Ethan's Birthday Party

On July 25th, I had the chance to photograph Ethan's Tol.  It was a traditional celebration for a first Korean birthday.  This was my first time to capture memories for this type of a celebration, and after a bit of research, I had an idea of what to expect.

Ethan in his Tol-Bok.  Precious as can be!

The happy father with his adorable son.

Ethan had to check out those rice cake towers...those colorful stacks of goodies were just begging to be knocked over!

Ethan showing off his walking skills...and Lorraine, the proudest mom in LA that day!

There were a lot of colorful decorations for Ethan's party.  From his Tol-Bok (traditional outfit), to the colorful rice bean cake towers, to the balloons and his Elmo birthday cake.
Family, friends, and platter after platter of delicious food!  That's a grand Tol celebration for you!

The Toljabee was the highlight of the event.  This was the part where Ethan would be given the opportunity to pick an item that would help predict his future.  A stethoscope would mean a future in the medical world, a book would hint on him being a scholar, a computer mouse would be for something in the computer world, maybe become the next Steve Jobs, a Baseball would be for sports, and a rope for longevity.

Ethan chose the baseball!  MLB may be in this handsome little guy's future.

Ethan picks the baseball.

Ieenor, Lorraine and Ethan...a beautiful family!

Ieenor and Lorraine, I am really honored that you chose me to capture memories for Ethan's birthday.  I wish you all the great health and good fortune in your adventures in raising your family!


Techie Notes:  Being that this was an indoor event and the room didn't have any windows, all shots you see here have on-camera flash.  Not direct flash though, all were shot with bounced flash to different areas of the restaurant.  No plastic tupperware-looking modifiers were attached to the flash as well (my Sto-fen omni-bounce has not seen the light of day for a few years now...always in the bag, but never makes it out of the bag)...the light modifier I was using drew a few chuckles from some of the guests, as it was a foam mousepad acting as the snoot, and a ponytail holder that I grabbed from my wife's hair accessories.  This was an idea I got from a New Jersey Photographer, Neil van Niekerk (unfortunately, I do not know him personally.  I was signed up to attend one of his seminars in Las Vegas, but it was canceled, so I never had the chance to meet him in person).  I've always preferred bouncing flash, but once in a while I would have some light spill onto my subject directly, and this foam-snoot takes care of that issue.  Off camera lighting was not an option for this shoot for me, since I didn't have an assistant with me.

Gear Used:  Canon 5D, 24-70mm 2.8, 50mm 1.8, 550Ex, black mousepad as a snoot, and a ponytail holder / rubber band thingy.

A Nice Day For A Ride To The Park...

It was a very nice afternoon...cool breeze blowing in, the temperature was in the low 70s and friends were visiting.  The light was just perfect this afternoon and the colors were just right...

Helmet on, ready to roll...

Basket...check, matching helmet...check...cute-ness....check!

Spending an afternoon biking with friends...memories are made of this.

Got road?

100 and 4 days of summer vacation, and school comes a long just to end it.. and end it soon it will.  Enjoying the last days of summer.

With the golden light fading fast, it was time to hit the road again and head on home for some McDonald's cheeseburgers for the kids and some Korean BBQ chicken for The Loft for the moms and dads!

Jino and Carol with rim lighting compliments of the Sun!

Gotta love that bokeh that the 70-200mm 2.8 lens gives.  Smooth and silky!

I didn't use any flash for these images because there wasn't a need to lift any shadows ... A reflector would have helped a bit, but not a show-stopper.   
  
I usually have my speedlights handy, but riding a bike and clinging to a 70-200 was bulky enough.  I had a nifty fifty in my bike pouch, and that saw a little action too, but it's very hard not to use the 70-200 lens with this gorgeous golden light beaming through the trees in the park...

Gear used:  Canon 5D, 70-200mm 2.8 IS, 50mm 1.8