My wife and I were looking for some good quality family portraits and when we had a couple quotes, I suggested that if we are investing in family portraits, we might as well do it wisely. Portraits and our time are valuable and I wanted to capture this time in our lives with photos we are excited about, not just happy with -- so we asked Gabe if he would do our shoot in Laguna Beach. We worked together with Gabe to refine our vision for what we wanted and what would produce the best results. I worked with Gabe before producing high-level photo shoots, and followed his work. I knew, first hand, of his amazing attention to detail, fine crafting of style and ability to draw out authentic emotion - both from the subjects, and a well-crafted composition that impacts the viewer. He has worked professionally in the broad scope of photography: photo journalism, high fashion, post production -- so his mastery is well earned. I knew our family would walk away with unique and cherished photos to remember this phase of our family life, and we were thoroughly pleased. What I love about Gabe, is his unique personal engagement and passion he puts into his craft. He wants the best possible result, every time. I wasn't expecting him to put the same emphasis that he has done on top-level magazine work, into our family photos - and I told him we didn't have that kind of budget, but what we received was more than we expected and very affordable. Gabe continues to impress and inspire me, by how much he invests into the art of photography and how well he uses the camera to bring out the best in a scene and its subjects. Like any mastered skill, it is not just clicking the shutter at the right time, the phone call or email to the right person, the incision and suture in the right way, but all the preparation, experience and wisdom amassed, to get to that point. read more