aloha vibes

Last week I was in Hawaii, and it was so lovely to be away from my to-do list for a week! I focused on really being in the moment and just taking photos. I only allowed myself phone time at the end of each day, and I was often posting a photo to instagram the day after it was taken because I just wanted to absorb that day. I think that's an important thing I tend to do when I'm traveling- it helps me experience the place I'm visiting more thoroughly & to feel like I'm really there. Taking photos doesn't take me out of the moment, posting them does. I'll have art to share next week. Until then, enjoy the dreaminess of Maui. Maybe you'll be able to feel the tropical air :)

xo, Michelle

PS. many of these were posted on my personal instagram, @michelleelaluna, if you'd like to find me :)

fairytale photoshoot: 3 month old baby Juliette!

I'm SO excited to share these photos from a shoot I did with an adorable little 3-month-old baby girl named Juliette. I approached her mom at pre-school (for one of my babysitting jobs), and asked if I could use her baby in a shoot to help build my portfolio! Luckily she agreed :)

I learn so much from each shoot. But this one was a major point of growth for me.

First of all, the weather. Oh my gosh. We had the most unusual 60mph hot winds, and I was so nervous the shoot wouldn't work. Somehow we managed to shoot for 45 minutes in the crazy wind, despite tree branches actually falling on me & Juliette's mom. We were blocking the baby! And somehow the little rockstar baby fell asleep! I would have loved to shoot longer, but I did what I could. Somehow despite cutting the session in half due to the wind, I still ended up with a handful of photos I love. That was majorly confidence-boosting for me.

Second, this is the first shoot I've done with 100% my own styling, the right lens, the exact lighting I wanted, and Adobe Lightroom for editing. I location-scouted for a very specific setting. (I wanted it to look like a forest. Not easy in a beach town!) I could go on and on about how much of a difference this combination made. Finally my work looks like me. I could not be happier, and I can't wait to shoot more and more and continue to build my portfolio and take on clients! I really love doing this. It's another creative outlet for me, and I love capturing sweet babies and making parents happy.

So here are my favorites!

xo, Michelle

If you're in the Orange County, CA area, and would like to do a baby or child photoshoot at a low-portfolio building rate, please email me!

yes to 6-month-old babies in Springtime.

As I build my photography portfolio, I'm finding my style and trying new things and really trying to hone in on what I like and what I want my photography to look like. I'm taking any chance I can to shoot and play and get experience! I've only ever done photography as a hobby, but I want to take it to the next level. The goal is & has been that Mary and Luna will be art + photography. I live for babies & kids (and work part-time as a nanny/babysitter), so I see that being my primary focus. It's extremely challenging to get the shots you want with kids, but when you do, it's magic and I feel like my heart will explode. So here's my best friend Nicole's little doll, Peyton. 6 months old! We wanted Easter/Spring + girly photos of her. The faces she makes are so great. I just love her so much.

If you know anyone in Orange County, CA with little kids who would like a photoshoot at a currently low portfolio-building rate, please have them email me! maryandluna@gmail.com

xo, Michelle

Holiday photoshoots!

I love to take photos. Of basically anything, but especially kids & scenery. Since before I developed Mary & Luna, I had the goal of finding a way for me to do art + photography, in one simple extension of myself. Mary & Luna has become a place for me to put everything I imagine & see & create. I often am overcome with the feeling that it's going to become something much more than an art shop. I'm still learning how to make it a little world in itself. That's what I want it to be.

A thought I had recently: I realized that I don't want to give up. That's huge for me. I have the classic Aries problem of starting things I don't finish and generating ideas that don't come to fruition. I've found the business side of Mary & Luna incredibly challenging. But I had something click a couple weeks ago: I want this to bloom. I don't want to be doing anything else. This is what I'm supposed to be doing. Even when it's hard and unnatural and I feel stuck. I am meant to create, and I know this is the right way for me to do it. It suits me. I just have to work really hard to bring Mary & Luna to life. I've already made progress (it's always easy to forget that), and I have to be patient. But I'm in this. I love to create and dream, and I guess the challenge of business is good for me.

So anyway! I took some family photos for the holidays with the kids I babysit & my best friend/her little family. I thought I'd share the cute. I LOVED doing these shoots.

xo, Michelle

wandering the Getty Villa.

Missed a blog post last week because I had round 2 of the flu. It really put a dent in my productivity. Thankfully I seem to be better (finally- it's been 2 weeks of being sick). Yesterday I got to explore the Getty Villa in Malibu for the first time. I've been wanting to go for years, and I'm so glad I finally did! It's so ridiculously beautiful and the weather was sunny but slightly chilly. Perfect. I've been in love with Greek and Roman art and history since I was 11 years old and I've studied it so much since, so it was so cool to see a local place with such a huge collection, in addition to the architecture and the gardens. I was totally in my element.

Here are some of my favorite photos from yesterday:

xo, Michelle