The annual Orange County Child Abuse Prevention Center Athletes and Aces Casino Night was held at the Island Hotel's Palm Garden in Newport Beach. The event is hosted by baseball great Robb Nenn and his wife Jendy, and includes many other athletes that contribute to such a great cause. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to shoot this event because it's a star-studded event and filled with fun.


Chris Pronger of the Anaheim Ducks watches as two attendees square off in a Nintendo Wii baseball game.



Charitable Anaheim Ducks Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Samuel Pahlsson pose with the Stanley Cup.



Signed sports memorabilia were donated by the sponsors and sold via a silent auction. "Jiggy" so happened to be in the background so I quickly snapped a shot of this Ducks jersey.



Former Angel Chuck Finley being playful.



Robb and Jendy speaking to the crowd. I admire athletes who take the time out to really give back to the community. You can tell how much they care by all the time and effort they put into it.



Darin Erstad signs the harley that was sold off during the live auction.



Jim Everett has a good laugh on the bike.



Darin and Jessica Erstad, another great couple who help with this cause.

We met up with Michelle and Tom in downtown San Juan Capistrano by the Train Depot for their engagement shoot. We're excited to shoot their wedding next month in Laguna Beach at Pacific Edge. Michelle and Tom were a fun couple to work with. They were very easy going and they had no problems being themselves and being silly with each other. There were many sweet moments. Here are a few that caught my eye.


This was an antique train on display by the main office at the Train Depot.


I love the red color of the train.


Luckily, the train was late so we sneaked in a few shots on the tracks.




Here's a sweet moment as we walked around the downtown area.


This is one of my favorites. The colorful leaves added a nice touch to the shot.




The weather was a little chilly but beautiful. I wanted to capture this shot with the sun glaring behind them.




Here's Michelle and Tom sitting in front of The Ramos House Cafe. This is their favorite spot to visit whenever they're in the area.


I love the way he holds her hand here, and the background is so smooth!

Jackie and Roy were only in town for these couple of weeks so we wanted to get the engagement shoot in, even if it meant braving a freezing-for-Socal day. Roy grew up in the East coast so the cold was nothing to him. One thing I like about cloudy days is that it creates a romantic mood for a shoot like this. It has a winter feeling without the snow. Here are the results of a fun shoot in Irvine.


I wanted to give them a nature-themed look for the engagement shoot because their wedding is going to be beach-themed, so this way they get a variety of photos.




Shot in this tunnel always turn out great.




Note the heart-shaped leaf right above Jackie. How completely random and awesome is that?


I love how the leaves create a frame around them.


A cute closeup.


Jackie has such a bubbly personality and Roy seems to feed off that energy.




This is one of my favorite shots... they are genuinely laughing and having a good time.






We squeezed these photos in with the last bit of light left for the day.