In The News

I woke up today, nursing the back that decided to send shooting pains throughout my body for no good reason, and had a message on my phone from one of my friends.

The message was:

"Hey friend...What a cool way to start the day = seeing your friend on the list of hot photographers: YOU ROCK girlfriend!!"

Tell me that isn't the BEST way to start the day and a great remedy for an ailing back! Thanks Lisa!! Turns out that someone, thank you to whoever you were, recommended me for pregnancy and family photography on the San Rafael Mother's Club Photography listing. So awesome!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The other exciting thing to share, although I have to admit I'm a bit embarrassed at the same time for reasons I'll explain later, is that I was featured in the uber-cool Utterly Engaged E-Zine!! I had been contacted a while back by the mag when they were just starting up. They've put out three issues and it's full force ahead. They were running an issue on eco-friendly wedding ideas and loved my "Earth" line of albums. They asked if I would contribute some information to the magazine as well as something for their launch party as a giveaway. It didn't work out for the party but I did offer a $250 coupon that in the article was titled, "Enter The FMN Giveaway!". (I thought they ran the giveaway as a separate listing. I seriously had NO idea they ran the article)

Well, here's the embarrassing part. I looked at their table of contents to see what wound up running in their issue and didn't see anything about Forget Me Not Design. I was busy and didn't take the time to flip through the magazine. THAT WILL TEACH ME!" I thought they ran the giveaway and that was that.

I wound up having a moment to myself on Monday and imagine my surprise when I was flipping through the magazine, there was a four page article on FMN. I felt like a total loser. Not only didn't I see the article but I never thanked them. until yesterday of course, for running it!! Well, better late than never I always say. I promptly sent out a tweet via Twitter and an email letting them know my embarrassing faux pas and thanking them for such a wonderful piece. AND, there was a winner from the contest (that I did know about) who's getting married in March of 2010. Congratulations Tasha, I can't wait to design your beautiful album!

Thank you to both the anonymous recommendation for my photography through the San Rafael Mother's Club and to Utterly Engaged for such a beautiful feature article. Here is a snapshot of the article and some of my favorite shots of bellies and babes. You can visit the magazine from the link above to see more of their beautiful online publication at your leisure.

Guest Book - Michele and Vin

Michele contacted me after seeing the blog post on Forget Me Not Design on Green Wedding Shoes. She wanted to put a guest book together for her upcoming wedding in October. She had purchased her photographs from their photographer Max Wanger who has a great style which lent itself perfectly to a simple yet beautiful album design. After looking at the album selections FMN Design offers, she chose the Daisy with a faux-leather cover.

I'm often asked about the Daisy album but I think a lot of people have a difficult time with the cost. It's my least expensive album, starting at $275 for a 10x10, 20 page book but so many people are printing Blurb and Apple books these days that are 1/4 of that cost. It can be hard to make the leap to spend the extra money but let me explain why you should.

The books are produced by Asuka Books out of Bend Oregon and every book is assembled by hand with complete quality control. You won't be given a book with a faulty binding or lose pages, ever. They are printed with a digital on demand printing process using an HP Indigo Digital 6-color press with electronic inks, halftone dot and 175 lpi. What does all of that mean? That your book is being produced with the look and feel of an offset press. That means the book has the quality similar to a high-end photographic coffee table book that you would find at a large bookstore such as Barnes & Nobel.

One of the best things about these books is the paper that is used. It's approximately 100lb weight and if you know anything about paper, this means that it's nice and thick. It feels great between your fingers, sturdy, and you can tell that the pages will hold up over time. After printing, the pages are laminated with a gloss or matte finish or a varnish coating that can be applied for added protection.

Companies like Asuka work only with professional photographers or album companies such as FMN Design. It is the vision of Forget Me Not Design to touch and inspire peoples lives through imagery, words and design and I'm so excited to be able to offer such a beautiful product to the general public.

The best way to understand how beautiful these books are is to hold one in your hands but the next best think if that isn't possible is to see some photographs. In these photographs you will see the beautiful album with the faux leather cover, the names stamped on the cover of the album in silver ink and the beautiful wrap around photographic presentation box that it comes in. Another feature that you can't see in these photographs is the foam insert that you can remove from the inside back of the box which is a holder for your cd of images. Take a look and see for yourselves...

Congratulations Michele and Vin on your upcoming wedding. Thank you for allowing me to design your guest book. I wish you lifetimes of happiness!

Friday Inspiration - Mason

I know I'm a day late but better late than never right? Today my inspiration is from Mason. My 5 year old who has more perseverance than some adults I know.

We spent the Labor Day weekend on a family camping trip at Lassen National Park. It was absolutely beautiful there and we couldn't believe we hadn't been there before. It was less than 5 hours away and not terribly crowded.

The biggest reason we were going was because of the volcano. Lassen is a dormant volcano that last erupted in 1915. The boys were beyond excited to see a real volcano and to hike near or on one. When we arrived and researched where to go, we found that Lassen itself was too high and strenuous to climb but that we could hike to the top of Cinder Cone volcano.

Here are the stats for Cinder Cone:

Round Trip Distance: 4 miles
Round Trip Time: 3 hours
Elevation Change: 846 ft
Elevation: 6,061 ft - 6,907 ft

Even though the hike was labeled "strenuous" we decided to go. Mason was eager to get started and said he would be able to do the entire hike on his own. Matt and I didn't think that was possible so we prepared ourselves for me to take Miles on my back when Mason got tired and Matt would take Mason the rest of the way. What happened over the next 4 hours and 4 miles was amazing.

Mason walked/hiked the ENTIRE way on his own. Did you catch the stats I posted above? He hiked 4 miles round trip with an elevation change of 846 ft over the course of the hike. Can you believe that??!! It was amazing. AMAZING!

There were times that I wanted to stop! It was up a steep incline and the terrain was sandy and loose volcanic gravel making it really difficult. You slipped a little with each step putting extra strain on your legs. Then there was the wind. Oh my goodness was it windy. And from time to time you had to stop and turn away because the wind would shoot the small pellets of sand/rock at you, and it hurt!

Through the entire hike Mason kept on going. All the way to the top. Once we reached the summit he saw that you could hike down into the center. Coming back out looked just as strenuous as the incline we had just hiked and I wasn't sure we should go. The wind was whipping and so was the gravel. But, we did it. We hiked to the center and stopped for a family portrait, turned around and hiked back out.

On the way down the cinder cone there was a couple starting their descent. The woman was visibly struggling and scared to go down. I had just told Mason to make sure to dig his heels in to the gravel because it would make it easier to hike down. As we approached the couple Mason started saying, "Guys, guys!" When we were right up next to them he turned to them and said, "You have to dig your heels in!". It was amazing that he was not only aware of her struggle but right there to help. When we were hiking the trail back to the car that same couple passed us and the husband thanked Mason for helping his wife get down the cinder cone. He said she wouldn't have made it without him.

There was so much excitement and determination in Mason that day. I've seen glimpses of that before but never to this extent. He was my inspiration as well as the inspiration for many other hikers that saw him climb that cinder cone. One 20 something year old guy stopped and asked if we had made it to the top. When I told him that we not only made it to the top but all the way in and back out and that Mason had done it all on his own his jaw dropped open and he shook his head and said,"AMAZING". Yes, I would have to agree.

Mason, your energy is a force and a wonder to witness. You can do great things in your life by channeling that energy and excitement in the right direction. I can't wait to see what other mountains you will conquer by my side and on your own.

And here are a few random shots from the weekend.

Matty shot this last one. (I'm sure he'll share more of the trip on his blog. I'll be sure to put a link if and when he does.)

Celebrating Life

Today is my mom's birthday. 090909. It's also my niece Raina that was here for a visit not too long ago. September is also the birthday month for my father-in-law, two of my sister-in-laws, one of my best friends daughters, some other good friends and my own. WOW! I guess people really do try to stay warm and huddle close in the winter!

Well, with all of those birthdays this month, it's hard not to celebrate life. To remember that we're all here on this planet with a gift to give. We all have a unique perspective to share, a vision to follow and a voice to be heard.

But, today, I have to give a special birthday wish to my mother. She's living life while fighting breast cancer and she is an inspiration in so many ways. We all take things from our parents, ways to be, ways not to be and I do believe we're better people in the end from all of those things. I know that my sister and I are better women in the world, better mothers because of the lessons we've learned from our mother.

One of the biggest things my sister and I have because of our mom is laughter and the ability to laugh at life. Because of this, we compiled the "wig" photographs and had a canvas made. It's awesome. We gifted my mom with it while she was here a couple of weeks ago so today I can share it with the internet, in all of it's glory. For those of you who know our family and are wondering who the woman in the lower right corner is, that's Jeanne. She lives in AZ and helps my mom in times of need and is basically the third daughter my mother never had. Diana and I thank God for Jeanne every day. She's truly been a blessing and deserved to be included in the photo. We love you Jeanne!

Happy birthday mom!!!! Here's a picture of the canvas that Mason shot. It just makes me smile every time I look at it!!

Friday Inspiration - Paper Trees

A while back my friend Christine sent me a link to a piece of art. It was a simple creation that was anything but simple in it's execution. It was a toilet paper roll. That's all it was. A toilet paper roll that had been intricately cut so that a tree was sticking out from the rest of the paper tube. Simple, brilliant, beautiful.

I always love this type of art. The type that takes thought and detail to become. Now, months later, Matt sent a link to this same artist. This artist has not only had mastered the art of creating beautiful paper trees but now has created art from something as ordinary and greasy as a McDonald's Happy Meal bag. He doesn't always work with cutting up paper but these pieces of his are by far my favorite. The New York TImes piece is amazing and I love the Giving Tree piece as well.

His name is Yuken Teruya and I hope you find inspiration from these beautiful creations.

Denise and Dustin

Dustin and Denise met on the playa six years ago. In Denise's words, "they were both taking a breather from dancing, sitting down to the side of the old Boom Box, when their respective friends’ decision to start dancing together, and the stunning performance of Black Rock City’s finest hula hooper prompted these heretofore strangers to start talking."

They made plans to spend the next night together but the playa being what it is and having a mind of it's own, their paths did not cross for the duration of the festival. Dustin, not even knowing Denise's name, searched effortlessly for days trying to find her. Upon returning to the real world, he was prompted by friends to post a "missed connection" ad on Craigslist.org.

Now, have you ever in your life checked out those ads? or any ads like that? Thinking that maybe some stranger was looking for you? That some glance through the window of a coffee shop by a passerby was more than just a glance? That perhaps a spark was created when your arm brushed someone a little too close? Well, if you have, you know that the chance of the person being sought actually seeing that post and responding, is slim to none. BUT, one of my friends, who knew Denise, did see that post. Here is what it read:

Cole Valley masseuse I met at the Boom Box last Wed. at BM - m4w - 27

We met sitting down by the Boom Box as our friends danced. We talked for what seemed like forever. I was wearing some ridiculous furry thing and I think you had pink eyelashes. I was supposed to meet you the next day but could never find your camp- 4:40 and Dogma?. You studied Math at Santa Barbara because it was easy, had five jobs, and were just so damned intriguing that I can't give up yet.

An email response from Denise and a phone call back from Dustin and now, 6 years later, Matt and I had the opportunity to photograph their wedding. This is a love story in the truest sense.

Originally, Matt and I were going to attend the wedding with our cameras in hand as guests who happened to be photographers. Denise had asked if I would photograph her getting ready, which I of course said yes to, and then we would just take some shots here and there, if and when inspired. But, things changed a couple of weeks before the wedding.

The main photographer, Julio Duffoo who was the photographer at our own wedding, days earlier became a father to a beautiful baby girl and therefore, couldn't attend the wedding. It was a weekend affair in the mountains of Shasta, CA at a beautiful little resort of sorts, Mount Shasta Weddings. Denise called and asked if Matt and I would fill in and photograph the wedding. This was the first wedding that we would photograph as a team and I have to say, we had a blast. It was a little tough having the boys with us but thankfully we were surrounded by friends who helped watch them while we worked. (Thanks again to all of the extra eyes on our boys, especially Maya and Shaun!)

There were around 80 people in attendance so we had an opportunity to photograph just about everyone and the wedding had a "steampunk" theme so it was fun to see and photograph the guests who wore clothes in that style. We spent three days and two nights at the location and I have to say, Saturday night at the reception, was one of the best nights I've had in a LONG time. Matt and I had finished shooting, the boys were in the cabin watching a movie and we danced under the stars to the best music with our friends and Matt and I had a night with each other reminiscent to when we were first dating.

Denise and Dustin, thank you for asking us to photograph your wedding. It was a weekend filled with laughter and love. I had the best time working along side my husband so I thank you for providing the space for that to happen.

Congratulations on your marriage and I wish you both a lifetime of happiness and beyond!

Here are some favorites from the weekend. If you want to see more, you can click on the link below for the slideshow.

Denise and Dustin Slideshow