Category Archives: Photography

Daughters

2012 marked quite a few milestones for me, not the least of which was the “flying of the coop” of my oldest daughter, Liselle. As a first child, she and I have a unique relationship. She was my guinea pig. I was 24 when I had her and hence did a lot of growing up with her. The months before she left, and even now, I spent quite a bit of time looking at photos of her…baby pictures, toddler pictures, etc. I find I miss the little girl a lot. I miss being there to witness her milestones. I miss the funny things she would do or say.

I know I wasn’t the only mom going through this anxiety of letting go. So I got the idea to do a Mother-Daughter photo shoot with her friends and their moms. One dad snuck in there, too. We had a great time! They were all dolled up, makeup and dresses. They looked so good, we all went to dinner afterwards.

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It has been almost a year since I took these photographs. The anxiety of letting my daughter free has faded away. She is flourishing in her new home, a big city with tons to do. I’m sure her friends are doing amazingly well, too. But, I am so glad to have these photos and this time documented. I’m looking forward to seeing what these amazing young women accomplish. They were kids when I met them. They are women I am proud to know. And no matter how far they go, they will always be Daughters.

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Papal Imagery

Last night at 8pm Catholics bid farewell to Pope Benedict XVI. That got me pondering Papal imagery.

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Looks like I may be experimenting with candlelight imagery very soon.

Photo Credit: Franco Origlia/Getty Images for the first image and Pierre Paolo Cito/Associated Press for the second image.

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BackStage at NCDC

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Recenty, Northern California Dance Conservatory (NCDC) presented of BackStage 2013. This is annual event is an intimate presentation of the works in progress for their Ambassadors as well as Student Choreography pieces. I was privileged to photograph rehearsals of the show as well as the first live audience performance. I am always impressed with the skill, talent and dedication of these young dancers and their teachers.

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A Great Night for A Great Cause

I had the honor and pleasure of participating in the 11th Annual Biletnikoff Crabfest this past weekend. Hosted by the Biletnikoff Foundation, this event brings together fans and celebrities to raise funds for the numerous organizations that the Biletnikoff Foundation supports in the memory and spirit of Tracey Biletnikoff, all of which help young people achieve their goals and dreams. To learn more about the Biletnikoff Foundation, please visit their website at http://biletnikoff.net

We were there hosting a free photo booth at the event, and may I just say that EVERYONE, fan, celebrity, and staff alike were some of THE most kind and gracious folks I’ve had the pleasure of meeting! I gladly call now call myself a RAIDER FAN! CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE PHOTOS!

THANK YOU to Fred and Angela Biletnikoff and everyone at the Biletnikoff Foundation for your time and hospitality! I look forward to seeing you at the next event!

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Lots of Laughs at The Bar…

…And no alcohol was consumed! Well, at least that I’m aware of!

I had the pleasure of photographing the lovely ladies of The Colour Bar, a salon in Sacramento that does some phenomenal work on hair and makeup. At the helm is Lorena Martinez.

Lorena is terrific. She is very knowledgeable and is more than willing to share that knowledge with her clients so they, too, can achieve the look they have once they leave the salon (ladies, you know what I mean!).

And, there’s Evelyn Galaviz.

Don’t let the shy smile fool you. She is a crack up, and she’s got mad hair and makeup skills.

And, finally, there’s Sumin Lee.

Sumin will forever be my Mr. Miyagi…inside joke haha! No, seriously, Sumin is fantastic, and her laid back demeanor puts clients at ease.

Check ‘em out!

The Colour Bar
947 Enterprise Drive  Sacramento, CA 95825
(916) 583-8574
www.thecolourbar.me/

Tell them you heard about them from Valerie Febre Yap Studios!

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My OCD is Kicking In

Good Morning! I have some time to kill this morning. I am in the process of organizing my photos and creating separate Lightroom catalogs for each year of photographs that I have on my photos hard drive. Huh! Who knew? Apparently, the more experienced photographers knew…that a large catalog slows Lightroom’s performance down considerably. Where did I learn this? Well, that brings me to my next obsession.

I’ve been addicted to CreativeLIVE. It’s called a live, worldwide creative classroom. These people are brilliant! They’ve created a forum for photographers at any level (experience and income-wise) to learn from the pros. They broadcast the classes for FREE on a set day and time, and then offer the broadcast as downloadable for a fee. The fee is not exorbitant, usually around $149, and it’s discounted during the live broadcast to $99. I have learned so much! And not just about the technical aspects of photography, but about the business side of photography. Today, I will be tuning in to the first of a three day workshop with Sandy Puc’ called The Business of Tots to Teens. And, next week, I’m excited to watch Joe Buissink for Wedding Photography. I’m not sure I want to do wedding photography, but I love his imagery. If you’re interested, check them out at http://www.creativelive.com. You can follow them on Facebook and Twitter (@creativeLIVE), too!

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The Meeting of the Cousins

Rudy and Oski met for the first time. They are fast friends EXCEPT Rudy, the older dog, can’t believe how much energy, his much younger cousin, has. But, Oski did teach his older cousin how to swim….sort of.

 

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Dancers

A new assignment…photograph some dancers for a hangtag design to go on a custom line of dancewear. AWESOME! I went to the studio photographed the dancers. Went back to the computer and put together the design.

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Granny’s Birthday Celebration

She turned 86. She felt to blessed. She was blessed. All of her children were present. Smiles and laughter all day long.

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