Happy Hump Day... and a little Modeling Portfolio Sneak Peek

Happy Hump Day! I can't believe we're already half way through back to school week . I am NOT a morning girl {at all}and am missing my sleep in a bad way.. but the productivity around the office is in FULL swing!

This is just a quickie post, but I wanted to share a little sneak peek of one of our most recent Modeling Portfolios. Meet Zeke.. he is on track to take the world by storm! At 14 he has an awesome personality, happens to be quite the looker and is a killer baseball player.. did I mention he's smart too?! I can't wait to share the rest from his session!

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Lots of Change and Hannah's Gorgeous Senior Session || Fallbrook Class of 2012 Senior Photographer

Our life has been through a lot of change lately {more recently today as all 5 of the munchkins headed off to school for the first time!}. Restructuring, scheduling, working on our 2012 business and life plan have been our August focus. Through the fall we are offering very few weekend sessions, but am lucky enough to be shooting, editing and working all week {during the days} long now.. 

So with the kids out of the house on their first official day back to school, I was an editing crazy woman!  I absolutely adore everything about Hannah's Senior Session and am dying to share them!

A HUGE thank you to Brooke Lee of A Pretty You for Hannah's gorgeous hair and makeup! I absolutely love working with Brooke and she is just insanely talented at prettifying everyone!

  Hannah you are just absolutely gorgeous!

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To book a Session, Portfolio Shoot, Wedding or for more info
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I Wasn't Prepared... {Personal} || Fallbrook Children's Photographer

I knew it was coming and I tried for weeks to prepare myself for this morning. Each time I thought of it, I would push it out of my mind for just a little bit longer. Last night we prepped backpacks, lunch money,snacks and finished last minute emergency contact cards. We prayed with each of the kids about the upcoming school year and talked about how much fun it would be.

I know it is going to be so exciting and so much fun for them, but sitting here in the silence of a quiet house  for the first time is a little heartbreaking for me. Today is the first day that all five of the munchkins are in school full time and I miss the sounds of their feet shuffling through the house, their voices chattering away with each other, cartoons in the background and even the constant asking for just one more snack or another afternoon beach date.

After a summer full of fun and togetherness, I miss them. No matter how much I prepared myself to send my oldest off to high school and watch her walk through the gates, I couldn't help but remember the first day I walked her into kindergarten and how I bawled my eyes out when I got back to the car. I thought I had prepared myself to watch my baby take his first bus ride to kindergarten with his big first grade sisters, but I couldn't help but think back to just 5 short years ago when I had twin 1 year olds and was cuddling a newborn baby.

I thought I had prepared myself to watch my 7th grader wave goodbye as she trotted off to talk to her friends and not look back on crossing over from care free kid to a beautiful young lady, but I couldn't help but remember her pig tails and hugs as she rushed through the doors of her first day of school.

So as much as I thought I had prepared for all of the firsts that today would bring, I really wasn't prepared at all to realize how much I would miss them in this quiet house.

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To book a Session, Portfolio Shoot, Wedding or for more info

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Bucket Lists, Summer.. and Marissa's Senior Session || Fallbrook Senior Pictures Photographer

Where did our summer go?? It's back to school time and my kids only have 3 more offical days of summer left. I know that a lot of our friends have already started, some also start next week, and some have a couple of weeks to go, but I can't help but feel sad!

I have recently been inspired to start a bucket list, well two really~ one professional list and one family list. If you have followed along for any length of time or happen to be one of my friends or family members you already know that I have a horrible memory! As in no short term or long term memory at all.. which is perfect if you tell me a secret {I'll forget you told me} or you happen to be one of my kids and put on restriction {I can't remember what you did or even if you are in trouble}. It also means that I am a perpetual list maker and even have lists for my lists, but it also means that I am passionate about my work because for me, it is the only way that I remember that I lived and that I loved.

I hope that my bucket lists will help me remember where my summers go, how my days are lived and where my dreams take me.

I'll be sharing some of my lists soon.. today I want to share a recent Senior Session that I did with beautiful Marissa. She is incredible, beautiful and an amazing athlete! I hope her bucket list is full of big dreams, because I have no doubt she'll exceed every one!

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To book a Session, Portfolio Shoot, Wedding or for more info

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Arrggghhhh.. Tank's a Pirate for the Day {commercial} || My Own Threads

Growing up in a family of mainly girls, and only one brother I didn't really know what to expect when Tank arrived.

If you have ever met Tank, you know that he is all rough and tumble. He plays rough, talks a little loud, loves movies, Mario, football and his mom. He is obsessed with super heroes and has an insane imagination.

In most ways he is the polar opposite of the girls. They have the imagination and they love their mom, but are much more subdued, quiet and gentle.

 Tank did take after them in another way though.. he is  making his way onto the commercial circuit and modeling for some of my favorite vendors! We received the cutest pirate thermal shirt from My Own Threads for Tank to model and he took his pirating seriously!

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To book a Session, Portfolio Shoot, Wedding or for more info

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Hijacked...Kailyn's Field Hockey Auction || Facebook

Hi everyone, it's Kailyn. I hijacked my mom's blog today to tell you about my high school field hockey team's fundraiser.We are looking for sponsors for this year to help with our costs and had to ask local businesses to participate and help us out. I didn't go far looking for supporters, I hit up my mom!

She has agreed to help us and hold an auction on her facebook page for a Couture Styled Session {with an image cd} AND a One on One Mentor Session!! Please go and bid on the auctions HERE {make sure you like the page so you can bid under the pictures.

I really love field hockey and would love your support. The rush of adrenaline I get when I am playing is amazing. The game is so much fun and I am excited to be part of the high school team this year. I want to continue to play throughout high school and hopefully in college. Thank you for taking the time to support me and my team!

From Nicole~

Hi Guys, Thanks so much for considering supporting the fundraising auction for Kailyn's field hockey team! These girls are working their butts off to have a fantastic season and we hope that we can help raise some money for them!

We are auctioning off 2 sessions: The first is a Couture Styled Session {bid here}. Engagement, Couple, Senior, Modeling Portfolio {one person only}, Kids, Baby, Family.. almost anything but a wedding! We will help you come up with your style, then create an entire theme for your session. It can be completely creative and will be a lot of fun!

The consult, session fee, and a CD of the finished images with copyright release is included for the winning auction price! Any other costs {props that we don't have, hair and makeup artists} ect.. are NOT included and are the responsibility of the client that wins the auction. We will do a consult and go over everything with you and plan every step of the way!

The second auction is for a One on One Mentoring Session: Shooting with Style {bid here}. It's all about the process of building relationships {and referrals!}, attracting the clients that you want, how to plan a styled session with your clients and the shoot itself! It's a process {email q&a, a skype session if you want and an actual styled shoot with models- think portfolio work!}and offers a ton of interaction for helping you with your business and how to move you forward.

We're hosting the auction on our facebook page HERE and will start NOW through tomorrow night {August 23rd} at 10pm. Please bid with your paypal address under the session picture that you want and the amount you are willing to pay in dollar increments. Bids close tomorrow at 10p with highest bid winning {according to my screen at 10p}and I will post the winners and invoice shortly after! 

Sessions must take place by March 31, 2012 {for any available date} in Southern California or Virginia {Last week of October 2011}.

If you have any questions at all, please shoot us an email HERE mailto:%7Bnicole@nicolebenitez.com}

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To book a Session, Portfolio Shoot, Wedding or for more info

contact me  HERE

View my Portfolio HERE

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Random Tuesday Post... Fear, Dreams and OhMyGosh!! || Beverly Hills Wedding Photographer

OhMYgosh Omygosh...Oooommmyyygosh!! If you are a fan of our on Facebook FanPage, then you have seen quite a few sneak peeks as we have been leaking them for our Alice's Mad Hattery {bridal affair} Styled Shoot.

This project has been in the making for months and months, born over margaritas and mexican food with one of my favorite people {and event stylist extraordinaire!!} Rebekah of A Blissful Nest.
We sat in a booth for hours laughing and talking about our dreams, business direction and plans moving forward. When you dream out loud, it is a scary thing! Not only have you allowed yourself to hope for things that are bigger than anything that you have done before, but you have let someone else in on your dream. What if our dream doesn't live up to the expectation?
The fear of failing is crippling! Our dreams are sometimes limited by that fear, but recently I have been dreaming bigger than ever before, hoping for things that I have barely allowed myself to imagine and praying a whole lot that God gives me the courage to keep moving forward. A huge thank you to Rebekah for pushing me to dream bigger than I could have imagined and helping me pull it off!
Back to the Ohhhmmyyygooosssshhhh part. After the insane planning process, working with the amazing vendors and models that participated...and after all of the dreaming and hoping and culling, editing and sneak peeking~ the edits are finally done! D_O_N_E
:::ssiiigghhh:::
  That was a huge build up just to say that I can't release them yet. {I know, I know. Don't hate me for being a tease!} I will release the ones that have been floating around our facebook  page in case you missed them all and add in a couple of extras as a thank you for staying with me through today's super random Tuesday post!



 I am just absolutely in love with color and the table setting that Rebekah put together was TO DIE FOR!!!

 All of the headpieces that we used for the Mad Hattery were custom designed and made by Stephanie at La Couture Amore. I just adore her and she makes the most incredible fashion inspired head pieces.. EVER!

I posted about these awesome boots HERE. I must find them for the fall!

 More La Couture Amore goodness. ::swoon::
Makes me want to marry my husband all over again just to have Stephanie create something else just for me!!

Not only is Nicole an amazing model, but she is also an incredible Orange County based

Hair and Makeup Artist.

 Holy Hottness!! They are smokin!

All of the dresses for this shoot came from one of our fave dress vendors, Bonny Bridal!! A HUGE thank you for sending us the most gorgeous dresses to use! 

We had not only one insanely talented Hair and Makeup Artist

  on this shoot, but two!! Brooke is also a freelance model and hair/makeup artist and just awesome to work with!

I hope that was enough Eye Candy for today.
I promise that we'll be sharing all of the details, vendors, tablescape and every thing else soon!

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To book a Session, Portfolio Shoot, Wedding or for more info
contact me HERE

View my Portfolio HERE

View more of the Blog HERE

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