Jennifer Disney Photography Blog

Last weekend I got to be a part of Alice & Ken’s wedding at the Pacific Palms Resort. It is such a beautiful location and just as oasis in the middle of the San Gabriel Valley. When I first met with Alice & Ken they told me that they wanted their day to be about their family and friends and just celebrating with them. That’s definitely what I felt the whole day. Alice was so relaxed and calm and all of their family and friends were excited to share the day with them. I was honored to be there.
The reception included an amazing 10 course dinner! I know, crazy, huh? It was a beautiful meshing of cultures. One of the guys at my table commented on how funny it was to be eating Chinese food and listening to Hawaiian music! Awesome! Ken’s mom did a surprise hula dance to honor their relatives that could not be with them. So touching.

I was so excited to have the fabulous Gina Lee shooting with me and getting some amazing shots!

Ken & Alice, thanks for giving me the honor of being a part of your day. You both are such a joy.

I love this shot Gina got of Alice while I was off with the guys. 




 
Are they not the cutest!?!






 

I prayed that the sun would peek out at least during the ceremony….. and it did!










 
Cute little favors.
 
Kenny’s mom was just so sweet.
 

Thanks, Gina, for catching this moment!



Enjoy the slideshow!

This past weekend I had two photo shoots with TWO sets of twins! The first just turned one year old. Their mom and I worked together for about 5 years several years ago. When she called me to do a photo shoot with her little ones I was so excited! These two are SO cute and QUICK! I don’t know how she keeps up with them all day!
Marc & Traci, I had so much fun with your family. Extreme cuteness!












The little guy pooped out.


But someone was still going….

That’s my favorite way to read too.

She fell asleep in daddy’s arms…..

…for a second!

A while back, Kelly’s parents took a trip to Israel to tour the Holy Land. While on that trip they got to know Jeff and were impressed by him and his character. So when Kelly moved to Colorado and would be attending the same church as Jeff, her parents told her she should meet him. She did her daughterly duty and did meet him, but nothing came of it. They did, however, develop a friendship over her time there. Last year Kelly was wrestling over moving back to California for a job. Jeff patiently waited to see what she was going to decide. When she decided to stay in Colorado he made his move! And the rest is history!Kelly & Jeff had a beautiful ceremony at Kelly’s old church in Long Beach. And their reception was simply magical! I am a sucker for lanterns and ice cream sundaes, so their reception was perfect, in my book!Kelly & Jeff, thank you for entrusting me with the honor of capturing your day! Best wishes on your new house!
Here are some of my favorites.


I love the look on Jeff’s face when he first saw his bride!




Kelly’s dad has a really cool car that they later rode to the reception in.






Kelly’s family is Scottish so there was an awesome bagpiper.


So cute!


Off to the reception!

Yep, I know…. adorable kids!


Sigh…..

Recently I got the chance to photograph this fun little family at the beautiful Descanso Gardens in La Canada-Flintridge. It was especially beautiful since it was tulip time. Gorgeous! But this family was just such a joy. Me and the little guy chatted a bit and he hung like a monkey from the tree. But this little girlie was way more interested in everything else BUT me! When we found the fountain that they could play in, there was much joy, for sure.

ALL boy.

SO much fun in the water!


All wet and lovin’ it!

Cute mom and dad!



I know it’s hard to believe, but she really wasn’t mad! I promise. I don’t know what she was doing, but when I saw this image I cracked up. So many great captions could be added here!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you all know about an exciting opportunity I have today. My friend Dane has asked me to guest host his Fast Track Coaching event this week and I’m SO excited. It’s a 30 minute conversation with photographers to help other photographers grow their businesses. But even if you’re not a photographer, come on over and listen in. It’ll be fun!
Click here to join in.
Time: 4:00 PST
Password: limelight

I met Kayse a few years ago at church. I heard her telling her story and I was moved to tears. This is an amazing woman of strength and grace. She is a gem indeed!

Then came Jon. I met him right after they got engaged. He is a goof ball! And he’s great. These two just laughed and laughed all the way through our time together. I LOVE that! Jon is from Long Beach and they are getting married there, so they decided to do their engagement shoot there as well. Shoreline Village was the perfect backdrop. Lots of bright colored buildings, a lighthouse, a carousel… what more could I ask for. Well maybe one more thing….. a genuine Zoltar! That’s right! Like from the movie Big. We didn’t make a wish. I’m definitely happy with my life and I’m pretty sure Jon & Kayse are too! Thanks guys! I can’t wait for your wedding!

I think the plant in the photo totally looks like it’s painted on the wall. I had to do a double take. And I took the photo!

Recently I got to do a fun shoot with a bunch of my friends I met through Dane Sanders’ Fast Track Photographer Workshop. We had some great models and headed downtown, which has become one of my favorite places to shoot. We had a blast shooting for hours, dodging cars in tunnels, making our “bride” lay down in the alley…. etc, etc.

Here are some of my favorites from our time.

Here’s the crew!

This is the dodging cars part.

When I walked into Hannah’s hotel room, she was surrounded by friends and family helping her get ready. She was amazingly calm and had a smile that refused to leave her face! She was just so excited to be marrying Todd. I found Todd in the lobby and he was about as calm as could be. Just really ready to marry the love of his life. A couple of days before the wedding I talked to Hannah on the phone and I asked her how she was doing. She said, “I’ve got a groom, a dress and God’s going to be honored.” It was true. Their ceremony was one of the most God centered one’s I’ve ever witnessed. What a blessing.

Their wedding was at the Hacienda in Santa Ana, a really cool venue. The staff was super helpful and even brought me water while we were doing photos! I love them! Erik and Camille of Creative Edge Video were video-ing the day. They are so fun! Check them out if you’re looking for a videographer.

Todd & Hannah waited a week to go on their 2 week Carribean Cruise. In fact, I ran into them at Costco the morning before they left. They were buying a camera and asked for my recommendations. I wasn’t much help since I don’t own a point and shoot camera, but it was really fun to see them! They are so cute! I love my clients!

Here are some of my favorite images from the day and the slideshow is at the bottom. Enjoy!

I loved this little lounge I found in the hotel lobby.

Isn’t she just the cutest!

I loved how the ring bearer was waving to people.

Todd’s first site of his bride.

Overcome with emotion.

Dad was having a hard time holding back the tears as well.

At the end of the ceremony the pastor said this was the first time he had done a wedding where he was sure the couple was
going to kiss before he said, “You may kiss the bride.” They didn’t though.

Oh, but when they did…..

Time for some photos of the happy couple.

Today I spent all day planting flowers. I have dirt under my fingernails, but, oh I was overcome with joy. Not just because my house looks super cute with flowers or because it actually is fun to plant things. I was overcome with joy today because my life is just awesome! I’m so thankful to do something that I love that allows me the time to do some fun projects around the house. I walked over to the Fullerton Farmer’s Market tonight and felt grateful there too. Tasting the yummy strawberries and smelling the food cooking. There was a girl with some sort of special needs sitting listening to the band playing and every time they started singing she would just squeal with delight. I could definitely identify with her. I felt like squealing myself. I actually did raise my hands above my head and turn around in a circle this afternoon because of the delight I felt over a life full of blessings!

OK, so on to my helpful things.

#1.

Last month my new friend Kathy invited me to a local meeting of the Heart Link Network, a business networking group for women. There are meetings all over, but this one meets in Brea once a month for some food and networking. The idea is that women network differently from men, so they created groups so that business women would have the opportunity to connect in the ways that are unique to them. If you are a business woman, check out their website to find a group in your area.

Kathy, a slef proclaimed stalker of my blog, sells Gold Canyon Candles. Since she’s seen so many photos of my house on here, she told me that she had something for me that she thought would look cute in my house. And although she’s never set foot in my house (hopefully that will change soon!), she was right! I told her I would definitely post the cute candle thing on my blog. Thanks Kathy!

#2.

I have mentioned my friend Dane before, but I haven’t told you about askdane.com. Every week Dane posts a new video answering a question sent in by a viewer. He covers all sorts of topics related to photography and business. They are really short and usually kinda funny. But more importantly…. they’re free! So go on over and check it out! You might even consider subscribing to Dane’s Fast Track Coaching. Every Tuesday at 4pm PST, Dane does a live chat with a special guest. You can type in questions and listen in to this 30 minute conversation. Every time I’ve listened I’ve come away with some great ideas or inspiration. It’s only $9 a month! That’s CRAZY reasonable, right?! So do me and you a favor and go sign up!

#3.

I. LOVE. GOLDSTAR.
If you are not a member, you HAVE to sign up! Every week I get an update about all sorts of events (theater, sports, etc.) going on in my area. A lot of times they are things I would have never heard about otherwise. They sell tickets for WAY cheaper than the box office and it’s free to sign up. I haven’t used it for a while, but I bought tickets on there twice in the past two weeks. I went and saw the Rat pack show at Orange County Performing Arts with my dad and it was wonderful. Last night I saw The Unauthorized Aautobiography of Samantha Brown with one of my theater buddies, Krisitn. It’s a new musical that’s still in the workshop stages, meaning they’re trying it out in front of audiences before trying to get it on Broadway. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing such amazing talent. It was a really fun show and I only paid $12!

OK, that’s it for now. I’ll be posting some more engagement and wedding photos soon. Not to mention a really cool shoot I did in Downtown LA with a bunch of Fast Track Photographers! I love my life!

Every wedding is special. But this last one I did was extra special to me. Greta was my roommate for more than 4 years. We’ve gone through a lot together. Many tears (mostly mine), walks around our neighborhood so we could process our latest dates, ice cream and chocolate and the Covina Concert Band concerts we went to where we were by far the youngest people there by about 50 years! So when my precious roommate came home one night after a hike with Jonathan with a ring on her finger, it was a no-brainer that I would be shooting her wedding.

She and Jonathan chose to see each other before the wedding and we got some great photos of them. Greta’s not one to like attention so they chose to have a small celebration with an intimate ceremony and casual dessert reception at Harvard Square Cafe in Downtown Claremont. It was a perfect day. The two of them headed off to Maui the next day for some well deserved relaxation.

These are some of my favorites. You can watch the slideshow below as well.

I love Greta’s expression here.

And I love these next two of my beautiful friend.

Not a bad looking groom either!