Drew B Photograhy

I can’t think of a bigger compliment then when a client books another session with me.  One of my biggest goals with my business is to not just be someone’s wedding photographer or to not just be their family photographer once.  I want to be the photographer that they go to year after year and to feel like a part of their family.  I want to watch the kids grow up and to maybe photograph their weddings someday!

I first shot the Yeh family in November of 2006.  They live in Maryland, but both of their parents live in Southern California.  I was so excited when Van called and told me they would be out here to visit and wanted to schedule another session!  Their youngest son, Joshua, was just a baby the last time we shot.  I was really looking forward to seeing how much they had grown!  Well, Noah, their oldest son, was not so excited to see me!  Ha!  It took him a bit to warm up, but after we had hunted for some dinosaur eggs and played with some big cars I finally got him to give me a few smiles.  Once we got out to the beach he had a ton of fun and loved it!

Thanks so much Van and Justin for asking me to shoot your family session.  Your support means so much to me!  Hopefully you will be able to move back to California soon and we can do these shoots more often!  Below are some of my favorites and here is the slide show!  

Cute, little Joshua isn’t so little anymore!  But, he’s still a cutie!

There’s Noah’s smile!

And my favorite shot of the day!

I don’t even know where to begin with this wedding.  I leave every wedding thinking how lucky I am that I do what I do.  But, there are some weddings where I cry during the ceremony, laugh during the toasts, and really feel like part of the family.  It helps when I’ve known the bride and most of her bridesmaids since junior high school or longer and the Maid of Honor is one of my closest friends.

I’ve been looking forward to Jackie and Stephen’s wedding since last summer when Jackie and her mom, Susan, came to book me.  I don’t think I had seen Jackie in close to 9 years.  She had gone away to school in Michigan where she met Stephen.  You could tell by the way she talked about him how in love she was.  I didn’t get a chance to meet Stephen before the wedding, but once I met him I totally knew why Jackie loved him so much.  When I asked Jackie’s Maid of Honor, Liza, about Stephen she described him as “laid back”.  And laid back he was!  My favorite type of groom

Everything about Jackie and Stephen’s wedding was perfect (well, besides Jackie getting a little stomach bug, but we won’t talk about that!).  The weather was gorgeous and the venue was absolutely stunning!  I was so happy to be a part of such an amazing day!  Thank you to everyone for making us feel so welcome!  It was so great to see ALL of  you!  And to Jackie and Stephen, congratulations!  You two are perfect for each other!  Enjoy your wild adventures in Costa Rica!  Below are some of my favorite pictures and a slideshow!

The beautiful flowers by my favorite florist, Jenny B!

I’m just in love with Jackie’s dress and this brooch.  It was perfect for the dress!

5 of Jackie’s 7 bridesmaids are her best friends from high school.  I was always so envious of the relationship these girls had.  They had none (or very little) of that high school drama that most groups of girls have.  And even though I was a year older than them they let me hang out with them my senior year.  It says a lot that even though these girls all live in different places and went to different colleges they are still this close 9 years after graduating from high school.  Very cool.

And my favorite bridesmaid of all is the Maid of Honor, Liza.  Liza is one of my oldest friends and was a bridesmaid in my wedding.  She is one of my most favorite people and anyone that is lucky enough to call her a friend is a better person for it.

I had never met Stephen before, but he was such an awesome guy.  Totally laid back and excited to get married.  And he has two things going for him.  He’s from Ohio.  I love people from Ohio.  And his Dad’s name is Drew.  That makes him a cool guy in my book!

The first look!

Arroyo Trabuco is my new favorite venue in Orange County.  Not only is it absolutely breathtaking, but they have an amazing coordinator.  I was so impressed with Alyson.  She kept everything on schedule and organized and did it with a smile the whole time.  You can read more about Arroyo Trabuco on our J’adore Details blog!

It was an emotional ceremony to say the least!

My first Hora!

The best YMCA I’ve ever seen!

I was very excited to see these two at the wedding!  My life was changed when I went to Maui in the summer of 1997 with Sandey, Ron, and their daughter Meredith.  It was with Meredith in Maui that I met Chuck.  If they wouldn’t have invited me to go on that trip when I was 16 years old who knows where I would be now.  And yes, I am still VERY sorry that I lost the rental car keys  

Congratulations Jackie and Stephen!

This is a little late, but one of my gifts to my husband yesterday was to stay off of my computer

I wanted to wish a very happy Father’s Day to my AMAZING husband!  I knew he was going to be a great dad, but there’s no way I ever could have imagined that he would be this dedicated and in love with his baby boy.  The way that these two look at each other and the fun that they have together is so incredible to watch.  Brayden loves his Daddy.  His eyes light up when Chuck walks in the room.  I always thought I wanted a girl, because I wanted a little mini me, but having a little mini Chuck is so much better.

Chuck promised me that if I carried Brayden for 9 months that he would do all the work once he was out and he has totally held up his end of the bargain.  He changes diapers, does the late night feedings, gets him out of the house when I’ve had a long day with him, and he still manages to find time for me.  Chuck knows that while I love Brayden, I love photography too and that it’s what make me feel like me.  And he’s doing everything he can to give me the time I need to continue my career and to grow as a photographer.

Chuck, thank you for being such an amazing dad to our son.  That little guy already loves you more than you could ever imagine.  For someone who didn’t even know how to put on a diaper 4 months ago you have really come a long way.  Thank you for allowing me to continue my dream and for giving me “Drew time” when I need it.  I didn’t know I could love you more than I already did, but seeing you with our son has made my love for you grow.  143, Tuck.

And also happy Father’s Day to my Dad as well!  This is the man who I got my love of photography from.  It was his camera that I stole for my high school photography class.  He was the one who would look at my blog long before I had any other readers.  He has been my number one fan from the beginning.  I get a lot of my good (and some of my not so good) qualities from my Dad.  I got my determination from him as well as my stubborness (which I think is a good quality, but my Mom and husband would probably disagree!).  And it was probably because we are so alike that caused a lot of conflict during my teenage years, but I couldn’t be happier to be like him now.  He does SO much for our family and makes sure we are all taken care of.  He’s been through a lot the last couple of years and doesn’t get told thank you very often.  So, I would like to say thank you to my Dad for all the little and big things he does for our family and for being the best Papa G to Brayden and Hauggy.  No matter how old I get I will always need my Dad.  I love you, Daddy!

I get a few emails from fellow photographers every week so I decided to compile a FAQ that I can point them to. So, if you’re not a photographer this might be boring to you or you just might learn something new

The number one question I get asked is actually not photography related. Everyone wants to know what song is on my website! It’s “Chocolate” by Snow Patrol. Isn’t it great! I have really wanted to change it to “Love Today” by Mika, but it’s a totally different vibe. What do you think? Change it or leave it?

The next most often question I get asked is how I get vivid color in my pictures. Let me first say that I can’t even express to you what a huge compliment that is! That other photographers like my work enough to ask ME for advice! It means so much to me! I by no means think that I’m an expert, but I have been working really hard the last couple of years to get my pictures to look the way they do and to develop my own style.

There are 4 components to how I get bright color in my images:

1) Everything you see on my blog was shot in Jpeg. For engagement shoots and portrait sessions I shoot solely in Jpeg. But, for weddings I shoot in RAW and Jpeg. It’s easier to color correct 1000 images in RAW. But, it’s easier to edit the pictures for the slideshow and my blog in Jpeg. Plus I like the color that comes out of Jpeg much better than RAW. It’s much more bright.

2) I use prime lenses primarily. My current favorite is the Canon 85 1.8 (the one I got in a car accident at 37 weeks pregnant to get!). I shot with the 24-70 L lens for a long time thinking that it was a superior lens because it is really expensive and it’s an L series lens, but once i started shooting with prime lenses my pictures were much more crisp. And they are cheap(er) lenses! I also like the 28 1.8 and I think I’ll eventually hop on the bandwagon and get the 50 1.2. I’ve rented the 50 a few times and didn’t LOVE it. So, we’ll see.

3) This is pretty obvious, but correct exposure and good lighting helps! I think most people think that if a picture is under or over exposed they can just fix it in photoshop after the fact (especially with RAW), but once you can nail the exposure in camera your pictures start to pop! This takes practice, practice, practice!

4) I use Totally Rad Actions. The Oh, Snap! and the Pro Retouch are my favorite. TRA are by far my favorite actions. They just came out with a new set. I’m not sure if I’m going to buy them yet, because I really like the first set, but we’ll see.

This is something I’ve never done before. Here’s a before and after shot from a recent engagement session:

Straight out of camera:

Edited with TRA’s Oh! Snap and Contrast Luma

And here’s another SOTC

And after with Oh! Snap, Pro Retouch, and a Curves Adjustment

I hope this helps a little!  I feel that consistency in your images is super important.  So find what works best for you and stick with it!

By the way, I have the best “blog stalkers”! I get the nicest emails and comments from you all and it really means the world to me. I think the best compliment I can get is from another photographer so thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to write me. You all rock!

Have a radtastic weekend!

Sorry for the lack of updates this week. I’m trying to get caught up before my wedding season really begins. I just got a nasty text message from my BFF, Christy, yelling at me for not updating my blog. Can we say demanding???

This weekend I have Jackie and Stephen’s wedding at Arroyo Trabuco, which I’m really excited for. Excited because I get to see one of my BFF’s, Liza who is the maid of honor. And also, because I’ve known Jackie for forever. It will be so much fun to be a part of her wedding day! And then next weekend I go to Idaho for Rachel and Matt’s wedding. SO excited for Idaho! I’ve never been there! And then the following weekend is Chelsea and Sean’s wedding. Well, everyone should know why I’m excited for their wedding. You remember this shoot at the Viceroy, right? Yeah. That’s why I’m excited!

And today Nikki and Jeff’s wedding is featured on The Bride’s Cafe! So exciting! I read a few (okay, a lot) of blogs everyday. I think I’m up to 103 now on my bloglines account. Some of these are other photographers blogs, some are wedding blogs, and some are random blogs that have nothing to do with weddings. I feel that it is my “job” to stay on top of everything that has to do with weddings and wedding photography. One of my favorite wedding blogs is The Bride’s Cafe. So you can imagine how excited I was when Janie agreed to feature Nikki and Jeff’s wedding! Janie is such a sweetheart and is an amazing florist in Virginia. I wish she was closer because she seems like a really cool girl. So, be sure to check out parts one and two of Nikki and Jeff’s wedding over there!

Lastly, do any of you moms out there have any tips on how to teach Brayden Bittel how to roll over from his stomach to his back? The kid is driving me crazy! He will roll over from his back to his stomach and then he starts crying so I put him back on his back and then two seconds later he’s on his stomach again crying! It was easier to teach Hauggy how to roll over! That dog will do anything for a treat. Right now Brayden fell asleep on his stomach, which I know is a no no, but I’m watching him closely making sure he is breathing. He’s too cute!

And this cute quilt that he’s laying on was made by my BFF Christy’s (yeah, the one who sent me the nasty text message) very talented mom, Tina.  I love it and obviously Brayden does too!  It’s my most favorite baby gift that I’ve received.  I love hand made gifts.  They are the best presents!  Thank you very much, Tina!  

You may remember this gorgeous pregnant girl from a few weeks ago…

Well, she’s not pregnant anymore! Today she gave birth to a gorgeous and healthy 7lb 2 oz baby girl.  Cameron James.  She came almost 3 whole weeks early.  We didn’t have her newborn shoot scheduled until the second week of July!  I think we’ll have to move it up!

I can’t wait to meet her!  Congratulations Jill and Brandon!!!

And now for the beach pictures.  We had the best light at the beach I’ve seen in a long time.  And although the tide was high and we couldn’t go to my favorite spot we still got some gorgeous pictures!  Here’s the slideshow!

Wow, I have so many favorite images from my engagement session with Shelly and Dave that I’m going to do a DrewB Blog first!  I’m going to blog my favorites from their downtown/urban session today and then I’m going to blog their beach session on Thursday!

First of all, I knew Shelley and Dave were awesome.  I knew that from the very first time we met.  But, when they sent me this picture saying, “This is what you have to work with” I knew we were going to have a good time.

Sorry guys.  I had to post it.  It’s too funny!

Unfortunately, they left their snorkel gear at home, but we still had an awesome time.  We got super lucky with their session.  We got to shoot in my favorite laundromat, we found a dirty couch in an alley, and we found a rad car with the license plate “LUV TRIB”.  I mean, really, how much better can it get?

Shelley and Dave are getting married at the Orange County Museum of Art (one of my favorite venues!) in August.  They have family flying in from all across the country so it’s sure to be a fabulous day!

Thanks to Shelley and Dave for being such great sports and hanging out with me in the laundromat, sitting on the nasty couch and in gutters, and for the awesome gift!  That was so thoughtful!  Remember to check back on Thursday for the beach pictures and a slide show!  For now, here are my favorites from Downtown Laguna!

1 year ago today I found out this was growing inside of me.

What a difference a year makes. I’m so lucky.

Have a great weekend everyone!

My second shoot up north was at the Ritz Carlton in Half Moon Bay.  Gorgeous!  This is where they shoot the movie American Wedding.  I had never met Julie before, which is a little unusual.  Usually I deal with the bride, but Mark had booked me while he was in Orange County on business last year.  These two are great and I was so excited to meet Julie!  She has the most infectious smile.

Julie and Mark have a crazy story.  They first met at camp when Julie was 12 and Mark was 16.  Mark was her counselor!  And, of course, Julie fell in love right away!  Don’t worry, Mark did not.  That would be creepy  She even wrote him letters!  How cute!  Fast forward 15ish years and Julie and Mark were both attending the same mixer group in San Francisco.  Julie recognized Mark’s name from his name tag and knew that she knew him.  But from where?  She finally put two and two together and realized this was the Mark who was her camp crush!  Crazy!

Now these two are getting married at the Four Seasons in Westlake Village this July.  I’m very excited for their wedding.  It will be my first true Jewish wedding and I can’t wait for them to step on the glass and say Mazel Tov!  I hope they do the Hora too!

Julie and Mark, thank you for taking me to such a gorgeous location for your engagement shoot!  And thank you for the blanket and stuffed animal for Brayden!  He loves it and played with the toy on the ride home!  That was so thoughtful of you two!  Below are some of my favorites from the shoot and here’s your slideshow!  See you in July!

I told you Julie had an infectious smile