Recent Sins

In the past month, I've photographed three of the awesome Sins Girls: Jessica, Poth, and Marci.  All three shoots went amazingly, and I'm so happy to have such awesome people to work with.  We have more shoots planned, and I have great ideas for when I get my new wig in from Geisha Wigs.  I think I'll be purchasing more wigs in the near future, to give us even more variety to work with.  I also hope to work more with local designers!  But, for now, my lovely Sins Girls.

Jessica and I had been talking about a Lady Bathory shoot for awhile, and with the help of MUA Ashley Crewl, Rev and Mike of Only Flesh, the guy who lent us a bathtub, and my boyfriend Damien,  we made it happen!  It was cold, lightly raining, and the neighbors were on their back porch which overlooked the fenced in Flesh Farm yard.  The suspension rig was so tall that Damien (who is 6ft and was on a ladder) had issues getting a light on it; Jessica took at least two showers, her contacts accidentally but happily turned red; and we must have carried 50 gallons of water from the house to the tub in the yard.  It was a kind of crazy night, but we had a lot of fun and have the photos to prove it!

A few days after shooting with Jessica, we reviewed photos and learned Poth would be in Butler, where I live, that evening.  I met up with her at the mall, and she came back to my house for an impromptu shoot.  It was the first shoot in my new home studio, which was super exciting!  We used one of my wigs to pull her look together, and I firmly believe she NEEDS this haircut.

And then, this weekend, I did another studio shoot, this time with Marci.  We'd never worked together before, so it was new and exciting.  PLUS, I just painted my living room, so we shot in there a bit too, using the beautiful natural light from my windows, which I love.  Marci has amazing ideas, and I can't wait to help make some of them come to life.

Fashion Shoot - Helmouth Apparel

 NOTE:  Because I haven't updated my blog in months due to moving and new jobs and such, I completely forgot I had started, but not published, this post.  It's long overdue and the line I photographed is now sold out - one of the last dresses going to Kat Von D herself.  So, oops.  Back to your previously scheduled blog post.



I recently had the honor of shooting for the amazing Helmouth Apparel.  Seriously, these clothes are awesome and you should click that link and go buy some.  They're all handmade, vegan friendly, and absolutely gorgeous.  I was absolutely thrilled to be asked to photograph such beautiful clothes.

Let's start with the brilliant designer Frances!  This lovely lady designed the dresses you'll be feasting your eyes upon.

 

And now: Pestilence, Plague, and Prayers

Shannon wearing Pestilence

Rita wearing Plague

Monika wearing Prayers

This shoot was amazing and Frances made me my very own, super comfy Doomlord hoodie!  

I love it!!

It's been crazy lately

Well!  My life has been super hectic lately and, while I usually enjoy being busy, this has been a wonderful mix of the good and the bad.  As I mentioned briefly in my last post, I went to ImagingUSA at the end of January - my 5th year!  This was my second time as a PPA member and bringing Damien with me to go to business classes meant I could attend lighting and posing seminars (aka the fun stuff).  I didn't really like Atlanta, especially considering how great and photogenic New Orleans and San Antonio were, but it was also cold while we were there.  If I'm going south, it should be warm!  One thing Atlanta does have though is FANTASTIC barbeque.  Seriously, I ate it non-stop, and there was a really neat little hole-in-the-wall near our hotel that had some of the most delicious pulled pork I've ever eaten.  At the Expo this year, I finally bought a floor!  This way I can lay it down on top of carpets or ugly tile and have beautiful baby pictures on a gorgeous wood background!  I tested it with my camera-friendly pets when I got home.

After getting home (and figuring out our car situation because mine broke) I was able to start shooting again!  First on the list was my friends Rev and Rose, a super cute couple I know.  He's a piercer and we have a great barter system.  It's always a good time photographing them because Rev knows the shots he wants and so is the art director, and once we get those, Rose and I are like "yay, let's play!"

I also stopped by The 3rd Annual Pittsburgh Rock Music Awards - turns out Liz Berlin of Rusted Root owns Mr. Smalls (I had no idea!) so I got to take some pictures of her playing in between awards.  Craig from The Pittsburgh Scene gave out the Best Alternative Awards and my friends Children of October got Best Punk Album which was really exciting!

After that, I had a (almost) 3 month/Valentine's shoot with a beautiful baby girl named Audrey.  She is ridiculously adorable and her mom Bonnie is so sweet and excited about her daughter.  We had a slight meltdown, but it happens and you just have to know how to handle it.  This is why I always schedule in some extra time for baby shoots - the kid is totally in charge!  I had recently knitted a couple baby hats, which Audrey modeled and looked super cute in.

Right about the same time, I hit 1,000 fans on Facebook!!  Sooooo excited about this, it makes me feel really loved and hopeful for the future of my business.  I had a giveaway of a free session, which was won by a guitarist I know.  I went to his house and photographed him for his website (he's a guitar instructor - go to http://www.patrickmaloneyguitar.com) as well as took some pictures of his new daughter Cambria.  She's about 2 months old and so sweet!  It's nice seeing my friends happy and being good, loving parents.

Mid-February, my friend Sherry, who lives in New Jersey, came to visit for almost a week!  I rarely see her for more than 2 or 3 days at a time so was really excited to get to actually spend a significant amount of time with her.  Neither of us realized when she booked her train that she got here on Valentine's Day, whoops.  Oh well, our boyfriends were probably glad they didn't have to buy us dinners.  Poor Sherry had to deal with me practicing makeup skills and taking her picture while she visited, but we also did things that were fun for us both, like go to a concert and the Aviary!  I've been wanting to go since I was about 16 so it was awesome.  Also, they have a sloth.   Seemed like a weird creature to have in an aviary but it was exciting to see, even though it was rather camera-shy.  The eagle with one wing was a bit heartbreaking, but absolutely beautiful.

Last week I got unexpectedly stranded at Damien's for a few days when his car (which I've been using until mine gets its new engine) needed repairs and it ended up taking a lot longer than anyone thought it would.  I vaguely suspect our mechanic hates us....we cause so much trouble for the poor guy.  Luckily, I was able to borrow Damien's grandmother's car to get to work Friday and my shoot on Saturday.  It was a milestone shoot - Zahara just turned a year old!  Her parents, godparents and I wandered around Phipp's Conservatory with her and had a great time.  Cute baby, pretty flowers, it was a good day.

It's a New Year! Time for a Flashback

Normally my first blog of the year is Imaging USA, which is in New Orleans this year!  I can't wait.  But I just noticed a blog by a photographer I know, Kenneth Rodriguez, who posted his 15 favorite images of his from 2011.  "What a great idea!" I thought.  "I'm totally stealing it!"  So here I am, making elena-dee's Eleven Best Images from 2011 (in no real order).  I hope you guys agree!!

First off, my little cousins Brian and Mikayla!  Their dad, my cousin Paul, asked me to do family portraits for them over the summer.  We did a lot of traditional portraits of the family but I also got some super cute shots of the B and Mik just playing around.  They're such great kids and I absolutely love them.

Rowan.  I've known her family pretty much my entire life and so got to take some fun photos of her with cupcakes.  She was psyched because she got to eat some of them.  I wish I remembered what her dad said to get this look!

Melody.  Crazy little model/musician, her shoot was SO FUN!  She had great ideas and awesome outfits/props.  I adored the lighting in this shot, and her angles.  Girl knows how to pose!

I didn't shoot as many live shows as I usually do this year, but of them, Livan's set at the Hard Rock Cafe definitely stood out.  Maybe because it this was the first time I used my new 85mm f1.4 lens, maybe because we talked to him for awhile and he had a lot of really interesting things to say.  Or it could also be because this is a freaking sweet picture.

A couple years ago, when Resistance 13 started up, I did their promo shots out I don't even know where.  Ohio, I think?  It was awesome and we got some really sweet pictures.  They've gone through a line-up change since so new photos were needed!  Once again we got a lot of great shots but this is definitely my personal favorite.

 A couple years ago, when I started doing senior pictures, a girl named Janelle had me take hers.  This year, her cousin Abbie wanted me to do hers as well.  She mentioned an abandoned train station that I had actually always wanted to shoot at and never had.  I love Abbie's style and at the station she managed to look straight out of the 1940s.

I do a lot of senior pictures and they're always fun and interesting and I get such great kids.  Allie's shoot was really special to me though - her aunt Whitney and I were best friends for about a decade before Whit died in a car crash three years ago.  When I was asked to do Allie's photos, I was thrilled.  It was like seeing part of a long lost family.  All the sad stuff aside, this is one of my favorite senior shots of the year.  She has her letterman jacket, nice background, great smile....  I love senior pictures!

Rick has been coming to my family's bowling alley as long as I remember, so when he and Lisa asked me to photograph their wedding, I was thrilled!  Weddings are a lot of work but the results tend to be beautiful.  They got married at Shakespeare's, this amazing restaurant/golf course/castle.  Yes, it's a castle with enormous (and heavy!) front doors.  I love all the photos from Rick and Lisa's wedding.

I had only planned on putting one wedding photo in this list because I don't shoot too many.  Then I remembered this insanely adorable shot from Jason and Danielle's winter wedding last February.  It's just too cute, you can't help but smile!

After the romance of the couple photos, we need a romantic location!  I went with my boyfriend's family to Niagara Falls in September (and actually again just a couple days ago for New Years!) and got a few photos.  The boats, the birds, the mist, I love it all!!

OF COURSE this is at the top.  It's my adorable little cat Trigger Happy Jack, cuddling with my bearded dragon, Kitten.  We very nearly were in Professional Photographer Magazine for this image and I was amazed at how good the vertical version of this photo did.  2000+ views and over 250 votes!!  Other photographers were emailing me saying they hoped I would win and people were posting the link to the magazine cover contest all over Facebook....  It was kind of crazy but so awesome.  Thank you to everyone who voted!!!  I'm so grateful for all your support.

Looking through this list one last time, I realize a couple things.  First off, I'm super indecisive.  I knew this already, but you have no idea how many photos were on this list and then weren't and then were again and I love so many it's hard to choose!!  I also realized that I absolutely LOVE my manual focus lenses.  The 50mm f2prime?  Yeah, that's definitely my favorite.  Pretty sure the new 85mm f1.4 is going to get a lot of use in 2012 too.  It's going to be a good year - I have a new job lined up photographing newborns that I'll be starting in a couple weeks and am going to try to build my senior and wedding business up more.  I'm feeling optimistic!!

Liv and the Downpour

When I first started having an interest in photography, I was about 17 and recruited my sister and her friends (who are 4 or 5 years younger) to be my models.  It's always fun shooting with them again because they've grown from silly middle schoolers to beautiful college girls.  Today I photographed Liv, one of these girls and my "happy model."  She's always smiling!

She came by apartment and we picked an outfit, figured out her makeup and headed to the local ice cream shop/mini golf course, The Windmill, to shoot in their overgrown driving range.  I'm still on my 50mm f2 prime kick, so had that on my Pentax K20D.  It was bright but overcast, so the natural light was beautiful - no flash photography, please!

We didn't really have a set plan, mostly just "pretty pictures in a field."  But the weather decided to give us a more exciting shoot than we had anticipated when it started raining.  It had POURED earlier in the day but cleared up.  This wasn't as terrible, so we continued shooting and laughed about the rain and thunder and how the sky certainly didn't look all that bad!

Thankfully the storm didn't last very long and there was even a rainbow after!

Luckily we got in the car before the rain started up again, because on the way home it absolutely poured!!  Gotta love Pittsburgh weather.

Seniors 2011 - Kayla

On Saturday I had my first senior portrait session of the summer.  Kayla's actually graduating this year (2011) not next, but she needed senior portraits done, so I was glad to help!  She's a cool kid who likes zombies and is going to go to school to be a chef.  Because Kayla's so awesome and she and her mom were so prompt in coming to review the photos from our session, I let her pick which would go on the blog.  So here ya go, Kayla!  Facebook away!

Her cat, Tigger, is huge compared to my two little kitties.  I swear he was almost as big as Kayla and it was pretty adorable.  This shot is the only one like it and everyone (everyone being Kayla, her mom and myself) thinks it just awesome.

We also did some chef portraits in the studio.  Kayla and I were getting along pretty well because we seem to have a similar sense of humor and she ended up "executing" a stuffed cow she brought along to the shoot and then serving him up on a giant spatula.  So horrible, yet so very funny.

After all that ridiculousness, we went to the park for some outdoor shots.  What we didn't realize was that there was a Relay for Life benefit or some such thing going on, so decided against our original plan of bringing her fake gravestone and zombie head along with us.  It might have scared the hundreds of people who aren't normally there.  So instead we did some pretty normal shots, as well as a few variations on an idea she had gotten from a book cover.

I LOVE the tree/leaf idea; it turned out so well.  You did great, Kayla.