monica & ed's engagement session


commentator: monica

it's been a whirlwind for us so far in the first four months of the year! and since it's the beginning of may, it's officially my "birth month" in which i can persuade eddie to do almost anything by reminding him of this. for example...

me: "eddie, can we go get yogurt?"

ed: "ughh... but we just had some after lunch today!!! plus, it's not on the way."

me: (dramatic pause.) "but it's my BIRTH month... "

ed: (heavy sigh) "okay."

if you read the title of this blog post and wondered if it was actually us being featured as the couple for this e-session, you're ABSOLUTELY RIGHT! after greg of bumatay studio found out we were heading early to wppi in vegas for the first time, he so kindly extended to photograph our "engagement photos," since he found out we never had our own official e-session. to be quite honest, eddie and i had never taken professional photographs in our entire 7 years dating and 3 years of marriage. well, unless you count prom. (and if i had access to our photos right now, i'd totally scan them and post them up here! go apaches, class of '98!)

i got super excited about the idea of having our very own pro photos of us to feature around our house. i started to imagine where in the home we could display them... but first, i needed to find an outfit! and "oh shoot, get my hair did, my make-up did, my nails did, my toes did..." since i'm usually the t-shirt, jeans, college hoodie, and flip-flops kinda gal, i was beginning to feel overwhelmed. but i knew i wanted to do this right so i scheduled all necessary appointments and dragged ed with me to go shoe and outfit hunting. luckily, we were able to find what i needed in one trip a couple of nights before we left for vegas.

we scheduled the e-session for midnight that friday night so we could take advantage of the strip's awesome lighting. as i was getting my make-up/hair done by the fabulous loretta of cutomized bridez, ed got in touch with greg who told him that he'd be bringing along his photog friends from the anti-workshop he was attending. that's when i really began to feel nervous. but i sucked it up (literally, since my dress was super fitted) and rolled with it.

it ended up being a blast! we hung out around the venetian, while greg bumatay, josh solar, karey michelle, erwin wijanto, david baxter, and crystal goss photographed us. used to being kicked out by security at private property locations, we were all very cautious around the location but fortunately, no one bothered us. seems like security had enough on their hands what with drunken folks everywhere. it was cool to see how other photographers work and i now have an even more sympathy for the folks we photograph because it is nerve-wracking! but all of the photographers were so cool and put us at ease. i'm so glad we did this!

below are some of the teasers we so excitedly waited for. thanks so much greg for organizing the shoot! and thanks to all of you who shot us! you all are great photographers!

dip!
photo by: greg bumatay
photo by: greg bumatay
photo by: greg bumatay
did i mention red is my favorite color?
photo by: greg bumatay
photo by: greg bumatay
swooning
ed's seriously the funniest person i've ever met
this reminds me of one of my favorite movies: "only you"
"phantom" is both of our favorite musical
enjoying a peaceful moment admist the paparazzi
a shot of all of us at the end of the night

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com



what's in your bag?


commentator: monica

natalie norton, oahu-based photographer, is what we call a "member of the bank of karma." she knows the advantage of making her "deposits" into this world since there are times when we'll need to make a "withdrawal." one way she's contributing to the photography world is through her weekly posts, "what's in your bag?" being so kind to respond to frequent emails regarding the type of gear she uses from aspiring photographers, she decided to instead to include this as a regular part of her blog and has asked other photographers to take part. we are suuuuuuper flattered she's asked us to participate, especially after seeing the two rockstar photographers who have already been featured. to read natalie's post about us, please click here.

thanks, natalie! let's get some shave ice when we're back on oahu in july! =)

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com



kcra-3 2008 best photographer results are in!


commentator: monica

woohoo! we're so excited that we've been awarded 2nd place in sacramento's 2008 best photographer contest, especially since this is our first year being nominated. thank you all so much for all the support in voting for us! now we get to sport that cute little "'08 top 5" logo next to our feature on the a-list. =)

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com



mother's day contest

- THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUBMISSIONS! THE CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED TO ADDITIONAL SUBMISSIONS. GOOD LUCK TO ALL ENTRANTS! WE WILL ANNOUNCE THE WINNER ON WEDNESDAY, MAY 7TH!-

commentator: ed

hello past and future clients as well as all you stalkers. =) recently, i've been taking care of my baby nephew and man, oh man... it is hard. well, because of my new found respect for all you mothers out there, we're doing a mother's day contest good for 1 hour of our photography services. plus it's just plain ol' good karma.

all you have to do is write about why you deserve this. or if you're not a mom, and you know one that REALLY deserves a family photo session, please write us and tell us why. this contest is open to all who wants to join. =)

deadline to submit is april 30th 2008.

simply email us at:

INFO(at)EDPINGOLPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

with the these exact words in the subject line:

"Moms are Great Photo Contest 2008"

this is worth over $600 people!!! submit em' sooner than later!!!

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com



nicole and sean's wedding


commentator: monica

it's no wonder that nicole & sean, who are as gorgeous as movie stars, have a story that rivals any big screen flick. the two met by chance after nicole's sister's bachelorette party when the ladies went out for a late supper and, awe-struck, sean tipped the diner server to get a table next to their's. just as in any good screenplay, the foreshadowing occurred when nicole had wondered allowed to the group, "what if i meet the man i'm going to marry tonight..." and she did.

the two celebrated their union at the rocklin park hotel. we love it when the wedding ceremony is located on the same grounds as the reception. to our own amazement, we were fortunate to have even the bridal preparation occurring in the same all-inclusive venue! nicole & sean planned a beautiful ceremony in the rose gardens of the courtyard. a special portion of the ceremony was dedicated to vows written for their adorable daughter and flowergirl, amaya, complete with her own ring. the reception was held afterward at the award-winning zinfandel grille, with a de-li-cious dinner, which is when the real party began!

congratulations on your marriage, nicole & sean! we hope you are enjoying some well-deserved r&r on the islands!

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com

rocklin park hotel and the details

getting ready

a quiet moment, just before the ceremony

the beautiful bride and bridesmaids

sean and his boys

the ceremony

the awesome ringbearer who was so helpful in carrying his mom's bridesmaid bouquet

newlyweds!!!

nicole & sean's custom-designed temporary tattoos were a hit! young and old alike were happily sporting them!

speeches

the first dance. the father-daughter(s) and mother-son dances. (now can you see why they chose tattoos as their favors? =)

okay, okay... we don't condone smoking but we couldn't resist these sultry shots!

the maid of honor with our personlized business card

individual images
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if you want to see individual images of this session, simply click here!
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almita and steve's engagement session


commentator: monica

almita and steve are such a chic couple. they wanted both modern/urban and old/ruinous architecture for their engagement session, as well as a great view of the sunset, so we decided on the embarcadero and baker beach.

we met up with them in san francisco in the afternoon, surprised to see that the crowds around the waterfront had thinned out. unfortunately, cupid's span was covered by tarps and scaffolding for what seems to be a fresh paint job in-progress. (what is it with all the city landmarks being "under renovation" lately?!? first, the palace, then the windmill, and now the bow and arrow... oh well, guess we just have to be patient for the revealing of more beautiful and safer structures. =)

once at baker beach, we were greeted with a beautiful pre-sunset glow and a clear view of the bridge. the bunkers made for a great backdrop of the dilapidated architecture almita & steve were looking for. just as the sun began to drop down into the horizon, we made our way onto the beach. the sunset was just as gorgeous as our couple...

congratulations, almita & steve! we're looking forward to your wedding in august!

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com


"heavenly shades of night are falling..."

"... it's twilight time."

"when purple colored curtains mark the end of day..."

"each day i pray for evening, just to be with you, together at last at twilight time" (lyrics from one of my fave songs: "twilight time" by "the platters")

behind the scenes and individual images
===================================
if you want to see individual images of this session, simply click here!
===================================

hamilton and ed. they think they're photo heroes! =)



christy and kris' engagement session


commentator: monica

although christy & kris were born and raised in hawaii, they seem to be san franciscans at heart. they love sf so much they actually flew from oahu to the bay for their engagement session. it's quite fitting for them to have traveled across the pacific for this occasion, since this is the city in which kris proposed to the lovely christy. they returned, this time, with their videographer, greg of advanced visual arts, who was able to record the photo shoot.

with windstorms occurring the day before (literally, storms of wind brought down several trees at the locations we visited), we were quite fortunate that the winds had calmed down greatly for the engagement session. we started at the wilhelmina tulip gardens which are brilliant at this time in the year, before heading to stow lake's impressive waterfall. the weather warmed up nicely by the time we got to baker beach, where this beautiful couple were able to show off their hawaiian style in their beach outfits.

congratulations on your engagement, christy & kris! we can't wait for your wedding on oahu in july!

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com

love that flows freely...

gettin' a little wet in the frigid side of the ocean

his island girl

silhouette shot. the two are also photography enthusiasts and wanted to include their canon. =)

enjoying a beautiful sunny day in golden gate park

the tulip gardens



sarah and chad's engagement session


commentator: monica

the term "engagement session" is a misnomer. heck, ed and i have been married for 3 years and we just recently had our very first engagement session. the "engagement session" (or "lifestyle couple portrait session") is a great way to chronicle the special relationship you're in, whether you're new sweethearts, about to get hitched, or celebrating your anniversary. this is especially true if you have the chance to visit a really cool city... which is exactly what sarah & chad did.

sarah is an awesome photographer based in nebraska, who decided to take a trip out to san francisco, with her husband of four years, chad. it's all too common for photographers who capture thousands upon thousands of images of other people to not have very many photos of themselves. sarah and chad decided not only to take in the sights of the city but to have the experience recorded in photographs. of course, there's no better way to feature the city than to include the majestic golden gate bridge in the background, so this adorable couple chose baker beach as the location for their engagement session.

thank you for allowing us to photograph part of your sf experience, sarah & chad! we had a blast!

//ed pingol
707.334.1468
info@edpingolphotography.com
edpingolphotography.com

we love how baker beach seems to be everchanging, with random wood pieces and rocks arranged by beachgoers. we couldn't pass up this post that was driven straight into the sand...

... neither could we pass up this awesome rock sculpture!

although the beach was cold that morning, we could feel the warmth radiating from these two lovebirds.

the rocky shoreline

the log steps that go on for days!