emily + steve | beloved.

it began their freshman year of college. steve loves to hike. and run. and play in the great outdoors. he loves twix and dole strawberry/banana/pineapple juice. he is adventurous, easygoing and spontaneous. and so, naturally, steve had a craving for adventure and one day, he was on the prowl for a fellow adventure seeker to embrack upon an epic hot-air-balloon ride. but sadly, everyone he asked turned him down. until he got to the room at the end of the hall.

and there was emily. she loves snickers and twix. and a cold grapefruit juice sqeeze. she loves warm colors--reds and oranges--and green too because it reminds her of nature, and lately she has been appreciating blue more. she's inquisitive, adventurous, and passionate. and she was up for anything, so of course she agreed to accompany steve on his adventure. they were excited.

much to their chagrin, however, the hot air balloon dude keeps cancelling and rescheduling. this saga continues for months, and after awhile, the duo comes to grips with the fact that the balloon dude was never going to come through. but they refused to let that spoil their fun, and so they kept up their morning excursions. and the rest, well, it's history.

finally, after two and a half years after many a failed attempt, they finally made up into the air. and on that day and in that moment, he proposed.

she loves his thirst for knowledge, his compassion for others and desire to hear their stories, and his passion for an adventurous life. he loves the joy that she takes in all of the little things in everyday life; her heart for others, especially those who are suffering and in need and her desire for adventure.

together they share a penchant for the bbc planet earth series. and they love, love, i mean, LOVE the outdoors. be it hiking, rollerblading, or hot-air-ballooning, they are all-in. they love exploring, seeking and finding, adventuring and discovering. they love the new-ness that it brings. the shared experience. the moments therein. bottom line: they love living life together.

she is his beloved. and he is hers.

and this is their story.

my favorite series from the day.

some of the natural beauty we experienced on the shoot...

'blading. this was quite a challenging series to shoot. between dodging bike-riders, joggers and skate-boarders and running backwards whilst they speed along on their skates, i was a spectacle to be sure. totally worth it though...

mmm, buttery santa barbara light. i loves it.

one of my favorite shots of the day...there just so happened to be a piece of pipe that was short enough to work with right where i had them up against the construction fence. awesome-ness.

view slideshow here.

allyson.

she laughs. and smiles. a lot. she lights up the room when she enters. and she is hilarious to boot. she's authentic, intentional and caring and engages in relationship in a way that is vulnerable and honest. she is an artist of both the musical and visual persuasion. she notices and she creates. she dreams and she inspires.

she is allyson.

and this is her grad photo shoot.

we cruised up the 101 north on the prowl for some wildflowers and fields and of course for some vintage-grudge. here's what we found...

three of my absolute faves.

gorgeous, ain't she?

view the slideshow here.

burlap and barcodes.

i've got lots of ideas. some are better than others. some are complicated. some are simple. and some are downright silly. but they are ideas nonetheless. dreams. aspirations. schemes really. sometimes my ideas overwhelm me and they seem impossible to bring to fruition. some are forgotten and pushed aside by others. some are dusted off after a long stint in the attic. others are forcefully dragged out of bed and dowsed awake with a bucket of water. such was the case with this idea...

last year my friend kelsey asked me to take some portraits of her to accompany her graduation announcements. i willingly obliged for several reasons. one: she had been such a tremendous help to me during the launch of my business last year, i wanted to thank her. two: i couldn't pass up an opportunity to make one of my dearest friends channel her inner tyra. three: i thought doing grad shoots was a great idea. so as it were, some ideas are inspired by others.

a year has passed since, and well, i still like her idea. so i got out the proverbial bucket and dowsed it with some fresh j-ship water. bam. we got ourselves a new +site peoples. and a killer giveaway...

grad photo shoots.

college graduation is kind of a big deal. it's the culmination of many, many years of hard work, perseverance and determination. it is an exciting yet terrifying time in life. you are ready to move-on & become a real-live adult you're anxious to be out on your own & start a new life in the real world. yet all the while, you realize that this season (as with many others) beholds a series of lasts. so you can choose to recognize & embrace this fact and remind yourself that this is your now. cherish the small things of the college life. actively create moments that will go unforgotten. but most importantly, realize that this season can chart the course for the next.

needless to say, this is a milestone that deserves mad props, celebration, and, well, a photo shoot. no, no, we are not talking cap and gown status. that is so 1980. rather, we are talking about a series of photographs that portray who you are and mark this accomplishment as worthy of remembrance beyond just a framed degree above your desk.

intrigued? find out more about grad photo shoots and the GIVEAWAY here.

not a grad-to-be yet still want to book a j. shipley photo shoot? more +sites coming soon.

creatives.

seniors.

professionals.

can't wait? email info@jshipleyphotography.com

hawaii.

it's not often that my family and i get the chance to sneak away to a tropical paradise and soak up some sunshine. that fact was best represented by our pasty white skin and our let's-fit-in-as-much-as-we-possibly-can mentality. and sure enough, we found ourselves quite satisfied when we boarded our flight back to the mainland. some people relax on the beach sipping mai-tais all the day long. but us shipleys tend to pack in much more activity than most. during our eight day trip to oahu, we drove around aimlessly far too much. snorkeled twice. road horses. surfed waikiki. watched waves at waimea bay and pipeline. visited pearl harbor and the uss arizona memorial. ate hula pie. got snowcones in haleiwa. and survived the tsunami scare. no big deal. so needless to say, we had a wonderful time and very much enjoyed our time together. hopefully it won't be another five years before we embark on an other family adventure...

[above: the reds...left to right. the barn at kuaola ranch. snow cones at island snow in kailua. the garden at the house we stayed at. catamaran cruise in waikiki. the syrup bottles at island snow. missile at pearl harbor. cool vw bus at dannah's house. sign at pipe. the barn at kuaola ranch.]

[bird of paradise, kailua]

[sister and me beaching it up]

[my mom and dad at kailua beach. later this year they will have been married for 30 years, so we went to hawaii early to celebrate]

[horseback riding at kuaola ranch]

[palm]

pearl harbor a-la-iphone. the uss arizona memorial. left to right: 1) entrance to the uss arizona memorial. 2) flags in the first room. 3) names of the fallen crew members. 4) gun turret. 5) oil still leaks from the hull. 6) another part of the wreck. 7) the brilliant architecture of the memorial's center room. 8) view of the memorial from pearl harbor. 8) view of the uss missouri from the arizona memorial]