Kathy, Bryan and Brayden

I’m not the most conventional person, so I was more than delighted to photograph Kathy and Bryan’s wedding after I photographed their son, Brayden. Down to earth and very family oriented, this was a no-frills good-time wedding that they were lucky enough to share with their adorable son!

Parents to be: Lauren and Erick

My good friend, John Vigg introduced me to Erick and Lauren whose day-wedding was held in Freehold at the end of May. They have been together for a long time, Lauren was 7 months pregnant with their child on their big day…well, first big day before his birth! Despite pregnancy and the heat, she still glowed with the joy of marrying her love and the father of her child.

This simple wedding was more about Lauren and Erick’s commitment to each other than anything else. A sweet outdoor ceremony preceded their laid back party which was not without its intimate moments. Toasts by best man John Vigg, among others and a heartwarming dance with Lauren and her father made us all remember the real reason we were there. These two will make fantastic parents to baby Christopher who is due any day!

It’s electric! Melissa and Craig

Melissa and Craig’s wedding in Galloway, NJ was my first of the season, and what a great way to kick things off!  These easy-going college sweethearts were more interested in sharing their commitment with their friends and loved ones than anything else. They were fun-loving, carefree and knew how to throw a rockin party!  With the help of Allie Love from A.Love Photography we captured some great images and had a ball doing it.

Unfazed by anything that day, our bride Melissa was relaxed but in high spirits, even with the gale force winds whipping against the windowpanes! A stunning natural beauty, Melissa wore a vintage style fishnet veil secured with a decorative flower; her dress fit her like a glove and I couldn’t help but comment that she looked like a model! 

Their short and heartfelt ceremony was filled with laughter and tears, the love from their friends and family reverberated through the room like lightning in a cloud before it touches down.  When it came time for portraits their fun-loving selves returned, though now with the wisdom of an even more committed unity.

With all of the formalities out of the way, it was time to finally party! After a lovely first dance together, and two sweet and emotional parent dances and speeches, the electricity on the dance floor was fully charged for the remainder of the night.  Melissa was a terrific dancer and used her dress to it’s full capacity; paired with the DJ’s lights it made for some amazing movement in her photos! What a fabulous wedding to start the season, and a wonderful couple to have met in the process. You rock, Melissa and Craig!

 

Let’s Go O’s!

Recently my husband and I traveled to Baltimore, Maryland to celebrate his mothers’ 60th birthday. It was our first trip to the city and to Camden Yards where we watched the hometown Orioles take on the NY Yankees. Being a Red Sox fan from Boston, I couldn’t in good conscience root for the pinstripes, so I instead donned orange and black to cheer on the birds. We drank beer from cups and mingled and hollered with our fellow bleacher-creatures – none hollered louder than the dreadlocked, blinged-out guy with the gold teeth sitting next to me.  From the get-go his bellowing “LETS GO O’s!” could have been heard from the press box; to some he would be the worst seat neighbor ever, but he and I were instant buddies. A rapper born and raised in Baltimore, this was a guy who loved his city, knew and loved who he was and wanted everyone to know it. Watching him stirred the ever-present inner battle with my confident identity that has recently been feeling some heat.  Maybe it was his gold grill gleaming in the stadium lights, maybe the beer made me not think so much; but I knew I had to shoot the stadium if I wanted to get out of my photographic rut. The more I didn’t want to the more I knew I had to, so I did.  Though at the time I hated everything on camera, it’s only now that I come back to the images do I see that a few of them have some merit.

 

My favorite shot of the night. I wonder what else is hiding in the depths of this wasted corner…

 

I was feelin’ the linear and geometric qualities of the city and stadium.

 

 

 

Sometimes all you need are some simple words of wisdom from a not-so-simple character.

Bathroom Break

I kind of have an obsession with bathrooms.  Not that I need a nice one to enjoy my bathroom experience, I just notice them and can appreciate a good one.  What makes a good bathroom, you ask?  Well, what makes any room “good”?  Design, architecture, color, décor, whether traditional or whacky I can always appreciate the creativity that goes into it.  In fact, the bathroom was a major factor in my renting my current apartment.  My apartment has a very vintage feel, the building was constructed in the 1920’s and hasn’t had much updating since (another reason I love it so much!) But when I saw the bathroom, I knew I couldn’t pass it up.

I mean come on, its turquoise! With the checkered floor and old knobs it’s just ridiculously cool. It seems that every time I walk in I see another angle to shoot it from (expect to see more of this one!)

This one is from the Chart House restaurant in Weehawken, NJ where I photographed an event. Found out of necessity,  I had to shoot the sleek design, muted colors and how it almost looks like everything you touch would be cold, though it still maintains a warm and cozy feeling. Now if only the gigantic baby-changing table wasn’t on the wall…

I stumbled upon this bathroom early one Sunday at Temple University.  I accompanied my husband to go weigh rats in his lab and – as much fun as weighing rats sounded – I much preferred to shoot around the neighborhood instead.  I actually had to find a restroom to use and I the only one I knew of that might be open and accessible was in the Student Center.  So off I went, and what impeccable timing!  It had obviously just been cleaned as every surface glistened and gleamed in the green-glow of the fluorescent lights.  The geometry accented by black stalls and bright red tile was spot-on. I call the left one “His and Hers” though I want to go back and re-shoot with a tripod the get the depth of field this image calls for.  I see this being an ongoing series, more to come I’m sure.

Babypalooza!

 

Lately it seems that babies are popping up (or, out!) in all aspects of my life. Many of my friends and relatives have had babies in the past year; my brother is a brand new Dad as of yesterday!  I can only imagine the rush of emotions when bringing home a new baby for the first time; elation, fear, hope, anxiety but most of all, Love.   I got to document this buzz of feelings when I photographed 11 day old Charlie in Hoboken, NJ a few weeks ago.  His parents had wanted photos in the first days of his life and I admire their choice; they do say kids grow up so fast, I hope these photos are looked back on with smiles at how little he once was.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even as just a few months old, a child’s personality starts to poke through. I recently had the pleasure of shooting baby Brayden , and what a little boy’s boy…curious, sure-headed and always wanting to be naked!  One of the challenges of photographing babies is getting them to look at me, getting a smile on top of that can be next to impossible!  But not for Brayden, he seemed perplexed by my camera (I can’t blame him, my set-up is probably twice his size) so he looked at and focused on my lens almost the whole time so I could do the same to him!  I am looking forward to photographing the union of his parents, Kathy and Bryan next week!

 

 

 

 

 

Also at a few months old, cultural ceremonies start a path for children’s lives to follow. One of the great perks of my job is that I get to see a lot of different cultures and how their traditions are carried out.  Recently I had the honor of shooting baby Christina’s Greek Orthodox christening ceremony filled with rituals, promises and prayers. Though she herself wasn’t too keen on being rubbed with olive oil, submerged in water and her hair cut, I’m sure she will appreciate it when she is old enough to understand!

 

Being a kid, it all seems worth it when that one day a year comes when it’s all about YOU.  That day when you run the roost, are showered with presents and can dig into a cake like you’ve always wanted.  At One year you get your first taste of birthday wonder, as Madalynn did here in April. And though it got a little dicey when it came to singing Happy Birthday (come on, we can all agree it can get a little uncomfortable), when it came to cake she was over it and dove right in!

Though kids are not in my immediate future (honestly, the thought of my own children sort of makes me want to run away screaming) I loooooove everyone else’s!  I am content to teach, photograph and dote on the kids in my life until my time comes….whenever that may be.

Be sure to check out my “people” page for updated images!

A Day Late, A Buck Short

It’s been almost a month since my last post.  I don’t want to say embarassed, or horrified but those are definitely the first words that come to mind.  I guess sometimes life gets in the way of your intentions and big dreams (i.e my wanting to blog every week). But between photographing, owning a photo gallery, being a board member at a non-profit (something else I must blog about) and teaching, my time is spread pretty thin.  But henceforth, nevermore, I say!  I do want to start blogging weekly, and have many a photo-shoot lined up to fill the call.  In fact, I will start today with a brand new post. No no, a new one. With photos. This is just my…sorry for not blogging, post…

The River Neva!

I had the pleasure of photographing the band The River Neva a couple of weeks ago, thought I would share my fave shots!  Check them out at www.myspace.com/theriverneva

We were so lucky with their practice space having such a great urban feel for the shoot.  I think these photos depict the hardcore attitude they were looking for!

Love, Nakedness and Burton

My husband and I took a trip to the Museum of Modern Art in NYC last Sunday to see The Tim Burton Exhibit.  Moma is one of my favorite museums in New York, not only does it house some of my favorite modern paintings and sculpture, but its exhibitions are always innovative, thought provoking and interactive.  Upon buying our museum tickets we were informed that the next entry into Burton was not until 4:00 p.m.  Being as it was barely 1:00, we decided to take advantage of this happy accident and enjoy the beautiful day walking through the city. 

We first heard this man playing down the block and I was immediately entranced.  The sounds were light catchy which gave my gait a nice rhythm and flow, yet you could sense a certain strife lurking just under the surface as he drummed and tapped his homemade instruments.  This boy with his mother stood and watched a long time, he went back several times to toss change in the yellow bucket, each with dignity and pride, like he understood what he was doing -and what it meant- on a much deeper level.

 

We continued walking down Fifth Avenue took a few turns and ended up in Times Square where we came upon “Love Man”.   Wearing white wedding attire and carrying a baton with a giant heart crafted from tin foil he ran through the streets assuring people they would get through life with love.  A showman you weren’t quite sure whether he was fully putting on the act or if he *actually* believed he was this character, he definitely turned some heads.  Jumping jacks and tae-bo like dance moves in the middle of the bike path definitely made me snap some photos.  Without the model release this is the only publishable one, though I still think it exemplifies his existence on the sidewalk that day.

 

Making our way back to the Moma, we finally got to experience what we had come for.  First we went to the usual haunts, enjoying Rothko, Matisse, Giacometti, Duchamps and Mondrain.  Then Burton!  No photos, but it was exciting to see so much diverse work from a living icon of our time.  From illustrations to models to papers written in grammar school it was like touring around Tim Burton’s brain for a little while.  Color, wonder and weirdness assaulted your eyes from every direction; you could barely take in one image before your eye forced your brain onto the next.  I come away still not knowing what half the stuff was that I saw…but I know I liked it.

Lastly, we were privileged enough to see Marina Abramovic’s exhibition The Artist is Present which completely blew my mind.  Comprised mostly of performance art, this exhibition encouraged both the viewer and performer to engage in the piece.  The piece in the atrium of the museum was the largest and most elaborate installation.  Marina herself sat nearly motionless behind a simple square table; the chair across from her was rendered empty until an audience member occupied it, sitting as statuesque and silent at the artist.  The viewer then became the art, testing boundaries of communication, voyeurism and human interaction.  On the top floor was the full exhibition (no photos allowed), a chronological exhibition of Abramovic’s work.  The highlight for me was a performance piece of a man and woman, both nude, standing in a doorway no more than 6 inches apart.  Audience members were encouraged to walk through the doorway, in turn walking through the people where contact with both was inevitable.  My accepted human boundaries were shattered as I passed through, yet it was never uncomfortable or awkward.  I found it interesting that with the exception of one woman, every person I watched pass through (myself included) had their back to the man.  It would be an interesting study to see the percentage of people facing the man versus the woman. 

In all it was a great day in the city. I shot this last photo out my car window on the way home, a nice way to end things I think.  Now I look forward to seeing Body Worlds 2 at the Franklin Institute in Phila. this weekend!

Go Confidently in the direction of your Dreams…

 I haven’t posted anything in a while, it seems all of my energy was going towards the Opening Reception for the Gallery 13.  But it was well worth it!  Opening night was a huge success and kind of a surreal moment for me…I’m still reeling from it.  I can’t believe I was a part of it, not just attending it or supporting my friends. I was part of what this event was centered around.  Friends even traveled hours just to support me this new venture. 

It was like a dream. 

When I was little I used to watch this show called  Kidsongs at some ungodly hour of the morning.  It was all about these kids who found this old tv station, gave it a facelift, fixed it all up and broadcast basically MTV for kids.  I still remember singing along to John-Jacob-Jingle-Heimer-Schmidt as wholesome looking soft-focused people rode a hayride through town picking up people as they went.  I remember thinking how great it would be to build something from scratch, the feeling of satisfaction after putting in the labor and hard work to create something new and exciting as an outlet for my passion.   And here I’ve done it. Of course I don’t take all the credit.  I couldn’t have hand picked three better partners than John Vigg, Brandi Grooms-Johnson and Mike Damon; their talent and vision help push me to make this gallery work. 

Something I learned from this experience is that it’s time I faced the fact that I don’t have to be the shy, slouching and ungainly little girl I have viewed myself as for so long. It seems I am living my life as the bright confident person that I’ve worked so hard to create and I’d better start believing it.  Even when those familiar feelings of inadequacy, social awkwardness or ineptitude start to creep in I need to remind myself that being confident in who I am has gotten me here, to opening night of our gallery.  I’m doing things in my life that I’ve always wanted but never thought I was – for lack of a better phrase – good enough to deserve.

It’s time I started living the life I always imagined. 

I am, after all, the only one in charge of my destiny.

One of the images I sold at our opening!