desert
John and I had a great time photographing Corey’s senior session a couple weeks ago! He mentioned that he wanted some photos with his dirt bike and I decided to run with it. We started out at Emerald Canyon Golf Course since Corey is an avid golfer as well, then hit the Arizona desert for some off roading photos. I’m so pleased with how these turned out and I’m glad Corey and his family thought it was just as cool to go off road a bit to an old mine for portraits. It was the perfect sunset for this session!
Graduation is coming up fast but there’s still time to book your high school senior session! I’d love to hear your ideas and incorporate your interests into the session. Making these so personal make them so much more meaningful in the long run… plus a heck of a lot of fun!
Thanks John for grabbing this. Sometimes you have to get a little dirty to get the shot!
What a weekend! John and I spent just one night camping in Joshua Tree National Park and I feel like I’ve experienced so much in that short time. Believe it or not, Joshua Tree is less than two hours from where I live and I’ve never visited. I pass by it all the time on my way to somewhere else in California, but never took the time to drive through it. I won’t be making that mistake again as I plan to visit this place as much as possible from here on out (except in the summer of course).
I understand why people flock here for hiking, mountain climbing and spiritual retreats. I also get why some of the greatest bands came here to trip on acid. It’s just that kind of place. When you’re in the presence of these prehistoric monadnock mountains there’s some need within us to have a spiritual experience. It feels otherworldly and demanding of your upmost respect. Despite the campgrounds being completely full and the hiking trails as busy as any I’ve seen, it felt tranquil. The whole park is also immaculate, shockingly so actually. I didn’t realize how accustomed to litter I’ve become until I was somewhere there was none.
We spent Friday and Saturday scrambling over the boulders and basking in the sun. I experienced one of the most beautiful sunsets ever. That’s saying a lot coming from a girl who grew up in the Mojave Desert. There’s a moment during sunset when you’re amongst the boulders that the light changes. Every sunset has this moment, but here it’s almost tangible. It’s like someone placed a pair of rose colored glasses on my face. Everything seemed to have a glow that came from within itself. The boulders felt alive. I had wondered about all the veins throughout the boulders (pictured at the end). I’m no geologist so I’ve been studying up on this area since arriving home. I know these are white quartz veins but I like to think of them as the life blood of the park. Maybe even the backbone with each vertebrae exposed.
I am a true desert dweller, a sun worshipper, and I’ve never felt it so acutely as I did here. I can’t wait to go back.
Here’s a fun fact about the Draper family… They were one of the first portrait sessions I ever shot alongside Albert Rovey when I was just starting out. I’m going to guess about 11ish years ago? It was actually their engagement session! Look at them now with three beautiful children! They’re a really fun family and outside of photography I’ve had the pleasure of working with them since they own an apparel design company and they do a fantastic screen printing job.
It really was a joy photographing this family after so many years and had me reminiscing about when I first started out in photography. I’ve been passionate about photography for many many years about it was about 10-11 years ago that I started to take it seriously. I appreciate all the help I was offered by fellow photographer Albert in the early days. He even let me borrow gear for my very first wedding I was shooting on my own! Because of this, I like to take the time to encourage new photographers in their work and help as much as I can (though I won’t be loaning out gear anytime soon). If you’re in my area and have an interest in photography, don’t be shy! I’d love to hear from you 🙂
This was a simple but spectacular wedding in so many ways. Tracee and Chance were married at the Avi Resort and Casino in Laughlin, NV last month. Everyone was from out of town, including us (mostly Utah) and the wedding had a bit of a vacation feel to it. It was so relaxed, heartfelt and incredibly sweet. I met Tracee and Chance face to face for the first time on their wedding day and fell in love with them immediately! We actually ended up staying with the couple and wedding party out until late that night. You can’t really say you’re close to the bride and groom until you’ve had pancakes with them at 2am!
Their son Harper was the life of the party and danced the night away. Man does he have the moves! He was also slightly obsessed with the cake but, to be honest, I can’t really blame him because it was delicious.
Also, a wedding isn’t complete unless there are sugar gliders involved… just sayin’.
