Jun 112012
 
Alanna Rayford, young black African American entrepreneur in Oakland's Uptown neighborhood

Allow me to introduce you to Alanna Rayford. She is transforming a derelict building in Oakland’s up and coming Uptown neighborhood into a thriving gallery space. I wanted an image of her that was dynamic and exciting, pretty and approachable. I feel like this photo says all of this and more. I shot it during the golden hour as late afternoon light streamed through the windows and wrapped around her. She looks natural and in charge at her computer. The photo was shot with all natural light on a 50mm prime lens.

Alanna Rayford, young black African American entrepreneur in Oakland's Uptown neighborhood

Photo © Alex Schoenfeldt 2012
All Rights Reserved
San Francisco business photography

May 092012
 
Professional portrait session in the San Francisco Bay area. Headshots, portraits, corporate, business

I’ve been shooting a lot of portrait photography recently. I shoot for business people, actors, students, people who are doing online dating.

Here is a shot from last week of Dr. Karen Peters of East Bay Naturopathic Clinic. As you can see, she’s really beautiful. However, she was terminally camera shy. She hates having her photo taken. No problem! I’m generally a relaxed person. We chat, we shoot, we keep shooting we keep talking. Eventually people will either relax, or I catch them in-between moments. You can’t be stressed all the time, and I’m fast.

Professional portrait session in the San Francisco Bay area. Headshots, portraits, corporate, business

Photo © Alex Schoenfeldt 2012. All rights reserved.
Alex Schoenfeldt Photography

Feb 042012
 
Pretty little girl mugging for the camera in a park in Oakland

I was doing a family portrait session. Mom, dad, two great dogs and one cute and happy little girl. She was one of those bubbly charming kids that make people without kids think “we should have kids.”

She got a little bored or posing with her mom and dad in a look at the camera way, but she didn’t mind “mugging” for the camera. Her mom put her on the table and let her just go while I snapped a few dozen photos. There are plenty of great shots from this session, but this one is just so fun. It’s just so sassy! The lines work really well, and the red offers such an interesting contrast to the greens and browns. Oh, I also like the textures in the photo.

Pretty little girl mugging for the camera in a park in Oakland

Photo © Alex Schoenfeldt 2011
All rights reserved
San Francisco Photographer

Jan 142012
 
Prenant Indian woman on a beach in Pacifica California

I did a pregnancy photo session for a couple recently. We started on the hills above the ocean somewhere south of Pacifica CA. We got some great shots of the two of them but the award winner is posted below. The long back hair, round pregnant belly, dark Indian skin, the dark cliff walls, the cold white-capped ocean, this shot just works in my opinion.

It’s on the blog twice. I was just going to post the color version you see first. This shot is a bit intimate, and I know for a fact the husband has some conservative family members, I thought I’d check before I put it out there on the interweb for all to see. I emailed a proof of the shot with my request, and when I got the email saying “yes” back it also said “aren’t you going to use the black and white version?”

Which one do you like better?

Pregnant Indian woman on a beach in Pacifica California

pregnancy photo on the beach, beautiful preganat indian woman