{Maine Lifestyle Photographer}: Another slice of Life

It’s 10:39pm on day 14 of 21 days of blogging. It rained a lot today, and today’s photo shoot needed to be rescheduled. The Niece came over and played games and laughed with the broken hubs. The Neph and I went out tonight (somewhat spontaneously) for tacos. So, it was perhaps a slightly imperfect but very good day. I’m tired and ready for bed, and this photo grabbed me as a photo to use for today’s blog post.

The niece has this hooded blanket thing that says Princess across the top and the back. She throws it on her when she comes home and is done with her day. I so feel that right now.

If they made this in my size I would likely have one as well, and throw it on after a productive day. But maybe with a different word across it.

And with that I need to be done with the day and head off to get ready for whatever tomorrow is going to bring….

{Maine Lifestyle Photographer}: Behind The Scenes / Film Stills

I love being on set. I love the lights and the chords and and the light stands and all the gear weaving in with the humans working together in a bit of controlled chaos (but a few notches down from actual chaos). All working together to make something that will be seen either on the big screen or in your family rooms.

I love following the light to see what it can help me capture. And I love documenting people creating.

So, yes being on set and behind a camera is one of the things I love.

The images in this post were all taken on a shoot for The Campbell Brothers, on a sound stage in Portland, Maine where there was dry ice being used. I am not sure why I needed to mention that other than the fact that these images look a little different than some of my work because I guess dry ice (is that right? It may have been a smoke machine…) definitely give things a different look and feel than what I am normally photographing. And I like it.

There will definitely be more photos from other sets to share soon….

And as always, be in touch if you are in need of someone to document the behind the scenes moments of your business or project!

{Maine Lifestyle Photographer}: I Aunt Pretty Hard

If there is one thing you should know me (how can there only be 1?!?) it’s that I am the fun Aunt. Maybe even the best Aunt. People tell me that every so often, and it’s probably the one compliment I accept easily. I know I am good at this thing known as Aunting (so hard). Plus, I always have fun when I hang with my Niece and Neph. Because they are both fun & FUNNY. At least I think so.

We wear heart shades, take selfies, dance, sing, watch roller derby, go to the movies, eat ice cream, shop, and laugh. And, they let me photograph them, introduce me to their friends, and tell me about their lives.

And without meaning to, they sometimes remind me to slow down, dance or laugh it out, and not let some stuff get to me.

So, yes I get to be the fun Aunt (and maybe the crazy Aunt, depending on the day) and that probably tells you plenty about me. Feel free to judge me accordingly.

And we love to use the hashtags #heartshadesquad and #auntingsohard. Feel free to join us in either or both!

{Maine Portrait Photographer}: Lifestyle Session for a Writer

I recently had the honor of spending time with Stephanie and photographing her for a second time. I photographed her a few years ago, then it was time for a new website and a shift in the look for her imagery so she contacted me again.

Stephanie Cotsirilos, writer | Portland, Maine.

If I had my way she would need to re-do her website every year because I like hanging out with her, and I like listening to her ideas and figuring out together how to get the images that will work for this next step in her life. Her background in theater, law, consulting, and writing make her a person of many talents and multiple experiences. And I love being around that.

She took her life and her talents from NYC to Maine, and now lives, creates, and writes here. This time we used her home in Portland with its amazing light and pockets of color to showcase her and varying looks depending on what she needs for different forums and marketing pieces. You can see more at her new site here

So, thank you once again, Stephanie for trusting me to capture who you are, and for the lively conversation while we make it all come together!

{Maine Lifestyle Photographer}: Day 9 of 21

I guess it’s a Kettle corn for dinner kind of night. Because SUMMER and an outdoor festival that had ballon hats, glitter tattoos, fried Oreos, and hula hooping with the niece to a local 90’s cover band. Then I came home and had another ‘OH YEAH I need to blog’ moment. Because I made a deal with myself.

It’s Friday. It’s past 9 pm. So, while I organize some blog posts for another day, I also need time to edit them and narrow down some photo choices, and I find myself needing another blog post of s single life moment. It’s definitely this one. This Summer moment with friends. This time by the water where people unwind from their week, enjoy the air, the view, and the conversation, the water, and the street corn our friend made for us.. So, this photo reminds me of that content feeling after a day by the water with friends.

A moment I hope to repeat again soon.

I’m not ready to talk about the winding down of Summer. So I won’t. :)

{Maine Event Photographer}: Good Faces

I think I may have recently met my new favorite person to photograph…..

Yes, that fun face on the left. I kept photographing these kids at a recent event at Wolfe Neck Farm in Freeport and I couldn’t get enough of her expressions. I’m not sure of her name (but I can easily find out), and I don’t know if I will get the chance to photograph her again, but if I can find a way to get her in front of my camera again I will be bursting with excitement. But play it cool on the outside. OF course.

This is a thing when photographing people and events. Capture what is happening, start to see the faces that keep grabbing your attention. It’s a process, like editing, where you look at the overall total and then start taking it down to smaller chunks and moments that will tell the story of the event or this group of people. And then moments like this one happen, so your camera gets ready in hopes of capturing more. Then, in this case, you find yourself laughing while editing and maybe having too many photos to narrow down because there were just so many good faces.

Kids are great this way. That honesty of making whatever face they want in any given moment.

Power Engineers… photos are coming your way today. It was so fun to spend a Summer afternoon with you all!

{Maine Family Photographer}: King Family

It’s that time of year! Time to get outside, get your toes in the sand or grass or water and call up your favorite photographer to get your family photos done. Maine beaches/forts/trails/ are waiting!

Meet the King Family. Years ago I photographed Ben & Michelle here before they were married, back when they thought maybe it would just be the two of them. Then a few years later I photographed their wedding (and then said goodbye to the wedding industry, but I swear it has nothing to do with them!). Then we finally got to head back to our favorite fort and beach with a few extra fun humans with us.

So, again we laughed and played and ran around and captured who they are at this time in their lives.

This blog post is the perfect example of why I needed to give myself the challenge of blogging for 21 days - I started this post in June! So, I guess I’ll get around to finishing and publishing it now.

Thank you, Kings! You are ridiculously fun to photograph. I’m looking forward to doing this with all of you as the years go by, and then trying to get your kids to recreate some of these photos when they are teenagers. My hope is they will be super into it.

:D

Maine Family Photographer: Morales Family

I like lists. I like crossing things off the list as they get done, and seeing the list get smaller and smaller. I REALLY like those days when I get lots of things crossed off the list. I know I am not alone in this. Today I made a list that will guide me as I head into blogging for 21 days. A list that will give me a sense of accomplishment as it gets bigger, which is opposite of my usual to do lists. This will be a GOT IT DONE list, and will have 21 things checked off at then end. Maybe more. We’ll see.

So, it’s day 3 of blogging every day for 21 days (I keep repeating that so it will become habit). I want to share some favorite photos, some stories behind a photo, or just sessions that are more focused on the images and less on the words. It’s going to be a real mixed bag around here.

So today’s list included: Post to IG | EDIT | laundry | EDIT! | find pot holder loops (because the niece and I have plans for crafty fun times) | Make a blog list | BLOG | get the broken husband out of the house | Barre class | make potholder | EDIT | read.

(Yes, I have some editing to do, haha!)

Most of things are getting done. So may I share with you a few faves from a quick session with the M fam, from a day cooler than today, where snuggles were needed and silliness was unavoidable. I loved every minute of it.

And now I think I need to add BUY TOPHAT to my list.

Thank you, Victoria, Alberto, Sylvio, Wilow, and Lucas! Let’s do this again soon…

A Challenge: 21 Days of Blogging {day 2}

Sometimes we get in ruts. Sometimes can happen more frequently for some of us creative types. I may be in one now, but also not really. Things in my life have shifted the last few weeks, and my focus is a little more broken up than normal. So, I got up to write before I started my work day and realized I simply needed a challenge for myself to get out of a little weird stuckness.

Stuck over a a simple thing: Blogging. I do it then I don’t. I have past blogs I never transferred to this newer website. Images and stories and all the SEO stuff no longer visible. I have things to say, stories to share. But I blog infrequently, so it then ends up feeling like a chore. And then sometimes that makes things feel forced.

So, this morning I took some time to write while having my coffee and the next thing I know I made an agreement with myself to take on a 21 day blogging challenge. Blog daily. For 21 days.

Apparently, there is some scientific evidence out there explaining why it takes 21 days of doing something everyday to make it a habit. I have done this before when I kicked off my 365 photo challenge in 2018 - I started the year with both the photo challenge and following a 21 day habit building worksheet. One could argue that it must have worked since it’s now August of 2019 and I’m still photographing every day.

There is something about blogging and having to find original things to say about a job i’ve been doing for years. We can’t all keep saying this is the best photo shoot ever and still sound and feel sincere. However, truth be told that is how many of us feel after our photo sessions. I know I for one feel alive after shoots. I still have some occasional nerves beforehand, almost always have a blast during, then feel awesome after. But, it’s harder to get that emotion to come through when you are blogging about it months later, and I think that is where I might be right now. It feels insincere to try to muster up those feelings when I have waited far too long to make the blog post. If I was a better blogger I would be writing more in the moment. Perhaps.

But the stories are still there. The images waiting to be shared. Sometimes you just need to sit down and get things done. A few years ago I agreed to blog every day for a month (but again, that blog is not here haha) with a fellow friend. She cheered me on, even checked in on days when I was late. The possibility of blogging daily may seem daunting on one side, but for me what I like is the chance to share smaller posts, freedom to share personal work, little bite size chunks of a blogsnack, rather than a 5 course meal of this big event and all the best moments. The number of shoots I have sitting in folders and not on this blog!! Ugh. SO, yes take it in smaller, life size, easy to digest chunks and just get sharing!

So, that was a long way of saying welcome to my 21 day blog challenge! Which, for accountability’s sake kicked off on Thursday, July 8 (when I finished/posted the 365July photos). Join me if you wish! Readers and other blogging types welcome….

365 Photo Project {July}

July. The time of year we Mainers live for. Personally I don’t live for the heat too much, but do live for the time of year when jumping in the water as much as possible is a thing that can happen.

This July was a little different than others. I kept my calendar lighter than normal, and took some time off the week of 4th of July. Then my better half fell off a ladder, and things shifted. So, we are a few weeks in to healing from a fall - no driving, no working, not able to put weight his right foot. So, there have been doctor appointments, paperwork, casts, surgery, a lot of sitting, binge watching The Walking Dead, and simply trying to heal. So, this July delivered a bit of a curveball, and has changed some of our daily routines.

But there was also a trip to New York with my brother and nephew, a mini college reunion, a World Cup win for Women’s Soccer (!!), time by lakes, ponds, oceans, and pools, gathering with friends for food and conversation. So, a disruption of normal routines, but still lots of good life stuff and camera time.

Here are a few of the daily winners as life played out in front of my camera…

7/1.

7/2.

7/3.

7/4.

7/5.

7/6.

7/7. World Cup WATCHING!

7/8.

7/9.

7/10.

7/11.

7/12.

7/13.

7/14.

7/15.

7/16.

7/17.

7/18.

7/19.

7/20.

7/21.

7/22.

7/23.

7/24.

7/25.

7/26.

7/27.

7/28.

7/29.

7/30.

7/31.

So, July felt like a weird month, yet still a good one. I came home from a trip and the next day the hubs had surgery, so healing part two started almost 3 weeks after the initial injury. it’s a weird thing to have your life be forced to a slower pace, but there’s also something in there that may be good somehow. Maybe that’s gratitude.

We’ll just keep doing things one day at a time, sort of like this project….

365 Photo Project {June}

It’s only July 8th as I sit down to write this blog post and already June feels like it was forever ago. I did a thing this past week for July 4th - I took a semi vacation! There was just so much water to be jumping into and people visiting and offices not holding regular business hours and any other things to help me lose my focus. So, I mostly checked out, and though I meant to do this post several days ago I am glad I tuned out for several days because I think I needed it. So, when I look at these photos from June it already feels like awhile ago because I am climbing out of my little tuned out staycation time warp.

June showed up and then Summer decided to finally get here. It brought sun, rain, out of town visitors, good food, live music, a few late nights, laughter, sweat, dancing, goodbyes, splashing around in water, and people doing awesome things to help and lift others. So, again a pretty good month! And again, thankful for daily photos for the reminders of the good moments that otherwise may not really be remembered because they seemed so simple at the time.

Here is a glimpse at how my camera and I saw June….

6/1.

6/2.

6/3. Maine Roller Derby Practice | Portland Expo | Portland, Maine.

6/4. Nabil and Scott reunited | South Portland, Maine.

6/5. Spry in my kitchen.

6/6. Walk to ice cream with Lisa.

6/7. Happy Birthday to this guy!

6/8. PortFringe rehearsal | South Portland, Maine.

6/9. Hanging on my brother’s back deck and the Neph needs help with his tie.

6/10. Home.

6/11. Midnight hola hooping because need to get my photo for the day!

6/12.

6/13.

6/14. Last day of school for the Neph. He wore his No Colon Still Rollin shirt which is one of the many reasons why he is an awesome human.

6/15. PRIDE PARADE! Portland, Maine.

6/16. These cute neighbors.

6/17. This delicious meal | David’s Restaurant | Portland, Maine.

6/18. Reggie | PortFringe | Portland, Maine.

6/19. Neighbors.

6/20. At Portside Real Estate’s annual Rooftop REcharge to benefit Girls On The Run | Portland, Maine.

6/21. Bayside Rooftop | Portland, Maine.

6/22. When Hello Newman and Maine Roller Derby cruise around Casco Bay together | Portland, Maine.

6/23. Sometimes I put on the ancient nifty fifty and find things to photograph at f 1.8.

6/24. This Summer’s Pool buddy got new goggles.

6/25. Some friends visited from NYC, so I photographed her daughter, Lila, while we waited for a table at Eventide | Portland, Maine.

6/26. Lying around waiting for class to start | Tula Studios | South Portland, Maine.

6/27. Brother and niece and my new mirrorless camera | Scarborough, Maine.

6/28. Summer floating friends | Auburn, Maine.

6/29. My dad would have been 79 on this day. So, food and family silliness is how we choose to honor him on this day | Sinful Kitchen | Portland, Maine.

6/30. Fan weather

{Community} PortFringe 2019: Behind the Scenes

Fringe 2019. The Future is coming!

Are you familiar with a thing called Fringe? It’s a nation wide, few days long, public theater (but also NOT Theater) event and Portland’s version is called PortFringe. I am not a person who is comfortable on stage/in the spotlight, but I have been part of a few fringes (Thank you, Gentlemen’s Panel of Rock) as the photographer. This year I have been doing the photos for an upcoming production called Seance on a Tuesday Afternoon.

I love projects like this! One, because I love photographing people. And two, because I love capturing behind the scenes work. And that’s what Fringe is. A whole bunch of people working behind the scenes for weeks to get ready to bring their story to life for an audience.

Having worked with many of this crew before, I know they will deliver and you will not want to miss this!

Here a few photos I took during their recent rehearsal. If you look at these and think “what is going on here?!?” then you should go see one of their shows so you can find out. If you look at these and think these images are funny/interesting then you should also go see what happens. Either way, you clearly should get yourself to Fringe this year and see what all the hard work has created.

So, PortFringe kicks off this week and I urge you to get to as many shows as you can. You will be entertained, get out and see what the creative community is up to, AND the money from ticket sales is funneled back to the artists.

Go here for more about PortFringe.

Head on over to the SoaTA Facbook event page which will lead you to more awesomeness, info, and photos by me scattered throughout their social media.

Hope to see you at one of the shows!

{365} Photo Project: May

May. Month 5 of photographing life every day. The month where we all seem to come alive in Maine. I love seeing and hearing neighborhoods with kids getting outside and playing. Bikes come out, sidewalk chalk gets used, people start gathering outside to chat, eat, and laugh. This May was a wet one here in Maine, but my camera and I managed to capture combinations of chilly damp days and the happy relief of getting some sun in our eyes. And, as is always my goal this time of year, I made sure to get by and IN the water.

Eating, hanging out, capturing events, seeing live music, recitals, birthdays, walks to raise money for important causes, traces of shifting seasons, laughing, and even trying indoor climbing for the first time… all got to be part of what made May a pretty busy and great month. Thankful for this project to remind me of the good that continues to happen month after month…

5/1. Thunder and the Niece at the 2nd annual Red Storm Strikes Out Cancer Walk in Scarborough.

5/2. This was a delicious and fun meal.

5/3.

5/4. One of my faves from the month. I love people’s different body language and gestures.

5/5. For years the Neph has been holding an annual bake sale to raise money for The Maine Cancer Foundation. This year he raised money for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation and for their walk where he was being honored as one of their heroes of the year. Pretty cool kid, right?

5/6. Hi Spring!

5/7. Another rainy day, another photo shoot. Kallie from Portside Real Estate at the end of her photo session before we both jumped into our cars and out of the rain.

5/8. These two. Laughing and reading books after school.

5/9. The Niece turned a whole year older this day. Happy 7th birthday, Button!

5/10. Recital Dress Rehearsal. Waiting to go back stage.

5/11. Family birthday party for this one.

5/12. Mother’s Day. We went out for ice cream with my mom. This one stayed home in her cozy hoodie robe thing.

5/13.

5/14. Someone got a dollhouse for her birthday…

5/15. Small Business Awards. Lots of Mainers doing some great things!

5/16. Only one of these is for me.

5/17. The Ghost of Paul Revere and the Perry Brothers playing at the Zachau Construction celebration for 50 years in business | Brick South, Thompson’s Point, Portland, Maine.

5/18. About to walk for Crohn’s & Colitis. This image cracks me up because every face seems to lead you to another face doing another thing…

5/19. My high school pal and I tried this thing and it was only sort of scary and I’m only sort of bad at it. And we laughed about how it’s on land where people maybe partied when we were in school. Maybe.

5/20. Hooligans.

5/21. City Hall | Portland, Maine.

5/22. Bikes, books, unicorn castle time, and heart shades for this one on this day.

5/23.

5/24. My friend’s kid, Maggie is one of the coolest people I know. She plays guitar and violin. IN A GIRL BAND.

Maine Academy of Modern Music event | Bayside Bowl | Portland, Maine.

5/25. On this day I met Willard! Then went in the water while my friends floated in a giant unicorn.

5/26. MOVIE time with these two.

5/27. Neighborhood artist.

5/28. Prepping for this year’s Port Fringe. Keep your eyes peeled for the schedule and be sure to go see Seance on a Tuesday afternoon!

5/29. The other Beetle.

5/30. Met this handsome guy on a shoot.

5/31. On a rooftop. Or a boat. Almost doesn’t matter because it’s eat and drink outside season!

Ok, May that was busy and fun and now I’m ready for more sunny days by the water!

{Personal}: An LOL Birthday

My niece recently had a birthday. She’s now 7. A few weeks ago there was a small celebration that involved photo booths, fashion shows, cupcakes, unicorns, all things LOL, a ridiculous amount of noise, and me somehow getting trampled by a bunch of giggling kids.

So, that was fun.

So once I got out of the trample pile, I was able to get back to the task of taking photos and watching my family try to navigate this level of energy with a birthday girl who doesn’t do well with loud noises. One friend decided it would be funny to have a food fight, so naturally I laughed and hoped it would happen for photo sake. But instead she just got frosting on her nose and giggled about that.

Eventually we went outside, they ran around, and had these handful of sweet moments that I’m glad my camera was there to witness/capture. These are the kinds of images that need to get printed. The snapshots of life and celebrations that you can look back at for years. I know they will want to remember who was there, how they looked (those missing teeth!), but also that very awesome jean jacket with those fantastic patches.

Photos! Or it didn’t happen. Right?

(Not really, I know. But PHOTOS so you can remember what happened :D )

So, this is not just a post about the niece having a birthday party, but a reminder to capture these moments in life (or hire a professional to do that so you can enjoy and be present) and the final piece of getting your photos printed! It’s important. For many reasons. But only having your life stories in photos on disks and hard drives and phones is not enough.

Trust me.

Friends. xo

{Community} A Walk to Make a Difference: Red Storm Strikes Out Cancer Raises Money For the Maine Cancer Foundation

On a dreary day, people walked to help raise money for a cause. I went to support my brother, and stayed just for the photos of Thunder.

Spoiler: it’s my nephew in that mascot costume.

Red Storm Strikes Out Cancer has been walking and fundraising or the last 7 years (or maybe 8? 10?). I’m trying to dig for the info, and may need to clarify later - but either way for what seems like roughly the last decade of our lives my brother has created and organized a team at his school to participate in and raise money for Mary’s Walk and the Maine Cancer Foundation. Starting last year they moved the walk to the school, while still donating all the money to the Maine Cancer Foundation.

I missed last year’s walk, but my cameras and I were able to get there this year.

How could I miss it? Besides being for a great cause, my nephew was the school mascot and that made my camera’s day. But also, it was great to see all these young people taking time after school to be part of this and make a difference.

This makes me laugh every time.

Thunder (the Neph) and my brother (creator of Red Storm Strikes Out Cancer and two time cancer survivor).

Ray from Maine Cancer Foundation came to the walk, and made a great speech reminding everyone how they are making a difference.

The niece thanked everyone for supporting her dad and so that made some people cry. Maybe.

Waiting for everyone to finish the walk..

Here they come! The niece and Neph … I mean THUNDER are ready to greet all the walkers.

So, once again a community of people came together and proved that we can all make a difference. An idea can grow into an event and people will show support and donate their time and money in the name of helping each other /a cause / a neighbor/friend/teacher who needs a little extra boost or is trying to help others.

The odd positive spin of having cancer impact your own family so much. Which isn’t the worst thing that could happen.

xo ~ jb