Dana and Jeff Archives – Page 3 of 10

Singing in the Rain | San Francisco

It is a very rainy Sunday afternoon here in Orange County. I have used the day to relax and be cozy at home. Jeff is watching an old movie “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” while I go through our own family moments and post a few photos. The holidays are a hectic time, but so far we have enjoyed Thanksgiving with the family and a trip to the Bay Area. We love San Francisco! Jeff lived up there while attending the Academy of Art to study photography, so he always loves to go an visit the old hood. It was a rainy day in the city, much like today, but we found ourselves all over the place. It was very festive in Union Square with the huge Christmas Tree and all of the Macy’s decorations. We also visited the SFMOMA to see the Cartier-Bresson exhibit. I truly was inspired and it reminded me of why I became a photographer. Moments in your life, is what it is about and that is why I chose this career.

As most of you know, Jeff and I are always taking photos when we travel. I thought this one would be appropriate today with all of this rain! This is a shot Jeff took of me in the city of San Francisco at night in the rain. Some would say it is my “Singing in the Rain” portrait. I love it! Hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend. Happy Holiday! J+D

Singing in the Rain | San FranciscoDana Sipper2011-04-26T16:45:02-07:00

Happy Birthday to My Mom!

Well the Thanksgiving Holiday is almost upon us and as I sit here on the sofa next to the most wonderful man in the world….I am thankful! Not just for Jeff, but all of my family. A special thanks to my mom, who is always there for us. Today is her 65th birthday and I just wanted to wish her all the best today & always. I admire this woman and all of her strength. I hope to always have that strength in me, if only half as much as she has. You are a remarkable woman, Mom. Thank you for all that you do. Happy Birthday and cheers to you! Love, J+D

Portrait of my Mom, Gloria!

Wishing you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Happy Birthday to My Mom!Dana Sipper2010-11-28T17:53:24-08:00

Priscilla+Cooking=She’s Cookin | Orange County Photographer

A very Happy Monday to all of you! Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend, we sure did. It started off with a relaxing Friday evening on the sofa in front of the TV. Yes, sometimes you just have to chill and flip through the channels. It was around 10pm that I stumbled across the movie Julie & Julia. We had never seen it before, so we decided to watch it. It was a cute story in which we were both fascinated by all the fabulous meals that were prepared. Of course we loved Julia’s accent “Butter” everything is better with butter and lots of it!

The next day we had to go to Barnes and Noble and check out her book “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”. My first recipe to look up as I thumbed through the index was Beef Bourguignon otherwise known as Beef Stew with red wine, bacon, onions and mushrooms. You had Jeff at “Bacon” so we decided to pick the book up and test our mad cooking skills. It was a fabulous dish in which we paired with a Mouton Cadet Bordeaux…AMAZING!!!!

The Sipper’s Beef Bourguignon

I have to say that it was fun to cook together. Cooking is just another fine art that inspires me to be greater. I just love when you can throw passions together, for us food, wine and photography.

It made me think of a recent session we did for my friend Priscilla. She has an Orange County food blog in which she writes about her favorite recipes, restaurants and such. It is a great blog and I was honored to share some recipes with her as well as do a portrait of her for her site.

Meet Priscilla, of She’s Cookin’!

Some of Priscilla’s favorite cookbooks in which she gets inspiration from.

I was intrigued by this book before I saw the movie and now I know why!

Along with taking a fabulous portrait of Priscilla, she made two fabulous dishes in which I got to taste as well as photograph to be featured on her blog. The first are Grilled Lamb Kabobs, which were so colorful and just melted in my mouth! The second was a Zucchini and Sun Dried Tomato Tart which was also fantastic. The crust was so flaky and the tart was filled with such wonderful flavors including some cheesy goodness! I love cheese, I think I am a mouse sometimes!

Grilled Lamb Kabobs (Recipe at her blog)

Zucchini and Sun Dried Tomato Tart by She’s Cookin’. You can find the recipe at her blog.

Well, with talk of all this food…I am hungry! Thanks Priscilla for cooking for me and sharing your fabulous talent with us. Feel free to stop by Shescookin’ for more fabulous recipes and food. Also, thanks Julia for a fabulous cook book, we can’t wait to try more recipes. Until next time!

Cheers, J+D

Priscilla+Cooking=She’s Cookin | Orange County PhotographerDana Sipper2011-04-26T16:47:39-07:00

Friday Happy Hour Shot!

Happy Friday to all of you! Hope you have had a splendid week, it’s almost the weekend for most of you…so I leave you with this. Have a wonderful weekend! Cheers, J+D

Delicious Mango-Habanero Margarita at Cha Cha’s in Brea

Friday Happy Hour Shot!Dana Sipper2010-11-28T19:29:05-08:00

Friday Happy Hour Shot!

Happy Friday to all! Hope everyone had a great week, now to start the weekend. Does anyone have anything fun planned? We are starting off the weekend with some steak on the bbq and maybe a nice glass of wine.

Today’s Friday Happy Hour Shot is of PCH in Newport Beach near A’s Restaurant ! Hope you enjoy, have a fabulous weekend! Cheers, J+D

I just love the night shots and all of the lights!

Friday Happy Hour Shot!Dana Sipper2011-04-26T16:47:26-07:00

Happy 4th of July!

Hey everyone!

Just wanted to drop in and tell everyone to have a great 4th of July! Make sure you see some fireworks, and eat some BBQ!

Last night, Dana and I went on down to Fred Kelly stadium in Orange, for Orange’s annual 3rd of July celebration. I’m not really sure why they do it on the 3rd, but we’ve been going the past few years. It’s a fun time to hang out, hear some patriotic music and watch a pretty good fireworks show! I shot a few of the fireworks for fun. Here ya go!

Stay safe, and we’ll see ya next time!

J+D

Happy 4th of July!sipperphoto2010-11-28T19:39:46-08:00

Of all the gin joints in all the towns…

…in all the world, she walks into mine.

Hey everyone! Happy Wednesday to ya’ll!

It seems I keep forgetting to get to these Weekly Wednesday blogs. Mostly because we’ve been busy shooting, working on a couple of great weddings, and a few other projects. I even realized this morning that we haven’t even blogged any of the pics from our trip to Hawaii over a month ago! No new trips planned anytime soon, unless you count heading out to the Phoenix area next weekend to see Dana’s family, and one of her friends that is flying out from Pennsylvania. All I know is that it’s crazy hot out there right now, and it’s right in the middle of my AZ blackout months… so Dana owes me big time!

Last summer, while hanging out with our friends Tanya and Craig, they mentioned that up at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery during the summer they show old movies on the side of a mausoleum. We didn’t get a chance last year to get up there, so when they mentioned it again a couple weeks ago, and that they were showing “Casablanca”, we knew we had to check it out. Last weekend, we packed up the cooler, and hit the road. What a ton of fun! You have to get up there early. We were actually sitting in our car, parked, on Santa Monica Blvd. for about 30 minutes or so before they let us in. Once parked, we grabbed our chairs and blankets, a couple bottles of wine, some assorted snacks, and found a great spot off to the side of the would-be screen. A DJ played some music, until the sun went down, and the movie started. Even for a film nerd like me, I’m not sure that I’ve ever seen Casablanca all the way through. Such a classic. Great story, and really great lighting. (Told ya, I was a nerd). We’re definitely going to be checking out more movies all summer long. If you wanna see the schedule (they only put up a couple weeks at a time), check out Cinespia.org.

“If that plane leaves the ground and you’re not with him, you’ll regret it. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life.”

Of all the gin joints in all the towns…sipperphoto2010-11-28T19:42:35-08:00

Weekly Wednesday | J+D back from Hawaii

Aloha to all! Happy Wednesday, Hump Day and Cinco de Mayo…geez it is a busy day here! Just wanted to stop by for a little welcome back as we have returned from our week long vacation in Kona, Hawaii. We hope everyone is doing well. Did we miss anything fun while we were gone? We want to know. We had a fabulous trip with our family. It was great to relax, tan, see some new places, take some photos and drink Mai tai’s. By the way, if any of you ever make it to Kona Island, you must visit Don The Beachcomber. All I have to say is “Home of the Original Mai Tai”! We may have had a few drinks there because they had such a fabulous view! Who am I kidding? We went there for a Mai Tai’s, but the view was exceptional. Both Jeff and I are in the process of editing our photos from the trip. You may see a few more pop here on the blog or on Facebook, so stay tuned!

Here is a little sneak-peek from our favorite snorkel beach of the trip. I just love the coconut palms and water!

We hope you all have a great week! Mahalo, J+D

Weekly Wednesday | J+D back from HawaiiDana Sipper2010-11-28T19:46:08-08:00

Aloha means hello and goodbye!

Just a quick update to let ya’ll know that Dana and I will be taking a much needed family vacation to Hawaii. We’re not sure of out internet situation in Kona, so emails, etc. might be a little spotty. We will get back to you as soon as we get back!

Also, if you just can’t live without us, please be sure to follow our Twitter accounts. We should be updating from time to time!!

Mahalo!

J+D

Aloha means hello and goodbye!sipperphoto2010-11-28T19:47:34-08:00

Not so Weekly Wednesday!

Welcome back to, yet another, Weekly Wednesday blog post. Just looking back, it’s been quite awhile since I’ve thrown one of these out there. Between being pretty busy, and just forgetting, it occurred to me to update ya’ll on what’s been happening lately!
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Is anyone else going to be happy when Lost is over? I mean, I love Lost, and have since day one. But, I just want it over and all the questions, answered. Not that I fully expect them to answer everything, but it’s just starting to frustrate me most weeks!

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I wish the weather would make up it’s mind. Last weekend it was about 84, sunny, and hot. Today, it’s supposed to be barely 60, and raining. I guess that’s just spring.

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I’ve started up running again. I had started back in January, did really well for a few weeks, and then got sidetracked. So far, a week or so in, and I’m feeling pretty good about it. That being said, I still hate running! I attempted to get out on my bike last Saturday. Felt good, until, the hot Santa Ana winds picked up, nearly blowing me off of my bike and into a curb. If we are friends on Facebook, you might have seen the video I posted.
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As most you might know (I think I’ve mentioned it before), I’m part of the OC Daily Photo Blog. It’s a group of 7 people that each assigned a day, and post up a picture showing Orange County. It’s been a fun project, and has forced me to get out from time to time, and shoot for fun, instead of for work. Some of my shots are better than others, but it’s a fun project nonetheless. Here are a few I shot a couple weeks ago, on the first day of Spring, while walking around Downtown Santa Ana. It’s such a cool, and interesting area over there. I’m definitely going to try and shoot over there more often…

A Fake Polaroid of a small pool hall/bar. (side note: Polaroid is coming back! Can not wait!)

One of the newer Loft style buildings they have been building the past few years. It’s interesting to me how the new and the old co-exist in such a small area.

Not so Weekly Wednesday!sipperphoto2010-11-28T19:53:44-08:00