Vivienne's Second Camping Trip

When our daughter was 4 months old, we took her to Big Sur for her first camping trip... People called us crazy, my wife had a rough night the first night as she was worried about Vivienne and Vivienne and I slept like, well... babies... This time, we didn't go too far. We drove up to Oxnard and camped at McGrath State Beach with our lovely friends Megan, Michael and their son David.

It took us only a few seconds to understand this would be a very different camping trip than the previous one. The little one was curious and she started exploring almost immediately.

Family Photo Op brought to you by daddy's long arms.

Vivienne got interested in the belongings of our friends... First she played with David's toys...

Than, she decided she should try Michael's hat...

The following day, after a good night sleep, we woke up early, fixed breakfast for the kids and ourselves Here David and Vivienne enjoying their breakfast...

Michael fixed us delicious bloody marys, which in my book is a must have on the campground during breakfast. And how do I pay him back? By posting this surprised photo of him on the web for the entire world to see...

Michael enjoying his bloody mary while his son is enjoying his juice. One of my fave pics of the trip.

My daughter is always willing to see what she can take down from any table, counter-top... Her curiosity and sponge-like memory are precious to watch. Here Jen is enjoying the lovely morning with her daughter...

It's also a cuddly morning for Megan and her son.

And, of course, I did have some quality time with my baby daughter too.

We spent the rest of that day on the very windy beach, where David flew his kite and Vivienne continued her never-ending explorations under her mommy's watchful eyes.

After we came back from the beach, the girls and the kids took a nap. Michael and I went out to town to get more supplies for the night. We got back with coffee, Michael and Megan cooked while Jen and I entertained the kids. The lovely night was slowly falling, leaving the cold weather of the previous day to a warmer, balmier evening. Everything was perfect, we had a lovely early dinner and we were getting ready to prepare the kids for the bed time and have some conversation around the camp fire...

You kind of guess where I'm getting at, right?

Well, something happened. I will not get into details, but we thought Vivienne's arm was broken. We immediately took her to Emergency Room and there, I spent the worst 3 hours of my life. Thank goodness, it was only Nursemaid's Elbow (Radial Head Sublaxation), a very common injury for the kids between 1-4 years. It took literally a second for the doctor to put the elbow back in place once she saw us. Than we got back to the campground, found our very worried friends relieved and enjoy the rest of the night till 2am while Vivienne slept safe and sound.

I left the best picture of Her Cuteness to the end of this blog... Have a fantastic week! See you next Friday!

Outfest 2012 Opening Gala

Last week, I had the privilege to document the opening Gala of Outfest 2012, celebrating its 30th year.

The enthusiastic crowd proved that Angelinos are not afraid of rain and braved the patches of light summer rain, drinking beverages provided by the sponsors and enjoying the lovely warm night outside. The well-thought decor incorporated a colorful display of lights cleverly designed into furniture and fixtures creating a dim yet well-lit environment.

Extremely positive, constantly smiling all-volunteer staff made the night even more fun for the guests.

There were many stands from many quality vendors from all around town. Burger Lounge was extremely popular in the beginning of the night. NOLA's, Takami Sushi, WeHo Grill, Magnolia Bakery and Fabiolus got all their fair share of hungry guests who were eager to try the fabulous food that was being served. Lola's, home of the Apple Martini, was also a popular stand.

Outfest 2012 had many sponsors, including and not limited to:

and

and

Among the many stands I was talking about, there were two very popular ones. One photo booth, brought to you by the good people at Snap Yourself. This trio had a great time taking their pictures and choosing them on the tablets provided.

Even this photographer had a little bit fun in there...

The other extremely popular stand was the one where the guest would get to build their own cupcakes! Courtesy of the Yummy Cupcakes, this stand became a favorite between the couples celebrating the lovely evening.

I will leave you with a few more from the colorful night. Next week, Vivienne and her second camping trip!

Scenes From Los Angeles Part 8: Fans

Fans... for fans...

Well, during this very hot week, I had the chance to shoot several events around town and while I will be sharing the photographs from those events in the weeks ahead, I wanted to cool you down with these fans...

A short and sweet one this week.

Have a great one!

Lita's 7th Birthday

Weddings are fun. The love is palpable, everyone is there to witness and share the experience of a couple of people uniting their life. It's absolutely beautiful. It has a different energy. And I love to shoot weddings.

One thing that a wedding won't have though, is the energy level of a 7-year-old's birthday party. It is a total chaos, though a controlled one and the kids love it. Their incredible energy is infectious. Being the father of a 16 month old myself, I won't deny the fact that it can be exhausting running after a little soul who has a tremendous amount of "fuel" and curiosity and at the end of the day, you may feel like a truck ran over you. Nevertheless, the energy you receive from them while you spend time with them is unmatched.

I shot the 7th Birthday Party of Lita a few weeks ago and her proud parents organized a truly fantastic party for her.

The food... The food was not only delicious, but it looked good! I love taking photographs of food. You can see some of my still life photography here if you feel like it. Well, here are a few select ones from Lita's party...

The colorful decoration filled with cupcakes and a candy bar increased the kids enthusiasm towards everything.

One of the things Lita and her friends responded enthusiastically was the artist who was there making them balloons and pulling all sort of funny things out of her "Goofy Hat"...

We'll get back to the balloons shortly, but the kids were also given the opportunity to use their creative skills...

All the kids were so happy, everyone was laughing, smiling, having fun. Lita was in cloud 9... But I have a feeling that this little guy was having the most fun. His hilarious comments and suggestions about photography were the source of my fun. And, of course, he posed for me.

OK, let's get back to the balloons... First, a very lovely, creative, obviously hard to make balloon-birthday-cake-hat!

And now, I am saying this with all the positive connotations in the world... The most ridiculous balloon sculpture I have ever seen up-close... Ever! It is a functioning giant fan that you carry on your back... What!?

Dear Lita, thank you so much for making me a part of your birthday celebration. I wish you a happy and great year, and I will see you next year!