LA Auto Show

Every year since I've been able to drive, my family as a whole has traveled up to LA to attend the auto show. This year was no exception! Aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, brothers, sisters, significant other....everyone came today. From hanging in the VIP Mercedez Benz Lounge, to relaxing in an Aston Martin; the day did not disappoint! 

I am a card-carrying car FANATIC so you can only imagine my anticipation for this every year! I had the privilege of attending press day last week in LA and got to see each and every car up close and personal. Sitting in every single car you can think of! However, I didn't have my camera...so today I brought my D700 and my trusty 24-70mm and had some fun! Erin scored some major brownie points today for trekking around with me and my family. She no doubt felt like she had a two year old; I was all over the place! Here one second sitting in a car and then *BAM* I was up and gone. Haha, she's beyond awesome :)

Here are few from the show today. 

P.S. *make sure you have a towel to wipe the drool from you keyboard*

-My favorite car of the show, the Audi R8-

-My dream car...the 09' Lamborghini Gallardo. You'll see me crusin' on PCH in this bad boy soon, just you wait! (Erin said I could get one...I'm trying to get that in writing)-

-My Dad wants an Aston more than anything. The guy let us behind the display glass when he saw me taking pictures. He must have been a photographer at heart because he let us climb all over the car so he could play with our camera. It was in Manual Mode...and he changed all the settings, adjusted the exposure...everything! haha. As you can see, he did a pretty awesome job! He wanted to talk cameras the whole time-

**Erin and I both hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!! Next stop...Christmas! Let the insanity begin**

Gena & Ben = "Bena"

Before sitting down to share with you Gena and Ben's special day, I had to go to iTunes and get some music. I just didn't feel right working on their images without rockin' out...because that is so Bena. Their first dance was to "Blue and Yellow" by The Used :)

Gena and Ben were married at the base of the Mammoth mountains in Mammoth Lakes, California. The setting was the church camp they both work at throughout the year. The air was crisp (more like freezing), the bride was beautiful, the groom was stylin', and reception was hopin! With the wind chill reaching near freezing temperatures, nothing was stopping this outdoor wedding from happening! Despite the cold, Gena walked down that aisle and married the love of her life. Not even 20 minutes after the ceremony, freezing rain started to fall. So we rushed into the reception and danced the night away!

Thank you Gena and Ben for letting Erin and I capture your special day. We are blessed to have you both as friends and as wonderful examples of Christ-centered love. We hope you had a blast in Mexico!

Here are some moments we couldn't wait to share with you.

Wedding Crashers...that's us!

Okay, okay...so we didn't ACTUALLY crash a wedding, but we did attend one! Noah and Amy are both members of my Life Group and tonight they finally tied the knot in front of over 125 guests in San Juan Capistrano. The night was beautiful, and it was so nice to just attend a wedding and be pampered instead of rushing around like a cracked-up mongoose in a snake pit! In addition to just having a great time with my small group, one positively unique aspect of the evening was the Kettle One vodka martini bar that they had in the corner!
Amy works for Kettle One in Aliso Viejo and a major perk of the job is having them come and take care of you on your wedding day. Normally this extremely expensive service is reserved for only the most chic parties in the state...and tonight was no exception! I've never seen such a setup, and it only just added to an already fun-filled evening. Did I mention it was an open bar? haha.

I fought my urge to treat tonight like I was the photographer, so we mainly took just fun and kooky pictures tonight! Here are a few of our favorites!

They pour it in the top...

...And it chills on the way down and is mixed into your glass waiting below!


Okay so I had to get a few shots of the details...haha. Loved the lighting.




They had a photobooth! Thanks to the people at Cheesyphotobooths.com

Not quite a sandwich board...

I am proud to announce that we are branching out into the wide-world of advertising! We love our friends and family more than anything, and we have been completely blown away by their support and encouragement of us following our passion; they have been our own walking billboards! And now thanks to my little cousin Avalon, we will be putting out an ad that will hopefully reach tons of other families all around Orange County!

I just sent it to the printers today, but wanted to share it with all of you!

Life Mission and Armani: Working for Change

Two weeks ago, I got a call from Cheyne Jackson, the brother of one of our brides who is getting married in December. Cheyne works for Armani, and within that past week had felt called to get involved with Life Mission and try to raise more awareness to what is already a heart-breaking issue. The event was held at Pepperdine University on the cliffs of Malibu, CA and the guest list ranged from movie stars, Black Eyed Peas, students, models, and humanitarians alike all coming together to raise money for an amazing cause! Cheyne's original photographer was called away at the last minute to fly to Milan or somewhere (I hate it when that happens, haha), so he called us and we felt so honored to be involved with such a cause and wanted to give back in any way that we could!
The show was fantastic! The weather was gorgeous, the clothes were amazing, the models were sizzling, and everyone gave to help those whose voices fall upon deaf ears.
Here are some of our favorites from the show!

There's me on the bottom left! Erin was sniping from the other side and got some amazing shots!

Apple from the Black Eyed Peas and Cheyne Jackson. Thanks again Cheyne for everything!