Portrait Project – Week 52: Victoria

Well folks, this is the grand finale of my 2012 Portrait Project. I know it is technically a week late, but I hope you’ll agree with me that it was worth it. This shoot is something I’ve been working on since the fall. After a chance meeting with a lovely lady dressed like Effie Trinket at a Halloween party, I knew I had my perfect model. There was no question that I’d be using Elizabeth Terenchin for creating and applying the make-up, especially after the amazing ‘wizard’ she had done for another photo in this series. Unfortunately the weather conspired against us back in December, and today was the only time when all three of us were free.

Special thanks to Victoria, my model; Elizabeth my make-up artist; and Kevin, my amazing fiancé and best photography assistant ever.

This project has been an incredible adventure and learning experience. To everyone who volunteered to be in it, I cannot thank you enough. I couldn’t have made this happen without so many people being willing to jump in front of the camera, several times with little notice. I do have plans for a new and even bigger project for later in 2013. For now, please enjoy week 52′s photo… Victoria the Snow Queen.

Portrait Project – Week 51: Violet

Every time I look at this photo, I erupt into a fit of giggles. Sometimes to the point of tears. I think it is, officially, one of the cutest kid photos I’ve ever taken. This is Violet, and she is too adorable for words. I took photos of her when she was just an itty bitty baby, and I can’t believe how big she is already. I happened to get this shot while doing a session for the whole family this past weekend. As I was editing their session, I kept clicking back to this photo and giggling some more. I really hope you all enjoy this one as much as I do. Seriously, how can anyone look at this photo and not start grinning?

Quick note: The posting of the final photo in the project is going to be slightly delayed. Horrible weather forced me to cancel the shoot at the last minute, and the only day where everyone is free again is January 5th, so we’ll try it again then. Thanks for your patience.

Portrait Project – Week 50: Ethan

I had the pleasure of photographing Ethan and Jessica’s wedding at The Old Mill in Rose Valley recently. One of my favorite shots from the entire wedding is this one, where Ethan sees Jessica coming down the aisle. Moments like these are why I love to photograph weddings.

Congrats to Ethan and Jessica! (And you can see more previews from their wedding on Facebook.)

Portrait Project – Week 49: Marina

You know it’s going to be a fun photoshoot when your model shows up with several hat boxes and a suitcase full of costumes and props. Such was the case with Marina. Since it was a wee bit chilly outside, we opted to do the shoot indoors and create a little studio inside my apartment. I’m really happy with the results. I think Marina looks positively stunning and alluring, and I’m so glad she volunteered for the Portrait Project.

Enjoy!

Portrait Project – Week 48: Triell Freschi

Philadelphia has a surprisingly tight knit ‘geek’ community. After attending a few events here and there, you start to notice familiar faces. One familiar face to many in the area is Triell Freschi, especially if you’re into steampunk or Gothic Lolita fashion. I met and photographed Triell at a Dorian’s Parlor event a while ago, and she’s been following my Portrait Project almost since the beginning. It was clearly only a matter of time before we officially collaborated.

Triell has one of Yaya Han’s awesome My Little Pony sets, and we thought it be fun to do a photoshoot featuring it.

As usual, I’ll be posting more photos from the set to the pix|elation photography Facebook page soon. Enjoy!

Portrait Project – Week 47: Ivan

This resulting photos from this week’s shoot are beyond all my expectations, and I need to thank some people for helping me make it happen. First, I had so many people volunteer to assist with costumes and props, like my dear friend Shang Whaley (thanks for the cloak!). Then, the talented Elizabeth Terenchin agreed to do the make-up. On top of that, I was able to get Ivan Vila to model. And the best boyfriend in the world, my darling Kevin, said he’d help with all the set up and lighting. Together, we made something really cool, if I do say so myself.

Choosing just one photo from a shoot where I took nearly 600 shots was almost impossible. Even Ivan, Elizabeth, and myself couldn’t all agree on one favorite. Needless to say, I’ll be posting several more here and on Facebook eventually. I ended up picking one that I felt showed off Ivan’s talent, Elizabeth’s make-up, and the dynamic lighting set up. For this shot, I had a flash over Ivan’s shoulder (my left), a red-gelled light under the crystal ball, and a reflector (my right).

Hope you like it!

Portrait Project – Week 46: Amy

When I met Amy earlier this year, I knew I had to include her in my portrait project. She’s too adorable for words, and has such a sweet and fun personality. This weekend we made it happen (and I must thank Amy’s three brothers for their assistance in helping me get the location, setting up the lights, moving the furniture, and making Amy laugh).

In terms of the post-processing, I’m really trying to push myself to do treatments that I don’t normally use for traditional portraits or wedding work. This project is about me pushing my boundaries, trying something new, and working outside my comfort zone. I think you can see that last week with Jill’s photo, and here with Amy’s. Hope you all like it!