rizzarizphotography

I'm not some self-proclaimed do-gooder or humanitarian. And, let me preface this post by saying that what I'm about to share should not be construed as some cheesy Sally Struthers pitch, because I hate when anything comes even the slightest bit across as that.

A few months ago while waiting downtown for a friend before happy hour, I was approached by some kid, fresh out of college, who asked if I'd be interested in an international child sponsorship program. As I stood there inhaling my cigarette, blowing smoke in his face while rolling my eyes, I reluctantly agreed. Let me explain that my reluctance mainly stemmed from the notion I'd heard that these types of programs were a ploy of 'charitable fronts' to swipe people's money. Even knowing this in the back of my mind, I went ahead and signed my credit card information to be billed on a monthly basis so that the best investment I ever made would in some way contribute to an anonymous child's life.

Amidst the chaos that ensued in the months that followed, I managed to keep this 'cause' in mind without investing much thought or emotion into it...until a few weeks ago when I received a personal, hand-written letter from my sponsored child, Kristine. Kristine is from my home country of the Philippines. She's 10 years old. Her favorite subject is math. Her favorite hobbies are singing and dancing and she loves playing with her sister and friend. She's also quite the rendering artist. The compelling thing about Kirstine's letter was while she wrote just a few, short sentences she also said so much. I also sensed a great deal of sincerity in her letter and from it an important reminder that having everything isn't everything.

So as much as I hate the idea of having to wear the Do-Gooder-Sally-Struthers-issued-humanitarian-badge, there's no way that I can get my message across without it. That said, if there's a single person out there who reads this blog besides me, then I encourage you to read up on Children International and consider sponsorship. They also have a blog which I encourage you to check out here. 

Labels: Children International

It's rare that I get asked to do family portraits these days. But when I do, I'm most ALWAYS up for a challenge. A challenge you say? No way, no how. Think again....kids are pretty fast and if you're not paying close enough attention you'll miss some pretty awesome moments.

Meet Brendan & Tricia, two of the most polite and laid-back kids I've ever met. When I think of what a happy and carefree childhood looks like, I think of these two. Considering the times and how kids grow faster than Chia pets these days, I find it refreshing to know that Brendan and Tricia are occupied being just kids - as they should be. As an added bonus mum and dad are pretty kick-ass - both very talented artists and good friends.

Tricia & Brendan: thank you both for being SUCH good sports and so much fun! One day I will own a big trampoline, too. If I did school again, I'd definitely want to hang out with you! You two are amazing and are going to do some big things in this world! I look forward to it! Riz.



Tricia is adorb! Her eyes are striking AND she has the cutest freckles to boot!
Brendan is such a HAM! Mum will have to ward the girls off with bug spray.

I wish I owned a trampoline this big when I was a kid.  Actually, I just wish I owned a trampoline.

Labels: Alameda Photographer, san francisco photographer, san francisco portrait photographer

When I think about who the modern-day gentleman is a certain Paul T. comes to mind. Paul is crazy remarkable and carries that rare celebrity quality about him. He really is larger than life and has so many wonderful things in store for the future. He is currently the Associate Producer of Journey Film and paid tremendous contribution to the production of 50 Marathons, a tribute to marathon runner Dean Karnazes.

I'm most always excited before every shoot I do, but this one happened to be a very special one. In the past, I've had the opportunity to work with beautiful models, brides and overall talent, but this time the guys get some play on this blog. The other reason that makes this post so special is the fact that Paul is an amazing artist so it always a pleasure when I get to work with other creative individuals. Perhaps in the future he'll let me post his amazing work up here.

Paul recommended the Dogpatch neighborhood in San Francisco as a location for our shoot. If you're not familiar with this area, you should read about the neighborhood's history here. We really weren't supposed to be in the junk area, but one of the guardsmen let us in - talk about cool! If you're a couple or bride reading this blog and are ever out of ideas for locations, I highly recommend this place.

Before our shoot, I watched Domino starring Kiera Knightley. The movie became my muse. 

Paul, you are one of few of the most earnest and kind individuals I know. Thank you for being such an inspiration. I look forward to working with you again in the future!

For some of you who are new to this idea, TTD stands short for Trash The Dress. It's a growing phenomenon among brides everywhere - it is symbolic in gesture however any one person may interpret it, but no matter how you look at it, I think it's a pretty cool way of expressing a new beginning. This is my first TTD post, so I'm really excited to share this with everyone. You may remember Lauren, whose wedding I second shot back in April for the lovely Jen Hosler of Candid Moments Photography.
I'm away from my home computer, but for now I wanted to share a few of my faves (part 2 forthcoming so check back in a couple days)....

Lauren was SUCH an amazing sport. She did anything Jen and I asked her to do. You can't tell, but the crowd that gathered around us found this shot quite amusing.

It was crazy windy in the Marin Headlands this weekend which made for cool wind-in-hair effect.


I like an ol-skool image every now and again......





*edited to add: Thanks to my sister Patty who tagged along with us on this adventurous shoot and to Lauren's niece Haley for serving as our comic relief!

Labels: marin headlands, san francisco portrait photographer, san francisco wedding photographer, Trash The Dress

I hope everyone had a great Independence Day like I did. It's been a tradition for me for a few years now to actually go OUT and watch fireworks somewhere (as with most of the population). I usually attend the big Foster City fanfare, but this year the Marin County Fairgrounds seemed far more appealing than picturing myself sitting on a blanket for a few hours while my butt goes numb and coveting thy neighbor's barbecue fest until the show. To burn time, my sister, brother-in-law and I waited a good one hour in line to get in (really frustrating at the time but not even worth delving into), perused the fair, got on a few rides till one of us nearly puked, and played a few games. The cool thing though was while waiting in line we met a really cool vampy vixen - no really ladies and gents, she really was....and yes, the fangs are very life like and sharp.


The fairgrounds proved to be quite interesting as we continued forth. The single men there were just...bizarre.

Only joking. The wax figures you see here were part of the Art Exhibit on the Fairgrounds and were created by North Bay locals. Talk about raw talent!!!

Please don't mistake this for a wax figure - this happens to be my older sister Patty.  This is her "excited" face.
And the weirdo in this picture is my future brother-in-law Carlos.  He is the lucky guy who gets to spend the rest of his life with my sister Patty.  They have so much in common and more often than not they spend a lot of time laughing together, at each other, at other people's expense, etc.
Carlos is way cool.  He wears shades no matter how dark or light it is outside.  Patty on the other hand carries the weight of the world on her shoulders.
A mini-city made of toothpicks, balsa wood and illustration board.  
We shared our ferris-wheel ride with this awesome little girl.  Her name is Chantel.  She's 10 years old, is very proud that she's an aunt to an awesome little, redheaded nephew and her favorite cartoon is Scooby-Doo.  You can find out a lot about a person when you share a ride together.  Again, Happy 4th of July!

My fabulously fabulous good friend Cindy and I make it a point to do something fun each month, and in a perfect world - my schedule permitting - I'd probably opt for a delightful excursion every other week at the very least. But the truth is, shooting for other photographers, myself included, working the 8-5 and staying up through all-nighter edits, it gets a little impossible and hard to manage my own personal life. So when I do go out (nothing that would blow wind up your skirt, assuming that you're wearing one), I try to make it the very best.  This month we trekked down Highway 1 to a blissfully warm Santa Cruz. We tried making it to the Mystery Spot which was the sole purpose for why I brought my gear with me in the first place (not to snap shots as I cruise through some lame carwash), but the line and wait alone would have cut into a huge portion of our day.  But, we'll be heading back out there again, and I can't wait to post whatever interesting images come of it.  

Labels: mystery spot, san francisco photographer, san francisco portrait photographer, san francisco wedding photographer