Graffiti Wall – Alice in Wonderland Update

Our family saw Alice in Wonderland this past weekend… favorite line: “I think I must be bonkers”… the response “all the best people are”.

On Tuesday, March 6, the Alice in Wonderland graffiti wall on Market Street, downtown Tacoma was finally completed! I was able to capture pictures of their progress and then the final masterpiece. You can see the first stage here, if you missed it.

As far as I could tell there was a total of 4 working on this wall at various times.

They have amazing talent and we are blessed to have them share it with us.

I have enjoyed watching the images develop and transform.

Just when I think they are done with a section, I come back the next day to find more detail added.

Up close and personal with art…

… the last time we saw these guys they had light green clothing on…

And drum roll please… it’s finally done and it’s AMAZING!!!  Grab some coffee next door at Satellite or a smoothy at Smooth&Juicey… Joe says the PB&J smoothy is to die for!

The detail is just incredible.

… so cool! What a masterpiece, don’t you think?

Some of the same artists painted the characters from the movie UP on the graffiti garages down on Broadway … you might want to check those out too, but they are filled with cars during the week, so wait for the weekend and maybe you will catch some new pieces as the artists are developing them.

Awesome work!!!! Can’t wait to see more.

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Graffiti – It’s My Favorite!

I know I have told you this before, but I will tell you again, I have always loved art. It’s just in my blood. As a child I remember wanting to take painting classes down by Titlow Beach, but that just never happened. I continued my love through the years in the form of pencil drawings, charcoals and pastels. I quit for a long time, but that changed when my kids were young and I saw that they enjoyed watching me draw cartoons for them. It became a tradition while on vacations for me to draw cartoons and have them color them. I enjoyed doing it and they loved getting them. I have not looked at an art book or picked up a pencil to draw in over a year now, but I have admired other’s art and I could sit and watch artists paint all day. I would probably freak them out, the weird lady that is always watching… so I don’t linger long :)…

This past weekend I got word that the Market Street Graffiti wall was being revamped. This is just one of the walls I use for my portraits. I love the colors and admire the artist’s pieces.

When I arrived they were well on their way…

This wall looked like this the last time I saw it…

I have used it many, many times!

I love that I now have a new wall to work with…

I even got a chance to talk to a few of the artists. My question to them… how do you feel when another artist comes and covers over your piece? These same artists also worked on the graffiti garages (look here, here, here and here) I use and their work is covered much more often in those areas.

The answer… it’s hard to think about all the work that goes into a piece and then it simply gets painted over by the next person who comes along… it is ok with them as long as the replacement is another quality piece and they try to improve on it.

This wall is owned by Thane, so does not get changed until he arranges it. Nice to know this will not get ruined anytime soon.

I am always curious about the paint that they use, it is so bright!

Among the paint… another love of mine… coffee… Satellite coffee! Right on the other side of this wall is Satellite and Smooth ‘N Juicey (in this case that is the correct spelling). You should definitely check them out! Good stuff!

I will miss the old one…

but will look forward to using the new one!

I might run down later today and see if it’s finished yet… will post an update if it is :D.

P.S. I encourage you to find what YOU love and incorporate it into your photography! It’s a good way to bring out your originality and be different! Enjoy! 😉

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Natalie – Ballet and Child Portrait Session

Meet Natalie, she is a dancer at the ballet school with Amanda and after her mom saw Amanda’s ballet session she booked me to do the same thing for Natalie. I loved so many images that it was almost impossible to whittle it down for the blog. I wanted to post them all!

I stared at this image for a while. The backlight is just so soft and the shape of her leg… so pretty.

Love the colors in the art and her dress.

I have fun looking for artistic graffiti. It’s highly requested in my sessions.

Natalie was a natural in front of the camera and had a ton of fun. Amanda came along to help me and keep her company and Natalie’s mom, Shelly, the sweetest lady! She carried the wardrobe bag around the entire time. I think she had just as much fun as we did.

Here it is again, that classic black and white head shot that everyone needs.

As soon as the rain died down we headed outside… I just love downtown Tacoma. The picture possibilities are endless! Who needs a studio when you have a whole city!

Her vintage looking ballet dress was simply beautiful and I loved it so much we used it for much of the shoot!

Since it was still a little misty we decided to use an umbrella in some of the images and they ended up being some of my favorites.

Pointe shoes can be tricky to master on the ground, but even more tricky up on a pedestal high above the ground! This was Amanda’s idea and she helped her get her pointe shoes on, so Natalie didn’t lose her balance.

In my top 5 favorite images…

I have always admired the Spanish Stairs next to the old Elk’s building. I have watched them deteriorate over the years and it is sad. Many of the small stone columns are no longer standing, but the stairs are still grand to me. I love how they change with the season. In the Fall they have leaves littering the ground, but in the winter and early spring there is moss. It is a popular place for local photographers.

After taking this shot and seeing it at home on the computer, Joe said to me, hey that is the exact spot we used in our band photo (back in the best era of all times, the 80’s)… I think he is actually standing on the same step that Natalie is sitting on.

I have more… so many more to show you…

This is Amanda’s favorite…

I didn’t plan on using my ice cream chair in this shoot, but it came in handy with such a wet ground.

We headed down to a nearby parking lot to get a few more… can you say 80’s!!!

In fact, it oddly reminds me of someone else in the 80’s! 😀 Gotta love it! Sorry Joe, I know I will be sorry for this… be kind :).

This is one of Joe’s favorites.

What a great day!

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Montgomery Family – Family Portraits

Meet the Montgomery Family, staring Sara, Zach, Ava and Olivia. We had such a great time!

As soon as we made it to our destination the rain came… but knowing that this sweet family took so much time in preparing for the day, there was no way we were turning back and I am so glad we didn’t.

Sara is a photographer and we met at a MeRa Koh photography workshop a few years back. We have stayed in contact since and I was honored that she wanted me to take their family portraits.

This family brought colorful clothes, chairs, scarves and lollipops for the kids. I can’t stress enough how much color brings out an image. I just have a love fest going on with it right now… maybe because it makes me feel cheerfully good!

These sisters were priceless!

Ava is the oldest and loves the camera!

Olivia is full of laughter and joy!

Sara and Zach met on a blind date… so sweet…

We found a great garage to duck into to get out of the rain… graffiti everywhere!

I love that my daughter is taking interest in my photography. The pink lollipop shining through the black and white was her idea. Love it!

Love this shot too! So fun!

Sharing between sisters… you have to click on this one and look at the larger image… it is just precious!

Olivia, Olivia… can I kiss ya!!

Ava’s eyes just sparkle…

Beautiful soft colors.

Go ahead melt my heart…

There are so many images I want to share with you! Just love them all!! Just a few more, ok :).

Mom with her girls.

Dad with his girls.

I know, cute right!

What a fun day… has to be one of my favorite shoots! I think I say that a lot :).

Joe is always so amazing with kids on these shoots! We could hear the kids yelling “bye Joe” out the window as they drove off… how cute is that!

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My Favorite Day in 2009

Since today is my birthday, I started to reflect on this past year. There were days I would rather forget in that time period, but other days that were magical. I decided to blog about the number one magical day in 2009 to celebrate my 44th year… can’t believe I am already 44!!

Back in May Joe had this great idea to go to New York again, but just the two of us this time. It had been a long time since just the 2 of us had been on a vacation together. So, he sold a guitar and off we went… to New York City!

We met up with some great friends, Melissa and Brad for the first few days and visited sites we had never seen before. Brad hates getting his picture taken, can you tell by how excited he looks in this one! Too funny!

Our first stop, the Empire State Building.

It was a foggy and wet day, so there was absolutely NO ONE in line. If you have ever been to NYC and waited in this line, you will appreciate that there was really no one in line this day! We were told the whole way up that there was zero visibility on the top, but we continued anyway and when we reached the top, the fog started to lift…

We walked around a couple times, then suddenly we stopped. Joe took his backpack off, opened the top compartment and pulled out 2 small blue boxes wrapped with white ribbon. I was confused for a second and then Joe explained that we were renewing our vows… well, from then on I was a mess! Brad is a pastor, so performed the ceremony and Joe read vows he had written for me. I unwrapped the little blue box, to find a white gold band with the words Tiffany inscribed on it. He placed it on my finger and I did the same for his and we… kissed… Melissa was quick to grab my camera and get a shot for me…

What a kiss!

That was day 1 of a wonderful second honeymoon! We escaped from the reality of the world and embraced what was really important to us, that we were together, having fun, enjoying each and every moment and kissing a lot!

We walked in the rain…

Road the subway everywhere, saw museums, a broadway play, shopped on Canal street for purses, watches and scarves, ate good food…

And visited the sites…

It was all magical…

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Amanda and Bailey – Child Portraits

Bailey is my daughter’s friend. She is a kind, loving child and is always laughing. Her and Amanda love hanging out together. Even though it was pouring rain all day we took advantage of a few minutes when it wasn’t raining and took some pictures of them.

They are both ballerinas and I thought it would be fun to get some shots away from the studio.

Love this one!

Before the rain hit, we also managed to get a few other images captured.

We had a great time together. I love that Amanda begs to go on photo shoots! It wasn’t that long ago that she dreaded me dragging her out, so I stopped. Now, she is begging ME. Nice change of events! Now to get that to happen with my son, I don’t think so!

I will end with a typical Bailey… happy and laughing! The movement in this image helps tell the story, don’t you think!

Thanks girls! xoxoxo

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Abby – Senior Portrait

Abby is a special girl and I was honored to take her senior pictures. I have taken pictures of her family before, but now this time it was all devoted to sweet Abby.

She has a quiet spirit about her, but if you become her Facebook friend you discover a whole other side to her. Hee hee…

The fall colors can’t be beat right now.

Funny what you can find to use in a portrait session. We found a “storage” yard on the side of the street in downtown Tacoma. I love how junk can look good in a photo! Abby helps by being so darn cute!

Another cute image of Abby. I was so glad it wasn’t raining so I could get some shots on the ground. This time of year it is a little hard to predict what the weather will be like on the scheduled shoot day, but it worked out for us this day!

I’m into scarves right now… been wearing them every day. Back in May Joe and I escaped to New York City and on Canal Street there are tons of vendors selling purses, watches and scarves. I packed about 10 purses in my suitcase and at least 20 scarves (yes, some were for friends!).

I recently had a friend ask where I go to take my senior portraits… my answer… anywhere! Really, you can do a portrait session anywhere! I find most my locations while driving around to other events. I especially love graffiti walls. This one is on 6th Ave. in Tacoma. It changes every once in a while, so I can get different images at different times of the year, so cool. This is one of my favorite images of Abby. It just shows her personality so well.

Love this image as well. Her eyes pierce right through you!

Simply beautiful…

Hugs to you sweetie… loved hanging out with you like always!

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Marlayna – Sr. Portrait

Marlayna is another fun Bellarmine Sr. and has a full ride scholarship for her awesome volleyball skills. So cool! I love hanging out with seniors!! She was a sweetheart and full of joy! Beauty in all directions.

I love the softness and the colors of this image…

Wind… love it!

This was one of my favorites. It’s the perspective… the wild nature of it.

Can you see the pink streak in Marlayna’s hair? What a beauty… love the contrast…

The sunshine spilling on Marlayna in just the right spot is peaceful to me.

My friend the wind in perfect form again.

I have always loved art. As a child I spent many days and nights drawing, painting, making something… and today I find that photography fulfills the artist in me. Angles, colors, lighting… it all plays a part to the feel of the overall image.

A picture tells a story, evokes an emotion… this one is happy, tells me that she has the whole world ahead of her and that she is ready to make a difference, to be that light.

Thanks again for letting me share this with you, for wanting to share it with me. It is truly part of my heart and soul.
xoxoxo

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Carly – 8th Grade Promotion

Carly was a ton of fun along with her sister, Marissa, from the last post. Wait until you see their sister shots – too cute!

Carly was full of personality and willing to do whatever I asked, even get into the “jungle” leaves!

At times, she was way beyond her years…

This looks familiar :).

Love how her personality shines through, just carefree Carly.

Poppies, poppies….

Sunshine is our friend!

It’s all about the attitude!

Next up – sister pics… until then… one more beautiful shot of Carly!

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Marissa – Sr. Portrait

It’s been a busy week – my phone has been dead for days and I haven’t opened my computer in over a week… that is a good thing!

Marissa, another Bellarmine grad, was one of 2 sisters I photographed. We had a great 3 hours session shooting the girls individually and together. We were exhausted by the end, but had so much fun together!

The girls looked so much alike at times that is took me a while to separate the shots outs. Marissa has gorgeous light eyes with beautiful thick blonde hair.

Laughter is the natural state for Marissa, so getting a serious one took concentration, but it was worth it!

Loved the little yellow flowers… we found them in the front lawn of someone’s house and just plopped right down to take a few shots.

A few quiet moments.

Another close up on those beautiful eyes of Marissa’s!

I will leave you with one more shot of our senior… with her whole life ahead of her!

{{hugs}}

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