I do love these sessions but I'd never done a party like this before. V-Day 2012 seemed like the perfect time. Love has been blooming in my life for nearly a year now and I've never felt so relaxed and comfortable in my own skin. I absolutely adore helping other women feel that way. My cohort Marissa Hart joined me in downtown Alton at our gorgeous rented loft and she really made magic happen. See last blog post for before and afters. They are all beautiful to begin with but add a little makeup and some curls plus slip into something sexy and you get images that make clients say "Is that ME!? I didn't know I could look like that!" And the best part? Marissa and I had so much fun. In fact, Marissa posted later to Facebook that spending the day making other ladies feel fabulous made HER feel fabulous. I would have to agree. :)
Marissa primped and primed in the adjacent room while I shot in the beautifully lit main space. It was such a blast. I mean, every photographer who ever writes a blog post says "It was SO MUCH FUNNNNNN!" even when you sweated and slopped through grass and were eaten alive by chiggers and had 1000 other difficult and not fun things happen. What can we say? We're optimists, the lot of us. But this session really WAS fun. We gossiped, listened to Marvin Gaye and Interpol (eclectic mix, much???), drank mimosas, ate chocolate dipped strawberries, and laughed our asses off the whole time. I will admit, to be real, my feet freaking HURT when we got done! I spent the whole day in bare feet climbing on and off of my ladder so I could get the correct angles. Nothing like your photographer hanging off the side of a ladder chanting YES YES YES while she shoots with one hand. ;)
First was Miss B. She was a little nervous. And why not as these were her very FIRST professional pictures ever. I really felt honored to be the one she chose to capture her in this moment. After a little imbibing and some primping, she was ready to take to the set. And this is what happened:
The images were a gift for her boyfriend (possibly now fiance!?) and I hear reports that he's really happy with the custom designed album that came with her session.....
Next up was beautiful Miss M, who came to me with the idea for a 40's pin-up look and man did she run with it! She had it all- gloves, cool hat, gorgeous wardrobe... and then Marissa just killed it with hair and makeup. Check it:
Last up was the stunning Miss N.... who was my partner in crime during most of high school, gave me my first drag off of a cigarette, and we basically just helped ourselves to a load of fun and a little bit of trouble any time we set out in her silver VW Jetta. And as the light faded and I switched from natural light to my flash unit... something amazing happened and I saw that old flame flare in her eyes and she got really really sexy... and her images prove it. These show a bit more skin that what was posted above, so be aware. ;-)
She's smokin'.
This was fun stuff and I am delighted to hear that several of you are interested in getting on the books for parties. And keep in mind, if you DON'T have a group of friends that want to go in with you on a fun party- don't sweat. You can still book a normal session at my normal fee schedule and we'll figure out the details. From shooting it in your clean, well-lit bedroom to renting a hotel or bed and breakfast room for a day- there's lots of options. I've even shot a half naked lady in the back of her friend's cow pasture! Creative muscles well FLEXED, people. ;-)
Until next time!
Chantel
