Last Saturday night, I had a blast at a very special birthday party. The Kraus family whooped it up at their nearly complete beach house right above the water here in North County San Diego.

The dry wall was up and the floors couldn't be hurt, so what a great time for a party. Dawn Parks and her crew with The Wild Thyme Company converted the place into a very groovy lounge, complete with white leather couches, translucent white "party blocks", and chiffon drapery from the ceilings. Oh, and the dance floor. We mustn't forget the dance floor!

Over the course of the night, Mark Christopher Lawrence (of the NBC hit comedy "Chuck") and I each had at least five lobster tails--mmmmmmmmmmm. We're both big guys, and there was so much lobster going uneaten, we felt it was our responsibility to not have any of those bugs go wasted, and to honor their delicious sacrifice.

GoGo dancers, open bar, all the lobster you could eat, and a crowd of some of the finest people I've ever known. What an opportunity to have some photographic fun.

Happy birthday Jess!

On Tuesday, July 15, I was presented with the 2008 San Diego Portrait Photographer of the Year Award at the annual awards banquet of the Professional Photographers of San Diego County (PPSDC). This is the second year in a row I've earned this award, and proud and thankful for a wonderful series of competitions.

I also earned a first place finish in the "Family Moments" category at the 58th Annual International Print Competition at the San Diego County Fair. This year's competition was fantastic, with many, many incredible images. Thank you to Pavla, Keira, and Willow for allowing me to capture such a wonderful moment.

And thank you to all my clients, friends, and family who continue to help me develop the art and craft of photography.

Marissa and Brooks were married on Saturday, May 10, at the Twin Oaks House, once a one room school house in San Marcos. What a beautiful venue and spectacular location for photography.

The day was as beautiful as the bride, with a soft breeze and warm temperatures. And what a pleasure it was to get to know the families! We did one large combined image with nearly 60 family members that is just fantastic. What wonderful, kind, loving, and fun folks!

From nearly nine hours of photography I'll be providing 1,001 images! Way too many, but that's as low as I could possibly go with the edit. Hard on the photographer, but great for the client.

Contact Karen for more information on the Twin Oaks House at www.twinoaksweddings.com.

And congratulations to Marissa & Brooks!

I don't usually use this blog for posting images before having my clients back into the studio to view the photography from their portrait session or wedding on an awesome 61" HD plasma screen. I call this their "Premier" and we have a lot of fun.

But last night as we left the beach after photographing Danica & Richard, who are to be married in October, Danica asked if there would be any previews. I've had other photographer friends tell me their clients love them, so here is a look at only one of many really fantastic images.

After moving through quite a bit of water and climbing up some rocks, we were able to relax a moment on a ledge right at sunset. I decided to sepia tone the image for a bit more drama and impact.

Thanks, Danica, for suggesting something I should be doing on a regular basis!

Last night, at the Professional Photographers of San Diego County January Print Competition, I entered two prints that both captured a "Best In Class" Award.

A Portrait of Dominic took Best In Class for Children's Portraiture. And Crazy For Fast Glass won in the Portraiture category.

Both were then considered for Best In Show, but even with two chances, that honor went to Dennis Mock for an unbelievable album of images from the Mudrun at Camp Pendleton (awesome work Dennis!).

Every other month, the PPSDC holds a print competition where members show their best work in hopes of winning the annual category award for portraiture, weddings, children, etc. It's a great opportunity to see what colleagues are doing and to learn and improve one's own photography.

And here's a special thank you to Dominic and Marc, the subjects in the images!

The other day I stopped by my framer's shop to shoot the breeze and had a bit of inspiration. Fortunately I had my camera with me. As Jay Maisel says, "Carry a camera with you everywhere, you'll take better pictures."

Yael and Jimmy of Once Upon A Frame are some of the finest humans you could ever be privileged enough to know. All my work, hanging in my home or in my studio, is framed by these two. Yael's unbelievably harmonious designs are paired perfectly with Jimmy's precision and attention to detail.

So the inspiration came two fold: to photograph them in their environment (the definition of "Environmental Portraiture") and then to start a new magazine called FRAMED. The result is what you see here.

Ok, so the magazine thing is just for fun, but it really works, both in having some fun with portraiture and finding other ways to tell a story. The fact is, these two truly are The New Breed of framers who break molds and push boundaries. And their work is simply the best you could ever imagine.

I am absolutely thrilled when my clients choose Yael & Jimmy for framing their prints. I always know my work will be "finished" exquisitely. And all my clients receive a great break in the price.

So if you're ever in the neighborhood or in need of framing, please consider stopping by my Bad Ass Framer friends to check out their work. The art on their walls is enough reason alone.

Every once and a while we all need to get out and do something we haven't done before.

Last month I had the privilege of traveling with four other talented photographers through some of the most beautiful parts of Northern and Four Corners Arizona. Starting in Flagstaff, we photographed the inner basin of a volcano, now covered in a carpet of aspen and ponderosa pine; Upper Antelope Canyon, often referred to simply as The Slot Canyon, near Page; and Canyon de Chelly (pronounced "de Shay"), near Chinle.

But the real destination was the iconic Monument Valley, where large sections of eroded Red Wall Limestone have been carved to form some of the most amazing rock formations in the world.

Ken Sklute, a Canon Explorer of Light, one of those very talented, very few, and very fortunate souls in the world sponsored by Canon, has photographed Monument Valley for eleven years, and we couldn't possibly have had a better guide to experiencing the most spectacular locations in and around the park. A former native of Long Island, Ken has been a lot of places and seen a lot of things, and is both a fixed wing and balloon pilot. It would have been an absolutely perfect trip except for Sklute's bout with the heeby jeebies. Nice guy, but that itch...

The other three really aren't worth mentioning, quite frankly, but at least there wasn't any infestations directly due to their own actions and risky lifestyles. But in the interest of fairness, I'll give a brief account of each of these, uhmm, gentlemen.

Marc Weisberg, a good friend and rock star wedding photographer from Newport Beach, hooked me up with this crew. This guy is so nice he and his lovely wife Connie helped me cover a big wedding last weekend when I had a bum knee (injured on the trip). Marc is, however, a card carrying member of the These are the Many Faces of My Personality Association of America, and literally cracked one of my lenses as I was trying to make his portrait. Nice guy, but that twitch...

Marv Heston, a 30 gig's a year wedding shooter, architectural photographer, and software tycoon, has been working with Sklute for a while now. Marv's a long range truck driver, sumu wrestler, and in his spare time, likes to bake unusual kinds of breads and shape them into different brands of women's underwear. Nice guy, but that stitch...

And Dwight Okumoto, our final contestant, is President of the Professional Photographers of Hawaii and is literally one of the nicest humans on the face of the planet. But his incessant complaining and whining, in conjunction with his penchant for buggery, was an instant turn off for the rest of us. Nice guy, but that bitch...

All five us just had a blast creating images of some of the most beautiful locations that truly define how we view the "West" (or at least how we might have seen it through Hollywood's lens). And our four wheel drive "Road to Hunt's Mesa" was an experience none of us will forget. There's a large piece of my heart (and some torn cartilage) on that non-road that brought us to the roof of the Valley.

Many thanks to Ken, Marc, Marv, and Dwight, for allowing me to join you all on such a wonderful adventure.

To see the complete gallery of images, click here , click on "People & Places & Things", click on "Client Galleries", and use the password "monument".

Cheers boys!

WHEN: Monday, October 15, 2007, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

WHERE: Coast Highway Photography Studio & Gallery

"Back to the Future: The Art, Craft, and Zen of Digital Fine Art Printing"

With the advent of new technology for the capturing, processing, enhancing, and printing of photographic images has come a "back to the future" effect for those photographers who are embracing the idea of "printing their own". Seventy-five years ago, there were no labs or other professional services as there are today, so photographers had to do everything in-house, from shooting, to developing, to ultimately printing their own images. Thanks to the constantly evolving world of digital, photographers, as artists realizing their vision from beginning to end, are able to create beautiful works of art that will last for centuries and provide opportunities for growth, development, and the pure pleasure derived from "sustainable" creativity.

The goal of this presentation is to provide a sequential overview of fine art, archival, pigment ink printing. From capture, to download, to enhancement, to ultimately printing a .psd master file from Photoshop, Kevin will bring you step-by-step through his artistic process, providing you with an excellent foundation to start making beautiful fine art prints, improve your business, and realize your complete artistic vision.

This presentation is for photographers who are interested in becoming a printer of fine art images using inkjet technologies. Attendees should have at least an introductory understanding of Photoshop and should know the difference between aperture, shutter speed, and ISO.

For more information and to sign up, please contact Patricia Mathis, VP, Professional Photographers of San Diego County, at (951) 440-1820.

Last night I gave a presentation to the students of Donna Cosentino's Portfolio class at Palomar College, considered one of the best two year programs in photography. The presentation was entitled "Developing Style, Building Brand", and was the second time in a year I've presented to Donna's classes. Thanks to Donna for the image above.

Donna is a very fine photographer herself, and I'm honored when she asks me to give a talk to her classes. And as with every educational opportunity, I learn probably as much as the students in the audience.

Next Monday, October 1, I'm speaking on a topic near and dear to my heart and business at nik Software, in Mission Valley. The talk is entitled "Back to the Future: The Art, Craft, & Zen of Fine Art Printing", and addresses the new technologies and techniques for creating works of art while realizing your artisitic vision from beginning to end. For more information, please contact Patricia Mathis, VP, Programs, for the Professional Photographers of San Diego County, at 951-440-1820.

Later that day, students of Tim Meyer, Chairman, Department of Portraiture at the prestigious Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, will visit my studio. I'm honored that Tim, an extremely talented photographer and educator (I consider him to be my biggest influence in studio lighting), would consider my studio worthy of such a visit. Pretty groovy.

The first of five print competitions for the year was held last night for the Professional Photographers of San Diego County (www.ppsdc.com). A photographer is allowed to enter two prints per competition, and I was fortunate enough to do very well.

The print to the left, above, of Dawn & Reggie Parks, won Best In Class for Portraiture, and the landscape left, below, won Best In Class for Nature. Both prints were considered for Best In Show, and in fact it came down to these two and one other, a very beautiful image of three women sitting on a bench before a wall and doorway in Tuscany (Best In Class, Photojournalism). Well, that image won (congratulations Tim!), but the portrait won Alternate Best In Show.

The five competitions, held every other month, will determine Photographer of the Year overall and for each Class. I'm currently the holder of Portrait Photographer of the Year for 2007, and hope to repeat those honors, to be awarded in July of 2008.