ambient light which worked sometimes and not other times. Third, I saw a very inspiring photo by adventure photographer Emily Polar that I wanted to try to recreate for a self portrait and I figured it would be cake! Turns out making a normal face while holding your breath is really, really hard. (See below images... I pretty much gave up). And last but not least, my biggest regret and hardest lesson learned... I spent an extra week at the lake with just my son while my husband flew back to work. Because I didn't want to truck a ton of bags and a 2 year old through the airport on my own, I sent him back with my underwater gear. UGH! Total mistake. The day he left this huge mama bass and her school of babies came into our swim area and stayed there ALL DAY LONG. Without my gear I tried using my ancient GoPro to capture them but as you'll see below, it failed miserably. I was grumpy about it most of the rest of the trip. So lesson learned. Suck it up and keep my equipment around. I'll always hate myself if I keep letting opportunities go by because I'm afraid of a little discomfort.
This was the best self portrait I could manage... I still look like I'm drowning but it's not as bad the rest of them...
This one is definitely a winner...
Yup, I look constipated.
There are worse... I know it's hard to believe...
There she is. Those dots all around her are her babies! Ahhhhhhh! My husband asked me a million times if I was sure I wanted him to take my equipment back with him... and I said yes....
:(
AHHHHH :(
They were there... ALL... DAY... LONG... even after it started to rain....
So many that could have been soooo awesome...
So many great shots...
So much regret... so very, very painful...
That concludes the underwater portion of my two week trip to Lake George. Next week stay tuned for the kid travel portion. I'll go over flying by myself with a two year old (yikes!) and what it's like to photograph with toddlers around and, of course, some really awesome photos I took of the kiddo and his cousins.
In conclusion, I just want to mention that I recently watched Chasing Coral on Netflix. I cried through most of it. Please watch it. After this blog post you have to know that I love the water. Watching the oceans die is really emotional for me. I always find myself wondering what the oceans looked like 30 years ago. Especially since I've noticed the coral bleaching and dying on dives I've taken in Hawaii. It's heartbreaking. I'd like to share this underwater world with my kid someday. We need to protect it. That's all! Enjoy your week and let me know if you have any questions or want to share your own fears and failures in the comments below!
On the boat!
The long awaited sneak peek is finally here! This wedding took place at Tsadsi Resort on Lake Shasta. In all my almost 10 years living in California, I've never seen Lake Shasta full! But this year we got lucky with all the rain. It was just gorgeous there! There's nothing like hanging out on the lake. Despite the cold water there were some brave souls wakesurfing (including the groom a few hours before the wedding)! What a killer way to kick off the summer!
Beautiful bouquet!
Getting ready and sharing happy memories with Mom and sister!
The dress!!
So much love and laughter in this group!
Buttoning up!
The bride!
Smelling the flowers!
First look time!
:)
In the woods.
Serious time.
Wouldn't be a trip the lake without a topless Darren!
Arielle enjoying the view ;)
No better place to be than on the dock on a beautiful day sharing a group hug with your girls!
Go team!
Badass.
Wonder Women!
The guys.
Guys that pee together.... not sure how that saying goes...
Blue Steel
The guys and the gals!
"Give me your best fake laugh!"
The boys out on the boat.
Enjoying the ride!
Picture in front of the bridge? Why not!
Kisses for Mom.
A reading.
Married!
Now for some details...
Table details!
The cake!
The rings!
The lake!
Sunset cruise with the couple after the wedding:
I want to thank Whitney Justesen for helping me out and being my second shooter! While none of these shots on the blog came from her, you can check out her instagram and see some of what she captured! She's amazingly talented and super patient! Thanks again Whitney!
Lipstick Tang (Naso lituratus)
In honor of World Oceans Day I decided to revisit some of my "rejected" underwater images from last year's dive trip in Kona, Hawaii. While you take the time to enjoy these images, please consider supporting efforts to clean up and protect our oceans! Organizations like @sealegacy and @lonelywhale work to educate and inspire the world to protect our oceans. Please consider checking them out and donating if you can (click on the links... seriously... they're right there... no Googling necessary, I did the work for you)!
I LOVE diving and being the in the water, so the saddest part of this dive trip was seeing the increased coral bleaching. We had visited Maui the year before and barely noticed the bleaching. The difference in one year was astounding. After talking to our dive guides we discovered that the year over year difference is huge but the most alarming thing is the difference they see in just mere months. And the pace is only picking up! Please help protect these beautiful animals. If you don't want to do it for them, then do it for me! I'd love to keep diving and snapping pictures of healthy reef systems around the world ;)
Manta Ray in black and white. The lights placed on the sea floor attract plankton at night. Then the Mantas come and feed on the plankton. This Manta has a mangled cephalic fin, likely due to getting caught in fishing line. We were told he/she will likely lose the fin. One of the greatest threats to Mantas is over fishing. Please consider consuming seafood from responsible and sustainable sources.
Spotted eel on the move.
Swimming away from me... typical.
This Lipstick Tang was particularly friendly... actually let me snap a few decent shots.
I can't describe how majestic and humbling it is to watch a Manta Ray soaring over your head.
Pyramid Butterfly Fish
When shooting Mantas with a 50mm lens... Anyway, the markings on the belly of a Manta help identify them since no two Mantas have the same markings. There's a data base for the Mantas spotted off Kona but I'll admit I've been too lazy to look this one up...
Ok, so this was taken in the pool... but its cute! Let's protect our oceans so our kids can enjoy them for years to come!
And now back to your regular scheduled programming... wedding sneak peek next week followed by New Zealand Day 2!
Day 1. So we flew into Christchurch, arriving around lunch time. We decided to then immediately drive to Queenstown and take in a few sights along the way. In hindsight, not the greatest plan since a long road trip after 12 hours of flying is a bit rough on an almost two year old... but the drive was incredible! We weren't able to take our eyes off the scenery and we instantly fell in love with this country! Below are a few photos I quickly snapped along the road.
Church of the Good Shepard on the shores of Lake Tekapo.
The incredible blue waters of Lake Tekapo.
Church of the Good Shepard. It was hard to get a photo without a ton of tourists in it... tried my best!
We arrived at the very beginning of fall. Here are a few fading lupine stalks blowing in the wind.
Again, trying to avoid strangers in my photos. So I got down on the ground!
Can't avoid everyone... but at least that guy provides a sense of scale!
We were passing Lake Pukaki pretty close to sunset. With the snowy peaks in the background, I was very excited to get out and photograph. Unfortunately, Lee woke up from what was supposed to be the beginning of his night time sleep and was screaming bloody murder. So all I got was the above and below hastily composed and shot images. I wish I could have gotten more because the drive along this lake was nothing short of spectacular! But my kid's comfort definitely means more to me. So off we zoomed and the kid fell back asleep (for another hour or so...)!
Does anyone know if that's Mount Cook in the center? I figured it was but I'm no expert...
I know I've sort of dropped off the map, lately. I've been pretty silent on the blog and social media. But please stay tuned for a blog post about Day 2, hopefully next week! I'm so excited to share all the details of our trip and hopefully inspire you parents to drag your little ones along on all your adventures!
In the meantime, also look out for my next blog post about the incredible wedding of two of my favorite people! I was so lucky to be their photographer and capture their special day! Staying true my my incredible procrastination roots, I shot the wedding back in April and STILL haven't posted a sneak peek! It's forthcoming, I promise! Thanks for sticking with me, folks!
Enjoy your week!
Check out a really old time lapse I did of the night sky at Lake Powell back in 2012!
I've been organizing our server and clearing out space on my hard drives to improve Lightroom's performance. I came across this time lapse that I never finished back in 2012. I had shot it and created the video but never graded it. Why, you say? Because back then I shot my images really, really flat with no saturation (see the straight out of the camera image below). The idea was that I would have more room to color grade it exactly the way I wanted it. Which is true. But it's super time consuming! So I never finished... until now! And even now it's not the exact way I envisioned it. But I've learned a valuable lesson... yes, shooting flat gives you more control over the final image but, to use a very famous quote, "AIN'T NOBODY GOT TIME FOR THAT!" While certain projects in the future may require more precise color grading, I do not use this method anymore. I like the images to come out of my camera a little closer to a final product. Saves me time, even if I have to deal with a little frustration over the final image. After all, time is money!
I hope to do some more time lapse photography since I haven't done any since this! Maybe this summer I'll find some time... :)
Unedited image from time lapse
I can't believe Riley is almost one! She is such a joy! Boy was this a fun and laid back shoot! I wish more families would do morning shoots. Riley was in an incredibly good mood and the spring light just rising up over the hills in Alamo was incredible! Can't beat the green hills, either!
So while the Yahrs were totally on top of it, I unfortunately was not... forgot the picnic blanket (Bri saved me on that one!) and messed up my battery system so I thought I had 2 charged batteries when I really had a fully charged battery and a half charged battery... And for some weird reason I used the half charged one first and had to run to my car and change it out halfway through...Thankfully Justin and Megan were awesome enough to put up with my scatter brain! :)
Happy Birthday Riley!!
That smile!! :)
Those blue eyes!!
Absolutely in love with Megan's hair. I know this is about Riley, but I'm obsessed with the color!
Daddy's little girl.
Love these moments!
My favorite couple moment is always right before a kiss. I sort of botched this one (too low of a shutter speed) but I still love this photo! So much love!
Loved this dress! Wishing I had a little girl right about now ;)
Heading back to the helicopter in Milford Sound.
If you have small children and you love to travel, just do it! I know it seems scary but it's never, ever as bad as you think it will be. Plus, you get all these amazing pictures of your kid having a great time and discovering new things. Look, I know I'm biased and partial to my own kid, but you have to admit, the pictures below show some really great memories! And if you're thinking, "well he won't remember it, he's too young!" that's probably true but he'll always have these pictures that you can revisit and talk to him about. We've even been back for two weeks now and I'm still hearing "go to Queenstown, Mommy?" "Go to Christchurch, Mommy?" "Sheep haircut, Mommy?" "Helicopter, Mommy?" "Go on airplane again, Mommy?" When I tell him we'll take another airplane trip to Lake George in the summer he goes "Airplane again this summer, Mommy?" Seriously, you may dread a long flight but if your kid is anything like my kid, he loves the plane and I secretly suspect it was his favorite part of the trip. Below I'll explain why!
I suspect most of you want to know about the flight, more than anything. I know it was my biggest nightmare before we left. Turns out I way over-prepared for it and really didn't need as much as I brought. Lee had a backpack for his diapers, extra clothes (at least 2 pairs... between food stains and potential blowouts, you'll use them!), and toys. (Backpack pictured above on Matt). We wanted to keep it to just one carry-on, which we did. But it was majorly heavy so if I had to do it again, I'd leave a few things at home.
Throwing rocks with Grandma into a stream while waiting on our lunch in Wanaka. Any time there was an opportunity to throw rocks in a body of water, we made sure to stop and do it!
I bought a bunch of new books and a few new toys for the flight. The books were good but in reality I only needed the thin, light ones I bought (set of 5, 3 of which are pictured below). I could have left the thick cardboard books at home although when he was smaller he loved the lift the flap ones. I also bought a ton of sticker books but the biggest hit was the airplane sticker book (pictured below). It was relevant to what we were doing, had stickers, and he even asked for it as a bedtime story! It's still his favorite now that we're home! As far as toys go, I bought him some small trucks (set of 6, a few pictured below), something I noticed that he really liked at his cousin's house. I also added 2 paw patrol pups since that's his current favorite show. I did not let him play with or even see these before we left. So once he started getting cranky I could pull out the new stuff and he'd be thrilled! Worked quite well. I also brought along the mess free coloring books and markers (pictured below). This wasn't as big a hit since he's used them before but it gave him something different to do when he wasn't feeling anything else. For the next flight, these will probably be all the toys and books I'll bring.
Lee's favorite things for the plane ride!
Ok, so now you're probably thinking there's no way my 1-2 year old would be occupied for 12 1/2 hours with just that! And I'd say, yes, you're right. Our other go-to was the iPad. Not only did we find some really great age-appropriate games that he loved but we downloaded Moana and every time we needed him to sleep we'd let him watch it and he'd nod off. A word of caution, though. Lee was watching the iPad on a windy road in the car and he puked everywhere! He gets slightly car sick on really windy roads when reading or watching a screen (something we discovered when we went to Mammoth last year) so we should have kept the iPad out of his hands in the car but we didn't... lesson learned... again! After that we'd rotate who sat in the back to entertain him. Before we left we also started playing "I Spy" with him on our walks. Since it was something he was familiar with we could sometimes distract him with this game in the car. The other car game he loved the most? Taking off his socks and throwing them at Grandma like he was playing baseball. She'd throw them back and he was entertained for a crazy amount of time! Amazing what simple things can keep a kid occupied!
Another tip for the plane: let your kids walk the aisles as much as they want (when it's safe). Rotate parents (and hopefully grandparents) if you have them. If the kid is happy, no one will care that he's running up and down the aisles! In fact, Lee gets a lot of high-fives and we get to talk to a lot of new people.
Finally, my last piece of advice for the plane would be SNACKS! Bring lots and bring favorites. I wasn't about to argue with him about eating vegetables but I did pack lots of fresh fruit. I wanted to make sure he had the fiber, to avoid tummy troubles, but it also had to be something I wouldn't have to force into him. Keep in mind they will confiscate any fresh fruit that's left over when you arrive, but that wasn't a big deal for us. We just wanted to make sure he had more than enough for the plane.
Discovering new critters in the grass on our hike.
So, you must be wondering how the flights actually went. Well, the flights were the easy part! Lee had only 2 major meltdowns. One could have been avoided with better planning and the other one was completely out of our hands.
Lee slept 7 1/2 hours on the first flight and woke up relatively happy. He napped the whole 2 hours on the connecting flight and was in good spirits. Not his usual amount of sleep but enough to keep him from falling apart. He was pretty uncomfortable sleeping on our laps (and so were we!) on the plane so if you have the budget I'd recommend getting your little one a seat of his/her own and bringing along their car seat. I bet Lee would have slept more soundly. But I totally understand that travel is crazy expensive so not paying for a seat is ideal. Lee still slept pretty good, so I can't complain. His first meltdown came during the last hour of our 5 1/2 hour car trip directly after we landed. We had decided to land in Christchurch and immediately drive to Queenstown. He slept a few hours in the car but couldn't get comfortable the last hour. I felt horrible for him. With better planning we could have flown into Queenstown and avoided the meltdown. But we also got to see some pretty epic scenery driving (although that's not much of consolation for a mother thinking she's horrible for putting her kid through all this just so she could see the world and not leave her kid behind to do so!).
Secret to a smooth trip around the world: grandparents! (Other friends or family will also work... just someone else to distract your kid makes a world of difference and allows you to take a breather every once in a while!)
And now the time change... we are lucky on the West Coast because the time difference is only 3 hours. This amount of time is not that big of a deal to adjust to. We got a little screwed on the way back because Daylight Saving Time made the difference 4 hours but it wasn't too bad. My philosophy with the time differences is: let the kids sleep whenever they want, including little cat naps. They will slowly adjust on their own and if they sleep when they're tired you can avoid meltdowns and tantrums. I've found that Lee wanted to be awake when it was light out and asleep when it was dark. In fact he slept through the night every night (I couldn't believe it!). He didn't sleep his normal 10-11 hours, though. It was more like 9-91/2 but with all the distractions during the day it didn't make a difference in his temperament. And if it ain't broke, don't fix it! I would suggest that if you're having them sleep in the car or strollers almost every day, take a day every three days or so and let them sleep at the hotel or rental to get some good quality sleep. You'll know when they're hitting their limit of so-so naps and they really need a good one.
Hiking with Daddy.
That brings me to accommodations. Get an Airbnb or a VRBO. It's been such a lifesaver for us when we travel. We've been able to afford places with a separate room for Lee (which we could not afford if we stayed at a hotel) and they usually include a kitchen and some even have washers and dryers! Not eating out every meal made it much easier to avoid public meltdowns. Especially at the end of the day when we pushed him too hard. It's a lot easier to let your over-tired kid run around a rented apartment while eating dinner than forcing him to sit still and eat at a restaurant. It's also cheaper to make a grocery store run and eat in every once in a while, especially since your group is much larger now that you have a kid or two!
View of Queenstown at sunrise from our Airbnb rental! Epic 3 bedroom for an insanely reasonable price.
Now you're probably wondering about the unavoidable meltdown. That came in the customs line when we returned to the U.S. Lee didn't sleep great on the return flight so he was tired. He kept it together on the plane and was a little angel. Once we got off he naturally wanted to run around. Unlike other countries you are shepherded immediately into the customs and immigration lines after exiting the plane (no time to let off steam or even go to the bathroom). So we had to contain our overly tired toddler. Not good. The other problem? You aren't allowed to use electronic devices in line... so that meant, no iPad. The last problem? There were only 3 customs officers for 2 international flights! We waited in line for almost an hour before a customs officer let us go ahead because of our screaming child. We endured screaming, hitting and kicking for a good 45 minutes. So, be prepared. There are just some times when a public tantrum is unavoidable. In this instance, everyone felt the way Lee was acting and no one gave us dirty looks... just sympathy looks. Everyone was pissed. So I found some solace in that fact!
Checking out the jet boat while heading around Lake Wanaka on the Outlet track. A super simple walk with ample opportunities for rock throwing (just watch out for mountain bikers!).
Another little tidbit. We've traveled to a lot of places with high altitudes. If you're staying somewhere at a higher altitude than your kid is used to and you can't figure out why your kid isn't sleeping, try a humidifier or turn on the shower for a few minutes. We found the dryness of the higher altitudes kept Lee up because he was uncomfortable. Took us 2 sleepless nights in Mammoth last year to realize this! Don't make the same mistake we did!
Last but not least, you know your kid better than anyone! You know their limits and, even if you're in denial about them like I am, you know your own. Listen to your instincts. You've got this!
Now onto our adventures! Enough words, already, c'mon Carra!
Sticks and rocks, the only toys you need out here!
Getting close to the camera.
My hiking buddy.
Stopping to smell the flowers.
Tree climbing and peek-a-boo.
Found a hollow tree!
Piggy back rides from Grandma!
Heading out across Lake Manapouri on our way to Doubtful Sound. About that pacifier... anything that brings comfort to your kid, bring it and give it to them without restrictions. You want your kid to be able to soothe himself/herself whenever possible. Even if that means you have to get looks about your 2 year old still being attached to his pacifier. Rather that than the public meltdown!
Sitting with Grandpa in the Captain's seat.
Mommy checking in from the top deck.
Chilly but beautiful ride across Lake Manapouri.
Checking out the view of Doubtful Sound with Grandpa. No smiles here, but still having a good time!
Enjoying the view from the boat in Doubtful Sound.
"Ok, Mom. Enough pictures already."
Attempting nap time with Daddy on the boat. It failed. Fell asleep on the bus ride back over the pass to Manapouri. Late nap but still worked out.
Helicopter ride! Lee was so excited about his headphones!
Landing in Mildford Sound. Couldn't have been a more stunning helicopter ride!
Boat ride in Milford Sound. Lots of boat rides on this trip since hiking and kayaking weren't that realistic with a toddler. But it's a great way to see lots of things in New Zealand!
Inside the boat, enjoying the view and a little lunch.
Helicopter ride back from Milford Sound. Detour stop on top of a glacier overlooking the Tasman sea.
Nap time was a no-go on the boat so Lee fell asleep as soon as the helicopter took off again. Slept through the glacier landing and got a solid nap on the way back. Missed a lot of sights but we've got the pictures to show him!
Hiking out to the Blue Pools with Grandma in tow.
Crossing the bridge to the blue pools.
Checking out the blue pools from up above.
Throwing rocks into the blue pools. Seriously, Lee's favorite activity.
No smiles for Mama...
Kicking over a rock tower.
Rebuilding the rock tower.
Back to the car on Daddy's back! Couldn't survive any of these outdoor adventures without our Deuter Air Comfort backpack!
On our way to Christchurch from Queenstown we took the detour up the west coast. Stopped for lunch at a salmon farm in the middle of nowhere. Spent $1 on fish food so Lee could feed the fish. Best $1 ever spent!
My goofball!
On the jungle trail out to a viewpoint of Fox Glacier.
Made it to Hokitika for the sunset and some fish and chips. Lee's contimplating life in this one.
Pohatu Penguin Safari. Stopped along the way to take a picture with a view of Akarora on the Banks Penninsula.
A little higher up.
Feeding some pet sheep at the Flea Bay farm where the penguin sanctuary is.
Surrounded by sheep!
Penguins? Sheep? No, I'm just interested in the garden cat, Mom!
Back out to the Banks Peninsula the next day for a sheep shearing and dog herding demonstration!
Can't visit New Zealand without going to a sheep farm.
Look, Mom, the sheep got a haircut!
The farm had a little sheep bike. A huge hit with Lee!
For more on the specifics of our adventures, stay tuned for the next few blog posts. Please leave any comments or questions if you've got some! Happy to share my experiences and advice! Good luck to you all and may you have safe and happy travels!
I ventured into new territory recently! A client who I did family portraits for last year has her own Fair Trade earring business and she asked me to do some product photography for her site and her social media accounts. I thought, why not? Below is a small sample of the shots I took. Check out her site for more photos and, of course, to order these beautiful earrings! http://www.skyeandgrace.com/ And to see more of my photos and to stay up to date on any sales, check out Skye and Grace on Instagram. @skyeandgrace
Working with different backgrounds for some of their social media accounts. Check this one out on Instagram! @skyeandgrace
Getting the perfect white background while still maintaining shadow detail for a website is a bit of a challenge... I watched 3 different tutorials before finding the method that worked best for me!
Working with colors and different backgrounds!
Putting the earrings in context!
I also took a crack at studio portraits for social media marketing. What a ton of fun this shoot was!
Stay tuned for more studio portraits! I will be taking a crack at a studio newborn shoot this weekend. Hopefully I can soon offer that as a regular service!
Also heading to New Zealand at the end of next week. For those of you missing my landscape, wildlife and underwater photography, stay tuned for some epic shots next month! Super stoked!
I'd love to hear what you guys think so far and what you'd like to see more of! Leave me a comment on this post or head on over to my contact page and give me a shout out! Thanks!
Happy Valentine's Day everyone! A special shout out to my wonderful family. Love you all so much!
Two of my three valentines. Piper and Lee. Image taken back in December.
And Happy Belated Birthday to my third valentine ;)
Right before New Years I met up with an old friend and her boys to take some photos. I met these guys 8 years ago when they were kids. Now they are practically adults! It's hard to believe! I had such a great time. And boy, what a different experience it is photographing grown ups! Thanks for asking me to be your photographer, Shirley!
What a unique and wonderful wedding this was! Beautifully executed in just two weeks, this wedding took place in Muir Woods at dusk on the Winter Solstice with just a few guests as witnesses. The fading light proved to be a bit of a photographic challenge for me but resulted in truly unique and beautiful images! Thank you to the newlyweds for including me!
Almost got swept away! Picture on Muir Beach. Incredible sunset that evening.
The perfect wedding in the woods!
I love Chiana's expression and her beautiful blue eyes in this one!
So much love.
Ancient trees.
Silly faces.
The whole family!
Traditional Persian dress.
Same as the first photo but in black and white. I think I find this so compelling in black and white because the pattern of the light on the water almost matches the lace pattern on her dress.
Here's a quick sneak peak of some of my initial favorites.
Marisa put this small ceremony together in a week! I can't believe it! It was just perfect. Exactly the small and intimate ceremony she always wanted. I had such a wonderful time shooting this wedding. The whole evening was laid back and despite the cold it was full of so much joy and love!
Love these two!
Getting ready.
Kona even dressed up for the occassion!
This time of year brings some seriously unpredictable weather. After moving this shoot earlier in the day to avoid rain we still got caught in some! And all this after rescheduling the first time because the entire park was closed last weekend! But these guys kept their spirits up and, as it turns out, umbrellas are fun to play with!
Kaia was an absolute joy to photograph! Her sly smiles just crack me up. What a personality!
Staying dry and having a little fun!
I probably shouldn't admit this but this photo is one of my all time favorites. It's moments like this that make my job so awesome and fulfilling!
Kaia didn't want to smile for me at first but there was no shortage of smiles for Mama!
Alana was the biggest trooper of them all! Didn't seem to notice the cold weather or the rain. Even fell asleep on her Mama for most of the shoot!
I think you're in trouble with this one Jaime and Ken!
Despite multiple scheduling roadblocks and foul weather I'd say we pulled off a successful shoot! FINALLY! :)
Boy was it a cold morning. But WOW, what a great backdrop at the Bonderosa!
Lily is just stunning in this photo!
Chase is so fun to photograph. He's always having a blast!
Hugs from Mama!
Giggles.
Staying warm!
Can't beat the green hills of California in the winter!
We shot these right in the Day's backyard! What a blast we had!
Cuteness overload!
She loves her Mama!
Slides are the best!
Everyone is smiling!
Uh Oh...
My husband and kid tagged along on this shoot. Somehow Matt convinced Lee to give Gabrielle a kiss. We could be in trouble with these two!!
It was a cold and very wet morning but we managed to get some smiles and have a little fun!
What a sweet smile! And those eyes! Can't get over them!
Nothing like a swing to get a kid (or an adult) to smile!
Love this in black and white but with Sadie's blue eyes it looks great in color too!
So many more to get through. Back to editing for me!