journal of a professional wedding crasher

some interesting specials i'm offering :)

2009-06-25T05:04:00.001-07:00

introducing the "mini e" sessions and the "last minute booking" packages :)

-"last minute booking" packages
for those of you who haven't found the right photographer for your wedding, i have the perfect solution for you!

~if your wedding lies within 3 months of our meeting then the basic shooting package (Normally $2350-$2600) is offered to you at $1850.

~if your wedding lies within 2 months of our meeting then the basic shooting package (Normally $2350-$2600) is offered to you at $1700.

~if your wedding lies within 1 months of our meeting then the basic shooting package (Normally $2350-$2600) is offered to you at $1550.

**this offer is of course subject to availability :) And availability does tend to be limited so it's up to your discretion how late you'd like to wait and how much of a deal you'd be willing to hold out for as these prices are for a first come first serve basis only.

-the "mini e" session
this one's a doozy :D

for those of you who are still on the fence about choosing a perfect wedding photographer. i invite you to make an appointment to come in to my studio where i will offer you a FREE mini engagement session (studio and surrounding area only). i will take romantic and fun pictures of each couple for about 15 minutes or so and afterwards i will include all the files that i shoot for you online for you to download.

you'll be under no obligation to sign with me what so ever. this little package offered is completely free of charge and includes the digital files i shoot for you if you come in for a consultation. again, i only ask that it be by appointment only and part of a consultation session :)

so...exciting new products coming your way ;) be sure to take advantage of these silly little deals that i've cooked up, especially the free "mini e" session. look forward to hearing from you soon :)

spud

Dancing on Water: Nicole and Brian

2009-06-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

Nicole Hale and Brian Marsh

Engagement Shoot Date: June 21st, 2009
Wedding Date: August 22nd, 2009
Picture Location 1: Lake Gregory Regional Park
24171 Lake Dr, Crestline, CA 92325
909-338-2233

Picture Location 2: San Moritz Lodge
24640 San Moritz Drive, Crestline, CA 92325.
909-486-0244

Picture Location 3: Highway 18 (Rim of the World Highway)

Stay tuned for thier wedding in August :)

Spud

Rain or Shine: Sana and Roderick Constantino

2009-06-22T05:58:00.000-07:00

Sana Sin and Roderick Constantino

Wedding Date: June 20th, 2009
Location: Central Christian Church
5027 New York Ave, La Crescenta, CA 91214
Picture Location: Angeles National Forrest @ Dunsmore Ave

They are currently on thier honeymoon in Hawaii :)

Spud

slight downtime :)

2009-06-20T01:00:00.001-07:00

ohhhhh boy friends. i've really fallen off the blog wagon lately ;P i do apologize for that.

i have lots and lots of wonderful shoots to show you as well as awesome summer specials for perspective clients :) i'll be posting them in just a little bit.

i do want to apologize for the slight downtime the website experienced from 12am last evening till about 1pm this afternoon. i'm not the most web savy person and had a little bit of trouble with my domain name registration. but it's all taken care of now :)

i'm excited to be blogging again!

it hasn't been an easy year for me but i'm full of energy and ready to take on my many challenges. there's a lot of new ideas coming ahead :) i'm hoping for the best for the remainder of the year to come.

i hope this message finds everyone well and thriving in a tough tough economy.

Spud

E-Mail and Voicemail Problems

2009-01-09T16:58:00.000-08:00

hello folks,

i wanted to inform you that in the past week or so my e-mail server went down with out any warning. and i believe that a lot of my e-mails got bounced back to their senders and i never saw any of them. and since my phone's voicemail is transcribed and e-mailed to me, that system is compromised as well.

i do apologize if you've been trying to reach me during this time. i believe that i've fixed the root of the problem but have not been able to retrieve those lost e-mails yet. please feel free to contact me again as everything is working again now =)

thank you for your patience!

on a side note: i know i've fallen of the blog wagon for a while now but i've been so busy for the past few months strait. happy new year everybody! i will get back to my blogging self very soon now!

spud

channel 4 news wedding!!! jane and tusong 8-8-08

2008-08-21T01:15:00.000-07:00

hello everybody =)

some of you might know this already...but one of my weddings made it on to the channel 4 news!!!

jane and tusong got married at the almansor court on 8-8-08. and the number 8 is good luck in the asian culture. it stands for wealth and prosperity. and on this august 8th, 2008 there were a lot of weddings!

and the channel 4 news did a feature story on this particular day. they were waiting at the almansor court to film the weddings taking place and jane and tusong's wedding were among the ones being filmed. in fact...it was the only wedding they showed =) here is the news clip: http://video.knbc.com/player/?id=284315

and here are some of my favorite pictures of the lovely couple =)

here's a shot of jane's dress with a teddy bear that her grandmother gave to her

this isn't jane's shoes, but i really liked it with the dress =)

i was able to capture tusong's expression as jane walked down the aisle

jane being escorted by her father

i love this shot of them walking out of the ceremony

some romantics of the couple...i just love the red umbrella

red is also lucky in the asian culture =) it's the color of wealth and royalty!

i like shooting different angles and getting some interesting looks

we kept them cool in the hallways for thier pictures, but luckily we had these nice windows to work with.

here's another one of my favorite shots

and one more to cap off a great day =)

more weddings to come plus my celebrity poker tournament coverage!

spud =)

amy and byron 8-2-08

2008-08-20T03:56:00.000-07:00

hello everybody,

i've been shooting a whole lot, but not keeping up with my blogging. i'm going to do my best to get everything up for you to see =)

amy and byron got married on august 2nd at the pic wic gardens out in burbank. i was joined by my good friends tammie and kristina. it's always nice to have somebody shoot with me =)

here are their pics:

we caught up with byron and the boys at the local bowling alley.

they had a fun little game before the craziness of the wedding

amy got ready with her girls while the boys were relaxing at the alley

here's a shot of amy with her beautiful dress

amy had 14 bridesmaids! and the whole wedding party totalled 28 people plus the couple! yikes!

i caught this shot when the officiant called byron "brian" and we had a good laugh.

and amy looked absolutely radient

the couple had a moment after the ceremony and i was able to peek in on them

here's another one of my favorite shots of the day

this is my new take on the traditional "veil" shot. yes...it fit three people =)

tammie and kristina were hungry after seeing the beautiful cake =)

and here's my silly mug with amy and byron =)

so...more catch up to be done by me =) including my wedding that made the channel 4 news and my little celebrity poker shoot!

spud

allegra and steven's wedding =)

2008-07-28T05:32:00.001-07:00

wow folks,

i had an awesome wedding on saturday. allegra and steven got married yorba linda and had thier reception in the backyard of allegra's parents house.

we had a lot of fun and got some really awesome images! here they are =)

live, love and laugh =) allegra and her bridesmaids had a lot of fun that day. who needs stress huh?

ofcourse...i had to put the bride on a tree =) what else do bride's do on a saturday?

some more of my favorites!

this was the single most beautiful image of the day in my opinnion. dr. barragan got really emotional. it must be the toughest thing in life to marry off your daughter. you can see it in his face how much he loves her.

now THAT'S a veil! at one point we tried to put her whole family underneath it.

mr. and mrs. rineer are on thier way to mexico for thier honeymoon in a few hours at the time of this posting.

i was able to show them thier slideshow before they left =) here it is if you'd like to see it:
CLICK HERE

spud =)

yay!!! i figured out how to post big pictures!!! woohoo!

2008-07-27T22:05:00.000-07:00

hello all,

i finally figured out how to post big pictures on my website! i've been trying to do this for a long time. here are just a few samples from jay and shana's wedding i shot a few weeks back with my friend patrice

here's another

and one more

hope you guys like it...i will be posting many more big images soon =)

yes i did have a wedding last weekend =) christie and bill

2008-07-24T04:09:00.001-07:00

hello readers,

i did have a wedding this last weekend. i just hadn't had a chance to post anything from it yet =)

christie and bill got married last saturday at the beautiful calamigos ranch in malibu. i'd like to thank the catering manager john from the calamigos ranch, he was very nice and fed me =) i'd also like to thank garden's of the world in thousand oaks and dave ferris and his awesome band.

here are some of my favorite pics from the day =)

here's bill getting punched out by his lovely sister. wow...she's got quite a right cross!

we had some fun in a nearby park and here's a shot of the girls hanging out under the sun =) this is my favorite shot of christie walking down the aisle with her dad.the deck had some gaps in between the wooden planks and caused a whole lot of problems for the ladies wearing high heels. christie stepped in one right when she walked down the aisle. she decided to leave her shoes behind but not before we all had a good laugh =)

christie's mom recited paul's letter to the corintians and i was able to get the couple in the background.

and yes...christie and bill had a picnic too =)

here are some more shots at the garden's of the world.

marianne at the garden's of the world was very accomodating to us. it's always a good idea to get permission to shoot somewhere. as most of you know...i've been kicked out of shooting in many places...including the garden's of the world LOL!

and here's the last shot i got at the calamigos ranch =) i love shooting after all the hoopla of the reception is finished. when all the craziness and stress of the wedding is done...we often get some of the best shots of the day =)christie and bill are on thier honeymoon right now, sippin on pina coladas and vegging around on a sunny beach =)

spud

i'm batman!!! =) hahahahaha

2008-07-23T06:35:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

i got to see the dark knight in theaters on sunday with my friend linda from lavish creations.

oh boy...i had been waiting for this one to come out for a long long time. as some of you might know...batman is my favorite super hero! some of you might have seen my utility belt at your weddings =)

why is he my favorite super hero? simple...it's because he's smart...and he's a normal person just like you and me. all other super heroes rely on super powers. only batman can get by with his wits. well...being a billionair doesn't hurt either, but that only proves my point...batman is smart!

i used to argue with my best friend in high school about who's the best super hero, superman or batman. in my opinnion...batman can beat superman any day! why? because you know batman will have a handy piece of kryptonite in his belt. and a nice pair of kryptonite bat boots nearby to kick superman's @$$. what's superman without his super powers? just a dumb, broke, normal guy who can't ask a girl out.

but aside from batman, i've always liked dark villains. villains like the ice queen from narnia, the only villain i know of that's ever stabbed a kid. she even showed up to battle wearing aslan's fur after she murdured him. or benicio del toro as jacky boy in sin city and also that irish dude who liked bombs. some of the other classic villains i like are cyrus the virus in con air, caster troy in face off, or captain dudley smith in la confidential. a good villain is essential to the dichotomy of a story.

all the past jokers were watered down and too PG for my taste. jack nicholson's joker was very good, but still wasn't crazy enough. i like my villains to be ruthless and without any logic or constraints of society. and heath ledger's performance simply took the cake. he is hands down the best villain in the history of villains. and there's talks about him winning an oscar...i really hope he does...because he deserves it. he really made the movie and it should've been called "the clown prince of crime" instead of the dark knight.

it saddens me that this performance will never be done again. i was a fan of heath ledger since "10 things i hate about you", but never so much as after i watched this movie. sadly we will never know what heights he could've reached...he will be missed.

spud

hmmm...new look =)

2008-07-22T04:02:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

so i figured out how to modify my blog today and as you can see...it's completely different =)

i love making and creating things. i'm usually most focused when i'm making something, and any other time i'm the poster child for attention deficit disorder. be it an image or a blog or a handmade album...a labor of love is no labor at all.

i hope you all like it. i'm not a web designer by any means and there's still a whole bunch i can learn, but it's not bad for the first time right?

i plan on putting up a larger gallery later on, maybe adding some music in the background and adding some extra elements to make it a bit more interesting to look at.

i'm so tired...gonna go get some sleep.

spud

daytrip to mexico =) and lobsters!

2008-07-13T01:44:00.000-07:00

oh boy folks,

i need a break! been shooting and working non stop for a long long time now. so i thought i'd take a day trip down to mexico with my parents to eat some lobster today =)

not that we like lobsters very much...but that was the point of the trip. i thought i'd show you some pictures i took from the various trips i took south of the border.

some of you old school people might recognize this one. this was on one of my business cards years ago and it's from a wedding i took down in las rocas.

on another trip a while ago...we all went down to have lobsters again...and i took these three images. i thought that they looked very cool together...i was trying to be "artsy fartsy" or i just had some bad lobster =)

here's a picture of my dad holding a lobster =) it wasn't taken in mexico but i thought it was appropriate. but nothing puts a smile on my dad's face better than a big juicy lobster. he and i used to go lobster fishing when i was younger ( errr...lobster poaching to be more exact). and there was a time in my childhood when we had lobster for dinner every evening.

so i will try and post up some more pics of my trip for you to see once i'm back. i'm looking forward to some time off...even if it's just a day =)

spud

trash the dress shoot!!!! yeeeaaaaaaaaahhhh =)

2008-07-10T03:05:00.001-07:00

hello readers,

oh my goodness! i had such an awesome shoot today =)

i was able to throw up a quick slideshow. take a look:
www.poetryinlight.com/eyecandy/gotastainonmydress

we trashed a perfectly good wedding dress...and we did it in style!

harmony was such a trooper and we got some awesome shots on this abandoned railroad.
i don't want to hear any bride complain about a stain on thier dresses anymore.

we found an abandoned couch and got this shot with harmony and the twins peter and chris. (both professional hockey players on the las vegas wranglers)

how cool is that? an awesome dress trashed, beautiful bride, and twins to work with!!! somebody pinch me =)

i love this shot of harmony...the boys kept honking as they drove by =)

i wanted to thank my friend april and her two adorable boys tyler and camron! the boys helped us decorate harmony's dress. they left little handprints for you to find.

i want more of these shoots...so any of you brides out there who have already had their wedding...call me up and lets get trashing!

okay...so this is just a teaser! i'm gonna post more pictures of this shoot along with how we "trashed" the dress later on! come back to see more =)

spud

rock star's brenda and mike's wedding =)

2008-07-04T01:53:00.000-07:00

i had an aaaaaaaaaaawesome wedding on the 14th last month! rock stars brenda and mike =)

look at them checking each other out below.
this rocking shot was courtesy of my friend kristina =)

and the wedding party was all about "loooookin good" too!

this folks...is why i tell all my brides to eat something on the day of thier wedding =) sadly we've lost many bridesmaids this way LOL

and here's mike strutting around "travolta" style.

and seriously folks...a truck container never looked this good right?

oh...and we should definately feed the groom too!

they danced and they rocked and they stayed up past thier bedtimes. but they looked good doing it =)

and yes...there is a little punk rock inside me and kristina =)

what a great way to end a blog!

two more blogs to be posted tommorow folks =)

spud

roxanne and edgar's engagement =)

2008-07-04T01:40:00.000-07:00

on the 6th of last month i took some awesome pics of roxanne and edgar =)

here are some of my favorites:

i think i'd like to shoot the ads for tiffany and co. wouldn't that be a fun gig =)
we were at the new shopping center in glendale called the americana or something like that...basically it looked like the grove =) (it was made by the same people)

we were able to catch the cool water show...but i don't think roxanne and edgar saw it though.

edgar's a police officer and roxanne is a teacher. since this is like the third police officer/teacher wedding i've done...i'm wondering if it happens more often than people realize =)

of course i had to do my signiture shot =) with all the sparkly lights and all.

aren't they the cutest couple?

spud

amy and byron's engagement =)

2008-07-03T02:56:00.000-07:00

on the 7th of last month i got to hang out at the beach with amy and byron. they're absolutely adorable!
amy told me that they met at a party and the first thing he said to her was, "excuse me...i have to go to the bathroom." LOL...well luckily he came back ;)

the couple will be married on august 2nd out in the burbank area.

we're hoping to take some fun pictures of the wedding party at the bowling alley! i can't wait =)

aren't they cute?

one of my favorite shots to finish the blog =)

stay tuned next month for pictures of thier wedding!

spud

erica and anibal's wedding

2008-07-03T02:16:00.001-07:00

hellooo dearest readers,

i know i've been slacking on my blogging lately. i've been so busy shooting and running around that i haven't had very much time to just sit down in front of the computer and work.

but...in an effort catch up on my blogging...i'm going to be posting a few past shoots per day until i'm caught up. hopefully i'll catch up by the weekend as i have like 10 different shoots to blog =)

erica and anibal got married on may 31st. i'm very happy to be apart of their special day. as you might have read from one of my past blogs, i shot erica's sister cindy two years ago in mexico. it was so great seeing everybody again and i just absolutely adore thier family!

here are some of my favorite shots =)
the ceremony took place at the historic san gabriel mission. (i remember making models of this mission out of milk cartons when i was in elementary school)

i was able to catch this little moment of joy between the couple during the ceremony. i always try to catch these fleeting moments as best as i can...sometimes it means that i have to sneak around and wait for that perfect moment.

nothing like a little eskimo kiss to steam up an already steamy day ;)

and of course we had to have a picture in front of the beautiful bell tower.

i love the first dance...it's full of moments like this one that really shows the emotions of the day.

i want to thank my friend robert for coming along to shoot with me. he's an awesome photographer and quite a bad influence on me! here we are sneaking a taste of the awesome cake.

and yes...i got my boogy on with the bride and the groom =) ....must be a blue moon out tonight!

spud

e-mail problems

2008-05-31T03:23:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

it has been especially quite for the last few days on the e-mail front. in fact...i haven't gotten one since the 27th. which leads me to believe that i'm having e-mail problems! normally i will get around 10-15 or more per day, and for me to not have any for 4 days in a row is really suspicious!

so i decided to test it out...and lo and behold...i'm not getting any new mail. rest assured i will get to the end of this and find out where all my missing e-mails have gone.

so if anybody tried sending me an e-mail between may 27 till today. please be patient. i will send you a reply as soon as i finally get it in my mailbox. if you need to reach me immediately, please call me. or you can try my temporary e-mail address mateo_mateo_mateo@yahoo.com

i'm sorry for the inconvenience and for the fact that i didn't catch it sooner. i will find out whats going on and hopefully get back in touch with you shortly.

spud

***ps - this also includes any voicemails left to me during this period of time as I have it all transcribed and then e-mailed to me. sorry for the huge mess =(

my dearest dolce kelly

2008-05-29T23:46:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

on sunday i took pictures of my dearest friend kelly. she's a professional pianist and she's leaving for new york to get her doctorate.

she's simply awesome on a piano, and i had the good fortune of listening to her rendition of the "super mario brothers" theme complete with coin sounds =)

my photography is…for lack of a better word…very personal to me.
as the viewer, you are in essence seeing what i see in my mind and experiencing the emotions that i feel in a particular moment in time.
my images therefore are my impressions manifest into reality

they hold all the ebb and flow of my moods along with the intimate connection that i felt with my subject at that moment in time.

so you see, each photograph i take is a piece of myself.

i don’t think she knows it…but kelly is very special to me!

i’ll miss her a whole lot, but I wish her well in new york.

spud

got my @$$ kicked by some young punks!

2008-05-29T23:14:00.000-07:00

hellooo my dearest readers,

here is part two of my awesome sunday shoot!

my three couples actually changed into "punk" style clothing for the second half of the photoshoot.

yes...these are the punks who beat me up =)
as you can see...they have no regard for public decency =)
these "bad girls" were pretty abusive to thier "boy toys" too!
the boys knew their places =)
and they were treated well...for the most part.

but these girls were ready to dish out some discipline if they stepped out of line.

and i was no exception. i got caught staring so they grabbed me and layed a smackdown.

so yeah...these are the punks who kicked my @$$

spud =)

triple engagement shoot at disney =)

2008-05-29T22:55:00.000-07:00

hello dearest readers,

so after my awesome wedding on saturday, my sunday was an aweful lot of fun too!

i went into disnyland and shot three engagements! yes THREE engagements in a row.

the first couple is george and cindy. george is a friend of mine from high school.

we had a lot of fun on mainstreet with the people walking around us the whole time.
couple number two is alicia and ted. they're friends of george and cindy and they're just so adorable too!

we opted to take our pictures in toontown and halfway through, minny and goofy showed up. i think ted's a little jealous of goofy. i mean...he is taller =)
finally we have jack and jennifer. jack is george's twin brother...and pretty much there to confuse me a whole lot =)

we had some good clean fun =)

...but wait! there's a part TWO of this photoshoot that you have to see to believe =)

coming up next!

spud

laura and jim

2008-05-29T22:33:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

i had so much fun this past weekend. here is one of my favorite shoots ever.

laura, my friend from college got married to jim. and i was very fortunate to be thier photographer.

laura and i actually took photography classes together back in college. she's also a wedding photographer like myself and has a company named elle photography.

as you can see, jim and laura are super cute together and were so laid back and easy to work with.

i told laura that i loved shooting photographers' weddings 'cause it was just so much fun =) i love what i do, and my clients.

laura's dad lent us his old caddy for some pictures.

yes...the bride wore red shoes! how awesome is that?

since it was my friend's wedding, i thought i would relax a bit and have a cup cake. my friend tammie came along for the day and took this picture of me pigging out.

and here it is...my signiture shot =) i've been practicing quite a lot to make this shot just right and i'm so happy it finally worked at laura and jim's wedding.

laura and jim are in cancun as we speak, sipping on magaritas and getting a sun burn =) i'm so happy to be a part of her special day!

spud

catching up on blogging =)

2008-05-29T22:02:00.000-07:00

helloooo my dearests,

i've been keeping busy with my shooting lately but haven't had a chance to update my blog yet. so i thought i would do some catch up and show a few images of what i've shot a few weeks ago and try and catch up on the postings =)

a few weeks ago i had a couple of engagements along with a couple of weddings.

the first engagement i had was leslie and jon

we took the subway in old town pasadena for some awesome shots.

next we took patrick and linh around old town for thier engagement.

we thought we would do a book theme since they met each other in school. so we sneaked into a barns and noble bookstore and took these images.

i also shot with my friend april at cari and robert's wedding down in the los angeles equestrian center.

i thought i would experiment a little bit with one of the functions on my point and shoot camera.

i love the way the images came out on it.

finally i shot with my friend andrija at the world famous mission inn at odie and kim's wedding.

there were so many awesome spots to shoot at the hotel.

and i had an opportunity to use my fisheye lens in new and fun ways.

so that should be it for now...i believe i'm caught up till this last weekend. i still have a whole bunch to blog about as it's been an awefully full weekend of shooting. i shot a wedding of one of my close friends, a triple engagement, a punk rock photoshoot, and finally a shoot with my friend kelly.

hope you all like it..

i will post more real soon!

spud

trisha and steven @ ranchoooooooooo las lomas =)

2008-05-11T03:31:00.000-07:00

hello dearest readers,

oh boy...i had a wonderful wedding today =)

i got to shoot at the awesome rancho las lomas. (if you don't know, it's disneyland for us wedding photographers)

i first met trisha and steven 3 years ago at steven's sister rosalie's wedding =) it was really great seeing familiar faces again.

today my friends tagged along and shot with me =) normally i shoot alone, but it's honestly really nice to have friends around to help me shoot. i want to express my gratitude to rowena curtis, patrice gaspard-nelson, and tammie kim kimura. i think i would've had a really hard time without them. plus they got some awesome shots =)

as you can see...we were able to get some awesome pics for the lovely couple. they were such troopers all day long, trudging up dirt paths and teasing white tigers with me.

the warm sandy beaches of bali await the couple now.

i'm really pooped... but it was all worth it =)

hope you all have a wonderful wonderful mother's day tommorow!

love,

spud

erica and anibal

2008-05-06T19:42:00.000-07:00

helooooo dearest readers,

i have another awesome engagement session to show you! erica and anibal fell in love when they met each other on a road trip.

you might remember seeing erica in some of my pictures before in another wedding. i shot her sister cindy's wedding down in calafia mexico in 2006.

the lovely couple will be getting married at the end of this month. we'll have many great new picture to show you then.

i love this shot =)

spud

amelia and john =)

2008-04-29T04:17:00.000-07:00

hellooo readers,

i had a great wedding this past weekend =)

took a lot out of me, and i'm still kinda recovering from it. but...it was worth it 'cause we got some great pictures!

i really love this picture of amelia's shoes.

here's john with his "best woman." singer jeanette jurado from the band expose. it's the "best women's" job to keep the groom in line right =)

DUDE! "thriller" people! they did the zombie dance! this party rocked!!!

i don't know who this guy is, but he's AWESOME =)

amelia and john are hanging out in fiji as we speak =)

happy honeymooning mr. and mrs. lopez!

spud

baby lambo

2008-04-22T02:27:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

had a great maternity shoot with the lambertons this weekend! tiffany and greg are expecting thier first baby in about a month or so and..........IT'S A BOY!!! =)

they're the "out-doorsy" type so we went up into the mountains.

tiffany was such a trooper and even let me put her in the river =)

i love doing maternity shoots. i don't get to do it enough. so if any of you out there are expecting, give me a call! =)

spud

destiny's blonds

2008-04-22T01:53:00.000-07:00

helloooo my dearest readers,

i know i haven't blogged in a while...i miss you all too! gosh...so much has happened since we last spoke. suffice it to say...i did some traveling, got published in a bridal magazine, shot a bunch of weddings and stuff, and met a lot of new friends.

but it's just all too much to catch up on so i thought i'd just blog about my weekend =)

my friend's autumn and harmony came down from las vegas and wanted to shoot with me, so we went down to la jolla coves on a whim and whipped something up =)

spud

a wedding in the family =)

2008-02-24T06:57:00.000-08:00

hellooooo my dearest readers,

today is very special to me. my older sister is getting married =)

i'm soooooo excited and on my way to go shoot thier wedding! i will post some pics for you once it's all said and done =)

spud

february valentines "love" special =)

2008-02-06T22:55:00.001-08:00

hello my dearest readers,

i'm back and i have so much to share with you!

i have a goal to book 5 weddings for the month of february. so to kick that off, i'm running a special this month only.

the valentines "love" special - be one of the first 5 couples to book your wedding in the month of february and you can recieve a discount of up to $500 off your wedding package! call me now to schedule a consultation!

i'm also running a special on family/portrait sessions this month.

the brady bunch family package- includes a 1 hour photosession at the location of our choice, unlimited shots taken during the session, 2 - 8x10 prints or 1 - 11x14 print, cd of printable images, online gallery hosting for 3 months for $350 ($400 on the weekend).

first 5 families to book this package will also recieve a dvd slideshow of the photosession.

my last wedding of the year =) and why i've been missing for the last two months

2007-12-31T04:24:00.000-08:00

hello my dearest readers =)

it's been a long time and boy have i got a lot to say! i miss you all!

it's been a busy two months for me getting wedding albums and proofing ready for the christmas rush while at the same time still shooting weddings nearly every weekend! i'm totally bushed!

i was able to meet all of my goals with the exception of a few albums wich were not available. all in all i think i put together about 36 albums or so and edited about 10 weddings since the last blog entry. i know i cleaned out my album supplier's inventory =)

my christmas was fun =) i was let back into the kitchen again and this time i made my famous meatloaf to go with the christmas turkey! personally i like my meatloaf better than the turkey =) i spent my christmas with my family and we played nintendo wii all night long =) (i am the current wii tennis champ by the way =) )

so the year is wrapping up, and although i didn't keep up and blog about every wedding i shot. i thought i should at least post the very last wedding of the year. i wanted to end 2007 with a spectacular wedding and my prayers were answered with erin and stu =)

erin and stu are big boston red socks fans! the super cute couple got married on saturday the 29th down in newport beach. here are some of my favorite pictures =)

we set the lovely couple up to see each other for the first time on camera, and the rest...pretty much fell into place.

most of the pictures were taken at the lovely balboa inn down in newport beach

as you can see...there were some great places to work with, and i would love to shoot there again one day.

this is my favorite shot of the entire day!

and since it's my last wedding of the year. i thought i'd make my wedding crasher cameo =)

i think this will be my last blog of the year!

i resolve in the new year to keep up with my work load as best as i can. to challenge myself to create new and hip images. to constantly change and adapt for the better. to keep in touch with my dearest friends and loved ones. to get back into shape and ofcourse to sleep more =) !

i wish everybody wonderful new year! may this year be much better than the last and may we all live, love and laugh like children =)

happy new year everybody!!!!

spud

thanksgiving, new camera, and some shots of my favorite model =)

2007-11-22T03:29:00.000-08:00

hello my dearest readers,

i'm back and it's been so long! a lot has happened since we last spoke. to name a few...i had a bunch of photoshoots and weddings that i will post up as soon as i find some time.

i caught the flu bug that's been going around and the last few weeks have been pretty gnarly! it made me lose my voice and i'm still trying to find it =)

busy season has come full swing! in fact it's probably the busiest time of year for me. i have a total of about 30 albums to make by christmas =) and i've been working extra hard around the clock. as of right now...i'm about half way through. i'm hoping to get everybody everything they want for the hollidays and then...maybe i'll get some sleep LOL!

finally I GOT A NEW CAMERA!!! woo hoo =) i go the new canon sd950 and boy is it spiffy!
i've been shooting like crazy since i've got it...i even had to get some pics of my favorite model =) here she is below!

my baby lexy =)

we had her dress up for my fabulous shoot!

here she is in a little pink chinese dress

she's ready for her close up

isn't she the cutest =) my little peking-huahua

i love it when i get a new camera! what better way to get the creative juices flowing right?
i'll definately be shooting with it in my next wedding =)

now tommorow is thanksgiving =) i'll be cooking prime rib for the first time for my family! i'm gonna post some pics from that too =D

hope you all have a wonderful wonderful thanksgiving and take lots of pictures!!!! =)

spud

billy zane's wedding and i invented a super cute shot today!!!

2007-11-05T00:16:00.000-08:00

hello my dearest readers,

i had a spectacular day of wedding crashing today!

i went shooting with the "photog-groover" herself andrija from enchanted portraiture and got these awesome shots! but most of all...i invented a new one which you'll see below =)

jenny and jon got married today at the world famous mission inn in riverside!

we think jon looks a whole lot like billy zane the actor =) this is what billy's wedding pictures would look like if we shot his wedding. so we're gonna consider this one a celebrity wedding lol!

jon is a soldier in the army and easily swept jennifer off her feet for these super cool shots!

you gotta love the mission inn...it's "disneyland" for us photographers =)

by the way...if you're getting married at such a wonderful location like the mission inn or rancho las lomas and you still need a photographer...give me a call...i would love to shoot in these locations and i'll give you something extra for you wedding package =)

so here's one of the super cute new shots that i invented today. i got bored shooting the same old reception picture. it's neat isn't it =)

i'm soooooo happy. any day that i'm able to invent a new shot is a great day to me =)

yes...love is in the air =)

spud

music was in the air - lori and zaid's engagement shoot at the disney concert hall

2007-11-04T03:15:00.000-08:00

hello readers =)

i'm back and i had a super cute photoshoot today i wanted to share with you all.

lori and zaid will be exchanging thier vows in december and today we took thier engagement photographs.

we chose the disney concert hall because they wanted a nice contemporary look to thier pictures.

i love shooting in public and on busy city streets! the images are so much more romantic and timeless. it's a just a little "kick" in our normally mundane world.

and the disney concert hall is just out of this world and magical. frank gehry is truly an artistic genious!

look at this picture below! it's my favorite from the shoot.

i love it because the couple adds a soft and romantic element to the shiny and cold steel structure. it's just such a beautiful mish-mash of elements.

and i'm all about mish-mashing ya know? =)

spud

fabulous practice foto shoot!

2007-11-04T02:21:00.000-08:00

hello my dearest,

so i had a fabulous shoot with a bunch of my friends on thursday. we thought we would get together and work on our posing skills, so we asked a bunch of voluteers to come by and pose for us in exchange for lots of super awesome pics =) ever been photographed by 6 photographers before???

here are some pics to begin with =)

you see...the way i see it...the day that you stop trying to become better, is also the day you begin to fall behind, and this applies in all aspects of our lives. so that was the point of practicing =) because no matter how good of a photographer you are...you can always be better!

call it evolution...but i've been working very hard to change my style and the way i shoot. how else can one grow and get better? so we had some fun...posing our models on rocks and up on trees =)

we got some fabulous images that day...and i wanted to thank my friend april from april smith photography for finding the models for us. and the original "photog-groover" andrija from enchanted portraiture for all of her guidance to us on this day and through the years.

and of course the models, whom were so much fun to work with. i would mention them by name...but my memory is like an "etch-a-sketch" and i'm all shook up =) and finally, ettiwanda gardens for letting us be all goofy and act a fool like we normally are.

i think we all got a lot out of the shoot...but there's still a lot of work ahead if we're going to keep improving =)

all in all...it was super fun. and we we'll probably definately do this again. next time i will announce ahead of time and ask for any volunteer models for our shoots =)

love you all!

spud

western style with an asian flare - judy and pat 10-27-07

2007-10-30T05:38:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

this was my wedding this past saturday.

judy and pat were referred to me by deborah, a good friend of mine from college. i had shot deborah and her husband jack's wedding as well a few years ago.

it sprinkled rain during the ceremony...it's good luck as they say =)

the couple were busy with details of the wedding until the very last minute.

but once they saw each other for the first time on the wedding day, everything seemed to fall into place.

we got some awesome romantics for them =)

the lovely couple are currently on thier honeymoon in the carribean.

probably sipping drinks on a warm sunny beach as we speak =)

spud

strolling down the streets of pasadena - denise and jose 10-20-07

2007-10-30T05:26:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

here's a wedding i did a week ago in pasadena.

denise and jose are avid baseball fans! especially the los angeles dodgers!

i thought we could have some fun with thier hobby so i had them bring some baseball equipment to the wedding =)

we had planned to shoot on the streets of old town pasadena in the daytime but due to some problems at the reception, we had to wait until after the reception to go shoot there.

i must say...it was a better idea to shoot in the evening time.

we specifically wanted the look with people walking around us in public. i think it gives it a particulary timeless look.

the couple should be returning from thier honeymoon in rome, italy soon! hopefully they took lots of pictures to show me =)

spud

spiral ceremony and classic caddy's - ashley and travis 10-7-07

2007-10-30T05:15:00.001-07:00

hello readers,

here is one of the five weddings that i haven't had a chance to post yet.
ashley is an event coordinator and her wedding came together like clockwork. i must say...a little bit of organization is definately a welcome change and is much appreciated on my end =)

we had lots of fun and as usual...i try to keep things goofy and light hearted

the ceremony itself was unique! have you ever seen a spiral ceremony?

here is a little foot rub from the loving groom =)

the bride rode into the ceremony on a classic caddy!

we wish mr. and mrs. haines the best of luck in thier new life together!

i want to give a special thanks to my dearest friend april from aprilsmitphotography.com for coming along and shooting with me.

spud =)

i'm back my dearest readers!!! =)

2007-10-30T05:06:00.000-07:00

hello my dearest readers,

i know i've been away for a little while, but i've been keeping busy i promise =)

along with the hub-bub of my everyday life and work...i've shot five weddings since we last met =) yup...five!!! and boy am i tired =) i will be adding respective posts to each and every one of those weddings in the following posts!

aside from the weddings that i've shot. i would also like to announce a new addition to my family! i brought home a little brother to my beloved camera! i've been shooting with the twin boys for the past few weddings and i must say...they're getting along famously =) my friends say i should get some family pictures done lol...we'll see =)

i will do my best to keep you all updated on a regular basis!

thank you all for visiting me...and please come back again soon!

spud

three out of three completed =)

2007-10-02T01:39:00.002-07:00

hello readers,

finally got enough rest to put up my third wedding this weekend =)

mimi and david got married at the chart house restaurant down in dana point this sunday!

the sky was clear and blue and we overlooked the entire dana point harbor. really an amazing place!

here is david and his son/ringbearer taking a moment before the big wedding!

a new family portrait for the lovely couple.

here is a shot of mimi's sister. she was the maid of honor at the wedding and rumor has it, she's a famous movie actress in thailand!

the party was amazing and fun. thanks to the man in the next shot!

here is the dj george and his lovely wife marcy. they just got married a few months ago themselves =) i happened to be their photographer too =D

i'm still tired folks!!! but it was all worth it! i was able to capture three beautiful weddings in a row...well worth it to me =)

i want to wish the four lovely couples a long and happy life together =) it's such a blessing to find that one true companion to fill every empty moment of the days in our lives. and i'm also blessed to be a part of this beautiful process!

i love my job!

good night readers =)

spud

two down...one to go =)

2007-09-30T01:33:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

i had a wonderful wedding today!

my "hot on rodeo drive" couple, sarah and michael had thier wedding down on the beach in dana point. here's a shot of the super cute couple frollicking on the beach =)

my favorite ring shot =)

here is a shot of the lovely bride sarah

the groom michael transformed the backyard pool into an awesome reception site! he and his friends did all the lighting and decorating. take a look at how amazing it all looks.

i love the lighting on this dancing shot...thought I share it with you.

this groomsman hopped around on one leg all day long. such a trooper! i had the bride and the groom sign his cast =)

mr. and mrs. seavey will be in hawaii tommorow for thier honeymoon! we wish them the best in thier new life together =)

oh boy...i'm exhausted already! but i have one more wedding to go, and i'm super excited about it! my muscle ache will have to wait =)

spud

one down two to go =)

2007-09-29T01:21:00.001-07:00

hello dearest readers,

i had the pleasure to shoot with the world famous "photog-groover" andrija again. she's the "chaz" of wedding crashing! she and her husband curtis are enchantedportraiture.com as well as my "mentos."

i wouldn't be crashing weddings if it weren't for the two of them =)

here's a shot of the "photog-groover" in action.

we shot at the beautiful rancho las lomas today! this place is a zoo! seriously =)
as well as being one of the prettiest places to shoot in so cal, this place also has 4 tigers, three zebras, a couple of llamas, two golden retrievers, and a house cat =)

here's a shot of the ceremony from the upper level.

my baby white tiger! all grown up now!

and hungry =)

i love this place!

two more weddings to go! tommorow i'll be shooting on the beach in dana point. i'll be wearing flip flops all day long =) it's gonna be awesome shooting in my bare feet and casual clothes!

spud

good golly! another triple header this weekend!

2007-09-28T03:38:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

good golly! i've got another triple header this weekend!

i will be crashing tommorow at the awesome rancho las lomas. it's a venue that's a photographer's dream! i will show you pictures when i get them in =)

and on saturday, i will be crashing sarah and michael's wedding down in dana point.

you remember them...my adorable rodeo drive couple =)

finally, on sunday i will be crashing mimi and david's wedding!

here's a pic of the lovely couple below.

they will also be getting married in dana point, but at the charthouse restaurant

i should just open up shop down in dana point huh =)

wish me luck...and yes...i'll be sleeping in till tuesday again!

spud

the wicked fish of the west =)

2007-09-26T02:49:00.000-07:00

hello dearest readers,

as promised...i wanted to show you the new species of fish we discovered on my birthday!

here it is...the wicked fish of the west! =)

you can recognize this new fish by the pointy hat it's wearing. they are of the flying fish variety, so please keep your little dogs away from them =) "green fish eggs rock!"

for my birthday i went to see wicked with my "mentos" andrija from enchantedportraiture.com and her friend cindy! we had a great time painting the town green!

i think i ate some bad wicked fish though =)

spud

mooooooooon festival =)

2007-09-26T02:09:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

today is the chinese moon festival!

for those of you who are unfamiliar with the tradition, this is the day that the moon is at it's fullest and brightest of the year!

my family celebrates this tradition by sitting out in our backyard, drinking tea, and eating the tradional "moon cake" (a circular pastry filled with sweet red bean paste, or pineapple, or any number of other goodies).

to my family, this holiday is a little more meaningful since it was also my late grandfather's birthday. it's our way of honoring him so to say =)

this is what the moon looked like tonight =)

i really love being able to sit outside with my family and hang out. away from tv's, phones, and all the hub bub of modern life and enjoying each other's company. sitting outside listing to the wind and sipping on light flavorful tea that warms you inside out. it really is solace to me...even if it is only once a year =)

anyways...go and look at the moon! happy moon festival everybody!

spud

erin and stu's engagement =)

2007-09-26T01:57:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

i just had a wonderful engagement session with erin and stu.

the adorable couple will be blissfully wed at the end of the year in the laguna beach area.

i had an opportunity to get to know them a little and it seems like they're big boston red sox fans! so for thier engagement session we decided to make them right at home =)

i'm looking forward to thier big day and will ofcourse keep you all posted!

spud

crashed another wedding with my friend april today =)

2007-09-23T00:16:00.000-07:00

hello dearest readers,

i crashed another wedding today. i went with my friend april of aprilsmithphotography.com and here are some shots we got!

we were at the LDS Temple in Los Angeles.

here is april in action!

ofcourse, the #2 rule of wedding crashing is: "never use your real name" =)

so i'd like you to meet..."may jones" and "michael lee" =)

rule #88:"you're from out of town ALWAYS"

"may" is the daughter of aunt mary and uncle john from tampa...you know...the one who takes a lot of pictures at the family reunion!

and "michael" is the adopted son of cousin joe and his second wife nancy. they couldn't make it to the wedding from toledo but they send thier love and said that they'd see you at the reunion!

rule#58: "the ferrari is in the shop" =)

well...that's our story...and we're sticking to it =)

spud

it's raining again!!! =)

2007-09-22T22:38:00.000-07:00

hello readers,

it's raining!!! woohoo!!!

i love the rain! rain always makes your senses come alive!

the cool damp air filling your lungs, revitalizing your body and soul. the orchestra of raindrops on your windowsill, lulling you to sleep. the whole world shiny and fresh after all the dirt and grundge gets washed away. and the streets are full of movement and melancholy blues like a living "monet" painting.

see yourself sitting next to a window, wrapped up in a cozy blanket. and as you sip on your hot chocolate you realize it's never tasted sweeter!

so let the rain sweep you away! run around outside like a child without that pesky umbrella. when was the last time a raindrop fell from the heavens and kissed you on the brow? let it bring back childhood memories of a time when you skipped around in the puddles and you hadn't a worry in the world.

that's why i love the rain =)

happy rainy day everybody!
spud

i saw an "Ariachi" =)

2007-09-22T22:10:00.000-07:00

hello dearest readers,

i had a funny sighting today! i saw an "ariachi" while i was shopping earlier and i just had to take a picture of him. what's an "ariachi" you might ask? ariachi= asian+mariachi =)

here is a candid picture of him =)

this loveable culture clash was seen at the fry's electronic store in the city of industry. i don't know why he was wearing a mariachi uniform...but i love it! maybe he was part of a mariachi band's cultural exchange program or maybe he was just on his way to a costume party. either way, i salute him =)

i dont know what his name is...but i'm going to call him esteban...esteban lee =)

love you guys!

spud

i just turned 18 =)

2007-09-16T01:30:00.000-07:00

hello dearest reader,

some of you might know that it was my birthday yesterday the 15th. i had a great and relaxing day. did some work through out the day and had a lovely dinner with my family. that was about it.

physically i'm 29, but mentally i'm about 18 lol! we should all be how old we feel right?

i didn't do very much for my birthday. all i wanted was to spend time with my family and that's exactly what i did. i miss my family and my little dog!

this day does force one to think about his/her life and purpose. lately i've been thinking that i've spent way too much time for work. in fact i work around the clock, my phone and E-mail always buzzing next to me, i work till 4am in the morning, and my clients are calling me from 6am in the morning to 11pm in the evening. this is too much for me!

from now on, i'd like to structure my work apart from my life. which means i will focus more when it comes time to work and i will let it all go when it comes time to stop. i need to set aside specific time for business and specific times for being "off." i'm hoping this will set some boundaries for myself and keep me from being overwhelmed with work and anxiety.

life is short enough. as much as i love my clients and my work, i need to have time apart from them in my day. maybe i can finally go on vacation? and this will hopefully keep me refreshed and more able to take care of my clients.

so i'm off to a brand new year. as of right now i've exhisted for 29 years, 18 hours, 9 minutes, and 29 seconds =) and i don't feel a day over 18!

spudz

I'm BACK my dearest readers!

2007-09-14T00:14:00.000-07:00

hello my dearest readers,

i apologize for being away from my blog for so long. so much has gone on and i plan to fill you in on all of it =)

to sum it up:

-i got my camera back, and it's brand spankin new =)

-shot two awesome weddings in the past weeks.

-discovered a new breed of fish, the "wicked" fish! yes, quite a biological discovery!

-and attended the pictage partner convention for oddballs like me!

i'm psyched up and full of new and gargantuan aspirations for my clients and my business! new changes are comin' and i'm twice baked about it all!!!

i will post follow up blogs for each and every one of these events shortly.

so ya'll come back now!

your favorite potato!

i miss my camera =(

2007-08-21T22:53:00.000-07:00

my dearest readers,

i had to leave my precious camera at the canon service department today. it'll be undergoing a major heart transplant surgury. but i'm hopeful that after it recovers, it will be as good as the day i brought it home. but unfortunately i'll be without a camera for two weeks!

can't wait to get it back! i'm even thinking about bringing home a brother for him! =)

it's wierd being without a camera! is a photographer still a photographer if he doesn't have a camera? is a fisherman still a fisherman if he doesn't catch any fish? and if a man and a woman are arguing in the woods...and nobody is around to hear it...is he still wrong? seriously!

lol...i'm just tired =) and these silly thoughts are running through my head :D

gotta busy day tommorow! goodnight :)

spud

the two dans =)

2007-08-20T23:57:00.000-07:00

hello my dearest readers,

i had a wonderful wedding this past saturday!

yes i know it's already tuesday morning, but i'm still getting used to all this blogging business ;)

danielle and dan got married at the coast hotel in long beach. the ceremony overlooked long beach harbor. it was absolutely beautiful =)

the happy couple will be enjoying thier honeymoon in december.

we wish them the best of luck in the future!

here are some pics =)

spud

"Hot" on Rodeo Drive

2007-08-16T23:51:00.000-07:00

hello me dear readers,

had a wonderful engagement shoot yesterday!

we got some great shots on rodeo drive with sarah and michael. the cute couple will be getting married on the beach in dana point at the end of september. they met years ago in thier hometown. here are some pics =)

the shoot went great...but unfortunately we were hassled by "the man" =)

well...what else is new when i go out and shoot lol!

security was on us like white on rice!

maybe it was because britney spears was rumored to be shopping at the versace store. there was papparazzi everywhere, and everybody thought i was one too =)

but in the end...i think we got some great shots. i'd never done a shoot on rodeo drive before. in fact i hadn't even been there before.

there were lots of great places to take pictures.

here we have the couple posing next to a million dollar mercedes! now if that isn't a kodak moment i don't know what is =)

only in LA ;)

three weddings in a row completed! woooohoooo =) i'm exhausted!

2007-08-06T22:22:00.000-07:00

dear readers,

wow...i just completed my third wedding in a row yesterday. and yes...it took me this long to recover =) i'm exhausted and there's not a part of me that doesn't ache. even my finger ache! but...alas, it was well worth it! I have some amazing shots this weekend!

here's just a few from my last wedding...

helly and aaron (aka. homer) celebrated thier union at the world famous wayfarer's chapel in palos verdes. we also had a chance to shoot at the beautiful ritz carlton pasadena thanks to the awesome coordinator cathy chen of c3weddings.com

it was an emotional day for the young couple, full of laughter and tears. i had the great fortune of meeting thier friends. and if you can measure a person's quality by the kinds of friends they keep, then they both must be exeptional people =)

they will be on thier way to tahiti shortly for thier honeymoon!

we wish them lot's more joy and happiness in the future!

two down...one more to go =)

2007-08-04T22:52:00.001-07:00

hello readers,

i had the pleasure of photographing brendan and anne today. we took some awesome pictures at the japanese garden on the cal poly pomona campus. here's a look...

hope you like it. i will post more as soon as a get some downtime.

i have just one more wedding to go this weekend...and my goodness am i exhausted already!

but i'm looking forward to my wedding tommorow. i'm shooting at the world famous wayfarer's chapel =) i can't wait!

have a great weekend everybody!

spud =)

one down two to go =)

2007-08-04T01:01:00.000-07:00

hello dearest readers,

i had the pleasure of working with che and bobbi today at thier wedding down in palos verdes. we were at the pointe vicente interpretive center overlooking the ocean and the lighthouse.

they met on the internet =), on Match.com to be precise!

and they chose august 3rd, 2007 to get wed as a tribute to che's grandparents, whom also got married on the same day!

the loving couple are on thier way down to mexico for thier honeymoon!

it was a true pleasure, and we wish them the best in their new lives together =)

spud =)

triple header this weekend!!!

2007-08-03T01:27:00.000-07:00

hello readers =),

i have a triple header this weekend! three weddings in a row!

i'll have lots of work to show you next week...that is...when i finally wake up on tuesday =) with a blister on my trigger finger, i just know it!

one day soon, i'll limit myself to shoot only one wedding per weekend. it really drains me you know? no worries, by this time on monday i'll be able to breath easy again!

wish me luck =)

spud

My First Entry In My New Blog

2007-08-01T11:10:00.000-07:00

my dear readers,

a fresh new page for me to fill =)

i'm excited for this opportunity to share my thoughts and my work with you!

i hope in the near future to find my personal blogging style and share with you my recent thoughts and ventures for your entertainment =)

for now...i leave you with this...

*one of my very favorite shots from my last wedding on 7/28/07.

paline and mikal are enjoying thier honeymoon in sunny hawaii right now... hope they take lots of pictures =)

Spud