Sarah Maren Photography » Personal

Back to Work {around the office}

Sarah Maren — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 18:20:56 +0000

Well, it’s officially the end of my maternity leave – the busiest maternity leave ever I think. But, now that Ben is 7 weeks old and this weekend marks my first official wedding post baby things are pretty much back to normal, just with another really cute kid around. Last week we took three days off and headed down to Monterey for a much needed family vacation. We enjoyed the beach, the Aquarium, and lots of eating. It was just what we needed before heading back to the full time business of running a business. I just wanted to take a moment to thank all of my delightful clients for being so wonderful during this pregnancy. Thank you for your understanding, patience and generosity. We love you so much, and feel so blessed to call you not just our clients but our friends. I also want to thank my wonderful family for all for all of their help and love as well. I wouldn’t be able to do this without them… especially my most beloved Dustin. He is not only the greatest husband and father ever, but he has made things run so smoothly these past two months. I can’t thank him enough for taking the heaviest loads off me, and carrying them like a champion. We will get back to our regularly scheduled posts soon. I have some lovely portraits to share, and I’ll share some photos from our vacation as well. In the meantime I leave you with this ring shot I took for a friend over the weekend. I so love rings.

Mid-Century Modern {Concept Shoot}

Sarah Maren — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 14:54:32 +0000

One of my favorite thing about my job is collaborating with REALLY talented people and have some fun shooting something out of the ordinary. I had the chance to do just that a few months ago with the delightful Kate Miller Events and Flourish Designs. We put together a fun shoot with a mid-century modern feel. Butterflies, orange tulips, and green played a big part in the design. I am DEEPLY in love with the centerpiece Shannon put together. It is STUNNING! Also, Kate’s table scape was just perfect. Clear glass bubbles, green place settings, stemless glassware and a chandelier made of hanging glass bubbles made for a beautiful and unique table. Also, I want to be a part of ANY table with a cupcake on it.

Shannon also put together one of the loveliest bouquets ever. I love how unique it was.

Having a beautiful bride sure didn’t hurt either. Megan is SUCH a beauty! It was wonderful photographing her in two beautiful dresses from Bella Donna Bridal Salon. And her hair and makeup was just perfect thanks to Nicole from Deja Du Salon.

Thanks to everyone who made this shoot possible! It was so delightful to shoot and even more delightful to see featured on Elizabeth Anne Designs and Fancy Pants Weddings.

Concept Design – Kate Miller Events
Floral Design – Flourish
Stationary – Luxecuts
Rentals – Classic Party Rentals
Hair and Makeup – Nicole Solarez of Deja Du Salon
Cupcakes - Esther’s Cupcakes
Model – Megan Kundert

Our Sweet Boy Benjamin Lee {personal}

Sarah Maren — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 19:49:40 +0000

We are so excited to announce the birth of our super cute baby boy Benjamin Lee. Ben was born last week on July 6th at 8:12am weighing in at 9 pounds on the nose and 21 inches tall. Everything went really well, and we are so happy that Ben has joined us. He is so even tempered, and really laid back – obviously he gets that from his dad.

Dustin was amazing during Ben’s birth and photographed the whole thing AND videotaped it on my iPhone4. He’s such a multi-tasker! We had to be at the hospital CRAZY early (5am!) for my scheduled c-section. I was tired, hungry and strapped up with crazy baby moniters. Dustin thought that would make for some pretty great pictures. Me… not so much.

And then it was go time! We headed to the OR and had ourselves a baby! They apparently gave me a little something to calm my nerves and it REALLY calmed my nerves.

And then at 8:12am our baby boy was born!

One of the nurses offered to take a few pictures for us as a family, and of Dusty and the baby. Poor thing was REALLY confused by our gear. Back button focus? Viewfinder not screen? huh? But she did a great job and I am so grateful for the photos she got of us and especially of this one of Dustin and Ben. It makes me happy.

It was nice to get some baby time with my boy. Then Ben was off for a bath… which apparently was not his favorite.

Then came one of the best parts of the day… Lauren meeting her new baby brother. She LOVES him and it just amazing to watch. Every morning the first thing she wants is Ben. She has also taken to telling us that she is the ONLY one who taken care of Ben… THE ONLY ONE! I find it pretty cute. I also like that she pets him like he’s her pet. It’s pretty adorable.

Ben and Lauren also had a little gift exchange. Ben brought Lauren a Buzz Lightyear (he’s such a thoughtful brother!) and Lauren brought Ben a silkie teddy bear. I think they both enjoyed their gifts.

We are so happy about our Benny boy, and are so happy to have our little family. Thank you to our family and friends for all of the love and support you’ve given us. And a huge thanks to my clients for your patience at this time. We are slowly getting back to our computers, but we really like this baby boy… he’s pretty fun to look at and snuggle and kiss and love. I mean…hello! He’s pretty irresistible!

Maternity Leave {around the office & personal}

Sarah Maren — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 03:16:19 +0000

Just a reminder that on (or before) July 6th we are welcoming a new baby into our family! Sarah will be away from the office through most of July – but email, phone calls and inquiries will be handled by our office manager. Consultations will be available in August, and we will be available for shooting beginning in September. We have a few fall and winter dates available for weddings in 2010, and are actively booking 2011 as well. Please contact us for more information. We are excited to meet our little man, and will be sharing pictures soon after his arrival. Thank you for your patience, support and love!

to my husband on his birthday {personal}

Sarah Maren — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 15:52:10 +0000

Dear Cute Husband,

Today you turn 31. And if I do say so myself, you are pretty darn cute. I am grateful every single day that I get to wake up next to you because you are the perfect beginning to every day. I love you so much for all of the beauty you have brought into my life. You made me a wife and a mother (twice!) and a much, much better person. Thank you for being you – the perfect guy, my best friend, the one I laugh most with, the one who mocks my crazy bed head, the best kisser ever, the selfless guy who rubs my swollen preggo feet even after you’ve spent all day shooting a wedding too, the kitchen dancer, the dishes washer, the best partner ever, and the person I love very best in the whole entire universe. You are everything, and I can’t thank you enough for being mine. Happy birthday Mister!! I love you lots! You are my friend.

Love, Me

Biker Chic {personal}

Sarah Maren — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 01:55:32 +0000

For Easter this year our friendly, neighborhood Easter Bunny brought LJ her first big girl bike. Oh my gosh, all I can say is good job Easter Bunny! LJ is a BIG fan of her hot pink princess bike, and hasn’t even given us grief about wearing the helmet because, again, PRINCESSES! This was her on a cold Easter morning as she took her bike for it’s maiden voyage.

She has been riding every day that the weather has allowed for it, and I have to say it just makes me really happy. My bike was my prized possession as a kid, and it looks like LJ has started a love affair of her own.

what a wonderful world {concept shoot}

Sarah Maren — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 18:35:44 +0000

A few weeks ago I had the amazing job of shooting one of the most fantastically styled concept shoots EVER! This shoot was featured on Style Me Pretty this morning, and I am SO excited to share it with you here on our blog. Dustin and I loved working with the people involved with this shoot and the finished product is more than I have words for. So, with that I will shut up and show you the pretty.

I must thank everyone who was involved in this amazing shoot. It was JUST what I needed to get my creative juices flowing for 2010. A good photo friend of mine asked me why in the world we were doing this shoot, and the best answer I could come up with was this: it’s my candy. Photographing weddings is a huge joy to me, but it is someone else’s vision and there are times it is difficult to be excited about something we’ve done or seen before. Just like broccoli is really good for you, but sometimes you need a peanut butter cup to balance it all out. Being able to contribute to something that is 100% what we want to shoot how we want to shoot it is a rare experiance, and one that I treasured. It is always a joy to work with vendors who KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING! And, it is an even bigger joy to see them do what they do at their very best. Thank you to everyone who was a part of this shoot, and who made it oh so sweet. Check out the SLIDESHOW HERE or below for more images from this dreamy shoot.

Shoot styled by: Kate Miller Events
Flowers by: Flourish
Model: Alison Kranz
Desserts: Sugar and Spice
Stationary: Luxecuts by Kate Miller Events
Hair and Makeup: Nicole Solarez of Deja Du Salon
Dresses: Belladonna Bridal Salon
And a special thanks to Brad Haynes for carrying very heavy stuff much further than he though he was going to.

Hey! Look what I’m making! {personal}

Sarah Maren — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:39:20 +0000

So I’ve been going back and forth about writing this post for a couple of months. Part of me wants to shout it from the rooftops, and then there is another part of me that wants to keep it to myself. The rooftop shouter won out, as she so often does with me. That’s right, I’m making a person! A little boy to be exact who will be joining us sometime in July. While we are SUPER excited for him to come live with us, he was not what I would call “planned.” I mean, do wedding photographers plan to have babies in the middle of the summer? The answer to that is no, no they don’t. But planned or not we are excited for this new addition to our little family. I mean, hello! Look at this face! What’s not to love?

I’ve never thought of myself as someone who liked being pregnant, but I must say this one has been pretty darn easy. No sickness, no weird cravings (though I am HIGHLY susceptible to suggestion when it comes to food), not even feeling too crazy tired. All and all it’s been a pretty awesome experience and I’m really over the moon. I’m shooting weddings right up until the end, but luckily I’m getting lots of help from my wonderful husband and my really amazing photographer friends who are shooting along with me in my final weeks. I can’t tell you how blessed I feel to be so supported by my partner in life, my dear friends and my sweet clients. Thank you all for being so awesome during this time. I’m taking a short maternity leave after my July 1 wedding and will back in action for fall weddings. We have three spots still available for 2010 so feel free to send us an email if you’re still looking for a photographer.

the best of friends {personal}

Sarah Maren — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 19:56:50 +0000

That up there, that is me and my best friend Jill. She and I have known each other for a LONG time… since 2nd grade actually. I remember the first time I met her… I thought she was really pretty and then I found out that she was a better reader than me and it kinda pissed me off. I was the best reader in school and then she just came outta nowhere and was all smart AND pretty! What the what? But, as the years went by we just ended up loving each other. Don’t get me wrong, there were some tense moments in our tween years but by the time high school started our friendship was pretty much set in stone. Along with that friendship came her awesome family who became like family to me. I didn’t have living grandparents, and Jill had a lot of them so I kind of adopted them. I didn’t have an older sister, she did though, so I did too. I didn’t have younger brothers to pack around on my hip, but Jill did and so they were my little brothers too. Jill was my rock. She was always the one who told me I would be great. She was (and IS) also the one who tells me when I’m being an ass. I don’t know where I would be without her, and I’m glad I don’t have to know.

Last week Jill’s great grandmother passed away at the age of 98. Monday was her funeral, and I made the trip up to Foresthill to be a part of the celebration of her life. It was an honor to stand with generations of her family who loved her, cherished her, and flat out adored her. I can only hope that my kids and grandkids will like me half as much as everyone loved Grandma J. One of the best things about the day was all the family pictures that everyone brought to share. It was incredible to see these images laid out so lovingly and with such care. It made my job just seem that much more important to me, and made me so grateful that I had been able to photograph families and events in people’s lives. It means the world to me that my job is to witness families be formed, grow and change. It humbles me to know that an image I created helps someone remember the love of their family. It is an honor to have that be my job.

Thank you Jill for being my BFF, and for treating me like family. It means everything to me.

The Happiest Place {retro blogging: personal}

Sarah Maren — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:38:20 +0000

In the fall of last year, when things were crazy and all I wanted to do was throw my computer out the window I called Dustin in the middle of the day and said, “We are going to Disneyland next month. I’m booking it now.” He kindly didn’t stop me and I booked our very first family vacation. Dustin and I went to Disneyland on our honeymoon, but hadn’t been back since Lauren made her way into our lives. We were so excited because Lauren LOVES all things princess and she loves Mickey Mouse and The Castle. We made the mistake of telling her we were going WAY earlier than we should have, and it was all she talked about for WEEKS AND WEEKS! Finally, the day arrived and we made our way from the Disneyland hotel to the Magic Kingdom. Lauren RAN all the way to the Monorail station.

Here she is on the monorail! So excited to go see all her “friends.”

I honestly wasn’t very good at taking pictures on our trip because I was having a little too much fun, but I’m so glad for the shots I got. Lauren LOVED the rides, and loved the characters. We loved being there as she experienced it all for the first time. It was really, really awesome.

She LOVED meeting Mickey and Stitch at California Adventure and watching the High School Musical 3 parade. She LOVES HSM3 and knows ALL the songs by heart and sings them A LOT. I thought she would have been jumping up and down and singing during the parade, but she was absolutely shell shocked by the whole experience. It was really cute. After the parade we were off to Ariel’s Grotto for lunch with the princesses. Of course, she wore her fabulous Snow White dress.

The other cool part of our vacation was that on day two my BFF Jill and her adorable family happened to be at Disneyland too, so we got to spend some time with them and it was such fun. It also ment that Dustin and I got to go to the Haunted Mansion because we had tried the day before with Lauren and she would NOT have it. We had to use the wimp exit… sad but true. Here is the ONLY picture of my and Jill… again, not so good with the picture taking.

We had SUCH a great time with our friends, and such a great trip. Lauren loved all the rides. She was JUST tall enough to do Star Tours and Splash Mountain and she loved them. But she REALLY loved the Rockets and the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. She also loved the snacks I packed.

And we both loved having our faces painted… they did a really awesome job!

Disneyland did just what it was supposed to – helped us have a lot of fun and spend some much needed time together. Lauren STILL talks about it every day. She talks about the Castle and the Pricesseses and The Spinny Cups all the time. I love that we got to make these memories with her… and honestly, I can’t wait to go back with her again.