Hello, Internet! Here we are!

A few weeks ago, our good friend, Preston Davis of Divine Order Photography, met up with us in one of our favorite spots, the Marin Headlands, to take some pictures of us.  Believe it or not, this was our first professional photo session.  I'm ashamed to admit that I was not exactly looking forward to our shoot.  I have no problem showcasing other people in front of the camera, but in perfectly hypocritical fashion, I actually do not like having my picture taken.  So, during our shoot with Preston, I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun it was!  Adm, Kiki and I had a GREAT time running around, holding hands, hugging, kissing, calling wild turkeys, and I think I laughed more during our shoot than I have in a LONG time. I'm pretty sure what started out as nervous giggles turned into full on cackling on my part, and c'mon, who doesn't love to laugh?

I will say that after doing the shoot, I have much more empathy for my couples.  Modeling is no easy task, and so that makes us want to work even harder to put our clients at ease so that we can draw out their personalities.  We were in luck with Preston since we already knew him and felt pretty comfortable with him.  Aside from the fact that we've got a set of great images (something my mom is very happy about), it was a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Quick Getaway

We've got weddings up the gazoo right now, but to stay fresh and help us deal with all of the crazy, we took a mini break to Mendocino in Northern California.  It was perfect.  The trees, the sunshine, the food, the dog and the boy.

Introducing: The High Five Factory

My friend April lives across the street, and she is by far one of the most creative people I know.  I've solicited her help on quite a number of wedding related projects - most recently, she helped me make the backdrop and animal faces for Liz and Darren's photo booth (see below):

While we were crafting, we started thinking that we should make custom backdrops, props and themed photo booth kits and sell them as creative, one-of-a-kind options for couples.  There seems to be a lack of unique photo booth accessories out there so we decided to start with a few trial ideas.  We're currently selling items and accepting custom orders as The High Five Factory on our Etsy site.  We're still just getting started, and we have LOTS more fun ideas in the works so check back often for new items and ideas.

Here are our first set of backdrops, and we are happy to create backdrops with custom colors/fabric:  from upper left, going clockwise, I give you:  Into the Jungle, Rainbow Brite, The Nautical, and (our personal fave) The Carlton

We recommend using a backdrop stand (this is the one I have), but you could always hang the backdrops on a sturdy clothesline.

So, check us out!  You know you want to.  : )

Crazytown and Kiki, the Jumping Queen

It's been really busy around here - loads of weddings, portrait sessions and quite a few corporate shoots, and in the middle of all the craziness, I've decided to start a new venture with my friend April.  Oh, and Adm and I are teaching Kiki to become a circus performer.  Here's a behind-the-scenes photo with a sneak peek of our new project that we'll hopefully (fingers crossed) officially announce next week!

Rapha Rides Oakland

Well, not literally.  But, Rapha shot by Alison and Adm rides Oakland!  OK, let me back up a moment.  Lately, Adm has really been into riding his bike, and lucky for him, we have a whole slew of friends who are hardcore cyclists.  One in particular, our friend and neighbor Rob, introduced us to Rapha a couple of years ago.  Rapha is a high-end bicycle clothing company based in Europe, and they produce catalogs that have amazingly beautiful photography.  Last year, we decided to do a Rapha-inspired photo shoot with Rob (in his Rapha gear) in our own Oakland hills, which in my opinion are just as beautiful as some of those European landscapes that are featured in the the real Rapha catalogs.

This was unlike any other shoot we've done, and it was just a personal shoot for us to have fun with.  We went up to the hills really early on a wet Sunday last February, when the roads were empty and slick with the rain.  Adm and I took turns driving the car in front of Rob, who rode behind us.  We each spent time hanging out of the back of our car (luckily it's a hatchback), gripping onto the sides while taking photos.  Katy, Rob's wife, acted as our stylist, and we all had a blast turning the Oakland hills into our studio.  There are so many other great rides in the Bay Area that we can't wait to go out again!  All of the photos in this set were taken by both Adm and me.

Alison + Bryan Engaged!

Disastrous and embarrassing, yet oh-so-fun!  Alison and Bryan's engagement shoot was a bit of a foley on my part.  During the stunt portion of their session at Crissy Field, I fell hard (or rather supermanned) on the rocks damaging myself, my pride, and my brand new leather boots.  I wanted to wear my new boots so much that I neglected to consider they weren't exactly made for walking on wet rocks.  It took me a minute to recover, but we were having so much fun that we joked our way right through to the end.  Leading up to (and including the fall), their photoshoot felt more like a day out playing with friends than work.  Actually, we met Alison and Bryan over a game of beanbags at Jaclyn and Andy's wedding this past summer so we knew their session was going to be a good time and full of laughs.  At the end of the day all was well because we alleviated my aching body with wine and delicious food at this amazing little French Bistrot near their apartment in San Francisco.

I should note that where I fell was just a short walk from where Bryan proposed to Alison.  He lured her to Crissy Field with a little white lie and had to pay off some skateboarding kids to scram so that they could be alone on one of the benches.  Furthermore, the restaurant that we went to with them was the same place they went after he popped the question!  So, basically we relived their proposal, but with a little comic relief thrown into the mix.

We did a pan and combined exposures at one of the piers.  I know it's really small, so you can check out a larger version here.

I love the ballerina pose!

Adm had to make this silhouette given the incredible sunset we had!