Oregon LGBTQIA+ Elopement Photographer - rustic cabin elopement inspiration

I shared this shoot a few years ago, but as you may or may not know, my website crashed last year and I lost all of my old blog posts. :( I’ve been trying to repost old ones every once in a while, in the hopes of eventually having most of them blogged someday.

Anyway, this styled elopement shoot was SO much fun. Real couple, Lauren & Mindee Jo, were kind enough to model for me. They were engaged at the time of the session and were married shortly after this. We were jokingly calling it their test run. There was no shortage of love (or chemistry!) between these two and they even brought along their real life friends (also a real couple) as their “witnesses” for the shoot. My friend and long time client, Tiffany, stood in as our faux officiant.

The short lace dress was one that I scored at Ross Dres for Less and it was less than $10. Mindee Jo already had the perfect boots in her closet, so she wore those. Lauren wore an outfit she already had, paired with a cute bowtie that I purchased online for about $10. The flowers were provided by Morning Glories Floral https://www.facebook.com/morninggloriesfloral/) and I used For the Love of Pete Event Rentals for the majority of the props seen in the photos.

The cabin we used was one of the guest houses at Viola Farm at Bear Creek (http://www.violafarm.com), which is a wedding venue in Canby, Oregon. I rented it through airbnb, but I couldn’t find the listing to include with this post (not sure if it’s still available through airbnb). We shot at sunset and the area is just gorgeous and the light came through the trees in the dreamiest way.

Omaha Senior Portrait Photographer - LGBTQIA+ senior, rocking the rainbow

Em is an awesome human. She’s incredibly smart and obviously adorable, but she is also sarcastic and funny, with a big heart. I am happy to say that her parents have completely embraced her since coming out to them as bi-sexual. They’re literally the only house in their neighborhood that flies an umbrella flag all year round (actually, I don’t think I saw a single other umbrella flag the whole time I was there). Em told me she wanted to incorporate her bi flag into her senior portraits, as well as her umbrella belt (which I loved so much that I bought a matching one to keep as a client piece) and I was like, “Yes! Game on!” Sometime after that conversation, I decided we also needed to use a rainbow umbrella (and that she needed to own one), so I had one shipped to her house prior to my arrival.

Happy Pride Month!

Salem Oregon Elopement Photographer - Raven & Marcus's courthouse nuptials

I got a text on a Monday morning, last summer, while I was in the Omaha airport, waiting to return home. Raven and Marcus had just called the Marion County Courthouse and booked a judge for a last minute elopement later that day. The couple had planned on having an October wedding, but fucking cancer threw a wrench into their plans. Despite being tired and weak from chemo, Marcus was a trooper and the two were just ecstatic to finally be married.

I had just enough time to take a nap when I got home, before heading down to the courthouse to document their nuptials. In attendance were their dog babies and a few close friends and family members. It was small, intimate, and about as sweet as can be. They were married on the courthouse lawn, which is usually an option with Marion County judges, as long as the weather is nice.

It's PRIDE month! - LGBTQIA+ boudoir session, in my studio...at night!

I met Jesse years ago, when they booked me to document their wedding. I’ve remained friends with both Jesse, and their wife (Kara), because they’re both seriously awesome individuals, as well as a super cool couple. I did this session forever ago, but just didn’t get around to sharing it. With Pride month here, it seems like the perfect time!

This session was very different than any that I’ve done before. Not only was this the first time doing a session in my studio after dark, but this was also an opportunity for Jesse to document something life changing. As a trans/non-binary person, they wanted to have their breasts photographed, prior to having them removed via top surgery.

Anyway, I thought it would be fun to do a Q&A with Jesse. Please see below.

Q: Why was it important for you to schedule this photo shoot?

A: I felt it was important to do this photo shoot to help me process some of the emotions I have about my upcoming surgery. I also felt it would be a good way for me to end this chapter of my life. I view my surgery as a new beginning for me. I also felt like it would be good to have the photos as a gift for my wife, but also for me to look back on in 10, 20, 50 years. Coming out as trans/non-binary was a long, difficult process and I feel it is important to remember how far I've come. 

Q: What is/was your goal in creating these images?

A: My goal was to show that gender is a spectrum and that boudoir isn't just for women. I am hoping to images will show that while I present masculine and identify as non-binary that there are still parts of me that are feminine. I also wanted to show the contrast between me in a bra (I hadn't worn a real bra in over 15 years) and me in a binder etc. 

Q:. How did you feel in the days leading up to the session?

A: I felt anxious, but also pretty excited! I had never done anything like this before. I was nervous that I wasn't going to feel comfortable/confident in front of the camera in a bra/topless since I feel very disconnected from my breasts.

Q: Was the photo session itself what you expected? If not, how did it differ from your expectations?

A: Yes and no. I expected to be much more nervous than I was. I also didn't expect to have so much fun! I knew that Kel would have great ideas and I knew what to expect as a "model" since Kel did our wedding photography. 

Q: What were you feeling during the photo shoot?

A: I felt alive. It was really empowering to have these photos done. I felt really confident and sexy. 


Q: How did you feel right after the shoot?

A: I felt a mixture of happiness, sadness, and excitement. I was happy because it was so fun! I felt sad because it brought up some feelings I have about "taking away" a part of me that my wife loves so much. I felt excited to see the photos as I knew that they'd turn out awesome because Kel is amazing! 

Q: How did you feel when you got your sneak peek?

A: I was amazed. The sneak peek photo is absolutely incredible. The lighting is perfect and I felt it really captured my essence. 

Q: Is there anything else you'd like to add?

A: I just want to say thank you to Kel for giving me this opportunity! I have so many feelings about my surgery (and my body) and I think the photo shoot was a really good choice and that I'll cherish the photos forever. 

Happy Pride Month! - Omaha Nebraska Senior LGBTQIA+ photographer

I’d like to start off Pride month a little bit differently this year. Instead of a wedding or engagements session, I’m sharing some photos that I did with two awesome LGBTQIA teens! I had the honor of photographing these best friends, when I was in Omaha last year. I have known Emeliann since she was in Kindergarten, but only met Matt for the first time, when I was visiting Nebraska. They had some fun with the rainbow umbrella that I had mailed to Em’s house prior to our shoot because she mentioned wanting to incorporate a pride rainbow into her session. Don’t worry, I’ll be sharing a LOT more photos of these two… from their individual sessions.

Another COVID-19 Update!

WEDDINGS
I’ve already spoken and made arrangements with all of my 2020 wedding clients, so this applies to NEW wedding clients. I will book elopements and weddings that fall within the guidelines for the venue’s guidelines (i.e. number of people allowed, precautions that must be taken, etc.). I will also follow those same guidelines (like, wearing a mask). Due to most of my 2020 wedding being moved to next year, I suddenly have a lot more availability!


BOUDOIR
For those who want an outdoor setting, I am booking both mini and full sessions. Indoor sessions must be held at my studio and I’m only booking mini sessions for those. I am, however, allowing mini sessions to be booked on the weekends, until further notice.


PORTRAITS
Seniors, families, maternity, business head shots, etc. are only being offered outdoors, until further notice.


BIRTHS & FRESH 48
I am not offering childbirth coverage or newborn/fresh 48 sessions, until further notice.


COMMERCIAL WORK
I am not offering commercial photography services, until further notice.

Hood River Boudoir Photographer - same sex couples session

I shared the b&w photos from this session recently, but felt that the color images deserved their own post. This amazing studio apartment, which I rented through airbnb, has been featured in magazines and I’m sure you can see why. It’s dreamy! Anyway, Megan and Kayla were great to work with. They’re clearly in love and generally speaking, chemistry kinda takes over in sessions like this and there isn’t really room to be nervous.

Salem Family Photographer - mini session at For the Love of Pete

You may recognize some of these faces, as I have photographed Porshe on many occasions (modeling, boudoir, family, birth) and even photographed Porshe & Jeremy’s hospital elopement a couple of years ago! Anyway, we met up with “the whole fam dam,” as Porshe calls them (her family, plus her parents and her brother). We met up at For the Love of Pete, which is a party supply rental place here in Salem. We had rented their holiday set to do indoor photos, but I love the outdoor shots more!

Salem Film Photographer - double exposure boudoir

I probably shared these on my old blog, but since I can’t remember anything these days and I can’t go back and look, I’m blogging this session anyway! Anyway, these double exposures were shot on 35mm film, on several different days. The photos of my model were all done on the same day, in my studio. The outdoor shots were taken over the course of a few days (and nights). Once again, my negatives didn’t line up, but that’s the beauty of double exposures on film… it’s always a surprise!

Hood River Boudoir Photographer - LGBTQ+ couples session!

I had such a fun time photographing this adorable couple! Kayla & Megan drove out to Hood River, where I had rented the most amazing Airbnb for my birthday! Don’t worry…I have more photos from this session... that show more of the inside of this cool space! I’ll post those soon.

Salem Family Photographer - that's a lot of dudes!

Erin and her husband have four kids. They’re all boys and they range from 2 to 20 in age. Yeah, and she’s still full of energy and looks cute every time I see her! Go, Erin! Anyway, we did this session at Bush Park, here in Salem. It was cold, threatening to rain, and well, we had a toddler and a middle schooler to contend with, but we did it!

Salem Family Photographer - casual backyard mini session

If nothing else, I’m at least catching up on some blogging during this pandemic! ;) These were taken last fall, at my friend’s house. She lives right next to a park, so it’s basically her backyard and the crazy thing is that there’s hardly ever anyone there! I’m sure you’ve seen her before, either here on my blog (I photograph her family every year), or maybe at a wedding or session, as Michiko is one of my main assistants.

This past time we did photos, I delivered all, but one photo. I kept on “secret” so that her kids could use it for a Christmas gift to their mom. Her daughter chose a quote and font and we ordered a print with those cute wooden strips at the top and bottom. I think she chose the PERFECT quote for her mother and Michiko was over the moon about it.

Salem Boudoir Photographer | double exposure on film

FYI… this post contains NUDITY.

I love doing double exposures on film. There are two different ways of doing them: I can shoot two images back to back, before advancing the film OR I can shoot the whole roll, re-load it and then shoot the whole roll again. For this set of images, I used the latter technique. I wanted to be able to do everything at once, in the studio, and then take my time driving around and finding the secondary images. As you can see, the frames didn’t line up, but I kind of love those happy accidents.

Model: Ashley Wolf

Camera: Canon EOS-3
Film: Kodak Portra 400
Lab: The FIND Lab

Salem Senior Portrait Photographer - Jordyn, class of 2020

Well, it’s official…the class of 2020 is officially DONE with high school. Pretty anticlimactic for these kids and their graduation is delayed until who knows when, but hey, they’re done!! This guy, who I’ve known for over a decade, is one of these special seniors. Congratulations, Jordyn!

P.S. Notice we grabbed a family photo at the end? This is totally a thing you can do in the fall, during a senior portrait session! I mean, we don’t want the whole fam dam there the entire time, but having them all show up right at the beginning or the end is easy peasy!

Salem Oregon Senior Portrait Photographer - Erika, class of 2020

I’ve known this kid since she was in first grade and even though I have a kid who is the same age, I still find it shocking that she is about to be a high school graduate! I am crossing my fingers that these kids get to have an actual ceremony, but we all know that it’s a very real possibility that they won’t. :/

We had a good time doing Erika’s photos. It was cold, but she was a trooper. We start off by shooting downtown, in “senior alley” and other nearby niches. We then did some photos at her elementary school, including one of her standing outside her kindergarten classroom door. How cute is that?! We ended our session, late in the day, at Woodmansee Park, where I used to take photos of Erika when she was little!

Salem Oregon Boudoir Photographer - moody evening light, on film

I love me a moody portrait and I like to keep things simple, when creating such work. Ashley is a rockstar model, who knows how to move her body well, which allows me to focus on the lighting. We made these photos in my studio, late in the day, with the sun beating in through the windows. Shot on 35mm film, the FIND Lab developed and scanned these for me.

Salem Wedding Photographer - solo portraits, in honor of social distancing

Before anyone jumps my shit, these photos were taken MONTHS ago! I am NOT doing any portrait sessions right now, due to the current stay-at-home orders. As much as it pains me to say it… I am not an essential worker and portraits are not a necessity. ;) I just thought these photos seemed fitting, seeing as Rachel is modeling solo.

Anyway, this was a quick little session that we did back in December at the Gray Lab, to test out the . I looooved her lavender hair color and thought this short, pleated dress fit her playful look and personality perfectly. At the time, I was going for sort of a “New Year’s Elopement” look, but I’m now calling it the “socially distanced bride.” ;)