Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles: Jesse & Marika Engagement Photos

Jesse is one of the first people I met in LA. I hadn't even moved here from Florida yet, but came out for an editing internship with American Cinema Editors in 2004. Jesse was one of the other interns selected that year, so we spent a lot of time together and a few weeks later I met his wonderful girlfriend Marika. Since then, we've all stayed in touch, whether it's working together or meeting up to watch Roller Derby. At a career-coaching workshop Marika hosted in January, I found out that she and Jesse were engaged. They're getting married on the east coast this fall, but I thought it would be fun to take some engagement photos in LA, and the Griffith Observatory is a pretty iconic place to do that. Just in time for sunset, we headed over to Barnsdall Art Park to get a few more shots. The lighting was really pretty there, and I love how you can see the Observatory in the background of some of them. Not only are Jesse and Marika an adorable and great couple, but they were also perfect subjects - lots of fun and willing to try anything. Congratulations, you two!

Holga!

As mentioned in some of my earlier posts, I got a Holga camera from my amazing friends Azin and Lyle for my birthday this year. I had two rolls of film, with 12 exposures each, so I could've blown through them very quickly, but I wanted to take my time. I ended up spanning almost a month of carrying the Holga around, taking a few photos here, a few more there, and finally getting them developed last week. And I ended up with a collage of different parts of Los Angeles, and love that there are color and black and whites pictures in the mix. I really like the vintage look of the camera, the experimental nature of not knowing exactly how your film will turn out, and having a fun new toy to play with. I'll be getting more film soon and updating here, but in the meantime check out the awesome Holga flickr pool.

Looking westward and the Hollywood sign from the Griffith Park Observatory.

My friend Aimee's croquet birthday party, where I unfortunately forgot to take pictures of the birthday girl. Hopefully she will forgive me.

Emma in our living room, longer exposure gave a ghosting effect.

Outside our apartment, very early morning. I love the red car tail lights trailing through the frame.

A double exposure and some other shots around Valley Photo Service, using up the last of the film before dropping it off for developing.

Griffith Park Observatory

In April, Matt's parents came to visit and we went to the Griffith Park Observatory. I'd lived in LA for 5 years before I finally checked out the observatory, but now it's one of my favorite places and always good to take visitors to. The architecture of the building and the telescope domes is really beautiful and photogenic, and there are amazing views of Griffith Park, the Hollywood sign, downtown, and even the west side if there's not too much smog. The afternoon we went was pretty and clear and I was able to get a lot of good shots, including some with the Lensbaby!