About The Artist

My name is Marilyn Rivas Tate, a professional photographer with a studio in Grover Beach, located on the beautiful central coast of California. My specialty is creating unique and artistic portraits. I use natural light and enjoy taking portraits in outdoor environments. The beach is my favorite! The passion for photography has been with me since I was a child. My father, a photographer himself, handed me my first camera when I was 7. It was love at first sight and I knew I held magic in my hands. I graduated from San Diego State with a Degree in Recreation Administration and a Minor in Art Design. I then fine tuned my photography education at Brooks Institute of Photography. I have been blessed to have lived an adventurous lifestyle, taking my camera everywhere I have traveled. I worked as a mountain ski photographer in Park City, Utah where I met my extraordinary husband, Randy Tate. We worked together as river guides in Moab, Utah, lived in the Fiji Islands and explored New Zealand together. We married and my photography began to be published in adventure travel magazines. Just as my photography career began to take off, we learned that we were to become parents. Our beautiful daughter Malia was born and we exchanged the adventurous lifestyle for the comfortable simplicity and joy of being parents. The mommy years gave me the experience and intuitiveness to understand the beauty and uniqueness of each stage of life. Eventually I gave birth to my second child, Marilyn Rivas Tate Photography. My style is go with the flow and have fun! My goal is to bring out your individual spirit. I love creating portraits which will make your heart feel warm and to portray the celebration of love, life and family!