I’m not gonna lie, I am a planner. I like to scout all locations before-hand so when it comes time to shoot my mind is free to focus on creating and capturing expression. I had Verny Park all worked out, in the late afternoon sun. It was supposed to be a sunny day for this shoot and I was set, or so I thought. The sun likes to do funny things here in Yokosuka. It follows its forecasted plan until my shoots draw near. It likes to keep me on my toes, constantly changing by coming in and out of clouds at will. If constantly changing lighting conditions will not keep you on your toes during a photo session then a soon-to-be toddler surely will.

There are many things I love about my job but number one is working with wonderful people like Reine Lea, Michael, and Patrick. No matter what unknowns an outdoor shoot throws your way, you know you can’t disappoint when people like this show up. We had a great session and wonderful conversation all the way back to base after it was over.

I have long been obsessed with creating dark moody images of a woman in a red dress in a dark green forest. Something about the bold contrasting colors really grabs me. Recently I was almost able to make this happen. The Yokosuka community has been very welcoming to me and during the process of making new friends, I ended up meeting fellow photographer P-Jay Wyche. We have similar working styles and decided that a collaboration would be fun. P-Jay scouted the talent. Chelsea Gonzales of All Dolled Up by Chelsea did the make-up and the lovely and talented Shamira was our model. As you will see, there is no red dress. This collaboration took on a life of its own as everybody put their mark on it. Great fun. I will get my red dress images another day…

I had a fun and somewhat unexpected photo shoot last weekend at the beach with Jen and Adam. The unexpected part was Buddy. He came along for the ride so we decided to include him in the fun. It turns out Buddy is as great a model as his owners.

It’s funny, sometimes going into a shoot you have a new idea you think will be totally awesome. I had this idea to do more serious, contemplative poses. All I made this couple do was laugh. I can go with that. It’s was great working with such genuinely happy people.