Tag Archives: WAVphotography

my obvious obsession

11 December 2014

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WAVphoto manyFeet

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Cleaning out files and space on my computer, I end up deleting so many images, so many memories. With each file of photographs I open, I revisit the photography session – in detail – the laughter & the smiles, weather strategies, the beauty, reflecting on all the wonderful people I have had the opportunity to meet & who have allowed me into their lives.

I am brought right back to the sounds of the playground, capturing Spiderman ‘fly’ on the swing. I feel the cool shade of the woods and damp earth as I watch ‘magic’ make a teen aged girl smile as I press the shutter. I recall the quiet pride in height of a high school senior, the late autumn colors as a fleeting back drop. The love for a fairy granddaughter, a mom giggling on the swings with her quickly maturing pre-teen daughter.

Then, the moment of realization that I have an obvious obsession!

I have a large portfolio of photographs of… feet! Different than a shoe fetish, it doesn’t matter to me if there are shoes on my subjects’ feet or not. Summer feet, fresh from the lake feet, playground worthy, in her sparkly shoes she won’t take off or dainty fairy toes with purple polish – it’s all fair game to me.

WAVphoto sparkle feet

“Photography takes an instant out of time altering life by holding it still”
-Dorothea Lange

WAVphoto Closet Feet

This moment will last for a split second. 

Those sparkly shoes won’t fit her feet six months from now. The Crocs will be worn out by the end of summer. The Converse…well…don’t throw those out yet.WAVphoto fairy feet

Perspective is what allows us to enjoy the beauty of the present moment. 

a writer

5 December 2014

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The doors will be opened
to those who are bold enough
to knock.

WAVphoto

It’s an honor to be allowed into a person’s world and to be invited to capture
a moment in their life. High School seniors have such incredible energy – it’s
always a pleasure to photograph them.

When I met with this beautiful girl for her pre-session consultation we discussed wardrobe choices. She casually mentioned she might like to have a photo or two with her red lipstick on. ‘Is this possible?’, she asked. ‘Of course!’, my reply.  I suggested that the red lips arrive at the end of our session & didn’t give it another thought until I arrived on location to take her photographs.

She gracefully moved into poses with a little coaching & adjusting, and a few gentle laughs. She became even more attractive as her personality had a chance to shine. A quick wardrobe change and more photographs, making sure we had at least one image for her yearbook selection. The warmth of the late autumn sun quickly fading.

‘Any more poses you’d like to have?’ ‘Oh yes! my red lipstick!’

In a moment she ran into her house and returned as a grown-up writer!
Red lipstick, eyeglasses and ready for her first book signing! We had chatted during our consultation and as our session evolved, so I knew she wanted to be a writer…and here she sat…in my camera frame…a writer.

I was honored when she saw this photo, picked up the proof and enthusiastically stated, “THIS photo is going to be on my first book cover!”

The doors will be opened to those who are bold enough to knock.

today, I celebrate Pam!

3 December 2014

WAVphoto

Remember, when you see a woman at the top of a mountain,
she didn’t just fall there.

WAVphoto
When sleeping women wake,
mountains will move.
-Chinese Proverb

WAVphoto
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take,
but by the moments that take our breath away.
WAVphoto
Climb the mountains to get their good tidings.
Nature’s peace will flow into you as the sunshine into the trees.
The winds will blow their freshness into you
and the storms their energy,
while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.
-John Muir

WAVphoto
Happy Birthday, Pam.
I wish you: sunny hikes, great views, dry socks,
only gummy bears, the last 50 yard jog
and another lifetime of reasons to celebrate!

Some girls are just born with glitter in their veins~

7 May 2013

20130507-160926.jpg

Some girls are just born with glitter in their veins!

I saw that statement the other day & it helps me understand the emotion I feel behind the camera when I’m taking a portrait. So often, I need to pull away from the camera and take my gaze away for a few seconds because I feel almost overpowered by the connection I see as I look through my lens.

I feel like I can see into their eyes, usually as they sparkle–yes, like glitter. It tells me that the person who is quickly coming into focus is alive. I feel their energy almost glistening, their happiness about to explode, their beauty just waiting to be discovered, maybe for the first time.

When I pull back from my camera, I usually utter something to the effect of “wow, you are so beautiful”. What surprises me most is that they often are in disbelief, or its the first time they’ve heard it said (or, sadly, its been a very long time since hearing it).

I am so in love with taking beauty portraits. I give women the opportunity to take home tangible evidence that, yes, they are beautiful. Yes, because I said so…and yes, because they can see it for themselves each time they look at the artwork that we created together.

I always see beauty- in the mountain ranges & flowers in nature, in reflections in a puddle & in a lingering summer sunset (ok, I’ve reached my limit with winter & snow) and in a child’s fascination with a slippery frog.

And, yes, I can see natural beauty in that girl who definitely, was born with glitter in her veins.