October 2014 – Paper Ban Photography

Sara and Paul’s Urban Wedding

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

As you know, Los Angeles is a huge city with so many interesting nooks and crannies that goes undiscovered. Sara and Paul’s urban wedding took place in such a location. In an industrial area right by a Los Angeles River bridge is a warehouse that recently got turned into awesome event venue, to which they call Elysian.

Paul and Sara’s wedding was a fairly small gathering full of close friends and families. Both the bride and groom got ready at the venue, and spirits were high as both expressed how excited, yet slightly nervous, they were while getting ready. But all changed when they saw each other during their First Looks.

Their wedding was such a fun event to photograph. They are such a down to Earth couple who simply wanted to get married and celebrate with their loved ones, while not taking things so seriously. I mean, their First Dance was unexpected, their wedding cake had bears as their wedding toppers, and their deserts were cookies and milk. Yum!

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The Behnken Family

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA

Not many people know that there is an alternative way to photograph your family aside from the traditional way (heading out to a great location and taking happy photos), and one of them is the ‘Day in the Life’ documentary-style photos. How this style is different from traditional family portraits is that instead of directing my clients into poses, I am a fly on the wall as the family goes about their normal daily lives, and let the emotions and reactions of the family members unfold itself naturally.

I began photographing this family on an early Sunday morning. The streets were quiet and peaceful, and the Behnken household began to stir, starting with little Sterling. With as much energy that she could muster up, Katherine led him to the backyard, away from his sleeping dad. As the day progressed, everyone enjoyed a fresh breakfast on their front lawn, followed by something they were super excited about – setting up the net for their trampoline! Of course, this was a father-son activity, and Sterling was more than happy to help his dad, Lukas. Soon after, everyone enjoyed the fruits of their labor with some (safe) trampoline fun!

Then, I followed them on a grocery trip where the four things on their ‘to-buy’ list ended in a full cart. Oh, I’m so glad I’m not the only one who does this, haha. As we explored the grocery store, Sterling followed his parent’s footsteps and helped pick out some of his favorite foods to take home.

Once we head back to their Pasadena home, Lukas asked if I would be interested in photographing them while he cuts Sterling’s hair into a mohawk. Um… YES?! By that time, it was roughly noon, which is normally when Sterling takes his day nap. The energy that he had in the beginning of the day began to falter as Lukas started snip-snipping away Sterling’s precious blond hair in their backyard patio, and Katherine had to keep the little guy entertained in the meanwhile.

In the end, the haircut didn’t get finished as Sterling’s patience had reached its limits. I couldn’t fault him for that; they’ve had such a busy morning!

And so, with his hair turned into a partial mohawk, Sterling called it a day and entered into the realm where dreams run amuck.

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Max’s Second Birthday

ENCINO, CALIFORNIA

For Max’s second birthday, his parents decided to invite friends and family to celebrate at My Gym, a children’s fitness center that I seem to be seeing everywhere! Inside, there is a playground that I know I would have loved as a kid – slides, trampoline, ballpen, strings from the ceiling, roley-bally-thingy, and space to just run around with plenty of cushions for protection.

It was such an interactive party, and you can really tell how much fun the birthday boy was having. He was going 100mph through the obstacles, playing with everything in sight, and the other kids followed suit!

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Jen and Jim’s Beach Wedding

SANTA MONICA & PACIFIC PALISADES, CALIFORNIA

The beach was amazing. The sky was blue, the breeze was cool, and Mother Nature was ready to celebrate Jen and Jim’s beach wedding. As the couple flew in from Sacramento, they both stayed at the beautiful Shutters on the Beach hotel located in Santa Monica, and got ready at the Presidential Suite (swoon!). Or at least, Jen did. And rightfully so, since women just need more space to get ready compared to men! *cough cough*

With their intimate guest lists, most who’ve traveled from all over the west coast, we made our way to Pacific Palisades Beach for Jen and Jim’s ceremony. It was such a beautiful ceremony, too. The waves swept in and out in front of the party as their wedding officiant, a long-time friend who became an officiant just for their wedding, unionized the couple. There was so much love that surrounded this couple.

For their reception, we came back to Shutters on the Beach to a room that just overlooks the beach at sunset. It was a spectacular view. The room was cozy and completely decked out in pink and white floral arrangements. Everyone was all in smiles, especially on the dance floor!

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Jen and Jim’s Beach Engagement

SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA

When I met Jen and Jim for their engagement session, they had just landed in Los Angeles a mere few hours prior. You see, they’re from Sacramento, and the day after their engagement session is actually their wedding day! This is an unusual circumstance to have an engagement session so close to the wedding day, mainly because many couples use these images for their ‘save the date’ or announcement of their wedding.

However, I am so happy we were still able to do Jim and Jen’s engagement session irregardless of dates. One of the reasons is because during this session, it allows the clients and I to get familiarized with each other so that, on the day of the wedding, they are comfortable and relaxed enough with me to let me in their personal space.

Photographing Jen and Jim for this session was a blast. They were so cute together! Because their wedding would be a beach wedding, they wanted their engagement photos to be on the beach as well. In one of the photos, you can see Shutters on the Beach in the background, which is where they’ll be having their reception on their wedding day. You can see Santa Monica Pier in the distance in some of these images as well, and I absolutely love them!

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Month: October 2014