The Group Shot

Yesterday something incredible happened for me. To be quite honest I don't know how I'm going to make it through this blog post without tears flowing freely. You see, this is what happens to the passionate. This is what happens to those who are so enthusiastic about something that they throw themselves forward, fully, into it. You put your soul into it, not just your flesh.

When I started my photography journey five months ago I knew that I needed lots of practice, lots of technical training, and models to get me through this journey. Models are important because if willing they will allow you to shoot them regularly so you can learn functions, poses, lighting, etc. I wanted to be the one to choose each of my models, very specifically, so that I could get diversity and different looks. I wasn't looking for perfect bodies, perfect hair, skin.....I was looking for personality. I was looking for individuals willing to let me pose them in awkward poses and also have a great time.

In essence I was looking for a group of people that would help me grow, stretch me, and support me. My first model was Brittany. She was incredible. She gave me a sense of empowerment. I wanted to work with both men and women so I had my eyes on a male model too. Mr. Ben. I love working with men in particular because they are more laid back and carefree. Ben was so gracious with me because when we did our first shoot I was honest and said, "So Benjamin, I've never worked with a male model. Help me learn how to pose you and your body." He did help me, tremendously and by our second shoot he was a pro!

Slowly I added in others. Michael came next. Grace has always been a model for me (that's my teenager, yo!). Than came Evan and his wonderful personality and lastly my newest model Meghan and her gorgeous face.

But last night was more to me than just my models and I getting together. The wonderful, amazing and talented Matt Vivanco of Matt Vivanco Photography came to join us on this shoot. Matt and I met at the Purple Stride race several weeks ago and instantly hit it off. After seeing his work and portfolio I knew I wanted to learn from him. He is an incredible teacher. It's a gift, truly. He taught me so much in one night and was very gracious in doing it. He went step by step explaining new techniques to me slowly so that I could absorb it all quickly.

I am like a sponge when I learn. I wake up daily with a constant sense of newness, of the thought that, "I'm a beginner today; what more can I learn?" It keeps me humble and it also keeps me passionate to learn more. To grow. To stretch.

Towards the end of this shoot I had all my models line back up on the stairs. I told Matt that I really wanted to get one of me in the center of them. I loved the way they were posed and just wanted to be surrounded by them and have a photo of it.

While I was sitting there, watching Matt adjust lighting this overwhelming sense of joy just came over me. This feeling of being loved by these people, supported by these folks, and that these 6 people have taught me so much about myself. They encouraged me. Loved on me. Helped me through moments of anxiousness and nervousness. They've become some of my very best friends.

Sitting there I started thinking of those precious moments throughout the evenings shoot when a model would come up, place their hands around my shoulders and say, "You are doing so great Meg. I can see you growing and learning. You are so passionate." Others laughing, telling me that they've always enjoyed working with me. Bringing these 6 people together, some who had never met the others, and it was like we had always all been family.

Before I knew it, I'm getting emotional. I'm crying. Matt caught the perfect moment and even though my passion may never be understood by another and how it can move me to such raw emotion; I have this moment in a photograph and I get to keep it forever. Leaving this shoot I started getting texts from some of them, "You did an amazing job tonight!" and also, "Thank you so much for inviting me! I have an incredible photographer."

I am so grateful to Matt for being willing to impart wisdom. And more importantly I am so thankful to each and everyone of these models for helping me to grow into the woman I am, right now. The photographer that I am. God is so good to me to bring these people into my life and I am eternally grateful.

Kelly - Maternity & Family

 Meet Kelly.

Momma to one with one on the way. She's a beautiful, strong, intelligent woman and I was honored that she asked me to do her photographs. She wanted a more urban type feel and so I thought the downtown Kannapolis location would be perfect for her. It would give a subtle feel of city with a beautiful mix of country. The location was perfect for her family.

Kelly is also gorgeous (pregnant or not). Throughout our shoot I talked to her about possibly doing some modeling after she had her baby. I meant every word. Her facial features and natural slim physique is exactly what I am looking for in my newest female model.

Her husband was so patient. He is one of the best male clients I've ever worked with. He didn't fuss at his wife or daughter and let me pose him or did anything I asked. Because I specialize in lifestyle he was comfortable just being himself, walking with his expectant wife and his sweet daughter and letting me snap away.

I'm exited to announce that Jase has arrived, is healthy and ready for his first professional photographs. I will be photographing him within this week. I am so excited to see this precious little boy! Thank you Kelly for this amazing experience!

Support The Locals

Sweet Sophia

My schedule is beyond booked. I wake up at 5:30am during the school year, get myself dressed, grab a cup of coffee and than wrangle the four kids that need to be up and ready for the day. Take them to school, workout, and then really get ready for my day.

In between snuggles, whines, and housework I am editing, calling clients, returning e-mails. On rare days when my hubby is off/home (he travels a lot for work) I sneak away for several hours to do editing in a kid free zone (aka Starbucks or Panera). After picking up all of my children I head home to start dinner and our afternoon/night time routine.

Throughout this day I have gotten maybe 10 photographs edited. Maybe returned half an e-mail, and possibly completed a Christmas mini marketing file. When I'm at home it's almost completely impossible to focus solely on work because my little's need tending too (no regrets there).

After dinner, baths, prayer time, and bed time I grab more coffee after completing a load of laundry and edit. I work on both house work and editing/business related work until 2am (or later, darn insomnia) and than have to re-do the entire routine.

This does NOT include time away for photo shoots, ministry related events/meetings, and most of my weekends are spent photographing or volunteering. 

I'm a small business owner, mother, guardian, wife and friend.....and it sucks trying to get people to take me seriously.

When I started this business four months ago I did it because I love photography. I love offering a service to someone and they can keep that final product, forever. I haven't worked in four years and here I was throwing myself in hardcore to a business and passion adventure that would take so much time in between everything else I was already involved in. I don't regret it. I'm just surprised at the amount of people that do not see what I do as a "real living" or a real "career."

So, for those who aren't small business owners (because, I can't believe it still, that is what I am) lets talk a few points on what we are and aren't and what you probably shouldn't say.

1. Please do not dis-include me in the working field because I work for myself. 

So many times I will be in a group of woman, mainly working moms, who will be complaining about their situations. I often here, "You just don't know how hard it is to juggle everything. I work 40 hours a week, have two kids, and a house to keep orderly."

Um. Last time I checked I'm doing the same thing.

Just because I sign my own paycheck and can work my schedule 100% around my children doesn't mean I am any less of a working mom. I work really hard. I take everything I do seriously and give 100%. I know the struggle of having to juggle and balance it all. Not just that but I also know the struggle of having a spouse who travels 75% of the time for work. I do it alone, a lot, and I don't complain about it. I just....get it done.

2. Please don't discount me because I don't make a certain amount of money each month, or because I do volunteer and model work. 

60% of my work currently is either non-paid or volunteer work. Why? Well one it's because I'm new. The photography industry is a fast paced, high stress, high competitor field. I can google photographers in Charlotte and no for certain my name will not be on any of the front pages. My business is grown through word of mouth, lots of social media, and lots of hard work.

It sucks to pay out more for your business than you put in; but it's still just that, a business. I still am working. I still am pushing product out, and I'm constantly growing.

3. PLEASE do not ask me for free product.

Volunteering at Freedom House

Unless I offer it to you as a free service or volunteer opportunity I'm not going to just give you a free photo shoot. The first month I started my pricing was $50 for an hour shoot. You'd be surprised at HOW MANY people tried to bring me down to barely nothing. The gas, time editing, and prop supplies is worth much more than $50. I am not going to be taken advantage of just because I'm nice.

4. Support locally owned businesses because it creates community, creativity in community, and creates jobs.

Yes, if you support your locally owned business (whether they are photography businesses, florist, coffee shops, etc) you are supporting the opportunity for growth in your own backyard. Local businesses are owned by people who live in this community, are less likely to leave, and are more invested in the community’s future.

If I were to have the support and financial profit in my own community I could hire on assistants, photographers, and grow. Without the communities, friends, and family support I could not do this.

5. Local business owners GIVE more. 

Non-profit organizations receive an average 250% more support from smaller business owners than they do from large businesses. Why? I truly believe it's because we know the importance of non-profit organizations and have had to work much harder to have what we do because it wasn't just handed to us. If you want to see volunteer organizations and non-profits grow, than support your local small business owner.

6. Speak encouragement into your local business owner. 

Even if you were never to use my services sharing a photo on your timeline on facebook, re-posting an instagram photo, or even just "liking" and "commenting" on a photo will encourage my business pages to grow and connect me to potential clients. You may not need a certain service but you can be the person that provides income from another source. Don't discount a simple click of a button.

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Overall don't knock our spirits. We are hard working people, with possibly high profitable businesses and we want the same opportunity as large businesses. We want the opportunity to grow not only our communities but our creativity and bring a uniqueness and closeness to our communities that might not otherwise happen if large companies come in and take over. We need a good mix of both for growth and just want to be accepted.

Being a local, think locally first!

Meet the Model: Michael

Michael, Michael, Michael. This is often what I'm thinking in my head while I am on a modeling shoot with this amazing model. I met Michael back in the Spring when I instantly connected with his amazing mother, Patty. I first noticed his potential in modeling at his mothers cancer shaving party. He had a certain look I was going for especially as a more "serious" model and had a gorgeous face. He can pull off both the "clean shaving" look and also the scruffy look which makes each of our shoot possibilities endless.

Michael is also one of my most difficult models. He would be the first of all of them to grab my camera and start snapping pictures of random things or myself. My shoots with him seem to take double the time - but we always end up with extremely awesome and successful photographs.

Check out some of Michael's answers:

1. Have you ever modeled before working with Meg Martino Photography?

A little. I had people that would ask me to do a shoot here or there. 

2. Were you surprised that you were asked to model with me? What were you expecting?

I was a little surprised and I'm not sure what I was expecting. Weirdness, because you are weird. 

3. What has been the most challenging experience? 

Meeting your expectations. 

4. What have you learned from modeling? Would you recommend someone else model, even just for fun, if they were asked?

Yes, I would recommend it and I learned to just have fun with it. Meg is fun. And life is short. No need to be serious all the time. I feel like when people are so serious all the time life becomes boring. 

5. What has been your favorite experience/shoot with Meg?

Definitely the night shooting. I'm looking forward to more of that. The colors are so bright and it's my style for sure. 

Michael has since become one of my best friends. He's a great model and is open to new ideas and creative props and locations. He's also an amazing tattoo artist (if you are interested in his information for work please private message me on my facebook page).

I have high expectations for Michael and look forward to what the future holds as far as his modeling and the portraits take both of us. I use him for a lot of creative face shots and plan to add more creative ideas to our shoots.

I'm also grateful for the few shots that Michael has capture of me by being just himself. He's one of the most genuine people I've met. He doesn't always show his sensitive side but it's there and it's one of the things I love most about him. Make sure you hit him up with a comment or two on how awesome he is and check out his full portrait rolls over on the Meg Martino Photography facebook page. You will be sure to enjoy them!

Meet the Model: Ben

I am doing a new series here on the business blog called "Meet the Model." I am hoping to grow my model rotation to 10 people; I currently have five (one new one!). I hope to introduce them each to you and share some of their experiences so that you don't think I just drag people around telling them what to do....well, I sort of do that.

I met Ben a long time ago through our church. He was an instant friend. He comes to all our family functions and just loves on the littles and on our family. As I ventured into photography I knew from the beginning that I wanted him as one of my regular models. Ben has such a pretty boy face and style; but I also know after working with him that he can be edgy when he wants too.

Our very first shoot in June was very much like this. Very preppy and light. I had not worked a lot with male models at that point (they are my favorite to work with now, so easy and carefree) and so Ben was an original guinea pig on me learning to style men.

As Ben and I's friendship has grown and our partnership as a model/photographer I've learned his style, his likes and dislikes via colors, etc. When you are a photographer and you have a regular model you don't want to just have them show up. It's a team effort. I now prefer to style all of my models a few days before a shoot and Ben was super gracious in letting me style him in our second shoot that we will mention in a moment.

Our second shoot was in August. I took a mini break in July to do some events/weddings as well as catch up on editing. I also took some time this week to talk to Ben about his experiences. Check it out:

1. Have you ever modeled before working with Meg?

No. Working with Meg was my first official modeling gig.

2. Where you surprised that you were asked to model? What were you expecting from a photo shoot?

I had always thought it would be cool to try modeling but never actually pursued an opportunity to do it, so I was slightly surprised when Meg asked me. 

3. What has been your most challenging experience?

The most challenging thing so far as been perfecting my "hard" face ha ha

4. What have you learned from modeling? Would you recommend someone else to model, even if just for fun? 

I think I've learned best that I should stay on this side of the camera, ha ha. I really enjoy watching Meg's creativity come to life and helping make that happen. To me it's a lot of fun being out there laughing, trying out different ideas and watching it all come together to an amazing final product. I would absolutely recommend others to model with her or model in general. 

5. What has been your favorite/most fun experience with Meg?

I think my most fun experience so far with Meg had to be this last shoot. We laughed a lot, had so much fun, and I felt much more comfortable with the modeling aspect than I did the first time. 



Overall, Benjy has absolutely nailed his part as a model. He is a very strong model giving me both glimpses of seriousness and laughter. One of the things I appreciate about Ben is his willingness to accept my personality and silliness. When we are on a shoot that can take 4-5 hours he is light and fun the entire time; even as I'm bossing him around. He's very open to trying new artistic poses and has one of the most genuine spirits I've ever encountered.

He also has an understanding that he is not allowed to model for anyone else....ever.

Look for Ben's next spread the end of September. We are doing a fun and unique night time shoot that will be sure to knock your socks off!

Enjoy these few photos of Ben too! :)

Happy Four Months

Wow. I'm here. It's here. Four months into this wild, crazy, adventurous story of becoming a photographer. A legit photographer. The kind that actually makes, ((gulp)), money. But that's not just it. There is a certain high I get when I take a good photograph. There is a high that I get when I work with a model, and I'm posing them and they feel good about themselves because even though they may not feel like they are good looking or attractive, they see the photograph and they see themselves in a new life.

That's just it. I can take good photographs all day. But it's the people behind the lens that makes those photographs come to life. Not kidding. I don't just say that to be humble, I say that because it's true. My subjects, the people I get to meet, they are wonderful. They make my job so fun, even in the stressful times.

So here we are. Here I am. Four months since I've started this business and I've never been happier. There have been so many bumps in the road. So many scary moments and times where I wanted to give up. I wanted to share just a few short snippets of what I've learned on this journey of following my dream. That's what I am doing and you can do it too.

Lesson 1: Don't doubt yourself.

The minute I hit "go" on my facebook page for Meg Martino Photography I started to doubt. "My work isn't good enough. Look at the coloring. I can't do this. It's too much." Stop. Just stop. If you don't push yourself, IF YOU don't encourage yourself, no one else will.

I had people tell me that what I was doing wasn't a "real job." That because I wasn't bringing in a certain amount of money on a regular basis (yet) that I needed to get a full-time job. I needed to do "my part" in bringing in an income for my family. This was my dream and I was doubting what I could be with it, what I could do, because of others opinions.

Don't doubt. Push yourself. You will need to grow, but growth is part of the process.

Lesson 2: Pass it along

Don't hoard your knowledge. I'm always taking interns. Currently Grace, my baby sister/baby bear of our family, is my intern. If I were to die tomorrow could my legacy go on? Could the knowledge and ideas in my head be put into action? If not, you aren't doing your part as a leader.

Lesson 3: Step outside of your comfort zone

I am so comfortable behind the camera. Like I said earlier, I get this feeling. I feel so happy, so content. I see the world differently. I see colors differently. I feel free. NO one judges me behind the camera. No one laughs at me, no one asks me to be different. They see me as an artist, as a working woman, as a mom, as an independent and beautifully creative woman.

But sometimes, we have to step out of our comfort zone. I had to do this when I got out from behind the lens and stepped in front of it. I have to grow.

Lesson 4: Be unique. Create your own style. Be You.

Why do I photograph people of all ages, races, and sizes? Because I don't want to be the same. Sorry, not sorry, to say that the "fake" look doesn't appeal to me. I don't just want woman who are skinny with perfect breasts and butts. I don't want just men with perfectly shaved beards and a six pack. I want real. I want life. I want relate ability.

I have my own style. I have my own ideas and my own thoughts and because I don't want to be a photographer who just snaps portraits, I will create and develop my own style. Do the same for you. Whatever you are doing right now, whatever dream you are pursuing, be you.

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So where is Meg Martino Photography at right now? I'm working on two big projects. One is a creative piece where I will re-create at least a dozen of the Grimm Fairy Tales. Throughout the fall and even into the winter I will photograph different models in these stories adding my own personal style.

I'm also now doing Humans Of Charlotte. This is a spin off the famous Humans of New York and will feature dozens of stories each week of people in and around the Charlotte area. Why? Because I love people. I have no fear and I'm bold and I want to use my talents.

Follow me? Come with me? This journey rocks.

Their Back!

The Jackson brothers....are back. Add in the princesses of the family and BOOM you got an amazing family, brother, maternity shoot.

With James going off to college and me needing photographs of all four boys together I had to get them together quickly to do photographs. I'm never sure what craziness I'm going to get with them. I don't think they can be serious for more than five seconds, which is always good, because I'm never serious for more than five seconds and if I am, it's not good.

With this crew you can always find someone doing something crazy. I seriously have to go through five or six photographs before I can get to one that's not too crazy too post. In the few shoots that I've done with these boys and Aleena I've learned so much about their personalities.

Sweet Tyler never wants to smile for me. I'm constantly watching for a chance to snap a photograph quickly when he does smile. They are rare but beautiful. This black and white (above) is one of my favorite group photos of all time because sweet Ty is SMILING. And smiling good. My life's work is complete.

Dan is a poser. Seriously, this guy is ready for me to photograph him at any minute. He's great with directions too. Him and Aleena are expecting a little girl (any day!) and so we coupled this shoot with their maternity shoot. The shots we got are out of this world gorgeous. The love between them two is indescribable. I can only capture a minute portion of it.

Aleena is naturally beautiful. And that hair. Can someone please tell me how I can get beautiful hair like that? She came in feeling a bit insecure (what 40 weeks pregnant woman wouldn't?) but you can tell through her pictures that she is loved; feels that love and is beautiful.

James is one of my regular models (as is Michael). He knows that he's going to be asked to do model like poses and always comes with a good attitude. Him and Michael are also the biggest goofs of the bunch. James kept to his word though and was pretty serious the entire shoot when I needed him to be. Well...sometimes. (When he's not climbing into trees).

And Michael. Lastly, Michael. Michael is one of my main male models for my company. I have a list of models I keep on hand to keep my portfolio fresh. Michael is very good at letting me try artsy photographs on him; but he is the biggest goof of them all. He's also the big brother and will help me get everyone serious when I need to get business done so we can move on. I know our shoots are always double the length in time because they love to have fun.

At the end of the day as crazy as these boys and this family is they are incredible. They are one of my favorite families to shoot because they aren't afraid to just be themselves in front of the camera. They aren't afraid of people seeing their craziness; they embrace it. That's what we need more in front of our cameras. People who are comfortable. As always you can find the full album on the facebook page. Click here to go straight there.

Patty's Boys

 It's been a bit since I've written about my shoots but I have been one busy photographer. I am excited to share this next roll with you on these crazy brothers.

This shoot inspiration came as a surprise for their mother. I met their mother at the church we attend and when I met her I felt an instant connection to her. She and I are kindred spirits. The same goes with her sons, husband, and family. I felt like I was literally dropped into an instant family. Patty had mentioned that she wanted more candid shots of her son James (he's the third oldest and just graduated high school). The boys and I got together and started talking. Why not surprise her with some updated photos of all of them together. She has four of them, so we are missing Daniel, but we plan to do another re-shoot in the next two weeks to include him as well.

This shoot was done in NoDa distract of Charlotte. NoDa is one of my most favorite places to photograph people because no matter how many shoots you do in that area you can make them all look unique with all the different textures, colors, and natural props. Because I am already fully acquainted and close to these boys I knew this shoot would be fun. Not just that, but I knew they'd pick on me since they had never seen me in my "professional" lets get good photos mood.


We got there an hour late due to some difficult in getting the surprise squared away. We didn't want mom to know that we were doing it so we had to fabricate a good story. My goal for each of the boys was to capture their personalities and bring it to life. I wanted to focus in on James and do his senior portraits and than use Tyler and Michael in poses that I could add to my portfolio.

Just seeing what a client shows up in in regards to clothing choice tells you a lot about their personality. I also wanted to make sure we got plenty of shots of the boys together and even some fun ones.

We were extremely pressed for lighting and time since we got such a late start. I didn't want to shoot night portraits of the boys and wanted to focus on using the light I had from the sun.

Overall the session was crazy. We had lots of laughs, cracked up, joked, and got some amazing shots of these boys. We are getting together again very soon before James goes to college so we can make sure we get those shots of the boys and Daniel. We don't want to leave anyone else out.

And if you made it this far in this blog entry you get to see a "not posted to the web or facebook" photo of Michael hugging his new favorite tree. ;)

Check out the rest of their session over on my facebook page by clicking here. 

Brayden

Shew. Finally getting to this beautiful baby boys infant shoot. Let me just say I give props to photographers who photograph babies as a speciality. It is not going to be my focus. Babies are a true gift from God and I do not mind photographing them on occasion but I most likely will not come to your home with tons of fancy equipment. I'll just use whatever I can find that will work. ;)

Sweet Brayden's shoot was broken up into two days. A typical newborn shoot can take several hours in between feedings, changings, etc. Brayden was just not in the mood to be photographed our first day and so we got what we could and I came back later.

The second session was far quieter and Brayden was ready for his picture. As was his beautiful mother who is to die for gorgeous. I'm so excited that his parents asked me to do his session because I got lots of Brayden time and snuggles.

Overall this session produced some amazing portraits. Some I hope Jawn and Tiffany can keep and hang forever and use to remember how sweet and little their little Brayden was at one point because all of us parents know how quickly babies grow!

Where I Started

I really felt compelled to share how I started in photography many, many years ago. I've always had a creative and artistic mind. I started writing in a journal when I was 10 years old. I kept many journals for years. I would always get annoyed because my mother would find them but it never stopped me from writing.

My writings were very dark. As a teenager despite my outward appearance of being joy filled I was very depressed. I also was a dark thinker. I had a lot of anger towards a lot of people and let it fester within which caused most of my writings/poetry to be geared towards hate, anger, depression or sadness.

From there, I picked up a camera. I continued to write but wanted a new and fresh way to express myself and my inner thoughts/pain. I started with my camera phone. Than I graduated to a cheap DSLR. Like really cheap. It was border line disposable. I did simple shoots, nothing serious, and took photographs as a hobby for years before even considering I had any sort of talent to do it professional. (Still debating that to this day.)

A lot of my photographs where simple. I took a lot of pictures of my sisters and my children because they were consistent subjects in my life that were willing to let me pose them, work with them, or let me shoot lifestyle shots of. I had no idea what I was doing with lighting or anything technical. I just knew what I wanted on the screen, what theme I wanted, and went with it. Easy as that.

I knew from the beginning that I wanted each photograph to represent a season of my life, my child's life (I was a single mom at the time that I started getting really serious about my hobby) and/or to represent a struggle that someone faced. My sister and I got together one time she visited and did a shoot on depression in teens. We knew it was a very relevant issue and wanted to bring it to life.

I also took lots of film of my daughter. I wanted to capture sweet and even rough moments of our life together when it was just the two of us. I rarely spent time at home during the year I was a single mom and so every moment we had together meant more to me than anything. She was always so easy to capture because she is just like me and doesn't mind openly expressing herself.

I also did lots of self-portraits. I've lived a rough life and I used my photography as a therapy piece. I believe in art. I believe that participating in art in any way whether painting on a canvas or taking a photograph can help you rid yourself of certain pain and thoughts. It's at least a tool.

Some of my previous work is too "dark" too share. Some of it I shot for myself. Some of it I shot for a purpose. I did a lot of it for practice.

I wanted to share all this because I know a lot of people give up on their dreams and passions. Starting out I never thought I'd do anything further with photography. It was a serious passion and love of mine but I never thought in my wildest dreams that I'd be decent enough or skilled enough to start a business. Nor did I believe that anyone would support me.

I learned quickly however that you always have room to grow. You won't always be the best and that's OK. You just need the passion and drive to move forward despite that fact. I also realized quickly that I didn't need anyone else to support me. I just need to know that this is where God is wanting me. This is where God is desiring for me to go.

My goal is to one day host workshops for men and woman wanting to use their photography as a means to express themselves. With art, there is no limit. And when you press on through the challenges and into your dream you change not just your own life but many others around you. I also believe that if more people who feel inclined to be an artists in any way would pursue that dream than art would be more alive today than it ever has. Creativity would be revived. I see it coming back and my prayer is that many more artists will embrace it.

I also hope that those who are holding on by a thread to a dream will live it. Sometimes you just have to take the first step. It won't be easy, but if you fail while trying, you aren't really failing. Because so many people never even start.

Brittany

Brittany did not ask to be a model. In fact, I think she blew my post for free photo sessions off. But. I knew as soon as I got my equipment that she was going to be one of the first people I called to photo shoot. Brittany, is a rare breed and I am almost positive I have a serious girl crush on her. She is a beautiful, strong, intelligent, care free woman who loves the Lord, children and has a heart for missions.

I first saw Brittany in a photograph from a missions trip. I knew of her and knew she went to church and served in the same class as one of my children but I never really took the time to look at her. I need to stop wasting time. I noticed in her in a photograph she took when visiting India and I was blown away. I knew that I needed to get my lens on her and when I met her officially in person she was even prettier.

I asked her to join me out at the Historic Latta Plantation. I wanted her photo session not just to capture the essence of her beauty but of her heart. I wanted something unique, ethnic, and emotion filled. Bold.

I brought a few props that would represent her world travel. This girl has gone some places (including Paris, gosh I'm jealous!). She doesn't let her singleness get her down and instead embraces this gift as a way to spread God's word and love to all the nations and people of this world.

Our photo shoot together was really fun. She was very responsive and willing to do all kinds of crazy things. She's also good with hearing the truth on a prop or outfit suggestion. She didn't even mind the fact that I used a necklace as a head piece! You have to get creative and think outside of the box in order to have a successful photo session. You can't be afraid to hear someone say, "Meg, you are crazy," or weird, or insane. The craziest people make the best artists.

Brittany is a true gem, a treasure to behold, and will be one of my main models and the face of Meg Martino Photography.