lifestyle photography

Lifestyle vs. Documentary

Being an artist among so many others in Southern California is tough with stiff competition. You may be familiar with the popular Lifestyle photography style. Many of my photoshoots have been considered Lifestyle over the years. With this style the photographer stages the scene by asking questions or prompts their subjects to do a certain thing that would look great on camera and can capture emotion based on what they envision in their heads.

LIFESTYLE

About 6 years ago I discovered a different style of photography. It has many names: documentary style, photojournalistic, organic, etc. This style is used to chronicle events or environments both significant and relevant to history and historical events as well as everyday life. And because I am interested in working with families and couples, I want to focus on documenting everyday life as well as the big stuff. I believe that the chaos of everyday life is just as beautiful and meaningful to the subjects as the big important moments.


DOCUMENTARY

Some examples of BIG moments that can be documented in this style: nesting, birth of a child, birthday celebration, baptism, graduation, wedding, anniversary, family reunion, celebrating sobriety, celebrating remission, spending time with loved ones in their last days, funeral/celebration of life, etc.

Some examples of every day life moments: morning routine, bath time, bedtime routine, breastfeeding/bottle feeding, playing in the living room or child's room, play dates in the park, doing chores together, swim lessons, pool parties, picking a Christmas tree and decorating it, carving pumpkins, holiday decorating, hiking adventure, going out for ice cream/a treat, baking cookies, cooking and eating a meal together, arts & crafts, taking your kid to school while you still can, girl scout/boy scout/other community group gatherings/events, family camping trip, getting a tattoo/cover up, meeting up with friends, Disneyland Days, trips to the farmer's market, block parties, etc. So many memories waiting to be frozen in time.

I want to be there to capture memories, not create memories.

This style has captured my heart in a big way and I have recently decided to exclusively shoot in this style moving forward.

So I found my niche and want to share it with all of you and the world!

Day-In-The-Life sessions are the best way to shoot in this style. In these sessions I spend several hours (3-4+) with my clients either in their home or out and about (or both) capturing their normal routine. The Lynns were the first clients of mine to indulge me in this style and it was perfect! The Evans family was fantastic as well! Learning about a family, their dynamics, personalities, and capturing that with my camera is what makes me come alive.

These sessions can include video or be video only. With these sessions I have prints and products you can purchase to give the photos life after the session. Things like a box of mounted prints, to large artwork for your walls, and coffee table books you can flip through for years to come. If this is something you would be interested in booking, you can download and fill out this questionnaire and email it to me or we can chat on the phone!

Hope to see you and your loved ones in front of my camera soon!

[Picture Life] Introducing Baby F

To secure the privacy of my client's children, I will refrain from saying their names in this post.

Please enjoy these photos from my recent lifestyle newborn shoot with the family from my last blog post! I would like to introduce you to Baby F. He was such a doll. Although he didn't sleep for too long at once, his parents raved at how great he was at being a baby thus far (6 days in). "He sleeps, he eats, and he poops," said his father, "He's pretty different then B." B refers to Baby F's older sister. It was a joy to spend some more time with this family and see their love for one another pour out in photographs and just witnessing them at home. 

[Picture LIFE] The Evans Family

I met the Evans family just before Christmas through Jaclyn's sister Cat. Jaclyn and Colin have been married for over 4 years and have two beautiful little girls: Karaleigh age 2, and Aria age 4. When I met their girls, they were all about performing, poking, and playing. Normal kid stuff. Cat had told me about her sister Jaclyn's wonderful massages and her family's unique lifestyle. She mentioned that Jaclyn enjoyed bartering services and well, I can't resist a good massage so Chris (my husband) and I reached out to Jaclyn about trading a photo shoot for massages for us. I was intrigued by the lifestyle that they lead and couldn't wait to document it and spend more time with them.

The Evans family lives at the summit of the Santa Cruz Mountains in a 500sqft home that has a bedroom, a bathroom, and a kitchen/living room combo. This September will mark 5 years in their humble abode.

The Evans family lives at the summit of the Santa Cruz Mountains in a 500sqft home that has a bedroom, a bathroom, and a kitchen/living room combo. This September will mark 5 years in their humble abode.

Jaclyn describes their lifestyle as, "Rewilding; transitioning from a lifestyle of relying on society to being self reliant. Every change in perception and choice makes a big difference, and successful changes fuel that fire to continue on. Whether it be composting, foraging, fire making, or making our own soap." 

Karaleigh is on the left and Aria is on the right. I arrived soon after they woke up that chilly winter morning.

Karaleigh is on the left and Aria is on the right. I arrived soon after they woke up that chilly winter morning.

Colin makes his family butter coffee and butter hot chocolate. 

Colin makes his family butter coffee and butter hot chocolate. 

Even his girls drink the coffee sometimes. 

Even his girls drink the coffee sometimes. 

Karaleigh was not a fan of the "gooey egg" that daddy boiled and made momma eat the gooey part. 

Karaleigh was not a fan of the "gooey egg" that daddy boiled and made momma eat the gooey part. 

First, Aria wanted to show me their fort.

First, Aria wanted to show me their fort.

And then it was Karaleigh's turn.

And then it was Karaleigh's turn.

Jaclyn: Come sit and drink coffee with me. We do that together.Colin: I don't like to sit by you *jokingly*Jaclyn: You can squat. You like to do that. Colin: I can do that :-)

Jaclyn: Come sit and drink coffee with me. We do that together.
Colin: I don't like to sit by you *jokingly*
Jaclyn: You can squat. You like to do that. 
Colin: I can do that :-)

As part of their organic and natural lifestyle, Colin and Jaclyn only drink water from springs, like ones they find here. 

As part of their organic and natural lifestyle, Colin and Jaclyn only drink water from springs, like ones they find here

Even though the girls haven't seen the Disney princess movies like most little girls, they know all of the songs by heart and enjoy playing with their dolls. Rapunzel is Aria's favorite. 

Even though the girls haven't seen the Disney princess movies like most little girls, they know all of the songs by heart and enjoy playing with their dolls. Rapunzel is Aria's favorite. 

Karaleigh is quite the ham and loves performing for anyone. I predict she will be an actress or performer of some kind when she's older. In this photo she is "pinning" (spinning). She can't pronounce her s's yet. I can't handle how adorabl…

Karaleigh is quite the ham and loves performing for anyone. I predict she will be an actress or performer of some kind when she's older. In this photo she is "pinning" (spinning). She can't pronounce her s's yet. I can't handle how adorable these two chickies are.

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While dad makes a fire in their bedroom, the girls practice their hand drill skills that they learned at a nature awareness program in Felton called Fox Tracks. The three of them attend every Monday.

Our inspiration for parenting comes from the old tribal mindset. Our culture is not set up to support this but we do what we can to bring it back to the roots of togetherness, songs, story telling, and following our children’s natural desires and passions rather than imposing those things. This is a reason we have chosen the unschooling route.
— Jaclyn Evans
Time for some archery Aria got her own bow and arrows for Christmas. 

Time for some archery Aria got her own bow and arrows for Christmas. 

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It was a wee bit chilly outside at 10:30 am in the mountains. 

It was a wee bit chilly outside at 10:30 am in the mountains. 

Ilford 400 - 35mm film

Ilford 400 - 35mm film

Karaleigh was looking for some help with Aria's bow and arrow.

Karaleigh was looking for some help with Aria's bow and arrow.

Every parent needs their own space. This is Colin's star jointed annex that he built himself

Every parent needs their own space. This is Colin's star jointed annex that he built himself

The bottles on the floor were collected to store fresh spring water.

The bottles on the floor were collected to store fresh spring water.

Colin's standing workstation helps improve posture and focus when working on the computer.

Colin's standing workstation helps improve posture and focus when working on the computer.

Jaclyn wanted some photographs of Colin on his slack line. Have you ever tried walking on one of this things? It's hard! 

Jaclyn wanted some photographs of Colin on his slack line. Have you ever tried walking on one of this things? It's hard! 

Our house is small and can get messy. We get make trips to Goodwill often as we aspire to live in a yurt one day with more space to pursue our lifestyle dreams. In the meantime, while our kids are real little, I like to remember the quote ‘cobwebs be quiet, dust go to sleep, cus I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep’
— Jaclyn Evans

[Picture LIFE] The Heilman Clan

For Christmas this year, my husband and I are spending it with his family in San Jose, CA. Just a few days before we made the road trip up from Orange, CA, my new step-sister-in-law, Jessica messaged me on Facebook and requested a lifestyle photoshoot to commence in their 1000sqft home in San Jose. Jessica and her husband Jeff have 6 beautiful children ranging from age 2-17. I was thrilled at the request since I had never done a style quite like this before. Jessica and I first met about 6 months ago at my bridal shower and after hearing such wonderful things about her family, I was excited to capture a glimpse of their cozy life this Christmas season. 

I’m looking forward to capturing this time in our lives as we transition out of the “baby making” phase into “Professional baby raising” phase. Somehow - thinking of this next Chapter in that way makes me feel a little better about it
— Jessica Heilman
I think what I would like is family portraits in our house. The reason is we are in a transition season and will be leaving this house after around 8 years, the formative years of our kids lives. We have outgrown it, simply because we do not own it. However my Grandfather (the kids Great Grandfather) did a lot of improvements on it, I laid new flooring etc
— Jessica Heilman
The chalkboard wall is strategically placed in their entrance where the family can be creative and welcome their guests. 

The chalkboard wall is strategically placed in their entrance where the family can be creative and welcome their guests. 

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

The perks of being the only daughter is you get your own room, away from smelly boys! Madeline's room doubles as the craft room.

The perks of being the only daughter is you get your own room, away from smelly boys! Madeline's room doubles as the craft room.

The boys' room doubles as Dad's office during the day.

The boys' room doubles as Dad's office during the day.

The recreation room is where the kids use the computers and where they watch movies on a projector. As you can see, they are big super hero fans.

The recreation room is where the kids use the computers and where they watch movies on a projector. As you can see, they are big super hero fans.

Jessica deco-paged this wall and did many other crafty things to decorate their home. It pretty much blows Pinterest away.

Jessica deco-paged this wall and did many other crafty things to decorate their home. It pretty much blows Pinterest away.

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Washington, "Osh" age 6, shows me a photo of the kids from two years ago, before Teddy was born. 

Washington, "Osh" age 6, shows me a photo of the kids from two years ago, before Teddy was born. 

Here we have Jeffrey, the oldest child, and Teddy, the youngest. Teddy sure is the  most photographed of the bunch and for good reason. 

Here we have Jeffrey, the oldest child, and Teddy, the youngest. 
Teddy sure is the  most photographed of the bunch and for good reason. 

I mean, look at this face! 

I mean, look at this face! 

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Madeline, "Maddo" age 12, said it perfectly after she crossed the lens in this frame, "Oh sorry! Mommy and Daddy moment." 

Madeline, "Maddo" age 12, said it perfectly after she crossed the lens in this frame, "Oh sorry! Mommy and Daddy moment." 

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

The eggs were prepared by Jeffrey, 17, with fresh garlic, onions, cheese, and cream. These meatballs were provided by the neighbors. Mom made the garlic bread. Jeffrey is quite gifted in the culinary arts. He and his brother Joseph run a busine…

The eggs were prepared by Jeffrey, 17, with fresh garlic, onions, cheese, and cream. These meatballs were provided by the neighbors. Mom made the garlic bread. Jeffrey is quite gifted in the culinary arts. He and his brother Joseph run a business called The Cookie Boys

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Ilford 400 - 35mm Film

Dog pile!! These kids Love each other a whole lot and it shows.

Dog pile!! These kids Love each other a whole lot and it shows.

And then it was time to read, no, sing the "12 Days of Christmas" in bed. Everyone. It was truly a joy to capture. The majority of this family spends a lot of time in Mom & Dad's bed, hanging out so why not pile everyone on their bed for some ph…

And then it was time to read, no, sing the "12 Days of Christmas" in bed. Everyone. It was truly a joy to capture. The majority of this family spends a lot of time in Mom & Dad's bed, hanging out so why not pile everyone on their bed for some photos in their natural habitat? 

Teddy was ready for the grass photo that Jessica usually takes. This time, she got to be in it! 

Teddy was ready for the grass photo that Jessica usually takes. This time, she got to be in it! 

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
— Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)
“We once heard a pastor preach that Proverbs 22:6 in the original Hebrew spoke in terms of the bend of a bow. He said that as a bow has a natural “bend” in it - in order for the arrow to fly straight, we are to raise our children in their natural tendencies. Whether art, business, cooking, medicine... If your child shows gifts and talents, it is our role to encourage and inspire them. Proverbs 22:6 means to me that if our children are pursuing the desires of their heart (as God intended) they will never depart from God as they will feel happy and fulfilled in life. As their parents observing them and their natural ways is our #1 job!
— Jessica Heilman

Be sure to check out Jessica's One Week Wonder Blog, art website and follow her on Instagram @jessicadheilman

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[Picture LIFE] Adventure in the Redwoods

Over Thanksgiving break, my boyfriend and I traveled from Orange County to the Bay area. We spent a day in San Jose, a day in San Francisco, and half a day in Santa Cruz. I took a lot of photographs on my iPhone and posted them on my instagram: @picturesomething over the whole weekend 
Here's a mini session of Chris and I that we took on our drive through the Santa Cruz mountains. Enjoy! 

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- S