This Birthday Portrait Session is near and dear to our hearts. It was taken weeks ago ago on a Wednesday in California with one of our favorite people. Maggie is Jenny's friend from college in Ohio (Miami of Ohio University- what, what?!) who she reunited with when they both lived in California at the same time for 3 years. She reached out to us in the beginning of Winter and hired us to photograph a momentous occasion in her life: Her 30th Birthday.
We knew this had to be fantastic and luckily our trip coincided with her being able to get off work and come up to meet us at the location. For the shoot we had just arrived in California 20 hours earlier and though she lives an hour and a half away from the location (which was over 2 hours from where we were visiting Jason's family), we all met in Malibu at a crazy amazing location for the photos. Jenny had once ridden on a bus down to the L.A. airport (on her way to her sister's Arizona Master's graduation) by this location back in August of 2015, so it was amazing that we were able to find this spot again with the help of a Santa Barbara AirBus driver's help! It was definitely worth the trip for all of us to be in such a beautiful spot for such a great Session.
A bit about Maggie: After 9 years of friendship with Maggie, one of the important things you should know about her is that she is a hard worker. She has worked at the same company full-time for almost 8 years now! She's been given raise after raise and looks to own her own a clothing boutique completely funded by her own hard-earned money someday. Even in college she was a hard worker having made it into the fantastic Miami University, taking Entrepreneurship courses (where she met Jenny), and finishing school within 4 years.
Maggie is also a true pacifist, dog lover, has an eye for high fashion, is one of the kindest people you'll meet, but stands her ground for what she believes in. She lived with her dog Charlie out in California (a transplant from Ohio) for around 6 years before he tragically passed away just one year ago. She and Charlie always had so much fun together and Maggie continues to live a life filled with the nature, adventure, and serenity that Charlie enjoyed. She (like most adults should be required to do for at least for two years of their lives) lives entirely on her own in her own apartment and like Jenny knows that it's when you live alone that you truly grow your strongest.
Jenny and Maggie had many nature adventures in the few years they lived in California at the same time. They both love the activity of travel and the beauty of nature, so over the years they adventured to Joshua Tree, Big Sur, San Luis Obispo, Ojai, Solvang, Manhattan Beach, Long Beach, Santa Barbara, Huntington Beach, and even out in Arizona where they got to see the Reds play in Surprise, Arizona and then went on to check out Sedona, Arizona and its beauty after a short visit to Scottsdale, Arizona. Maggie and Jenny both really enjoy soul music and solitude, so the adventures are always very pleasant and fun with great music as their soundtrack.
Another thing we love about Maggie is that she's an activist at heart. She just attended the Women's March in D.C. with a couple of her relatives a week and a half ago and always supports she and others' constitutional rights. Coming into her 30s she's is a powerhouse: She's an independent, kind, caring, moral, empathetic, strong, and giving person. She supports literally everyone regardless of color, creed, sexual orientation, etc. as long as they're not obstructing anyone else's constitutional rights.
So this one's to you, Maggie, and every other strong, kind, independent person out there! Keep going out every single day and working toward your goals while being consistent. This being the month of Valentine's Day we think it's especially fitting and important to celebrate the single ladies and gentlemen who consistently make this world a better place. Treat yourself this Valentine's Day! It's important to love yourself fully inside and out first and foremost.
Happy (Belated) 30th Birthday to Maggie!