Just as soon as Arjel contacted me, I started looking forward to this photo session. A photographer himself, he led with so much enthusiasm about the upcoming family reunion and what we would create together for his loved ones.
San Diego natives, Arjel and his brothers have moved away since high school, and their parents haven’t had everyone together in many years. This was the first time the cousins had met each other!
As the session date approached, Arjel and I communicated about the potential rain in the forecast. We made contingency plans and were determined to do this photo session, rain or no rain! Storms actually washed out a large portion of Coronado beach the night before, and we walked out to the boardwalk to find yellow hazard tape preventing access to some of my favorite spots!
Not to worry. We pivoted and got everything we were after, and Arjel’s youngest brother and his fiance and I even braved the roped off portion for a bit . . . and found out WHY it was roped off!!
Scroll all the way down past my 60-something favorite photos from this session, and read Arjel’s kind review and description of the session from his perspective. I hope I get to see this family again very soon!
This adventurous engaged couple were up for anything, including going beyond the barrier to check out what the king tides did to the Coronado terrain and find out what these “danger” signs were all about! Having just unwrapped my camera upgrade a few days before, and having not actually attached a strap to it, I was soon convinced that the taper-offers were correct, and we headed for a more predictable section of shoreline with the rest of the family.
I loved the sky that night! Such beautiful clouds and light.
This shot of grandfather and grandson is one of my favorites for sure!
Sweet girl begged for a special photo with her daddy when she saw her cousin take a similar shot with her uncle.
And this little one was a tiny bit cautious with the glassy shore (especially when we heard the lifeguards repeatedly cautioning beachgoers to watch for unpredictable waves and riptides). She was all about swinging in the blanket, though!
From Arjel:
If you’re reading this because you are wondering whether you should book Amy to do a photoshoot for you and your family, then wonder no more. As a satisfied customer, I can tell you it’s worth every penny. My Dad recently celebrated his 70th birthday, and we held a family reunion to commemorate the big event. It would be the first time all 12 of us would be together in the same place, and we thought it would be a good idea to capture the moment with a photoshoot. Obviously San Diego has no shortage of great photographers, so we had quite a list of candidates to choose from. That’s probably why you’re reading this review – you want to know which photographer you should choose. I don’t blame you. You want to make an informed decision, and that makes sense for an investment like this.
Amy was extremely receptive to our questions before, during, and after booking, and honored every single one of our grouping and pose requests. She was an absolute wizard at managing the golden hour of photography (those sixty precious minutes before the sun sets), and gathered the four young kids in our party with ease. When an unexpected closure of one part of Coronado Beach took away our ideal shooting location, Amy immediately pivoted to an alternate spot and the end result was just as beautiful.
Perhaps the best part of the entire experience was Amy’s ability to capture the true emotions of all her subjects. Every smile, every laugh, every gaze of awestruck wonder – all of these appeared on the images we received. From the first shot onward, Amy put our entire party at ease. Half the time, we weren’t even aware she was actively shooting – because it all felt so natural. And fun!
So yes, definitely book Amy for your vacation / family / beach photoshoot – you will most certainly not regret it. In fact, you’ll thank yourself in 25 years when you’re looking at the prints that will surely still be hanging on your walls.
