Meet the Martin Family!

Meet the Martins. Aren't they adorable? ;)


Jill bid on and won this photo session a while back at a silent auction for the Education Foundation for Orange County Schools. It's my pleasure to donate my services to local organizations that I believe in and this is one of those organizations. The Foundation awards grants to teachers chosen through a grant-application process. These grants enable local teachers to purchase or create materials for programs that inspire students’ desires to excel in core subjects.

Back to the Martins...beautiful family, amazing red hair on the boys that the girls out there would die for, and a lot of fun to shoot... Enjoy some of my favorites... there are more on the way!

Carameros Family: Texas and New Mexico Fun!

If you read Mia's senior post then you already know about the Carameros family. They were incredible! I mentioned previously that they live in Texas but had found me at a wedding out here in California. Well... I was very blessed to meet up with them... Continuing on from Mia's post...

That's Gina, Mia's mom, and me at the UTEP tailgate party... my first tailgate!!! They couldn't believe it! ;)
And, yes... I'm wearing a shirt... it's strapless... geez.

After Mia's session on Saturday, Gina, Mia's mom, picked me up from the hair salon where Mia was getting primped for the Homecoming Dance. We went straight from there to my very first tail gate party!!! That's right... not being the biggest sports enthusiast this was a big deal for me! The tailgate party was great... lots of fantastic people and great food. Then, we were off to the UTEP game. I had a great time... I'll admit it could have been about 3 seconds shorter (then we would have won) but everybody made it a blast for me. Afterwards, we went home... I slept (ahhhh... much needed sleep).

Ahhh... the best peach dessert cobbler thingy I've ever had... no... I didn't eat it all... but I wanted to!

The next morning I had a meeting with a prospective client (another relative of the Carameros) for their wedding in July. Then, the fam and I were off to White Sands, New Mexico. If you haven't been there before... I highly recommend it... it's beautiful. We only got to spend about 30 minutes there and then we were off to the airport and I was off back to LA. That was the end of a long and very rewarding weekend. Thanks for all your hospitality Carameros family... I hope to be able to reciprocate some time in the future! All my best ;)... enjoy some favorites from your session below.

This is Tyson. ;) We had to...

The furry friend in the pic is Lola... she's a great old girl and wanted her picture taken, too.

Sandy and Andy: Surprise Wedding in Dana Point

I had the great pleasure of capturing Sandy and Andy's surprise wedding recently on the beach in Dana Point. They were kindly referred to me by Christine Saunders of the Spiraled Stem. (Thanks Christine!)

I was so excited about this wedding. You see, Sandy and Andy flew their family (her boys and his daughters) out from Ohio for a family vacation. But, that's not all they had planned. When they arrived on the sand I had been there for a little while. We pretended that we were going to take family pictures while we waited for the minister to arrive. The kids were a bit confused by the family picture thing but they went along with it. Then, Rev. Clint arrived... Sandy and Andy broke the news to the kids... "We're getting married... today... right now!" I've got to say... it was the most touching thing... the kids were all so excited. You could tell they couldn't wait to be officially made a family and that they all loved each other very much. After the surprise had set in a bit... the intimate ceremony started. It was truly a beautiful afternoon and I was so happy to be a part of it. Then they took advantage of the beautiful shores and lovely weather and played a bit in the water . We ended the day with some portraits, both of the family and of the newly weds.

Here's a slideshow of the ceremony and portraits.

Congratulations guys! Thanks for letting me be a part of such a special moment in your lives. Talk to you soon!The girls were surprised and thrilled!

There were other exciting things to do on the beach besides pay attention to the ceremony... like finding cool rocks! :)

I love that light... beautiful.

What a stunning family.

I love this last one... it totally captures their pure happiness. :)

Family and Senior Portrait Promo (book now!)

Hi all my loyal readers and newbies, too! It’s impossible. Are they seriously already promoting this year’s fall fashions in the malls? Sweaters? What happened to the swimsuits? Is it already time to shop for back-to-school gear? What happened to the summer?

Alas, summer is almost gone. And, it’s time to think about those holiday and Christmas greeting cards! (I know... I know... already?)

During September and October, NMP is planning to schedule a limited number of family and senior portrait sessions. These sessions last about an hour and are shot on location (e.g. at the beach, the park, a freeway overpass (trust me), an empty field or whatever you and I come up with). Wherever the location, the sessions are fun, relaxed, and different from what you think of when you think “family portraits or "senior portraits".

Book your session before September 5th and you’ll receive a special promotional credit towards our full line of custom products including really cool and fun custom greeting cards, canvas gallery wall hangings, fine art prints, albums and so much more!

So, book now while openings are still available. ;) Enjoy your last few weeks of summer!

The Wilson Family: Portraits in Huntington Beach

I had the great pleasure of meeting and photographing the Wilson family down at Huntington Beach. They're out on vacation from Texas and wanted some great portraits while they were here. I'm so glad that they found me. I knew from the first moment that Charee and I talked that we were really going to connect. And, I was right!

Wow... what a sweet and charming family. Needless to say, the girls are beautiful and amazing... as were Carl and Charee. Thanks so much for letting me capture you as a family... being yourselves and having a good time. I can't wait for you to renew your vows so I can capture that, too! All my best... talk to you soon! - Natalie




I asked the girls to make a funny face... this is what I got... I almost couldn't take the picture because I was laughing so hard!!!




Can you believe these two have been married for almost 10 years? They look like newly weds...

Bryan and Noah for Mom's Day

I met up with Bryan and Noah over the weekend at Roger's Gardens for some "boys" pictures to give to Noah's mommy for Mother's Day. Bryan was really sweet... he sooo wants these pictures to be beautiful and special for his wife on her first Mother's Day. I hope she likes them, Bryan ;)... here 's a little preview with more to come.

Nico Turned One!

On Saturday, I had the pleasure of shooting a fun lifestyle portrait session with little Nico right before his first birthday party. He's adorable and was so happy and full of smiles. You might notice that Nico's mommy and daddy are in the pictures, too. I'm so fortunate that they (Mena and AJ) chose me to photograph their upcoming wedding in August at the newly expanded and very modern Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach. Stay tuned for their e-session on the blog very soon. I had fun guys and I hope that Nico's party went great! Enjoy some of my favorites below...

The Pulido familia...

and I had fun taking their pictures down at Laguna Beach. Shondra called me up a few weeks ago to schedule the session and I was so excited. Typically, families include some little ones so it's always interesting to see how a more "mature" family session goes. This one was great! It's so awesome to document a family at every stage. I know I wish I had more images of my family. The years just fly by... but you know that! I digress...

Back to the Pulidos... They are such a cute family. And, they are also warm, kind and funny!

Check out a few of my favorites below. More pics are on their way guys! :) Thanks for such a fun day... enjoy the images and talk to you soon!

A day in San Pedro...

I joined Trish, Kim and their dog, Kleinsea, at their sail boat in San Pedro for a family portait session. It turns out that Trish and Kim hadn't ever had professional pictures done. We had a fun time on what was an absolutely beautiful and crystal clear day. I hope you like the pics guys! Talk to you soon...

Part One...Rachel, Josh and little Jack...

came out to southern California from Nevada for a wedding and to show little Jack (he's two) the beach for the first time. They decided to have a life : captured portrait session to document Jack's reaction and because they really wanted a family picture. Needless to say, Jack is ADORABLE! However, he wasn't initially a big fan of the beach... I think he changed his mind by the end of our time there, though.

Take a look at some of my favorite shots below and in the next blog entry... there were too many for one blog entry to handle!

Rachel, Josh and Jack I hope you like the pictures and I can't wait to see you all again very soon!

Part Two...Rachel, Josh and little Jack...

check out more pictures of Jack and family below...

So I got a call from Boston...

and I was lucky enough to talk with Janet Leonardo. She and her family were coming out the following week for a family vacation in Huntington Beach, CA, and had been referred to me by some friends. Janet's kids are almost all grown up so she really wanted to have a last shot at a family portrait. We worked it out and I got to meet the whole Leonardo family. They were were a lovely family. :) I really liked how the pictures turned out and hope they do, too. I'll give you guys a call when I'm in Boston or the Cape! Take care and enjoy!