One Love Photo

Felicitaciones - noellen & jackson

i always feel flustered when someone on the street stops and patiently waits for me to take a picture. i know they are just being polite and i should be grateful. but knowing they are there, watching me and waiting makes me completely lose focus. so i always wave them through, telling them to walk right in front of me, assuring them that it is OK. hoping they will pass quickly, so I can get back to my square.

that is exactly why i LOVE shooting on isla mujers. people are immune to the camera, they just walk or drive right into your shot with no apologies. if they stopped and waited every time someone was snapping a photo they would never get across the street. and that's what is so cool about noellen and jackson wedding portraits, there is a wonderful variety of cameo appearances from the locals. someone on a moped in one, ladies peeking out of windows in another, even the cemetery cat made a brief appearance in a few. while roaming the streets we heard plenty of well wishes coming from all directions from strangers in spanish. regardless, if we could or couldn't understand them. congratulations really has a nice ring to it in any language, felicitaciones!

 

 

 

muchos años maravillosos a usted ambos

many wonderful years to you both

Bienvenido - noellen & jackson

when this welcome package arrived at our house from noellen and jackson i knew we were in for a pretty special trip! the first thing i did was set everything up and photograph it because it was just too sweet to explain in words. the package included custom luggage v.i.p tags, translation bookmarks, an adorable map of isla mujers by laura hooper, a packing list and a little guide to the island that i used the whole time we were there. they also made custom doorknob signs for all their guests at the villa and welcome bags full of necessities for a healthy and happy stay!
 
noellen and jackson had 42 guests join them in mexico to celebrate their marriage. to welcome all their friends and family they planned a bienvenido dinner at a private restaurant reserved just for them in downtown isla on the eve of their wedding day.

 

 

 

had to include these, since we were forwarned that like father like son, jackson rarely smiles for the camera. but we are always up for a challenge. we were just that much more focused on jackson. determined to capture plenty of his genuine, true and real smiles. those are always the best anyways.

the basketball court is the center hub of this small island. the first night we were there, we watched a heated match between two local teams. one of jackson's favorite past times is playing hoops with his brother and friends. he was bent on spending his wedding eve on the island court with them. after the party was over they headed off to see if it was open. they lucked out and the court was all theirs, well, at least half of it. we followed behind with noellen and her sign (and straw), eager to cheer and to talk a little bit of smack.

my personal favorites of the night.

 

 

 

am pretty sure jackson was in heaven. he brought his basketball from chicago, which balanced out noellen's 10 pairs of flip flops. hey, we are all allowed impractical packing splurges from time to time.         (especially for your wedding)

 

 

 

score! more to come from the wedding this week....

Noellen & Jackson

Lake Union Cafe - emily & patrick

i miss you

it is instant

as when i leave your lips

-raymond a fox

  these two have been apart before. and know they will be again soon. they appreciate fleeting moments more than most. magnetic is a good word to describe them. you can see it in their smiles, they are thrilled with each moment together. they sneak sweet glances and move in closer. when they kiss, they savor it. they don't want to let go. and we don't want them to either.

it started with a first wedding kiss under the early spring blossoms and got better from there. forecasted seattle showers never appeared. friends and family gathered together from all over the country. romance was in the air. a little love graffiti before a promise for forever. an evening candle light ceremony that brought a few tears, but many more smiles.

 

this was our first wedding of 2009 and can't imagine a better way to begin! while editing and looking at their amazing smiles on screen, we feel so blessed to work with such kind, considerate and loving people! thank you emily and patrick!

ceremony and reception were at the lovely lake union cafe.

Sanford and Son - amongst the junk

at my latest portrait session inspiration struck at an antique store in tacoma. it's namesake is the 1970's hit show sanford and son. i just got a good giggle from turk and j.d.'s version of the show's theme song on scrubs. that little tune reminds me of being a girl and "junking" with my folks. i spent many weekends getting lost in antique malls and junk shops with my imagination running wild. they were often busy rearranging their booth full of old rusty treasures and i was free to explore aisle after aisle of curious relics. we had an antique apple press in one corner of our dining room and a tall mannequin dressed in 40's clothes in the opposite. my parents taught me to appreciate the past and to always be on the lookout for a special treasure that was considered junk by someone else. my mom has had several booths at junk shops over the years. it's so fun to merchandise and hear about what items sell and which ones just sit. she just opened a new one a few weeks ago and i am so excited for her! now we have a whole new reason for going "junking" together and a perfect excuse for stopping at every yard sale.

in march i met catherine, madeline and michael in downtown to do a little portrait session. the rain and wind were not apart of our original plan for the day. quite naturally without much thought we migrated to my favorite local shop, sanford and son on antique row. it's huge, yellow and full of artifacts. the owner is named alan and he kindly welcomed us into his warehouse and encouraged us to explore. we were grateful and excited about our unexpected change in location. it wasn't hard to make beautiful portraits because of their mutual respect and love for each other and also for the art of photography. catherine is a photographer herself and she is very beautiful, kind, supportive and full of positive energy. i felt very free to follow my own instincts and eye on this shoot. here are a few of my favorites from our inspiring afternoon together amongst the junk!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"to invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk"

-thomas edison

Guantanamera or One Jon Almeda

whenever i hear this song especially on the street in mexico by a mariachi band i get so excited! because the words blur for me and i hear "one jon almeda' as the chorus instead of the cuban inspired "guantanamera". i swear it really does sounds like "one jon almeda" in this wyclef version. i usually feel the need to loudly sing along with my own personal lyrical twist. smiling and thinking about my very special, ingenius, funny, creative, helpful, generous, sweet, extremely talented and super cute man.          my one jon almeda. 

first days back from vacation are rough. first days back with a snot nose, plugged ears and depressing rain outside are the worst. been moving slow today not ready to re-enter reality. dropped all my film off at the lab. am quite eager to see what i captured down south. to take my mind off my cold and the drizzle i enjoyed looking through all of jon's colorful mexico photos. most of these images were shot with his newest homemade lens. haven't named this one yet but it's a custom tilt/shift using one of my favorite lenses from my old enlarger. it's really quite perfectly soft and dreamy. it's just what we have been looking for. leave it to that clever one jon almeda........                                        we had such fun wandering the streets together cameras in hand. jon with his weird accordion lens wrapped in soft electrical tape and me with my square vintage box. trying to fight off feelings of self-consciousness and concealing our cameras however we could. me trying to hide mine in my much too small brown leather purse. trying not to look so obvious. hating the idea of being the nerdy over excited tourist. wishing we could be invisible and or fluent in spanish. but once something caught our eye, we forget all that. patiently waiting, taking turns, eager to see the rectangle or square that each other composed. each of us creating our own tiny theater inside the viewfinder. carefully deciding who or what our main character would be at that moment. some zoomed by us in a instant, others stopped us in our tracks and some created the perfect detour. these are jon's photographs from our last week together on the beautiful yet rather modest isla mujeres. enjoy, they are lovely!

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and now we wait for the film.

Isla Mujeres

  

still here and falling deeply for this sweet little island. yesterday was such a blessing. am so excited to share much more but for now we are off to explore.......

Belleza

inspired by our upcoming trip to mexico i was cutting and gluing late last night. rusting and melting probably when i really should be packing. now i am posting when i definitely should be packing! here is my most recent collage of a very special girl named zoe. the wax is still settling but i am quite pleased.

20x24 beeswax collage panel
paper, paint, lace, dollhouse pieces and lots of little milagros that i collected on my last trip to mexico. am excited to find new treasures and inspiration this week. to see more photos from my session with zoe go here. and i love this square of the two of us. to see more on my collages please visit my website.

last night i read a few paragraphs that really resonated with me and i thought i would share. i was enjoying my new book titled " a certain alchemy" photographs by keith Carter. his wife patricia wrote the afterword and since i always look at art books backwards this is where i began.

"i don't know what constitutes a creative life for other people. one night in mexico we were at dinner with a diverse group of friends-there was a chef, a writer, a musician, a scientist and a couple photographers. the talk, fueled by good food and ample wine, was about the creative process-how to catch that spark that ignites the imagination. each person had a different take, but the musician capped the conversation when she said "i think you just get run over by a sugar truck".

"earlier i had had a conversation with our scientist friend, who spends his days doing research which has the potential to benefit us all. he is married to a photographer, and was talking about the difference between his work and hers. he said his own work would get done, with or without him.. "what I am looking for is there to be discovered, and if i don't find it, one of my colleagues will." "but an artist," he said, "if an artist doesn't do their work, then that work never gets done."

-patricia carter

i  must have read that five times last night before turning the bedside table light off with my waxy fingertips. feeling content knowing i had done my work. so the rest of you, please go make your art because no one can do it for you. we are off tomorrow with lots of work to do in mexico.

adios!

Avi's Collage

 
6x6 mixed media beeswax collage.

Avi and her Horse

Garden Delight - eileen & matthew

  it's my delight to share these lovely photographs from eileen and matthew's wedding! this is one of the first weddings that i shot where i felt magic. it left a deep impression. it cast a spell on me. after this day i was determined to follow my heart. it sent me on my way to approaching wedding photography as my art. it made me realized that the two did not have to live apart. from this day on, i knew my artistic subjects of choice would be sweet brides and grooms and darling flower girls. i experienced the enchantment of sharing a similar aesthetic vision with eileen and mathew. the bliss of knowing that they appreciated my blurry, soft and somewhat antiquated style. i could never go back.

 

"The full weight and mystery of your art rests upon your relationship to your subject matter."

- Keith Carter

 

to read more on this wedding please visit a practical wedding.

Garden Delight - the details

this wedding was timeless. classic and beautiful. it could have been forty or fifty years ago or right now. it was neither but a few ago (well, five ago). nothing looks dated. it is still more precious and beautiful than one could dream. my memory of this day seems to get more vivid as time goes by.

"This wedding casts the same magical spell. It's a simple backyard wedding transformed into something otherworldly by flowers and fairy curtains strung in trees....and by love and community and commitment."
meg, a practical wedding

flowers by the fabulous and always inspiring laurie cinotto.
     
eileen's dress was designed by the amazing lisa defrance. the long vintage netted material was a train for the ceremony and also could be wrapped around eileen's arms for the reception and photos. it was so unique and beautiful. the delicate pattern and texture of the dress photographed beautifully. including the soft ruffles and feathers on her shoulder.

 
flower girls and twins.

the music man.

 

married!

 the magic flower tree.

 

cocktails and teacups  

brothers.

 

fairy tent and o.j.

glow.