Urban Lifestyle | Fashion Shoot

Check out some of the great images we got from this weekends Urban Lifestyle photo shoot! All of the necessary elements finally came together for a successful production. We had amazing talent provided by Evolution Talent Agency, clear skies (finally!) and lots of behind the scenes help - thanks crew! Stay tuned for more behind the scenes footage taken by LaStoria Productions along with photos from what can only be described as one epic cake fight, ha ha - enjoy!

Charlotte Headshot Photographer | Featured Talent

Another successful headshot session with Michael, a new actor with Evolution Talent Agency here in town. Michael has a great vintage "rockabilly" look. I could totally see him doing a greaser movie - how cool would that be! 

Urban Fashion Shoot | Sneak Peak!

In case you've been curious about what I've been up to lately, here's an image from a shoot I did earlier this week with Amanda from Evolution Talent Agency. We did a few shots from a location we scouted last week and are planning a fun urban fashion inspired shoot this Saturday. Stay tuned for more updates!

Charlotte Headshots | Featured Talent

Posting a few images from a fun shoot with Taylor from Evolution Talent Agency for her new comp card. Taylor has that perfect natural beauty and easy going smile. I'm excited to see what kind of jobs she'll be booking with her new headshots - keep us posted Taylor! 

Actors & Models | Headshots

Here's the latest from another great shoot with one of Evolution Talent Agency's newest actors, Thomas. Tom's easy going nature and sense of humor really made for an easy shoot with lots of great images to choose from. Good luck on you upcoming auditions Tom!

Cinemagraphs | Amazing Moving Imagery!

So if you've been following the blog you might remember me talking about partnering with a video production crew (La Storia). Well here's the latest from a shoot we did on Sunday. RC and Geoff were amazing and really hit this one out of the park. Not to mention our lovely model from Evolution Talent who braved one of the coldest and windiest days this year - thanks for braving it Kayla! 

These are called Cinemagraphs or moving GIFs which combine still imagery with video to create stills with subtle movement. These were first pioneered in 2009 by visual graphics artist Kevin Burg but it wasn't until he partnered with photographer Jamie Beck that the cinemagraph was born. Check out more of their amazing moving imagry at: www.cinemagraphs.com  

Below you can see some of the stills we captured in the Smelly Cat Coffeehouse earlier that day. Stay tuned for the video that follows.

Fashion Shoot | Behind the scenes video!

Is the winter weather getting you down? Go behind the scenes with me and my crew as I photograph one of my favorite models on a beautiful beach in Ocean Isle, NC. You'll have to forgive the shakiness at times, as this was our first attempt at capturing "behind the scenes" footage (thanks Michelle!). This was also my first (and hopefully last) attempt at editing video footage; not exactly one of my strengths. With that said I am happy to announce that I'll be meeting with the folks over at La Storia who I will hopefully be partnering with on some very exciting projects in the near future - yay! Do check them out, they have some great footage posted on Vimeo. See some of the still shots below and on the website.

Year of the Dragon | 2012 Goals

It's that time of year again where you start setting goals for the New Year and hoping that this time you'll stick with them. Well, last year went better than expected and I'm hoping that by posting these I will now be held accountable by the will of the universe and maybe a few loyal followers...Bueller?  And, being that the Chinese New Year was celebrated on Monday (Jan. 23rd) it has come to my attention that it is the Year of the Dragon. Curious to what that meant I did a little research only to find out that the this year only has a 60% favorable rating - bummer! But according to the report if I keep my chin up and put myself out there things could be looking pretty good. Oh, yeah and I need to make a budget...better add that to the list!

2012 GOALS

Business:

• shoot new work! 
• produce a shoot out of state
• make new promo cards
• create a year long marketing campaign/plan
• design & send email promos
• build Agency Access contact list (fashion, apparel, editorial, portraits)
• design & implement a creative mailer for select agencies (25-50)
• work on a printed book (portfolio)
• network with more industry professionals
• travel more
• enter a photo contest
• get published in a national magazine
• get business organized through QB
• plan & implement tax payment schedule (sales & use/estimated quarterly)
• meet with my CPA throughout the year to stay on track
• update QB weekly
• research ITEX barter system
• find a good wardrobe stylist
• attend 2012 PDN PHOTO EXPO
• check out an art gallery
• organize an industry wide mixer
• organize APA Portfolio Review
• meet with a photo consultant
• setup meetings with local AD Agencies

Personal:

• start exercising 2-3x week
• start going to yoga again
• work on being more positive
• keep in touch better with friends & family
• wash my car a least 2x this summer
• get two window boxes
• finish building the front & back pergolas
• finish staining the deck
• host a few house parties
• go on our honeymoon!
• MAKE A BUDGET (and follow it, of course!)

The wonders of technology | iPhone Collage

To quote the fantastic Chase Jarvis "The Best Camera is the one you have with you" - agreed. Here's a look back on the last two years collecting iPhone photos tweaked with my two favorite apps Hipstamatic and Instagram. Now you can see what's most important to me...food, fun, friends and more food?...ENJOY!

2011 Goals Revisited

Despite 2011 being quite the whirlwind of activity with a wedding to plan (albeit in our backyard), lofty marketing goals and a laundry list of outdoor activities; all in all it turned out to be a fairly productive year. And so it is that last year has come and gone and it's time to clean out the preverbal closet and find out just how much progress we've made and what still needs doing. Here's a look back on last year's goals.

2011 GOALS

Business:

• shoot new work! produce one new portfolio shoot a month (ok, so maybe a little too ambitious)
• plan at least 3 shoots out of state (still want to do this!)
• update website with new and existing work
• launch "wedding website" site & blog
• re-brand my blog
• update my blog regularly - use to post new work (getting better at this!)
• make new business cards (finally!)
• make new promo cards
• create marketing campaign (must do!)
• create email blasts
• build Agency Access contact list (working on it)
• send out at least 1,000+ email blasts/marketing campaigns
• brainstorm a creative mailer for select agencies (25-50+)
• start networking with other modeling & talent agencies
• network with more industry professionals
• travel more
• enter a photo contest (eek!)
• get published 

Personal:

• finish reading "Three Cups of Tea" & "Crush it" 
• start reading "Water for Elephants"
• start swimming & biking 2-3x week (running 1-2x week...)
• start going to yoga again
• work on being more positive (always need to work on this!)
• start writing in a journal 
• keep in touch better with friends & family
• finish landscaping the front flowerbeds
• add new mulch to existing plants & beds
• start working on the new back patio (so awesome now!)
• replace the cellar door
• finish fencing the back yard
• build a chicken coop! (ha ha, I don't know what I was thinking here!)
• wash my car a least 2x this summer (ugh?)
• paint the outside of the house
• get two window boxes
• complete patio project before summer
• get house re-appraised after completed work
• set a wedding date
• find a wedding venue, dress, photog etc…
• send out invites
• get pets up to date on shots
• take a vacation (can't believe we still haven't done this!!!)