Dragon dancers in the oakland chinatown new year parade.

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Happy Lunar New Year 2025!

January 29, 2025

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Gung hay fat choy!

It’s the Year of the Snake in Chinese culture. A time that encourages introspection and balance. A time to be inventive and harness our inner wisdom to navigate life’s opportunities and challenges.

As per tradition, our family gave our front porch a good sweep on the eve of the New Year to bid farewell to last year and welcome all the good luck of 2025. And boy, do we ever need it. I will also be recreating my mother’s famous chow mein noodles and celebrating with close friends. And if the weather is promising, we may even make it to San Francisco or Oakland for their Chinese New Year Parade.

At the moment, the world isn’t where I would love it to be, but I feel a sense of clarity about how I want to spend my energy in the coming months. This means doubling down on my commitment to celebrate love in all its forms and uplifting communities that will be most impacted by this administration.

And yes, you can bet there will be lots of fundraising with my trusty camera. I am brewing up something delicious as I speak! Hint: it will be fun, retro, a little artsy-fartsy, and truly illuminating. And if you know me, you’ll know I don’t mess around.

So, if you haven’t already done so, sign up for my newsletter because it’s gonna be good.

As always, I am so thankful for my client-families and community. I appreciate how we’ve weathered the lows and celebrated the highs, and I am truly grateful to be capturing their stories through photos and video. In fact, I wouldn’t be the artist I am today without them.

Here’s to love and compassion. Forever and always.

xo

About Me

Real life is more than pretty pictures.
The beauty is in the journey, and it's absolutely
worth documenting all of it. 

I’m captivated by people and always have been; my B.S. is in anthropology. Early on, I appointed myself the family documentarian, carefully recording milestones and travels and learning along the way how much I love visual storytelling. I picked up my first professional camera when my daughter was born, knowing those early years with her were precious and full of changes. A photographer friend’s encouragement soon led me to make photography my career. Today, after many years and proud accomplishments, my passion for it only grows.

I can’t imagine doing anything else.       

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©Carmen dunham 2025

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