Udita and Caleb moved to Los Angeles from Chicago, and they’ve been luxuriating in the differences: warmer weather, an ocean, more variety of food, a more laidback city where you can go outside 95% of the year. (Maybe even 100% of the year, if you don’t hide in bed when there’s a rainstorm like I do. (Yes, I’m a Native Angeleno.))
I was excited about our engagement session location from the beginning of our planning stages. Udita and Caleb wanted a little bit of greenery, a little bit of a hike, and a little bit of beach. I researched and there was one ideal location for this: Point Dume in Malibu, CA. With its majestic cliff, little baby hike, and sparsely populated beach, this hit everything on our checklist. Then these two started talking about outfit changes (modern chic into sari), and then I started talking about testing new equipment… and this coalesced into one of the coolest engagement sessions I’ve done yet.
When I got home to edit after our session, I was struck by how much the images reminded me of old-school Italian films, particularly a few scenes from Fellini (Le notti di Cabiria, I Vitelloni, 8 1/2, La Dolce Vita)… Fellini was a bit obsessed with beaches and the way that they trigger romance and memory. So I started editing intuitively, half in a black and white process that reminded me of those films from '52-’63, the other half in a matte/vibrant color that kept the same feeling…
