from dust (a short film)

We ran around my parents' backyard for hours, my eye constantly at my viewfinder. I felt like I was 14 again, using my camera to freeze little moments of time that I will hide away and keep forever. Except this time I didn't freeze them, I let them continue just a little bit longer. Sometimes I just need to pour my inspiration into something other than photographs in order for it to continue. 

For the best quality, watch the video in HD on vimeo! 



A huge thank you to Erin for being such a wonderful friend, and a huge thank you to Babysnakes for allowing me to use her music for this.

on top of a mountain

rise with the sun

 A few weeks ago, we hiked up to a little clearing in the woods where the sun shone perfectly until the very second it finally set. Those are my favorite shoots - the ones where the inspiration flows for hours and doesn't stop until the sun goes down behind the mountains. I'm so thankful to have met Kristin this summer because her spirit is as loving, wild and adventurous in life as it appears to be in these photographs. They wouldn't be what they are without her and I'm definitely looking forward to working with her again soon!

 

flightless

There was a period of time where I constantly had a giant collection of Hans Christian Andersen's fairytales in my hands. They were a main source of inspiration for me and the work I was creating for my portfolio classes in high school. And even though I haven't read any of his stories in well over a year, I've found that I am still continuing to draw so much inspiration from them. I cannot thank Lacee enough for seeing my exact visions of a human-sized bird's nest and helping me bring it to life (and then posing in it on top of a cliff)!

For anyone interested, this is the collection I was referring to. I also own this collection by the Brothers Grimm but have yet to open it it! 

 

 

will-o-the-wisp

For about two or three years now, I've been collecting little ideas for shoots and keeping a vague list of them on my phone. Whether the inspiration comes from films, books, music, or my own daydreams, these ideas always find their way to a more permanent place. And even though I'm constantly building onto it, I've never really referred to the list until this month. I can't explain how happy it makes me to have a record of so many of these little visions, especially when I'm ready to plan out all of the details and bring them to life. 

When I first asked Keegan to shoot with me, I didn't realize she only had a few days left until she had to fly across the country to start the new school year. I was determined to construct a solid idea and shoot it before she left, so I searched through my list of ideas about three times for something that I could make happen within the next two days. Later that night I went into Goodwill and searched through every single shelf, only to find something so much greater than what I originally had in mind. Instead of a classic teapot, I found what looked like a magical genie's lamp. And that is how this fairytale of a shoot evolved into what it did.