Micha and I played phone tag with each other a few times before we got a hold of each other to arrange for our meeting.  Micha is an emergency room Doctor and Darlington (aka D) is a self taught computer programer (with a Biochemistry degree).  They both met at a bar and a couple years later… engaged!! Micha and D are just so happy in love and it really shows.  They simply adore each other; no doubt about it.  I hardly had to give them any direction at all, they are simply naturals in from of the camera.

We started at the Lily Pond and made our way around…

The beautiful Jungle Garden!!

The Rose Garden…

The Japanese Garden…

LOVE the red shoes…

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The Chinese Garden…

Thanks guys for being such troopers in the blistering 100+ degree!!

Sarah and Daniel are a great couple and is such a pleasure to work with!!  Sarah is an easy-going high school mathematic teacher (she got her Masters in Mathematics at UCLA), and Daniel is a down-to-earth, goofy kinda guy!!  For their engagement photography session, they wanted something with a botanical garden setting, and what better place to go then the Huntington Library Botanical Gardens and  Art Collection.  The Huntington Library is a BEAUTIFUL location for engagement photography sessions, but unfortunately, they are now becoming VERY strict with allowing photography inside the place.  This is because there are a few photographers that have trespassed certain areas in the gardens and violated the garden’s rules and regulations resulting in damage to the priceless property.  I was told that someone decided to hang off the arm of a 300-year old statue and ended up breaking it.  It’s a shame that these irresponsible photographers have ruined it for other photographers who appreciates and wants to photograph at the Huntington Library for it’s true beauty.  If one wants to photograph at the Huntington Library, they would have to obtain a permit or they can risk being thrown out without a refund and/or a fine (of what I was told to be $2000).  Note to photographers: please respect the location in which you’re photographing at.  We are lucky to be able to photography at such a beautiful location, so please use common sense and respect the property.  Don’t disturb other visitors who are there to enjoy the beautiful scenery, but instead try to photograph around them.

Sorry… enough ranting on my part!!  Back to Sarah and Daniel… it was a hot HOT Friday afternoon when we photographed this engagement session, but Sarah and Daniel are such troopers and we had a great time hanging out at the beautiful Huntington Library.

The Chinese Garden is a must-visit when at the Huntington Library.

Thanks Sarah and Daniel for a wonderful time!!  I can’t wait till your big day in November!!

When X’cel and I talked for the first time on the phone, we clicked immediately cause we had so much in common (especially with our pharmacy background).  X’cel and David are two of the sweetest people.  The first time we met, they walked me back to my car after I embarrassingly broke my sandal as we were walking out. I had such a wonderful time hanging out with them both during their engagement session.  These two are so silly and SO in love!!  David LOVES to kiss and every now and then, he also likes to bite X’cel (love bite — that is)!! =)

Isn’t this such an architectural gem??

And this is inside the caged-elevator.

After the Bradbury building, we walked over to the Walt Disney Concert Hall for some more architectural pictures.  I’ve shoot at the Disney Concert Hall many times, and each time I’m happy to find new nooks.

Love the daisies…

We ended their downtown L.A. engagement session with a DELICIOUS bowl of ramen noodles at Daikokuya.  The wait was about an hour (and we were starving) but it was sooooo worth the wait!!  Thank you so much X’cel and David for the wonderful time.  I can’t wait for your wedding in September.

What a perfect dip??!?!!!

It was SO freakin funny my friend Kat (whom we randomly ran into at Union Station), sneaked up behind them and breathed down their neck while this picture was taken.  They honestly thought she was some crazy girl that was gonna attack them!!  Thanks for freaking my clients out Mama Kat!!!

And at the Walt Disney Concert Hall…

love, love, LOVE this picture!!!

Now.. back to Yajahira and Guillermo.  These two love birds are have been together for almost a decade (9 years to be exact).  Yajahira is a lawyer (hehehe… guess who wins when they have arguements) and Guillermo just graduated from grad school.  They are so cute together and I can’t wait to be their wedding photographer on June 5th at Almansor Court in Alhambra.

The Huntington Library now has a “playground” for children.  It’s great for kids on a hot summer afternoon.  There are water fountains that randomly shoot water out and the kids can run around in it.  Fun… fun… fun… makes me wanna be a kid again.

The newest addition to the Huntington Library is the Chinese Garden.  This BEAUTIFUL garden took 10 years to complete (and was finally open in 2006) is a must MUST visit when there.  The garden’s meticulous design reflects harmonious balance between humanity and nature.

I LOVE this picture!!!

From the Chinese Garden we headed over to another beautiful garden… The Japanese Garden!!

And last but not least… the Rose Garden.  It was in full blossom and WOW… it was BEAUTIFUL!!!

You can view their entire engagement session at Huntington Library here.

Cat and Rob are sweet sweet people.  They are very friendly and easy going!!  Cat and Rob are both Koi lovers, and in their backyard, they have a 2500 gallon pond filled with Koi.  Cat and I are both in LOVE with Plumeria.  The Plumeria flower is so pretty and smells SO good!!  Cat has a few in her backyard and has been giving me tips on how to grow mine properly!!  I didn’t know this, but you are not suppose to water the Plumeria plant often.  My Plumeria plant is beginning to sprout and I can see a tiny green bud. heehee.  I can’t wait for it to blossom!!!

Anyhow… enough about gardening and back to pictures!  Here are some of my favorites.  Enjoy…

Cat and Rob LOVES the beach and are both surfers!!  They go to Hawaii 2 to 3 times a year to catch some nice waves.  ***sigh*** I wish I can go to Hawaii two to three times a year!!  Gavin and I just got back a few weeks ago and I think we are still going through Hawaii withdrawal symptoms.  Hawaii is a beautiful place, no wonder everyone that goes never wants to come back.  As a professional wedding photographer in LA County, my goal is to one day book weddings in Hawaii and become a Hawaii destination wedding photographer.  Visit back soon to see my blog posting from our trip to Maui, Hawaii.

And their surfing positions…

It was a gorgeous day for a summer date at Shoreline Village in Long Beach (engagement photography, Shoreline Village, Long Beach).

And of course, Gavin has to add something unique to the pictures!!! LOL… in case you’re wondering, that’s Gavin’s swan!!  I think it looks more like a Duck, but let’s just call it a swan to make Gavin happy!! =D

This picture cracks me up!!!

What’s a beach engagement session (engagement photography), without some sunset/silhouette pictures???

I love these…

I shot Amber and Jeff’s engagement session a few days prior to leaving for Hawaii but didn’t get a chance to blog their engagement session till now.  Amber and Jeff have been pondering where they wanna do their engagement session for a while.  They originally wanted to do their engagement session at Rancho Capistrano (where I did Jenn and Sang’s engagement pictures) but it was a bit too far (for them).  After a month and half of pondering, Amber and Jeff decided they want to check out the LA Arboretum in Arcadia.  It’s funny because I shot Megan and Scott’s wedding at the Los Angeles Arboretum about a week prior to doing Amber and Jeff’s engagement session.  I know I’ve probably said this before, but the LA Arboretum is really a hidden gem in the city of Arcadia.  It’s got beautiful photo opps everywhere!!

Amber is a sweet school teacher and Jeff is a goofy soon to be firefighter!!  The two of them have been together for 9 years now (since high school).  It so sweet to see a couple so in love.  I had a great time hanging out with them.  Jeff is such a silly guy and would crack me up during the entire shoot.

I love this picture…

Check out the entire wedding blog post here!!  Thanks again Heather and Kimberly (at LA Style)… you both are super awesome!!!

ooohhhhhhhhhh…. WOW!!! Miranda and Jordan’s caterer is gonna be Lucilles BBQ!!!  Not only am I looking forward to taking their wedding pictures… but NOW I look forward to delicious food too!!! aahhhhh… I love my job!!!

Since it was pretty crowded, I started Em and Earl off at a more remote and secluded area to ease them in and warm them up to the camera.  What do ya know… heehee…that surely didn’t take long.  After about 10 minutes or so… these two completely learned to ignore me and enjoyed their date together.

I did not photo-shop this picture at all!  I’ve always loved shooting into the sun to get some cool looking solar flares but I especially love this picture for the sun rays and how it’s shining through the trees!! I think it’s pretty cool looking!!

As Em and Earl enjoy their date… I joked about being their “third wheel”.  In the middle of saying so… we stumbled into a wheel! LOL… this means they definitely have to take pictures with the “third wheel”.

Like their cute shadow faces?!?!?  Earl got a happy face and Em got… I don’t know… what does =O mean?!?!?

And of course the lighthouse is a must when photographing at Shoreline Village, Long Beach.  It’s a landmark for that place.

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These two a always giggling and laughing.  I’m not surprised if they are laughing at me because my energy during a photo shoot can make me come across as weird!! =)

This picture was taken right outside a bar along the pier and what’s cute about it is that there were so many people cheering Earl and Emrids on (whistling and clapping) as we took this photo!!

What’s better than ending a beautiful date than sharing a kiss during a beautiful sunset!!

We started off at an abandoned train station… (somewhere in Redlands).

We drove pass their wedding venue on our way to the second location.  It’s a BEAUTIFUL mansion!!  Here are some quick pictures in the front of the mansion.  We’re saving pictures at this location for the their wedding day!!

So… we finally pulled over after Miranda was done teasing me with so many beautiful locations up and down that road.

Some of the places where fenced off so we joking said… “haha… imagine if someone weird dude comes out with a shoot gun and tells us to get off his property.”  Funny thing is… after we said that, we looked on the floor and there were a couple rounds of shoot gun shells!  Miranda, Jordan and I decided that it would be best that we stay the heck out of that property!!

I completely forgot that some of the dry weeds have torn and ouch do they hurt when you walk through them!!

Here are my favorites…

I’ve always thought a kiss on the forehead is “UPER” yes… “Uper” cute!!! There’s something that is so genuine about it…

I LOVE this picture!!!

Anyone want oranges???  because I now know where we can go to get them!!  LOL…

From dry weeds to beautiful blossoms…   These last few pictures were actually in front of some random person’s house.  We were driving back to pick up my car and I can’t pass up a cute photo opp.

I was thinking… how am I going to explain it to the owner if the swing broke.

You can see their entire engagement session here