Cant't wait to share more from Santa's visit to Leilapie Photography!
xoxo
lisa
Saturday, November 30, 2013
11-11-2013 santa comes to leilapie photography
Our Santa visit has become a tradition with LeilaPie Photography. Here is a sneak peek of Santa...
Thursday, November 28, 2013
11-3-2013 hagerman family
For the past few years I have had the honor to capture this beautiful family. It has brought me such joy to see this little one grow and help his momma document his special moments through the years. I couldn't be luckier to have not only have this special lady not only as a client but now as a friend.
xoxo
lisa
lisa
Thursday, January 10, 2013
a princess in training...
my little one truly eats, sleeps and breathes disney princesses. often you will find her dressed as one of her beloved princesses running errands with mommy and/or daddy (home depot has had more than one visit from snow white). nor is it uncommon to hear her singing a disney princess song in her sleep. i think she knew most of the mulan song "reflection" before she knew all of her shapes (that was not by our choice).
a few months back i was reading the blog inspire me baby and i came across a photo of a little girl hanging her princess clothes. i fell in love with the concept and i knew it would be perfect for my little lady.
so, i held onto that idea for a while and searched for the perfect place. initially i envisioned a wooded area but finding that in our community (or anywhere close for that matter) proved to be difficult. i revised that after finding this gorgeous spot. i thought with all the beautiful flowers it would look like a secret garden (one of my all time favorite books). so up we hiked the side of a hill carrying all the stuff (thank goodness for my assistants- my husband and son) and we set up the shot.
even though i loved the location and all the elements were perfect i just felt it wasn't quite right. so i continued on my search for the woodsy area. literally, on a whim i revisited an old location i once had frequented. the moment i stepped through the trees i knew i had found my perfect spot. i had 20 minutes to unload the car, set up the scene, capture a few images, take down the props and make it back to the car to make it just in time to pick my son up from school.
and here are a couple that i got for the day...
this was such a fun session i can't wait to start booking in the future. call now to book your session for the little princess in your life!
and for one of my BEST clients don' worry i have come up with a boy version that is equally as CUTE! because every boy deserves to be a super hero!
xo
lisa
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
a falcon family at heart...
a summarized definition of a falcon- known as a bird of prey who is recorded as the fastest animal on the planet. a pair mates for life and often takes permanent resident once established. "courtship" is a beautiful flight that consists of a complimentary give and take during that flight. when rearing their offspring both partake in raising of their offspring. back in the 60's the falcon was listed on the endangered species list but they fought back and their numbers are growing.
why is this important?
a few weeks ago i had the pleasure and honor of photographing a dear friend antoinette her husband sam and their little falcon.
we met several years ago at work and although we haven't been working with each other for the past few years she truly left an impression on my heart. her kind nature and innocence was a breath of fresh air. there wasn't a day that we didn't laugh together in the classroom and for that i thank her and those who were in that crazy room with me. but on a personal level i got to know who she was and she is a fighter just like a falcon. her spirit inspires those around her and her smile is infectious.
i will never forget the day she told me she was leaving. not only was she leaving the classroom she was leaving the state. i was saddened but happy for her at the same time. she and sam were leaving for his work and this was her time to compliment during the flight. they loved one another so much and it showed in their dedication to one another and the way they looked at one another.
years have passed since they've moved and they have grown so much! i am so proud of the mom that antoinette has become and to see sam with their little one is precious. you can see how active both parents are. sam can calm their little one with a simple kiss.
why is this important?
a few weeks ago i had the pleasure and honor of photographing a dear friend antoinette her husband sam and their little falcon.
i will never forget the day she told me she was leaving. not only was she leaving the classroom she was leaving the state. i was saddened but happy for her at the same time. she and sam were leaving for his work and this was her time to compliment during the flight. they loved one another so much and it showed in their dedication to one another and the way they looked at one another.
years have passed since they've moved and they have grown so much! i am so proud of the mom that antoinette has become and to see sam with their little one is precious. you can see how active both parents are. sam can calm their little one with a simple kiss.
what is so great about these two parent falcons?
1-their easy going nature even when their little was not having it, sam wanted to capture the not so happy moments to remind all of them years down the road that there was crying too
2- their incredible smiles even the littlest falcon has the smile to melt a heart
3- their love which is evident the moment you are with them
thank you for letting me capture some precious moments!
xoxo
lisa
Sunday, April 15, 2012
two wrestlers and a football/baseball player makes for...
a fun session! when i got the call from one of the mom's i was super excited. a year ago i had the honor of photographing this absolutely gorgeous young lady Alex
well here we are a year later and now it is time for her brother to graduate. i was a bit nervous, not sure what to expect with three boys all together! photos for anyone (especially boys) can be uncomfortable at first but from the moment we started the shoot we were laughing and they were at such ease. as a matter of fact the boys were great with one another. they are great friends and i see that they will have a long lasting friendship.
introducing the boys of irvine high school...
THE WRESTLERS-
Joe
Chris
and the football/baseball player
Jake
thank you boys for a wonderful shoot you are the best!
xoxo
lisa
Sunday, September 18, 2011
double the fun, double the cuteness...
i have been dying to post these photos since i took them, but time got away from me and although easter has come and gone these two little ones are too cute not to post!
but... before i do, i want to give you a little history of how i know their mom. raina and i attended local catholic elementary school together from 1st-8th grade. growing up in a small school we share many of our childhood memories--- pie fights, school dances, walks along the walk of fame, Mr Oakley and the list goes on. we truly did grow up together but after "graduation" we all went our separate ways in high school. i have always had mixed feelings about Facebook but one of the greatest gifts it has given me is the opportunity to reconnect with old friends...
what is so great about twins is you get double the cuteness...
 |
| double the trouble, but double the cuteness! |
 |
| ok so not the best photo but it is a trip down memory lane |
these two seriously melted my heart! they were such dolls and fun to work with. what has been great i have been able to see them grow up through the facebook pictures their mommy posts and i even had the opportunity to capture their 1 year birthday party. i can't wait to post those pictures! but for now i will leave you with one more photo of cuteness...
xoxo
lis
btw i seriously started this post a couple of months back and after a move and organization of photos i found the old camp photo i had been dying to post!
Monday, April 18, 2011
i want to have...
a mommy and me session contest!!!
(please feel free to share the link on Facebook, email, etc)
contest "rules"
there really are no rules. you can nominate your mom, grandma, friend or even yourself! don't be shy- all moms deserve to be recognized, even yourself! everyone has a story so please share the story of an amazing mommy that you know. to nominate please send me a brief paragraph about the person(s) you want to nominate along with the their name and information so that i can contact them if they are chosen.
what should be in the paragraph? how many little one(s) they have (and their children can be grown); and why you nominated them. why do they inspire you? what makes them special? this seriously can be a couple of sentences or if you write like me a short story. no story is too little, really it can be as simple as -- "this mommy helped raised her brothers and sisters"; or "she finished college while being a mommy"; or "she works full time and never misses a ____ practice/dinner". you get the idea. like i said EVERY mom deserves to be recognized!
please email entries to leilapiephotography@gmail.com
the entries need to be submitted by Friday, April 22nd at 6pm (PST). the nominated individual needs to live in orange county or willing to drive to orange county for the session. they need to be willing to be featured on the blog with their pictures from the session. it will be their personal decision if they want to share their story.
oh and last "rule" you (the nominator) must like LeilaPie Photography (click on direct link) on Facebook. for an additional entry share the link on your FB page. once you've shared the link on FB please leave a comment under this blog post or in your email to me. for another entry share this post on your blog and link back to this page. once you have done that please leave a comment under this post (or in your email to me) saying that you shared it on your blog and a link to your blog. that means you can earn up to 3 entries for the person you nominated! i know it's a shameless plug but this contest really is very easy and it is a way to get others to learn about it.
here is more exciting news! since i truly believe every mom that is nominated is deserving the winner will be randomly chosen therefore everyone has an equal chance of their nominee of winning. the winner will be announced on FB and contacted by April 26th.
what they will get
30 minute mommy and me session
on location of photographer's choice
1- 8x10
cd of 5 edited images of their choice from the session
and here is the best part! if the person you nominated is chosen you will also win a session. it is my way of thanking you for taking the time to recognize that special mom!
30 minute mommy and me session
on location of photographer's choice
1- 5x7
cd of 3 images of your choice from the session
and here is more exciting news i will be having
mommy and me sessions! $60 these are great presents
30 minute mommy and me session
on location on photographer's choice (trust me it is gorgeous)
*1 5x7
1 digital image of your choice (same as print)
*if you nominated a mom you will receive an additional 5x7 as a thank you for taking the time to nominate someone special
who inspired me...
my mom of course but i wanted to tell you why, so please bear with me during this post.
i have really debated how much about my personal life i've wanted to reveal in this blog. sure i want you all to know who i am, about my family, what i do, and even some adventures i've been on; but i wondered if some things should stay personal. i have had an idea for the past couple of weeks and have been conflicted just how much i wanted to share- i know that it may reveal some hurtful things and may even hurt some people but this is the hard truth and sometimes the truth hurts. in an effort to protect my everyone i will NEVER use names. also some of you who read this have known me practically my whole life and NEVER knew this part of my life. so i finally decided for you to truly know who i am and why i came up with this idea i wanted to share my story.
as you know my name is lisa. i am a mom of two little ones and like any mom love them more than anything. for the past 9 years i have been teaching children with autism for a local orange county school district and truly love what i do. this year, after years of wanting to stay home with my little ones, my husband and i decided we would take the leap and have me stay home part time. most of you who read this blog, know me personally so you already know this fluffy stuff. so now i want to tell you where i came from....
my mom and dad married over 35 years ago. so for those of you who don't know my age go ahead and do the math (yes i am over 30). i would love to say that they are still happily married, but as most of you know not every marriage has a "happily everafter" ending. as a matter of fact i was the one who begged my mom to leave my father. why? well here we go...
my father was less than an amazing father, dad, heck even man for that matter. he was physically and emotionally abusive. he cheated during their marriage and was rarely around in my life. as a matter of fact i have not seen or heard from him in almost a year, which truly saddens me since my own little ones will not get to know one of their papas. but this post is not about my father but rather my amazing mom!
i am not sure when the abuse started but i do know that at least once while she was pregnant he hit her. six months after i was born we moved from sunny southern california to washington d.c. for my fathers work. so my mom packed up her life, left her family and traveled with her family to a new life. as all of us moms know raising a little one is hard enough but imagine living somewhere new with no family and friends for support and having to learn a new way of life (snow!). moving out there didn't make things any better, they only got worse. a few times my mom had to prepare us for tornadoes while my father was no where to be found.
eventually we moved back to california but this time to martinez (close to san fransisco). at one point my mom tried to leave and actually came home but was not welcomed by her family, since to my grandmother it was a disgrace to get a divorce. remember 25 years ago divorce was a taboo. later in life when i was old enough i remember hearing my grandmother say "well it takes two in a marriage" as if the cheating and abuse was also my mom's fault (but there is more to my grandmother's story and i truly love her unconditionally). my mom's parents were the typical "hispanic catholic family" and if you have ever read "divine secrets of the ya ya sisterhood" the grandmother/mother relationship really hit home.
it was some time in martinez that i started to figure out the cheating and remember telling some of the women who called to "leave my daddy alone". shortly after we move back to sunny southern california and settled in for good. i was getting older and the abuse was more evident to me. it was so bad that a doctor who was taking care of my mom said "take a gun and shot him". was it ethical of him to say? no! but after the years of abuse and the bruises he would treat he was tired of it! a few times i stepped in and once i got hit as a result. this is when my school stepped in, my grandparents took us both in, my dad left for good.
when he left my mom was there to pick up the pieces and my grandparents were there every step of the way (i told you i loved them unconditionally). she was there not only to pick up the emotional pieces but also the financial pieces. she sacrificed everyday to send me to St. Joseph's Catholic School in Placentia and to provide a normal life for me. every holiday had special touches: a cabbage patch for my Easter basket (i am sure you can guess what was at the end of the hunt); valentine candy trains, etc.
my mom has always been my rock. she has been my cheerleader in life and has never left my side. to honor all that she has done for me (and others) i want to pay it forward and give away a free mommy and me session!
xoxo
lisa
(please feel free to share the link on Facebook, email, etc)
contest "rules"
there really are no rules. you can nominate your mom, grandma, friend or even yourself! don't be shy- all moms deserve to be recognized, even yourself! everyone has a story so please share the story of an amazing mommy that you know. to nominate please send me a brief paragraph about the person(s) you want to nominate along with the their name and information so that i can contact them if they are chosen.
what should be in the paragraph? how many little one(s) they have (and their children can be grown); and why you nominated them. why do they inspire you? what makes them special? this seriously can be a couple of sentences or if you write like me a short story. no story is too little, really it can be as simple as -- "this mommy helped raised her brothers and sisters"; or "she finished college while being a mommy"; or "she works full time and never misses a ____ practice/dinner". you get the idea. like i said EVERY mom deserves to be recognized!
please email entries to leilapiephotography@gmail.com
the entries need to be submitted by Friday, April 22nd at 6pm (PST). the nominated individual needs to live in orange county or willing to drive to orange county for the session. they need to be willing to be featured on the blog with their pictures from the session. it will be their personal decision if they want to share their story.
oh and last "rule" you (the nominator) must like LeilaPie Photography (click on direct link) on Facebook. for an additional entry share the link on your FB page. once you've shared the link on FB please leave a comment under this blog post or in your email to me. for another entry share this post on your blog and link back to this page. once you have done that please leave a comment under this post (or in your email to me) saying that you shared it on your blog and a link to your blog. that means you can earn up to 3 entries for the person you nominated! i know it's a shameless plug but this contest really is very easy and it is a way to get others to learn about it.
here is more exciting news! since i truly believe every mom that is nominated is deserving the winner will be randomly chosen therefore everyone has an equal chance of their nominee of winning. the winner will be announced on FB and contacted by April 26th.
what they will get
30 minute mommy and me session
on location of photographer's choice
1- 8x10
cd of 5 edited images of their choice from the session
and here is the best part! if the person you nominated is chosen you will also win a session. it is my way of thanking you for taking the time to recognize that special mom!
30 minute mommy and me session
on location of photographer's choice
1- 5x7
cd of 3 images of your choice from the session
and here is more exciting news i will be having
mommy and me sessions! $60 these are great presents
30 minute mommy and me session
on location on photographer's choice (trust me it is gorgeous)
*1 5x7
1 digital image of your choice (same as print)
*if you nominated a mom you will receive an additional 5x7 as a thank you for taking the time to nominate someone special
who inspired me...
my mom of course but i wanted to tell you why, so please bear with me during this post.
i have really debated how much about my personal life i've wanted to reveal in this blog. sure i want you all to know who i am, about my family, what i do, and even some adventures i've been on; but i wondered if some things should stay personal. i have had an idea for the past couple of weeks and have been conflicted just how much i wanted to share- i know that it may reveal some hurtful things and may even hurt some people but this is the hard truth and sometimes the truth hurts. in an effort to protect my everyone i will NEVER use names. also some of you who read this have known me practically my whole life and NEVER knew this part of my life. so i finally decided for you to truly know who i am and why i came up with this idea i wanted to share my story.
as you know my name is lisa. i am a mom of two little ones and like any mom love them more than anything. for the past 9 years i have been teaching children with autism for a local orange county school district and truly love what i do. this year, after years of wanting to stay home with my little ones, my husband and i decided we would take the leap and have me stay home part time. most of you who read this blog, know me personally so you already know this fluffy stuff. so now i want to tell you where i came from....
my mom and dad married over 35 years ago. so for those of you who don't know my age go ahead and do the math (yes i am over 30). i would love to say that they are still happily married, but as most of you know not every marriage has a "happily everafter" ending. as a matter of fact i was the one who begged my mom to leave my father. why? well here we go...
my father was less than an amazing father, dad, heck even man for that matter. he was physically and emotionally abusive. he cheated during their marriage and was rarely around in my life. as a matter of fact i have not seen or heard from him in almost a year, which truly saddens me since my own little ones will not get to know one of their papas. but this post is not about my father but rather my amazing mom!
i am not sure when the abuse started but i do know that at least once while she was pregnant he hit her. six months after i was born we moved from sunny southern california to washington d.c. for my fathers work. so my mom packed up her life, left her family and traveled with her family to a new life. as all of us moms know raising a little one is hard enough but imagine living somewhere new with no family and friends for support and having to learn a new way of life (snow!). moving out there didn't make things any better, they only got worse. a few times my mom had to prepare us for tornadoes while my father was no where to be found.
eventually we moved back to california but this time to martinez (close to san fransisco). at one point my mom tried to leave and actually came home but was not welcomed by her family, since to my grandmother it was a disgrace to get a divorce. remember 25 years ago divorce was a taboo. later in life when i was old enough i remember hearing my grandmother say "well it takes two in a marriage" as if the cheating and abuse was also my mom's fault (but there is more to my grandmother's story and i truly love her unconditionally). my mom's parents were the typical "hispanic catholic family" and if you have ever read "divine secrets of the ya ya sisterhood" the grandmother/mother relationship really hit home.
it was some time in martinez that i started to figure out the cheating and remember telling some of the women who called to "leave my daddy alone". shortly after we move back to sunny southern california and settled in for good. i was getting older and the abuse was more evident to me. it was so bad that a doctor who was taking care of my mom said "take a gun and shot him". was it ethical of him to say? no! but after the years of abuse and the bruises he would treat he was tired of it! a few times i stepped in and once i got hit as a result. this is when my school stepped in, my grandparents took us both in, my dad left for good.
when he left my mom was there to pick up the pieces and my grandparents were there every step of the way (i told you i loved them unconditionally). she was there not only to pick up the emotional pieces but also the financial pieces. she sacrificed everyday to send me to St. Joseph's Catholic School in Placentia and to provide a normal life for me. every holiday had special touches: a cabbage patch for my Easter basket (i am sure you can guess what was at the end of the hunt); valentine candy trains, etc.
my mom has always been my rock. she has been my cheerleader in life and has never left my side. to honor all that she has done for me (and others) i want to pay it forward and give away a free mommy and me session!
xoxo
lisa
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