Can't Hold Her Down

Jules enters my world and turns it upside down. She likes to do that. Tell it like it is, make you laugh, shake things up a bit. She moved to Atlanta less than a year ago with a vast knowledge of an insane number of industries, from arts to medical. She made instant friends, and whittled her family into the fabric of the community. Just as she was getting the family settled, her husband was finishing his first year teaching at a new school, she was switching companies, and she was about to jet to Israel for her son’s Bar Mitzvah, her own world turned upside down.

Despite how busy she was, she couldn’t ignore her difficulty breathing, her cough. A scan revealed a 10 cm mass from middle of her chest: lymphoma.

Her community immediately rallied, and you can, too. Will you please daven (pray) for Aviva Ariel bas Dafna?

Her three week Israel celebration for her son was switched to one week, so she can go between chemo treatments. They had planned to take pictures while there, but she felt an urgency to capture this moment, before the start of treatments.

*We’re printing it as a 18x24 floating matte metal, to hang over the mantel in the living room.*

Her treatment schedule is brutal, but her diagnosis comes with a 90% CURE rate. Give this lady everything you’ve got!

ClientsRachel LinkwaldJune 26, 2023cancer, lymphoma, photography, gallery, home art, home gallery, atlanta photographer, atlanta family photographerComment

Style

Sara wanted a session commemorating her son’s upshern (3rd birthday). Originally, she had in mind that we do the session before the party, since they were dressing up anyway. Ultimately, she decided to separate the two, as she wanted a low pressure session where it would be the only thing on her mind.

We shot in their home, moving only a couple pieces of furniture and taking advantage of the lovely light in their space.

We reviewed the images together, then she chatted with her amazing interior designer (I need to get her name and link her here!!), and together, we created a vision, and I edited her images accordingly.

Left: our design, virtual on the wall, Right: the actual installation

It was tremendous fun creating images to fulfill our final vision.

EDIT! And then…

Sara reached out, craving one more image. She wanted a color shot, to gift her husband for his office:

3/3

*Edit at bottom

The final installment…

Alexandra was coy when she first called, requesting to learn about three sessions in a year. She finally came out with it, and stopped claiming it would be nice to capture different seasons: she wanted to capture her family as a threesome, through maternity, and then as a foursome. She wanted to tell the story of their growth.

SEE PAST SESSIONS HERE

May I present, the family of four:

Most fun, was creating their wall gallery!

We’ll be hanging them in their living room, over a new couch due to come. I can’t wait to see them up!

I have to say, this has been a really touching journey. It’s so beautiful to be a part of people’s growth, milestones, fears, and celebrations. This family has so much joy, so much humor, so much sass and spunk. Every part of the process with them has felt like a celebration. I’m so grateful. And I will try not to cry when I see this on their walls. Thank you for this opportunity.

ClientsRachel LinkwaldJanuary 11, 2022atlanta family photographer, atlanta, atlanta photographer, art, home art, custom art, living room art, maternity photoshoot, maternity portrait, maternity, baby, siblings, sister, brother, baby brother, family, family photography

The Next Generation of Dimples

Remember THIS GORGEOUS LADY?

When her daughter needed a yearbook headshot, she decided to crank it up a notch and turn it into a celebration. This way, she gets to submit something extra special and customized, AND start building a gallery home of her family at home.

Shira sparkles, just like her mom.

Evolution

Adrienne and I continue to evolve together, both in friendship and artistically, through the years. We first bonded in middle school choir. Decades later, she’s making a living as in interior designer and muralist. And we keep hiring each other! Beginning with murals in my children’s old rooms, most recently she’s the artistic brain behind my photography studio (hire her!) And I’ve had the chance to create her maternity, newborn, and last year’s family picture. Which brings us to this year!

Mike, who tours with the band, Hinder, playing bass, endures Adrienne’s and my endless reminiscence year after year. He has such a softness with his girls.

ClientsRachel LinkwaldNovember 16, 2020atlanta, atlanta photographer, art, children, design, editing, heirloom, family photography, friends, family, growth, gallery, gallery design, holiday cards, home art, kids, sisters, love, living room art, nature, marriage, outdoors, portraiture, photography, photographer, photoshop, siblings, sister, woods, waterComment

Happy Firsts!

“No pressure, but do you guys think we can finish the remodel on this studio in time for this sweet baby’s first birthday session?”

The construction team put the pedal to the metal, and we pulled it off in time for two firsts:

My first session in the new studio!
Solomon’s first birthday!

It felt like a true celebration of firsts when this amazing baby beamed his mega-watt smile at me. I was floored. “THIS is the kid I get in the studio today?? Can I be this lucky??” I told him he needed to save the grins for the session, nervous he’d wear himself out— it never happened. The smiles persisted: his, and so, of course, mine. He was a rockstar and an angel.

Speaking of new things worth celebrating, this family just moved into a new home! And this art will get to decorate the new walls! We’ve selected a 20x30 canvas to adorn their staircase.

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But what’s probably most incredible about this story isn’t what’s new: it’s what’s old. When his mom reached out to me, she told me about the sentimental and expansive family galleries that bedecked their old home. Pictures of her brother and grandfather as babies that she wished to mirror (and we literally got three of the exact same poses!), and lots of images they had brought over from the “old country” that they had restored. This is EXACTLY why I do what I do!! The cheap print labs aren’t archival, and thus the art can’t be passed down. But I create heirloom pieces. So not only will baby Solomon join the family wall amongst generations of pictures, but he, too, can be passed down with them for generations to come.

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**Update!

We had designed his piece for their old home, but when they unexpectedly moved sooner than expected, we delayed installation until they were settled. What’s great about the size they selected, is that it looks perfect in the new stairway, too!

Connection

Elisheva bid on a session with me at an auction to support The Jewish Fertility Foundation some time ago. We got together for a socially distanced session at her home, in front of her favorite tree.

Among her favorite things, which include a passion for helping children, American Sign Language, and promoting exercise health, is snuggling her sweet children and puppy. The images that made her coo weren’t perfectly posed, but rather when there was a connection. She loved this image, but unfortunately, puppy Oreo’s face was hidden behind them. That’s why you hire a photographer who can photoshop! I can’t wait to see her face when she holds the finished mounted print.

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Corona Woman

I am Corona Woman!

Hear me roar. Or cry. Or call out in gratitude. Or fear.

I wear all the hats and I want to cast them to the ground. Sometimes I do, and hide in the closet. Sometimes the hats stack nicely.

I am so proud of myself. And ashamed.

All these people are me.

I am Corona Woman. A self portrait dedicated to all those who are doing all the things all the time at the same time right now.

About the portrait: this is 6 separate images taken over the course of one morning in my dining room. I had one speedlight behind the camera and one bare-bulb strobe off right, both bouncing from the ceiling. I tethered my camera on a tripod to my computer, and set it to automatically take 15 shots of each story. I inched myself around the space so that I would have a variety of positions to assist with overlap. Then I spliced them together in Photoshop . I edited the now singular image with a heavy hand of dodge and burning to make it pop. Yes, my little one was actually fighting during the session (he rescinded his protest and requested to take part after he saw big sis was excited.) I desperately wanted to tidy, but didn’t permit myself to move a single item, so this is life during Covid-19 in all its glory.

Reunited with Wonder Woman

Rebekah was a dear friend in college, we bonded performing in a production of Tommy. Fast forward, the lady is rocking as owner of the Center Stage Arts Studio in Ohio, is the proud mama of 6, and military wife.

She and her family (four brothers), were gathering outside of Atlanta for Thanksgiving, and she wanted to take advantage of the gathering. I was equally excited to make art with her as I was to simply catch up with someone who has always been a magnetic match.

This week, some metals are shipping out to Vegas, for her brother and sister-in-law!

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Rebekah is the queen of keeping it real, and pushing for her dreams. A true Wonder Woman.

The Fine Art Home portrait

I’ve been shying from requests from front porch/yard portraits during this time. I want to stay true to the custom art that my clients expect, I want to be meticulous about safety, and I want to make sure my own family is holding it together.

Then, a repeat client who had been amongst those inquiring hit me hard last night with a: “THIS TIME IS CRAZY! AND I WANT TO REMEMBER IT! I want to add it to our home gallery, because it’s a great way to remember this insane time beautifully.”

After processing it with her, I realized I can indeed accomplish all three while creating art with my clients and neighbors to commemorate this period.

$400 includes:

Photography session outdoors on your porch or in your yard, from a safe distance.
Virtual consultation where you select your portrait, and we envision custom alterations.
Optional gallery design included: see your image(s) in different sizes and configurations in your actual space.
A calibrated, heirloom, mounted 8x10 art print, with the accompanying 8x10 digital image.
Option to change print size, material, and add additional images. Upgrading your mounted print to wall art begins at an additional $235.

SIGN UP FOR A SLOT ON SUNDAY, MAY 3RD, AND RECEIVE $35 OFF.

The first three images were combined to create the final portrait.

Sign up for your slot here. We will chat on the phone afterwards to discuss your vision, narrow down timing, and answer questions.

For Always

When the cousins come to play from the other side of the world, you make sure the memories last.

Proud Grandma is so excited to admire her sweet babies on her walls daily (on standout Matte Metals), and gift a mini album to her own mother.

Designed for her wall using the unedited images.

If you are a parent, or a grandparent, you know the struggle of getting multiple children engaged in the same moment. I hold your hand through the process, and help you envision your ultimate image. One that captures the spirit of each of your loved ones.

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Update! The gallery has been installed!

Last of the strands

I have such a soft spot for pre/post upshern sessions. It’s such a sweet, sentimental session: the last moment of your baby truly being a baby! That soft, feathery, uncut hair. And then the dramatic transformation after the ceremony.

(You definitely want to click each image to expand)

And here’s our plan for their living room!:

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Even more exciting? We have our follow-up session to come! You’ll have to hold tight a few months to see this sweet big boy with his new do’.

This family was a referral from Melissa, and there’s nothing like working with someone who is there because they trust someone that loved their experience and art, and are ready to embrace the same. Thank you to everyone who shares my name and work.

The Ultimate Selfie

Creating art requires a tremendous amount of control.

Something you totally lose when you decide to not only capture an image, but simultaneously jump to the other side of the camera, try to look good, and wrangle your kids. I admit it: every year, I struggle taking my own family portrait for our walls. And then every year, I say, I’m another year wiser, they are another year older, let’s give it a go!

This year, rather than going epic, like I enjoy doing for my clients, I said, let’s keep it really streamlined. Just us, in the new studio. Not my usual style, but a greater likelihood for less stress.

HAHHHAAAAAAHHAHAHAHA! It was a terrible experience! But we got this gem at the end:

Which works for me, since these were some of our other images:

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Next year, I will once again say, “I’m another year wiser, they’re another year older, why not?”

LOLOLOL! (*cry)

Authentic

My third shoot with the Marvelous Rabba Melissa, and I’ve learned about what she craves: authenticity. She wants gorgeous art on her walls, but she isn’t looking for everyone looking perfectly catalogue chic. She wants the expressions and moments that speak to her everyday life in this phase. The “pouty snuggle face,” the “I’m just silly,” the “I’m totally teenager.” She wants to remember everyone, exactly as they are.

When she knew her brother and nephew were coming to town, she said it was an occasion to be remembered and documented. Our next step together is to mount her gallery wall with images we’ve printed together from this shoot, last year, and occasions before we were blessed to know each other when the littles were littler, and their wedding day. Their growth so far, to be added to for years to come.

The Best of Each

“My sister and her family are visiting us and our parents from Argentina! Let’s have a photography session, so that we can each hang a piece of art of all of us together in our homes! But… with five grandchildren, how are you going to get everyone smiling??”

Honestly? I’m not.

But if you are going to admire a piece of art every day in your home, and pass it down, it should show every single person at their best. That’s why each piece is a carefully constructed custom art piece. Before, and after:

Can you count the changes? Comment below!

These were some of the sweetest kids. Sam’s smile pushed me over the edge. But you know the drill: out of routine, something chaotic and exciting and new, kids feel and show every moment of it. That’s why it’s my job to show the BEST of each precious human.

Soon, these will look like this on their walls!

The Grandkids

Coming this week to your wall, Tracey!!

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I can’t wait to hang this metal of your angels with you.

…And see how your mom is loving her gallery down in Florida! Capturing cousins is magical.

House a Home

We moved! One by one, we’re tearing through the boxes, putting things in their new spot, and figuring out what has yet to be found. Settling in. For me, what transitions my new house into my new home is putting the family art up on the walls. So while I have much more to go, tonight we decided to begin to make our mark on our space.

These are images printed on matte standout metals, and assembled from two different family sessions.

Just a hundred pictures left to go!
Another step closer. The transformation is incredible.

What to Wear Part 3

Two Fridays ago, I mentioned that I like thinking about styling a client in one of three categories:

In Designer’s Dream, your focus is on your finished product and how it interacts with your space. Is your style modern? minimalist? shabby chic? nautical? Do you have prominent colors that echo through your space? Do you want a piece of art that not only features your family, but compliments you home style?

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You are looking for fabrics with movement and texture. Everyone doesn’t need to precisely match one another nor your room, but should be in complimentary color groups. When we design your shoot, I can guide you into the color group that is flattering both to you AND your room!