{Andrea Gallagher Photography | Seniors | Families | Custom Portraiture}: December 2012

{2012~ Inspiration Shoot}

My final post for 2012 is the culmination of a truly amazing year for me as an artist and as a business owner; and finding the balance between both. I feel the growth I experienced in each area this year has taught me so much. I am always so grateful to all my clients who allow me into their lives and trust me to capture their true essence with images that I hope they will cherish for years to come. I consider what I do such a blessing and a gift.

At the beginning of 2012 I had set the goal to do at least one 'Inspiration Shoot' for myself that I could invest in creatively.

I had envisioned doing a shoot with horses for some time and after talking with Amanda over a year ago about working together we were both determined to make it happen! So began the journey to work together creatively to make dream of ours possible.

Amanda is passionate about horses and has been riding for years at The Acres and they were gracious enough to allow us to shoot at their beautiful property in Moorpark CA.

This shoot was also very special because I shot in both Digital and Film for the first time. You can view some of the Film images for our day {here}.

The day could not have been more beautiful or memorable while shooting at sunset with Amanda's two beautiful babies Lestor and Rosie and I am so happy to share these!

~Enjoy!~

{San Diego Family Photography~ Encinitas}

Talk about a really fun girls day! We met a a local beach nearby Jen's home in Encinitas where she frequents and the view was just breathtaking! Grandview is located in between Moonlight and Ponto beach in Encinitas and I have to say that I have being so fortunate to shoot all over the San Diego beaches and this was one of my favorites so far! The staircases leading from the tops of the cliffs to the base of the sand and beach line were huge and many of them beautifully weathered from years of bright sun and ocean air. The cliffs were also just covered with beautiful ice plants that gave a beautiful pop of color against the bright red clay cliffs! We shot and played and chatted and just had a wonderful time capturing these moments of these two beautiful girls! Our children grow so fast and I am so happy I was able to be a part of these really precious moments between mother and daughter :)

Enjoy!~

This was one of the first shots and one of my favorites! We scaled a very high and narrow staircase to be high above the beach and I love how it came out :)

I think we all love the weathered staircases so much!

Love all the color from the cliffs in this shot!

My favorite of this beautiful little lady!

See the little patch of rainbow over her right shoulder...

Gorgeous girls and a perfect beach day!

See the heart... ?? Loved this shot and only noticed that post processing!

Love the ice plants surrounding them

As the sun went down we had some fun playing around and enjoying the last light!

The colors were just magnificent!

And another heart! Final shot and really sums up this beautiful mother daughter duo! Full of love!

Giving Back~MISSION Focused

When I was asked to partner with MISSION Focused to offer Free Photo Sessions for Military Families I was thrilled to have a chance to give back to those who sacrifice so much for our country. Some of these families may not otherwise have the opportunity or means to have professional photos taken without the help and support of MISSION Focused.

MISSION Focused is a non profit organization who's mission is "to use the power of photography for God's Glory"

This past Saturday MISSION Focused assembled a group of photographers with the goal of blessing Military Families in San Diego and that is exactly what happen!

36 Families representing 3 branches of our Military; Navy, Marine, and Army were photographed for FREE! Families were paired up with a photographer when they arrived and photographed in 15 min mini sessions in and around Liberty Station Grounds in Point Loma.

These are the two beautiful families I photographed that day and I hope you enjoy their little sessions!

Thank you for all that you do in serving our country!

This was my favorite from their session :)

I loved the boys red hair with the fall colors popping in the background!

Mom and her boys :)

This shot was very special, their mother wanted to recreate the photo of the old brother (framed right) and have their littlest son with the same shirt and pose for their father because they look so much alike at this age!

This was my favorite shot from this session!

Daddy and Mommy with the babies :)

These two were so adorable!

And two more family shots for 2012!

{San Diego Family Photography~Old Town}

I love when I get an oppurtunity to collaborate with a family in order to bring the distinct vision of their photos to life! This sweet family had contacted me with the idea of reflecting both their Mexican and Norwegian heritages in their family portraits through wardrobe and also a location that would give us additional elements to incorporate this theme. We settled on Old Town Historic Park for our shoot and I could not be happier with the results! Scouting out locations is always fun to envision spots where the family will be photographed and this was such a rewarding process as it all came together and we had so much fun doing it! Please enjoy this collection of photos from this session and also the beauty of family and heritage!