I'm a so-cal girl, who loves weaving stories through pictures. I'm a natural light photographer who loves to weave a story through connection, light, and details. What I love most and what makes being behind the lens most magical is when your clients stop thinking and start being. I love capturing the being. Whether, its a mother gently fixing their little’s hair, or a husband laughing nervously only to truly relax when they gaze into the eyes of their keepers of their heart, brides and grooms finding their butterflies settle as they melt and find comfort in each other embrace, children just being children, newborns being soothed by tired but glowing mamas, young girls forgetting about everything society defines as beautiful and embracing who they are, mother’s blushing and getting butterflies like they are in their 20’s again when they find their significant others watching them pose, I love capturing the being. Human connection is a pictures background music. It’s the words that pictures fail to supply. It's your music that I try to amplify through light and detail to make your picture come to life.
It was very hard to pick a favorite session to talk about. Each is so special to me. I thought about featuring a wedding because those are always a blast to shoot. So, much detail and story to tell. I thought maybe a family session because it's rhythms and flow come so natural to me. But, I finally decided on featuring this little family. I adored doing this maternity newborn shoot.
There are many reasons why I loved shooting this session. One, the mother is gorgeous! I love a glowing mama to be. Second, I love a session where I can find details to shoot. It just helps to make your music come alive. And, this nursery had tons of gorgeous details. My mind was exploding. Third, the light in this session was just to die for. But, if I am being honest here, I picked this session because it's one of my most personal sessions. This little family was the one who believed in me more than I did when I first started out. They believed so much that they helped fill my belief tank when mine was low. I would not be where I am at today without them. Marissa Ettinger Photography would still just be a dream and not a reality.
I was the girl who had her nose in books and sports. My heart longed for the arts, but it was just something that I feared. Finally, as I got older and had children of my own, I decided to put fear aside and just go for it. I majored in Sociology at the University of California San Diego because the study of human behavior has always just been something that I have loved. I believe that human connection is one the most beautiful things we get to experience and I loved that this major offered me the opportunity to sit back and watch it. I realized that just watching it wasn't enough for me. I wanted to be able to capture the beauty that I was witnessing. For a while when you first start out, capturing what you see can be difficult when you are wrapped up in the mechanics of it all. But, slowly those two merge. And, with the help of this beautiful family I lasted long enough in this journey to see those two things merge.
This beautiful couple has hearts of gold. And, I am so proud and grateful that I get to call them family. They are always helping others and loving all who cross their paths. It was a true joy getting the chance to capture their dream of having a little family of their own. Watching their dream come true and getting to capture the background music to this stage in their life was truly magical. They helped make my dream possible, and getting to shoot their dream just felt very special. Plus, isn't my niece adorable? She is everything! And, who doesn't love a sleepy newborn pic?! Thanks, Basic Invite for allowing me to talk a little about myself and my most favorite session.
COMPANY: Marissa Ettinger Photography
Texas Coastal Bend Natural Light Photographer
WEBSITE: http://marissaettinger.com