internship, day forty-five

jess & bobby's engagement session:

like i said in the teaser post, this was a really fun and exciting shoot - and i was even more excited as i started editing when i realized just how many images i wanted to share...this was definitely a first for me! 

i feel like i've finally gotten into a groove with susie as my mentor, so i'm sad to only have one more week with her. but i'm positive it won't be the end of our working together, and i've already got my second internship lined up with another awesome photographer! more than anything, i'm most looking forward to getting more experience and education before having to do this stuff on my own. i don't know how to explain how much i love doing this, even when i feel like i don't know what i'm doing :-p

rhythm n' blooms

[rhythm n' blooms festival - knoxville, tennessee] 

      paleface  |  sam quinn  |  jake shimabukuro  |  yarn

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amos lee

internship, day forty-five teaser

i'm really excited about this shoot and had so much fun with jess and bobby. we started in greenfield lake park and made our way to wrightsville beach for the second location of this engagement session... 

susie gave me the opportunity to take over as lead shooter for a bit when we got to the beach, and let me tell you, it's more difficult than it looks! i've always had the ability to direct people i know in front of the camera, mostly because i'm already comfortable with them. but directing people you just met, 

who aren't always sure what to do themselves... it's tough, and i give susie huge props for making it look so effortless!

i need to finish editing my take but wanted to share a teaser because, again, it's been too long since my last post. so, here it is... 

poor, sweet azalea

the azalea festival is next weekend. 

unfortunately the spring bloom happened a little too early this year...

internship, day twenty-six

a.very.long.day.!.

(and lots to write)

i got to assist susie during a day of boudoir mini sessions, followed by second shooting for an engagement session that evening. during my time with her, susie has been great about letting me shoot during any and all sessions to get in the practice, but for the mini sessions, i have to say i learned so much more as her assistant - i didn't even take my camera out of the bag for those shoots! as a second shooter, it's difficult to always watch the boss and walk away with tips and tricks while you're busy shooting the scene. as her assistant, i was able to see how she works with the clients to make them so comfortable, how she approaches the scene, how she poses the clients...basically how she does what she does.

we set up shop at an inn by the river in downtown wilmington and worked with clients one by one on shorter boudoir sessions - these sessions give the ladies a taste of boudoir, with fewer outfit changes and less shooting time... but more times than not, the ladies end up coming back for a full session. these mini sessions are also great if you've got a group of girls together for a party, girls night or just because :)

after the mini sessions, susie and i grabbed a quick (and very delicious) bite to eat at the eat spot before meeting our next clients...

engagement session #4: stephanie and kelly

this couple loves the beach so much they drove all the way from chapel hill and fayetteville for their session! (which they'll also be doing for their wedding)

we started on front street in downtown wilmington, then made our way to wrightsville beach to catch the sunset. as always, i had a really great time shooting these portraits. one thing that's definitely been confirmed during this internship is my love for shooting (pictures of) people.

despite the fact that these photos were both shot with the sun setting in the background, i decided to post them in black and white because the moment was more important to me than the vibrant colors behind them. 

in addition to shooting with susie for this couple, i also got to do some editing for her, as well. i'm always amazed by how much i know in photoshop now that i'm outside the bubble of school. it's very exciting!

internship, day twenty-four

big day today! 

ashlea kosikowski and local news station WECT worked with susie to set up a boudoir shoot and interview for the evening news to promote susie's boudoir business. this type of photography is something susie is beyond passionate about, so it's fantastic that her work was highlighted in such a major way...

erin, our model, was a great sport, dressing down for the cameras and the photo shoot. i don't think i'd ever have the nerve to do what she did - she did a great job!

susie worked her magic to put erin at ease in front of the camera, and ashlea did the same to put everyone else at ease in front of the video camera.

here are a few behind the scenes photos from the day...

click here to see the video piece featured on WECT.

[one of the finished images from susie]

internship, day twenty

my first boudoir shoot with susie, as well as the first day of susie using a lighting set up for her boudoir photos.

there is an inn located in downtown wilmington where susie shoots the majority of her boudoir sessions - it's a great location/studio space and has amazing window light. the only problem is a certain room doesn't quite get the light she needs when it's not a bright, sunny, cloudless day. one of my first tasks as her intern... figure out how to light the room. the requirements are that it must be easy to use, continuous, and portable. enter RCC photo education. because of my studio lighting classes with kevin and my on location lighting classes with jay, i was able to mix the two together to come up with a light-weight umbrella kit.

it's far from rocket science, but was exciting to know where to start looking... as well as having susie say to me "it's very apparent you went to school for photography." - that comment alone makes all those student loans worth it!

once we got the lighting set up and tested, susie gave me the chance to watch her work for a bit before jumping in to shoot, as well. this experience was very, very different from shooting engagement sessions - even very different from close up portraits shot in the studio at school. but jody, our client, was so sweet and fun to work with, and getting to see susie go into her happy place during this session was great to witness as a student.

i didn't take too many photos during this session, as i was taking it in and digesting as much info as i could from susie. but i was able to get a few with the new light set up...

internship, day fifteen

third engagement shoot with susie - up til now, i've only had a 70-300mm 5.6 lens to use... but now i've got a new (to me) 80-200mm 2.8 and couldn't be more excited! it still amazes me to see the difference it makes with wide open aperture and how the subject can really pop right off the screen.

this couple was SO FUN to work with... we were cracking up the entire time at the soon-to-be groom's comments, which made the shoot a blast, but it flew by and i found myself wishing we had another two or three hours to work with them.

in other intern related news, i helped susie create a new lighting set up for her boudoir photography. 

i was very happy to see my studio lighting education paying off (thank you, kevin!) 

we get to test it out on monday - more details on that later...

internship, day five

 day five, my internship hasn't even officially started yet, and i'm already on my second shoot.

susie asked me to come with her for scarlett and sean's engagement session. the first photo was taken at unc wilmington, where the couple met. the second was on the south end of wrightsville beach at sunset.

(as a side note, one of the great things about this area is that you can see gorgeous sunrises and sunsets on the water. i am so in love with this town!) so, back to the shoot -  susie really wanted me to play with the available light to see what i could come up with... and here are a few of the results.

internship, day one

school is done and it's time to get out in the world!

for the second half of the semester i am interning with Susie Linquist in wilmington, nc. 

what started as a meeting a few days early to get organized for the following eight weeks turned into a full day of work and doing some second shooting for an engagement session she had that evening. i had a blast! susie is a fantastic photographer, woman, and boss and it was so great to get out of the department and see how it really works. and i couldn't have asked for a better couple to get my feet wet shooting engagement photos - this is jenn and carr. they are getting married this summer and are so freaking adorable.