Let me just say that since Groupon came along life has gotten a little more fun for half the price! And Im always down for saving money! I wouldnt say Im cheap but Im more on the frugal side! Anyway our good friends Mink & David got a deal on groupon for a trip to Catalina Island & they invited us to come along. Luckily it fit into Jacks new work schedule perfectly! This was Lil jacks first time on a big boat... Well any boat so he was totally stoked! Thank God no one got sea sick! We were poppin Dramamine like candy! We decided to have a camp out instead of staying at the hotels. Theres no other way to enjoy the smells of nature! The weather was perfect up until the night time, we froze our butts off! It didn;t help that I had to get up & pee 3times a night! Jack was a total trooper & walked me down to the bathrooms every time! Note to self: dont ever go camping while pregnant! The nights are no fun! There were a pack of deer just chilling around the campsite & lil jack was able to feed the baby one! We named him Bambi of course! It was all cute until they snuck into our dinner while we were in our tents! Walking back & forth into town took a toll on my body so i was thrilled when the guys decided to rent a boat for the day! I was able to sit back & relax! Goofin off at the Lil shops... Cateyes MUCH!!!! All in all a good trip! But Im sure glad to be home in my bed where the bathroom is close by! Hope you all had a good weekend! Now back to reality!
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After leaving the cake biz I decided I wanted to be a stay at home mama & use photography as my side job. I thought i'd shoot a few family sessions here & there to bring in some extra cash. What’s better than having a fun part time job & making your own hours!
Then I came across a successful wedding photographer’s blog (jasmine star) who talked about how she made it from nothing & 5 yrs later she's booking a million weddings for a million dollars (I’m totally over exaggerating much about the millions but you get the idea!) Her main way to connect to her future clients was by blogging about everything & anything EVERYDAY! There are many photographers who blogged consistently and had certain topics for the days of the week! I think that’s a cool idea. So I thought to myself " Hey we have a lot of similarities… we both had just gotten married, we both started with no experience, & we both didn’t have much before we started this journey! Maybe I could make it from scratch too! Maybe I could be that Baller Famous photographer who can provide for my family & my husband will be my second shooter too & we can travel the world together shooting people in love! I could blog everyday too! I want to be THAT photographer who had a zillion LIKES, readers, & clients! So I was determined to hustle my butt off!” Haha I laugh now at how naïve I was to thinking that I could follow in her exact footsteps to success! The reality is I was missing some big key differences… umm yeah I have a child! My time is not just mine, its split in three & soon itll be four when the new baby comes! Oh and Jack has no interest in being my second shooter. Haha it was hard enough to get him to cut my cake boards, let alone take photos of a bunch of strangers! And Blogging Everyday… yeah right! Im lucky if I get to blog once a week! I cant find the time in my days to blog everyday because I have to take care of a million things around the house including pay some attention to my family who have always been my number one. So I had to go back to where I started and check myself! I remembered that my main priority is my family! Ive always wanted a tight family so I need to keep them on the top of my list. I finally found my niche in photography & I want to grow in that industry but I know it has to be on my own time & at my own terms. I cant possibly blog everyday, maybe once lil Jack has a set schedule I could have certain fun topics for certain days. Until then once a week will have to do. I don’t need to be famous & have a million LIKES & clients! I just want the right clients for me! I don’t need to charge a million dollars & shoot a million weddings per year! I actually would be happy to shoot around 2 weddings per month! I want to enjoy Life & enjoy my career! When you feel lost or stuck its always good to Check yo self & reevaluate your goals! Im sure glad I did Or i would've missed out on this random special moment! When my girlfriend Monique told me that they were having a baby we were all excited for them! We knew they were going to be great parents! I cant believe a whole year has gone by and now little Dominic is the big ONE! Monique has been planning his first birthday party since he was born! She made sure they had everything they needed to create a carnival atmosphere! She had the face painters, balloon artists, & Petting zoo & plenty more… I’m surprised she didn’t rent a mini roller coaster! There was no detail that she over looked even the water bottles had custom labels! We definitely enjoyed ourselves! The Gomez Family... Such a beautiful quote from our fav book! They even had carnival games for the kids... Love this fishy idea! Body Painting.... Balloon artist... Petting Zoo... and YES a PONY RIDE!!! Cant forget the Yummy Candy Bar... and the good ol Pinata!!! Dominic loved his Smash Cake!!! Photography: Janelle Marina Photography, www.janellemarina.com
Face Painting and Balloon Twisting: P.D.A Productions, pdaproductions@sbcglobal.net Cupcakes and Cake: Royalty Cakes, http://www.royaltycakes.com/ Party Invitations: http://www.birthdayinabox.com/ Dominic's birthday circus romper: Etsy, Pamies Crafty Attic, http://www.etsy.com/ Cotton Candy & Candy Apples: California Snack foods, http://www.cal-snacks.com/ Petting ZOO: * http://www.greatpettingzoos.com/ Popcorn Machine * Carmelas Party Rentals in Riverside, CA Centerpieces * La Fiesta Party Supplies Gifts and Rentals in Fontana, CA Balloon Twister Arch Display * Silvia's Party Supply rental in Rialto, CA Yes I just referred to myself as a WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER!! It actually comes out naturally now! People used to ask me what I did and I would mumble out the word photographer ! Now I feel comfortable saying that I am a wedding photographer! I cant believe a whole year has passed from when I first picked up a “fancy” camera! At the end of this year I will have shot 10 weddings and 3 of those were my very own!!! Not too shabby for the first year!
So I dediced to chat about the Perks & Pits of shooting weddings while prego! First let me be real & tell you that there are way more pits to pregnancy than perks! I just have to keep reminding myself the bundle of joy we get at the end of all this discomfort! So let me share with u a Lil list that I put together :) Pits - scheduling future weddings & having to turn down some that are too close to your due date saying No makes me sad! - Finding an outfit that fits your baby bump without looking like ur wearing a moo moo! Gosh I can't forget to mention the importance of comfy shoes -which are never the most stylish! - Cant bend down too much to get different angles because there is a good chance Ill need help getting back up! - Constantly hungry & thirsty! Water= more pee pee breaks than usual! - Hoping the smells of dinner dont make u naseaus! Ive gotten a Lil better with food fatigue but sometimes I still get woozie! - your on ur feet for 10 hrs straight so I tend to lean on things more since my Body starts aching earlier! It feels like youve been hit my a truck by the end of the night with numb feet & splitting back pains! It definitely helps that Jack gives me massages when I come home! Perks - People love pregnant people! Its definitely a conversation starter! People are so nice to you & I love when people are nice to me! - Ur partners/assistants are super attentive! I couldnt get by without an awesome second shooter! - people open up doors for u! They treat u like a dainty flower because ur carrying a delicate load! Yeah & thats pretty much it haha Im yet to notice any beautiful glowing skin that your promised! Ill be sure to let u know if that ever comes lol Even though there are way more pits than perks to photographing long wedding days while pregnant I cant say no! I just love my job & I wouldnt change it! Most of the pain is distracted by all the excitement going on! People ask me why i shoot weddings? To be honest when I began photography last year, I definitely thought I was going to fail! I had been hiding behind cakes for years! I thought I wasnt a people person so I dreaded any human contact lol especially cake consultations! I thought photographing children would be my niche. I definitely thought that I could NEVER be a wedding photographer! I was totally intimidated! This is the most important day of peoples lives and I couldnt imagine the responsibility & dealing with the hustle & bustle of weddings! Handling the large wedding parties was one of my biggest fears! The very thing that I was afraid of is all I want to shoot! I love the hustle & bustle! I love documenting the most important day of someones lives! This is supposed to be the happiest day & I'm so blessed to be able to experience it over & over again! Let your happiness rub off on me! I'm just so grateful to be able to continue shooting while pregnant, I was worried I was gonna be stuck in bed vomiting the whole time! I actually enjoy spending ur special day shooting & dealing with the body aches! The moments that we get to catch are totally worth it! And your reactions after you see your photos mean everything to me! |
I'M JANELLE MARINA
Wife, Mama Shark, + Photographer. Most days, you'll find me in mismatched socks and a top knot, working behind my computer with a smile on my face, listening to Zac Brown Band and R&B --or, dancing in the kitchen with my 3 littles and hunka husband, seeing who could come up with the coolest dance moves. I'm a wedding photographer, West Elm lover, aspiring advocate for our buddies with special needs, and a Certified Dreamer since 1986. We live in a cozy city in Southern California and are always up for a good adventure. I enjoy telling stories with my camera, grubbing on spicy food, and solving the latest Dateline case.
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December 2019
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