My Love For The Beach in Los Angeles

It's been a truly inspiring period since we made the move to Los Angeles. Everyday has been like opening a Christmas present. I want to start by saying that being close to the beach is like a dream come true. I was raised in Toronto, Ontario and eventually moved to New York City where for many years I anticipated with anguish the impending winter. Of course when I was a kid it was fun to build snowmen and go sledding, but after the age of say seventeen I started to dislike the blustering cold that awaited me when I stepped outside of my home. Going to school and then work early in the morning was treacherous. Shoveling driveways and sidewalks was not my idea of a thrilling afternoon or evening.

So of course being a ten minute car ride from Venice is empowering and fascinating, I can't get enough (I think at some point in the future I will live even closer to the water). I love the beaches in California because it never gets too hot. I love the coolness that always seems to mingle with the breeze - even in the summer -

Venice Beach, Santa Monica Pier & Beaches, and Malibu are three of the beaches i've been to on several occasions since moving out here. They all evoke very different emotions in me.

Santa Monica is a treasure trove of beauty. Walking through the cool sand is healing, it stirs in me the feeling of awakening. Myself, my daughter and my husband simply love to get in the car, head to the beach and just walk. At the Santa Monica Pier there is so much for the kids from the rides to the beautiful Carousel, it's always a winner for our four year old. At Venice Beach we love to eat pizza and watch the sun kiss the horizon. When we took the trip out to Malibu, I instantly wanted to stay, I wanted to buy a home and become a permanent fixture on the never ending sunlit coast. There is never a day that goes by that I am not thankful for the opportunity to have the sun and the sand so close to me on any given day, it is truly a blessing. I am so happy that myself and my family finally gathered the courage to pack our few belongings and head west. I haven't looked back and as long as I can sit -knees to chin and toes in the sand- I don't think I ever will!

The beach has become my favorite photographic subject.