2008 January | kim le photography blog

Archive for January, 2008

nkotb part deux

January 29, 2008

“bringing sexy back”

So last night, after hearing the great news about NKOTB’s comeback, I tried finding my old NKOTB t-shirt at my mom’s house. To my dismay, I think my momma sold the shirt during one of her infamous garage sales (along with my Strawberry Shortcake doll!). But to my delight, I found these old-skool pics of me and my St. Anthony of Padua schoolmates instead:

nkotb t-shirt

So the quality’s not that great – I had to scan these photos as there was no such thing as a digital camera back in 1989. But, check me out rocking the superfly bangs and black hair!!! Oh and how about the Vietnamese supermaket calendar in the background! LOL. I laughed so hard when I came across these photos. Don’t you like how we turned around in the 2nd pic to show off the back of the shirts??? HAHHAH…memories…*sigh*

Tags: garage sales, mom, nkotb, st. anthony of padua, Strawberry Shortcake, t-shirts
Posted in personal | 2 Comments »

nkotb returns!!!

January 28, 2008

“i’ll be loving you (forever)”

BIG, BIG news for Monday!!! The New Kids on the Block a.k.a NKOTB are making a comeback!!! You can read about the exciting details by clicking here! And boy am I excited!!! It brings me back to my childhood days when I was sporting the NKOTB shoelaces and signing my diary “Mrs. Joey McIntyre“. LOL. Sure I was like 8 years old, but I knew I was in love with Joey, Jordan, Jonathan, Danny and Donnie. I mean who doesn’t love the song “ Please Don’t Go Girl“?!!! =) So when I was 8, my sister and I tricked my older neighbor into buying us concert tickets – I don’t know how we came up the moola (perhaps we emptied out our piggy banks) but we did. Sadly though, our parents did not support (in my momma’s voice) “bad boys wearing cut up jeans” and we ended up quietly sitting at home wondering what could have been.

At last though – 20 years later (how sad is that?!) redemption is mine (”muahahahha“) and I can finally sing “oh oh oh oh oh, oh oh oh oh oh the right stuff” loud and proud with my kooky sister and 30,000 other fans! I can’t wait for the tour and there better be one!!! Given the fact that they are no longer “new” or “kids”, I’m not sure if they will still be able to do that “right stuff” dance – you know where they kick their legs apart? Yeah, you know what dance I’m talking about =). Nevertheless, I’m ecstatic!!! I’m going to dig up my NKOTB t-shirt right away!!! I’m sure it still fits! =)

Tags: hangin' tough, joey mcintyre, jordan night, new kids on the block, nkotb, right stuff
Posted in personal | 2 Comments »

sharing is caring

January 26, 2008

“tell me baby”

I often get asked by couples for wedding planning tips and vendor referrals, which I do not mind at all. I’ve experienced quite a few weddings (but not my own! =)) so I have a general understanding of what makes a wedding great and not so great. I must admit I love hearing about the wedding planning from my couples. I think every wedding is so unique to every couple and tells such a vivid story of their relationship. From the number of guests to the colors of the bridesmaids dresses – every detail is a colorful portrayal of the couples themselves. As your wedding photographer, I make it a point to learn more about my clients and the details of their wedding day. I believe being able to relate to your clients means being able to capture images that accurately reflect the essence of your clients. So feel free to divulge every detail (well maybe not every detail – I don’t really need to know what color socks the groom plans to wear! Well maybe I do – I might snap a pic of them!!!) and feel totally free to ask away! As I have told all of my clients: “I am here to help make your wedding day everything you imagined it to be“. I am more than happy to offer any wedding related “advice”. I must however, disclaim that I am no expert =). Part of me has always wanted to be a wedding planner, but I think my demand for utter perfection would drive me and you nuts. Besides if I’m busy coordinating the wedding, who’s going to take all the beautiful pictures??? =)

And if you are a **wedding vendor** – I am always looking to network and would be delighted to meet you!!! I have met some amazing vendors through my experiences thus far (Brigitte Hurney of Save the Date! Event Planning and Christina Wright of Simply Modern Weddings to name a few) and would be delighted to expand my network. As I said, I like to learn more about the details of weddings and what better way than to learn from the experts themselves!!! So if you’re out there, holla back! =)

Another great vendor I met along the way: Flower Allie of Fullerton, CA. They provided gorgeous flowers for my sister’s June 2007 wedding. Here’s a pic of my oh-so-lovely maid-of-honor bouquet that I oh-so-gracefully carried (sort of =)):

Flower bouquet

Tags: bouquet, coordinator, flower allie, flowers, fullerton, save the date, simply modern weddings, vendors, wedding planning, weddings
Posted in FAQ | 2 Comments »

tgif

January 25, 2008

“buy you a drink”

Starting off the weekend with some “Champagne and Chambord”:

champagne and chambord

Picture taken via my White Chocolate phone camera.

Tags: Chambord, champagne, drink, friday, phone, verizon, white chocolate
Posted in personal | No Comments »

wendy & wes: engagement

January 23, 2008

“who knew”

Last Saturday, I had the pleasure of shooting an engagement session for Wendy & Wes. Wendy was the maid of honor from Dustin & Wendi’s August 2007 wedding and I was delighted to get a chance to work with Wendy again. We shot the e-session at East Lake Village Recreation Center in Yorba Linda, CA. Wendy grew up in the East Lake Village area so it was a meaningful location for her. The East Lake Village is this hidden gem in Yorba Linda complete with a beautiful lake, gorgeous trees and ducks. Wendy & Wes were so easy to work with and so obviously in love that you couldn’t help but capture all of the beauty on camera. Even in between shots, these two were completely fixated on each other and continuously whispering sweet somethings. Who knew a 6′8″-baseball playing guy like Wes was such a softie! =P.

I’m soooo looking forward to Wendy & Wes’ wedding in March, not only because they are a super fun couple but also because the wedding will take place in one of my favorite places – Vegas!!! I can’t wait to actually be making money in Vegas for a change…hahah… One of the many perks of the job is the opportunity for destination weddings, which I looooove to be a part of!!!! So if you have one coming up and need a wedding photographer – you know who to ask! =)

Thanks Wendy & Wes for such a fun shoot and I’m sure there will be more fun times at your March wedding! Vegas baby! =)

Here are some of the wonderful images from our splendid shoot:

ww engagement shoot in yorba linda

I just love finding items unique to the location and using them as props in my shoots. Here are some examples:

Umm…I’m not sure Wendy & Wes are quite on the same page… =)

Ok maybe they are =):

This is for Wendy & Wes and one of my favorite sequences of the shoot. I like to call this sequence: “duck tales”. Wendy & Wes: I hope the picture serves its purpose! =)

The sun was just so beautiful that day:

And the finale to another great shoot!

To see more images from our e-session, check out Wendy & Wes’ SLIDESHOW by clicking HERE!

Tags: ducks, east lake village, engagement, recreation center, vegas, yorba linda
Posted in engagements | 5 Comments »

new year = new blog

January 21, 2008

“changes”

Congrats!!! You made it here to my fabulous new blog! YAY!!! So okay, it doesn’t look much different (why fix something that ain’t broke?!?), but it is powered by super cool Wordpress. Wordpress is this new advanced blogging tool with all kinds of neat features. I highly recommend anyone and everyone to blog! It’s such a fun way to express yourself and communicate to the rest of this crazy world we live in.

So back to my lovely new blog… I am what you would call a perfectionist so I am always trying to find new ways to improve and build upon everything in my life. For my blog, I added these super easy navigation tabs up top and to the right – keeping with my pink & brown theme of course. And (drum roll please!!!) there’s a contact form on the contact page! How exciting is that?!? Okay maybe not that exciting, but it’s just another way for you to reach me and me to reach you! So feel free to leave me a message or two. OH! I almost forgot the most important part! I have a new blog address – “ta-da!“:

www.kimlephotography.com/blog

Please read aloud – doesn’t it just roll off your tongue?! Okay, maybe it doesn’t but it is a lil’ shorter than my previous address. So please do whatever you need to memorize it: bookmark it, digg it, write it on your forehead or text it to yourself. Whatever you need to keep on visiting it! =) I will redirect from my old blog just so you don’t miss a beat!!!

And in more exciting non-Britney related news, my website will be coming soon!!! It’s in the works and there is light at the end of the tunnel. So please stay tuned!!!

I just realized I ended 90% of the sentences in this post with exclamation points. I guess I am just really excited about my new blog! I hope you are too! =)

Tags: blog, britney, digg, website, wordpress
Posted in FAQ | 2 Comments »

n’awlins

January 18, 2008

“forever young”

I apologize for not posting lately. Last weekend, I had to travel to New Orleans, LA for a family funeral. It was a sad time for my family, but I know my cousin is in a better place. As unfortunate of an event it was, I was able to reunite with family and return to the city where I was born and raised. In 1980 and after the fall of Saigon, my parents fled Communist-controlled Vietnam by boat in search of a better life for my family. I am still amazed today by my parents’ courage and their ability to overcome adversity and difficulty. I can’t even imagine what they went through – my mother was even pregnant with me at that time! Upon arrival to the United States, my family received sponsorship and found their way to New Orleans. A few months later, I was born and our family lived there for the next 11 years prior to moving to Orange County, CA. I have very fond childhood memories of New Orleans and could not believe the damage Hurricane Katrina brought to the City in 2005. This was my first time back to New Orleans post-Katrina and you can still see the devastating impact Katrina had on the City and the people of New Orleans. There were a lot of abandoned buildings and homes and areas yet to be rebuilt. Only 60% of the pre-Katrina population has returned to the City. I believe over time, the infrastructure will be rebuilt and the City will flourish once again. New Orleans has so much history, vibrancy and culture that I can’t imagine it any other way.

In the midst of mourning with our beloved family, we squeezed in some time to take in New Orleans and all its splendor:

What New Orleans is famous for – Bourbon Street, Mardi Gras, partying and crawfish (yum)!:

no1

New Orleans also has amazing architecture, I just love the Creole townhouses you find throughout the French Quarter:

Sadly, we could not find Angelina, Brad, Pax or the rest of the Jolie-Pitt clan anywhere:

In the heart of the French Quarter is Jackson Square which boasts the grand St. Louis Cathedral:

and the infamous Cafe du Monde!!! I looooove this place! If you ever go to New Orleans, you must eat here!

They serve incredible beignets and coffee. Beignets are french-style doughnuts sprinkled with powder sugar. They are sooo good that we seriously had beignets at least 2 times a day while we were there.

Growing up, we also had crawfish at least once a week. If you ever grew up in New Orleans, ya’ll know what I’m talking. These suckers are so tasty and spicy and fun to eat. To say the least, my sisters and I had our “fix” at the fabulous Acme Oyster House, where they not only sell hot & spicy boiled crawfish by the pound (the only way to eat it!), but also the best oyster po’ boys I have ever eaten! You must check this place out! Here’s my kooky sister showing off her crawfish:

Told ya she was kooky =):

After we were done visiting the French Quarter and stuffing ourselves, we decided to take a walk down memory lane or Canal Street – the street we use to live on. Here’s our old house (it’s the one smack in the middle of the picture)! It looks a lot different now, as it had to be fixed up after Hurricane Katrina.

And 3 blocks down the street from our house was my elementary school – St. Anthony of Padua! It was such a great school – I think I still have my uniform somewhere. And boy did walking 3 blocks seem far when I was a kid. Here’s my other kooky sister trying to break into the school:

Tags: angelina, beignets, brad, cafe du monde, canal street, crawfish, french quarter, hurricane katrina, jackson brewery, new orleans, oysters, st. anthony of padua, st. louis cathedaral, vietnam
Posted in personal | 4 Comments »

lil’ mindy

January 3, 2008

“bubbly”

Hi everyone and Happy New Year!!! Ok so I am back from Vegas and unfortunately I am now poor and sick…lol. But, I am very excited for 2008 – I have this feeling it is going to be a great year for me, my loved ones and Kim Le Photography.

Before I left for Vegas, I captured lil’ Mindy in her element at the park. It was her 8th birthday and I’ve seen Mindy grown into quite the lil’ lady, not to mention a budding young model.

Introducing the birthday girl and future America’s Next Top Model: