Esther is, among other interesting things, my sister. She lives in Seattle, and I don’t get to see her very often. So of course I pursued her with my camera during her week in California this month. Fortunately for me, Esther is beautiful, fascinating, and willing to pose.

We did two shoots in one weekend, which made life quite hectic; after all, that weekend coincided with our parents’ first ever visit to Santa Cruz. It was worth the effort, though. The first shoot was at the Red Bats’ favorite beach, about half an hour north of Santa Cruz. Esther jumped into the ocean wearing a sparkly blue prom dress she’d bought at the Goodwill earlier that day. The second shoot was in our studio, and incorporated furry animal ears, a note found scrawled on a napkin, a mustache, and Esther’s awesome camera.

The final product from these shoots will be exciting, for sure. Until that’s ready to show, here are some photos from both shoots and from Esther’s visit. Check back later for more.

Last week I had the pleasure of shooting my former boss. And I got away with it! Okay, that was pretty lame. My fellow Red Bat, he of the horrible puns, is a bad influence on me. For the record, I wasn’t looking to harm my former supervisor in any way. On the contrary, I wanted to give her some great photos of herself. I felt I owed her something in return for the organizational skills she taught me, skills which have already been invaluable in the photography business. Plus, we needed to celebrate having both moved on to newer, more interesting jobs.

Karen came to the Red Bat studio with bags of snacks for the photographers (thanks, Karen!) and a playful attitude. She was willing to pose with cupcakes, party hats, bubbles, and noisemakers. (And no, we’re not obsessed with cake and other party accessories, we just bought an excess of those things at Too Much Fun a while back. If you ever get your portrait taken by Red Bat Photography, keep in mind that horse party hats are always an option. At no extra cost.)

Here are some of our favorites from Karen’s shoot:

Last week, fans of Santa Cruz musician Hod Hulphers were overjoyed to see him profiled in Good Times. And guess whose studio photos of Hod accompanied that excellent article? Was it a certain dynamic duo known as RED BAT PHOTOGRAPHY? Why yes it was!

Follow that link to read the article and see the photos they picked to go with it. Then come back and check out some behind-the-scenes shots from Hod’s hilarious studio shoot, plus a few more of the best photos we’ve ever taken of anyone in the Red Bat Photography studio. (Because we’re getting to be pretty good at this, if we do say so ourselves.)

In many shots, Hod posed as his alter ego, Lewis Miracle Lecage. Lewis reminds me of the kind of guy who inevitably sits next to me on long Greyound bus rides and tells disturbing stories. If I ever end up stuck next to some weird guy and he starts singing Hod’s songs, I will not be surprised. It’s really fun to take pictures of someone’s alter ego, and I’d like to state for the record that we are willing to offer this service to any other artists who may require it. For cash, of course.

Jessica Carter acted as creative director and stylist for this shoot, and without her input, the results would not have been nearly as spectacular; her planning is behind every prop, costume, and pose. When an excited Hod shaved his face during the shoot, Jessica restrained him from ruining his sideburns. Because that’s what friends are for.

In a few weeks we’ll have more Hod photos, this time from an outdoor shoot. It’s all part of a unique portrait package we’re putting together to demonstrate what we can offer musicians and other performance artists.

Hod, thank you for inspiring us with your creativity (and insanity). May you and Lewis travel far and meet with great success.

Back in February, we brought Kimberlee into the studio for a Valentine’s Day portrait session. She wanted to surprise her boyfriend with a framed photo of herself looking delectable. Valentine’s Day came and her boyfriend got a sexy portrait, but what to do with the rest of the great photos from that day?

Just recently, I processed the remaining photos in all kinds of interesting ways and gave them to Kim in the form of a DVD with slideshows and music. I also did some experimental stuff in Photoshop. Here are some of my favorites from that session:

Hell yeah, Kim!

If any of the rest of you would like to give your boyfriend or girlfriend a sexy portrait, for Valentine’s Day or any other occasion, let us know. You get a lot more than just one photo out of it. You get to fall in love with yourself all over again! (And you might even get to be a fairy.)