Engagement sessions are more than just photo shoots, they’re like dates.  A date night for the bride and groom as they celebrate their engagement.  A date between me and the couple as we get to know each other.  Hanging out with Aleessa and Jason showed me what a great couple they were.  We shared stories, laughed, and talked about everything.  I know for sure we’ll have fun on our second date.  I get to meet their families, party it up, have some cake, and capture their most beautiful moment together…. their wedding day.  I can’t wait!

For the first half of their E-Session they wanted to have their daughter, Nika come along and make it like of a family session.  Nika, who will probably make a great photog one day, brought a lot of energy and fun to the session. She was a great little assistant who knew how to make Eugene and Doreen laugh.  I took them to Cal Poly Pomona which has great textures and diverse backdrops.  It also happens to be where Eugene and I went to college. It was actually kind of fitting. We both went there as naive teens, left as naive men, and were back…. as naive family men. Well, less naive.  For the second half of their shoot we hung out at old town Pasadena. I love the feel of their back alley and buildings. Colorful, rustic, and intimate.

Seeing Eugene again brought back a whole lot of fun memories. Meeting his family, Doreen and Nika,  it was a pleasure to see their great future.

We shot their engagement session on a Friday afternoon. I had never seen Griffith Observatory so packed. But, I never really worry when there are a lot of people around anymore.  Generally, people know when a couple is engaged. They see it instantly. Sure they see the big camera, but they also see a happy couple; holding each other, looking into each others eyes, and showing lots of PDA. They smile, say congrats, and get out of the way.  LOL.

Yes, there were lots of people around and they all got to witness Vince and Garnette’s moment as a happily engaged couple. Everyone should have a moment like that.

Congrats guys!!! Can’t wait for the wedding day!

My wife and I have been close to the Yaps for years and now seeing them as a family of five truly fills our hearts with joy.  Well, our first reaction when we found out Gen was pregnant was, “ANOTHER ONE?!” But quickly the shock turned into elation and, “Yay another one!”  With a teenager, a toddler, and a newborn I’m sure life now has new challenges for them, but that’s what family is all about.  Growing in size AND love.  Being an only child I admire big families and the Yaps are so blessed with theirs.

Congrats again guys!! So who’s the point guard?

For their engagement session the two wanted to hit Downtown LA and have some fun. We hung out, went exploring, and oh yeah we took pictures too.  The funnest part was recreating some LOST, caged Kate and Sawyer scenes! Good times!

I can’t wait for the wedding day, it’ll be a huge reunion for a lot of our college friends. Although I’ll be working, I really wouldn’t have it any other way. I promise I’ll only have one drink ; )

Engaged couples, besides sharing your engagement session images you can post wedding information vital to your guests. After the wedding day the site will be revamped with wedding day images.  Guests can relive the wonderful day and even  purchase prints directly from the site if they wish.

Booked a Infant Portrait session? Then share the precious images with a custom website worthy of the good news.

Senior Portraits? Family Portraits? Events?…. the list goes on and on.

You’ve invested in great images why waste them on social media sites which limit their quality and resolution? I have a number of styles to choose from to fit your needs. Contact me to find out how to get your own site, jason@jasonZphotography.com .

Below are some examples of engagement and wedding sites.

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I am so grateful for meeting these two.  From the first minute we met we got along instantly.  A fun loving couple, easy to work with, and up for an adventure. These two have found a permanent place in my contact book.  Below are images from Kim and Jon’s E-Session…. my new friends.  Congrats guys!  Your engagement is almost over and the real fun is about to begin. See ya in a few months ; ).

Now, normally I don’t go to the same location for back-to-back shoots, but I love this spot and with Spring in full effect it was too good not to go back.  To be honest, with Summer around the corner I doubt I’ll shoot here again until next year.  With little shade it gets hot quickly.

As all teens should be, Krystal was fun and full of life. I could tell from her uber proud mom that Krystal is a great person and deserves an awesome celebration. I’m looking forward to being part of her big day!

I’ll be honest, I swore she was just 12 like a couple of years ago. How time flies. Seeing her blog posts (www.meekmade.blogspot.com) and her progression as a Graphic Design student at Cal Sate Fullerton I quickly realized that my little cousin was now a grown gifted young adult. She called me up wanting to shy away from the traditional senior portraits offered by the school. So off we went. It was a bit of a hike, there was pollen everywhere, and it was the hottest day of the month. That being said, it was still a beautiful Southern Cali day. But what made it even better… I got to hangout with my cousin.

Congrats Meek! We’re all so proud of you!

Big thanks to our reflector assistant Leslie!

In most of my shoots I sometimes find it difficult to incorporate an off-camera strobe since it involves extra equipment and so many other factors. When I’m doing a portrait session with clients we are normally on the move and not trying to call attention to ourselves. Unless I have an assistant with me, carrying around the extra equipment, setup time, and worrying about security guards is not that fun. But, there’s no doubt that using this setup can give you some AMAZING shots. In this workshop I tried to step out of my comfort zone from using natural light and practiced using a somewhat mobile single strobe/stand setup. Using natural lighting is still my main form of shooting, but if all factors are right an off-camera strobe is a great tool to have.

Much love to Ming Chien and all the other instructors for sharing their knowledge.

Special thanks to the models, makeup artists, and stylists for sharing their talent:
Carla Hille
Karla Montero
Annaiz Rzepka
Aimee Eyre
Laura Choate
Kay Jo