Archive for November, 2009
My favorite photos from 3+ years in Japan
The title pretty much says it all! As I gear up to photograph a wedding in Japan in January I thought I would put together a slideshow of my favorite photos I made while over there. Make sure you turn your sound on as there is an awesome song by Gunsolo called “Arcadia.” Also, if you are heading to Japan, or know somebody else who is, don’t forget I am available as a photography tour guide for your trip to Japan!
Engagement Session With a Dog
I had the pleasure of meeting another great couple that is starting off their new life together! I love the fact that being a photographer lets me meet all sorts of people, but nothing tops meeting a glowing in-love, sincerely nice couple. We did their session where they had their first date, Susquehanna State Park in Maryland. It was the perfect backdrop for a wonderful couple and their adorable dog! I probably love dogs more than anyone else that is in the “never had a dog” club. So as you can imagine, I was stoked when I heard they wanted their dog in some of the photos. What a great idea! Again, congratulations and looking forward to the wedding, which sounds like it will be incredible!
My Student is a Japanese Pop Star | Hitomi Takahashi
Well technically, since she graduated and I am not teaching anymore, Hitomi Takahashi is not my student anymore, but while she was in high school and I was her teacher I couldn’t really blog about it. Hitomi was my student when she was a freshman in high school at Shiogama Girls High School. She was this shy, teeny-tiny girl (147 cm, what is that, about 4’8″?), who sat in the back and never volunteered to answer any questions unless she was called on. When I realized who she was, and after hearing her music I couldn’t believe that such a loud, incredible voice was coming from this little girl! Even more incredible than that was when I went to see her perform live. On stage, she was a completely different person. In class, Hitomi was a quiet, down to earth, humble, shy girl, but on stage, she was this all powerful, attention commanding, loud women. What an incredible transformation it was! Seriously, it is so hard to believe how much power–and what an incredible voice– this girl has, especially at a live performance. After a teaching few months, I had found out that we had a common interest in photography, so we made a trade. I gave her a small book of some of my photographs and she hooked me up with a autograph on her CD… I definitely got the better end of the bargain there!
Thanks Hitomi!
After the break are some of her songs, even if you can’t understand Japanese, I think you will still appreciate her voice! This first one was her first single that debuted at number 1 in the Japanese Pop Charts, something only one other women singer had done at that point. I am not a huge fan of JPOP, and maybe it is because I am biased, but I really like Hitomi Takahashi’s music! Read more
Senior Portait Photography | Katja | Raleigh
Katja senior portrait session was such a blast! She was a natural in front of the camera and made my job really easy! There are some people, for whatever reason, just don’t feel comfortable in front of the camera– like me for example. Katja was totally the opposite and every photo seemed to come out great. I am so thankful for getting this opportunity and previous ones to get to know some students from my former school. Yay! Thanks again to Katja and her wonderful family!
