Isn't she BEAUTIFUL???? This is the lovely Miss R. We have been friends since we were super awesome Junior High'ers! Cool, right??? 

The last few times I've been back to Colorado to visit, we've tried to link up and create some awesome Headshots for her. Well, this time the stars aligned, and we were able to not only grab some breakfast beforehand, but we had enough time to do this fun shoot....AND she even showed me around the Arts District in Denver, and some of the lovely seedier sides ;) 

I love when I get to shoot with friends! Not only does it make it seem even less like work for me, but they're usually up for anything! And she was up for anything! She even climbed through bricks and rubble....IN HEELS! That's mad skills right there (as I can't even walk 2 steps on a flat surface without falling in them!). Then, as if a fun Business session wasn't enough, she had the brilliant idea of grabbing her bike, her basket, a wonderfully big hat, and some beautiful flowers! YES!!!!! Creative friends are the BEST friends to have!!

If you're looking for some fun and creative/out of the box Headshots, then email me! I'm always up for a fun adventure :)

 I believe that I have the skills, the ability, and the chance to make a difference. Maybe not a HUGE difference, maybe not something that will change the world. But I believe that I can make a difference to ONE person. And, really, that's all it takes. Because then that person will go on and make a difference for someone else....and so on, therefore creating a domino effect. 
 When I started my Photography journey, I didn't know what I wanted to do. No, scratch that....I had an IDEA of what I wanted to do. I wanted to shoot Boudoir. That was it. I tried the newborn/baby thing....loved the cuddling, couldn't get into all that goes in to it. I tried children....decided that, while I adore them, it's enough work chasing my own around that I didn't really want to chase everyone else's, too. Those niche's didn't make my heart sing....they didn't leave me walking away with a giant smile on my face after all was said and done. I knew I had to find what it was that made me tick. I already knew my love of Tattoos, and Urban Spaces, and Graffiti would be a big part of what makes my artistic side tick....but I knew that there had to be something in there that involved people, too. 
 When I shot my first Boudoir session....I fell in love. I fell in love with EVERY aspect of it. But the part that touched me the most.....was that I was showing these women how beautiful they are. I was allowing them to see that they are MORE than a Mom, a Wife, a Friend....they are BEAUTIFUL.
 The first thing I tell women when they tell me how nervous they are is: "You sit back, have fun, and let me show YOU how awesome you are".  And I take that "job" very seriously. To me, it's so much more than a job. It's the way I make a difference in someone's life. 

 With the new year approaching, I knew I could do better. I knew I could do so much more. I want to go beyond these beautiful women. I'm planning on extending into Men, too. Men struggle just as much as women do....maybe even a *little* bit more. Because they've been told that Men don't "feel" that way. But, you know what....their self-image can be just as negative as any woman's. I believe that every person should feel their best. I don't care if you're a Woman, a Man, or a Giant Blue Hippopotamus! You've only got one you.....it should be the best one possible. So, Men......your voices aren't ignored. 

 But, again, I knew there was another road for me, too. This one presented itself about 3 months ago. I was talking with a fellow Mom friend of mine about the struggles our kids face. She happens to have one at the very awkward age of 13, and the things she was saying made me realize how difficult it is to be a teenager. Sure, it was difficult for me growing up....I didn't fit in, no matter how desperately I wanted to. Oh LORD could I tell you some horribly embarrassing stories of my awkward youth (that, thankfully I can now look back on with laughter!)....but, they seem like child's play to some of the issues Teens and Tweens face today. The biggest issue?? Rampant Technology. You either have technology, or you don't. And if you don't, you're teased and don't fit in. If you do, then you face a whole new world of temptation and problems. I've found that it's not good enough to be happy....you now have to be "depressed" to fit in. It's not about being tall and skinny anymore, it's about who's developing the fastest.  About the only thing I could find that was similar to when I was a teen, was that clothes and shoes still matter!
 It really hurt me to hear that this woman's daughter, and her friends, feel that they have to be "depressed" to fit in. As a person who has lost a dear friend to suicide, that didn't sit well with me at all. I immediately wanted to do something. I felt the same pull I felt when I knew that Women and Men were who I wanted to shoot. 

 So I went into action. I talked to an amazing friend of mine, who also happens to be an AMAZING Photographer (perhaps you know her?? Caitlin of Photography by Caitlin Domanico), and her first words were: Let's Do This. We created the Dream Team....Debs + Caits + Rajna (my equally as amazing Hair and Makeup Lady!). 
 I grabbed a BEAUTIFUL young teen, and told her to pop in on my Blitz day, so that I could take her pictures (not in Blitz fashion, though!!!). And magic happened. She lit up....she smiled, she giggled, she had a good time...and her mother stood back with a big smile on her face as she watched her beautiful daughter FEEL beautiful. I may not have totally changed her self-image.....but I did make her feel great, if even for that one day. And I don't think that's a feeling any of us will forget any time soon.
 Caits and I knew we were doing the right thing. We started brainstorming over every form of communication we could think of....Facebook messages, emails, text messages and Starbucks dates (with her littlest Daughter adding in her 2 cents, of course!). And the "A-List" was born. We pulled some more girls that we knew, talked to their mothers and set up a morning of promo shooting. These girls all shine on a normal basis, but they shined even brighter that day! I can't WAIT to show them their pictures, and I can't wait to share them with all of you, too. 

 So....in 2015, I'm working on making a difference with those who matter most....People. Young and Young at Heart....Female AND Male. And I'm loving ALL of it! (And, hey, Tattoos are just icing on that beautiful cake!)

Don't you just LOVE when an amazing opportunity just falls into your lap?? I know I do! And, boy, did I have an AWESOME one fall from the sky! 
Let me rewind a few months. I had been out in Colorado back in May, which requires the need for a flight (yeesh, a whole big stressful process for me!). As I was flying back home, over Philly, I was staring out the window (I always have to get a window seat, and I press my face up against it, just like a little kid!) and cursing the fact that my ginormous camera was stowed away under the seat in front of me. That view as you fly over the city is just gorgeous! It makes me feel the way I did 10 years ago, when I flew in for the first time. So, I started to imagine how awesome it would be to take a flight around the city and do nothing but take pictures. I told my amazing husband all about it, and how much fun I thought it would be. Well, because he loves me, and knows some pretty awesome people, he emailed a friend of ours about flying me around. Turns out, you CAN'T fly around the city....something about airspace, blah blah blah. Nothing more had been said about it, and I just kind of swept the idea under the rug in my brain. (I tend to hide a lot of ideas under there)
Well, imagine my surprise and joy when, out of the blue, Jeff gets a text from our friend telling us he had a plane, and wanted to know if either of us wanted to go flying!! I was so excited, Jeff didn't stand a chance of going this time! Plans were made, and I was jumping up and down like a little kid!
Usually when it comes to flying, I'm terribly anxious. Like, "I want to cancel all plans, curl up in my bed, and pretend that airplanes don't exist" kind of anxious. But this time, I wasn't anxious at all---ok, ok. Maybe a LITTLE anxious. But that all disappeared once I sat in the plane. I thought for sure I'd be even more terrified, it is a tiny plane after all! But there was no time for terror. It was all so FUN! Our plan was to fly from Northeast Airport and go to Wildwood, fly up the coast then come home. Well, in a VERY happy circumstance, we got to fly around Center City after all!!!!! YAY YAY YAY!!!!!!!! Totally unexpected, and totally awesome!  Its amazing how big the city is from the sky!
Flying the coast was equally as awesome! We had taken a family trip to Wildwood the day before to do the Dolphin watching tour, and hang out on the Pier and Boardwalk, so seeing it all from the air was just the coolest thing ever! 

It was such an awesome experience, and I can't wait to do it again! I've been told that I have to let Jeff go next time.....but there weren't any rules about the time after that! HAHA! Thanks Larry for such a great flight!