The much awaited blog post, Janelle’s FUN birthday shoot! :) You might remember Taylor from her first shoot with us last year! (Check out her images displaying our previous logo, wow, how we have grown as a business since then!)

When Taylor asked me for some unique ideas for a b-day present for Janelle, I was so excited to help! I think a photoshoot with friends is the most awesome birthday present! It’s a present that keeps giving all year ( or as long as you keep the beautiful images, lol)! Taylor and Janelle were going for a captivating  jungle-inspired theme, so I quickly threw a mood board together and I love how everything fell in place! It was a HOT day for the shoot and though pressed for time, Taylor & Janelle rocked it!  We were even able to sneak in a few head shots for Taylor’s portfolio! (view towards the end of the slideshow)

These ladies are headed for success and we are so happy to not only be their photographers, but more importantly,  their friends!! ♥

Have fun viewing this HAWT preview of their shoot!

I am slowly catching up with the blogging (insert me doing a cartwheel here)! ;) But before posting our rockin’ amazon-inpired shoot tonight, I have to share with all our readers, brides, clients, friends, neighbors ( I think you get the point!) how fabulous Gracylu Originals is! For those that haven’t heard of Gracylu (yet), you MUST visit her facebook page  and see all the beauty! I am in love obsessed with every single custom head piece that Tristian creates! So much so, that I just had to order a few unique pieces for some upcoming shoots! Tristian is an AMAZING woman and I can’t wait to meet her in person! While on her vacation recently, she was willing to meet with me (which unfortunately didn’t quite work out due to scheduling conflicts) and help me figure out a way to get my hands on a couple of her beautiful creations! We had been chatting since May on creative ideas and shoots that I have planned for this Summer and Tristian completely captured my vision and ideas and almost magically created head pieces that fit my vision perfectly! Here are a few images of one of the head pieces that I could not wait to include in a shoot! (It was originally intended for a Bohemian-inspired shoot, but at last minute, I chose another one of Tristian’s head pieces for that one!) I can’t wait to share, it will leave you breathless! For now, I will leave you with this yummy eye candy! Enjoy! For your custom head piece, be sure to contact Tristian here!

How do I introduce Alex? A recent grad, fun photog, a determined woman with a bright smile on her beautiful face…and that’s just a start! :) I met Alex, virtually on facebook -are we seeing a pattern here?! ;) and when she posted that she wanted to do a trade shoot, I was so excited about the idea! How cool would it be for two photogs to trade places for a day in front of the camera? I think every photographer should do this at least twice a year! It will definitely help us understand how are clients feel and it will also help us take a little vacay from the other side of the camera! ;) I truly can’t wait for my turn!

Alex’s shoot back in April, actually happened sort of at the spur of the moment! We didn’t really have much time for planning as Alex was visiting Tampa with her boyfriend, Chris,  and they were available just that Wednesday evening! So we rushed over to meet them and found a cute spot in Channelside for a quick session! Chris and Alex are adorable together (as you can see from their sneak peeks below)! We had lots of laughs and Alex even got to show us some of her dance skills (She rocks, check out the last image below!!)

I can’t wait to escape for a day to Jacksonville and visit Alex for my shoot! It will be just the relaxation I need! ;) But for now, it’s back to working for me and eye candy for you! Enjoy! :)

There are just so many beautiful words in my mind to describe this family, that I can’t coherently put them all together!  We will start with a little background! I had first virtually-met Kristen Wheeler through facebook and I was drawn to her by her wonderfully fun online presence! She is a super talented photographer and an amazing woman! I can remember a few months back being on facebook around 3am, checking out Kristen’s latest posts and she had posted a spur-of-the-moment contest and I actually won! A few days later in the mail, I found the sweetest card and gorgeous notebook/magnet combo depicting one of Kristen’s images taken in New Orleans! See them here! Little did I know at that time, that months later, I would be meeting her in person, along with her lovely family! We continued to follow each other’s work and FB chat and when I saw a message from Kristen, inquiring about a family session with us, I was beyond honored!! To me, it is the HIGHEST compliment when a fellow photog chooses and trusts you enough to capture their special moments! I couldn’t wait to meet her!!

We were so excited about the shoot, but there was one little detail that worried us! Now, I am about to reveal a secret about my husband, Khaled, that might embarrass him (just a tad)! But that’s what wives are for, right?! ;) Ready…pssst…he is scared of dogs. Correction, he was scared of dogs, until he met Dizzi, and then it was love at first sight!!

(Check out the shot I quickly snapped of the lovebirds!!)  If I have ever seen a doggie matched 100% perfectly with her owner, it’s Dizzi and her loving parents, Shane & Kristen! Love pours out of them and they just light each other up!

It’s awesome when couples bring in items of sentimental value to their shoot, it makes the shoot more intimate and makes the images much more unforgettable! Kristen, being a photog and knowing how important that is, brought a few of her most treasured items! The gorgeous book in the right image has such a romantic story behind it!  Shane knew how much Kristen loved that book and he saved and surprised Kristen with it during a financially-tight time early in their relationship!

Ok, this was by far, my favorite shot of the session! Why? Because even though we were suddenly threatened with tornado-like winds, torrential rain, and flashes of lighting, Khaled was able to capture this FUN shot of Kristen & Shane, holding up only some of ALL the movie tickets from the movies that they have gone to see! Yes! Surprisingly, this creative couple has kept ALL of the  tickets to films that they have seen together, isn’t that awesome?!

There is so much from this session that I want to share, but it would probably take a week to read through! We had such an amazing time with Kristen, Shane, and Dizzi and we are so blessed that besides being a fellow photog and a client, that Kristen and her family became our friends! We hope to share many more fun times together! Kristen turned 30 this month (as I will this Thursday, woohoo!) and we wish her a BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY! We hope this new age brings much success, happiness and more love than ever before!!

Here ’s where you can see more of Kristen’s work: www.khphotographics.com &  www.boudoirbombshells.com

xoxo,

Mariana & Khaled

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week so far! We want to introduce everyone to the 48 Hour Film Project. In participation of this awesome project, the film will be produced by the Leftover Films team including director Bryan Coward from Tampa Wonderworks Film & Video. This project is a wild and sleepless weekend in which Leftover Films team will write, shoot, edit and score a short film in only 48 hours! We think this would be an amazing opportunity for everyone! There will be a casting call on Thursday June 17th, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. So if you would like to be a part of this FUN project, we hope to see you there!

The event is scheduled for July 16-18th! Will the film be shown to a wide range of people? Yes! The film will be shown within the following week at Channelside in Tampa, FL. If you are ready for a fun, sleepless weekend, attend the casting call!

 The address is: 3780 Tampa Rd Ste 400, Foresight Property Svcs Office, at the Forrest Lakes business center in Oldsmar. It’s at the corner of Forrest Lakes and Tampa Rd. There is a CVS and a Walgreens on the opposite corners of the intersection. Best of luck to everyone who will be working on this awesome project!

P.S. There are only 12 tickets remaining! If you want to register for the casting call, go to: http://leftoverfilms.eventbrite.com/ ASAP and register :)

for more updates and news on the project, you can “Like” Leftover Films or visit www.leftoverfilms.com for any questions or requests!