Cousins

2 weekends ago, Rocky & Jones had their cousin Pikkle over for 2 nights and 2 full days which was SO much fun! Rocky of course doesn't like having any other dogs around, but funny that when they are around he acts more like a dog and less like a baby :) He and Pikkle took their walks together and he was very much a gentleman making sure that she was next to him at all times...so cute! Jones loves Pikkle so that is never a problem and he used to be so into playing with her (she's very playful), but this time he wasn't so interested. We think it's because of his older age. On the Saturday morning that Pikkle stayed with us, we took all the dogs over to the high school, shut them into the bull pen, and threw some tennis balls around so they could get exercise. Rocky doesn't chase the balls, but I can normally get him to run around the grassy area for a bit. After we got home that day, all of the dogs were VERY tired which was our plan. Here are some pics....

And since Jones doesn't get enough love on this blog, he gets his own photo

Living on the west coast

One huge benefit of living on the west coast is the AMAZING sunsets that we get almost every night...especially living close to the Ocean. Here is a sunset seen from our patio last week.

Happy Birthday to my Rock!

Yesterday, December 15th was my little Rocky's 9th birthday! If you've ever met him you are probably amazed at his age mostly because of his size - smaller than most cats. However, his true age shines through when he gets an attitude and acts like a 150 lb dog. Then you know he's just a grumpy old boy who is so little that he has to be on guard at all times ;) This old boy has brought me almost 9 years of so much unconditional love that I can't imagine what life would have been like without him. It might sound corny, but through many tough times, I thanked God for Rocky's love, friendship, and licks on my nose. He is going to have such a hard time not being the baby of the house in a few months, but he will always be my 1st little love.

Happy Birthday Rock Rock!

2009 Goals

I've been seriously thinking about my goals for next year, especially concerning my business. With the move and being preggers, I haven't had much time lately to really dedicate myself to my passion. For many months, so many nights were spent sleeping on the couch and barely making it out the door in the morning for my "day job" because I felt so sick. Now that I've hit the "good part" of the pregnancy, I have more energy, but most of it was sucked up by moving, organizing, and starting to get our place ready for the little boy. So in an effort to not forget about my dreams and passions, I have decided to make a list of what I'd like to accomplish in 2009 for my photography business. If I publish my list here on this blog then I'm definitely more accountable for it, don't you think?

1. Launch marketing campaign with a retailer
2. Launch ellenreinis.com
3. Print marketing materials
4. Shoot 3 weddings on my own
5. Blog more often
6. Network with other photographers in my area
7. Join more photography groups
8. Quit my day job!!!
9. Take a few design classes
10. Attend 3 workshops (1 of them about lighting)

That's it for now. I may add to this list as the months fly by like 2008 already has!

More of Graham's 1st B-day

A few weeks ago I posted a picture from Graham's 1st birthday shoot which was a blast. I finally got to sit down and work on more pictures from that day and here are a few of the best. If you remember, Graham was such a good sport digging into the cake until he got too much in his nose and didn't like that feeling very much ;) You can see his expression in the last picture...I think he was done!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas

Lee & I are starting to get settled in our new place, however my new "office" is not set up yet. I am picking up my desk sometime this week from West Elm and hoping that it will look good in the apartment...we'll see! Last night I was able to set up my computer on Lee's desk in order to work on some pictures for Julie & Andrew's Christmas cards. I wanted to share two of the pics that I love most.

What happens when you move?

You unplug your computer, can't edit any pictures, your life is completely packed in boxes that you dive through frantically once you're at the new place looking for that 1 thing that you should have left out, and if your place has just been painted AND your preggers, you "camp out" at your old place until the fumes are gone and you sleep in your own bed. This is our camp site complete with a Rocky:

***this was taken w/ my blackberry...fyi

I will be back to writing and editing in the next few days once my office is set up at home and I feel a bit more normal.

Getting ready for Christmas

When I took pictures of Graham for his 1st birthday, Julie asked if we could do something for their Christmas cards as well. We had a ton of fun trying to get Graham's attention and get him to smile which didn't happen until the very end of shooting. The smiling pictures will probably be the ones she chooses to use, but I thought I'd post this adorable picture of him as a little teaser. I hope I'm not ruining any surprise Jules.

What a little cutie!

YES WE DID!!!

I haven't really expressed my political views on this blog (maybe subtly), but I just can't help myself to say 3 little words.....YES WE DID!!!! GoBama, GoBama, GoBama!!

Lee & I had a few friends over on Tuesday night to ring in the New Year with us (haha, that's what it felt like) and we had a blast. I only got a sip of champagne, but it was better than none at all :) Here is a pic:

A few more pics before I wrap up

I am finally wrapping up the edit of the pictures from my photo shoot with Sarah, Ryan, and Kia. It's taken me a while to get everything done, but it's all turned out great. I believe that Sarah is using some of these pics for her Christmas Cards, so I hope she loves all of them as much as I do.

On a side note....oh what a night last night was!!!! OMG....President Obama!

Here are the last few pics of Sarah and her family...

So far behind....

I am officially and completely behind and swamped with pictures that I have taken in the last few months. Finding the time to sit down at my computer these days and edit has proved almost impossible!! Since August 1st, I have become pregnant, watched Lee start grad-school and study sometimes 8 hours a day, got a new car, went on 2 vacations, started the initial process of 2 new businesses, and am moving on Dec. 1, all while working a 40+ hour/week day job!! Needless to say, my "to-do" list does not have too many checks on it ;) When I do find a free moment to sit down on the couch and watch a little political news, I end up falling asleep 5 minutes later and sometimes sleeping through the night. So, a good friend of mine recently (just on Tuesday) told me that I need to schedule even more - be militant about it and treat even my free time like a job. Starting this weekend...that's what I'm doing. All of my editing time will be scheduled as will laundry, cleaning, and even watching "Countdown" w/ Keith Olberman. To all of my clients that I owe pics too...you will get them soon, I PROMISE!

Happy Halloween everyone!! Maybe I'll have the chance to take some pics of Lee & I dressed up tomorrow night.

It's Monday...I mean Tuesday!

Wow today for some reason really feels like Monday to me, but I was happy to realize just a few minutes ago that it's actually Tuesday! Whew, I guess Monday passed me by pretty fast! Maybe because Lee & I were away over the weekend in beautiful central coast wine country; Atascadero to be exact. We stayed at our favorite hotel called The Carlton and actually attended a murder mystery dinner that they offered on Saturday night. We thought it would be something fun and different to do and that's just what it was....something different :) I have to say that as much as I love The Carlton, the food at the dinner was not what we expected and neither was the "show". We were a tiny bit bored, but managed to salvage the night by hitting the bar for a nightcap (hot tea for me) and a piece of heath bar crunch cake!! Nothing really makes me happier than heath bar in my dessert.

We also made a stop at Lee's favorite winery (Turley) where he got to taste a few zinfandels and buy a bottle of delicious wine that he promised to hold until I can share with him...whata guy! I watched as he drank and I bought a coaster. I guess if you can't drink - SHOP!

So I've been working away on a ton of pictures and will continue to do so for probably the next month after which I hope to launch my new website (keep your fingers crossed for me!). I thought I would post a picture today of the kite event for the Beverly Fund. You will see more of these soon!

What are you doing with your dash?

I went to an amazing marketing seminar last night that I HIGHLY recommend to any photographers out there. It was incredibly informative and will definitely define the way I run my business. Mitche Graf was amazing and I can't wait to implement everything that I learned from him. For anyone who's interested, he's going to be at WPPI in February also and holds seminars around the country.

So at the end of the seminar last night, Mitche put a series of numbers on the projector screen for us to look at. Numbers like 1915-1989, 1825-1916, 1957-2008. He asked what they represent and someone correctly replied "birth and death years". He then asked what the dash is in the middle and explained that it's everything in between - LIFE. There was a question on the projector that asked "what are you doing with your dash"???? That question rocked me to the core and really hit home because life really is a dash - a series of events that pass us by SOOO fast. When was the last time that you looked back on the last year and said "wow, that year went by really slowly". We move through this life like a blot of lightening (fast and fierce), so we mine as well enjoy EVERY second no matter how happy, painful, difficult, simple, or challenging and do something that is MEANINGFUL and keeps us in the moment. That is what I'm doing with my dash right now - giving it some meaning. So food for thought this week: "what are you doing with your dash"????

A refreshing Monday....

It's Monday and lately I've been so tired on Mondays that I can barely keep my eyes open at my desk, but today is different. I had such a relaxing weekend at home - sleeping in, watching movies, napping on the couch, editing pictures, baking apple pie, going to the pumpkin patch, and actually spending some time with Lee...it was great! So needless to say, even though I am extremely tired still, I feel rested and content. I even ate apple pie this morning for breakfast...talk about starting the day off right!

Tonight I'm attending Mitche Graf's marketing bootcamp because I think I'm finally ready to get myself out there and launch a "marketing campaign" for myself. I should learn a ton, so I can't wait.

http://www.powermarketing101.com/

Here is a picture that I worked on last night. Meet Kia:

Another blog??

Yep, you heard it! My new blog is called "my little bun" because, well....I've got a little bun in my oven :) I have started a blog for my pregnancy mainly for my family to get daily and weekly updates on my pregnancy, but also for me - so I can enjoy every moment of this amazing experience. I hope you'll join me :)

http://mylittlebun.blogspot.com

Of course, this blog will still remain intact with photographs and other details of my life and business.

Graham turns 1!!

Julie & Andrew's baby (my sweet little love), Graham turned 1 on October 9th and to commemorate his birthday, Julie & I did a photo shoot with him, a diaper, and a cake. We had a great time letting him go to town on the cake until he got icing in his nose and had a hard time breathing...that's when we stopped :) Over the weekend, Andrew & Julie threw a great party in the park for G's birthday which I think he'll always remember, with a little help from my pictures and the hundreds that his grandparents took as well. Some day in the future those pictures will make it on this blog. Until then, here is one from the photo shoot.

One more of Rocky...

Why? well, because I just couldn't help myself :)

My first baby!

It's been a while since I posted a picture of Rocky so I thought it was about time. Rocky will be the old age on 9 on December 15th. Lucky for me (and Lee), chihuahuas tend to live much longer than most breeds - some up to 17/18 years old! We have many good years ahead of us with the little Rock Rock.

When you love your pictures so much

I really planned to wait and not post anymore of Sarah & Ryan's photo shoot until I had everything edited, but as I was working last night, I decided that I just couldn't wait to post this one because I'm in love. It's another shot of their backs with the dog, but it's just so gorgeous. I sware I have many of them looking at the camera :)

I'm off tomorrow morning traveling to San Fran for the night while Lee is in Sacramento at class (yes, he has to travel to the Big Sac for one of his classes...Crazy!). The Beverly Fund is holding their 2nd annual Kites for Cancer event where I will be taking pictures and of course, flying a kite - YAY! For any of you in the bay area, please come out and join us to raise awareness and have some fun! It's at the Marina Green from 12-4. I'll be the one with the big camera around my neck :) http://www.beverlyfund.org/kites.html

Next week I'll be announcing something new that I've been working on, so stay tuned for that!

Happy Friday!!

One more picture!

Here is another picture from my afternoon in the park with Sarah, Ryan, and Kia. This picture speaks a THOUSAND words in my opinion and shows how much little Kia loves her mommy and daddy. She was the cutest! I am still working on this session and will have a full blog of pictures soon.

To all of my Jewish friends and family...Shana Tova....Happy New Year!

This Week - I'm back

I took a bit of a vacation last week from my blog and from editing any pictures in general. I really needed the rest actually, so it turned out to be a blessing in disguise that Lee needed every minute at the computer to write his papers. Today though, he gets his new computer and lovingly turns over the MAC to me so that I can go to town editing a TON of pictures that I've taken over the last month. I have NY pics to still work on, Sarah & Ryan's shoot, the wedding with Sweet Monday, and Graham's 1st birthday shoot from yesterday which was so absolutely adorable and fun! So, tonight I should have at least one sneak peak picture to show - thank goodness. I was beginning to have photoshop withdrawals :) Happy Monday!!

Computer War

So the reason I haven't been posting too many pictures lately is that Lee & I have been fighting (not literally) over the use of our beautiful MAC desktop computer. The screen is huge and the capacity is great which is why we both NEED to use it all the time :) The only other computer is our house is a 13" MAC laptop that is old and warn, but great for surfing the Internet and listening to Itunes. Since Lee went and got himself into USC's Healthcare Administration Grad program and is working his BUTT off in class, I have such a hard time asking him to get off the computer so that I can edit pictures...especially when he's writing a 20 page paper!! However, since the happiness of our future depends on both of our success, Lee will be purchasing a brand new MAC PRO laptop that he can take to class AND use at home. You know what that means? The desktop computer will be all MINE and this blog will be flooded with pictures in the weeks to come. WooWoo!

Tomorrow I am shooting a wedding in Malibu with the F-A-B-ulous women of Sweet Monday Photography. I am beside myself with excitement, so check back in the next week or so for some pics.

Sunday afternoon in the Park - sneak peak

I only had time to work on one picture last night from my fun portrait session on Sunday. I needed to get a picture over to my client Sarah for a project that she's working on. So here she is...meet Sarah. Isn't she lovely?

There will be pictures soon!

I have been sick in bed for the last four days, so that is why I have no pictures to share :( I didn't even touch my computer this past weekend, except to print directions to a photo shoot with the super fun and extremely photogenic Sarah, Ryan, and Kia on Sunday. I am feeling much better today and will be working on those pictures tonight so I should at least have a sneak peak by tomorrow - YAY! I also need to post my helicopter ride pictures from NYC and my brother's birthday pictures from August...WOW I'm behind!!

My new logo

Look up! It's my new logo!!! After many weeks of going back and forth with designs, Heidi Kruger and I came up with a design that I'm quite happy with. Many wonderful things to come with this great new logo!!

The Beverly Fund and Stand up to Cancer

Since today is September 11th and I'm blogging, first and foremost I want to take a minute to remember all of the thousands of people who were lost to severe tradgedy 7 years ago today. I was living in NYC, and like everyone else there, I was devistated by what happened on 9/11/01. NYC changed forever, as did the state of our country. I can only hope that we always remember the many people who lost their innocent lives to such an unexplainable sadness. Hopefully my children, neices and nephews never have to experience anything as horrific.

On a more cheerful note, I want to introduce all of my blog readers to The Beverly Fund and Stand up to Cancer. The Beverly Fund was founded by my wonderful sister in law, Tracy Sestili, as a tribute to her mom (Beverly) who died of lung cancer almost 3 years ago. Tracy has done an amazing job with the Beverly Fund and increasing lung cancer awareness in the community. She even won The Jefferson Award in San Francisco for her efforts and community service.

Last Friday, Tracy and my brother Paul visited me here in LA because Tracy won the grand prize from Stand up to Cancer's telethon contest. She was part of the celebrity phone bank, which took in millions of dollars in donations for cancer research and funding. Not sure if you watched the telethon, but Stand up to Cancer is an organization that was started by Katie Couric and some other very well known women in the entertainment business. Tracy got to spend the whole day hanging out with some really big celebrities and educating them about lung cancer in a way only she can - it's amazing! She got many of them to autograph some TiVo devices that she will be auctioning off for the Beverly Fund. I will keep everyone posted on when that will take place! If you are interested in helping fight cancer (lung or otherwise) please check out these websites.

Here are a few pics we took with Tracy's camera last Friday. My brother and I were Tracy's "talent guests" and got to hang with her in the green room all day...it was quite fun!

Tracy, me, and my bro

I'm back!!

I am finally back from vacation and back to the world of the living, working, and stressing :) Lee and I had an amazing vacation in NYC complete with a Yankee Game, a helicopter ride around Manhattan, and a day at the US Open....it was glorious! We caught up with all of our friends, had some great meals (John's Pizza - OMG!), and got to just enjoy walking around. Unfortunately, Lee spent a ton of time in the hotel room writing a paper that was due for one of his classes, so I got some quality time with my friends and shopping - ha!

I am surprised to say that I didn't take a ton of pictures while we were there since most of what we did was just walk around and I didn't want to carry the camera with me. I did however, get some great pics of the events we attended and of the helicopter ride. I will share those in the next few days.

As far as my business goes, I should be unveiling my new logo this week which I'm really excited about. I am working on my website design as well, so that will all come together in the next few weeks...YAY!

I am taking some very cool classes at SMC starting this month, so you'll all get to see the benefits of that in my photographs over the next few months.

Also, I'm shooting a wedding with Sweet Monday Photography on September 20th in Malibu which I'm SUPER excited for and can't WAIT to get to :)

In the next few weeks, I'll be announcing something BIG, so definitely stay tuned for that!

On another note, this past Sunday I saw an AMAZING documentary called "America the Beautiful". It's about Americans obsession with being beautiful at ANY cost - eating disorders, plastic surgery, cosmetics causing cancer, etc. It was a bit frightening, but I honestly think it's a MUST see - MUST MUST, especially for parents - seasoned or new. The media will never change their obsession with how people look, so it's up to parents to help their children (especially girls) to see the beauty within themselves and others. Please see this movie if you can!

In less than 24 hours......

I will be in New York City!!! After 4 1/2 long years, I'm finally going back...to get some much needed relaxation with Lee(funny that I want to relax in NY)and to visit some old friends. We are packing tons of fun into 5 short days that will surely be an adventure. Also, I heard that the weather in the city has been amazing. I will try to blog from our hotel room at night, but don't hold me to it :)

Happy Labor Day!!

Seattle Wedding Photographers

An old friend of mine is getting married in Seattle next year so I've been helping her to research and somewhat choose a good photographer up there. We've come up with some great choices and I think she's going to be in good hands on her big day. Check out some pics from the photographers we found:

http://laviephoto.com/

http://www.jkhphoto.com/


Since I love weddings so much and I'm always looking on different websites, I thought I'd put together a post of some of my favorite ideas I've come across. Ladies, if you're engaged and out there somewhere, check out this post!!

Dress:
I am a simple girl, but for some reason I'm in LOVE with this dress. It's a bit over the top (Oscar de la Renta), but I can't stop staring at it.

Bouquet:
I've been seeing the Tiffany blue color pop up alot in wedding decor. I love this bouquet that was designed by a florist in NYC. It's classic and stunning.

Decor:
Another thing I've been noticing is umbrellas as bridesmaids accessories and decor which I think is very cool. Check out how this couple used umbrellas and hung them from the ceiling of an outdoor tent.

Ceremony idea:
Andrew Firestone had his guest singing "Living on a Prayer" after he and his wife were married and walked down the isle. WHY didn't I think of that??? Can one of my friends who hasn't gotten married yet PLEASE do this and I will lead the crowd?

Ring Pillows:
I happened upon Anna Whitford's website and these ring pillow are to die for!

First Dance Song:
This song is so old school, but the lyrics are sweet and I don't know about anyone else, but it brings up some great memories for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ls7cH3elBc&feature=related

So there you go. I think someone should use all of these ideas at their wedding and invite me :)

Mundane Monday & More Lola

So it's Monday again and I'm sitting at my desk dreaming about my trip to NYC that begins this coming Saturday. Not only am I excited to see all my old friends and co-workers, but I'm excited to catch up on 4+ years away from Manhattan. I can't wait to show Lee all of the places that I lived, ate, stayed out WAY too late with friends, and where I spent many sleepless night editing my films in college. What amazing memories that I get to share!! So hopefully this week will fly by and before I know it, we'll be on the plane. Get ready for me, NYC!

This weekend was pretty quiet. Lee & I joined friends at the Hollywood Cemetery to watch Rear Window and it was a blast. If anyone in LA has never been, it's a MUST! You can bring food, wine, beach chairs and blankets to spread out on the big lawn inside the cemetery. There is a DJ who plays music before the show and then the movie is projected on the side of a large building. It's pretty cool.

Yesterday I edited more pictures of Lola. I wasn't going to post more, but as I went through them, I realized that I can't resist because they're WAY too cute. Here are a few more from our shoot:

More with Mom & Dad

Lola loves the Crackberry!

More Lola!

Last weekend my parents were in town and it was SO much fun! We didn't stop moving for a minute that they were here. Lee & I took them to our favorite Italian Deli, we went to the Hollywood Bowl, and spent ALL day on Saturday at the Laguna Beach arts/sawdust festival and then had dinner at Las Brisas staring at the incredibly beautiful ocean. After the left on Sunday morning, I was exhausted!! Never thought that my parents would tire me out, but they did ;) I fell asleep at 9pm on Sunday night, but last night had time to work on a few more pictures of the most beautiful Lola.

Lola & her Daddy who she Looooves!

Lola with Mommy & Daddy

Lola & Mommy

Being adorable