We had an awesome engagement shoot here in San Diego with our friends Angie & Billy. Our location we scouted was in Hillcrest and was truly magical! It created the, whimsical, fairytale like setting we were looking for. Lush green trees, yellow flowers, and a rope swing! Angie and Billy live in Las Vegas so it was amazing they could hang with us in SD. It’s so nice when all the variables of a shoot come together and then to have a couple so in love , well, that just makes our job quite enjoyable. Thanks to Angie and Billy for inspiring us!

Skyeler Kole of Caliendo Photography

We are so grateful for all the recent opportunities that have come our way in San Diego! We put our heads together to come up with a great way to meet talented and creative artists in the area.  What did we come up with? Throw a gathering of course! Our goal is to put a team together of skilled artists to work with and help each other along the way when in the SD area. Not only did we meet makeup artists, stylists, and models. We met a glass blower, jewelry maker, and a modern furniture designer, just to name a few! A big thank you goes out to our friend Erica from EA Vintage for letting us have the gathering at The Cycling Owl. (Her downtown loft and boutique.) Our guests also had the chance to shop around and buy some great apparel. I got some great finds as well! We’re so excited to team up with Erica on shoots with her amazing fashion sense. Thanks Erica!  Also, a huge shout out to our DJ THE STZ and CupCakesSquared for donating those yummy treats! Also to Alberto Vieyra at FurnitureLab, were looking forward to using your funky furniture in our upcoming shoots. Finally, thank you to all our guests who joined us for a successful night at The Cycling Owl. We’ll keep you posted on when we plan the next one! For now check out some of the pics from the event. Much Love~

Skyeler Kole of Caliendo Photography

A week prior to our family shoot with the Dehner’s, Ry and I scouted a beautiful location in Marina Del Rey. We found an amazing park with a beachy vibe, great light, and a gorgeous lagoon. A week later we’re ready to shoot and feeling well prepared. One little problem…Ryan comes running back to the car and tells me “the lagoon is gone!” Knowing the jokester that Ry is, I just laughed it off and continued on..until he pointed to the lagoon where there was ZERO water! A week later and they drain it?! We were stumped, so we switched into our professional caps and found great spots around the area that we hadn’t seen before. We later found out that the lagoon was affected by the tide going in and out, mystery solved! Despite the major set back, the shoot was a success and we were more than happy with the turnout. The Dehner’s were definitely open to rolling with the failed expectations of the location change and cold weather.

Ryan and I had the opportunity to shoot their family portraits last year as well. Its been wonderful to watch their little boy Bradyn grow! We wish them the best of luck in their adventures as they make a big move to London. We’ll miss you guys!

Bon Voyage

Skyeler Kole of Caliendo Photography

Director RJ Collins has been working countless hours on his new baby called “Falling Up.” Lucky for me, RJ happens to be my cousin on my moms side. RJ and his creative team welcomed me into their world for a moment and allowed me to do what I do best. With Skye Pie by my side we were able to capture some pretty cool moments on the set.

In my opinion, shooting in low light is quite challenging in photography. You have to hold a steady camera when shooting in low light. It’s a must to have precise settings to avoid camera shake leaving you with fuzzy images. I spent some time in post editing/photoshop/lightroom to get these photos to have an appeal we used to see in film images. I suppose we could have shot on film, hah, but the versatility with digital far exceeds the limitations with still images.

A bit more about RJ Collins… He’s an award-winning director. His last film, Enigma, screened at several festivals and premiered at the Newport Beach Film Festival last May. He is a strong believer in the idea that an amazing story will never be obsolete. Upon graduation in May, he will leap full-time into the industry pursuing his dream of being a filmmaker. You can see more of RJ and his team’s work by clicking here >> www.greenglowfilms.com

As we reflect on the past year, we’re feeling pretty grateful to have experienced so much while meeting inspiring people. We’re definitely looking forward to all the weddings coming up for our busy 2012! Thank you to all who have supported us on this amazing journey. You’re not our clients you’re our friends! We’re looking forward to capturing more of your cherished moments in time. Thank you for your continued love and support. Here’s a montage of our favorite moments in 2011. Cheers!

With Gratitude,

The Caliendo Photography Team

Maternity Shoots are definitely one of our favorites! Inspiration hit when we knew we’d be working with the stylish Tiffany Moss. All together, the photo session was very intimate. Both Tiffany and husband Ryan got into the moment and allowed us to truly capture this amazing gift that’s coming any day now! When going over Tiffany’s wardrobe, we thought it would be adorable to implement her wedding veil into the shots. You’ll notice in the video she’s also wearing the same earrings she wore on her wedding day. Cute! For the second half of the shoot we had a beautiful outdoor setting and went with a more bohemian look. It was truly magical with the sun setting and geese all around the lake. What a magical day! Best of luck to Tiffany and Ryan with their new baby girl Dylan. We can’t wait to see her!

-Skyeler Kole of Caliendo Photography

We had quite a weekend Ventura County! After a few very successful shoots we ended our weekend at The Farm in Oxnard. We had a visit with our good friend Erynn Smith, an intern living in the Farm House. Erynn works the land but in a very special way bringing spirituality and good energy to growing the crops. Erynn hopes to bring awareness to people, the youth especially, about being conscious with the foods we put in our bodies. It’s all about connecting people to each other, to the earth, to their food and their farmers. Erynn says “it’s about realizing how rich and vibrant our community’s agricultural history and present is.” It’s so vital to preserve this heritage by eating locally, advocating for social and policy changes to support local food and farmers. Thanks Erynn!

Will you support The Farm?

To join The Farm and find out more click here >>> www.jointhefarm.com

Enjoy some of the photos Ry took around the farm.

-Skyeler Kole of Caliendo Photography

We were so excited to be working with my very dear friend Kathleen Friedman on her head-shots this past weekend. Kathleen and I have known each other since Jr. High and always have fun times whenever were together. Currently she is going to Westminster College in New Jersey studying opera. Kathleen has worked so hard to get to where she is today and I am so proud of her. Can I just tell you..she is very talented and a beautiful singer! We always want to support our friends and fellow artists so needless to say we nailed down an awesome shoot! Kathleen pulled off a few different looks going from simple and cute to flirty fun and sexy fresh. I did her makeup while Ryan scouted out all the locations. Luckily we had an awesome farm to shoot at with a barn, old tractors, hens and all! Thanks to our great friend Erynn Smith for letting us shoot at your amazing farm! You’ll learn more about Erynn and the farm on our next blog. Stay tuned and enjoy!

-Skyeler Kole of Caliendo Photography

If you’re a parent, you understand that feeling you get, peering down at your newborn, feeling absolutely complete. Nothing else matters in the world but the fulfillment you can bring to that child’s life. Even though Ry and I have never had kids, we felt that same magic through the Boyle family. Rachel and Ryan are new parents to baby Ali and it was amazing to see the connection and love they shared with their baby girl. This was definitely on our top ten favorite shoot list. We wish the Boyle’s the best of luck in parenthood and we hope to see more beautiful kiddies in the future.

A baby girl…
one of the most beautiful miracles in life,
one of the greatest joys we can ever know,
and one of the reasons why
there is a little extra sunshine, laughter and happiness
in your world today.
~ Unknown

Skyeler Kole of Caliendo Photography

I had the privilege of joining Michelle and Jeff for another family event. It was a special day for Caleb, their only son who turned the BIG 1! I originally met this adorable couple on their wedding day when I was backing up another photography company in LA. When I met Michelle and Jeff I wondered why everyone can’t be as cool and easy going.. “Mellowest Bride Ever!”  And their wedding was gorgeous and went so smooth. Since that day, I knew their lives would be filled with happy moments like this.

A couple years later I find myself capturing their special moments as a family now. I am so thankful that they kept in touch and used our services once again.

It’s a pretty cool thing being a photographer. We get to deliver our clients something worth hanging on their walls, and when they do, it drives us to keep developing our craft further.

Enjoy the video and few pics from Calebs 1st bday.

Ryan of Caliendo Photography~