We met up with Olga and Greg in a cute cozy cafe in Los Gatos, drinking coffee and chatting while we were waiting for the sun to get a bit lower on the horizon. We came out when the light became beautiful and started to explore the many tiny streets of Los Gatos.

On our way we found interesting alleyways, a tiny monastery, beautiful textured walls, a few staircases, and many beautiful trees. As it got dark by the end of the session, the city lights came on and yielded a very cool, almost Christmas-like, mood to the pictures.

Olga and Greg’s San Francisco wedding is coming up in less then two months and we are greatly looking forward to it! This couple has a wonderful connection and it’s a pleasure to photograph it.

Some beautiful foliage on an alleyway wall:

A fun perspective:

Love the mood and lights in this one:

Natasha

We just noticed that the contact form on chocostudio.com was down for the past several days. If you’ve tried to contact us *through our website* and have not heard back, please resend the form or contact us through the email or phone.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

Mike

Six months ago, I remember praying the whole night that my little niece would enter this world healthy and safe. Right now, I cannot believe that it was only half a year ago! Today Dasha celebrates her six-month birthday! She became the Princess of the family and all the conversations start and end with her name. It’s impossible to even imagine that we didn’t know her only half a year ago.

In addition to being adorable Dasha’s quite an achiever. In only half a year Dasha:

- Started eating solid foods (she refuses to take the bottle now - big girls eat from the spoon!)
- Changed all the roles in our family (it’s still weird to think that my mom is a grandma)
- Survived a horrible Russian winter
- Almost learned how to sit
- Discovered her hands and feet (she munches on her toes all the time now)
- Started talking … well… almost :)
- Brought much, much joy to the family

I have to admit that I didn’t accomplish even close to as much as Dasha did in the last half a year :)

Here are a few pictures taken by my family:

Proud grandma:

You can see of the first baby photography ever captured of Dasha.

Natasha

The winter months can be a quiet time for the actual photo sessions. Daylight is short and the rains along with cold weather often mean that most people prefer to wait until springtime to take their engagement and portrait photos.

It certainly seems that spring is near because we’ve just finished two exciting engagement sessions. We’ll share photos from the first one right now, taken at the Presidio of San Francisco. The second e-session was shot just this Friday in downtown Los Gatos and we’ll share that one in the upcoming week.

Akemi and Daniel’s wedding is coming up in March and we’re very happy to have met this couple. It’s just a few short weeks until their big day! We captured their photos underneath the Golden Gate bridge among some of the abandoned buildings as well as at the historic Presidio Pet Cemetery, just above Crissy Field. Akemi and Daniel both love animals and felt that this would be an interesting place.

As you may have noticed, we’ve found a way to extend the space on our blog to make room for larger photos. Additionally, we’re excited to be showing you not only a few of our favorites (seen below), but also a slideshow of the engagement session!

Turn up your speakers and enjoy… (if you’re reading this through an email or RSS subscription, please visit our blog to see the slideshow.)

For those of our clients who have not yet scheduled their engagement sessions, now is a great time to do it. We’re going to be a lot more busy in the summer months and we hope you’ll take advantage of the beautiful early spring we’re having right now.

Let us know what you think about this awesome photo session!

Mike