summer day.

A few weeks ago, I did a photoshoot with my friend, and asked another friend to model for us. This was just for fun, and it felt great being able to put my camera to use for my own sake, I guess.

We ended up going to the Thousand Steps in Laguna Beach, and there seems to be almost a thousand steps, but there probably aren't. I'm pretty out of shape myself, so this was quite the workout. When we were heading down the stairs, there were a few people running up! So intense!

Anyway, here are the pictures. :)

Don't worry faithful followers who have been coming to a deserted blog; I have a lot more to post. ;)

bwam.

I forgot to post some pictures on here! :)

For my spring break, instead of going back home and relaxing, I decided to go with a team of 6 other college students on a mission trip to Boise, Idaho. Boise is pretty random, but it's a beautiful place! We helped out with an organization called Create Common Good. We worked on various projects and learned about the countries they're from, ranging from Bhutan, Nepal, to the Congo, and interacted with them, too. It was a blessed week being able to talk to the staff, the refugees, and also people who go to the church. If you want to read more, we have a blog that you can read here.

freedom&fashion.

As stated in the previous post, I was able to take photos for the school newspaper for the Freedom and Fashion event. Freedom and Fashion is a fashion show that promotes products that are created by victims of human trafficking, and when buying the products, you are supporting them with a job and a dignity. The show was great, and the clothes were so fashionable! Sadly, I am a poor non-working college student, so I couldn't really afford any of them... :( This was the first fashion show that I've been to, so that was neat! :)

Esna Yoon. YouTube star.

Dr. E - survivor of human trafficking.

Jeannie Mai. The emcee.

Not For Sale campaign.

The gal started it all: Bonnie Kim.

in case you were curious.

Here's a link to the article I was shooting for. :)

http://www.newuniversity.org/2010/11/features/freedom-and-fashion/

I will edit this post later and post more pictures sooooon!

random.

This past Saturday, I went to Freedom and Fashion, a fashion show that raised awareness of human traffiking and what people could do about it. Originally, I was just going to go and support, and to check out the fashion show. However, my friend that works for the school newspaper asked if I could photograph for the newspaper since I'm technically an intern.

While I was taking pictures, not knowing what the heck I was doing and what I was allowed to do, I was thinking how it was interesting what kind of photos I've taken in the past few years. I've gone from just taking pictures on my point-and-shoot camera, to taking pictures of my sister's basketball games, making my own photoshoots, talking to photographers, and taking pictures at a fashion show. I would have never in my life thought that I would have done the things I have in this past year alone. It blows my mind!

Tonight, I went to the photo team's meeting, and there was a photographer that was teaching us the basics of the camera, and I learned so much. Even though I didn't understand half of the acronyms he was spewing out of his mouth, I nodded like the rest of the interns/staff like I knew exactly what he was talking about. Despite the fact that I felt so amateurish, it just inspires me to want to learn more and become a better photographer. I wondered why I hadn't done this earlier. The meeting in itself was awkward because I walked in and when I introduced myself, no one said "hi" back to me, but just stared back at me, which made me feel awkward...but I forgot all about it when the speaker started explaining how a camera works.

I guess tonight was just a realization that I still have so much to learn, and it doesn't scare me, but excites me. Here's to more learning!

Sidenote: I'm thinking of doing a photoshoot of some sort, but I'm not sure when that will take place...I've told a few people about it, and they seem to like it, so I'll be trying to plan for it. Thank you for following me, friends. :)

day two and day three.

Day Two:

Meet my sister. I actually posted about her previously, but here she is again. This past weekend, her, my Dad, and I went up to Davis to help her move in to her new dorm. The first day, well more like evening, we just drove and then stayed at a hotel overnight. Riding up there was nothing too big -- not like that much can happen on the 5*.

Day Three:

So, I've always heard that Davis was the biker school, but I did not know that every single student would literally have a bike. Everywhere you turn, there's a bike. Every direction you look, someone is on a bike. There were road bikes, beach cruisers, mountain bikes. Bikes, galore! Ridiculous!

My sister moved into a triple dorm room, and there was a bit of manual labor...literally manual...har har. After all that was done, I wanted to help my sister unpack, but she didn't even need my help. So weird to see my sister in a place where I was exactly two years ago. How time flies by so fast! I reallyy like this shot because it's my sister and her two roommates, a biker, and they're all going towards the same direction. It kind of describes her future, I guess in one picture. She has so much going for her, and she doesn't need me...haha. Not like she ever did, but...it's different. And I'm sure that her experience at Davis will be amazing! :)

Although Davis is beautiful, I doubt I'd ever want to actually go to school there. I walked on the campus afterward with my Dad, and we only covered a quarter of the campus and I was tired of walking. -o- So sad. Irvine is a lot more compact and easily accessible compared to Davis' campus.

*Did you know that NorCal people refer to freeways as just numbers, while SoCal people say "the" before the number?! SO WEIRD!

day one.

Honestly, I kind of forgot about this until the end of the day, and right now, I just remembered...so I went to find my dog to take a picture of her. Being a dog, she isn't the best model; meaning that she won't stay still, constantly scratching herself, walking around, etc. I wanted to frame her using the door frame, but she kept on walking away, thus...this is what came from it:

haha. I kind of like it...the epicness of her old paws and just her standing. Since she's an old baachan now, it takes a lot of effort for her to even stand up. Every time I see her get up, I feel like I have to say, "Ussho" for her! haha. Oh dear. I try to give her so much love, and yet it isn't reciprocated. When I tried to take a picture her, she tried to kiss me...resulting in a blurry picture. It shows she cares...a little!

summer camp.

A few weeks ago, I cabin led for my church's youth camp. It was one of the most stretching experiences I've had in my life thus far. In one week, it felt like a year's worth of emotions. Despite how tiring and draining it was, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

*Thanks to Traci Louie for the watermark! :D

college retreat.

This is a bit outdated, but last month, I went to my church's college retreat. I didn't get to take a lot of pictures, but here's a few of them! :)