Gayla Elizabeth Photography - Los Angeles | Honolulu Portrait and Wedding Photography » children

The travelling family… Julianne, Doug and Donovan

gayla — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 19:52:28 +0000

He’s a financial planner…she’s a doctor and together…they made baby Donovan; this cute big blue-eyed adorable baby boy. This family / baby photo session took months in the making. Literally. Julianne and Doug (and baby Donovan) do a lot of traveling, so getting this photo session locked in on a date that worked for all of us was a bit challenging.A After many calls,emails, voicemails and text messages, we finally locked in a date this past Sunday. The Solorzano family was actually vacationing in Las Vegas this past weekend, and returned early this past Sunday specifically for this photo shoot. Yup, a weekend in Vegas…followed by a family photography session in Century City! Needless to say, little Donovan was a little tired; but we did manage to capture his personality and great smile. We started on his bed in his nursery and then headed out to the front yard. See the adorable family below…

Michael got shoes!

gayla — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 15:00:05 +0000

Little Michael is growing up and growing up fast! Check out his 4 month old baby pics… This little slugger is quite the cutie and his looks are really starting to evolve. While he isn’t strong enough to hold himself up just yet, this boy has got some muscles! We started this infant photo session right after one of his naps, which was followed by a bottle and then a few smiles and lots of fun. He was sporting some cool hair and cool shoes… a must for all future studs. This is part of my baby’s first collection… A favorite among parents who want to document the first year of their child’s life. These photos were taken back in April, so his next round of photos will be coming up soon. Stay tuned! You can see his newborn session by clicking here.

Little Michael

gayla — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 18:58:55 +0000

Michael Anthony made his appearance to the world back in December. This little slugger is a mere 10 days old when he did his very first photo shoot and I must say, he was fully of expressions. He sported a darling little Los Angeles Dodger beanie with these two pom poms that were to die for. He slept for most of the session and woke up for brief moments and went right back to sleep. He even gave me a very adorable “smile” when he was dreaming. He managed to sneak in a few screams, before heading back into la-la land. zzzzzzzz. This is part of my BABY’S FIRST collection which documents the baby’s first year of life. You can see the first post when he was in his mama’s tummy by clicking here. Stay tuned for his next batch of photos!

Jazmine | Headshot Photography | Ala Moana, Hawaii

gayla — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 15:33:20 +0000

Here are a few pics from a headshot photography session I did last weekend in Honolulu for Jazmine. I am offering a limited offer for any photography session (portrait, headshot, maternity, family, product, engagement, pet, corporate or newborn sessions) for $150, where 100% goes to Life Rolls On for the They Will Surf Again event on 4/30/11. This headshot session was for a darling little 10 year old named Jazmine. Her sweet and adorable personality made me wanna squeeze her because she was so cute. Instead, we talked about her favorite person in the whole wide world…Justin Bieber! The photos are headshot style and not my typical portraiture, so they have a little different feel to them and will be used to submit to local modeling and talent agents in Hawaii.

We finished off at Ala Moana beach park where we had a little fun in the sand and grabbed a few pics with mom.

I have a few slots available if anyone is interested, let me know. It’s for a great cause and you can see the details by clicking here.

One of my heroes…

gayla — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 17:18:37 +0000

This 3 year old will change your perception of life and open your eyes…just so you can see the world in a different light. Her courage, strength, determination and passion for life is beyond amazing. Plain and simple. She possesses qualities that are so admirable, it often leaves me speechless (which is a difficult task

). I will keep this post short and sweet and let you see for yourself. Please watch the short clip below by clicking play. She is one of my heroes for more reasons than one… and she just happens to be my niece. My dear Maile, you are my sunshine and my light. You make me a better person. I love you so much and am so proud of you. Thank you for spending an incredible day with my yesterday. You are the bestest! Thank you for being in my life….

My hero Maile from Gayla Elizabeth on Vimeo.

Walker Levi Katz | Newborn Photography | Beverly Hills, CA

gayla — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 16:48:09 +0000

Newborn photography can be tricky at times, but can make for some awesome photos. I love children, so photographing them when they first enter this world is amazing. Little Walker is only 10 days old in these photos and when I first arrived at his Beverly Hills home , I was greeted by his parents Austin and Alli and his four legged brother Cooper. Before Alli gave birth to Walker, Cooper was the only “child” and anyone who loves their pets like their children always gets a two thumbs up from me. Because I knew how much Cooper was apart of their family I was all smiles because I knew I would be able to get Cooper with his newly arrived baby brother Walker. Dogs + babies = happiness

Take a peek at this newborn photography session below…

Child Photography |Isabella and Julien

gayla — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 16:57:21 +0000

Beaches always make for great backdrops for children and family photography sessions, since beaches tend to bring some of the best smiles in everyone. I grew up around the most beautiful beaches in Hawaii and enjoy everything that a beach has to offer. From the clear blue water, to the white sand and the salt air that blows through the islands….Ahhh, take me home! Ok, so maybe the beaches here in California are nothing like those in Hawaii, maybe they are just “alright”, but they still are a fun place to take some children and family portraits. I mean there is something about a wave that makes a kid light up as they run for their life.

. Besides, most kids just love a wave, any wave that will chase them. They could care less if that wave is coming from the Hawaiian Islands!

Isabella and Julien actually live in Oregon, so this So Cal beach is pretty darn awesome for them! Little Julien has some serious locks and a smile that is gonna melt many hearts. Take a peek…

Another hit by Tricia Nicole – Sophia’s 3rd birthday

gayla — Mon, 03 May 2010 00:40:32 +0000

Wedding and Event Planner Tricia Nicole has done it again. I shot her black and white birthday party in Sherman Oaks last December. You can see it by clicking here. Her little girl Sophia turned 3 and she had a celebration that was circus themed BIG FUN under the BIG TOP. And boy was it ever. Tricia Nicole does an amazing job with her details. Here are some of the highlights:

a petting zoo
an arts and crafts table for the kiddos
a hand painting station
a red & white polka dot photo booth with clown noses
lots of kiddies and food and smiles

The petting zoo consisted of a sheep, goats, a rabbit, ducks and even a pig. The kids loved it. Each little one got a frame with their name on it and was able to decorate it as they liked at the arts and crafts table Tricia setup. There was stickers, paint, markers, rhinestones, gems, cutouts, shapes, glitter and lots of glue…. all the good messy stuff! Tricia also had a hand painting station setup for hand prints. The photo booth was equipped with a colorful red and white polka dot back drop, red clown noses and a polaroid camera. The pics were hung on line and then given to each family in the frame that was made by the little one. It was great!. After all the activities, all guests were taken to the eating area, which of course was again decorated beautifully by Tricia. After lunch, out came the cake and ice cream and smiles for everyone.

If you ever need a coordinator for a wedding, bar and bat mitzvah or any other social event, give Tricia Nicole a call. You can see her website by clicking here.

Mai turns 3!

gayla — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 19:39:47 +0000

My youngest niece Maile just celebrated her 3rd birthday this past weekend. Some of you may have seen my facebook status on April 2, 2010

Gayla Elizabeth Please pray for my little niece who is having surgery this morning. Make her well and give her strength for her 3rd birthday in a couple weeks. I love you Mai…..

Thank you to all that commented and prayed for Maile, she is such a precious gift and I was so happy to celebrate her 3rd birthday with her. H*A*P*P*Y. She was able to have a wonderful birthday with loved ones this past weekend at Mission Bay in San Diego, CA. My drive started a little late that morning due to a “surprise” in my swimming pool (my facebook friends saw my status

). For those of you who want to find me on facebook, you can do so by clicking here.

I finally arrived with gifts and a huge teddy bear in tow (my tradition continues!). Upon my arrival, I was greeted with the biggest smile that can melt your heart in seconds from Mai. Being with my family brings me such happyness. Happyness with a Y! My brother had his boat and chauffeured everyone out for a ride, there was lots of food, a few games and good company. Despite being a little cold and windy, it was so nice to be with my nieces and nephew Christopher. It was a very relaxing day. By the end of the day, Mai was exhausted from the long celebration, but you could tell she felt she had a GREAT BIRTHDAY. We were there all day and headed to my brother’s home about 8pm. I ended up staying there and spending more time with my family and enjoyed every minute of it. I actually stayed and tucked both her and her sister Malia in bed and was able to wish them sweet dreams before I headed back in my car to drive back to LA. It’s moments like these that make my heart smile.

. Here are a few pictures of our celebration.

Family Photography – The Katz

gayla — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 19:29:40 +0000

Here are some photos from an absolute adorable family session taken in Brentwood, CA a few months ago. When I first arrived at the KATZ residence, little 2 year old Ryder was still asleep, so we started with his 2 month old baby brother Maguire. Upon Ryder’s waking, he was a little shy and decided to hide under his blankie for a while. The whole family hung out on the bed as Ryder “woke” up, and once he did, it was ON. The room was filled with love, then pillows were thrown and there was some laughing which produced the best smiles EVER. Some of you may recognize the KATZ family, since I’ve posted their family shot on the top of my blog when I did the redesign. I love that family shot since it says everything love.laugh.smile.

Soon after our little pillow fight, little Maguire went down for a nap, so it was playtime for Ryder and parents. Baseball, swings, motorcylces, tools. Even their retriever Cody had a blast. Here are some pics of this cute, cute, family. I’m going to start it off with one of my favorites, Dori and her baby son Maguire. Pure love…….Enjoy!