Yen.

I’d love to say this is another San Francisco-adjacent story that neatly fits into my portrait series, but this one takes us a little farther south—to Pacifica—where I spent an afternoon with some old LA friends.

This session feels especially meaningful. Yen was one of my very first Art Directors and, without exaggeration, one of the most influential people in my design career. In many ways, he helped shape the entire trajectory of my design career from that very first interview. So when I learned that he and the fam were preparing to leave California for Japan to begin a new chapter, I knew I wanted to capture a few moments before they turned the page.

As Yen and Tess wandered through the now-empty rooms of the home they lovingly built and filled with life over the past seven years, there was a palpable mix of emotions in the air. Excitement for what lies ahead. Gratitude for everything that came before. And a deep reverence for what this house represented—a vessel for memories, milestones, laughter, challenges, growth, and family.

Yen and I spent the afternoon talking about the future while reminiscing about the past. We talked about family, spirituality, the universe, and the winding paths that brought us both here. We reflected on our early days grinding away in a small studio, full of ambition and uncertainty, and marveled at the distance traveled since then. From those humble beginnings to this moment—his soft pullback and a new life abroad, my own journey still unfolding—it felt like one of those rare conversations that quietly marks the passage of time.