Richelle Dante Photography » Headshots

WPPI 2012 Shootout :: Walk in the Park

Richelle — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:42:22 +0000

Last year when I went to WPPI, I decided for the following year I wanted to plan a shootout. I knew for it to be the one that is talked about, I would need some major help. The first two people I thought of to help, is my good friend and amazing photographer, Abi of Abi Q Photography and the very talented design team Sugar & Fluff (their recent shoot with Jose Villa has been pinned like crazy). Anyone who knows me knows I don’t like to do anything halfway which of course means the shoot had to be exceptional and designed by a professional design team. With almost a full year of brainstorming and planning I’m excited to announce our WPPI styled shoot, “Walk in the Park”. Besides an awesome shoot, I wanted everyone to attend to have a chance to get to know each other. One of my favorite parts of WPPI is meeting new friends! After the shoot, we will head back the The Signature (hotel attached to MGM) for a super fun after party in our giant suite!

We are also excited the Visual Supply Co will be giving each attendee a little goodie. Both Abi and I use their Lightroom presets for at least 90% of our editing (if not more). Using their presets has significantly cut down my editing time and has made me even more excited about my photography! Seriously, they are awesome! We will also have a few other goodies to give away!

To sign up for our shoot, please go HERE. We look forward to seeing you there!!

A few more details:
It will be on Sunday, February 19th. We will start shooting two hours before sunset.

Back in July, I scouted out a location by literally driving through the desert. I finally found the perfect spot about 30 minutes outside of Vegas. We will meet at the MGM lobby and transport everyone there since it is a little tricky to find our shooting spot.

Both of the models have modeling experience. The child model has appeared in print ads and commercials, including a TLC advertising campaign. She was also the voice for Sea Worlds fireworks show last summer.

Meet Natalie!

admin — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 08:11:39 +0000

I’m so, so excited to announce the newest addition to Richelle Dante Photography! As my company continues to grow, I’m realizing I can’t do everything myself. I will admit, I’m kind of a control freak and this is why I only work with the best! Natalie is the perfect person to join the company! She will mainly be handling emails and scheduling so don’t be surprised if you hear from Natalie when scheduling a shoot. I will also be receiving your email but chances are, she will be the one getting back to you.

A little about Natalie… Besides working with me, she also works for one of the cutest little guys ever, her 5 month old son, Aiden! Don’t tell Natalie but I secretly hired her in hopes that she would bring Aiden with her and I would get to hold and cuddle him. Natalie has been a good friend throughout the years and I’ve enjoyed being a part of her wedding, amazing and miraculous pregnancy with Aiden and now working together. She is super sweet and already gets that I love using smilies way too much in emails (and blog posts). She has also had a couples, maternity, newborn and family shoot with me so she knows how it all works firsthand!

Natalie was so happy about the impromptu photo shoot yesterday.

She’s ready to answer your emails and she loves my first assistants, Sally and Trixie.

Natalie with her beautiful family!

Cristy :: Orange County Senior Photography

admin — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 08:55:33 +0000

Cristy’s mom came up to me at the skating rink and said, “I want you to do Cristy’s senior photos… in three years.” I remember thinking how sweet it was that she wanted me to do them but never really thought she would remember three years later. Well, she remembered and I’m so glad she did! If you didn’t know, I also teach figure skating part time and I have watched Cristy grow up at the rink. She’s grown into a beautiful skater and has done quite well with her synchronized skating team!

We explored Fullerton for Cristy’s shoot… finding random buildings, torn up railroad tracks and even a log cabin! It turns out Cristy doesn’t love to have her photo taken but you could never tell by the way she photographs. She is super photogenic and made my job easy. I don’t do a ton of senior shoots but when I do, it’s always lots of fun!

Here are some favorites…

Umm, is she not gorgeous! I still picture her as a little skater but she’s all grown up and much taller than me.

Loved this spot with the old tissue pom poms.

Random buildings are my favorites…

Love this…

Such a pretty girl!

WPPI Shootout Fun! :: Las Vegas

admin — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 09:03:59 +0000

In February I’m pretty sure I was out of town more days than I was home. I have so much I want to blog and I’m happy I’m getting back into my routine. I should be caught up really soon!

Last week I blogged about the WPPI convention. Part of the fun was meeting photographer Eric Schultheiss of Essence Photography and learning more about off camera flash. I shared a few shots he took of us but not the shots I took. Here are a few of my favorites…

This is my friend Amy. She is from Louisiana and I love being around her! She is an amazingly talented photographer and I’m looking forward to her platform class at WPPI someday. She would seriously have everyone smiling, laughing and loving photography more!

And this is Cherish. She is also from Louisiana and specializes in baby and family photography. Cherish is completely unique and I love hanging out with her! She is also a great model!!

My favorite…

As we were walking back we ran into The Cosmopolitan (literally… it was freezing outside). It is amazing! There are crystals everywhere… I was in awe!

This is part of a giant chandelier that has a bar in the middle of it. Only in Vegas!

Twenty Ten {2010}

admin — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 06:16:39 +0000

That was fast! How is 2010 almost over?? I feel like the year just started yet, when I was making the slideshow I realized I did ALOT this year! Between traveling, newborns, weddings, family and a few other shoots, I was busy! Maybe that is why it seems like the year went by so quickly.

With two trips already scheduled for 2011 and some weddings I’m super excited to shoot, including my brother’s (YAY!), I’m thinking this coming year will go by just as fast. I’m hoping to take a few more moments to rest, stop and enjoy the time but to be honest, I work better when I’m busy. =)

Last year I didn’t do an end of the year blog post because I was still recovering from jet lag so this year I thought I would make up for it. If I did a shoot with you in 2010, you are in the slideshow. Every single shoot has at least one photo, including my travels and a few personal projects… all in a 5 minute slideshow! I couldn’t leave anyone out. I couldn’t pick favorites because I really love all the people I got to work with last year. Oh, and if you see wedding photos without the names and date, those are from weddings I second shot. I was lucky to get to work with some very talented photographers this year!

ENJOY! (Make sure HD is on otherwise it’s not very clear)

Richelle Dante Photography 2010 from Richelle Dante on Vimeo.

Mini Shoot Sneak Peeks!

admin — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 09:12:23 +0000

This weekend was a busy one filled with mini shoots! It was fun seeing past clients and meeting new ones. They were held at two different locations. Saturday was more of a nature-filled location and Sunday was full of bright colors! My favorite part about this weekend is that all the families took my advice on what to wear. There was color, coordinating without matching, fun accessories and prints. I love that even though I had six shoots in one location they all have a unique look that fits each family. So, let’s get to the sneak peeks!!

Oh, wait, first I have to thank Shastina for being an awesome assistant and helping me stay organized on Saturday! I couldn’t have done it without you!

Valarie and her family were the first up! New addition Ashlynn is only 3 weeks old!

A proud big brother!

Meet Matthew and his parent’s Jeff and Linda. Jeff was nice enough to help me figure out what was wrong with my car. As I was driving to the mini shoots it told me the engine was overheated and to stop driving immediately. Of course I listened…. well, as soon as I made it to Irvine. =) Thank you so much for your help, Jeff! I ended up having to leave my car at my brother’s place in Tustin (it overheated again when I tried to drive home) and I’m having it towed today to see what’s going on.

Love this little cutie! My new chair, now offically known as the princess chair, could not have worked better for Maya!

Love this one! Ian is a pro in front of the camera but it took his little sis a few minutes to warm up. =)

The whole family…

Such a sweet family! I went to high school with Lesy and have not seen her since. She’s been busy! All three of her boys are so sweet!

Sometimes crying shots are my favorites. This really describes the mood of the 30 minute shoot. =)

I’m so glad Natalie, Chris and “little” Luke could make it for one of the shoots!

Dog model… umm yeah!

Sunday was full of color. One of my favorite places to shoot!

I had so much fun with these two! You may not know it but they are sort of famous. Remember Chandler and Monica’s babies in the last episode of Friends. Yep, it’s them! They have grown up a little since then!

Being goofy definitely came most naturally to them. =)

The last time I had a shoot with little Genevieve, she slept the entire time. Now she is two months old and full of smiles!

This pose was Ann’s idea and I love it!

Kerry, Sean and Mackenzie looked adorable for their family photos!

Kerry started making tutus right before Mackenzie was born and now she is selling them on etsy. Be sure to check out her store. They are so cute and work great for photoshoots or just a fun day out! She also has matching headbands!

Kody :: Orange County Headshot Photography

admin — Mon, 31 May 2010 19:49:40 +0000

Meet Kody… I’m excited to say I did his headshots because I’m pretty sure he is going to be really famous someday soon! He is a super funny guy with a bright future ahead!

Kody can pull of many looks and the goal was to capture all of them in his headshots…

After a quick haircut and shave, Kody has a completely different look!

A little Napoleon Dynamite posing on the left. =)

This green thing was so cool. It was something they were using for construction but worked perfectly for headshots!

Rachael :: College Senior

admin — Tue, 25 May 2010 19:10:47 +0000

This past weekend I met with Rachael in Murrieta. She just graduated from college with a degree in accounting! We had so much fun exploring the Santa Rosa Plateau. Neither one of us had been there and I have to say, it is pretty amazing to see that much open, beautiful land in California. One thing I’m learning is that I really love looking at nature and appreciating it’s beauty but I don’t really love actually being in it. =) When we were walking on the trails there we warning signs for mountain lions and rattle snakes. On the mountain lion sign it said, “if they attack, fight back”. It was so reassuring. Luckily the only run in we had was with stinging black ants but they only attacked me because Rachael was wearing her super cute cowboy boots! Enough about nature, meet Rachael…

Love her laughing shots. Every time she would laugh, she closed her eyes. =)

It is the end of the wild flower season but I was able to gather some for this bouquet. Reminds me of an Antropologie catalog!

This was a fun shot. I told Rachael to be super proper and serious, kind of like an old time photo…

This is way more Rachael’s personality! =)

Loved this light! It is completely natural… just the way the light was coming through the tree.

Pretty light was coming and going behind the clouds all day. As soon as it would pop out I would stop and Rachael would pose. It was a fun day!

Random Shoot on a Hill

admin — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 06:59:27 +0000

Yesterday I was driving home and found a really pretty hill with lots of yellow flowers. It happened to be down the street from my friend Heather’s house, so I called her. I asked her if I could shoot her on a hill and tilt shift her. Luckily, she knew what I was talking about and was up for it!

I like doing random shoots every once in awhile. To just shoot for fun… no expectations, just fun!

I’m really lucky… I have super photogenic friends!

Did I mention she’s getting married in less than 2 months! I get to be a maid of honor for the first time. =)

When I told her that I wanted to tilt shift her… this is what I was talking about.

I have pretty friends and I like pretty flowers. =)

A little behind the scenes. It was seriously a little hill off the side of the road, but so pretty!

My shoes didn’t do so well. Guess they aren’t made for hiking. =(

Las Vegas Shooting Fun :: Sneak Peek!

admin — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:12:53 +0000

This past week I was in Las Vegas for the Wedding & Portrait Photographers International (WPPI) Annual Convention. This was my first year going and I had so much fun hanging out with new and old photographer friends. A few of us decided to head out and find a cool spot for some shooting fun. We found a few locations and I will share my favorite in a full post but for now, some flare…

Meet Brooke of Blush Photography. She’s gorgeous and an amazing photographer out of Utah.

Abi of AbiQ Photography is the one who brought the group together. Love this photo of her… it’s so Abercrombie meets Anthropologie! I’m pretty sure she could model for them on the side. =) Lydia of Lydia Messenger Photography was sooo cute! I got to shoot a lot of her at the other location and can’t wait to share!

There are so many more I want to share! The following morning I got to do another shoot with a few of my other favorite photog friends… stay tuned for more sneak peeks!