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personal: weekend trips

Sean and I decided to take more weekend trips this year because we both regretted not seeing some of our friends and family more (or at all) in 2011. In mid-February we drove up to the Adirondacks with Natalie and Brian for a long weekend stay with Brynn and Brian. They live in Long Lake, and visiting them is always a source of much-needed relaxation and inspiration.

Clockwise below: Natalie & Brynn looking out over the lake; breakfast burritos on Monday morning; Brian and Sean playing at the ICE CASTLE in Saranac Lake; Sean & me smooching on frozen Long Lake; Brynn’s knives have moose hats; the unfrozen side of Long Lake; the men; Brynn & Brian in Lake Placid; and in the middle is a smiley Natalie on Sunday night at the brewery.

This past weekend I took the train from Buffalo to Albany, where my friend Kim was waiting to take me to her place in Northampton, Massachusetts. I’d been there once before, for about two hours, and was eager to check the place out. Kim’s apartment is right in the heart of Noho and we spent the weekend eating tons of food, shopping (and looking) in all the cute little stores, and catching up. I was so distracted by the friendship and eating that I barely took any photos beyond my iPhone (and if you follow me on instagram you know I at least took a ton of those). On Sunday morning before I got back on the train to come home, we had breakfast at The Roost, where I took the below photos. My sandwich was a delicious blend of egg, cheddar, avocado, and pico de gallo, and I did not want to stop eating it at all, even to preserve its memory in a photograph.

So yeah, my two weekend trips were successful and have inspired me to plan a few more for this Spring. What’s your favorite place to visit for a weekend? How far are you willing to go?

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Gabby’s senior session

This session was full of firsts for me: my first time shooting at the Botanical Gardens in South Buffalo, my first high school senior portrait session, and my first attempt at trying a hands-on approach when it comes to styling and concepts.

I loved everything about it.

The gardens were absolutely gorgeous and provided (what felt like) endless backdrops for my portraits.  My inaugural Senior Model, Gabby, was a dream to work with and I pray that every future client has half of her kindness, enthusiasm, and laid-back demeanor. I thought the styling in this session worked well and I had a ton of fun putting together looks using a combination of Gabby’s clothes and accessories and my own.

While it was warm and cozy inside the gardens, it was the opposite outside. Winter has been mild but on this January day,  snow was on the ground and the wind was blowing cold. I worried about our planned outdoor concepts and repeatedly asked Gabby if she was really on board for hang outside in a leotard. Every time I asked, she said she was and then leapt out of the car like a graceful gazelle. I swear.  I would get our shots set up, motion to Gabby to come on out, and she’d perform magic right in front of me.


I mean, really. The girl is not only talented but a total trooper.

Gabby, thanks for bring your talent, energy, and charm to our session. I hope you have a great Senior year!

More information about my photography sessions, including Senior Portraits, is coming soon. For now, if you’re interested, please use the above contact form to reach me!

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changes to this blog

I’ll be making some changes around here in the next few weeks. This blog will stay the site of my intermittent personal updates but it will also begin to incorporate my professional photography work.

Those of you who followed my syllabus project might remember the photography-related assignments. I wanted to explore the possibility of a side business, and that exploration has paid off. I’ve been quietly taking on clients and shooting as much as I can. I plan to officially launch in early 2012, and I’m very excited.

If there’s not enough going on as it is, I have also started a second, photo-only blog about my life in Buffalo. Here’s how I describe the mission of that project:

“Like most people who live and work in my city, I’ve been asked, “Why Buffalo?” Why live here? Why buy a house here? Why deal with the weather? Often I wish I could show those who ask a series of moments from my life: a nice dinner with friends or a beautiful day in Delaware Park or the many times my neighborhood feels more like a small village of 100 and not a city. In those moments, I think, “This is Buffalo” and I know why I’m here. These photos are the closest I could come to capturing and sharing those moments.”

If that description interests you, please visit THIS IS BFLO.

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