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Greetings!
Has this summer been busy! Filled with family, maternity, newborn, engagement, and other portrait sessions, as well as several weddings, and three photography workshops that I taught, in addition to private lessons, this summer has for sure kept me on my toes!!! I also took a quick jaunt down to New Orleans, and came away with the realization that New Orleans is an absolutely magical city. For me, the nightlife is what did it. I discovered a new form of music (well, maybe you knew about it, but I didn't!) and even a new musical instrument! Definitely a place to go back to again and again and again. But anyway, for those of you who know me well, you'll know that I like to keep busy. So what this means is that it's been an AMAZING summer! |
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FEATURED PHOTO
This quarter's feature photo (above) is called, "Lilies of the Water I." I did a portrait shoot over the summer at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens in Washington, DC. Kenilworth is absolutely incredible - ponds and ponds and ponds of chest-high water lilies. After the portrait shoot, I took a little time to do some fine art photography.
So in honor of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens and water lilies in general, over the next 30 days, all of my water lily fine art photographs are on sale at 10% off (use discount code WATERLILIES at checkout). My water lily collection includes images from Brookside Gardens, Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, and even Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania. What's more, buy "Lilies of the Water I" and get 15% off your ENTIRE FINE ART ORDER, with discount code LILIESOFTHEWATERI.
Don't wait too long! These terrific offers expire on September 23, 2010, and are exclusive to readers of my newsletter!!! |
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PRIVATE PHOTOGRAPHY LESSONS & GROUP WORKSHOPS
I'll be working on planning my next workshop for September/October in the coming weeks. It'll probably be on something horsey...horse races...rodeo...polo... If you're interested, shoot me an e-mail. I always give first dibs on signup to people who have pre-expressed interest.
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PORTRAIT, WEDDING & EVENT PHOTOGRAPHY
Today will be gone tomorrow. Don't let your memories fade with time.
Capture the moment with photographs that will last a lifetime and
fine art to be cherished for generations.
As I mentionned earlier, portrait/wedding/event sessions have kept me busy this summer. I've done everything ranging from engagement photogaphy sessions to families to maternity to newborns to weddings and more.
The gorgeous couple above are Emily & Jason, who got married in Arlington in July. After the wedding, Emily wrote that "Everyone who has seen our photos has been amazed - at least one person told us that ours were the nicest wedding photos she had ever seen and another told us that they made her wistful that she had not had Irene at her own wedding."
Issy, a beautiful bride from another July wedding, wrote that "Irene is one of a kind. She is so talented, easy to work with, she's an instant friend. We truly enjoyed working with her and she was so enthusiastic...she made our pictures look like so incredibly phenomenal! When my friends saw my wedding pictures, they said stuff like... I wish I could get married again so that I could have Irene as my photographer... You looked like a movie star... The pictures made us cry, we felt like we were there... I would never have thought of taking a picture like that... I would recommend Irene to anyone! She is worth every penny and much more..."
Wait...I think I'm getting all teary-eyed again! It makes me really happy to see people so in love and it's such an honor to be a part of the beginning of their new life together! This is why I love weddings... They just make me smile and smile and smile inside...
Anyway, here are some more photos from my favorite portrait sessions and weddings over the last two months:
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Upcoming Trip to Burkina Faso: Pre-Purchase Fine Art Photography at a 35% to 50% Discount!
This November, my husband and I are going to be traveling to Burkina Faso for one month. We're timing the trip to overlap with Tabaski, my favorite West African holiday. (I'm looking forward to the food...) It's a part family trip (my husband has family there), part photography trip. In 2007, we visited, but only for a week. (In fact, the photo above, called "Wrapped in Blue," is from my 2007 trip.) And our previous visit was in 1999 for just two weeks. So this will be my longest and most in-depth visit to Burkina Faso, one of my favorite countries in Africa.
One of the photography projects that I have in mind for my trip is documenting the "Doohi" of Burkina Faso. Doohi is a form of Fulani music/song that includes repeated background chants/vocalizations. It's very distinctive and originates from a specific area of Burkina. It's traditionally performed at night by children and young adults around campfires in the bush, but with the relentless onset of modernity, it's sadly practiced less and less. There's very little existing documentation of doohi - I've only been able to find a single CD recording from 1997, which had just a few images as part of the jacket. This is why I believe that it's so important to document this significant cultural heritage while it's still practiced as a regular form of community entertainment. This project is particularly interesting to me because I originally got my start as a Peace Corps Volunteer in neighboring Niger, where I spent 3 1/2 years living in Fulani villages. (I speak Fulfulde - the language of the Fulani people, who practice doohi - fluently.) Plus, this project can also serve as a foundation for future projects on how Fulani musical forms have evolved after thousands of years of these nomadic pastoralists crisscrossing the Sahel and the Sahara - the Fulani living in different countries across West Africa have developed distinct forms of music specific to their geographic areas.
Anyway, I'm going to try something new here with my fine art photography and offer the opportunity to pre-purchase fine art photography from my upcoming November 2010 trip, that is, the opportunity to pre-purchase artwork that doesn't yet exist. The bonus for YOU is that you'll get to own this artwork at 35% to 50% off the regular price - that's 35% off for sizes 8x10 to 11x14 and 50% off of larger sizes up to 24x36. That means that you can own an 8x12 print matted to 12x16 for just $127 (regular price $195) or a 24x36 print for just $332.50 (regular price $665). That's a GREAT deal!
And the bonus for ME is that I can use the funds to help support my Doohi project. I promise that if you pre-purchase artwork, when I come back from Burkina, you'll be able to select from hundreds of images. It will take me some time to sort through and process everything, but I will start making images available for selection in mid-December and have all images available by the end of January 2011.
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CONNECT WITH ME
On My Blog
I love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to leave me comments on the blog! I also promise to do my best to answer any questions that you post!!!
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Many, many, many thanks to all of you, my supporters and customers, for your support - your positive e-mails and attendance at my exhibits have really meant a lot to me. And to those of you for whom I've photographed portrait sessions, events, and weddings, it's been an honor to have had the opportunity to witness and take part in such special moments of your lives. Thank you!
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| Save up to 15% |
Or, get an even better deal by purchasing "Lilies of the Water I" at any size, and get 15% off your ENTIRE FINE ART ORDER (discount code LILIESOFTHEWATERI). Fine art photography starts at just $123.25 after the 15% discount for an 8x10 fine art print matted to 11x14. Want a larger size? Print sizes of up to 40x60 are available! | | Offer Expires: September 23, 2010 |
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