My Favorite Images
I'm often asked what my favorite images are that I've ever taken, and that's such a hard question to answer, because I simultaneously love the people I photograph but also struggle to love my own work (artist struggles, am I right?). Here are 10 images that each mean something really special to me, but are in no particular order. It's my hope that if you work with me, your favorite images will be the ones I create with you!
1. Underwater Pregnant Woman in BW
I love this image for a few reasons. First and foremost, how HARD this mama worked for this image. During pregnancy, she developed panic attacks whenever water would touch her face. Can you imagine how difficult that must have been for her to do these photos?! We spent two days at a friend's pool (this was long before I had built our studio pool) just doing deep breathing and working through the anxiety and fear. Near sunset on the second day, she told me, "this is it" and she pulled this pose out!
The simplicity of the image- hair in a messy bun, wearing a onepiece swimsuit from Forever 21, and no backdrop…really stands in contrast to a lot of the work I do now. However the timeless simplicity is what makes the woman stand out- that, and the power and grace in her pose. This is still one of my most awarded images of all time, and it will always represent triumph through struggle to me.
2. Image of Me and X
Funny story, I didn't take this image because I'm in it. I did all of the camera settings and handed it to my husband and then edited it. A bit of backstory on this photo: I struggled with postpartum depression badly as a new mom. I had bought this red dress for my clients (and still have it today) and Will told me to try it on. At that point, I hadn't been able to muster the energy to do much with myself for a few weeks and was feeling really low. I put the dress on and stood by the flowers in our backyard. I wanted the baby in it, but he didn't have an outfit, so we had him naked (and I added the crowns in photoshop). This image helped me find a piece of myself again, and it's something I'll always cherish.
This image also taught me that it's not vanity to print a large portrait of ourselves. As women, we're so often told to love ourselves, but when we do, people tell us not to be full of ourselves or vain. I wanted to print this image huge because it honestly helped anchor me on hard days, but was worried that people would think I was some vain narcissist. I'm glad I didn't listen and printed in 5' long as a gift for myself on my birthday. I've had this canvas for almost 7 years and still go look at it almost daily. While I don't normally offer family photography, I will when people are hoping to create images like this.
3. Underwater Boudoir of Havilah
This was the first underwater boudoir shoot I ever tried and something about this image has always resonated with me. My client was going through a divorce and wanted to feel strong and feminine again. When we captured this image, I had chills. Since then, it's inspired a lot of other women as well.
4. Julie Abe in Costa Rica
This is an image of one of my best friends' vow renewals. Like me, she didn't get amazing wedding images the first go round, so we decided to travel to Costa Rica for a redo. This trip was special in so many ways- we each brought our children who are best friends themselves, we used other local women-owned businesses during this shoot, and it was my first destination elopement. We got up at 4am for this image, hiked to the bottom of the waterfall, and had it completely to ourselves for a few sacred minutes.
5. Cave Diving Image
I love this image because I never thought I'd be able to capture it. You see, 15 years ago, I had a cave diving accident that I almost didn't make it back from. When Suwannee County Tourism first reached out about me doing these images, I almost said no…but I'm so glad I said yes. Will was by my side as my safety diver and the entire team made me feel so welcome. I loved being a part of this awesome production team and will treasure the memories from this shoot.
6. Brandon & Taylor Viral Wedding Photos
These are my most "famous" images, if you can call them that. These went viral almost overnight and ended being featured on the front page of Google, Insider, and so many more places. Do you know why? All because I lost an image competition. Yep, you heard that right. I lost. This image took honorable mention, but a reporter saw it and I guess the image and the caption I wrote to go with it resonated with them and they shared it.
7. Haley & Jellyfish
This image is from the very first workshop I ever taught. I wanted to craft a unique set that would get people excited about coming to Florida to learn from me, and I decided on jellyfish. Easier said than done, because I about drove myself crazy trying to make these guys. However, I finally pulled them together and my good friend Ms Luna Marie came and modeled. She's modeled for every single workshop I've ever hosted and is always so wonderful to create with.
8. Astrid in Cave
So many things went wrong this day, but it ended up coming together better than I could have imagined. We were in Mexico location scouting and I realized as we got down into this dark hole that I didn't have a way to light, then Astrid's top broke…however, a local photographer turned friend Marcos stepped up and provided light and we just went with the no-top look. This image required the three of us, freediving in near total darkness and trying to time our depth and angles. When I saw this image on the computer, I initially thought it was a total loss because of how dark it was. But here it is, and I love it. Shooting in Mexico is always an adventure and this trip was no different! Since then, I've traveled to Mexico with clients and to lead photography trips, but this image stays cemented as one of my all-time favorites.
9. Florida Springs Council
I love this image for a lot of reasons- first, because it was for the Florida Springs Council to promote springs conservation (a topic near and dear to my heart) and secondly, because it features my little boy. The purpose of this photo was to show a child and his grandfather and how we're leaving the blue crystalline springs that the grandfather had growing up, and ushering in an era of polluted, murky green waters. I photographed several different springs for this image and had the opportunity to teach my child about the importance of conserving Wild Florida.
10. Botticelli
Ms Luna Marie is back on my list again for the second time! She came to me with the idea to recreate a modern version of Botticelli's Venus portrait, but underwater. We recreated the scene with 5 other women-owned businesses to help us. These images won a Sony Alpha Female Microgrant and were featured on the Sony Alpha site and Bored Panda. Love the collaborative female energy that went into making this shoot a reality!
I'm not sure if you noticed, but the images that mean the most to me are less to do with being technically flawless and much more about the story behind the photo. What I've learned through years of doing this is that, while it's important to understand the "rules" of photography it's more important to create images with deep meaning and emotional stories. This is why I like to try and get to know each client I work with and plan something that will be uniquely meaningful to them. Let's tell your story together.
