-George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones

The school year is ending quickly and I’ve been taking advantage of my last few weeks without kids, meeting up with some friends, before the summer officially begins to swing.  I am planning to take full advantage of this summer as I can see the faint glimpse of ending childhood in our home already.  They are growing so fast.

This photo was taken on a hike up in Half Moon Bay (one of my all time favorite little towns in the Bay Area).  It was a beautiful sunny day, and a nice hike with my friend and her sweet puppy.  Taken with my 24-70mm f2.8 lens (this is my go-to lens, it is almost always on my camera), there are just a few slight edges that are in focus.

Happy Tuesday!

:)

–r

We spent February break in Mexico and had such an amazing time.  Sightseeing.  Snorkeling.  Swimming in the ocean.  Eating street tacos and guacamole.  Barbecues on the beach.  Zip Lining.  Swimming in caves.  Running in the early morning.  Dinner in town square.  Gelato in the hot sun.  Bike riding through the ruins.  Hiking to the top of the pyramid.  Here are just a few of my favorite photos (I spent a lot of time without camera this trip and enjoyed just being there in the moment.):

It’s funny, how when things aren’t right around here, I don’t feel whole.

I guess that’s why I’ve been avoiding my blog over the last few months.  I had some things I needed to work through.  And I’m starting to feel whole again.

Let me start this post off by saying how much I love my family.  I mean, some days, I really dread the drudgery of being a stay-at-home mom.  And I roll my eyes at all the lame middle-school humor.  And sometimes I wish I was doing something (ANYTHING) else.  But when it boils down to it.  I chose this life, because I can’t imagine living it any other way.  I really mean that.  I can’t imagine living it ANY OTHER WAY.  And someday I will miss these crazy kids of mine.  And until that day, I want to be here, with them.

“Be here now.  Be someplace else later.  Is that so complicated?”

-David Bader

If you’ve been following my blog/life for any amount of time, you’ve seen that quote like, a bazillion times before.  I love it because it reminds me to put down the phone, turn off the computer and really pay attention to the people that are sitting right in front of me, right now.  OH – how I love my family.  In spite of all the annoyances, the work, and the trouble.  I love them down to my very center.

The funny thing is, how I feel about my kids doesn’t even resemble how I feel about my husband.  My husband is everything to me.  Without him, my world would fall apart.  I can’t imagine today without him, let alone a whole lifetime.  With him, I can make it through anything.  We take the world on together, each and every day.  We laugh together, we dream together, we plan our future together.  My life and my heart are completely intertwined with his.  And I love the journey of growing old together – not because I like getting old!  But because our love changes as we get older.  It deepens and enriches.  It becomes more than a crush, more than a feeling, it becomes babies being born, and car crashes, and trips to the ER, and cancer scares, and prayers said together.  It becomes the triumph of making it through a hard year.  It becomes the joy of seeing your child succeed at something really hard.  It becomes the quiet moments, the heartfelt talks, the ocean waves, the sunrise.  And the love grows beyond anything you could ever imagine when love first knocked on that first date at the haunted forest so long ago.

:)

–r

YES!  I’m still shooting!

I am currently scheduling sessions for weekday mornings.  I have 1 opening left in May, and am scheduling in June and beyond.

Here is my current pricing:

Sweet and Simple Session – Session Fee is $200.

Sweet and Simple Digital Session – Session Fee is $525

Itty Bitty Session – Session Fee is $250.

Itty Bitty Digital Session – Session Fee is $575

The session fee is required at the time of booking to reserve your spot on my calendar and includes my time and talent.

Your images will be edited with an eye for color and artistic impact.

2-3 weeks after your session, your images will be posted in an online gallery, you should expect to see 25-30 amazing images from each session.

You will have 2 weeks from that time to place your print order.

I am still scheduling limited family sessions, please inquire for details and pricing. Again, all sessions are currently being booked for weekday mornings.

Happy Thursday!

:)

–r

-Confucius

 Oh how I love the secret whispers of spring.  Yesterday I saw buds on my apple trees and my heart did a flip.    Something about the beauty of buds, the small twitches of new life, just speaks to me.  I could spend hours combing the hillsides, peering into the grass looking for new little sprouts, tiny blossoms, and all the newness that spring brings.

Go out and enjoy this beautiful day.

I dare you.

:)

–r

]]> http://rachelleleephotography.com/blog/?feed=rss2&p=509 0 http://rachelleleephotography.com/blog/?p=500 http://rachelleleephotography.com/blog/?p=500#comments Thu, 26 Jan 2012 18:08:38 +0000 Rachelle http://rachelleleephotography.com/blog/?p=500 December

“I’m selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if
you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.”

–Marilyn Monroe

I’ve had this picture for so long, and just couldn’t find the words to go with it (thanks Dad, for another great picture!).

Here goes:

I love the magical feeling of Christmastime.  I love the excitement in the air.  And I love the moment it gives us to reflect on Christ’s birth.

Interestingly enough, this year did not feel like Christmas at all.  We did all of the Christmasy things – the parties and the gifts and the natvities.  We gave gifts to neighbors and we sang carols at church.  We read the Christmas story in the scriptures.  We even had a little visit from Milton.  And Christmas came and went, and we put the tree up and we took it down.  And still, it didn’t feel like Christmas.  The only explanation we can come up with is, that last year was such an “un”year, with it’s “un”vacations and “un”summer, maybe it seeped into an “un”Christmas too.  Not to say that we had a terrible December, no we enjoyed our time, but it just didn’t feeeeeeeel like Christmas.

The big event (besides Christmas, of course!) was Jordan’s play.  OH how she loved the play!  And she dressed in her skunk costume with her little black nose.  And that first night she said her part in such a very small voice that I’m sure no one heard her, but me.  (if you missed the story of her being cast as the skunk, read here)  And Miss Skye talked with her, and I talked with her – and encouraged her to make people laugh with her line!  And so the next night, she said it a little bit louder and with a little more courage, and she got some laughs!  And she also got a little smile on that cute little face of hers.  And for all of the rest of the performances she said her line without being ashamed of it.  And for that, I was so proud of her.  She came so far from that day of tears, when she was cast as a skunk.  Thank you Miss Skye, for teaching my little girl to be confident and courageous.

The the thing that made me laugh the hardest this December, happened so unexpectedly.  The day after Christmas, we took a short trip down to Universal Studios.  We had fun riding the rides and seeing how some of the special effects in movies are made (I love the reality check that happens at a place like Universal).  But the funniest thing happened one night at dinner – I chose the restaurant – a Brazilian Steak House.  I love a good steak, so it was a no brainer – take me to the place that has STEAK in the name.  Yum.  And as we were enjoying our dinner, the music gets really loud and the “entertainment” comes out, scantily clad in thongs and a little more than pasties on top.  And then they started shaking and grinding and my two little kids, with their wide eyes, had front row seats.  My eyes darted around – checking the door to see if there is some sort of XX next to the signage – but no – no warning that scantily clad women would be coming out and shaking everything in front of our kids!  So what to do???  We just laughed really hard – because really?  I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, and have the kids think it was a big deal (plus, I wasn’t finished eating the steak).  And then the girls asked the kids to do dance, and they flushed and stared at the floor and emphatically said “no.”  And then they asked Daniel to dance, and I think he said, “no,” but really, no words were coming out of his mouth, I think he actually blushed (however, I don’t think he was looking at the floor . . . !).  And so we laughed and we laughed for days.  In fact, I’m laughing now – and hoping I didn’t ruin my kids with my passion for steak.

Our lives have really settled down since the craziness of last year – Daniel comes home at regular hours.  And with my schedule slower, I have more time and energy to focus on the kids and the home.  It feels nice, but at times a little slow.  I will be grateful when things warm up outside so I can plant my garden and enjoy my outdoor hobbies.

One thought that continues to cross my mind, is how much I am enjoying the person I am right now.  I guess maybe it comes to mind as I watch my kids struggle with their genetic and age appropriate insecurities.  I remember, so well, how it feels to want people to love you and accept you, so badly.  And to feel like you’re never quite right.  At this stage in my life, I frankly don’t care.  I am who I am.  If you let me, I will be an amazing friend.  But I have my ups and downs.  I am a little high maintenance.  And I will need to lean on you once in awhile.  I am not cool.  I am awkward.  And sometimes I say the wrong things.  But I like who I am becoming.  So take it or leave it, I am who I am.  And because of that, I feel free.  I wonder how you teach that to kids?

:)

–r

–Lao Tzu

I usually love New Year’s Resolutions.  And I relish the idea of setting goals and working towards something new and fun and exciting.  This year, I just can’t seem to get into the spirit of it at all.  Don’t get me wrong, I made a list (OH – I made a list).  With the hope that when it came time to cross things off I would feel totally satisfied and proud of my ever climbing accomplishments, but you know what?  Frankly, this year I just don’t care (and all those FB posts cheering on the new year can go stuff it).

So I am officially declaring the year of 2012 to be the year of fun.  Yep.  I said it.

F.U.N.

And on the side I am going to grow an amazing vegetable garden (well, I’m going to plant it, but we all know that it will take a miracle for me to be able to make anything grow!).  And before spring starts, I am going to finish Project Half-Life (that means a lot of writing over here!).

There I did it.

Now 2012 can start.  I’m ready.

(And maybe after I have some F.U.N. I’ll be able to see the butterfly)

:)

–r

This past year has been a challenging one.  One where we worked hard towards something – and in the end, we ended up with something totally different.  And I feel kind-of like that 10 year old little girl again.  Looking a little bewildered and trying hard to be grateful for the blessings that this year has brought.  I know we have been given a better gift than the one we thought we wanted, but right now I am still mourning the loss.  And I wonder how long it will take for me to be able to look back on this year and say, I am so grateful things turned out exactly the way they did.

:)

–r

“I hope you will have a wonderful year, that you’ll dream dangerously and outrageously, that you’ll make something that didn’t exist before you made it, that you will be loved and that you will be liked, and that you will have people to love and to like in return. And, most importantly (because I think there should be more kindness and more wisdom in the world right now), that you will, when you need to be, be wise, and that you will always be kind.” 
– Neil Gaiman

ps.  I can’t leave without saying – don’t you just love the way he stated that:  ”dream dangerously and outrageously?”  What are your dreams for the new year?  What do you want to do?  And learn?  And become?  Start making your list and I will start making mine.  And with this as inspiration, I will vow to dream outrageously once again.

As we’ve weathered this crazy year of ours – the intense highs and the desperate lows – I’ve felt this extreme desire to feel my way through this year.  To feel it with my heart.  My whole heart.  Big and deep.  What is life without experiencing it?  And that means experiencing being happy and sad and excited and depressed and on and on.  Instead of berating myself for feeling sad, I simply told myself it’s ok to feel sad and you will feel better another day, but today it is ok to really feel the sadness of the moment.

I feel like I’m not even making sense with this.  I guess I live my life more by feel than most people (heck, I cry at the aiport when other people’s loved ones come off the plane!).

I guess what I’m trying to say is:

Instead of looking at life’s experiences in the present, look at their potential to change you into something better than you are today and give yourself permission to feel how you feel.

And then, take that experience and that feeling and let it turn into wisdom that can guide you and sustain you in a better tomorrow.  And remember that life isn’t really about all of the little ups and downs, but about your journey to become better today than you were yesterday.  Each experience changes us in some way, and it is up to us to decide if we will let it make us a better person.

As my husband always says, life is all about having great stories to tell.

And a great story doesn’t exist on happiness alone.

:)

–r

(taken at 105mm, f2.8, shutter speed 1/5000)

When I took my first photography workshop, I told my instructor that my goal was to see and capture the big picture because I was totally missing the point of being at the ocean (I realized this pretty quickly at the end of the first day when everyone else came back with amazing photos of the ocean and I came back with a picture of a knothole in a fence – but it was an amazing knothole if I do say so myself!).  He called me a “shape” person.  Which means (I think) that I see shapes in the things around me, and because of that I seem to get so distracted by the details and the shapes of the little things that I can’t seem to find shape in the big picture.  And therefore, quickly lose interest.

I guess old habits die hard, because even though I’ve spent the last few years trying to hone my skill of seeing the big picture – I still find myself totally mesmerized by the shapes in the details all around me.  I love the texture and the ability to create so many different compositions with just one subject.

Lately I have found myself totally taken by my 105mm 2.8 lens.  Not only does it produce an amazing portrait, but it’s  made me look at details in a new way, and has forced me to be more creative with my composition.

Happy Friday!

:)

–r

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