A Calibrated Lab
www.shaynaimage.com See the problems with the way we think about modern photography, and how I solve them, here: http://www.shaynaimage.com/bio
Getting the Perfect Picture
www.shaynaimage.comSee the problems with the way we think about modern photography, and how I solve them, here: http://www.shaynaimage.com/bio
MAZAL TOV to the Wenger family, on Gila’s Bat Mitzvah!! Everyone was so excited to celebrate her, even if the plans had to be carefully rethought. I’ve had the opportunity to capture this family through the years, and seeing Gila evolve into such a poised young woman was stunning. Leading up to the event, we strategized the best methods to memorialize the occasion with family as lasting art in the safest way possible.
Click each image to enlarge.
Each of the girls radiate. Strong individuality, but all emanate kindness.
The Wengers were able to celebrate, albeit in a non-traditional way, with those they love most.
From the beginning, they knew they what they wanted for their home. We planned out the galleries that they will enjoy daily and for a lifetime to come.
The girls in the hallway (image unedited for mockup)
The images to the side are for individual bedrooms.
They wanted images from our previous sessions in 2012 and 2017 to be incorporated. I can’t stress enough, as a photographer, the importance in investing in backup data systems and being organized about it. I was able to pull up the original images from both years, and spruce up both so that their gallery would look more cohesive.
In my own home, I have a gallery with prints from multiple years, and I confess I often spend time reveling in the growth of my own littles. I’m thrilled that the Wengers will be able to admire the story of their family in their living room.
May they have many more celebrations to come!!
Update 1/12/2021!
We were pushed off a couple of weeks due to HSL, but were thrilled to complete the installation today!!
Navigating Gallery Design
See the problems with the way we think about modern photography, and how I solve them, here
Tinisha is delightful. Effervescent. Ready to listen and share. Dedicated to her family, her teenage children, and ready to be dedicated to yours as she helps you find your home.
And a shout-out to LUCY for making the connection!!
The difference in heirloom
See the problems with the way we think about modern photography, and how I solve them, click here.
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.
Setting up for John’s session, I decided it was time to update my own headshot.
Photographing yourself? Nervewracking. There’s no “me” on the other side of the table to tell me to relax, to coach my angles. Worse? Photoshopping yourself. Always a reminder that we look at others with kinder eyes.
But I think the outcome is pretty thoroughly me, and I’m good with that.
The background was originally grey, like in John's, but I decided to warm it up and go a bit more mono-chromatic.
Here’s a pull-back of the setup, plus my helper.
I’m on to you Lucy. Every time someone new to the office needs a headshot, you send them my way. Are you the best? You are the best.
This time, Lucy told John to give me a call. He’s in my husband’s Realtor coaching program. Long time New Yorker’s, four years ago he and his wife called do-over. They loved Atlanta: the pace, the people. He craved a new chapter. So here he is, learning how to guide his clients, explain the market, and loving every moment of settling into Life Chapter Two.
I actually answered an unknown number. It wasn’t a car warranty, for once, but it was Michael Smith, who heard from Falynn that I was the person to call for headshots. A fellow Architect at OTJ Architects, he specializes in biomedical science facilities. But we clicked immediately over cowboy boots and wall art.
His home galleries are spectacular, but he’s one of the few who doesn’t need my process to arrange a spectacular array on his walls! There are definitely some perks to the field.
“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.
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.
**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!
It’s magical to see it in person.
Gallery wrap! Album! Mounted prints! Turning a wedding into beautiful art for beautiful memories.
#art #atlanta #atlantaphotographer #photographer #portraits...
A couple of nights ago, we tiptoed down to the almost completed studio. I wanted to test lens length in the space, so asked kids to stand in. Didn't have a single light set up, no backdrop: just my new space, natural light in the evening in the rain. This is the result. Back of camera, as unedited as it comes.
Matthew and Mira were adorable, curled up on my couch, sipping sparkling apple from my own nuptial flutes, and poring over wedding materials with me. We chatted about how they met, the evolution of their relationship. They enjoyed each other so much. She told her mom that she knew nothing about what she wanted her wedding to be like, EXCEPT that she wanted Shayna Image to capture it. I’ve never been so flattered, and I wanted to blow them away.
Their wedding was March 1st.
The world shut down for Covid-19 March 13th.
We were scheduled to have our reveal party on the 22nd. We wanted so much to get together in person, enjoy celebrating and reliving the evening together, so we opted to postpone until we could view the images in person. But come August, we couldn’t take it any longer, and gathered with both sets of parents for a virtual viewing. The wait was agonizing!
They are both blessed with large, local families with abundant personalities. The energy that day communicated that this couple has a support system that runs deep. If you are a part of that support system, the family would love to share their complete online gallery with you: be in touch with them for instructions and password!
May the couple always feel encapsulated in the love of that day.
Mandy was a ray of sunshine. We had never met before, but as we fine tuned our spot and light for her headshot session, she took in our construction mess. The studio renovations are coming along nicely, as is the landscaping for the Shayna Image Studio and Grounds, but both are in their ugly spot of growth. She saw the end, there in the middle of the process, cheering, “THIS IS GOING TO BE SO AMAZING!!” I was excited before, but Mandy’s enthusiasm made it triple. She sees the good, the potential, even in the middle of the storm.
So it was no surprise WHATSOEVER that Mandy, while only just starting her career in Real Estate to supplement her income as an educator, is CRUSHING IT already. She has an incredible amount of people under contract, and she has only just joined a team!
The hardest times can be the most beautiful. We shut down with the world. It became apparent that every decision would be one of risk vs reward. A decision that we made, not without risk, has been richly rewarding beyond belief. We came to bond with our neighbors. We decided together to proceed as a bubble as cautiously as possible, and to socialize outdoors. These kids have come to see each other as family as much as friends.
Missing in action: Yaira, George, and Dovi. Special shout-out to Miriam Ahuva.
Outdoors is a hot bliss filled with squeals, swings, laughter, swinging, fighting, bleating sheep, zip lines, hiking through creek tunnels, scooters, felling trees and climbing them, too.
Discovery
We all hope to go back to the world. To see missed friends, restore balance, and to actually go into each other’s homes. But this time is equally precious and scary.
Hanna hears you. Life is full of struggles and transitions, and she invites you to breathe through it all with her. Check out her Yoga and Healing practice, with zoom offerings during this time, at http://healwithhanna.com/ , https://www.facebook.com/healwithhanna, and https://www.instagram.com/healwithhanna/
Q: Rachel, how do you get most of your clients?
A: Via Instagram, Stacie messaged me, and said she got my name on NextDoor. So the answer? I get my clients through YOU!
Stacie was looking for a referral, because she’s going through a TON of transitions, and needed a refresh on her headshot that reflected these next steps in life. Work in plastics manufacturing, a new home, and a new little walker under her new roof! I’m thrilled that someone made the connection for us, and it was so energizing to end our dynamic session excitedly discussing future sessions and her friends’ photography needs! Now she gets to pass it on.
Brian is someone who makes an easy connection, and rolls with the punches. He’s launching his career with Keller Williams, and upon meeting it’s easy to imagine how enjoyable he would make the entire home-buying process.