Commercial Fashion Shoot for Duende Decor Spring Line Release

A Fashion Designer and Etsy Shop Owner looking to make big impact with the release of her new Spring Line.

We travel to a tropical wonderland to give her
unique images sure to sell. 

   Let me start out by making a list.
   I’m jealous of Tiffany for the following reasons:
1- She’s a fashion designer (doesn’t that just sounds so friggin chic to say!?)
2- Kinda off topic, but.... She has long gorgeous hair (hopefully me if I keep growing my hair out for 10 years!)
3- She’s got adorable friends who also model
4- She runs an Etsy shop (this one really hits my jealously bone!)
5- Annnnndddd she just released her 2018 Duende Decor Spring Line   

Ok, now that I’ve gotten that out of the way.
   
   Tiffany, the Owner of Duende Decor, and I met up mid winter to start planning the launch or her Spring / Summer line! I LOVE fashion! It’s one of my fav things to photograph, so that’s why every shoot we do comes with Style Guidance and has that fashion flare to it because I’m obsessed with looking at magazine ads and just want to help my clients shine on that same level.
   Tiffany came with an Inspiration Board to show me when we discussed her Professional Branding Shoot. It was full of tropical plants and fun colors. Not gonna lie, I had a silent freak out. Where was I going to find a tropic oasis with snow on the ground!? And if shot indoors how many backdrops would I have to buy so it wasn’t horribly repetitive!?
   I always give myself some time to brainstorm alone before telling the client exactly what we are doing, and within a couple of weeks it hit me, I knew exactly where we would go!
   I ran my vision past Tiffany and told her if she was willing to go on a little trip I had the PERFECT location.
   The day of we made the 70 mile drive to the big City of Detroit to photograph HERE!
   8 kimonos, 3 natural beauties, and 1 hour later we walked away with fresh images straight out of a Spring Catalog.

Yas Queens, Yas, we did it.

To shop these stunning kimonos check out Duende Decor's Etsy Shop:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/DuendeDecor
But be fast.... these are one of a kind, hand made pieces.

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View our Full Beauty Blog!

If you like this high fashion look check out Ruboo's Commercial Shoot

For more outdoor portraiture check out Kayla's Photoshoot!

Unique and Edgy Senior shoot with Young Teen Artist

Graffiti, paint, and overpasses.
Thunderstorm, open field, and Lake Huron.

A Senior photoshoot with a High School Artist.

   As a teenager I used Art as a way to express myself. A little bit of me was in the graphite portraits I did, the watercolors I attempted, and the poems I released.
   Art is still a way for me to express myself and a lot of the time ithelps me in ways I’m too closed off to understand at the time. It’s usually not until AFTER I finish a piece that I realize what I was feeling and how I was longing to get it out. Funny how your subconscious mind can do that for you.
   I feel like Logan and I connect in that way. She didn’t have many requests for her Senior Session, just that she wanted an image of her with pants on her hands in front of her face. And graffiti. Mom had a few other ideas that we tied in to everything as well.
   The second portion of our shoot we went to an underpass where some young kids go to dabble with spray paint and cause a little bit of trouble. I watch as Logan unfolded in to this super model I had no idea was hiding inside of her.
   By the time we got to our last outfit in the studio I was throwing paint at her body with a brush and splattering her face ever so carefully. This is where I saw he personality explode. She was in her element. We both were. And that’s when magic happens. Take a Look-

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Check out the full senior gallery

Like this shoot? Check out Samantha's artistic senior session

Check out Nathalie's senior session on Lake Huron

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Underwater Summer Beauty

An Underwater Photography Session

A beauty session shot 4 feet under water in a pool

The way hair slowly twirls and fights time.
The way the sun rays break through the surface of the water to dance on the skin.
This is the magic that underwater photography brings. 

Take that visual journey with me.

These images reflect the softer side of underwater photography and the absolute beauty I am slowly becoming obsessed with.
Part 2 where images transition from color to black and white show a darker side of my experience, something with more grit, something that feels less peaceful and more like a photograph you found hidden in your grandmas attic and wonder- who were those people?

I can’t end this story without talking about all the HILARIOUS times we had while trying to accomplish this session.
First- it’s a hot, sticky, summer day and I have 15+ yards of fabric for each girl to drape all over herself, almost resembling a horrible 90s prom dress that I PROMISE them will look fabulous once floating in the water- fingers crossed.
We pin, pull, and tuck, and then head out to the pool.
I’ve rented an underwater camera, and despite all the negative things I’ve read about shooting in a pool, I’m confident we’ll still get something beautiful. Instantly... I find out every article I had read was so so so right. The chlorine causes a foggy mess when more than 3 feet away from your subject and what you are left with is either failure, or breaking personal space boundaries. I decided to invade personal space.
The girls who were brave enough to trust me with this vision were amazing, amazing models. Not only did they fight with unruly fabric, they also went under water and attempted to keep calm, open their eyes, and vogue in order for me to get the shot.
My assistant was in the back keeping the tulle in line, cleaning the pool of beetles and being the moral support I needed when it felt like things were maybe going to be a waste of time.
I was fighting with a fogged up, uncomfortable snorkel mask about every 10 seconds, swimming practically on top of my models. Iif I wanted to be below the model I had to release all my air and sit at the bottom of the pool for as long as I could while they fought and floated back and forth for as long as they could. My hair... well, we won’t go there but that was something else. haha
And then just the typical pool things- water in your mouth, water in your nose, chlorine in your eyes. Underwater Photography is a whole new animal.
But the whole vibe of the day honestly kept this project together. We had 4 young women all bobbing in a pool together, no makeup, hair a mess, horrible fashion sense, and it felt freeing. So I thank them for that!

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Love the feel of this shoot? Check out Audrey's Artistic Pillow & The Pond Photoshoot

Beauty & Water go so well together, check out Mackenzie's senior photoshoot on Lake Huron

View The full Beauty Gallery and Senior Gallery

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Watch the BTS video so you can see for yourself! Its hilarious and sums up the day- summer, pool. beauty, lots of laughs.

Natural teen Beauties with a boho twist

This shoot explains what photographing in Michigan is like, in a nutshell. We had planned this shoot with mom in the spring. We picked a date and the weather read cold and possibly rainy. How were we supposed to do sunny boho AND the beach with no sun and goosebumps?
Well, as it goes, summer got really busy, really fast. We all know, in this state, summer lasts 3 months, if we're lucky, so you have to cram everything in in those 3 months! The girls left for summer camps, had all kinds of sporting events, and right before Fall hit, we were finally able to schedule them in!
And, of course, even at the peek of summer, the sun was still missing. Good thing I love working with artificial light, we just made our own sunshine! Off camera flash, a yellow gel, and boom- the best summer day.
I knew the girls wanted to do something natural, with a boho feel so my hubby, the unsung hero to many of my big creative projects (you can meet him here), and I pulled out tons of little down trees and branches out of the yard and now the studio is complete with a real, handmade, 10 ft tall teepee that rocks! 

I extra love this session because it's a time many moms forget to capture, and it's so important, if not the most important age!
You stay on top of the baby photos, but then your child grows in to a beautiful person of their own and you have no idea where the time went. Their photography legacy has a huge hole in it when you look back. The worst part of not capturing this age? It's the last years you will get of them still as a child, full of wonder, and innocence, before they jump on over to the adult side of the world, with it's brutal honesty, hardships, and no return. 

See how we captured these beauties. <3
 

AND. An extra amazing bonus. Mom jumped in at the very end to capture this special time with her girls. They live right on Lake Huron so we got to photograph at their home. That day the water was so beautifully blue, it was the perfect visual ending to the summer. 

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View our full Family Gallery!

For another boho look check out Kristina's Family Photoshoot!

For more family shoots on the water check out The Burnette's Session!

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