Julie and Brad

Last week Julie and Brad got married at the Balboa Inn on Balboa Island. Its this great little hotel right by the pier. It was a gorgeous day which was such a relief because the day before was grey and rainy. They both looked incredible which always makes my job easier and were so layed back and relaxed. You could really tell that they were just so happy to get married nothing else mattered. After the ceremony we went down, got some amazing shots on the beach and then took a little time shooting in the sweet alley behind the hotel as well. They then went and danced the night away in what was probably the most lively reception I've witnessed. It was a great day.

Here are a few images from the day.

Risa and David

I met Risa and David for their engagement shoot in Old Town Pasadena. We ran around the alleys around Colorado street for a couple hours laughing and having a great time. They were so much fun and had such great chemistry.

Anybody else want to go shoot in Pasadena? I don't think we scratched the surface.

Good food is hard to find.

When we moved to Orange County from Texas almost 3 years ago, we knew we'd miss our friends. We also knew that we'd miss owning a nice home on a huge lot. One of the things we realized about 2 weeks into living out here, though, was how much we miss the food. I'm a foody... a connoisseur, if you will.

Texas (Houston in particular) has the BEST food. (How do you think it got to be the fattest city in America?) California has In-n-Out but Texas has pretty much everything else. Carrabba's for the best Italian food. La Madeleine, the best french cafe. Los Cucos for the most incredible mexican food. Ming's for the best chinese. Taste of Texas for the best prime steaks. I just can't seem to find any restaurant out here, anywhere close to as good as any of these restaurants.

One of the things I miss most about Texas is good barbecue. In Brownwood, TX there is this little family owned restaurant called Underwood's Cafeteria. People will drive hours out of their way to come get some Underwood's barbecue. Its so good that it was named one of Texas' Top 10 Restaurants. Not top 10 barbecue joints, TOP 10 Restaurants... in the whole stinking state. Its life changing.

I've had so many people take me to barbecue places since I've moved here and they all say the same thing... "I know you say there's no good barbecue in California but you've never been to ___________" The first place I went was a gigantic disappointment, Lucille's. I had high hopes. A restaurant named after B.B. King's guitar (or is it just coincidence?) had to have some good brisket. Nope.

Covering meat in barbecue sauce does not make it "barbecue" any more than covering it in syrup makes it a pancake.

I just made that up so you guys can quote me if you want. Just make sure I get credit.

So last week my friend Trever told me about one of his new favorite restaurants, Beach Pit Barbecue. He had previously gone on and on about how good Lucille's was so I was skeptical to say the least.

Well tonight Cyndie, Makenzie and I hopped in the car and took off for dinner. We often just start driving hoping to see something that catches our interest but nothing stuck out. Then I saw Lucille's and thought how great barbecue sounded, of course I wouldn't go there but it sure put me in the mood. I called up Trever and asked him for directions to Beach Pit and we made our way over there. Its just off 17th street and Tustin Rd. on the border of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach. We walked in and placed our order. We got our food and were more than pleasantly surprised. I never thought I'd find decent, much less great barbecue in Southern California. Its no Underwood's but it definitely passed the test.

So go check it out, I hear they've even got a new location at Angel Stadium. Oh yeah, stick to the beef brisket. The sausage and pulled pork aren't anywhere close to as good.

If you've stuck with me this long you probably like your food too. Point me in the direction of some good mexican/italian/chinese food here in OC. FYI: Chevy's, Macaroni Grill and P.F Chang's are banned from the comment box.

Christy and Renier's Engagement

Sunday night I met Christy and Renier in Santa Monica to shoot their engagement. I've shot down at the pier a few times but I've never ventured out into the city. I parked in one the parking garages near the Promenade and made my way to Starbucks where we were meeting. On the way over I walked down the coolest alley I've ever seen. So when we met up, instead of heading straight over to the pier I took them back to the alley. So stinking cool. We eventually made our way over to the pier for sunset and got some cool shots there too. I just love shooting in new places.

Fred and Deanne

Last week I met up with Fred and Deanne at the Fullerton Arboretum. What an awesome place. We hung out for a couple of hours and walked around and shot in a bunch of the different settings they had there. We ended up by the orange groves and I had an idea. They were kind of iffy about the whole thing but they trusted me. I'm glad they did, the last picture is my favorite of the afternoon!

Girl's night out

I was out of town over the weekend so Makenzie and Cyndie were hanging out. Saturday night they went out to one of our favorite restaurants, Wingstop (or as Makenzie calls it... the chicken store) , and Makenzie was being a ham so Cyndie pulled out her camera and caught her being funny.

I guess I lick my fingers when I eat wings, haha.

James and Danielle's Wedding

Saturday Tyler and I went to Redlands to shoot James and Danielle's Wedding. It was Tyler's first wedding as the primary shooter so I was just there to second shoot and offer moral support. It was sweet wedding but my favorite part of the day was the last 10 or 15 minutes. James' grandfather owns a orange grove so we drove over to it and shot them there. It was awesome. They left in a convertible Mustang so I jumped in the back seat and got a couple shots with them driving away.

100 points to the first person who can tell me what album cover this shot is a "tribute" to.