Four reasons why a 1-hour outdoor photo session is the self-care you didn't know you needed.
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Portrait Photography
Meet Ellie! Look at that face! This adorable little girl was amazing at our shootCheck out the blog to see more!
Today on the blog I'm talking a little bit about In Home and Lifestyle Sessions. What they are and why they are so meaningful and important. Check it out!
It's pretty rare that all the elements come together for a outdoor boudoir session. Weather, timing, a willing subject, and of course finding a secluded enough location to take the photos. But Amanda and I set out on a beautiful warm fall day for a beautiful boudoir adventure.
Boudoir sessions are close to my heart. They require a lot of trust, vulnerability, and openness. When a subject relaxes during a boudoir session, it is a huge compliment. But the main reason they are so close to my heart is that they are an amazing opportunity to show someone's true beauty, the kind that very few of us show to others.
So Amanda and I headed out on a hike, with a few outfits and a flower crown to make some magic happen. Amanda is so beautiful and I think these images did a great job of capturing her.
My favorite images of the day however, are the ones that we took in the lake. That's right you heard me. This girl got in a lake, in Fall (with maybe a little persuasion from yours truly).
There is something about water that is just magical to me. The first half of my life I grew up near the water and it still has a huge calling for me. Lately, I have been very influenced by Michelle Gardella. I love her work and think her River Stories series is absolutely stunning.
A tremendous thank you to Amanda for trusting me during our shoot. For going with my crazy whims and being up for anything...even freezing cold lakes. Especially lakes that are pretty gross at the bottom. It was a great adventure and you are such a beautiful woman. I hope the world can now see what I see.
Levitation pictures can be really fun, or creepy, or elegant, or whatever floats your boat. And if you have photoshop or another editing system, they are surprisingly easy to recreate.
First you want to start off with two pictures: *side note you will definitely want to use a tripod for this.
Picture number one should just be a picture of your background, whatever that may be. Now here is the super important part. Once you decide on a background, angle, etc that you like, do not move your tripod, or you're going to make life a lot harder on yourself.
Picture numero 2: A picture of whatever you wish to be levitating in the foreground on a stool, of some kind. You ideally want something that isn't too elaborate. It's hard to tell in this picture because the bench I used was very similar in color to the background, but the subject is laying on a bench.
Next in photoshop you are going to open those two photos and pull the foreground photo on top of the background photo and line them up so they are exactly on top of each other. If you're having some problem doing this you can lower the opacity of the top layer so you can see the one beneath.
Next, create a layer mask on the foreground layer (you can do this by clicking on the icon of the square with a circle in it at the bottom of your layers menu) and using your brush start to paint over the stool, or bench. You can see here that I went a little too far so I'm losing some of the subject's leg, that's no biggie! Just switch your brush color back to white so you are adding back to the layer mask. Work with it until you no longer can see the support feature.
Do a little tweaking with colors, etc to make the picture as eerie as you would like, I mean we are getting close to Halloween after all. I think they are a lot of fun, and I hope you will try these out as well!
Two weekends ago, I went home for a busy weekend away. While I was there I teamed up with my wonderful friend The Twin. She wanted some lovely portraits done, so we headed to the river and had a grand ole time. I even stepped in for a couple cameo shots with my best bud. The Twin and I have been friends for a long time, so it really meant a lot to me to be able to do some portraits for her. And here is the end result. Happy viewing!
About a year ago on Valentine's Day, my Dad got me this photo book: "Life: The Classic Collection." He thought it would help inspire me on my photographic journey, and boy has it ever. The photographs in this book are iconic. And I say photographs because that's what they are. They aren't "pics" or "photos," these are PHOTOGRAPHS. These photographs are so awe inspiring not only because they capture some of the most traumatic and meaningful times in history, but because of the art, timing, and skill that each photographer illustrates in each photograph. When I see these photographs, I realize how far I have to go and how much determination I need. It's a great kick in the pants as well. AND one of the great details about the classic collection, is that it comes with 25 removable photographs, that you can frame and put around your house, which I will do as soon as I get frames.
Many of these photographs are very recognizable. We've grown up seeing them in magazines and highlighted on television. They are timeless. One of the most famous photographs is the classic Times Square Kiss by Life photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt.
Everyone knows this photograph, and it's one of my favorites. I really didn't know much about the photograph however. I knew that it was taken on V-J day in Times Square. I knew that the couple was anonymous for a long time. I knew that they didn't know each other. But that was about it, until today when I ran across this article. On June 23, 2010 Edith Shain (the Nurse) died at age 91. Apparently she didn't contact Life until the '70s, and the identity of the sailor is still unknown. According to the photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt, he was in Times Square trying to get some shots, when he saw the sailor going around kissing any woman he could find. Eisenstaedt saw the nurse, and focused on her hoping that the sailor would kiss her, so he was ready when it happened. According to the sliberstudios.tv article, Shain spent the last half of her life educating others on the events of World War II. When interviewed about the spontaneity of the kiss, Shain said this, "This guy grabbed me and we kissed, and then I turned one way and he turned the other. There was no way to know who he was, but I didn’t mind because he was someone who had fought for me.” She also said, "As for the picture it says so many things — hope, love, peace and tomorrow. The end of the war was a wonderful experience, and that photo represents all those feelings.”
I love how passionate the kiss is, how taken surprise the nurse seems, the ladies in the background giggling, and how it is framed as a snap shot. You feel the passion and absolute joy of V-J day. And as Edith Shain says, you experience the hope, love, peace and tomorrow. This photograph represents something we all hope for, not only as photographers, but for our lives...to experience absolute joy and (especially so close to the 4th of July) the end to wars.
My lovely friend Ms. Holly is in town this week and staying with me while Speed Racer is in NORWAY...that's right I said Norway. But more on that later. So Ms. Holly was a good sport and let me take some lovely pictures of her this morning, we went out and had a good time. And here are the results!
So I know what you're thinking...how many more of these "How Did I get Here" series are there? And where is here? When is it going to END?! Hopefully very soon. Not to worry, this is not the Rocky Series. Although who can deny that theme song? You're singing it now...I know you are. After our friends Mr. and Mrs. Hokie got hitched, our other friends Mr. and Mrs. Miami got engaged and had a date set for May. Mrs. Miami is my friend Renee, she has her own blog so her identity is no secret. But I love nicknames, they're fun, and different and we all need a little mystery in our lives, right? Right. Maybe they should be called Mr. and Mrs. Atlanta since that's where they are moving to, but more on that HERE. But it's my blog and I do what I want to...daggum it. Mr. and Mrs. Miami recruited me to be their photographer for their wedding and I was thrilled! Mrs. Miami and I happen to be engaged at the same time, so we were able to help plan or rather vent about the frustrations of planning a wedding. The day of the wedding finally came and Speed Racer and I packed the very VERY tiny car we were taking up to Maryland, and hit the road. “If you want to know if you love someone, take a road trip. If you want to know if you can marry them, do it in a roadster.” ~Unknown That pretty much sums that up.
We arrived in Maryland a little road weary, but ready to go. The festivities began, starting with the rehearsal dinner.
The Lighthouse in the background is the lighthouse where they would be hitched the next day. Luckily the weather held out, and we started the morning off bright and early.
This is Little Miss, she is Mr. and Mrs. Miami's gorgeous baby girl, and she got to be flower girl for the day.
They're friends with Mr. and Mrs. Hokie too.
Love, the purple shoes!
These parasols were adorable! They were so much fun for everyone to play with, not to mention get out of the sun, and made for fantastic pictures.
Sorry Mr. Miami, but this is my favorite picture out of the entire day. I love it. I want to hang it on my wall. Is that too weird?
So apparently in the Greek Tradition, if you put the names of your bridesmaids or single lady friends on the bottom of your shoes on your wedding day, and they wear off, then they will be getting married. Kind of an alternate version of throwing the bouquet, at this point in the day (2 weeks before my wedding) I was still 50/50.
Photographer's Note: I was on a moving dock in order to get this shot. I had visions of my falling off and drowning with all the camera gear. But it was worth it, I love this shot too. I also want to hang it on my wall.
Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Miami for letting me be a part of your big day, and helping me learn and grow as a photographer! After a long day of shooting in the hot sun, Speed Racer and I, with Mr. and Mrs. Hokie in tow, headed back down south.
I'm doing a Summer Portrait Special! Memorial Day has come and gone, the pools are open, school is almost out, summer is beginning, and I'm ready to take pictures of you enjoying it! I'm offering a one hour Portrait session for $98.99 at any location you choose. With this session you get 1 8x10, 3 5x7s, and 8 wallets. This session is for families, friends, senior portraits, couples, kids, babies, and pets! I have many print sizes and types to choose from if you'd like a different look. Interested? Contact me at runawayalice@gmail.com, or 540.460.2691.
Don't live in Knoxville but still want to partake in the Summer Portrait Special? Not a problem, just add the cost of gas (and room if you live really far away!) and I'll come to you.
Here are a few samples from previous Portraits I've done:
