Lauren and Aaron Maternity Shoot

I met my close friends Lauren and Aaron Dworkin

in Morro Bay yesterday afternoon to do some

maternity photos before the little guy is born.

We had a great time and here are

just a couple of images from our photo shoot.

DEMA Show 2009 in Orlando

I just returned from a week in Orlando, Florida

at the Diving Equipment and Marketing Association show.

Sherrie Murphy and I met with a lot of magazine editors

and have a great schedule of articles and destinations

laid out for the coming year.

As always, I connected with a lot of friends

and met a lot of new ones!

I'm home now feeling reinvigorated and inspired.

The next Underwater Photography Course

Learn Digital Underwater Photography

and receive a PADI Specialty!

The next digital underwater photography course is scheduled

to start October 20th

The dates are as follows:

October 22nd: Class and Pool

October 24th: Ocean Dives

October 26th: Class

Sign up through Ocean Enterprises to reserve your spot!!

(858) 565-6054

Photo Tip in the Undersea Journal

Here is my underwater photo and tip

in the latest issue of the Undersea Journal

The lovely models in the photo are

Denise Cable and Sherrie Murphy

Premiere issue of shePedals magazine is OUT!

The premiere issue of shePedals magazine

just arrived in thousands of mailboxes

I am proud to say I played a small part in this

gorgeous publication (photo editor)

Please support us in this new endeavor

of inspiring all women who ride

by purchasing a subscription

Xtreme Pool Shootout - Underwater Photography Workshop

I am helping out the San Diego Underwater Photographic Society

this Saturday night October 3rd at 5:30pm

with a Pool Underwater Photography Workshop

Members and non-members are welcome

Please bring your underwater camera

The address is:

14126 Palisades Drive

Poway, CA

Weekend Underwater Kids Photo Shoot

Another very successful photo shoot with a local Swim School.

All the kids were great underwater!

Awesome shoot with the Petits!

Rylinn and Greyson were such cutie pies

and we had so much fun taking their photos underwater.

These shots were super special since Rylinn just learned

to swim without floaties this week in San Diego!

New Sea Star Underwater Portraits website launched!

www.seastarportraits.com

It's hard to imagine what 50+ kids
in one shot looks like, but this may give you an idea.
Yesterday I photographed Tom Paradowski's
Junior Olympic Team in National City.
This shot is one of my favorites, it shows
the kids simultaneously submerging themselves
for the shot.

The shoot was a lot of fun and the kids
couldn't have been better in the water.

Bubble Swim School Photo Shoot

Another awesome day of underwater portraits

and fun at Bubbles Swim School

Allen Family Portrait

Had a lot of fun with Skip and family at

the beach a couple weeks back.

This one's my favorite from the day . . .

Photography published in this month's Ambassador magazine

. . . a two page spread of my photos

from the San Dieguito Wetland Restoration Project

PADI Digital U/W Photo Course

My next PADI Specialty Course in

Digital Underwater Photography

starts July 1st

If you're interested, go to

Ocean Enterprises

to sign up!

She Pedals Magazine

Just had a great trip out to

Utah with She Pedals Magazine

photographing the women's charity ride

Little Red Riding Hood.

It was awesome, full of inspiring women

of all ages and backgrounds as well as bikes, Bikes, BIKES!

The premiere issue of the magazine

comes out on September 1st.

If you haven't registered for your

FREE issue, go to:

She Pedals Magazine

Great Photo Shoot at Bubbles Swim School!

Tweeeeeet!

I'm up on Twitter as of today

You can follow my updates at 

AbigailSmigel

Photos Published in the California Coastal Commission's Guide to So Cal Beaches and Parks

I just received my copy of the California Coastal Commission's Guide to 

Beaches and Parks in Southern California.

I have some photos that were published in this guide

and it was great to see them!

The guide is part of a series and covers a lot of great information

for the outdoor enthusiast living or traveling in California. 

Here's a link to purchase a copy:

Beaches and Park in Southern California

Photos to be Displayed in Boyden Gallery, Maryland

I have just mailed off two framed prints
to Boyden Gallery in Saint Mary's City, Maryland.
These two images will be on display in an exhibit
from opening night
June 13, 2009 at 5pm
through the Fall.

Spring photos of the San Dieguito Wetland Restoration Project

I have some new images of nesting sites, plant life, wildlife

and the dedication of the Grand Avenue Bridge up on the

San Dieguito Wetland Restoration Project website.

The project is in its final phases as almost all of the construction

has been completed and the wildlife and plantlife are really

starting to take hold! It's a very exciting time and a long time

coming since I joined the project as photographer in January 2007.

SDWRP website

Hailey, Nick and Ryan

This weekend I photographed my friend Kym's children
We had a lot of fun and the weather just couldn't have been better!

Photography published in the Sandpiper

Some of my wildlife photographs have been published in this month's edition

of the Sandpiper, a Del Mar publication. The photos run along side an

article by Ann Gardner.

Check it out!

The Sandpiper

Underwater Photography Course in May

I am set to teach a digital underwater photography class in May

at Ocean Enterprises in San Diego.

The class is $125 and runs for four days:

Thursday May 14th Orientation

Thursday May 21st Class and Pool

Saturday May 23rd 2 tank dive on Marissa

Tuesday May 26th Class (image critique)

Contact me or Ocean Enterprises if you're interested.

(OE's phone #: 858-565-6054 )

Four Generations

Last week I had the honor of photographing my good 

friend Emily and her family. Emily just gave birth to

baby Raye and the photo represents four generations

of women in their family.

What a cutie pie! (Raye is adorable too ; )  )

Monterey Bay Aquarium

I just heard a rumor recently that the Monterey Bay Aquarium is going to be closing down their famous jelly exhibit. Well, turns out that there will always be a jelly display at the aquarium. These are some shots I took the last time I was up there.

Start Somewhere

Well, here it is.

Welcome to my first blog posting.

I hope that there will be more, and my intention is to use this blog as a creative process and to post imagery that doesn't quite make it to the big website.

Enjoy!