Bye bye 2011!

Whoa, end of 2011 and I haven't paid any attention to this blog since AUGUST?!! I knew it had been awhile since I posted, but Jiminey Cricket, 6 whole months?!!! wow...

I blame Crackbook, I mean, Facebook.
I guess that makes my New Year's Resolution pretty obvious, huh? To post more often (THAT shouldn't be too difficult!) so that rumors of my demise won't start back up again - really, I PROMISE.

It was a FABulous year filled with great experiences and wonderful clients - many thanks! I'm looking forward to a splendid new year overflowing with possibilities and creative adventures!

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year filled with love, laughter, enlightenment and prosperity!

Studio Senior Portrait Sessions

I confess: I LOVE shooting in the studio! Yeah, yeah, I know we live in one of the most beautiful places in the country, and I DO love shooting location sessions, but a studio session really gets my creative juices flowing in a special way, lol! I've been studying lighting for (*ahem*) decades, always examining stunning fashion images to decipher how they created that amazing ambiance, that spectacular "look" to the final photo. I've accumulated quite the aresenal of studio lighting and LOVE to play with my "toys"!


If you choose a Designer Studio Session for your Senior Portraits, you won't lack variety, that's for sure - plus, since I'm having a good time, I guarantee YOU will be having a great time as well! I insist that you bring ALL your favorite clothing (don't forget those important accessories like jewelry and fabulous shoes!) AND your own ideas - I get excited when Seniors bring in pages from magazines they want to recreate or want the same "feel" for their portraits! (I love a challenge! Bring it on!)


Another advantage of a Studio Session is that you are not at the mercy of the weather - it doesn't matter if it's too hot or too windy! It's always pleasant in the studio, the light is always perfect AND we can play your tunes as loud as you want to! (What's a party without music?!)

Senior Model ADDIE

Senior Model ELIZABETH

Senior Model MAGGIE

Senior Model WENDY

CLASS OF 2012 SENIOR MODELS

You've probably been seeing them on Facebook, but I'd like to Officially introduce Photosensitive Portraits' Senior Models for the Class of 2012 (all 4 from HRVHS): Addie, Elizabeth, Maggie and Wendy! 

I've been working with these lovely young women all summer, shooting both in the studio and on location, to create fabulous images and not so coincidentally, have alot of fun doing it! Don't take my word for it - ask any of these women how they enjoyed their photo session. I bet the first thing they do is smile!

EVERYONE deserves GREAT Senior portraits!

Just a heads up, Class of 2012! You don't have to make do with a snapshot as your image for your yearbook. Really, is that the way you want to be remembered?! You CAN afford a professionally crafted, beautifully rendered portrait that showcases your personality and unique style! Contact me to arrange a visit and find out exactly what's possible and how much fun we can have creating it just for YOU!

Seniors 2012!

NOW is the time to book your Senior Portraits - the weather is Gorge-ous in August and September for location shooting, plus you're still sporting your summer tan! (Of course, you can choose a studio session as well - it's ALWAYS a good day for shooting at Photosensitive Portraits' studio.) 

Need more enticement? What if I told you that anyone booking their Senior Portrait Session between NOW and August 31st will get a $50 Print Credit? Yep, 50 bucks extra to spend! 

Contact me via email, Facebook or be old-fashioned and call me at 541-490-7132! Don't forget to share this great deal with your friends - who couldn't use an extra 50 bucks?!!

A Chance Encounter

I was sitting on my deck with a friend, enjoying the after-glow of a long hike when she remarked how colorful the sunset sky was becoming. I know a photo cue when I hear one, so I went inside the house, grabbed my camera and walked to the corner for an unobstructed view of Mt. Hood and the sunset. There we met up with fellow sunset chasers, Christina and her young daughter. 

Now landscape photography is not my usual thing and I greatly admire those who do it well - I do not include myself in that category! But with such a scene before us, it was not difficult to capture some of Nature's glory. Since I'm first and foremost a people photographer, I naturally gravitated to Christina's charming daughter - I honestly like my quickie portrait of her far more than my shot of Mt. Hood, lol!

Plays For Non-Profits - To Kill A Mockingbird

August 4th at 8pm is opening night for To Kill A Mockingbird at the Columbia Center for the Arts in Hood River; the show will run Thursday through Saturday for two weeks, closing on August 13th. It's a compelling story with a terrific cast - and if that weren't enough to get you into a seat, Plays For Non-Profits is donating all proceeds to Hood River County Libraries. Enjoy a night of great theatre AND help keep a beloved institution up and running!


I had the good fortune to be put in touch with Mockingbird's director, Lynda Dallman, and collaborate with her on creating portraits of her actors. What drew me to the project was that Lynda didn't want your everyday, run-of-the-mill headshots - she wanted to create images of the actors IN CHARACTER and invoke the more dramatic, high contrast, black & white portraits of the 30s and 40s. Just my cup of tea! Over the course of a week I worked with the actors, both at the theatre (setting up on location) and in my studio - everyone was so wonderful to work with, taking care to project their character's essence at my camera. Above are the final portraits - you can also see them on display in the theatre lobby when you attend this fine show!


(A special thanks to Jean Marie Davis and Kate Dougherty - without you two, this project would never have happened!)

Modelicious Mia!

Creating portraits of small children is an exercise in patience and creativity - I sometimes think you need to be part Gandhi and part Bozo the Clown, with the lightening reflexes of a gunslinger, lol! Little Mia here put me through my paces and you know what? I'm happy and excited and thrilled about it! There's nothing I like better than playing in my studio, being silly and goofy, all in the name of great portraits...have I mentioned this is my dream job?!!

Mia will be back again at the end of August for her 1st Birthday Cake Smash portrait session - forecast is for a Major Silly Front, Covered by Frosting and Cake Crumbs!

Finally SUMMER!

Even though today is a bit cool and overcast, I am delighted to report that SUMMER has finally made an appearance in Hood River! I have only to stroll through my garden - made oh so gorgeous by the constant efforts of my green-thumbed husband - to see the evidence. Not only are so many flowers in bloom (daisies, day lilies, echinacea, primroses, lobelia, hostas...), but our vegetable garden is pumping out tomatoes, eggplants and peppers like there's no tomorrow! (why YES, I love to eat/cook Mediterranean!) We've been enjoying tomatoes for quite some time now, but not until today did I feel the Japanese eggplants were large enough to begin harvesting. My first cull yielded a lovely basket full - I see an eggplant stir-fry for today's lunch and a big ol' batch of caponata for later, yummy!

Gonna use Mario Batali's recipe from the Food Network website - I'll let ya know how well it turns out!

TWINS!

What's my absolutely favorite job perk being a portrait photographer? It's got to be cradling a young baby in my arms, watching their eyes explore the amazing new world that surrounds them, snuffling that powdery baby smell and just losing myself in the optimism that a child represents...what's better than that? TWINS, lol!

Presenting Jordan and Derek, 2 months old fraternal twin boys; I had the pleasure of working with their mom several years ago, creating her senior portraits. Needless to say, I was pleased and humbled that she thought to bring her precious boys to me for their first formal portraits. Since she's planning on bringing them back for 6 months and one year sessions, you will be seeing more of these handsome little men!

Beautiful Women Run in This Family!

Mary is a friend through Soroptimist International of Hood River, and I was thrilled when she asked me to create portraits of her and her three lovely daughters. The occasion was that her oldest had just had her first baby (first grandchild, yah!) AND was visiting from Papau, New Guinea, where she and her husband are currently working (and will be for the next two years at least)! Talk about making my job EASY - all three daughters are beautiful, graceful and photogenic women!( They most definitely take after their gorgeous mother.) I also had a chance to create portraits of the new parents with THEIR daughter - I'm quite excited about having the baby back in the studio come the holidays, when the young family will visit again!) Mary wanted simple, black and white portraits and I was pleased to help her make her wishes come true...

 






































Last 2011 Senior!

Ericka is a graduate of Columbia High School in White Salmon, WA - apparently they have a MUCH later yearbook photo due date than HRVHS, lol! (I guess it didn't hurt that she was on the yearbook staff, huh?!) Anyhoodle, she came to my studio a couple months ago (yes, I am still playing catch up on my blog postings, I'm pathetic, I know!) and we had a blast! Rarely do I meet a teen so over- flowing with laughter and good humor - Ericka is brimming with both! 

I wish her - and all the current graduating classes - the very best of summers and a fabulous future ahead!

Huzzah for the Class of 2011!!!

(Yah, I am soooo far behind on blog posts it's not funny anymore...I confess to spending far too much of my time on that giant attention-sucking monster than is FaceBook, lol! Beautiful summer weather is FINALLY here, so I am more likely to spend less time sitting in front of the computer, thus cutting down the time available for playing around on FB...so, in an effort to better manage my online time, I vow to create and post more timely blog entries - wish me luck!)

 Where was I? Oh right, giving 3 cheers to and offering thanks for the graduating Class of 2011! Wishing you the very best of summers and all good fortune as you make your way out into the world! Many thanks to those of you who chose Photosensitive Portraits to create your Senior Portraits - it was a privilege and a delight to work with you and create memories for your senior year!

It's Tea Time!

Ladies and Gentlemen, Children of All Ages, come one, come all! Enjoy afternoon tea and cakes in the Columbia Gorge Hotel's Wonderland Garden! Wear your Maddest hats and come frolic in this fairytale event! Live music will enhance your experience of the flower and plant demonstrations, silent auction and Maddest Hat Contest! Get your picture taken having tea with the Mad Hatter himself - or Alice or the March Hare if you prefer!

The Tea Party runs from 2pm to 4pm, this Sunday, May 15th - tickets are $20 and are available at Waucoma Bookstore in Hood River or Klindt's bookstore in The Dalles.


It's all going to be jolly good fun and all for a Very Good Cause. The Tea Party is a fundraiser for Opportunity Connections, a local organization with more than 40 years of experience in maximizing potential for people with developmental disabilities. Learn more about their history and beneficial progams at their website, www.OpportunityConnections.org - you'll be glad you did!


Photosensitive Portraits is proud to partner with Opportunity Connections in this fabulous and fun event! You can choose to have your portrait created with Alice herself, the Mad Hatter (NOT Johnny Depp, I checked!), or the March Hare; you will receive a 5x7 custom print in exchange for $20. (Just think of how much fun future generations will have pondering such a family heirloom?!!) Proceeds from print sales will be donated to the programs of Opportunity Connections.


So c'mon down and get yer Tea Party on! See you there!

Hood River Valley High School PROM  = OPEN STUDIO at Photosensitive Portraits!

Just because I received so many requests from seniors asking me to take Prom photos, I've decided to hold an Open Studio event from 4pm to 8pm this Saturday. (yah, I'm a little bit of a pushover...) No appointment necessary, walk on in and let's create something fabulous for you as a memento of this special night!

A Sparkling Jewel of a Young Woman

While recuperating from my knee surgery (what, I didn't tell you? nothing major, a little arthroscopic clean up of some loose cartilage in my left knee - I'm getting better every day, thanks for asking!), I've had the chance to catch up on some work. My current endeavors are all about the gorgeous, sparkling Ruby! Soooooo many wonderful images from her senior sessions (yep, did studio AND location sessions and she rocked them both!), I gave her Mom quite a challenge when it came time to narrow down her favorites, lol! (sorry, Mom.) Thought I'd share a couple with you here, just as the Class of 2011 is about to say farewell and the Class of 2012 assumes the mantle of SENIOR class...

Squirrel!

I HAD to snap a few pictures when I spotted this squirrel hanging by a few toes on our bird feeder this morning, lol! I was laughing too hard to take a photo as I watched him try to climb back UP the bird feeder, which obviously wasn't going to happen. The strong wind swirling the feeder around wasn't helping his cause any! Finally I saw him tense, look down and then go for it! He made a mad dash for the other side of the yard, but was back again on the bird feeder within minutes - determined little bugger! Guess it's time for a new, more squirrel-proof feeder!