Hello Nicholas,

I really didn't know what to expect on the freelance front when we got back to Southern California. I thought maybe starting up my newsletter seemed like a good idea and a good way to get back in touch with people. And in the mean time I have enough personal and family photo projects to last till the end of time, so I wasn't in a big rush. But I did want to get out shooting assignments again at some point.

Turns out the newsletter was a great idea. I have heard from people I hav'nt talked to since we left for Washington four years ago. And I also didn't expect to have work this quickly, but as you can see below... I'm off and running.

So much in fact that I had to launch Nicholas Koon Photography as a freelance business again to stay legal. Many thanks are in order for that. Reconnecting with friends and clients has just been awesome.

Now I would be a little remiss if i didn't mention what actually brought us back to California ... who knew that Grandkids were magnets. As our family starts to grow, we couldn't miss out on any of that. Check out these two cute brothers ... Liam (2) and Jacob (born on Easter). My son Garett and his wife Christy have their hands full, that's for sure.

Now back to showing what I've been up to lately ...

Celebration of Heroes

What an extraordinary week-end event this was. I felt honored to have this assignment and be able to photograph these amazing people.

It started with a press conference followed by a panel discussion. There were many of the scientists who have been battling Covid behind the scenes taking part. It was fascinating listening to them. They handled both easy and hard questions and made me think that something like this should be seen by everyone. It certainly eased any vaccination concerns of mine. I felt like I was getting good information from the source.

And as if that wasn't enough, the following night there was a Gala in Anaheim with over 500 guests honoring these scientists and many everyday heroes in our community. Awesome entertainment, awards, and much more.

The evening was topped off with an outstanding performance by Alex Boye. Weaving his personal life experience into his performance to cap off a very memorable evening.

You have to check out this website ... it has all of these heroes listed with photos, bios and more! https://www.celebrationofheroes.com

Here is Alex Boye's website as well ... https://alexboye.com

South Coast Plaza's 55th celebration

Wow, it's hard to believe SCP has been here for 55 years.

This was the perfect shoot to get my feet wet again after being away from OC and not really shooting events for four years. Then again, when you have photographed as many events as I have, it's like riding a bicycle.

I had never been to this particular restaurant before. It was on the Penthouse Level of 'Knife Pleat' ... clearly it's one of South Coast Plaza's finer restaurants. The food being served was just incredible to look at. Many of the guests photographed the dishes as they arrived to the table.

The decor was beautiful and very colorful. Plus it was your typical comfortable Southern California evening (boy, I missed those). As the evening progressed, there were business updates, a well deserved toast and even a quick visit by Anton Segerstrom.

And when I left that night, I couldn't help but think about all of the amazing shoots I had done both at SCP and the nearby Segerstrom Center For the Arts. It felt good to be back.

Btw, If you have never heard the story of Henry Segerstrom and his incredible contributions to Orange County business and the arts, it's well worth checking out http://henrysegerstrom.com.

Park View Estates

If you saw the dishes only, you wouldn't think this was a retirement home. It certainly surprised me. In fact, the whole facility was more like a well run fine hotel than a retirement home.

They have a talented chef serving what looks like high end restaurant dishes. It was really quite amazing. I even heard that some chefs were actually leaving the stressful restaurant circuit to cook at retirement homes where they can be both creative and stress free. When you look at these food images, you'll see what I mean.

And this turned out to be quite a fun shoot too. It was primarily to show the upscale dishes they served here, but there was more to it. We also wanted to show some of the residents enjoying these amazing meals as well.

We had several volunteer models. They probably didn't know what they were getting into at the beginning, but as the shoot progressed and a little wine was served ... well, things loosened up a bit and we got some really nice images.

Pacific Chorale 2nd shooter

This was the first time being inside the Rene and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall for at least four years and I was excited to be there.

I have photographed this building literally from the ground up. Not by myself of course, there were lots of photographers, but I have an archive of images of construction, tours, meetings, etc. Somewhere in this building is a beam with my family's name on it from one of the beam signing events I photographed. Plus, there is a hallway backstage with nicely framed performing arts images along with a small plaque with three photographers names on it ... one of them being mine. I'm pretty proud of that.

There were a lot of new faces at this shoot, so working as a second shooter was fine with me. There were also a lot of familiar faces as well which helped.

I was mostly shooting step and repeat photos of guests, though I was also asked to capture some of the decor in the Samueli theater for a dinner that was being held after the concert.

While I had a break during the first half of the concert I couldn't help but make a few photos inside the concert hall. Everywhere you look there seems to be something new to see. It's really quite an amazing building.

For more on the Pacific Chorale, visit their website at https://www.pacificchorale.org

Pacific Symphony Conductor Carl St.Claire with his wife Susan talk with Artistic Director Emeritus of the Pacific Chorale John Alexander (left) prior to the Concert.

Samueli Theater Dinner Decor

The Rene and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall lobby

The Rene and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall lobby chandelier and ceiling.

Lastly ...

I learned a few things when we moved to Washington. We went there without jobs and without a house .. That was pretty crazy and made for quite an adventure. I learned fairly quickly that there is very little photography freelance despite canvassing every relevant business in Bellingham. That was a little disappointing but led me on another search to find a photography related full time job. Those too are pretty scarce, but when I saw the FurHaven Studio Photographer ad, I jumped at the opportunity. I Interviewed in a coffee shop near the business and was hired the next day. Best employment decision since joining the Orange County Register back in 1988.

We ended up in a great house on 1.25 acres. We had a well, propane and Chickens! Built a coop, created a great garden and went on some of the most beautiful hikes. We're going to miss it but we will visit frequently since we have family there.

I'm also going to miss all the friends I worked with at FurHaven. I say friends because they were all more than just co-workers. I learned a lot working there and it was fun watching the talented creative team grow.

I have to say, however, California has the weather to beat not to mention being so close to the beach, desert and mountains. Yep, we will miss Washington, but we're super happy to be back in SoCal.

Lastly, a huge thank you to Michele Cardon, Director of Photography at the Orange County Register. She helped me get this business up to speed quickly with much needed equipment upgrades.

More photos next time ... but in the meantime, stay in touch. And If you have any events or assignments coming up that need photography, please contact me to see if I can help. Contact info is below or you can also reach me through my website at www.nicholaskoonphotography.com.

Take Care,

Nick

Nick Koon

Nicholas Koon Photography

www.nicholaskoonphotography.com

[email protected]

714.932.1714

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