Amelia Strauss Photography Blog » Amelia Strauss >> Southern California Editorial Photographer / Destination Wedding Photographer

Congratulations to Emily and James! They are taking the plunge and I couldn’t be happier for them :) These two are such a great match and I really enjoyed our engagement session. Their wedding is coming up really soon, on December 6, 2008, and we just barely squeezed in this shoot! This is a couple who I am so thankful to be working with because their spirit and hearts towards one another really comes through in their interactions…it makes for truly lovely images. I’m so excited to be capturing their wedding day and am looking forward to more time with them! I’ll definitely post more shots from this session later, but here is a sneak peek for now…

Congratulations to a great couple!

That’s right…I LOVE LUCY! I am in the middle of a completely crazy week, with Christmas deadlines galore! It goes without saying that my life is pretty swamped at the moment. It can get a little lonely working so much! And then, late last night, my amazing friend Lucy shows up at my house with a present…a get refueled, midnight snack, cram session kind of present…a home-made Rice Krispies Treat Cake. Which, in case you are wondering, is one of my most favorite things ever. And best of all…look what it says :)

What a cutie! I had the opportunity to shoot a portrait session for this sweet girl earlier in the week. This shoot was particularly special to me as her mother was my bible study leader a few years back. It has been amazing to watch her grow into such a lovely young lady! We got such sweet images from our afternoon together that really reflect where she is in her life. I love all those little moments! So here are a few for all of you to enjoy…

Here is a little peek into a maternity shoot from this weekend! Jenn and Heath are joyfully expecting a little girl to arrive in the next few weeks. They are a great couple and will be terrific parents! This shoot was absolutely gorgeous - thanks to some awesome lighting and a completely hot mom-to-be. Some of the images we got rank amongst my favorites EVER - but I’ll have to get permission from Jenn to share any of those with all of you :) For now, here are a few shots from the session…

How sweet is this image…

This is actually Jenn’s bassinet from when she was a little one…

Congratulations Jenn and Heath!!!

I just wanted to give you all a heads-up that I am going to be updating the website this week. Yep, that’s right, in the middle of Christmas Deadlines I have decided to take on yet another huge project. What is that about? Well, I have so many new great images that I want people to see!!! So, slowly but surely throughout this week and next - I will be taking breaks from shooting and deadlines to work on the ASP site. Any feedback is greatly appreciated! I’m well aware that the WEDDINGS and PORTRAITURE sections need to be filled out in a major way. I guess we shall see how it all comes together :)

I just had to share these images with everyone! I LOVED this session and was so happy with the shots we got. What an awesome couple - I’m so excited for them! Congrats again to you two :)

Thank you Christopher and Melissa for the opportunity to work with you! I have truly enjoyed every minute of it and am looking forward to shooting in the spring!

So I googled myself. I know, I know…how lame! But if you’re really honest, hasn’t everyone done this at some point? I was actually wanting to see if my website or blog came up at the very top of a search of my name…which they both do. What made this otherwise pointless activity turn out really interesting is what came up as the 6th ranked site under the search results for my name. Meet the Deviant Art Character named…Amelia Strauss!

Details for this animated character are as follows:

• Character Name: Amelia Strauss

• Age: Looks 23

• Type of Char.: Arrancar

• Element: Fire

• Release Command: Burn - Energy binding technique
  during which the opponent is left temporary without
  spiritual energy of any kind, leaving them with just
  their physical abilities to rely on for battle.

• Personality: Seems reserved and a loner, but actually
  has a righteous and kind spirit behind her tough
  appearance.

• Zanpaku-to: Honoo - When fully released, Amelia’s ram
  horns appear, her eyes turning red and her speed and
  strength increasing.

• BRIEF Character Background: After dying from
  something she rather not talk about, becoming a
  Hollow and removing her mask which remained in a
  rather “Phantom of the Opera” fashion over the left
  side of her face, Amelia stuck around the Arrancars
  seeing as this was what destiny seemed to have
  prepared for her.

I was definitely most excited about the “looks 23”!!! Now, I’m no gamer…and my anime skills are pretty lacking…so I’m not even really sure what all this Deviant Art is about. But, I loved getting to laugh about a character with my name! And hey, who doesn’t want their element to be fire? To check out the original post I found, click here.

SO FUN! I spent this past Wednesday morning (Nov. 12th), out on my old stomping grounds with some new friends. We spent the morning shooting a CD cover for my new buddy Jak out at the Birmingham Airport. The whole crew consisted of myself, Stephen Devries, Paul Bryant, and Scott Fillmer. I had such fun shooting with these guys! It’s always great to make new photog friends, and it goes without saying that musicians are just cool. Period. And Jak was no exception. When it really comes down to it, I was added to this group of rocking guys for the primary purpose of airport and airplane access. My photography skills were secondary to my main purpose - but hey, let’s be honest…they were shooting large format, which is not exactly my normal approach to shoots. I loved shooting the Polaroid 4×5 on the tarmac and just being a part of this whole adventure! It all made for a really fun morning and I loved hanging out with each of these guys. Thanks for one of the most delightfully interesting shoots I’ve been a part of in a while!

Jana and Will became Mr. and Mrs. Flinkow on Saturday, November 8, 2008 on a gorgeous fall day in Alabama. My good friend Emily Kicklighter asked me to shoot this wedding with her, and I had such a great time. Being the second shooter is a really fun position to work in, and it is wonderful to be blessed with friends like Emily in our profession - to be able to support each other by trading off as one another’s second for our booked jobs has been utterly invaluable! Not to mention, it is always fun to work with a good friend :) Jana and Will were delightful and I so enjoyed their family and friends. Thanks for letting me play a role in your very special day!

With Veteran’s Day upon us, and being in the business of love and marriage, I felt it would be very appropriate to give a huge shout out to my lovely parents - THANK YOU! In January of 1970, love was in the air in the midst of the Vietnam War. My father had graduated from West Point in 1968 and was serving with the Fourth Infantry Division as Commander of the Pathfinder Team…my mother had just graduated from Winthrop College in 1969 and went to Vietnam with the Red Cross as a Donut Dolly. Their paths crossed at LZ English near An Khe in South Vietnam and life was never again the same. They had a courtship in the middle of a war and for that matter, right in the thick of it, which lasted throughout the rest of 1970 in Vietnam - and on to their wedding day in November 1971 in Bern, Switzerland. I am so thankful to both of them for the monumental sacrifices they have made for my country, and I am proud to have two vets as parents :) A few years back my brother bought a button at the Oshkosh Air Show stating “My Mother Is A Vietnam Vet”, I mean, how many people can wear that?! Thank you to all the veterans who have served us in so many ways, in war and in peace, at home and abroad. And thank you to my mother and father for finding love in the midst of war, and still reveling in it 38 years later and counting…