Gabbie + Marvin // Los Angeles Maternity

Emma's weekly portraits: Weeks 64 - 65

 I still can't believe it... even when I say it out loud. My baby is fifteen months! And its been the best time of my life!  I thank God for allowing me to be mommy to a little person with a kind heart & full of soo much love.

Emma's weekly portrait: Week 59

I love these curly-q's! :)

All our dreams can come true - if we have the courage to pursue them. 

- Walt Disney                                                                                              

Play date at the Villa | Los Angeles Portraits

My friend Alexia is in visiting from out of state... She's a mommy of three adorable children & happens to be a fantastic photographer herself! For the past three years she's been running a successful photography business, Ty Bebe Photography, out of Souther California, and a couple of months ago moved out to Utah. If you're in Utah, you have to check her out!

As photographers, we usually don't get too many pictures with our own children, so Alexia & I wanted to do something about that. We headed out to the Getty Villa in Malibu for a play date and enjoyed a beautiful day with the kiddos.

Here are some of my fav's of Alexia, Tyson, Layla & Kira!

This is Layla... 

... Tyson ... 

... and Kira!

Alexia, your gorgeous!!

Looking forward to another play date next time your in town Alexia!

Hugs & kisses to you four from Emma and I :)

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

The Monday after

I woke up this morning feeling good about today. Don't ask me why (just yet) but its going to be a good day. This past weekend may have something to do with it or the fact that I had an extra hour to sleep because of Daylight Savings Time? Possibly. I don't know, but I'm certainly looking forward to a week of new opportunities and blessings.

Saturday, I was the main photographer, for the first time I might add, at a wedding! Boy did I have tons of emotions running through me & I wasn't even the bride. I couldn't sleep the night before, I doubled and tripled checked my my equipment before leaving to make sure I wasn't forgetting anything... I'm going to be completely honest, there were times when it crossed my mind that maybe I wasn't fit to do this just yet, but on Saturday once the day started rolling it was pretty much non-stop and very exhilerating! On my drive back home once it was all said and done I realized I wanted to be doing this for the rest of my life. Wedding photography. Yup my first official wedding and I'm hooked! Yesterday I went through some of the images & I love them! Cannot wait to share :)

"You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do. "

~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Has there ever been a time in your life where you were scared to do something yet you did it and were pleased with the outcome? Please share, I'd love to hear from YOU!

And because a post is always better with a picture I leave you Troy & Lola - they are always soo happy to see me each time I get home!

Wedding Sites

I've been wanting to share this with you for a while now, and I'm ecstatic to finally be able do it! Included in all my wedding collections is a wedding website that I will customize for every client which comes with at least 4 pages - Home, Our Story, Slideshow & Wedding Details. As you can imagine this is an awesome way to showcase with family & friends your engagement session along with wedding location, bridal registry info, etc...  Each client will have its own personal URL (the one below is http://www.sample.belinda-love.com/) - your name would go instead of "sample".  Then you will be able to put this url on your Save the Date cards or invitations... It can save you time, money and who isn't up for that? The possibilities are endless!




I'd love to hear what you guys think.. Good idea? As a potential client, would you be interested in a wedding site?
HAPPY MONDAY~!

Reflections . . .

Last night I got home waay past my bedtime. I was tired yet my mind didn't have plans to rest. There were too many questions floating around in my head (still are) in regards to my business. Goals? Where I want to see my business in 5 years? What makes me different from other photographers? Failure, etc. . . and the list goes on. Its not that I haven't not had these questions before, but you can say I've been putting them off.
 Jeff Jochum, of www.startup-strategy.com/ was the guest speaker and blew me away! This was my first Smugmug L.A. meeting which was held at the Global Cafe in Studio City (thank you Cherisse for inviting me), and I loved it! I'm hooked. Personally, Jeff left me with alot of good questions and a clarity of where I want to take my business. Next, I need to map it out. This weekend I will be making "Goal Charts" that will constantly remind me, in case I get sidetracked. I encourage you to do the same & check out the links above.
 If your looking to meet new people in the same business with similar goals, I strongly suggest you attend these meetings (once a month) and I promise you will leave with at least one good piece of advice or a new friend ;) Best part its FREE! So check out their website & I hope to see you next month!

Whose coming with me??

In other news, I'm not sure if you noticed, but this blog has a new address - http://www.belindalovephotography.blogspot.com/ (formally known as belindagomez.blogspot.com) don't forget to change your RSS feeds!
Also, I've been tweaking my website so check out the new stuff on there

Home

And because a post is always better with a picture, this is a quote that I jotted down from last night

It's Friday, the weather is expected to be awesome this weekend, so get out there & enjoy! xoxo

Learning to say no.

Saying no is not an easy task. But are the good things in life easy? Like getting up in the morning to exercise. Easy no, but essential to be healthy. I feel great & energized, ready to take on the world, yet I cannot get myself to get up from my warm & cozy bed where Troy is asking for more stomach rubs. So that is why I exercise in the afternoon (working on making it part of my everyday routine). I'm simply not a morning person. Nor do I like to stay up late every night. So what does that make me?? LOL
This past Monday I was blessed to get a photo session from, Damaris Mia Photogrphay whom I now consider a good friend. She's awesome, yet I'm not sure I'm awesome in front of the camera. It was a great experience. Feel like I can now relate a little better with my clients. Anyway, we talked business and life over dinner. The question came up "Should I take a job if I already have plans with friends/family for a particular date?" We discussed it & moved on to the next topic. But for some reason that has stuck with me. And after thinking it over, I believe its a clear No. Why? Well, job opportunities will always be there if you continue to work hard, yet family should always be a priority. It may or may not be the easiest thing to do, but its time taken away from loved ones.  Time we cannot have back. Tomorrow is not guranteed. Whether your a photographer or have a 9-5 job doesnt make a difference, because in the end we do not want to live with too many regrets. I have a couple friends who have newborns & toddlers... I'm sure you do too; they are experts on how fast time goes by!
Side Note: I'm not telling anyone what to do, this is just my humble opinion. And if this helps one person, that makes my day. If it helps a couple that makes my week :)

Damaris Mia celebrated her first year in business a couple months ago & my 1 year anniversary will be coming up in September. So as you can imagine, we are still not 100 percent established, yet I truly believe we are both on the right track. We have similar work ethics and goals. We both agree that other photographers are people we can learn from instead of competiton. She just posted in regards to this on her blog... check it out & leave some LOVE. Below is what she posted as her preview on facebook.

Happy Wednesday! xoxo