Richelle Dante Photography » Maternity

2011… Where Did You Go?

admin — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 09:24:36 +0000

Seriously, where did this year go?? I feel like it went by even faster than last year. Actually I think it did, by a micro second or so after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. It seems like this year was full of huge events that will be in future generations history books. From crazy weather, to international uprisings centered around social media to a war ending. I get AP news alerts on my iPhone and I don’t think I have ever gotten so many that made me say, “WOW”. Looking at my year, there were definitely some “news alert” moments. Organizing a trip to Haiti with multiple portrait projects had to have been the highlight of my year. A few years ago, I would have never pictured myself doing this. I guess once you see, you cannot forget. The more of the world I see, the more I want to do. It’s a dangerous but exciting cycle!

As for Richelle Dante Photography, this was by far the busiest year yet. If you follow me on Facebook, I’m sure you saw a bunch of status updates that had to do with me editing. I don’t think I have ever spent so much time behind a computer screen in my entire life! Luckily, I now have my assistant, Natalie, who helps with booking shoots and replying to emails in a timely manner. There were way too many emails I sent out this year that started with “sorry for the delay”. With a growing company, there have been lessons learned that will hopefully make 2012 even more successful!

I am so thankful for all my clients. Some have been coming to me for 3 or 4 years now and I have truly enjoyed watching their families grow! I seriously feel so blessed to get to work with such a nice group of people. You all make my job so much better and it makes all the hours I sit behind my computer worth it! I’m excited for next year… to continue seeing families grow and meeting new brides and grooms, and families.

For next year there will be a few new additions! DREAM sessions will be added (see my last post for more info). I’m so excited for these and for stretching my creativity even more. I’m also hoping to add more nationwide shoots… whether it is a wedding or a family/newborn shoot. I’ve had so many people say “if you were only closer”. Well, I love to travel and I love shooting in new places so I’m hoping I can make it happen in a way that is affordable for the client and me! There will also be more mini shoots, similar to the Santa shoot I recently did. Hopefully the first one will be in the Spring! To start off the new year, I will be heading to Cambodia and Vietnam. I’m looking forward for some downtime to think about the coming year. Details for the DREAM sessions and nationwide sessions will be announced in late January or February, depending on how bad my jet lag is.

Here is a recap of 2011. EVERY shoot from this year is in here including engagement, couple, weddings, weddings I second shot with friends, maternity, newborn, baby, family and my one senior. I hope you enjoy it! (PS, if I missed your shoot I didn’t mean to but I’m pretty sure every shoot is in here.)

Because I rarely post a photo of myself on here, this is the one I used for my Christmas card this year. If you didn’t get one, I only got about half of the cards out I was planning to send. Something else to work on for 2012. (Special thanks to Kim for the photo!)

DREAM Sessions :: Coming in 2012!

admin — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:29:54 +0000

I’ve been dreaming of this idea since I started photography. I’ve never liked the ordinary and have always encouraged clients to go for something different. So, for 2012, I will be introducing DREAM sessions. It’s what I’ve dreamed of and I want it to be the session you’ve always dreamed you could have. Like when you see really cool styled shoots in magazines… that’s what I want your photos to look like! Why not? With the help of stylists, I will be offering these amazing shoots customized for you. It can be an engagement, baby or family shoot… really, any kind of shoot you can think of. I will still be offering regular shoots but if you want to go all out and have something that will make your friends jealous, you will want a DREAM session!

To give you an idea of what it could look like, here is a recent styled family shoot I did at the Salton Sea…

Collin & Ashley :: Dana Point Maternity Photographer

admin — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 08:27:27 +0000

I don’t know what to say about this shoot except that I love it. Ashley sent me her Pinterest inspiration board and I knew I was going to have a ton of fun at their shoot. Floppy hats, a beautiful couple and pretty light. It doesn’t get much better…

Sneak Peek Overload!

admin — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 11:33:39 +0000

I’ll admit it, I’ve been a very bad blogger but with it being the busiest time of year my main priority has been getting photos to my clients. I have been really good about posting sneak peeks on Facebook so, for those of you who don’t check my Facebook page, let me help you get caught up…

This past weekend I headed to the Salton Sea with Avalon and her mama and dad. SO many cool shots from this shoot!

How gorgeous is she!

Tatum was full of smiles…

It was so nice meeting Lucy and her family!

Loved all the color at this shoot…

I always have so much fun with this family!

Ashley and Colin’s is one of my favorite maternity shoots I’ve shot.

Tyler is the sweetest two year old I know and he loves Thomas!

This little guy was two weeks old when I met him…

The day after my brother’s wedding, I had the pleasure of shooting Sarina and Sam’s wedding…

One of the biggest events in the last month was my brother’s wedding! After many rain dances, the skies cleared and it was a great day!

Stephanie had so much fun twirling in her dress…

My brother was a good sport…

Adorable Addison turned two!

Kaylee slept through her entire shoot!

Four kids + downtown Pasadena = Tons of fun!

In the middle of all the chaos of October I took a week off and went to St. Thomas. One of my favorite parts of the trip was chasing the iguanas. Yep, I’m serious. The beaches were amazing but the iguanas were so cool!

Love Grant’s candy corn hat his mommy brought!

I met Jayden when he was just a week old!

My first shoot with Savannah, she was only 8 months! Now she is two and has a little brother on the way!

Giuliana started the marathon of newborns. How precious is she?!?

Alex and Brent were married in October!

Such a sweet family! I love seeing the kids grow! Luke is now two and hard to keep up with.

So now you’re all caught up! Hopefully there will be a full post soon!!

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!

Baby on the Way! Irvine Maternity Photography

admin — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 08:25:41 +0000

Ellie has a little brother arriving very soon! Last month I met with this very sweet family for a fun maternity session. So fun, we even got to see a coyote run by. Yep, for real… a coyote ran right by us. I’ve shot at this location many times and this was the first time I’ve seen a wild animal. It was kind of a cool thing to see!

This is my very favorite from their session…

Julie & Edgar…

Love this…

Julie is gorgeous!

Ellie know how to make her mom laugh…

Love this one!

Ellie’s eyes are so, so pretty!

First Ever Contest!!

admin — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 01:26:14 +0000

I’m so excited to be announcing my first Facebook contest after reaching 1000 “likers”! It is your chance to win a lifestyle session, valued at $400, or a 16×24 canvas wrap plus 20% off your next lifestyle session, valued at $300. The lifestlye session is available to new clients or those who have not had a shoot in the past 6 months. It is open for engagement, anytime, newborn, baby, maternity or family shoot for up to 6 people. The large canvas is available to any past clients. So here’s how it works:

Step One: If you don’t already like Richelle Dante Photography, click on the link and “like” my page. (This is not required but recommended so you can follow the contest.)

Step Two: Email a photo of whoever will be a part of the session and write a short description of why you want to win. If you are entering to win a canvas, email the photo you will want on your canvas. Email to richelle@richelledante.com. Your photo will then be loaded to the contest gallery on Richelle Dante Photography’s page, with your description as the caption.

Step Three: Get as many people as possible to “like” your photo. The photo with the most likes wins! Two winners will be chosen. One for the photo session and one for the canvas! The contest will end on July 7th, at midnight PST.

The Rules:
One entry per family. Clients who have had a session within the past sixth months are only eligible for the 16×24 canvas wrap and 20% off the next session. The contest will begin on Wednesday, June 22nd at 9pm PST but entries will be accepted until the last day. Contest ends July 7th at midnight PST. Photo session must be used within one year of July 7, 2011 and must take place within Orange County (there will be a travel fee for anywhere else in the world… yes, world) . The session is up to two hours long and includes a CD of high-res images along with a $50 print credit. The winners will be chosen by the total amount of “likes”, comments will not count.
Facebook is in no way involved or responsible for this contest. It is not sponsored, endorsed, administered or associated with Facebook. All information provided is going directly to Richelle Dante photography and not to Facebook.

A few sneak peeks of recent shoot that are yet to be blogged!

Chris and Natalie :: Baby on the Way!

admin — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 10:31:40 +0000

I love being able to capture special moment for my friends! For Natalie and Chris we weren’t sure if the maternity shoot was going to happen and chances were, if it did happen, it would be in the hospital. When Natalie was around 25 weeks pregnant she went in for a routine ultra sound. It turned out to be a very long appointment, lasting about 4 weeks! Although, the timing for her ultra sound could not have been more perfect. She was going into early labor (retaining a lot of fluid) and there is a good chance if she didn’t have that appointment, by the time they figured out what was going on (she wasn’t feeling the contractions), it could have been too late. I already know their little one is a special boy and he is meant to be here!

At first, they thought Natalie might have to be in the hospital until he was born but fortunately she stabilized and was able to go home. She is still on bed rest but able to walk around for small periods of time… just long enough for a short maternity shoot! (btw, I was giving permission to share their story) =)

We walked across the street to a small park which I have to say was way prettier than a hospital room! Here are a few favorites!

I have to say, Chris is a pretty amazing husband. He stayed with Natalie in the hospital pretty much whenever he wasn’t working. I knew he was a good guy but watching how he has been with Natalie through all of this, you can tell he loves her very much and is going to be an awesome dad!

I can’t wait to see what their little guy looks like. Right now I’m picturing a red headed asian baby. =)

Love the bump!

Beautiful!

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.

Cheryl & Jaime (and kids) :: Maternity

admin — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 09:05:28 +0000

I was looking forward to meeting Cheryl for awhile. She is an awesome photographer and asked me to do her maternity photos. I think it’s a huge compliment for a photographer to want me for their shoot! I was a little nervous because I knew it would have to be perfect but I also knew we would have a ton of fun! I got to try out a new urban location for their shoot. It worked perfectly and I’m thinking I’ll be shooting there again!

Did I mention Cheryl and Jaime have 4 year old twins. I seriously don’t know how they do it. Anyone with twins qualifies as super parents to me! James was kissing the baby here and Sadie was trying to kiss the baby through James… too cute!

Listening for the baby…

This was one from the facebook sneak peek a few days ago. Trying to get to very active four year olds to walk was more challenging than you would think. =)

Grandma took the kids so we were able to get a few of just Cheryl and Jaime.

Very cool brick wall!

Love this…

One of my favorites…

We did a few of Cheryl and the baby bump. This wall was perfect with her outfit!

Hot momma!

With lots of hot sauce cravings. =)