Kari Kochar Photography is honored to be the recipient of the Wedding Wire network’s Bride Choice Award for 2012!
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Six Children’s Portrait Sessions
May 26, 2011 – 1:27 pm
My niece once said to me, “You’re like a little kid in a big kid’s body.” Connecting with children on their level allows me to capture their personalities in a way that is honest and real. Here are six recent sessions that I wanted to add to my blog.
Cassandra and AJ (and their dad, All-Star MLB player Adrian Beltre):
Nathan and Ezra:
Lily:
Gavin:
2 recent auctioned portrait sessions
May 11, 2011 – 11:58 am
This past year I have been very fortunate to be able to donate photo sessions to a couple of charities that are near and dear to my heart. The first session that I’m posting is a session that was donated to the Pasadena Humane Society and SPCA‘s annual Golf Tournament, “Doglegs, Birdies and Eagles.” Most people who know me know that I have two very well-loved dogs and one of those dogs was a rescue dog from the Pasadena Humane Society. I’m eternally grateful to them and was honored to be able to donate a session for their auction (in which they raised over $20,000 at that auction – woohoo!!). And I couldn’t have been more thrilled with the adorable little girl Abby that I worked with- isn’t she a doll??
The next session I’m posting here was also an auctioned session- this one was for Villa Esperanza‘s 23rd Annual Tournament of Hope. The auction winner was Michelle Cox, Villa Esperanza’s Director of Development. I’ve worked with her family before, so it was a pleasure to photograph her lovely family once again!
Family portrait sessions in and around Pasadena
May 10, 2011 – 1:23 pm
The other day I receieved a phone call from a prospective new client and they asked if I do family portraits. They said they had read my blog and it looked like I mostly did weddings. While it’s true that I photograph a lot of weddings, most of my business is actually photographing families and kids. After that call, I realized that I need to spend more time putting some of these sessions on my blog, so this week I am going to be posting quite a few of my recent portrait sessions. As you’ll see, most of my family sessions include various combinations of the family (i.e. the children alone, the parents, the entire family, etc.), depending on each families’ preferences. When I photograph families, I try to mix classic portraiture with contemporary and whimsical imagery, as well.
The first session I’m posting here is of the Himes Family here in Altadena, whose 1-1/2 year old daughter Maddie is just precious!
The next session that I’m posting is a family session that I also photographed in the Angeles National Forest in Altadena. This is the second year that I’ve worked with parents Megan and Matt and little Josh- what a little sweetie!
This family session was taken on location at a park in Pasadena. When our initial location didn’t work out, we found this park at the last minute and I just loved the vibrant colors and how they worked with this fun family!
The next session I’m posting was another family with three children and they wanted to do their session outdoors, so we picked an outdoor park near their house in Beverly Hills. This family wanted a combination of both traditional images, but also some edgier portraits, so I did a combination of both during their session.
Family sessions don’t have to include just parents and their kids. For this family session on LA’s Westside, I worked with Nancy and her grandchildren. I’ve worked with Nancy several times over the years (doing 2 of children’s wedding and then their newborn sessions, as well). It’s been wonderful to work with her and her family over the years and see how her family has grown and changed!
The next family session I’m posting was taken at Carie and Andy’s home in Pasadena. It was a chilly day in Pasadena, but everyone bundled up and we all had a great photo shoot with little Eli. The last photo is Eli’s neighbor and best friend, so we had to get a few shots of them playing together- look at that mischievous look on his face!
This next family session was taken at the family’s home in La Cañada Flintridge. I never know what locations will be like when people call me to do portrait sessions at their homes, but this yard was an absolutely gorgeous setting for a photo shoot and the kids felt really comfortable there, too. These adorable kids had me on my toes the entire session! :)
The last session I’m posting here was another session in the Angeles National Forest in Altadena (since I am an avid hiker, I’m familiar many diverse outdoor locations that work well for photo sessions). I loved the gorgeous natural light on the day of this session- combined with the kids’ energy, it was a great shoot!
Everything is bigger in Texas, including my images!
April 5, 2011 – 9:30 am
There have been a lot of exciting things happening with my studio this year that I’ve barely had a chance to keep up here on my blog… Anyway, a little while ago I was contacted by a company in Texas who wanted to use one my images for a new billboard ad campaign. The ad is finally going up this week around Houston and here’s how the billboard will look. Isn’t he adorable?
Latest maternity photo sessions at my Pasadena studio
April 4, 2011 – 12:55 pm
My mom doesn’t understand the concept of a maternity photo session. In “her day” women didn’t embrace their bodies while they were pregnant. In fact, just go back a few years and you’ll find that it was gauche to use words like “pregnant” or even “maternity.” Instead, expecting women were referred to as “in the family way” and were considered extremely fragile and were often expected to stay home during the last few months of their pregnancies.
Thank God times have changed! I love that I live in a time where women embrace the newfound curves that come with pregnancy and the transformation of their bodies. Things have changed for pregnancy when it comes to men, too. I personally love seeing expecting fathers get so excited about participating in this exciting time for their family. Here are some recent maternity photo sessions that I photographed in my studio in Old Town Pasadena (I use the name of the expecting mom for the titles of the sessions below, mostly because she is the focus of the session).
Images from Emily’s maternity session:
Images from Fabiana’s maternity session:
Images from Christine’s maternity session:
Images from Iliana’s session:
Images from Amanda’s maternity session:
Images from Gwynn’s maternity session:
Images from Dina’s maternity session:
Images from Natalie’s maternity session:
Images from Joy’s maternity session:
Recent Engagement and Couples Photo Sessions
March 31, 2011 – 11:00 am
I love doing sessions with couples (whether they’re newly engaged or have been married for quite a while). Here are the latest engagement and couples’ portrait sessions that I’ve photographed.
Emilie and Tyler, engagement session at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Downtown Los Angeles:
Ashley and Ian, engagement session in and around Pasadena’s City Hall in Old Town Pasadena:
Genevieve and Paul, engagement session in Union Station (they decided to go with a vintage theme for the photos at the train station) and on Olvera Street in Downtown Los Angeles:
Anne and Mike, couples session in the Angeles National Forest near Altadena:
Taline and Ron, couples session on a beach in Malibu:
Lauren and Ryu, Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena
March 29, 2011 – 3:14 pm
For Lauren and Ryu’s wedding, over 300 guests came from near and far (including a large group from Japan) to witness them tie the knot in the Horseshoe Garden at the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena. I probably say this every time I work with her, but Amanda Ma of Fresh Events did a phenomenal job coordinating all the logistics of the day!
There were so many details that I loved about this wedding, I don’t even know where to begin… First, Lauren was a gorgeous bride (hair by Meiko of Kelly Zhang Studio) and I adored her dress and birdcage veil. Her flowers were also stunning- I loved the addition of feathers in the bouquets by M’s Flowers. Lauren is a designer and designed all the amazing graphics (invitations, programs, etc.). Another fun detail was that Lauren and Ryu had their family and wedding party participate in an on-the-spot music video (filmed by Kyle and Julie of Elysium Productions) that they showed to their guests during the reception. After the ceremony, guests moved into the Huntington Ballroom and were treated to an energetic Japanese taiko drumming performance by theTaiko Project (the bride’s sister did double duty and also performed as a drummer). Later, the wedding party had some fun of their own by performing coordinated dances to songs by Lady Gaga and Michael Jackson. One of my favorite moments of the day was when the groom played the piano and sang a song to his new wife- there wasn’t a dry eye in the crowd!
Heather and Jamie’s Wedding, Wayfarers Chapel and Terranea Resort, Palos Verdes
March 1, 2011 – 11:37 am
I was so happy when Heather and Jamie booked me to photograph their intimate wedding in Palos Verdes – they are such a sweet couple and have an adorable 2-year-old daughter. I was also very excited to work at Palos Verdes’ newest wedding venue, Terranea Resort, a plush resort with stunning panoramic ocean views. Heather started her wedding day preparations at the Spa at Terranea and they had their “first look” at Catalina Point, a clifftop setting on the resorts grounds. Although the day was cloudy, it was a perfect example of how clouds can work to your advantage when it comes to wedding photos. It’s not just because I’m from Seattle that I love clouds- cloudy days are wonderful for wedding photography since colors really “pop” and the clouds act like a giant studio soft box for evenly lit portraits.
After a morning of photos at Terranea, we headed to Wayfarers Chapel for their ceremony- what a unique location for a wedding ceremony! The chapel is perched on top of a cliff surrounded by Redwood trees and the interior sanctuary is all glass. After the ceremony, we headed back to Terranea Resort for the cocktail hour and outdoor lunch reception on the Catalina Terrace. Both Heather and Jamie were so good-natured when the lunch was moved under cover when it started sprinkling (maybe they had heard that it’s a sign of good luck if it rains on your wedding day?). With all the amazing food, drinks, and cupcakes by Susie Cakes, I don’t think anyone noticed a little bit of rain!
Erica and Jack’s Wedding, The Athenaeum at Caltech, Pasadena
February 24, 2011 – 5:38 pm
Erica and Jack are both engineers, so it wasn’t surprising that they chose to get married at Southern California’s hub of science and engineering: the California Institute for Technology, or more specifically, the Caltech Athenaeum. The Athenaeum also happens to be a spectacular location for a wedding ceremony and rockin’ reception, and rock the reception is exactly what they did since they hired a fantastic band: the Chuck Wansley Band.
Erica and Jack also surprised all the guests during the reception with a traditional Chinese lion dance performance by the Immortals Awaken Lion Club. The dance is performed along with the loud beat of drums to scare away evil spirits and bring good fortune to the newly married couple. At the end of the dance, Erica and Jack fed the lion a red envelope filled with cabbage and money. It was a pretty awesome spectacle and I love it when couples incorporate cultural traditions that are also a lot of fun for the guests!
