Photo Divine ~ Hope: 2013 Senior Rep

Hope Hay! Look at those dimples! This brave young woman wanted to incorporate water into her Senior photos. Cold water. She insisted it was fine, since she is used to jumping glacial lakes up in Alaska. Burrrr. She is one of our fabulous Senior Reps for the class of 2013 and we could not have imagined a more lovely lady to work with. Hope moved to Durango recently with her family. She is one of eight siblings and has definitely defined her own style. Her collection of clothing, shoes and accessories was unbelievable, but it is her easy going attitude that made photographing Hope a blast!

A Typical Day in the Studio

Why wouldn't we have this much fun on a Wednesday?

    I always wanted a bubble butt...

The Youngest Member of The Photo Divine Mafia: Zoë

Zoë Viana Furer. She doesn't just sound like a rock-star, she is.  Zoë is eleven and she recently shaved her head after reaching her financial goal of raising $3,000 for child cancer research.  She just rode in the Iron Horse over Memorial Day weekend. She is energized by soccer, mountain biking and her close group of friends. Her dad, Chris Furer of Balanced Recovery Massage, totally "gets" Photo Divine ~ the empowering photographic experience that allows women to improve their self confidence and expand their personal boundaries around their own body image. Chris suggested that if we reach these women at a younger age when they are already feeling strong and confident, we will have encouraged positive behavior concerning body image during that vulnerable adolescence stage. Brilliant.  

Photo Divine ~ Odin's first Carnivial in Durango, Colorado

I was completely excited to take Odin to his first carnival. Our intimidate family came for this momentous event, but I could tell that I was the one most excited. The lights at night attract me, but the smell of fried dough and sugar lures me in as well (even though I am eating gluten free.) I don't think there has been a carnival in the history of the world that you can escape without getting ripped off. The experience would not be the same if there was. It started with the "win a giant stuffed animal" games. Steve wanted to win Odin some toys. So we bought some tickets only to find out that the tickets were only for the rides. Which meant we had to go on the rides. No biggy, except that I was already empty stomached and a bit nauseous just watching other people ride. Odin took his carnival riding VERY seriously. He tippy-toed to make the cut for the Merry-GO-Round. Then he jumped on board the train with his Grandpa Jim. Pa-pa Jim didn't fit in the train to easily, but I think he enjoyed the ride almost as much as Odin. Wesley and Jed braved the Ring of Fire and Steve and I nauseated ourselves on the elevated swing. We gave our last 7 tickets away to a much more enthusiastic bunch and left with one stuffed memorabilia. A true carny adventure.

Photo Divine ~ Durango Family Photographers

I photographed Megan's senior portraits last fall. Wesley and I were invited back this spring to photograph the rest of her family. Megan warned me at our first shoot together that she was not photogenic. Ha! That statement was far from the truth. Below are some of her senior pics. This time around she gave me one of the best compliments a photographer can ask for: "You made me like getting my picture taken." Maybe this statement is not as true when she is getting teased and squeezed by her two older brothers, but still what an awesome compliment!

PS: I made the mistake of thinking there were 4 siblings total in this family. When in fact Megan's "sister" was actually her brother's girlfriend. Oops. :) So I threw in a shot of them in this series too. 

Photo Divine Getaway

Raw. A word often used to describe the unfolding of a Photo Divine get away. I looked up the meaning: "basic and natural, but not controlled or developed." Ideally right? It is a fine line that we are encouraging women to question. What is beauty and what feels beautiful don't always seem to aline or agree. As rewarding as this type of photography is it is also the most challenging. Being a woman allows me to understand how critical one can be when over evaluating self defined "flaws." How do we learn to celebrate, accept, appreciate and most importantly love ourselves? This would be my definition of success in life once achieved. Although I crave women to do this for themselves I don't even know that I can honestly say I am always in a place of power that allows me to feel what I preach.

This Photo Divine getaway was special. It was designed as a bachelorette celebration for my girlfriend Crissy who wedded this past Saturday. She gathered a lovely group of women who embarked on this journey with her. We played under the almost full moon, shared laughter, dark chocolate and our favorite kinds of cheese and wine. Then as day broke, one at a time each woman braved it for the camera and beauty unfolded in waves of individual uniqueness. Inhibition set free and with open and trusting hearts I was allowed in to create imagery of the contrast; the place of power and vulnerability.

Thank you ladies! xo Kyla