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.

Spring Maternity Session on Lake Huron

A Spring Beach Session in Lexington, Michigan

A Maternity session with the whole family

    Amazing how a bump can turn in to a baby. How you see a woman one minute and a mom the next.
   Kelly and Nick came to me later in Kelly’s pregnancy for a maternity session. It was Spring in Michigan, so we had to pretend like it was a warm day on the beach when in fact, it wasn’t! It was windy and cool. Fooled ya!
   Shortly after this Kelly gave birth to an adorable little boy and it took her a bit to get back in the studio to view everything. The change of the seasons had also changed them from a couple in to a family. I can’t imagine what it felt like for her to come back and see herself as this totally different person! She had evolved so much in just a few short weeks!
   Those changes are what makes up an amazing story- this is theirs:

Oh, and P.S. You HAVE to see how SWEET Kelly's FIRST baby is... her itty bitty pup. Take a look.

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Check out the full family gallery

To see another beautiful maternity session check out Bridget & Careena's shoot

See the beauty of birth through a fine art maternity session with Larisha

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A His and Hers Engagment Session

An outdoor engagement session-

from the forest to the city streets

   Meet Marisa and Craig- the most adorable couple that have nothing in common.
   Ok, that’s a total lie. But if you ask them strictly how they feel about the outdoors, well, then, it’s partially true. haha
   As we all know, relationships are about sacrifices and getting outside of our comfort zones, or for Marisa getting outside, like really outside....  Craig loves the outdoors. He’s happy in the woods. Actually- if he had his way we would have photographed this whole thing outdoors in the middle of winter, but... time wouldn’t allow us to do that, since we are photographing their wedding in a few short months! Marisa, who told us the woods was NOT her thing, trusted me though when I told her it would be worth the struggle to get some amazing shots... while also making her future hubby pretty happy.
   He was pretty impressed with her as she trudged through tall, picky grass, laid with bugs, and sat down right in the middle of the dirty woods. So when we switched things up and went downtown, Marisa was in her element and we looked for Craig to found that common ground. Spinning around the city streets in her dress and dancing, Craig held her hand the whole way.
   Their chemistry together is adorable. They connect on a level where it doesn’t matter if their interests clash... because they have everything else to offer each other, like love, respect, friendship, and a bond I know is unbreakable and meant to be.
   Learn from them. Love each other. Accept others differences and tightly embrace what brings you together.

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Want to see all of our love birds? check out the full love gallery...

If you like the Downtown look check out Cory & Erica's Engagement session!

Want us to travel to you? Here is Troy & Blair's engagement session we did in Savannah Georgia

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Take a look at their video too... they are simply the cutest together!

We create our own "Through the Looking Glass" moments

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Watch the video to see an AJBC fairytale unfold- 

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Photographer- AJBC Photography
Poem- Autumn Carufel
Assistant 1- Taylor Walsh
Assistant 2- Jake Carufel
Model- Lauren Cross
Wardrobe and Props- Lauren Cross Designs

Belle Isle Conservatory, Detroit Michigan

(Below: Poem written out, followed by individual portraits found in the above film.)

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There is a truth in this world that I refuse to believe. 

The truth that everything has to be exactly as it seems.

Because, you see, I am a dreamer, and I am a collector. 

I am a believer and I am a fairytale wrecker.

But not in the way that you probably think I am.
I don’t sit down and destroy books of fiction. 

I sit down and give those books vision.

I open the pages and give them eyes.
I open suitcases and watch as hopes come alive. 

Because when I was a kid I was told fairytales aren’t real.

You can’t blame my parents, it’s just how the rest of the world feels.

But me, I knew different.

Me, I knew more. 

Me I knew wanting something that was impossible was just through a hidden door. 

A door I would find eventually in my life.

Where plays and toys and make believe...

Would slowly show itself to me.

But as something new. Something real.
Something I could touch
and something I could feel. 

And no I’m not too old to feel this way. 

I say you’re too old, for taking my dreams away.

So go back to a time where all you wanted was to be free.

And start realizing your head is the only thing that makes it so it can’t be.

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Photographer- AJBC Photography
Poem- Autumn Carufel
Assistant 1- Taylor Walsh
Assistant 2- Jake Carufel
Model- Lauren Cross
Wardrobe and Props- Lauren Cross Designs

Belle Isle Conservatory, Detroit Michigan

The back story:

2 years ago I posted on facebook that I wanted to do a creative shoot. That's how I met Lauren. She said she might be interested so I quickly stalked her on facebook. Her look was unique and gorgeous, so I knew she would fit the part. But then I started realizing she was also an artist, a maker, and a collector. We had similar loves for old and grungy things, so we decided to meet. I drove to her house in Marysville where she showed me room after room after room full of beautifully old and rough pretties! 
And then she took me to the back corner of the basement to show me The Door, and an idea was born. We spent the next hour developing the story- a girl playing make believe finds a door, enters it, and then finds herself transported in to this land where her daydreams are now her reality. 
I think I secretly live through my photography, because that's all I want out of life- magic, all the time. 
We kept in touch, passing back and forth ideas and photos. My schedule FINALLY allowed for me to fit the shoot in! My husband Jake, my assistant Taylor, and myself drove to Marysville where Lauren allowed us to gather up her precious treasures and take them to our first location. The sun was shining, the weather was perfect, and right away I KNEW, I just knew, this was going to be one of my favorite things I had ever shot. 
We filmed, photographed, laughed, and left with plans to meet again a week later, when we would haul the heavy antique door down the road, down a hill at 8 am, balance it on the roots of an old tree sticking out above the water, and then drive to Detroit. 
Because we had photographed at what looked to be a more modern conservatory for our "make believe in real life" scene  I wanted to go to a much older, much more original concept of a conservatory for our "entering the fairytale world" scene, and so it came that we traveled an hour + together to The Belle Isle Conservatory in Detroit. Belle Isle is beautiful and not only was it a wonderful place to end our shoot and tell our story perfectly, it allowed us a day to just enjoy something new and unique together, which is becoming more and more important to me with every shoot I do. 
It used to be just about the photos for me, because that was what I was taught portrait photography was. Now it's about the whole experience. Because if not for the experience, then for what?
Afterwards we shopped in Ferndale and got some tasty sushi and quietly drove back home after a long and creative day. 
It took me another year to sort through it all, find the time, and get to a place where I could properly put it all together. 
Our video we filmed is still not done, but I am ecstatic to release these images accompanied by a poem I wrote for it. 
And to think, it all started with an old door.  

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If you loved the Concept of "The Door" then you should also check out "The Pillow and The Pond" and The Burning Shack- they are some of my favorite projects to date!

Check out the full beauty gallery here

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