FULLERTON or Bust

We have moved to our new Studio in Fullerton, CA near Amerige Heights in the commercial area of restaurants, Target, and many others.  This new studio/office is our new opportunity to better serve our clients into more comfortable surroundings, increased album samples, and much, much more.  Please feel free to stop by after April 1st, but please contact me first as we are open by appointment only.

Please note, that our new blog is also up and running, http://blog.weddingsbynathan.com
We’re looking forward to serving Fullerton and all of Southern California,

Nathan Nowack Photography
901 Starbuck St. UNIT B
Fullerton, CA 92833

Dawen Wins Kollaboration Acoustic 4 at the Ford Theater

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With a sold out crowd in attendance, Kollaboration Acoustic 4 kicked off on August 27, 2010 with 11 performers and a hot lineup of special guest performers.

Special guest judge Marie Digby sang 3 songs for the crowd and even did a 1 hour meet and greet before the show for VIP ticket holders.  Autographs and photos were taken as each fan got a chance to talk directly to this rising star.  Marie started her sensation on YouTube and now has 3 records and an ABC mini-series coming out.

As performers sang their hearts out, each was just as amazing as the next.  But in the end, only 1 could win, and that was R&B Soul singer Dawen.  Taking home the $1000 Grand Prize, Dawen was outside afterwards selling CD’s and signing autographs himself.

Other great performances included Hippie Hippie Hoorah, Lily Bee, Alex & Jackie, Peony, Justis Kao, Esna Yoon, Johnny & Iris, Flow Ethics, Brian and Sarah Fang, and MissCarolinexoxo.

Check out my additional blog and photos at:

http://blog.weddingsbynathan.com/ka4

Marie Digby Performs at Kollaboration Acoustic 4

New Blog! Bigger photos!!!

Please see my new blog which is bigger and more customizable.  I’m still keeping these blogs open just in case there are followings for certain articles.

http://blog.weddingsbynathan.com

Also Spread the news!!
Please Vote for my Photo, It may become the Cover of the Magazine!!!
You can vote Daily from Multiple Computers!!

http://iamkoream.com/koream-cover-contest/

I appreciate all the support!!  Cheers!!
Nathan Nowack Photography

New Blog!!! Please redirect all Links!!

Please everyone redirect their Blog Links to http://blog.weddingsbynathan.com

Thank you!!
Nathan

Amy + Clark: An Underwater Reception

As my girlfriend quoted, “just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming….”  When my sister told me she was having her wedding reception in an aquarium, I had to say, “Really?  You can do that?  SWEET!!!”  I’ve never heard of an aquarium allowing this.  What a great idea and what an amazing  chance for cool photos. So my girlfriend Allison and I grabbed our bags and headed out to Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Now first things first, I had to get lunch at Braums.  If you know me, this is a must every time I’m in Oklahoma.  Allison was amazed at the quality of the burgers and anxiously awaited the next time we would come back so she could get ice cream.  With Cherry Limeades in hand, we headed off to freshen up at the Doubletree Hotel at Warren Place.  Then off to Amy and Clark’s in Bixby for BBQ.

At Amy and Clarks, we got to see lots of friends and family that I hadn’t seen in a while.  The Bill and June had come in from Wisconsin along with Bill Jr., Paula, and the kids.  Oren was there minus Jennifer who was in Alaska en-route first thing Saturday morning.  The Greenwoods happily arrived, again giving me the opportunity to explain how small of a world this is being that I met Mike and Julie in California before they moved back to Oklahoma 4 years ago.  My aunts from Oregon and Australia braved the long drive in my parents car from Colorado, making this a BBQ from around the world.  Even Karsten made a detour from his 1 month roadtrip on his way back to Colorado. It was great to see everyone again, introduce them to Allison, and eat some really good Oklahoma BBQ.

The day of the wedding reception, we all met up at the Oklahoma Aquarium, appropriately located on the only place in Tulsa I would expect an aquarium to be, on the riverside in Jenks.  As the public were still leaving the facility, Amy and Clark were near the reception area walking around.  What an great idea this was.  The tables were surrounded by aquarium tanks.  The florist had even decorated the kids tables with live hermit crab centerpieces.  The DJ had his booth set up off to the side, the food was in the center, and the delicious wedding cake was in front of the shark tanks.   This was perfect.  As people arrived, we started to get photos.  We got our family portraits quickly out of the way so that everyone could continue walking around and enjoy the aquarium.

After some amazing appetizers, more photos, and the cake cutting, we all sat down for a delicious Beef or Chicken meal.  What no Fish? 

The DJ rocked his beats to the dancing of all the kids, and even Amy and her friend Ron did a little two stepping as some country music jumped on the speakers.  As guests left the event, a wishing tree sat at the front table where guests could write their best wishes and hang them on different branches.  The night was over, and good times were had by all.  It was my pleasure to photograph my sisters reception and I couldn’t have been happier to see all my friends and family again.  It was a great idea and I wish the best to Amy and Clark for all the rest of their years.  Cheers!!

Katie + Anthony: Engagement Session in Long Beach

The one thing I really enjoy about Engagement Sessions is all the different types of locations that one can go to in the Greater Los Angeles area.  Long Beach (not too far away but not exactly right next door) is one of those places I rarely get to go to.  Now granted I have been to a concert at the convention center, biked the Long Beach Marathon, and taken off on a cruise from their port, but I haven’t really taken a lot of photos down there.  

Katie and Anthony suggested maybe going down there to look around the pier, The Pike, and lighthouse.  Great idea, I thought, and it surely was.  There were a lot of great photo opportunities, and some not so ideal.  Note to self, The Pike will not allow “professional” photography as it is technically private property.  Unfortunate, but we found other places to go.

Right down the street was a great park over near the large Wyland painted Long Beach Arena.  Very nice colorful bridges surrounded by water made for a nice start to our 4 hour session.  We continued walking around toward the Lighthouse and park in front of the aquarium.  Being a Saturday, it was definitely a crowded day, so we strategically placed ourselves in locations without too many people.  The weather was also amazing, sun shining, no clouds, and a slight breeze to keep us from completely sweating while walking around.

As the sun started to set, and the Queen Mary slowly fading off in the background, we moved onto our final outfit and Katie and Anthony were still toughing it out.  They talked and laughed, while my assistant Ari and I continued to come up with interesting locations and backgrounds.  My particular favorite shots are the silhouettes, as sometimes a simple looking photo, screams 1000 words.  Hands held, faces pointed towards each other, still portray a strong feeling of love can be seen through the shadows.

Thanks again to Ari Zadok for helping out and thank you to Katie and Anthony for walking around to all the locations.  I hope you both had a great time and I look forward to taking more photos later this year.

Teaching and Learning, the OC way.

When my friend Sarah said she bought a Digital SLR and that she wanted me to teach her a few things, I got pretty excited.  I love sharing the art of photography with anyone willing to learn.  This is probably one of the main reasons I’m the photo editor of the Santa Monica College newspaper, because I love to see people grow.  I too love to learn, and of course just get out and shoot some great photos.

My girlfriend Allison, also decided to come, as she’s always had an interest in photography as well and borrowed my old Canon XT to play around with.  We got to Balboa Island, down in Orange County off the 55 and PCH.  This quaint little island has some truly amazing houses, a wonderful little main street with shops and restaurants, and a ferry that takes you over to Balboa Peninsula.  This was perfect, so many things to take photos of.

So we started walking around, taking photos, experimenting with the settings, and explaining the terms of photography.  Both Sarah and Allison got the basics pretty quickly, and started to take photos of fun flowers, signs, and even a boat taken over by pirate seal lions.  Sarah’s husband Justin showed up and we took the fairy across to Balboa Peninsula.  A ferris wheel greeted us no arrival with Balboa bars, a pier, and more fun things to see.

It was a fun day topped off with an excellent dinner at this little Italian place on the main street called Giorgio La Trattoria and then a Balboa Bar(Ice Cream Bar) or Frozen Banana coated in your choice of topping made fresh just for you.  Apparently, Dad’s Donut and Bakery was one of the original Balboa Bar providers.  These were so tasty, I would go back down there just for those.

Thank you Sarah and Justin, I had a great time and will come down for more ice cream whenever you want.  Hope your photos turned out great and I hope to see them on your Confessions of a Feminist Golddigger blog soon!

Pirate Seals

Gina + Sky E-Session: Destination Arroyo Grande

Do I want to travel 3 hours away to a quaint little coastal town past Santa Barbara, past Solvang, and past Santa Maria near Pismo Beach?  Definitely!!!

When Gina and Sky hired me for their wedding after seeing my ad on Facebook, I was excited to see this scenic little town about 3 hours north of LA.  Situated off the 101 next to Pismo Beach, and with a population under 18,000, this little town was perfect for a romantic wedding location away from the hustle and bustle of LA.  Growing up in Santa Maria, both Sky and Gina had some nostalgic connections with the area as we walked around town near a trickling stream taking photos on the bridge, in the park, and at their favorite Ice Cream store, Doc Burnstein’s. WOW!! Now that’s some  good ice cream!!!!

We then headed shortly down the road past Pismo Beach and up to Shell Beach. Here, colorful cliffs fell to the Pacific while huge boulders of white rocks sat motionless in the water.  This is what California coastline should look like!  With a pathway down to the water, we quickly descended and took some fun photos on the beach and against the cliffs with shadows.  As the sun started to set, we went back up to the cliffs and finished the day off with some romantic sunset photos.  This is definitely the way to watch the day end as the yellows and oranges filled the sky with a silhouette of trees, rocks, and two people in love.

Afterwards, Allison and I had some tasty clam chowder in Pismo Beach at Splash Cafe.  Definitely a must try if you’re in the area and want a huge bread bowl of some hot, soupy goodness.

Thanks for being such great tour guides and thanks again for the amazing ice cream, I think I’ll need to stop there every time I go up north now!!!  :-)

Toni + Jon = Love + Maternity

With a last minute call to do a Maternity portrait session with Toni and Jon, I jumped on the opportunity as I am new to Maternity Photography.  Treating it like an Engagement Session, even though they are already married, I had a variety of poses in mind for them to show off their love as well as their soon-to-be plus one.

Toni suggested the Historic Library in Redondo Beach Veteran’s Park.  I scoped out the location and found multiple spots that would be great for some photos.  We walked around taking photos as they laughed and joked with each other.  Even their cousin Chris came along and snagged a few shots on his cell phone making Toni feel like a celebrity.  They were a great couple full of energy and life.

It was a fun session and I tried my hardest to get as many different poses and styles to combine this photo session into one.  I would definitely do more of these and was very happy with the outcome.

Now that Toni and Jon will have some photos to show at their upcoming baby shower, I wish them the best for all of their future events.  Thanks for everything!!

Alex + Corina E-Session: Fun with Art

Today was going to be a fun day, as the sun came out blazing with barely any clouds in the sky.  Alex and Corina met me over at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), where I had seen an amazing visual art piece by Chris Burden.  Urban Light has 202 cast iron lamp posts situated in a square and varying in height.  This solar powered, functioning art piece is exactly what I thought of when Alex told me he was an art teacher.  And so our journey just naturally began here.  With many different angles, and spots to choose from, these lamp posts made perfect props.  Next time I visit her, I’ll try to coordinate a night engagement session to observe the full potential of this modern art piece.

After some great photos within and around Urban Light, we headed to Westwood park for some roller skating and skateboarding.  Alex and Corina changed into matching “The Buttons” shirt, an inside joke, and proceeded to skate around with minimal falls.  :-)  It was a typical California sunny day to get photos in the park, ironically while my parents sent me emails from Colorado amidst a freak snowy blizzards.

Our last stop was obviously another museum.  Why try to hunt for locations around town that may kick you out, when you have amazing free architecture, museums, parks and sculpture gardens right at your fingertips.  We headed up to the Getty museum. I haven’t been to the Getty in a while, and definitely not with a good camera.  So this was definitely a treat for me.  There was so much to see, so many places to go, and so many people wandering around.  We tried to find shady, secluded areas.  We would often have to wait for people to walk by.  This might be better organized during a week day when it wasn’t so popular. We even went inside to get a few shots near famous Van Gogh’s or Monet’s.  This truly was a great place to get photos, as there were opportunities around every corner.

As the 4 hour session came to a close, I was confident that we had a great collection of photos for Alex and Corina and that today was a huge success.  I thank both Alex and Corina for being such great models, even when I had some fairly random ideas.  They were both easy to work with and I look forward to shooting your beautiful wedding in June!