Being super vulnerable and posting something a bit more raw and personal than usual. 😬
I’m not a poet and know next to none of the rules but I wrote this poem recently after getting hit with some pretty intense feelings in the shower. I couldn’t get it out of my head and scribbled onto paper fast enough. It’s like it wrote itself.
Anyway, here it is. It’s called “DREAMER”
Might get a vulnerability hangover and delete later, who knows.
Playing with angles with my mini.
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The first one makes me so happy because it’s lines up perfectly with the fibonacci spiral. Composition is my struggle so nailing it makes me want to do a little jig 😂 These are also fun because you can’t just glance at them and know what’s going on. Illusion makes you have to scratch your head a bit and that’s my favorite kind of art.
Come join me at @unraveledacademy this month where I lead March’s creative practice: “Through the Decades.”
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I chose the 1920’s and 1930’s because I wanted to highlight the stark contrast between photography used to document the plight of middle America during the dust bowl and the Great Depression and it’s use as entertainment in the 1920’s when photography was a part of being playful and creative and living in lavish abundance.
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I had so much fun putting this course together and cannot wait to see what magic it inspires other creatives to make this month! Link in my stories to check out the course!
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Special shout-out to my videographer, @journey.thesunseeker and my gorgeous model, @kaluaaaah
who was so down to pivot from the gloomy to the grand. This was a shared effort and their contributions truly helped everything come together!
34 journeys around the sun.
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Year 33 was full of highlights and brought so many joy-filled memories and lessons certainly worth remarking on. I know 34 has more of the same in store but I went a different direction with the birthday image this year.
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Birthdays tend to feel a bit melancholic for me and this year, in the days leading up to today, that’s been especially true. So what better way to deal with that feeling than to harness it, and release it by using it to make art.
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I saw something that said that on average, year 34 is the happiest year for women. The pressure of maybe not living up to that factoid added to the chaos brain I already deal with this time of year.
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The truth is, birthdays can bring up a lot of complicated and contradictory emotions. Pride in how far you’ve come battling with disappointment in the boxes still left unchecked. Excitement about the year ahead mixed in with anxiety about the unknown. Time is weird and abstract and fickle. It gives us memories and moments that add up to make us who we are and it is also this constant unraveling rope and the unease of never really knowing how much we have is overwhelming at times. Birthdays are just a big soup of all of this: good and troubling, happy and daunting. With each bite, we might end up on either end of the spectrum or with some combination of it all.
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Anyway, typical dramatic me, I have to turn my musings into an exhibition. This is Dichotomy. It has lots of layers of meaning and explaining them here would require another novel-length social media journey entry so I will leave interpretation up to the viewer. Enjoy.
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PS, in case this came across as too depressing for a birthday post, my day started with beautiful surprises and coffee from my sweet family and if this morning is any indication, year 34 will definitely live up to the hype ♥️
These besties got matching permanent anklets at @fallingfordainty so of course we took the opportunity to have a mini photo shoot.
When I saw this star halo headband, the history nerd in me did a little cartwheel and I instantly knew I wanted to use it to create a baroque painting inspired photograph with Phoenix. Here is our version of the Madonna and Child. The baroque era is known for its religious imagery and iconography, often depicting figures with halos and light encircling their heads. This is our, maybe a bit too in your face, take.
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We are group of photographers from all over the world participating in a project together in which we each incorporate a prop into a photograph in our own special way! ✨ Make your way through our loop, next stop is @silent_spirit_star
#sc_starhaloproject
The most darling newborn baby facial expressions from the most awake and alert brand new baby I’ve ever photographed. Little guy did not want to miss a second of the action. The one that looks like he’s sticking his tongue out and pointing at me gets me every time 😂
Have you ever seen senior portraits that feel more like poetry than portraits? Well, now you have.
Playful family sessions are my favorite! Most families don’t spend their time together standing still fake-cheezing so why should their family photos look like that? After every family session I shoot, I leave hoping I was able to capture the true spirit of the family, the unbridled energy of a kindergartener, the watchful sweetness of an older sibling, the giddy joy each secret handshake and piggy back ride brings, and the way parents beam at the silly antics of their little ones. No forced smiles, no angry hushes and shouts, just connection, unconditional love, and fun.
These were taken on a cold November day in New York but you’d never know how freezing it was because we had such a great time!
I am thinking of traveling to NY again this year maybe in late August or early September but I can only make it work if there is enough interest because I want these sessions to be accessible and don’t want to have to tack on a travel fee. So, if you or someone you know has been wanting to work with me please share this post with them and reach out asap so I can put together a travel plan and solidify some open dates. I will likely be able to take on between 4 and 6 sessions while I am there.
Beautiful sun-soaked pictures of some of the most beautiful ladies in my life ♥️ (scroll to the end for a precious pupper portrait 🐶)
Clearly, no fun was had during this session. 😜
Happy 2024!
I’m not big on resolutions and I think time is made up and the calendar is arbitrary. Too often we use the calendar year to put deadlines on our goals and success and I can’t get behind that. BUT, I do love to use this transition time to reflect on the time gone by and evaluate what I want to carry forward with me.
Before this last year, I was drowning in external obligations, feeling like I had thrown away or lost my individual identity. I became a mother during law school and poured everything I had into balancing my competing roles as a wife and parent and as an attorney set on making a mark with my career. Those things are of course still important to me but this last year I focused on leaning into the things that make me “me” and piecing together some of the parts of my identity I had lost.
Along the way, I picked up the creative bits and I painted more. I picked up the imaginative and intellectual bits and I read more. I found a renewed curiosity for people and cultivating relationships, something that had been stuffed behind gargantuan walls years before law school began. Holy smokes, I even went up on a stage and performed in my underwear in front of a big group of people who had been mostly strangers just a day before and *gasp* the video went on social media.
Leaning into my staple comforts while also occasionally pushing outside of my comfort zone to embrace parts of my personality long ago abandoned or discover new parts has been such a rewarding journey that I hope to continue into 2024. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of the journey so far ♥️
If the hustle of life and an incredibly difficult few years as a collective has left you feeling like you’re going through the motions disconnected from yourself. I encourage you to abandon resolutions in favor of embracing creative outlets, getting in touch with your roots, and spending time with similarly motivated people. You never know what magic awaits you ✨
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We are a group of photographers wishing you a Happy New Year! Follow along with us to see how we’re welcoming 2024
#sc_newyear2024
2023 top 9. I’m so grateful for the sweet families and couples I got to share the year with and for all of the growth. Heading into 2024 hoping the best is yet to come ✨
Merry Christmas Eve from our family to yours 🎄
This image makes me cry for a million little reasons every time I look at it ♥️
We had the most fun playing at the coast with Peter Rabbit and the moon 🌝
My favorite thing about this first image is the harmony. @seanpentecost serendipitously dressed in the same tones as the pool room and he’s in such harmony with the environment. I mean c’mon, do you see how perfectly his pants match the floor he’s crouching on!?! Then he crouched in the perfect patch of light to watch M’s pool tricks. Of course I told them to freeze as I grabbed my camera but the moment fell together organically and it makes me giddy. Making art from our mundane is my favorite favorite favorite forever and ever!
Our second Dekafit together. It’s been a super fun way to add another element of functional fitness to our workouts with a personal benchmark to try to beat each time. This one was at the Coast Guard base and what a time warp it was to be back on a military base together.
A low key Thanksgiving on the hometown farm this year was such a nostalgic treat.
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“Traditions touch us, they connect us, and they expand us.” – Rita Barreto Craig
Seasons come and go, but the memories we make in them will always stay with us. We are a group of creatives that have come together to celebrate the magic of the seasons. Follow along to see what inspires us most. #sc_photogs
Here is your sign to take couple photos at the coast! Getting to capture Callie and Jared’s love story was such an honor.
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PS, this wasn’t our only stop so there’s for sure more to come from this dream of a day!