i wanted to explore this week’s theme and kept an eye out … i think i was too intent on finding the perfect match when looking back now there were opportunities that showed up – vintage china patterns, advertisement on antique, ribbon in a little one’s hair. instead, i waited until monday to a meet & greet with these two beauties i hope to work with more often. it’s a loose interpretation with floral print garments (& a few portraits with an easter lilly). my lesson learned is to capture what is in front of me throughout the week and let my imagination run a little more freely….

please continue on to Carrie Hyche in Wheatland, WY and the others in the circle to see the beautiful work this week.

I can’t get this new photograph out of my mind – it says so much without words – and I feel it on such a deep level that I’m rendered speechless.

Continuing the theme of a visit to Oklahoma City, I wanted to share a few photographs of artist Marko Kratohvil – an accomplished inspired sculptor who arrived in OKC via London. His credentials are deep (um he’s a member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors) but it is his energy & engagement, his wit & intelligence, and the ensuing dialogue that’s appealing. The conversation was deep & thoughtful, fascinating, interesting, inspiring. I’ve never had the opportunity to chat 1:1 with a sculptor so it was enlightening to listen to one’s point of view. i couldn’t help but take a few portraits – of the pieces around his studio, of the last leg of a new creation – and of the artist.

Can’t believe I failed to publish this but with all the scurrying around last month – it’s not surprising! Between shooting & portrait sessions & writing & workshopping & foruming & all the things I need to cover on a daily basis…I also work with my husband creating websites. i’m what you would call the project manager meets marketing consultant meets site map consultant meets content design & a little writing – and the one thing the projects always lead to – is photography! Here’s my favs from a recent at Fringe Salem who is up to some really cool changes (aka expansion).

“….all those stars that shine above you will kiss you every night.” Andres Farriss & Michael Hutchence, INXS.

I’ve known Cody since he was a little one. I think the first time we met he was two. Since then, I’ve watched him grow and am always taken with his sweet spirit, creative eye and unique style. He’s one of the coolest kids I’ve ever been privileged to know and I’m curious to see where life’s path takes him. I’ve wanted to photograph him in the milestone last year of high school. I’d planned to do these last fall, but situations didn’t sort out for that to happen and though I missed the chance for the technical senior portraits, I’m sort of glad it worked out the way it did – photographing Cody in his world @home.

Although I was told the barn was full of crap, I saw opportunities – an old car, a keystone sign, an old monitor, a tomb, the letters “C” and “A” and the Funhouse Box. This is a big Halloween family and I remember the year his Mom – who’s more like a sister than a friend -  told me about their plans to build a box with a clown in it that’d scare the pants off the kids (and did – Cody’s still creeped out by it and well, so was I when he showed it to me). Conceptually, the images with bits of his childhood in the background (the Schwinn bike, the tree house, the swing set) work because we placed him where he’s in front of & looking away – ahead of his boyhood and walking straight into manhood. Though secretly, like his mama, I’m “mad” for those few of him on the stairs in the barn looking up – the one I chose to use as a headline feature.

So CONGRATS JCW on your upcoming graduation – fly to the stars, cause I know you will! xoxo….

Photographs from a unique session opportunity featuring four generations of women who have lived in the Salem area for most of their lives.

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The Beloved concept was developed by photographer Jesh de Rox & though aimed at portraits of couples, it has a place with any session as it’s an opportunity to celebrate the beauty that lives within. I’ve been experiencing powerful shifts the past three weeks. A result I largely attribute to the workshop I’m taking with Brooke Snow. What I’m seeing  is that the point of photographing others is not about me  – it’s about the people I am photographing and the experience I provide for them and we have together.

To consider that all people are photogenic and naturally full of light and life, and that any location including one’s home works – the key is it have meaning to those I’m photographing. So choosing a location that “I think” is visually “cool” but one that has little if any relation to who I’m photographing results in expressions and an experience that doesn’t have the same depth and breadth as one with real meaning.

My real role as a photographer is on one hand, artistic uniqueness + technical excellence but more importantly, it’s providing a space for real emotion and expression. One that’s a true experience.

The beloved concept is everything I’ve been moving towards in terms of the power of a photograph and the experience it provides. All that’s required is focusing on the person/people I am photographing – being truly inspired by them and creating an environment for them to truly open up to me. I’m finding it feels great to be in this place first and foremost. For what results is beautiful, powerful, experiences. Ones that linger after the session is over.

I think the energy within the following photographs speaks to the genuine emotion. All that’s required is an open mind, an open heart and an openness to having a beautiful experience with those you love.

There’s nothing more beautiful than the glow of parents to be…it’s even better when they’re simply cool beings from the inside out and open to incorporating all of the things they love and can’t wait to share with the little one. Congratulations Lisa & Tom, and thank you for the experience. I can’t wait to meet your child!

Not sure why this opening image appeals to me…but it does immensely. It is like a perfectly frozen moment of two sisters caught in an inner moment even though they’re looking right at me.