Alisha + Brook BLOG : San Francisco Photographers+Destination Weddings

Style Me Pretty FEATURE

2011-09-15T12:11:00.000-07:00

We are pleased that Style Me Pretty posted a gorgeous wedding Brook photographed at Beaulieu Gardens in Napa Valley. Soon to be added to our website. It's a lovely feature which quotes the bride saying,"We had the opportunity to work with so many amazing people during this process — including our photographer, Brook Todd, who captured the day so beautifully. He went above and beyond by recommending our rehearsal dinner location, hotel options, and the band. On top of that, he’s just really fun to be around – we’re searching for an excuse to work with him again!"

I would have loved to have photographed with him that day. But it's hard to be in two places at once! (I will make sure to work on that..) I was behind my camera documenting a small, intimate wedding in Mammoth, CA. Not too far from Yosemite. The ceremony had a beautiful lake behind it, with grand mountains surrounding.

We would love for you to check out the Style Me Pretty feature. Please feel free to comment here or on Style Me Pretty. Check it out here.

Also, recently on Style Me Pretty's California blog, they posted a wedding we photographed at Holman Ranch in Carmel Valley. Thank you for visiting us here. Fashion show post soon to come..

Alisha

Junebug Weddings- World's Best Wedding Photographers

2011-08-13T12:55:00.000-07:00

We made the list! Brook and I were pleased to be added to Junebug's Weddings hotlist, which they call the World's Best Wedding Photographers. We can be found in the San Francisco section, and we are so honored to be in such a great group of talented artists. We plan to send them some of our lovely weddings, and we will post when we have a feature!

Well, we were definitely overdue for a blog post. After PPA's Imaging USA in San Antonio TX (last blog entry in Jan), we were in Vegas at WPPI speaking for a Masterclass, sponsored by Kodak, Bay Photo Lab, LuxArt Books, and Tamrac. Our Masterclass was really fun, it was a great group, and we had a lot of awesome giveaways - which always makes it a good time! A few weeks ago we flew to Minnesota to visit Graphi Studio's U.S. headquarters. They make gorgeous albums in a castle just outside of Venice, Italy. Yes, Italy!!! I hope to visit the castle there in the future! So we had a nice tour with Rachel and Maureen on our trip in MN, and spoke to a local group of photographers there. Not much time for sightseeing, but walked through the Mall of America for an hour. The largest mall in America! An hour. No we did not see much. However, a very kind photographer gave us a driving tour before our flight back.

That's it for now. Next we will post some runway shots from Stella & Dot's fashion show!

Thanks for checking in with us,

Alisha

Times Square: Our images on Kodak Marquee!

2011-01-29T13:01:00.000-08:00

Let me say we were thrilled when 2 of our images, with a photo credit, were chosen by Kodak to be used in a video commercial airing on the Kodak Marquee in Times Square, in New York City. The video seen here on the Kodak site began airing the last 2 weeks in December, through the new year, and into most of January. The video reminded people of the importance of connecting with pro quality: hiring professional photographers, not leaving moments to "happenstance". This aired several times an hour on Broadway, and where Kodak Marquee is located. I think it was a fantastic message. While the public is taking more pictures than ever since the introduction of digital, the importance of documenting weddings and family should still be entrusted to a professional that has the skills and talent that will help preserve momentous events, and family history!

These are the two images that were used:

Both images were from the wedding of Rebecca & Orbie Pullen! They are too fun, and we love that two wedding photographers married each other! Very talented people. Also, I like to think they have great taste in photography. ;o)

Wish we could have been in New York to see Times Square in person while our photographs were there. Though we have been really busy with work, can't complain. Work here and in Texas. We also spoke this month at Imaging USA in the Kodak booth. We are looking forward to speaking at WPPI (Wedding & Portrait Photographers International) in Las Vegas later in February. We have a Masterclass we are looking forward to teaching. We were pleased to learn that SOLD OUT in 2 hours! Very cool. If you are one of the people in our upcoming class, we look forward to meeting with you!!

Here are some pics of Brook & I speaking at the Kodak booth in San Antonio at PPA's Imaging USA:

We were interviewed with Sarah and Glen, who represented Bay Photo Lab.

After we finished, I got a hug from Joe (Clooney) Paglia of Kodak!

Junebug Weddings FEATURE: Shiva & Brett

2010-10-11T18:28:00.000-07:00

We were thrilled to have our wedding images of Shiva & Brett featured on the fabulous wedding blog Junebug Weddings! A really great interview and well written article accompanied our photographs of this unique wedding that encompassed two ceremonies that day: Iranian and Jewish. The details were beautiful, and the setting was the lovely at Holman Ranch, in Carmel Valley. This bride is very creative, as she is an amazing textile designer. As the founder of her studio, Gunny + Galloon, Shiva has had her fabrics used in the bridal gowns of Reem Acra, Oscar De La Renta, and Vera Wang. Her fabric designs have also been in many designers for ready-to-wear, including Carolina Herrera. Shiva's wedding came together beautifully with the help and organization of her wedding planner, Amy Nichols, of Amy Nichols Special Events. Amy was an absolute pleasure to work with, as well as the talented and sweet Gina of Lola Video. It was a dream team and I look forward to working with Gina again soon in a few weeks at the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco!
Please check out the Junebug Weddings blog feature, as well as the Real Weddings gallery!

Thanks again to Shiva & Brett, and Junebug Weddings!

Alisha

Best of Wedding Photography's 1st Lens & Light Honor!

2010-06-02T17:21:00.000-07:00

Brook and I are proud to announce a special first time honor bestowed on us by Best of Wedding Photography which is invitation-only association for the world’s top wedding photographers! The membership standards are uncommonly high, as they seek photographers who are leaders in the field – in quality & style of imagery their success and recognition by brides, fellow photographers, and others in the wedding industry.

We were recently awarded in February. This is the premier Lens & Light Honor. Hard to believe we hadn't blogged about it sooner! We are quite thrilled by this recognition and we accept it with appreciation. We invite you to read about the Lens & Light Honor which includes an interview.

Thank you for checking in! We will post again soon...

Warmly,

Alisha

May 18th, 2010

2010-05-17T15:15:00.000-07:00

Hey peeps,

How's it been? We are heading into our busy season. We photographed a fantastic wedding two weeks back at Holman Ranch, an amazing location in Carmel Valley. At the wedding we had a chance to work with some amazing people including wedding planner Amy Nichols, and Gina of Lola Video. Thanks to all for making our day a fun one!

I also wanted to take a second and plug the NACE meeting tomorrow night. I will be speaking along with celebrity wedding planner Sasha Souza, cinematographerAndrew Hsu of Studio MSV, and Jen Kwapinski of Jen's Cakes. It's on May 18th and begins at 6pm at the Silver Creek Country Club in San Jose. It should be a fun time so come on out and say hello, we would love to see you.

Brook out!

Roller Derby

2010-04-07T10:58:00.000-07:00

First off, I gotta say that I love shooting weddings, it has been an amazing ride. However, let it be said that I also love photographing beyond the realm of weddings. I think it is good to give yourself projects as photographers. So this year I am giving myself photo assignments. The first one this year was the roller derby. We have a local Roller Derby here in Santa Cruz. So I contacted them and told them that I was interested in coming down and shooting for the evening. After I was given a press pass, I was on my way! I had a great time!! It was a challenge due to the lighting, but it was fun. Bottom line: FUN. If you are a photographer or not, tell us what you like to photograph. Also, feel free to suggest other cool stuff ***IDEAS*** for me to shoot. Now I am on the hunt for some random stuff. I think next up is the rodeo. Yeeee haw!

The Brook

Beautiful Thoughts..

2010-01-29T21:55:00.000-08:00

Brook & I are really touched by some of the cards we've received recently from our amazing clients! Above image is a postcard from a bride and groom on their honeymoon in Bali! Who sends a postcard on their honeymoon? Brian & Ha Na do! Here's what they said:

Hello from Bali! We're having a great time here(as evidenced by me having no idea what day it is...) You'd have a field day here. We thought we'd avoid sending you a bad photo postcard, so we're sending you a drawn one instead that won't offend your professional sensibilities. In any case, thanks for being such an integral part of our wedding. You helped keep us both(esp. Ha Na)calm and we can't imagine the day without you. Alas, no more weddings of ours to photograph, but we hope to find reasons to keep in touch.

Love and best wishes,
Brian & Ha Na

Also wanted to share this lovely card:

And last but definitely not least, we got a card from some clients who were coming up on their anniversary.

We have a lot of passion for what we do and know the importance of taking beautiful images for the memories of their wedding day! We feel truly honored to do so!

Alisha + Brook

Signature Sasha: Magnificent Events by Design -Jan 2010!

2009-09-24T10:02:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since blogging, but this is very blog-worthy! Renowned event planner, Sasha Souza, is finally releasing her long-awaited book, Signature Sasha: Magnificent Events by Design, in January 2010. The book photographically showcases her stunning wedding designs from real, high end weddings. It's worth mentioning some of those weddings feature our photography. When we work with her, we know that the outstanding, movie-set worthy, details of the ceremony and reception will make for extraordinary images.The book has already pre-sold an enormous amount of copies, and we are excited, as are many others, to get our copy. You can pre-buy your own copy, which will come signed, by clicking here: Signature Sasha.

Here's a little more about this talented wedding diva:

Sasha Souza Events is an expert wedding coordinator and event planner in several magazines including Modern Bride, InStyle Weddings, Elegant Bride, Martha Stewart Weddings, and Wedding Style. In 2004, Sasha Souza was honored by Modern Bride Magazine as one of the Top 25 Trendsetters in the wedding industry. She was also a featured event planner on the Style Network TV show "Whose Wedding is it Anyway???"
Being considered among the top event designers and wedding coordination companies in the nation is a great honor as Sasha Souza is recognized for creating unique, fun and amazing event experiences whether they be extraordinary destination weddings or exclusive celebrity events. She creates experiences that are filled with emotion and a lingering sense of awe.

We know that the success of Sasha's first book will be only the beginning of future sucesses. Magnificent Weddings by Design will be a asset in your library whether you are a bride or work in the event industry. Sasha Souza will be going on a nationwide book tour in January!

Alisha

A + B School : 411

2009-02-24T13:55:00.000-08:00

We wanted to start by saying thank you to so many who came out to see us speak in Vegas. We know 8am was a bit early. But we appreciate all the great comments we received. We were happy to inspire you! Now about the school. Here is the 411. We will be having a small group setting. We have found that in the past the small group works best. The school will be held at our Santa Cruz studio, located just minutes from the beach and downtown Santa Cruz. If you are flying into San Francisco, it is about an 1 1/2 hour drive. From San Jose it is about 40 minutes.

What's the A + B School all about?

Besides fun (duh!), the school/workshop will focus on many of the things that most photographers who are running their business neglect. With that in mind we will share how we have developed our strengths, promoted our brand and made it on American Photo's list: Top 10 Wedding Photographers in the World. We want you to be inspired and take home fresh ideas. We will also have a live photo shoot of our actual clients. No fakies. A fantastic lunch will be included as well as wine and cheese at the conclusion of the school.

You will get all of this for the modest investment of $499. If you book before March 31st, tuition will be $400. It is a $99 deposit to secure your spot in the class. Invest in your business. We hope to see you at the A + B School.

Here are some emails from our past students:

Alisha & Brook,

First want to say thank you again organizing this workshop, very informative and like the half formal atmosphere. The 1-on-1 chatting was very inspiring to me !

I'm so glad I took a day off and drove down Santa Cruz met you both and met America's Next Top Model: Giada.

Thanks again. Hope can have opportunity to meet you both soon in the future and learn more things from you.

~Chung

Alisha & Brook,

Thank you for the workshop yesterday. I am really excited about the information that you shared. Plus, it was really nice to meet some other local photographers.

Thanks!
-Loren

Dear Alisha & Brook,

Thank you so much for such an inspiring and motivating class last Wednesday. It was truly wonderful to learn from you, watch you, and hear your story of how you got where you are today. You two are truly incredible people with such big hearts. Your love and passion for what you do shines strongly. I really appreciate how open you were about your business and the pointers you shared. I feel lucky to have met you and your beautiful daughter!

Thanks again, Lili

Please contact us through our email at info@alishabrook.com about getting an application for the School. Space is limited, as people have already signed up since WPPI in Vegas. So reserve your spot now.

We look forward to see you at the next A + B School.

Alisha + Brook

A + B School: New dates......

2009-02-13T19:31:00.000-08:00

To our photographer blog readers, here are the new dates. We hope to see you......

Monday, May 11th

Wednesday, June 25th

Thursday, July 30th

I want to say that we had loads of fun with our previous A + B School. And we hope those of you who had wanted to attend before, now can! I wanted to share a recent email from our buddy, Chung, who took our first A + B class. He's a very talented photographer and we thought we'd share this:

Still remember I took your A + B school back in May 2008, I already expressed how much I was inspired in the class and had given me much better direction on my pricing structure. It is Feb 2009 already, time really flies, it is about 10 months since the workshop, want to share with you all my wedding photography life. Not only did I jump my the price, but I also continue blogging and applying those little tricks you mentioned.

You were right, jumping the price I definitely lost many referrals from my client base, as they were pretty much looking for the similar price as their friends/relatives paid . However, what you said was also so true, I got clients from a whole new level, they are willing to spend more and looking for quality and new clients keep coming. After I jumped my price, I still got a lot of requests, then I jumped again. This all happened in 6 months. I got same amount of clients signed me up compared to last yr, but I can earn more , the wedding is more beautiful, and I got more respect from clients !!!! with more money I earned, I can treat my clients better as I can use more resources to provide better services and products to my clients !

The reason I sent this email to you, is to let you know taking the A + B class was my best biz decision in 2008.

If you ever have classes/consultation class that you think you can even help me to boost my biz, let me know! I am still hoping to brand myself better and reach another level, not only biz, but also my skills. To be one of the top ten wedding photographers in the world like you guys is my lifetime goal.

Best Regards,

Chung

Thanks so much Chung! We hope to see you this next week in Vegas at WPPI! Please contact us soon if you like to be attend the A + B School at our studio. Now we head to the city that never sleeps! Wait, that's New York. Well, I don't think that city sleeps either!

Signing off,
Brook

Vote for your FAVE!

2009-02-12T23:47:00.000-08:00

In the poll below, vote for your favorite pair of videos. Voting ends 11:59 PM PST, Tuesday, February 17, 2009. The winner will be announced at the WPPI Awards ceremony Wednesday evening. In the recap video, Ron Dawson says that the charity donations would be $1,000 and $500. Thanks to the generosity of the sponsors, the winning team’s charity will now be $3,000 and the other charity will get $2,000. Pretty awesome. Everyone is a winner! (But Alisha still says to vote for team A!)

It was a blast to hang out with everyone. Period. And we can't wait to see them all again this next week in Vegas. Again, we'll be Platinum speakers at WPPI this Tuesday from 8am-10pm. We'll also be hangin' out a lot in the Kodak booth during the trade show, as well as a presentation each day at Bay Photo's booth. Look forward to seeing those of you who are going. So now, go and vote!

TLD10: The Longest Day - Series Recap and the Big Reveal

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The Longest Day: Episodes 6 - 9

2009-02-12T23:30:00.000-08:00

Ok, catching up on more episodes of the reality web show we were filmed in Universal City, CA. Maybe I haven't mentioned this, but I think these will be enjoyed mostly by photographers that are familiar with some of the big name photographers in he industry. For our clients, I think you might just want to watch the 2 actual films both teams put together, which will be in the next blog entry! And you should all watch and vote your favorite one because the teams are both trying to win money for their charity. As I mentioned in a previous post, Brook and I were NOT on the same team. So since this is my blog entry, vote for team A!!! We will win $$$ for Thirst Relief International!

The Longest Day: Episodes 1 - 5

2009-02-07T23:34:00.000-08:00

OK, I want to give you new episodes to view. If you didn't have time to watch Episodes 2-4 in the last post, the above is a short recap of 1 - 4. Below tune in for episode 5!

Making Wedding Dreams Come True

2009-02-06T15:26:00.000-08:00

What a great title! This is the title of WPPI online Newsletter that just came out about Brook and I! I hope you enjoy the images and the article. The writer Emily F. Popek did a really nice job, and she was really great during the interview. I love the line she wrote in the article: "With Brook's outgoing personality and Alisha's calm, focused air, it's hard to imagine this couple having any trouble distinguishing themselves.."

Check out our article by clicking on this link: Making Wedding Dreams Come True

Also, I haven't been posting The Longest Day web-episodes of the reality show we were part of. So here's Episodes 2 - 4. I will post a new one tomorrow! Please tune in for more entertainment! Tee hee!

Alisha

Brook likes to read.....Not so much.

2009-01-22T23:43:00.000-08:00

It is true. I don't like to read. I am more of a movie guy. I have always thought that if a book was that great, they will make it into a 2 hour movie, thus saving me a ton of time and effort. Well, not so much effort but time. Heck, I made it through high school without reading a real book. One of my teachers finally realized my book reports were on movies when I turned in Ben Hur. But I made sure I actually read for my high school final in English when I read Hansel and Gretel out loud to the class. It got a lot of laughs and my teacher thought I was pretty lame. Lame, but funny! Don't worry, I already had an A going into it and did it for fun. That brought it down a grade, but it was worth it. Getting back to my main thought.. Alisha and I are working on a book that will be released at in Vegas. It will be a book of some of our favorite photos from the last 11 years. I think that people are really going to enjoy this. I hope that fellow photographers will be able to use our photos to inspire them when they go out and shoot that next wedding. You will be able to purchase it in Vegas and later we'll make available through our site. I swear you are going to love it. It requires virtually no reading skills! A picture book. You got it.

Also, on a totally different note. Check me out on Twitter and Facebook. I update those all the time. Thanks for checking back on on us.

Have a great weekend!

The Longest Day

2008-12-04T10:51:00.000-08:00

I personally have not posted for awhile. You may ask, why Brook? Why have you not posted for soooo long? Where's the love?It's not because I don't care. It's because, well, because.......... I got nothing. I guess because we have been sooooo busy the last couple of months. I thought I would let you know that you can catch up with me on Facebook and if that is not cool enough, you can also follow me on Twitter. You might ask. Twitter what-the? What-the is right. Check it out at www.twitter.com. You just update what you are doing at that time from your cell phone. I have been loving it. For real. Now I feel so much better that I posted. Like a weight has been lifted.

Now for The Longest Day. Alisha and I also had the opportunity to be a part of movie making history. We invited in a group of 24 of the hottest photographers in the U.S. (oh, oops! The Bebbs-they're Canadian. Don't fault them for that) to Universal City without a clue why. Then we were given our challenge. Split into 2 teams, we were given 24 hours to make a short film. In the process we raised $$$$ for two great charities. When the films are released online, you the audience will vote. Alisha was on Team A and I was on team B. These are the trailers. Both movies will be shown at WPPI this year. Remember, Alisha and I are speaking this year. Come and see us. If we don't know you we would love to meet you. And if we know you come by anyway!

Thanks to Ron Dawson of Cinematic Studios for putting together this project!

Brook

P.S. Comments anyone?

Bigger is Better

2008-11-20T07:53:00.000-08:00

Hey, how is everyone?! Well Brook has been finding out...he joined Facebook & Twitter yesterday. So yes, it's been too long in between posts. We haven't spent 2 months at the Ren Faire. A week after that last post, we took our little one to Disneyland! Because Giada hadn't gone since she was 4 months old. It was overdue! We've also been busy with wedding and portraits, of course. That goes without saying! Except that I, huh, said it.
So we have been updating our websites with BIGGER images. And it's true what they say, BIGGER IS BETTER. Otherwise, you don't get a really good feel for our images, right? So here are few images from a gorgeous wedding in La Jolla. The celebration of Araceli & Fred. Just one of several new wedding galleries on alishabrook.com

We have some more updates for you that I will save for some new posts coming soon! (Nobody's pregnant. Oh, except Alex. Congrats!!!)

Alisha

Renaissance Faire

2008-09-25T11:22:00.000-07:00

OK, admit it. Some of you attend the Renaissance Faire. You don't have to be a full on Ren Faire geek to attend. Unless you are like my sister and own at least 6 costumes. Wink! Well, we just had the pleasure of taking our daughter to the Ren Faire (in Casa De Fruta) for the first time. Our little Giada Bella is now 1! I can't believe it. She's too adorable! It's actually pretty fun. Even if you don't dress up. And Brook did not. He refused to even wear a hat. It was a suede Robin Hood hat with a feather. Oh well. But he brought his camera and photographed us, our friends, and some of the characters at the Faire..

Thanks for checking in,
Alisha

Above, our little princess. Below, I'm with Leslie and her children, Caroline and Logan. The B & W family shot is Chad & Leslie and the kids.

Little Logan is so cute. When he was a baby someone called him the Brad Pitt of babies.

Above, my sister joins Giada & I with Leslie & her kids. Below, my sister adoring Giada. And Giada loves her Auntie!

Can't get enough of Sasha?

2008-08-18T01:19:00.000-07:00

That's what her fans say. Even Heidi! So what is Sasha up to these days? Well, besides her glamorous life as a wedding planner/designer, she also has a beautiful baby. A very cute baby boy! Brook went up to Napa on Friday and shot some baby-family pics for the Souza, hung out, and got some chow. He had a wedding to photograph at Beaulieu Gardens (BV Winery)on Saturday, while I photographed a wedding at a private home in the hills of Corrolitos. Both fun and beautiful! I speak for the both of us. Hope you all had a great weekend, cuz' we did!
Alisha

Aren't they the cutest!

True Wedded Bliss!

2008-08-08T00:11:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we attended a wedding(as REAL guests) of our friend, Kristin. Kristin's company is Bliss* Video Productions, whom we've mentioned before. This very creative & talented girl had a beautiful wedding at Nestledown. As did Nicholas Cage. But they didn't marry each other. Nicholas Cage was a few years back. And he forgot to send us an invite. Back to Kristin-she looked gorgeous! The wedding was whimsical & enchanting. And we tried to remain guests. With our baby, Giada, I literally had my hands full. Brook managed to take a few images. Honestly, I wanted to jump up and photograph the entire thing! It drove me a little crazy. However, we had a great time visiting with our friends, Sasha Souza & Melyssa and their hubbies. And our little Giada enjoyed the wedding as well.
We've had the pleasure of photographing weddings with Sasha Souza, wedding planner extraordinaire, and Kristin of Bliss*, in Mexico as well as the Bahamas! Good times in Cabo: Rambo at The Office, 22 seconds, and dare I say, karaoke. Kristin does a rockin' Pat Benatar. Bahamas were also good times...

By the way, you must check out Sasha's Blog ~ Spakliatti. Love, love, love it!

Here's to wedded bliss!

Alisha

I'm holding Giada for her first train ride! This cute little train ran during cocktail hour!

Sasha & Mel!

Our baby is already 11 months old!

Giada is play-talking on Sasha's cell..

Giada is introduced to Sasha's garden gnome, Miss Gnomer. Sasha invited her gnome because - what's a party without a gnome? Giada immediately took a liking to her and gave Miss Gnomer several kisses!

First Dance

Announcing: Our New Portrait Site!

2008-08-01T22:55:00.000-07:00

We are proud to announce our new portrait site alishabrookportraits.com! It has the same look as our other site, but with new galleries, new images and a sweet new flash intro! Also, if you go to our BIO, you'll find a CNN logo that you can cick on to see live video of our interview that aired on CNN International. Please feel free to browse around the new site. Take a look. Take a gander! There are babies, families, and even a new engagement gallery. The beautiful new family above had a gorgeous, amazing wedding three years ago that we had the pleasure of photographing. Now they have a new beautiful daughter, Ananya. Congrats Aditi & Pooneet! We love seeing our wedding client-friends blossom into families. Again, we invite you to our new website. Please take a peek and enjoy!

Have a Fabulous Weekend,

Alisha

Bay Photo's Next Top Model

2008-07-01T22:21:00.000-07:00

This full page ad from Bay Photo Lab is running in the current Studio Photography magazine. Our baby has gone national! We're so proud! Studio Photography is one of our favorite photography(trade) magazines. Also, I must include Rangefinder and American Photo.

I thought I'd mention that Brook was interviewed by Ron Dawson of Cinematic Studios. It was a phone interview that you can listen to if you click HERE. Ron's a pretty talented videographer, or rather, cinematographer. Check his stuff out if you get the chance.

Keep checking in!

Rock On!

Alisha

A Real Engagement!

2008-06-19T23:04:00.000-07:00

A surprise proposal is a pretty cool thing! Even better when the fiance-to-be has the forethought to call & hire a professional photographer to hide behind-the-scenes to capture it! Tim did just that. I'm still impressed he did. Brook went up to Napa to photograph the REAL engagement of this very cute couple. Don't you just love her reaction?

Alisha

After the engagement, a few of the happy bride & groom to-be's!

A+B = SEE...was a Success!

2008-06-10T23:11:00.000-07:00

We had a very, what's the word...ah yes: FUN time! It was a pleasure getting to know our students (A.K.A. professional photographers) in our A + B School. A lot of chatting in morning half, followed by the afternoon photoshoot. We photographed an engagement session of Jessi & David whose wedding is in July. They were so cute, and not only did they not mind Brook & I with our cameras, but the rest of the paparazzi around them! As for our students, they all passed the big test at the end (which may have have involved some champagne)!

Here are some of the images from that engagement session:

We'd like to share some of the comments from our new friends:

Alisha & Brook,

First want to say thank you again organizing this workshop, very informative and like the half formal atmosphere. The 1-on-1 chatting was very inspiring to me !

I'm so glad I took a day off and drove down Santa Cruz met you both and met America's Next Top Model: Giada.

Thanks again. Hope can have opportunity to meet you both soon in the future and learn more things from you.

~Chung

(Chung followed up with us a few weeks later with the following...I have removed the price amount below to protect the innocent)

I want to sent this email to you to tell you a good news. I want to thank you again for giving me such valuable advise on my pricing structure. Every single detail works.

It is just 15 days after my price changed. I was really hesitant in the beginning, but I closed my eyes and did it. I could have never imagined that I could reach the $______ level that soon. It sounds like some kind of quote in a TV commercial , but THANKS, it works !!
I'm very excited !!

~ Chung

Alisha & Brook,

Thank you for the workshop yesterday. I am really excited about the information that you shared. Plus, it was really nice to meet some other local photographers.

Thanks!
-Loren

Dear Alisha & Brook,

Thank you so much for such an inspiring and motivating class last Wednesday. It was truly wonderful to learn from you, watch you, and hear your story of how you got where you are today. You two are truly incredible people with such big hearts. Your love and passion for what you do shines strongly. I really appreciate how open you were about your business and the pointers you shared. I feel lucky to have met you and your beautiful daughter!

Thanks again, Lili

My message to you guys: We loved having you all! We will definitely have a future A + B Reunion! Also, one of our attendees is a part time nurse and helped deliver my daughter! I just had to brag on you Gayle!

As for the photographers reading who would like to attend the A + B = SEE, we are happy to announce (back by popular demand) another A + B School on Wednesday, September 10th! Please contact us for an application.

Have a great weekend!
Alisha

Why is Brook so serious in this picture?

Santa Cruz Studio: Grand Opening!

2008-06-02T23:37:00.000-07:00

There was champagne, mimosas, scrumptious hors d'oeuvres, photographs, people, laughing. Good times. You know, a party! Thought we'd finally share a few images from that day. Images courtesy of Becky B. It was fun. As was our A + B = SEE! Yes, the A + B School was a success!!! We had a great time getting to know everyone, share our stories & secrets (ooooh!), and photograph such a cute couple for their engagement session! We'll give you the scoop and show you images of the class in the next entry this week..

Alisha

Our baby, Giada Bella, having a great time as well!

A + B = SEE ~ Pencils ready?

2008-05-03T15:28:00.000-07:00

Attention all students! We have a few openings left in our A + B SCHOOL. That's due to a few school drop-outs. I am referring to our day workshop for photographers on Wednesday, May 14th, which is coming up very soon. We previously posted about the school but let's review the details for those of you who missed. Our A+B School will be held at our fabulous new Santa Cruz studio. It is limited to 7 photographers. We want to keep the classes as intimate as possible. The A+B School will be from 10am-5pm. Class will include peering in to the minds of Alisha & Brook, brilliant imagery & inspiration, lunch(yummy), a live photo shoot(with real people!), and one-on-one business strategy. Class fee is $299 a person.

If you want to improve your skills and have fun doing it, fill out an application today....

Please call or email us at ab@alishabrook.com

Have a great weekend,

Alisha

Sci Fi Geek?

2008-04-30T16:28:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't love the original Star Wars? I mean, I haven't actually gone to a Star Wars convention or anything. Would I go? Yah. I'd have to dress my baby as Princess Leia. I have a friend, Michonne, who was actually in Star Wars Episode I, The Phantom Menace in 1999 as Aurra Sing, a ruthless female Bounty Hunter. She only has about 3 seconds of screen time during Anakin's pod race. But it still counts! Michonne signed her action figure and gave it to me. We actually went to Jr. High together. Her husband, John, is a photographer buddy of ours. They have a baby girl as well. Anyhow, back to Star Wars. Love Han Solo. Of course, Harrison Ford is great as Indiana Jones as well. I'm looking forward to the new movie in the series.

It worth mentioning my brother-in-law, Todd, has been to 2 Trekky conventions! You big nerd! He'll be so embarrassed...

A little question for you all to comment on: What are your favorite shows?

We watch LOST, HOUSE, and huh...Smallville. On my own, since Brook is not a Sci-Fi fan, I watch Battlestar Galatica. It fantastic. I wish Firefly had never been canceled. I loved that show. Stargate Atlantis. The 4400 is fun, but its always off-season. I have actually seen the entire Farscape series. Wow, I'm such a geek. At least I can admit it. Whew! I feel a great sense of relief after that confession.

Alisha

P.S. If you have ever carried on a conversation that contained the phrase "midi-chlorians," then the Force (of geekdom) is strong with you, my friend.

America's Next Top Model can't even crawl.

2008-04-29T13:53:00.000-07:00

OK, so our baby Giada can't crawl, but she can sit up and that's gotta count for something! We wanted to update you on the kid. She is growing up way too fast. It seems like just yesterday we brought her home from the hospital and now she is sitting up, clapping, waving, and laughing. And Giada finally added "Dadda" to her vocabulary, since she's been saying "Mama" for months. I know it all sounds small to those of you without kids. But for parents, it is pretty exciting. We also wanted to say "thank you" to all of our blog readers! Keep tuning in for more fun. Enjoy America's Next Top Model. These images of our model, I mean. But if you enjoy that show, it's fine too.

Check back with us....

Brook

Tyson. Fabio. Colby? The next Zoolander!

2008-04-27T10:21:00.000-07:00

We have had the opportunity to watch Colby grow up to be a crazy little 5 year old. Colby has mad modeling skills. I might be bold in saying this but...He could the the next Tyson Beckford or Fabio. He is that good.

Thank you all who came to the Grand Opening yesterday, we had a great time. I will be posting pictures Monday. And for photographers, there will be a Bay Photo party at our place in the near future. We'll let you know more details soon. Also, I wanted to thank all who have posted comments, please keep it up! If you have not posted a comment, you should do it now. Like not next week. Now. So do you think this kid is the new Zoolander?

An update on the A+B school. We have a couple of spots left. Please give us a call if you have any questions or would like an application.

Brook

COLBY, NOT JUST A CHEESE. Well, maybe.

Dude, it seems like you have fun...... A lot.....

2008-04-23T23:50:00.000-07:00

To that I gotta say,"Guilty as charged sir, guilty as charged!" I do have fun but when it comes to business, the Brook does work. Notice how I talked about myself in the 3rd person. That was cool.... The Brook likes..... Any-hoo, speaking of work, here are some recent shots from some very cool (A.K.A.- fun) weddings. I hope you like the pictures and have some fun today. For real. Have some fun! I mean it. Do it now!!!!! You are still here. Oh, I get it, this is fun. Well, I am glad you think so. Have a great day.

Brook

Would you like Jelly with that?

2008-04-22T09:09:00.000-07:00

OK, I know it has been a couple of weeks since I posted, but I have been really busy! We have been working on our Santa Cruz studio this last week. Almost done. We have our Grand Opening this Saturday, April 26th. I will post pictures the following Monday. We've invited a lot of our past clients, most who live nearbye. If we, perhaps, missed sending you an invite, please email or call us! We'd love to have you there!

This last week we had some of our favorite friends visiting from New York. Holla... Anyway, we thought it would be a great idea to take a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Our baby Giada Bella loved the whole place, but totally loved the Jelly Fish. We shot these with our little Canon point and shoot, dude I love this camera. Any-Hooo, we hope you enjoy the photos. We are off to take the kid to a sign language/play class for babies.
Check back soon!!!!!!

Brook out!

WPPI : Vegas Baby

2008-04-05T11:25:00.000-07:00

Well, I am sure many of you (photographers) were there. As there were 11,000 attendees! But for those of you who did not make it......the WPPI Convention was great! We actually drove to Las Vegas with our baby! (she's so good) We did break up the trip by staying in the stunningly scenic town of Bakersfield. And like our buddy Becker, we also always stop at The Mad Greek in Baker, CA. Awesome food! WPPI was at Bally's and The Paris. We stayed at the (comment vous faire dit luxuriant?) Paris. You can see our daughter above as we stroll through that hotel. As I promised 2 posts ago, we were selected to shoot A Day In The Life of WPPI for Graphi & Rangefinder, along with a few other very talented photographers. We haven't seen their images yet, but here is some of our favorite shots. Enjoy!

Dude, 3 posts back to back! Mom would be proud.

Brook OUT

Terrell is a pretty cool guy. Besides that, he happens to be the official sports photographer to the 49ers!

Vicky Topher above & Joe Bussink (below) at the WPPI's Champagne Shootout

Australia's Yervant (in the background) having too much fun!

Canada's Stephen & Jennifer Bebb, fellow Top 10ers in American PHOTO. They are lots of fun!

Australia's Jerry Ghionis, another Top 10er, and speaker this year.

Alisha & Giada model at the Canon booth for a photoshoot demo by Sandy Puc.

Joe Photo & Michelle Celentano host the Awards Night!

Skip Cohen, President of WPPI. Skip held our baby and said he loved her.

Bill Hurter editor of Rangefinder, WPPI Newsletter, and helps make WPPI possible! Bill also loved our little Giada Bella!

A+B = SEE

2008-04-02T22:52:00.000-07:00

A photographer friend of mine I was joking with, asked me recently,"Dude, where do you get this stuff, wit school?" And I was like,"Yep. Wit school bro, wit school." It got me thinking. I thought, "Wouldn't it be cool if you could not only learn how to shoot cool, but have fun too?" Then it came to me. A fun workshop for photographers, full of wit, good food, and cool photos. Ah, I was on to something! So here we are, starting a school for photographers to not only learn, but have fun. Because really, I love photography and having fun, just not necessarily in that order.

So you're asking yourself,"Really? Learn and have fun?" Heck, yes, you can!

Alisha and I love to have a good time. Any of my friends can tell you,'Brook loves to have a good time'. Ask Joe Photo; we have had some good times. Casey and Roland know. The Chad knows. Even Travis Arnold knows. You may not who they are. Just know that they are fun! (Yes, that was a little random, but I wanted to give a shout out to my friends).

Well, that being said, Alisha and I are happy to announce the launch of the A+B School. We are going to open our new Santa Cruz studio (located in the Old Sash Mill) to 7 photographers. We want to keep the classes as intimate as possible. Our first A+B School will be on Wednesday, May 14Th, from 10am-5pm. Class will include peering in to the minds of Alisha & Brook, brilliant imagery & inspiration, lunch(yummy), a live photo shoot(with real people!), and one-on-one business strategy.

If you want to improve your skills and have fun doing it, sign up today.... Just listen to our some of our past clients:

"Dude, I was stuck shooting low end weddings and having no fun until I took the A+B School. Now I shoot all the cool stuff and have tons of fun. Thanks Alisha and Brook."
~Signed, Broo_, oh, I mean Mike Kodak from Fresno

Here listen to another photographer from Norway.....
Far formha likesa Alisha and Brooken. Ehista nuggin grabbn a foto ah. Afhea hanna esta
haha funny.
~Signed Lars Von Canon

All kidding a side, the school is going to be EDUCATIONAL. The school fee is $299. Please contact us to fill out your application for the A+B School.

We look forward to hearing from you......So call already.... Seriously..

Let's Take a Walk Around the Studio!

2008-04-01T09:10:00.000-07:00

I know. Amazing. Another post. Nice. Well, we move from Giada this time to a great couple that whose wedding we are photographing later this year, Heather and Tyler. The thing I love about our San Francisco office is that we have soooo many great locations within 5 minutes. The great thing about these great locations is that they're, well, great. We walked out of our office and got these amazing photos. Whenever I can, I try to use window displays. I LOVE window displays. We also hit Union Square and ended up in the ally behind my office. I know, the alley. And I say to you, THE ALLEY. Ya it works. Be careful about the alley that you use. Not all alleys are safe. Make sure you find a drug and hooker-free alley unless those are the shots that you are looking for. I kid. I hope you enjoy the photos. Congrats Heather and Tyler, we are looking forward to being a part of your wedding!

By the way, the next post will be about the A+B school that we are starting in May. We are excited about sharing with you. Check back soon!!!!!!!!

Brook out

My Sweet Girls

2008-03-23T12:51:00.000-07:00

We just got back from the WPPI (Wedding & Portrait Photographers International) Convention in Las Vegas. I was a speaker at the Kodak booth in the trade show, which was great. Also, in behalf of GraphiStudio, Alisha & I, Terrell and Garrett Nud photographed this year's WPPI convention which will appear in Rangefinder magazine. We hung out with our photographer friends. We had way too much fun! But I heard something that was disturbing. "Dude, you're a sucky blogger." I gotta say to all of you: I am sorry for the delay. I will be better. So what has been keeping me from blogging?????? My little baby girl, Giada. (I'll just blame her since she can't defend herself). We wanted to get the blog going by showing you all some new shots of Alisha and Giada. Next time I blog, I swear in a couple of days I will post some super cool shots from Vegas.

Till next time,

Brook (The-non-sucky-blogger)

CNN: Interview by Richard Quest

2008-01-30T00:56:00.000-08:00

Brook and I were are pleased to announce that we were just interviewed at our San Francisco studio by CNN anchor and correspondent Richard Quest. He has his own hour long feature program called "Quest" featured on CNN International. Quest will have a special on photographers which will include interviews from Anne Geddes, National Geographic photographer Franz Lanting (who happens to live in our home town of Santa Cruz), Steve McCurry(remember his famous, image of the haunting, green eyes of the Pakistan woman?), Patrick Demarchelier and us. It will be airing on CNN International on February 23rd and 24th. We are thrilled to be included in this group, be interviewed by very high profile Richard Quest, and be on CNN International! Unfortunately, this channel is not available in most of the U.S., but in other countries worldwide. Though we will not see it air, we will be provided with a taping. We were also filmed photographing a wedding in southern California, which will be edited into our segment. Matthew Percival, the producer, was a lot of fun, very warm, and we hope to meet up with him again! Coffee or lunch, Matthew? As for our interview, we had a delightful time speaking with Richard Quest off camera, as we found out one of his all time favorite interviews was Julie Andrews! I love her too!

So for all of you who have CNN International, please tune in that weekend! It will air 5 times each day. And for those of you who do not get this channel, it will be available online after it airs. I'll put it on our website, of course! Unbelievable...

Alisha

Goofing around after the interview!

The A & B Recap

2008-01-25T10:56:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I'm going to try to give a recap on what has been going on with us.
A week & a half after our baby's birth, Brook left for Indiana to photograph a destination wedding. I spent a few more nights at the hospital without him. It was so sad for me and for him to be away from our new baby! My sister took my spot as a photographer for that event. Thank you, Erika! Poor Brook missed his newborn Giada so much! The shot above and the one below is Giada at about 3 1/2 weeks old.

A month after her birth, Brook was photographing some engagement pictures in Carmel at the beach. Brook took a fall on the stairs. He was sitting there in pain with his knee cap to the side. So what did he do? He punched it back in place!! Which caused him even more pain! Pretty severe pain. I can sympathize with pain as I suffered a broken neck & 3 vertibrae in my back 6 years ago. That is an entirely different story. The contractions and C-section don't even compare to that pain. I highly recommend never breaking any part of your spine! ANYHOW, Brook was driven to the hospital by his good friend, Casey. He found out he had ripped his patella and needed immediate surgery. He was completely laid up for a week because we didn't want just any surgeon. Dr.Deborah Farynairz did a fabulous job on his knee. It was a hard recovery. Brook needed to be cared for, and I needed help with the new baby. Fortunately, my family lives close by. They were a BIG help. The plan was that I wouldn't be working a wedding for 2 months, but due to Brook's injury, I had to get behind my camera sooner. I photographed a wedding with my sister the beginning of October, only a month after my C-section. Darci & Michael's wedding was beautiful!

I'm a new mom so I must discuss my baby a bit! So the first thing we taught our baby at about 3 months old was to stick out her tongue. Once we started her ...she can't stop! Its so cute. It was Giada's first way of communicating! And it makes her smile. In fact, her smile almost always includes the tip of her tongue sticking out. On December 20th, our baby surprised me by saying "Mama" while she was crying. Then she said it again 2 days later (also crying). I was very shocked she would say that this early(under 4 months old). So I am sorry to all of you guys who were betting our kid's first word would be "DUDE"(Brook's word of choice). The beginning of January we took Giada Bella on her first Disneyland trip with my family. She really started saying "Mama" a lot this week when she was fussy. Giada loved the Tikki Room and went on Pirates of the Caribbean, Pinocchio ride, and It's a Small World. And she watched the fireworks! It was awesome! And Giada met Snow White! I thought of you Sheree!

So what's going on with our business? Well, we have a new space in the Old Sash Mill in Santa Cruz that's about 1200 sq ft. A lot of beautiful, natural light. It will be a fabulous place for portraits! We are getting it ready and we'll share more on that later...

Last, and definitely not least, CNN International called us. They will be interviewing us in our San Francisco studio next week. Then they will film us "in action" at a wedding we will be photographing in southern California. Can you believe it?! Brook said they like our website and our BLOG. Yes, this one. The one that was begging for an update! We will let you know how it goes! I'm excited...

Did I mention I just just turned 30? I have officially left my 20's!

Alisha

P.S. Congratulations to Roland & Kelsey, our dear friends, on their adorable new boy, Tyke! Sweet baby!

Daddy's Girl

2007-12-13T12:07:00.001-08:00

This is the day after our Giada Bella was born. One day old! She was so alert and would stare right from the beginning! Giada is training her photographer eyes already..It was so heartwarming to have family & friends visit us & the baby at the hospital, and the days that followed at our home. I can't post all the images, as there would be too many. But I will post some of our family holding Giada for the first time. Also, I must say, she is not just a daddy's girl, she is also a mommy's girl. I guess we'll have to share..

Alisha

Brook's mom & dad!

My dad & my sister Erika. This is the first grandchild for my parents!

Just Born: GIADA BELLA TODD

2007-12-05T16:09:00.000-08:00

We are excited to announce the birth of our daughter, Giada Bella Todd! She was born on September 4, 2007 at 2:30pm at Sutter Maternity in Santa Cruz, California. She weighed 7 lb. 12 oz. and was 20 inches long. The shot above is Giada 5 days old. She currently 3 months old. So she wasn't exactly "just born" but we are finally finding some time to let you all know! I went into labor in the afternoon on Monday, Sept.3rd which is LABOR DAY. I had her the next day by C-section. Giada was 3 weeks early from her due date. The surgery room was kind of scary as I was awake and could feel a lot of tugging and pulling from the other side of the curtain. I had Brook and his camera, and my mom and her camera along with me. When Dr. Susan Schaefer delivered her and I heard my baby's cry for the first time, I was overwhelmed with emotion, tears and joy! The most beautiful thing I have ever heard! Brook said to her almost immediatly, "What are you crying for?" She stopped and looked at him. Then the new daddy held her with tears in his eyes. Moments later he was able to bring her over to me to look at her. Then my mom held her and showed my baby to me. Its hard to explain how overwhelming and wonderful it all was. And I had been trying to picture it in my mind for months what it might feel like! We are so thrilled to have her! Giada Bella is so sweet and such a good baby. Besides being THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BABY IN THE WORLD!!!

Breathing through a contraction....

Of all the nurses, I end up with the one that is also a professional photographer! She was very helpful and here she leads me to the surgery room as my mom and Brook photograph each other.

I await my baby...
Giada Bella is the sweetest and we'll be posting more of her!!!

Belly Time!

2007-10-30T12:23:00.000-07:00

OK, we're going to try to catch up here because our adorable baby girl has been eating our time! Yes, Giada was born September 4th! But this blog entry is not that announcement. I'll make that the next one! Since I meant to post some pregnancy portraits way back in August, before she came....
Becky Burgin, my mom, took these beautiful photographs when I was a little over 8 months pregnant. I felt pretty good except that last month of hugeness was taking a toll on my previously injured back, not to mention my bladder! Was that too much info?! Anyhow, I really enjoyed having my little baby moving around & kicking in my belly. It was awesome!

I want to say HI to our friends Ulysses & Jenni! Jenni asked to see more belly shots after our SWEET BABY!(July's Post)of Brook's maternity shots. So here I am: all big and round!

By the way, thanks, mom!!!

Alisha

High School Pics

2007-08-08T08:31:00.000-07:00

Remember when grad pictures were super bad!!!! The photographer would give you that weird half tux thing and make you put your hand under your chin. You know the shot that I am talkin' bout. I am sorry to say that there is one of those exact shots of me hanging at my mom and dad's house. Well, they like it. No longer. We are doing more and more fun senior photos. I love these! Thanks for checking back in with us.

Brook Out!

The Bathroom - Are you sure?

2007-08-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

Oh yah! I said the bathroom. I just had the chance to work with Michael & Rita, a great couple from L.A. They had a beautiful wedding at Auberge Du Soleil. We just had a couple of minutes to photograph her before Michael showed up and Rita did not want to go outside. So, I was like, "Hey, let's go to the bathroom." She was like,"The bathroom?" I was like,"The bathroom." It really comes down to the lighting. And I go where the great light can be found. Sometimes that includes the "powder room". Here are couple of those shots of the Bride, Rita, in the bathroom. I love them!

Remember: Trust the Brook

Dude, another post? I am on fire!

2007-07-19T16:25:00.000-07:00

That's 2 posts in one week. Amazing! The Dude is busy, but I am making time for the blog. I gotta say I have been having fun shooting digital. I never thought that I would type those words, and spell it correctly(spell check). Here are a few shots from my first ALL digital wedding. A BIG thank you to Joe and Adrienne for letting me be a part of the BIG day. I had a fun time!

Brook is out!

Sweet Baby!

2007-07-16T15:51:00.000-07:00

I know, I know...... I swear I will post more.....So, my friends are on my case all the time about posting, or not posting. The Dude is busy. I am always doing something. With that said, some of you may not know but Alisha & I are expecting a baby. She is 7 months along. Here are some super cool images, otherwise known as Pregnancy Portraits or Maternity Portraits, that I took of her last week. I hope you enjoy these. Here is Alisha with our little baby girl Giada, who is obviously still in her belly. Bun is in the oven, cooking just a little longer! Please come back soon!

Brook out!

P.S. I also wanted to update you on our transition to digital. I am LOVING it! That will be my next post. The images that I have been getting have been super sweet.

Hello Everyone! This is Alisha posting within Brook's post. I wanted to share a picture of our unborn kid! I highly recommend to anyone that is pregnant to get 3D Ultrasound images. And of course get Pregnancy Portraits and Newborn Portraits, that goes without saying! Here is our little baby girl, Giada. Her foot is hitting her forehead there on the left. As for the feature we recognize...she has Brook's lips!

A new post! What? No way!

2007-06-11T16:21:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. It has been, like, a month since I posted. I am sorry. I swear I will be better about sitting down and blogging. I guess that's how you spell it. Well, we have been busy with some weddings and a bunch of portraits. Recently, we've being photographing some senior portraits. No, not like old people, cause I got nothing against them. In fact, I like old people. I'll be one someday! What I am talking about here, are High School graduates. With that said, here are just a couple of shots from our recent senior. Congratulations Rochelle!

Brook out!

Cruisin' to Santa Barbara . . .

2007-05-05T07:47:00.000-07:00

Sorry I have not blogged for a bit. Too busy with things. Well, Alisha and I are off to southern California. Destination: Santa Barbara, for the purpose of enjoyment and to be guest speakers for the local PPSBC(Professional Photographers of Santa Barbara County) on Tuesday, May 8th. It should be a bunch of fun. We love Santa Barbara! If you have not had the chance to go there, do it. Don't think about it, do it! There is so much to do there, from walking on the beach to shopping on State Street. I try to keep Alisha away from the shopping as much as possible, it is tuff. As soon as we get back home we will be sure to post some pictures of the trip. We will also be staying at the Brooks Institute mansion. Some of you may not know but Brooks is one of the most renouned and BEST photography schools in the world and we get to hang there. Sweeeeet! Please come back soon.

Brook

Blog Readers: BEWARE!

2007-04-24T17:01:00.000-07:00

I have got to say, I like the blog. Thank you all for checking in on it. It has been a bunch of fun. On a darker note, has anyone noticed that there has been a lot of talk lately about the Chupacabra, or is it just me? I mean seriously, last week I was watching the Discovery Channel and they had a whole hour show about the Chupacabra (Spanish for "goat-sucker"). Then, on LOST, Hurley started telling a spooky story about the Chupacabra. Coincidence, I think not. I am just saying, we gotta be careful about these things, especially if you are a goat farmer in South America. That is why I am so happy to be a wedding photographer in San Francisco. There have been many goats lost to the Chupacabra over the years, No wedding photographers! For that reason, I will continue to photograph weddings here in the Bay Area and around the world, except for where the Chupacabra dwell.

Brook out!

Bliss.... Yes please!

2007-04-21T12:03:00.001-07:00

I LOVE getting together with my friends and family. I do! A little BBQ and possibly a great beverage. The red cup kind, you know what I'm talking about. Every great party growing up involved the solo red cup with power action grip, for safe delivery of your beverage without worry of spillage. Ah, thats nice. Sorry, a little off topic. Back to my point. So, you head over to your friends house and you are prepared for a fun evening when you hear the words of death,"Wanna check out my wedding video?" I get the chills just thinking of it! Why? Well, most of the time wedding videos are as the French say,"cheesy". But with a French accent, so it sounds way more snobby. Not so if you use the services of Kristen, founder of Bliss* Video Productions. We have had the chance to work with Kristen a bunch of times, from San Francisco to the Bahamas down to Mexico. She is FANTASTIC! Kristen chose us to photograph her for her new promotional piece. It was a lot of fun. You all have a great weekend!

Enjoy a red cup today!

Brook

What should I look for when I hire a photographer?

2007-04-11T09:13:00.000-07:00

Clients always ask this question. And hey, it's a good one. There is not just one thing to look for, it is a bunch of things. One, and I hate to say...it is the dreaded "B" word. BUDGET! You need to find a photographer in your budget. So, when you are sitting down to watch your Tivo-ed Oprah and plan your wedding, plan to spend about 15% to 20% on your wedding photographer. At least. Some may say that is a lot of money, and hey it can be if you are having a large wedding. I have to say this, photos are the one thing that you are going to have years from now. People forget the chicken, shrimp, and the crab cakes. I mean I love them, don't get me wrong, I love me some crab cakes and those asparagus bacon wrapped deals, you know the ones I'm talkin' about. Sorry, I am a little hungry now. The point I am trying to make is that photographs are the one thing you have left, years later. Get the best that you can get. Get us.

The next thing to look at is the photographers work. You should love your photographers work, not just like it, LOVE it! Otherwise you are going to look at your photographs years later with the kids and think your pictures are ok. And your kids are going to say, "Your pictures are ok but they could have been amazing." With tears in their eyes they will say,"Why? Why didn't you hire Alisha and Brook?" For nothing else, hire Alisha and I for the kids. Do it for the children. Don't disappoint them.

Last but not least, hire a photographer you love, I am talking about "personality". You need to feel comfortable around your photographer. Not like, "Wow I love his/her work, but boy, they give me the heebie-jeebies!" Because the result will be that you and all your guests will have a weird look on their face in each and every photo. You don't want that. Alisha and I guarantee not to give you the heebie-jeebies or even anything like a heebie-jeebie. We are anti-heebie-jeebie.

To sum up, crab cakes are delicious but don't last. An ok photo is still mediocre, but fabulous images are taken by Alisha & Brook. And in conclusion, we offer anti-heebie-jeebie wedding packages. No one else in the world offers that. No one.

Have a great day,

Brook

Ah........Italy

2007-04-09T14:45:00.000-07:00

Alisha and I have been able to travel to many exotic locations over the years. The Bahamas, Hawaii, Mexico, Fresno. Wait a sec, ok, maybe not Fresno. Not that there is anything wrong with Fresno, I mean, it is the prune capital of the world, mainly because it is so dry and butt hot. Really, it is super hot, I am not just saying that, it is. But one of our favorite places that we have ever traveled to for an event was definitely Italy. WE LOVED ITALY! The event was amazing. You can see it on our Far & Away page. While we were there we had about 20 day that we were able to explore Italy. From Rome to Florence, from Cortona to Venice. Alisha and I are happy to say that we are going to be doing our first Italy Art Show of our images, here in Santa Cruz. But for those of you not living in this part of the world, you will be able to view them and purchase them on our site in the next month. They are beautiful! Here are a few of these fine art images. Enjoy!

Shout out to Fresno, Producer of K-Fed and other dried up Fruits!

Brook

Importance of a Photograph

2007-04-07T12:05:00.000-07:00

We have an amazing job! I love what we do! Some people wonder if photographs are that important. The fact is THEY ARE! Alisha's grandpa died this week and friends and family have all come to visit. Each and everyone of us have LOVED looking at the old photos of grandpa Dave. After looking at the photos, really after looking at grandpa's life, it reconfirms that we as photographers have a responsibility to our clients to make sure we capture all the great moments of their special day. Even family photos. What we create today is what will be loved and cherished by friends and family for years to come, this week has proved that for us. Tell your family that you love them today and while you are at it, take a picture.

Brook

David W. Burgin Jr. Loving husband of 64 years, father of 5, grandfather to 14, great-grandfather to 11. We love him dearly.

Elvis has left the Building, but we're here!

2007-04-05T17:43:00.000-07:00

So, my bro, Joe Photo has been buggin' the heck out of me to post some images of our new studio in San Francisco. It is a great little spot just around the corner from Union Square, FAB location. The day's of meeting clients in coffee shops is over! I have to say that coffee shops had worked pretty good. I did hate yelling over those freakin' loud espresso machines, DANG the hot foam. So, with out further "adu"(sorry I don't spell French or whatever), here is our office. Enjoy! I added that French word for the Bebbs, they are "Canidian". Sorry, I don't spell in "Canidian". Wait a second, I can't spell in Inglish. What the heck. This post is over. Alisha is going to read me a book, hopefully one with pictures, those are my favorite. Pictures good, words bad. I guess that is why I am a photographer, not one of those ritter people, you know, those people who make the books with words and such. Pen to pad, small hands, those people. If you don't get the joke by now I would draw you a picture, but I can't draw. Dang it. I am stickin' with my Canon.

Have a great day!

Brook

This is Alisha writing since Brook can't. Heh, heh. This is the front of our building, The Hearst Building. As in Hearst Castle. This is owned by William Hearst's grandson who works in the building. He has a cool Bocce ball court on the roof that we played in once with the building manager, Brennan. He's a pretty cool guy.

You walk into the building and there is a directory of the different offices which include O - The Oprah Magazine, Harper's Bazaar, Town & Country, Cosmo Girl and Esquire. You take the elevator to the 7th floor and come to our suite:

That's it for now and thanks for checking up on us!

Alisha

WPPI - Las Vegas Baby!!

2007-04-03T12:52:00.000-07:00

This is Brook making my first offical post. For those of you that do not know what WPPI is, it stands for Wedding & Portrait Photographers International. And this is their annual convention & trade show. This was the biggest year ever with over 10,000 photographers from 35 countries. Whoosh! That was a bunch of people! I have to say, it is a great time. It is always fun to hang with all our close friends Joe Photo, Parker J, Brother Schu, Michelle Walker and some new friend like the Bebbs. Oh, last but never least Becker, my other bro. Becker it was a fantastic party, like always. I also wanted to give a shout out to Jessica Claire, great photographer and inventer of the huge hit, the ShootSac. I told her she needs to have a Brook Sac, one that is just a little bit sacier, for that extra junk, I think I just coined a new word. Ya'll are free to use it. Just one more Brookism. As a Platform Speaker at the convention, I have to thank all who showed up see us at 8:30am on Wednesday. That was a bit too early. Though there was still a great crowd there and I thank you!
Here's a shot of us in Vegas. Thanks for the image, Schuhmann!

I swear I will be posting a bunch more now that I know how easy it is. Thanks for checking back in on us.

Brook

Welcome to A&B's BLOG

2007-03-17T18:25:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone and welcome to our official blog! We are Alisha and Brook, a very cool couple (can we say that?) and are wedding photographers with our studio located in San Francisco. We invite you to browse our portfolio on our website at www.alishabrook.com when you have the chance. While a lot of our events take us to San Francisco and Napa Valley, we actually live in the small seaside town of Aptos, which is next to Santa Cruz. We get to be in the city a lot, wine country, and we enjoy living where we do! Plus we're near family and good friends. Though since we went to Italy for a month and fell in love with it....sometimes we get to day dreamin'...

So we hope to keep you all updated on the happenings of what we're up to, and allow you to know us a little better in the process. So currently we're very excited to be featured in the March/April issue of American PHOTO in the article:

The 10 Best Wedding Photographers in the World

We are thrilled to be included in this group and magazine in the article written by renouned photographer, Tony Corbell.

We are also happy to have a wedding we photographed in the Bahamas featured in the Spring 2007 issue of Destination Weddings & Honeymoons.

Thank you for visiting A&B and we'll keep ya' posted!