my weekend getaway

"la isla bonita"

This past weekend, I got to enjoy a relaxing mini-vacation with two of my bestest friends in the beautiful island of Puerto Rico. We stayed at the El Conquistador Resort in the city of Fajardo. The resort was so huge that we had to take this tram from one end of the resort to the other. The resort had a casino and it's own private island. We made the most of our weekend getaway by taking in as much as we could of Puerto Rico: relaxing at the island of Palomino, getting a much needed massage at the Golden Door spa, night kayaking and swimming in the bioluminescent lagoon, sleeping with the sounds of coquis, renting a car and getting lost – hahah, drinking pina coladas but not quite dancing in the sporadic rain, and taking a day trip to Old San Juan where we ate mofongo and took many, many pictures of the historic sites. All in all, this weekend getaway was exactly what I needed after a very busy summer!

The amazing view from our hotel room:

Our ultra-cute hotel room:

La isla Palomino:

Old San Juan was quite a scene, as every street was filled with colorful houses and buildings.

Me working it in the alleyways of San Juan…lol…

I made this collage of all the fabulous doors and colorful scenery:

We visited the El Morro castle, which had one of the longest stretches of green grass I ever seen. I swear they filmed Braveheart here =).

jason & tereza: wedding

"simple twist of fate"

I was more than thrilled when I received the opportunity to shoot with one of Denver’s finest, James Christianson for Jason & Tereza’s wedding in beautiful Manhattan Beach, CA on September 22, 2007. James is a pleasure to work with and displays the utmost in professionalism.

In his heart-moving speech, Jason called his meeting of Tereza during Oktoberfest in Manhattan Beach a few years ago "an act of faith". It would be years later that Jason & Tereza would became and husban-and-wife in front of 150 family and friends, all of which who could not be happier to witness this fateful union. The father-of-the-bride and the father-of-the-groom both spoke such tender words about their children that I nearly cried while working my Canon. Luckily I held it together and was able to capture some of these highlights of this memorable day:

Such as this moment of tenderness between the bride & groom:

The scene:



And the stunning details:



The ring bearer - he's such a cutie!


Jason & Tereza had a great idea of having a photobooth where guests could take pictures of themselves and use the pictures to write a special message to the couple:

At the urge of Jason & Tereza, I took a quick break from shooting and joined in on the fun (yes that's me!):


And the finale:

astrid & justin: part II

"one more try"

I was more than happy to do a second shoot with Astrid & Justin. They are such a lovely couple and sooo easy to work with. My favorite part of the session was when I asked them what they had spots they wanted to shoot at next and Justin was like “Hey you two ladies are in charge – I just do whatever you tell me to do.” Astrid – he’s definitely a keeper!!! =) In all seriousness, Justin is such a gentleman and it is obvious how in love he is with Astrid (and vice-versa of course)! We did a variety of shots, including some around rocky areas, and Justin was always there to hold her hand and make sure his future wife was safe, especially from giant waves =).

We had so many great images from the session, but here are the stand-outs:

Told ya he loves her!

And she loves him too!

The signature “prom” pose =)

I just love this candid shot.

The camera sure does love them!

I guess white men can jump! Haha…just kidding Justin! =)

And they can dance too! Kidding again! =)

With the sun about to set...

Now back to kissing…

And more kissing...

And finally kissing with the beautiful Laguna Beach sunset in the background:

astrid & justin: engagement

"big girls don't cry"

Astrid certainly didn't! She and Justin were such great sports during our engagement session last Sunday in Laguna Beach, CA. We were about an hour into our session (I normally shoot 2 hour e-sessions) when a huge CA wave came almost wiped us all out. Fortunately, we and my trusty Canon were all safe and Justin didn't have to show off any Baywatch skills (I can't swim - please don't ask or laugh!=)). Unfortunately, we had to cut our e-session a lil’ short and decided to postpone the rest of the shoot for another day. Notes to self for our make-up shoot next week:

(1) don’t sacrifice safety for creativity and
(2) remember to wear floaties =).

Here are some shots I managed to sneak prior to the big wave:

To be continued…

faq

"the way i are"

A few FAQ...

Ok first, what’s your name?
It seems weird, but people ask me this all the time! Ok, my first name is “Kim Le”. I’ve never been a hyphen kind of girl, so it has always confused people, even my friends. My full name is “Kim Le Thi Pham”, with “Thi” being my middle name and “Pham” being my last name. To make matters even more confusing, I am the youngest of 7 girls in the Phamily and we are all named “Kim L-something”. Yes, I know. There’s “Kim Lien, Kim Lan, Kim Ly, Kim Lang, Kim Luu, Kim Lieu” and yours truly. Just typing that was confusing! Anyway, you can call me “Kim Le”, “Kim”, or the ever popular “Lil’ Kim” (no relation to the rapper). =)

What’s your style?
My style is portrait photojournalism. I capture images that tell a story of the wedding day – the moments, emotions and details that make your day truly special and unique. When there’s a break in the action, I take the opportunity to take posed portraits of the bride & groom with family & friends. Coming from such a big family myself, I understand how important it is to involve everyone in your big day!

Do you only offer wedding photography?
No, I offer photography services for a variety of events and needs. These types of photography include but are not limited to:
• Headshot/portrait photography
• Boudoir sessions
• Corporate photography
• Baby/youth portraits
• Senior/high school portraits
• Special events: birthdays, anniversaries, reunions, etc…

Do you shoot digital or film? What kind of equipment do you use?
I only shoot in digital and with Canon equipment, utilizing a variety of professional grade lenses as needed throughout the shoot.

How much do you charge?
It all depends on your type of event and length of photography coverage. Please contact me with details of your event and I will provide you with a custom quote.

How do we see our photos?
All of my photo coverage will be provided via online proofing and CD. From the online proofs, you can order prints in a range of sizes and customize an album.

Do you shoot destination weddings?
YES!!! My base is in Southern California, but I am happy and more than willing to travel to meet your destination needs. Travel fees are applicable to areas outside of Southern California.

What are boudoir sessions?
Boudoir photography is a sexy new trend in the photography industry and is very popular among brides. Boudoir photos are used as creative gifts we give to ourselves or our significant others. These photos are not usually nude, but give the impression of “implied nudity”. It all depends on your comfort level!

Need more answers??? Feel free to email me at mailto:kimlephotography@gmail.com with any additional questions!!!

alfonso & sarah: wedding

"you say it best..."

"...when you say nothing at all..." There was a sweet silence as the officiant announced Alfonso & Sarah as husband & wife on August 19, 2007 in front of 50 guests at Park Prive in Costa Mesa, CA. Family & friends applauded softly as Alfonso walked his new wife across the greenery to the reception area. He gave her a warm smile and gently kissed her hand. Little gestures like these are what made their wedding day exactly what it was: sweet, simple and sophisticated. I have known Sarah for quite some time and I could not have imagined her wedding day any other way.

The sweet day began with the ladies getting ready and pampered at the Westin:


Sarah looked absolutely beauuuuutiful:






Stacey Craven of Savvy Bella helped Sarah look even more beautiful:

In their shoes:

The day followed to Park Prive where the wedding was wonderfully coordinated by Christina Wright of Simply Modern Weddings . All of the details matched the theme so well: sweet, simple and sophisticated. Here are some of my favorites:





The flower girl was my favorite!


Alfonso & Sarah hired a terrific Mariachi band to play at the wedding. All of the guests enjoyed it, especially the kids!



Alfonso & Sarah's first kiss as husband & wife:


The kissing continues:


Taking a break from all the kissing with some cake =)