Stephanie Castillo Photography Blog

My Sister Is Having A Baby Boy :)

2010-10-17T23:42:00.000-07:00

Just a few weeks to go and our little Noah will be here! I will finally be an Auntie :) It seems as though these past 9 months have gone by so fast.. and to be honest, it hasn't even really felt real. I mean, I never really actually "got it". Not until her baby shower came along and I watched my sister surrounded by all her friends and family with loads of gifts celebrating the coming arrival of her Son. It hit me then.. she was having her first baby I finally realized.. I know the feeling of all the emotions and anxiety that comes along with having your first child, all the questions, excitement and nervousness.. but you can never prepare yourself for what is to come with the experience of childbirth.. words cannot even explain the feeling. It is truly the most beautiful and amazing thing that you will ever go through. The moment you see his little face, your heart will swell with more love than you could have ever imagined possible.. and it just keeps growing every second of every day from that day on.. My Sister is about to experience this. For the first time ever. And this realization makes me more happy than I can even explain.. Shelle, I love you so much and I cannot wait to witness one of the most important days of your life and finally meet your baby boy :)

Isn't she GORGEOUS?!

To see more from this session, visit my facebook page

The Reed Family

2010-10-12T21:52:00.000-07:00

Isn't this family GORGEOUS?! I am dying with how photogenic they all are!! I had so much fun with them.. There are so many beautiful photos, I don't know how I am ever going to narrow them down! Definitely one of my favorite sessions ever.. I can't wait to share more :)

Sarah + Casey: Wedding

2010-08-25T13:22:00.000-07:00

Laura & Michael: Wedding

2010-08-14T21:10:00.000-07:00

This wedding was located in Sacramento, CA. A traditional Catholic wedding (my first I've ever photographed), it was a beautiful day!

Kelcey & Jeremy: Wedding

2010-07-30T00:42:00.000-07:00

A gorgeous wedding set at the Winchester Country Club in Meadow Vista, Ca on July 4th, 2010. The day was perfectly put together for the Brides favorite Holiday; red, white and blue themed decor with US Presidents as the table settings. Such a classic and elegant feel, I absolutely loved everything about it from the tiny details to the happy couple.. I truly enjoyed being a part of this wonderful day! Kelcey and Jeremy- thank you so much for giving me the opportunity! I hope you enjoy your photos as much as I do :)

They had a fantastic live country band called Dave Russell, check em out!

Visit my facebook to see more photos from this wedding..

Baby Lillie Prather

2010-06-18T16:15:00.000-07:00

This little angel is my friend Sam's new baby girl. I captured a few photos of her the other day while visiting.. Isn't she just precious! Congratulations on your new addition Prather Family :))

Justin & Kristen's Wedding

2010-06-18T14:54:00.000-07:00

This was a small but beautiful wedding set in an old historic winery on the countryside of Lincoln CA. Kristen and Justin were such a great couple to work with, so easy to photograph and perfectly lovely people in every way! I feel honored that I was apart of this day, thank you Mr. & Mrs Breaux for a wonderful experience :)

My Precious Daughter..

2010-05-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

Isn't she the cutest little girl you've EVER seen? ;)

Love is a fruit..

2010-05-06T19:57:00.000-07:00

This is from an engagement session I shot a couple weeks ago with a friend of mine. It was by far one of my favorite sessions ever! I can't wait to post more pics, there are SO many but for now I thought I would share this little collage I made from a fruit stand location in Marysville CA. Stay tuned for much more!

"Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within the reach of every hand" -Mother Teresa

My kiddos make good models!

2010-03-31T13:27:00.000-07:00

I took these pictures a few weeks back when I got my new camera, decided to experiment with some new "urban" techniques and I have to say that I am loving the results! There were so many good pictures from this shoot, it was hard to narrow them down :) Here are a few of my favorites, I hope you enjoy them!I have a few sessions coming in April which I'm really looking forward to trying out some new ideas on, so you'll be seeing more posts real soon! I love that photography has a never-ending learning process :)

OK... I'm back!

2010-03-08T23:55:00.000-08:00

So. I am obviously not very good at this bogging thing, since I haven't been living up to my "3 posts a week" rule.. but I want to be good at it. Really I do. Practice makes perfect though right? ;) Honestly though, I haven't even been shooting that much since the new year. Recently I bought my new camera (post on that later) and I am back in action! I did a shoot of my kids this past weekend and oh my.. I am in love with the results! Here's just one of my faves... lots more to come soon!

Happy New Year 2010!!

2009-12-31T11:23:00.000-08:00

2009 was an adventure! I am so thankful to have my beautiful family and the few friends I hold dear to my heart! I thank God every day for where he has lead me and I look forward to seeing where my journey takes me in the coming year! I have a feeling it is going to be a great year for me and my family!! Wishing everyone a fantastic new years and lots of happy times to come! Be safe out there and enjoy! :) See you in 2010!!!

(this is my family and I attempting to do a "jump shot" ..didn't turn out so well but we had fun trying haha ;)

*photos courtesy of Visions by Janessa Photography

I heart faces photo contest - Sweet Dreams

2009-12-08T11:46:00.000-08:00

This week's contest is "sweet dreams". Check out iheartfaces on their blog!

The Mayr Family

2009-12-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

What a gorgeous family.. don't you think? Mickey and I had such a great time at this shoot! I love it when my Husband can come with me to help out, just having him there gives me so much more confidence in myself :)

To see the rest of this shoot, visit my facebook page. While you're there- become a fan!

And here is one of my Husband from the day, handsome wouldn't you say! ;)

The Amado twins continued...

2009-11-17T16:25:00.000-08:00

OMGosh can you say CUTE! I had the hardest time narrowing these pics down but I finally got them finished! These little angels are to die for...

Head over to my facebook page to see the rest of the photos! ..and while you're there, become a fan! :)

Max and Mia: Twins

2009-11-01T21:56:00.000-08:00

OMGosh this was such a precious shoot!! I absolutely LOVE taking newborn photos so I lucked out with these two cuties! I photographed their cousin a few weeks before this shoot and let me tell you- they all have the 'cute gene' for sure!! They were about 7 or 8 weeks old here so of course they didn't want to both sleep at the same time lol but we definitely got a lot of great shots! Stay tuned for the second half of this session later this week.. :)

A Mother and Son.

2009-11-01T21:46:00.000-08:00

This was a fun shoot! I really enjoyed walking the park with this Mom and Son capturing their true personalities.. A Mother and Child relationship is so very precious and I'm thankful that I was the one to capture that. Mom was slightly worried that we wouldn't be able to get many good shots of him since he wasn't totally into modeling for me but I'm pretty sure she will be happy with what I came up with.. I know I am :)

Sweet Baby Audrey

2009-11-01T21:36:00.000-08:00

What a little cutie! Need I say more.. ;) This was my very first newborn shoot and I can proudly say that it turned out awesome! I am definitely hooked! Bring on the babies...

My Princess

2009-11-01T20:25:00.000-08:00

This sweet thing is my Daughter.. isn't she just the cutest little princess you've EVER seen?! Seriously. EVER. OK so I can say that and truly believe it because I am her Mom (aren't all Mom's that way?)

Urban Girl.

2009-11-01T19:59:00.000-08:00

Ok Ok so I've been MIA for some time now..(boo to me) I know I am horrible with keeping up with my blogging.. there has been so much going on, with moving back to California, etc.. but I promise to faithfully post at least twice a week from now on! (promise. really ;)
I have a couple weddings to post but first I thought I would catch up on a few different sessions..
This beautiful little girl is my Husband's Goddaughter. Her Mother is one of my good friends (and also a photographer). I just can't believe how big she has gotten.. she is growing into one lovely young lady! We love her so much, she has the sweetest personality and just loves life! Here's to you hunny!!

Cousin Kalen

2009-09-22T17:47:00.000-07:00

This weekend we went to my In-Laws and took the kids swimming. They had a blast! And their little cousin Kalen was there too so I caught a couple shots of him, even though he totally hated my camera and basically ran from it, but I managed to get a couple cute ones.. Isn't he adorable! And look at those blues!! Wow.. just beautiful!

New Friends.

2009-09-22T17:11:00.000-07:00

This is my Son, Christian and his new friend AJ. Aren't they just adorable? His Mom and I planned a play date last week and they had soo much fun together.. SO much fun and adventure that as soon as AJ left, his Mom text me and said he was out like a light before they even hit the main street. During this time Christian was sitting in their "hiding spot" in the corner of the backyard mopping because he "missed his fa-rend". How cute is that?! I just love watching my kids grow and the way they interact with their friends.. makes me realize just how big they really are and how much I'm truly thankful for having them in my life. I love those small little moments in life that remind you of these things... :)

Senior Travis

2009-08-27T14:14:00.000-07:00

This was a really fun shoot! At first I was slightly nervous about photographing a boy senior since I've always thought guys didn't really like getting their pictures taken BUT Travis was AWESOME!! He was SO laid back- I really enjoyed the whole shoot!! His whole family was there and they all made me feel so comfortable, we hit it off instantly!! I'm so glad I got to spend the evening with you guys :) you rock! Here are a couple of my favorites from the session.. Head on over to my Facebook to check out the rest!

I just couldn't resist snapping a few of his family..

I just love laughing shots.. they make me happy :)

Hannah and Ryan are Married!!

2009-08-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

I've been MIA from my blog lately.. sorry! I am such a lager sometimes- I really need to teach myself to be more faithful to my posts! This is from a wedding I shot back in June (yeah I know.. such a lager!) I promise I will get better. Really. I promise :)

It was my first wedding shoot and I can honestly say that I really enjoyed being apart of it all! We ended up doing all of the photos in the church as it was blazing hot outside (you would totally understand if you've ever been to Oklahoma in the summer time..) But this was a beautiful Wedding, from beginning to end- everything was perfect and magical. And a very cool point of the day that I thought was just awesome is her DAD married them. Yep. He walked her down the aisle AND married them! Isn't that so cool?! She even sang to her Husband during the ceremony.. which made me tear up and I had to try really hard not choke out a sob ;-} So sweet. You can tell these two belong together! Thank you Hannah- for putting your faith in me and giving me the honor of photographing your special day!!

I thought this was a cute way to end the post ;-)

Good luck to the happy couple!!

Now this is what I call a Wedding entrance!

2009-07-25T20:10:00.000-07:00

Too funny!! I love it!

Sleeping Beauty..

2009-07-13T10:30:00.001-07:00

I have been working on my wedding photos and designing my first wedding album for almost three weeks now, and I am happy to say that they are almost ALL DONE and will be posting SOON!! Cheers to that! But for now I am going to share with you a few pics I snapped of my Daughter sleeping the other day.. I just couldn't resist! She looks so peaceful and perfect! I am so glad I took the time to take these.. it really felt good for my soul! =)

I just love little footsies :)

My First Bridal Shoot

2009-06-23T14:14:00.000-07:00

Isn't she just beautiful! I had a lot of fun during this shoot and had A LOT of pictures it was so hard narrowing them down! Here are a few of my favs :)

Check out the rest on my facebook page! While you're there.. become a fan and stay updated with all my new work! Until next time.. :)

No posts for a while now...

2009-06-17T12:27:00.001-07:00

So sorry I haven't posted anything in a while.. BUT stay tuned for LOTS of beautiful bridal portraits from a shoot a few weeks ago AND my first wedding is this Saturday so I will be back at it very soon!! I promise :) Lots more to come.. Hope everyone is having a wonderful June!

Go VOTE for me at BLU DOMAIN!!!

2009-05-14T19:59:00.000-07:00

For the title of best maternity shot!! OMG I am so excited! I was chosen as a contestant for yet another photo contest at BLU DOMAIN! BUT this time -- YOU get to vote!! How exciting is that! So my friends- please go vote for me at the link below! I would REALLY appreciate it! And while you're there- check out their AWESOME websites!!

I feel so honored to be apart of such an amazing contest! Thanks BLU :)

VOTE here or click on the photo below

I won a Photojojo Gorillapod from MCP!!

2009-04-27T08:31:00.000-07:00

I won another contest?? What?! =) Luck is on my side lately and I love it!! Last week I entered a contest to win a Photojojo gorillapod portable tripod through MCP and was chosen at random today out of over 250 entries- how awesome is that?!! Check out Jodi's blog post here and the contest rules and entries here.

I am so excited to start using this very cool tripod! It's going to be so FUN experimenting with different shots ;) Thanks Jodi!!

We will love you always..

2009-04-25T11:19:00.000-07:00

It has been a VERY hard week dealing with the loss of our sweet, old dog Obadiah. She lived a long happy life and we will love her always. BUT that fact still doesn't make it any easier to have to put a dog down.. these things are always hard. I just wanted to make a tribute to her as she was a very loved dog by many! Rest in peace sweet girl ♥

What a ham! :)

2009-04-22T12:02:00.001-07:00

I think I'm going to get this one on canvas.. what do you think??

OMG!! I won a Blu Domain photo contest!!

2009-04-22T10:18:00.000-07:00

If you are a professional photographer than you should know who bludomain is. If not let me tell you- they are the most amazing website designers for the creative professional and the #1 place most all pro photographers nationwide and worldwide shop for their websites! If you check out there blog, you will see that they also hold many FUN and CREATIVE photo contests for people like you and me to enter into! So last week I submitted my photo entry and guess what?! I actually WON!! WOW. I cannot believe it still. This is such a big deal for me :) I feel so honored and GRATEFUL to have been chosen! My prizes won: a free $400 website, a free year to host with blu ($100), AND a $200 gift card to any store I choose! Isn't that awesome!! Thank you Blu Domain!!!!

Check out what Lucy wrote:
"Congratulations to Stephanie Castillo + Raegan Turner the winners of our latest contest. We could NOT just give out 1 prize. We loved both of these entries and there was a tie ... so why break it! Email me girls to claim your goodies! A BIG thank you to everyone that enters my silly contests. In the hundreds is pretty impressive!"

THE RULES - Take a photograph of 4 people standing in a straight line! #1 person should be sporting a SPRING look! #2 person should be sporting swimwear! #3 person should be sporting a tee and denim jeans! #4 person should be in workout gear!

Take a look at the post on bludomain.com here

Last of Michelle... or at least until she moves here :)

2009-04-20T18:27:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favs from the last of my Sister's shoot.. I can't wait until she moves here so we can take more!! She is a great model :)

I love my kids!!

2009-04-15T19:23:00.000-07:00

Oklahoma has the most crazy weather I've ever seen! One day it will be 70 degrees outside and the next day it might be 30 degrees and snowing! Wow, I still can't believe how different it is from California. I guess that's why they have the popular saying, "if you don't like the weather, wait 15 minutes" Ha!
Well the other day when it was snowing, I decided to take a few pictures of my kids playing outside.. Unfortunately I couldn't get any shots in the actual snow due to the fact that my camera (and new lens) were getting wet because it was snowing so hard.. but I did get a couple of really cute shots on the porch.. aren't they just adorable :)

My beautiful Sister, Michelle!

2009-03-27T07:57:00.001-07:00

These are from a shoot we did a few months back when she came to visit me in Oklahoma (she lives in California). Isn't she just gorgeous! I wanted to share a few of my favorite shots with you, stay tuned for more to come!

Finallly, I can start blogging!

2009-03-27T07:17:00.000-07:00

For a long time now I've been wanting to blog but it always seems that I never have the time to actually sit down and write. Being a Mom to two toddlers takes up a lot of my time but now that my son has started preschool I am able to actually take some "me time" and get things done that I've been putting off for a while now.
My photography is going great, I still have a lot to catch up on but it's coming along well. I recently looked back on some old pictures that I did from the beginning of my photography and was blown away from the difference of then to now! Only one year ago I was starting my adventure into photography and I can proudly say that I have come a very long way :) It feels great! As my experience grows, so does my passion and I look forward everyday to what knowledge I will gain in the future.