Tomboy crosses over in to a fairytale at sunset- St. Clair High School Senior photo shoot

   Jordan has an eye for seeing beauty in the things many other people might not, like rusted out jeeps, overgrown greenhouses, tall grass, and crumbling tree forts.
   I photographed her brother 2 years ago, so I was really, really excited when her mom (who is just a little, bubbly, hysterical ball of sunshine in a petite package) called me to say she was coming back to me with her daughter!
   When we met in the studio to talk over what she was envisioning she told me her boyfriend’s family has a ton of property with a TON of stuff on it, and then proceeded to draw a little map for us. Let the treasure hunt begin. Oh, and horses, they have horses!
   This gorgeous tomboy had decided on jeans and flannel, what you can usually find her in while riding, a couple of cute tops, and then, a dress, because, why not!? This was my first clue she was hiding something under those t-shirts and yoga pants.
   My assistant and I pulled up and hopped on the deck, which towered over everything we had been told about, and more. It was a rusted out playground for us. I’ll take rust, rot, and chipping paint any day over perfection, it’s totally over rated.
   Jordan can definitely keep up with the boys, which I dig, but… this rough and tough girl gets in front of my lens and I just watch these layers of what I thought I knew about her melt away. Once hair and makeup was done we dove in, hopped on top of the Jeep, and started to shoot with the sun pouring in from behind. Her eyes told me she secretly wasn’t afraid. She knew how to move, she knew what I would be looking for before I even said it. I’m certain in that exact moment, a model was born, or had been hiding and waiting for this exact moment to bust out. Sometimes we just need an excuse to release a different side of us.
   Next we headed back towards a tiny cabin in the woods. You want to know what a true life fairytale looks like? Drive a few miles back in to the woods with a pretty girl, put her on a golden horse, and watch as the sun sets behind the trees off in the distance. There came a point where Taylor and I had to physically peel ourselves away from everything so we could pack up and go. I could have photographed Jordan for hours.
   Cant’ you see why?

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Check Out Our Full Senior Gallery!

For Some More Country Outdoor Style Check Out Delaney's Session!

For More Beauties With Their Horses Check Out Madison's Photoshoot!

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cozy christmas- christmas minis

Another December upon us. Another Christmas Mini Shoot! 
Every year I'm completely lucky and have the cutest families and kids come visit me for the holidays. We gather up everything sparkly and pretty and design a Christmas set for them. 
This year we drug the studio bed outside and decorated the trees with bulbs. It turned out so magical. The little ones looked like little peanuts on the bed! And the families crammed in together for a really cozy Christmas portrait. 
For it being December in Michigan, we TOTALLY lucked out that each day the weather was 45 degrees or better. 
Take a look at the little friends that came to visit, some of them even all the way from London, Ontario, Canada!
 

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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Double Exposure In Camera Art with Port Huron, MI Photographer - AJBC Photography

As humans I feel as though we have a really important role to play in Nature.

We shouldn't fight it, or be above it, we should be one with it. 

See, alone, we are still a part of the Earth, it's hidden inside us, it makes up who we are; we are strong individuals who hold unique traits, shapes, stories, and souls. Just like Nature, we grow, we root ourselves, we look up to the sky, and one day we all exhale with both feet on the ground, forever planted. 

But when we seek to live and indulge ourselves in nature, we no longer stand alone, and that is a very beautiful thing. Beauty in a way we may never fully understand, for the vastness of it goes beyond just ourselves. 

It's raw at every level. 

And it lets us know we can become a part of something bigger, with no judgements, just simplicity at it's purest and most beautiful form. 

This series demonstrates that coming together through Double Exposure of Human and Nature. 

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All Double Exposure images were done IN camera, no editing or photoshop work has been done to achieve these looks. 

(This print above available for purchase in my Fine Art Store!)

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Meet Raquelle. 

My main purpose of the shoot was to get beautiful Double Exposure images that told the story of Human Exposure and Nature. But once I saw how gorgeous she was all on her own, I knew we had to at least get a few shots showing that. Nothing distracting, not even professional hair and makeup, or a specific wardrobe. Just her and the camera. Natural Beauty.

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I can never help myself from going outside though. And as of late, I really know where my heart belongs when it comes to who I am when I create, and Nature plays a very large part in that. I don't know what I would do if clients confined me to a studio for the rest of my days. 
Who wants to miss out on natural, literally, all the way around, natural beauty like this? 

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Want to see some more cool stuff?

Check out this other Double Exposure Piece we did WITH the help of photoshop
And feel free to hop on over to Pinterest to check out all of our recent sessions, outdoors AND in studio!