A New Addition to the Moser Family!!! ;)

Well, Matt and I have been waiting to share some big news until we knew a little bit more... and now it's time!

It's official... our little family of two will increase by one in March!!! And, we found out this week... through a very up close and personal ultrasound (it looked like baby was sitting on a photocopier spread eagle!)... that it's a BOY!!!

The one directly above... do you see it... these ultrasounds are kind of difficult to make out sometimes... picture it... little baby bottom in lower right hand corner with legs going out to opposite corners from there... with a little cover up for the boy "stuff." Trust daddy... it's there! ;)

We're so excited!!! I feel fantastic... no morning sickness or anything! And, no... we don't have a name yet! ;)

How will this affect my clients or clients to be... I hope not at all... there will just be more of me to love! ;) I'll be taking March and April off but I'll be available before and after that pretty much full time for weddings and lots of portrait sessions.

I'm back... and lots of things are on the horizon!

I'm back and have been super busy. Stay tuned for...

...Shane and Yvonne's wedding in Kauai and their fabulous day after session...
...Michelle and Emory's HB e-session and San Diego wedding...
...the Carameros family session shot at White Sands in New Mexico (what a GREAT bunch!)...
...a Senior session with the beautiful Mia Carameros in Texas (SO MUCH FUN!!!)...
...an EXCITING contest...
...Ryan and Cherstin's personal and lovely wedding...
...and maybe some other exciting news...
...PHEW!!!

I'm off to Disneyland this morning to shoot Tasha and Glenn's e-session at Disneyland (their wedding is this Friday at the Disneyland Hotel Rose Garden and their reception will be at the beautiful Grand Californian hotel). (Update... here's a shot from this morning's e-session!!!)



See you back here soon!

Natalie Moser Photography: New Website is LIVE!!!

Check it out!!! My new website is LIVE!!!



I'd like to call this a "soft" opening... meaning I'm looking for comments and feedback while I fine tune the galleries, etc. Please note that the new site is located at a different web address...

www.nataliemoserphotography.com.

Got that... "Moser" is spelled out in this one. ;) My old site is still live but will be coming down shortly. So, if you link to my site from your blog... pretty please change the url link to my new address... thank you bunches!!! (For now, the blog will remain at the same address).

Again, I'm still working on the galleries but the bones are there and I'm really excited about it. I worked with the fantastic folks at Livebooks to create it and I'm really happy with the way it looks... clean and modern... with BIG pictures!!! You can view a few featured slideshows directly from the site, as well. I hope you enjoy it!

I'd love to hear your comments/feedback on the site.

Oh... and check out the first 4 shots in the "WED: portraits" portfolio... they're from Shane and Yvonne's "Day After Session" last week in Kauai... BTW- I'll be blogging that (the wedding, our fun adventures and the Day After session) next week. Yvonne looks AMAZING! Shane doesn't look too shabby either. ;) Oh... see if you can find Yvonne in the opening images... hint... "beauty : captured."

Meanwhile, I'm off to shoot a wedding tomorrow in San Diego and then Saturday I'm off for some destination portrait sessions in Texas where I'll be doing both a senior session on Saturday and a family session at White Sands in New Mexico on Sunday... should be pretty cool! You know... I don't think I've ever been in 4 states (Hawai, California, New Mexico, and Texas) in that little time before... phew! ;)

I'll be back early next week!!!

Brides Magazine/WPJA Contest: I won 1st Place!

I'm so excited!!!

One of my images won first place in the Group/Bridal Party category in the 2007 Brides Magazine/WPJA Photography Contest. Round 1 of the contest was judged by an all Pulitzer Prize winning panel and the final round of images was then judged by the Editorial Department of Brides Magazine. I feel very honored to have an image place, let alone win 1st, and to be amongst a group of very esteemed photographers.

You can link to the online article at Brides magazine here and (if you want...) you can check the news stands for the November/December Issue of Brides Magazine where the 1st place images will be featured.

Without further ado, here's the image...




It was taken at the Parker in Palm Springs right before the wedding of Mimi (wedding planner extraordinairre of Enjoy Celebrations and Occasions) and Gabe Palmer.

Here's what the judges had to say about the image, "With the bridesmaids’ backs to the camera, Moser turns a standard before-the ceremony moment into an intimate, dramatically lit portrait. The flower girls’ body language is classic kid-dom: bored but trying so hard to behave."

More exciting news is coming soon... a new website perhaps?... stay tuned!!!

And, to my clients and clients-to-be who are awaiting email/phone responses I'm almost through my stack from being gone last week. Thanks for your patience!!! Talk to you soon!

Off to Kauai for Shane and Yvonne's Wedding

Hi loyal readers and passers-by. Matt and I are off to Kauai bright and early tomorrow morning for the wedding of our dear friends Shane and Yvonne. We're really looking forward to the wedding and, yes, I might have a few pics to share when I get back. ;) I decided to leave the laptop at home... I don't think our condo has internet access (can you believe it?).

On that note, I will be out of the office beginning tomorrow (Sunday, 9/30) and returning Monday, 10/8. That means I'll return voice mails and emails shortly after my return.

To my clients who are eagerly awaiting online galleries other fun photo stuff (aka blog previews)... thanks for your patience... I'll be back in a jiffy and your fun stuff will be there shortly after that. ;)

Aloha!

PS- Shout out to Jenny and Dan... you're going to LOVE your e-session images. I'll blog them as soon as I get back. WOWSER!!! Too many to choose from!!! BTW- Thanks for the Sprinkles cupcakes... you really do know the way to my heart. ;)

[AG]WPJA Contest: Multiple Winning Images!

Woohoo!!! I recently found out that four images of mine placed in various categories of the Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association's ([AG]WPJA) most recent contest. I ended up with two images that placed in the top 10 and one in the top 20 for the "reception" category. And, I had an additional image that placed in the top 20 for the portrait category.

A huge thank you to all of my wonderful couples and a big congratulations to all the winners of the contest. Your work is incredible and inspiring!

These types of things are always fun for me... Here are a few words about the [AG]WPJA and what it's all about followed by the winning images.

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The Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association [AG]WPJA is comprised of outstanding wedding photographers (WPJA members), who are at the forefront of the wedding photography industry when it comes to enhancing images. The chief objective of the [AG]WPJA is to provide members with a platform where the finest enhanced, manipulated and/or artistic wedding photojournalism in the world is spotlighted and promoted for the bride and groom.

The [AG]WPJA establishes and upholds high standards that are taken into consideration during the judging process for our wedding photography contests. Using all artistic tools at their disposal, members skillfully enliven their work in post production processing.
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Now on to the images...

The first and highest placing image (4th in the Reception category) comes from Melissa and Nathan's wedding. This image was taken during the toasts and features Melissa's mom, Eveline along with close relatives and friends of the family. Eveline, such a beautiful mother, was very moved by the day... it was a lovely moment.

Here's what the judge had to say about the image... "Superb toning, complimented by a textured overlay, accent this quiet moment." This next image (which placed 8th in the Reception category) was also taken during the toasts at Melissa and Nathan's wedding. I just loved this little guy's eyes and expression.

A few words from the judge, "This image has an early Magnum Photos feel. Quiet, balanced and timeless..."
The following image (placed 17th in the reception category) closed out one of the most fun weddings I've ever attended or been a part of, Nicole and Tommy's big day. This one was taken as Nicole and Tommy drove away at the very end of their reception. So fun.

A few words from the judge, "Staying on your toes during the parting shots is always a good idea, you just never know what people are going to do as they exit. I like the little accent of the one way sign in the background."
And, for the final winning image (17th in the Portraits category)... a portrait taken during Andi and Steve's wedding. This fantastic couple was open to anything... I love that!!! When I saw this old boarded up house and brought them up on the porch... they were totally up for it (even while some guests were wondering what in the heck that crazy photographer was doing).

A few word from the judge, "The image has a vintage, bleached Polaroid land camera feel that only accentuates the background and attitudes of this couple."

WPJA Contest: Image in the Top 10!

Hi all! ;)

I'm excited to say that one of my images placed in the "top 10" in the "Getting Ready" category of the most recent Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA) contest. A big thanks to my beautiful bride Nicole who is being primped by three wonderful Greek ladies (all close relatives if you couldn't tell) before heading out to the ceremony to marry her amazing fiance (now husband), Tommy. Click here to view Nicole and Tommy's incredible wedding at St. Paul's Greek Orthodox Church and their spectacular reception at Laguna's own Seven-Degrees.

Here's a little paragraph about the WPJA, which I'm proud to be a part of...

Leading the way in Wedding Photojournalism, WPJA represents the most discriminating talent around the world technically, creatively and visually. Qualified members hold industry-leading standards, skills and business integrity.

Family and Senior Portrait Promo (book now!)

Hi all my loyal readers and newbies, too! It’s impossible. Are they seriously already promoting this year’s fall fashions in the malls? Sweaters? What happened to the swimsuits? Is it already time to shop for back-to-school gear? What happened to the summer?

Alas, summer is almost gone. And, it’s time to think about those holiday and Christmas greeting cards! (I know... I know... already?)

During September and October, NMP is planning to schedule a limited number of family and senior portrait sessions. These sessions last about an hour and are shot on location (e.g. at the beach, the park, a freeway overpass (trust me), an empty field or whatever you and I come up with). Wherever the location, the sessions are fun, relaxed, and different from what you think of when you think “family portraits or "senior portraits".

Book your session before September 5th and you’ll receive a special promotional credit towards our full line of custom products including really cool and fun custom greeting cards, canvas gallery wall hangings, fine art prints, albums and so much more!

So, book now while openings are still available. ;) Enjoy your last few weeks of summer!

AGWPJA Contest: One of my images placed! :)

Hi all! ;)

I'm excited to say that one of my images placed in the "Getting Ready" category of the most recent AGWPJA (Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association) contest. A big thanks to my beautiful bride Jenell who is having her veil put on next to her incredible dress .

Here's a little paragraph about the AGWPJA, which I'm proud to be a part of...

The Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association [AG]WPJA is a group of international wedding photojournalists, who capture unscripted wedding moments as they happen, and excel in the art of post-production image processing. The [AG]WPJA is a division within the Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA); one which specifically promotes Fine Art Wedding Photojournalism.

Stay tuned... my 7/7/7 wedding is coming shortly... meanwhile... off to Napa/Sonoma to celebrate my 3rd wedding anniversary to my wonderful husband, Matt... we'll be heading back to the place where we got married... I'll post some pics from our trip next week. ;)

Yeah for me!!!

I'm so excited!!! I recently received the honor of being accepted into the Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association (a sister organization to the WPJA). This is important to me because the only way to to be accepted is to place in one of their quarterly contests. Only 16 photographers in California have been invited to join AGWPJA.

Here’s what the AGWPJA says about its photographers and membership -

The Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association [AG]WPJA is a group of international wedding photojournalists, who capture unscripted wedding moments as they happen, and excel in the art of post-production image processing. The [AG]WPJA is a division within the Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA); one which specifically promotes Fine Art Wedding Photojournalism. The [AG]WPJA hosts quarterly contests, in which only WPJA members may participate. Photographers whose images attain 1st-10th place, receive a personal invitation for [AG]WPJA membership. This is the only way to become a member of the Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association–by invitation.

Here’s the photo from Jenn and Carl's wedding that placed in the "Getting Ready" category. Thank you so much for letting me be a part of your day guys!!! You two are my good luck charm!