I'm a passionate photographer who loves to document lifes special moments in a photograph. Although I am somewhat new to the photography field I have always been in a creative field. I graduated from Chapman University in Orange, CA with a degree in Public Relations and have taught figure skating for the past ten years. Between my education and skating experience I have learned how to see things as a beautiful picture. When I do choreography for skating I have to make movements that are beautiful and match the music. I feel as though photography is similar. I want my subjects to be themselves, even if posed, and my goal is to catch their beauty in a moment.
As most of you know I have a photo in a contest on Bobby Earle’s blog. The contest ends today (Monday) at midnight PST! This is my last plea for your vote. Will this be my moment…
Contest Video from Richelle Dante on Vimeo.
Click HERE to vote now! And feel free to share the link to my blog with your friends on Facebook and Twitter!
- OH Richelle. I love this video.
- Isn't the pic from phi-phi islands?? not phuket?
- This is so great! I love it! Haha!
- OMG!! LOL I agree with Cherish you are out of control!! Just kidding I love the video, but your picture is from Phi Phi Islands goober!
- Your sooooo funny! Love it. And yes, I voted. And so did my hubby. Can my dog vote too? ;)
- Beautiful!
- This is AMAZING!
- I just love this!!
Quick side note… Have you heard about the contest that I need your vote for? If you haven’t, where have you been??? I’m sure some of you are annoyed with my constant “vote for me” blogs, Facebook and Twitter status updates but I am very competitive and I like to win. =) So, with that said, click HERE and head over to Bobby Earle’s blog. You vote by leaving a comment with the #4, if you want to vote for me! Be sure to leave your name because anonymous votes won’t count. Voting ends February 8th at midnight PST.
Last weekend I had an awesome family shoot in Laguna…
My friend and amazing photog, Hannah, came with. The sun was getting ready to set when we finished up and Hannah decided to take a few shots. As she was shooting a little girl and her dad walked by…
She was so adorable and caught both of our eyes (that saying sounds weird when you say it plural, but you know what I mean!). We asked her dad if he would mind if we took a few photos. He obviously said it was okay…
Meet Ellie… she’s 18 months old and too freaking cute!!!
She loved wearing her dad’s hat…
And she loves her dad.
Heart melting. Seriously oozing adorableness!!
And a little smile after seeing the image before in camera.
Warning to all parents… If I’m out, have my camera and I see a cute kid, I might ask to photograph them! Seriously, how could I have not stopped and taken a few shots of Ellie!
- Those last two are just incredible! What a perfect little face...and those curls!
- OMG she is adorable. Great photos.
- Those are just precious. And the lighting is amazing. Love them!
- She is gorgeous....those eyes are amazing!
- OMG! She should be a child model! LOVE the way you captured her big blue eyes :)
Before I tell you about this awesome family, please be sure to go vote for my photo, #4, on Bobby Earle’s blog. To learn more about it, check out my last blog post. Thanks!
On Saturday I met the sweetest family! Veronica, Cal, Jeremy, Hadowas, and Sofia came ready for some fun shooting on the beach. I love shooting in Laguna because of all the pretty rocks. Sometimes I get bored with just an ocean so I need some rocks to keep it exciting! It was a perfect day, not too cold, not too hot. The sun was shining and the kids were smiling. Hadowas and Jeremy had fun climbing the rocks and looking for little crabs. Sofia enjoyed discovering sand for the first time! Here are a few fun shots…
Such a cutie!
The boys were so sweet with their little sister!
Jeremy and Hadowas
While I was shooting Veronica and Cal…
The boys were having fun climbing on the rocks!
Sofia discovered sand and then had to try it out. She discovered it doesn’t taste very good.
Such a sweet family…
I love this one… while they were all laughing, Sofia decided to start crying. Love the contrast. =)
- Love them all!! Thanks Richelle!!
- Love the walking shot! Such a fun moment!
- Those are really nice!
- SOOO beautiful pictures. Looks like some good engagement photos to me...lol.
Hello loyal blog readers! If you followed my journey through Thailand and Cambodia you will probably know the name Bobby Earle. He lead the trip and is now having a contest on his blog. All of us that went on the trip submitted our best or favorite photo. Mine is #4 and you can vote by leaving a comment on the blog with my number! The cool thing is you have a chance to win too! One commenter will randomly be chosen to win a free year of Smugmug Pro! So head on over and vote!!!
Voting ends February 8th at midnight (PST)!
Here is the photo I entered taken at the Phi Phi Islands.
And a few others from the trip…
Amy practicing her Yoga at Erwan Falls
Josh being attacked by some of the kids at the orphanage.
I think one of the kids took this one of me…
A little girl trying to keep the flies off of the fish with a fan made out of a plastic bag.
In Cambodia… Bobby showing some of the kids their picture.
I try to blog every shoot but sometimes a few slip through, like this one. I loved this shoot and I never blogged it. What is wrong with me?? OK, please don’t answer that. =)
I met Chris, Lalani and little Ryan in Long Beach. Lalani had mentioned a few locations and luckily we had time to go to both of them. I love that we have some pretty nature shots and some fun urban shots. They are the sweetest family and I can’t wait to do their photos for this years Christmas cards!
Such a cutie! I keep meeting these adorable little ones with the bright blues eyes… love it!
Ryan was so good! He loved sitting on the dirt… but what little boy doesn’t?
He liked to grass too!
Loved this spot. The light was so, so pretty!
The almond shaped, blue eyes… amazing!
I love families that will go along and laugh at my crazy ideas… makes my job so fun!
We headed down to 4th Street and fun some cool spots. I’m a sucker for a good old fashion brick wall. I think these are my favorite family shots.
When families are willing to just walk around a look for unique spots, we find places like this…
and this…
and this! The cutest little flower shop/ magazine stand!
So cute. If he didn’t have an amazing mom and dad I would have taken him home with me! =)
- Love the last photo super cute!
- Such great pictures....AGAIN!! Loved all of them and your blogs Richelle :-)
I love shoes. I love looking at them. I love wearing them. I love buying them. I like shoes with color, flowers, patterns. I’ve worn super uncomfortable shoes to shoot weddings just because they look cute with my outfit… a few blisters never hurt anyone! I always said when I grow up I’m going to have a shoe room. Not for the shoes I wear but to display shoes I consider art! A beautiful pair of Prada’s or maybe some Jimmy Choo’s? What a pretty room it would be!
With all that said, it should come to no surprise that my favorite detail shot to capture is the shoe shot! Besides the dress, I always look forward to see the shoes chosen by the bride. My favorite shoes are the ones with color or a little sparkle. It’s so fun to see a little bit of pink or blue popping out when the bride is walking!
I usually grab the shoes while the bride is getting ready and do a mini shoe shoot. I love trying to make my shoe shots look unique… to find a spot that showcases the shoes and the location. Here are some of my favorites from last year…
Marissa had these fun gold shoes! She got married at Casa De Romantica in San Clemente. There were a ton of fun, spanish style spots for the shoes.
Love this one on a fountain!
Elisa’s shoes at Calamigos Ranch in Malibu.
Love the rhinestones!
Loved Patricia’s pink shoes! So fun!
This is one of my favorite shoe shots! Teresa’s bright blue shoes at the Fullerton Arboretum
Color, so much color!
Charmaine was a smart bride wearing flats!! No blisters the next day! I love this shot taken in the beautiful home where the wedding took place.
I love this chair from Angela’s home. Such a fun shot!
Can you guess what season it was? =)
Shooting shoes does not stop at the bride. If I can grab a shot of the adorable flower girl shoes, I will…
Even if they are already on their feet! =)
- Love the idea of colored shoes!
This past weekend I went to visit Emily, her husband, Aaron and little Cayden in Las Vegas. I love to visit them, so if you live in Las Vegas and you’re looking for a photographer, please contact me! At this point I am not charging a traveling fee for Las Vegas shoots!
I have never seen so much snow covering Red Rock! I had warned Emily before I came that I wanted to do a snow shoot but I had no idea there would be so much snow! We headed out around 4:15 PM and it takes about 30 minutes to get to Red Rock from their house. With sunset coming quickly, I was very anxious to get out there. We headed to the scenic drive and I found the perfect spot, but Aaron kept driving. He said he knew the perfect spot for the “money shot”. We then came up to another perfect spot… flat snowy ground with a background of snow covered rocks and beautiful clouds lit up by the setting sun. Aaron kept driving. As I watched the sun start to set behind the rocks, I was getting slightly frustrated that we were still in the car, driving. So, we finally came up to one last spot and we all decided that we found the “money shot”! At this point the sun had pretty much set and we had about 10 minutes with the beautiful “post sunset” sky. To be honest, I’m kind of glad we drove past the other spots. Seriously, look at this sky!!
I’m thinking this is the money shot… what do you think?
They are still so much in love… it is adorably sickening. =)
I have pretty friends!
Love this…
She is so gorgeous!
Full-time mommy, part-time model (exclusively for Richelle Dante Photography of course!)
I always have Aaron take a few of Emily and me… he’s getting pretty good!
The first time I gave Aaron my camera, I think he took one shot. Now, he knows… keep shooting! That’s when you catch the real moments. I’m not sure why we were laughing but we crack ourselves up!
A little behind the scenes shot. Back at Emily and Aaron’s, Cayden helped me look through the results from the shoot.
- These are beautiful! I love how super crisp and clean and wintery they all are. Doesn't hurt to have some good looking subjects too. Great work...I'm becoming more and more of a fan all the time. I'm so glad Becky "introduced" me to you : )
- Those are terrific!
- I love them all!!!!!! Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- Great shots! I'm envious of the snow.
Early this morning I left for Vegas, driving in snow, rain and sunshine. It was actually a fun drive and if you visit my Twitter page you can see some of the drive! All to see one of my best friends, Emily and her family! A few months ago, 3 to be exact, this little cutie, joined the Gray family. I seriously think he is the cutest baby ever but since I am considered an auntie, I may be biased. What do you think?? Here are a few snapshots from today… I had to share them!
So, so, so, so CUTE!!!
- Love these and you are right! That IS the cutest baby in Vegas...just too cute! Great job!
- So So So Cute!!!
I shot Adam and Nichole’s beautiful Villa De Amore wedding in October. After their wedding I was sad it was over because they are such a fun couple. So, I was so excited when Nichole contacted me to do a bridal shoot! We went back to Villa De Amore to take advantage of all of the beautiful spots they have, including a vineyard! I had so much fun with Nichole and I think she enjoyed laughing at me… I freaked out when the dog was playing with a live mouse! Don’t worry, all came out of it alive!
Here is Nichole…
Gorgeous! Oh, and a sidenote… I made the bouquet! It was my second attempt and I think I’m getting the hang of it!
The vineyards looked amazing! This was in November so they were right at their peak.
Love this one… we really were having that much fun!
Nichole said she wasn’t good at the whole modeling thing and I have to say, I disagree!
I know I said this already but she is gorgeous!
The pool table is in the groom’s room. We thought Adam might like these!
Bridal shoot turned trash the dress!
One of the bouquet… I’m kind of proud of myself. =)
I’ve been sharing a lot of the furniture and accessories I like but I haven’t shared my colors, so, here they are! The teal/ turquoise color is going to go on the big wall with all the windows. Notice the shininess on the color sample? Yep, it’s metallic! I first discovered metallic paint when I was shooting my first wedding. One of the walls in the home had a shiny wall and I kept staring at it and wanted to take it home. It looked so amazing. When I saw this big wall, Kelly Lafosse (my interior designer friend) suggested it should be a wall of interest. The first thing I thought of was metallic!
The metallic will be on the main wall. Red will be an accent color with the chandelier and maybe a couch. The crown molding (which I’m only doing on the metallic wall) will be black. and the white color will be all around, furniture, walls, and anything with crystals!
This is the wall that will have the metallic paint. Since it is pretty expensive, I’m going to have to find ways to do the rest of the walls for less. One way I’m going to save on paint is have a painting party! If you want to join me and help paint, let me know!
I have to show a few more decrative items. I love crystals and anything with a sparkle so when I saw these at Zgallerie, I had to get them!
If you have missed one, two and three of the Home Sweet Almost Home series, click on the numbers to see them!
And last,
A sneak peek of the next blog! Nichole’s bridal/ trash the dress shoot! Seriously fun stuff!
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