Jea, Pat & the baby bump

i'm excited for my cousin's arrival of her first mini-her. here are a few of my favorite images from the baby bump portrait shoot i did with the expecting parents.

quasi hiatus but not really

sooooo.... my main photography website needs a revamp and I've simply just been busy doing things like....

this past february, the adventures began for my 200 hour teacher training certification at atma bodha yoga studio. needless to say, i've been dedicating much of my time to personal practice and the certification. surprisingly, despite my even busier schedule and less time with dslr camera in hand, yoga has improved my photography by strenthening my body to hold for steadier shots, improving my flexibility to bend in certain ways to get shots when space and time is limited and making sure i'm breathing in a relaxed manner.
these days, if i'm not shooting a wedding or community event, i keep up with my photography using my handy dandy smartphone and documenting the amazing experiences i come across and upload them on instragram. follow me if you'd like: helenbackwards

Taking In the Day

I'm thankful for days like this where friends reunite and new friends are made, fellowship in nature, witnessing amazing and having an awesome camera on my phone to document it all.

757Clever Collaboration

essere magazine contacted me to publish a photo i took for an interview with my buddy Mike Dawson of 757Clever. the photo was of a local DJ who wanted Mike to do a commissioned piece of it because it's a favorite photo of his showing what he loves doing. i was doing what i love doing (photography)while the DJ was doing what he loves doing and Mike got to to do what he loves doing connecting the three of us. click on the image above to read the article.

Hampton Roads Tattoo Show

had it not been for my friend, Ramel, needing some help to exhibit his art work at this year's hampton roads tattoo show, i would've never known about it and i would've never gotten to touch this yummy creature standing with me in the photo above. ami james is nom noms.

me: can i touch your head?

ami: no!

i smirk. he smiles.

ami: why?

me: because every time i see you on tv i want to touch it. it looks soooo smooth.

he bends down towards me giving me permission. my index finger approaches his shiny baldness. unexpectedly, he tries to bite my finger and i jump back. WHOA! he laughs and finally lets me touch the top of his head. i touch it nervously and the skin is soft and very smooth. my heart pounds excitedly and i'm flushed. the excitement is too much for me to handle so i bid him farewell walking away while fanning myself with my hand.

i swoon.

ladies competed in the pin-up model contest. i love the pin-up look.

how does one decide which tattoo booth to go to at these types of shows? easy... you check out their business cards and if the design is pleasing to you then you know their tattoo artistry has to be worth taking a look at. that's how i stumbled upon jesse smith. he designed two different fronts of his cards so that no matter which way they lay vertically they connect into one image. so genius of him! and his art is badass. check out his website by clicking on his name above.

ramel's artwork always has people stopping by in wonderment. click HERE to check out his facebook page of art. it's good stuff.

one day i'll get a whole back piece too. that'll be me laying on a table for next year's show.

Green Kilts on St. Patrick's Day

a gentleman sporting a scottish military uniform on st. patty's day, requests a song from mink and cheef's irish drinking band. maybe that was the greenest outfit he had. i asked him what was up with the outfit and as soon as he started to explain the scent of drunken beer happiness invaded my nostrils. stumbling for his thoughts, he tells me a buddy of his who was part of some black ops group and was a P.O.W. gave it to him.

A WWII Veteran swaps military stories with a Vietnam War Veteran.

Cheers to beer! Gotta love folks who get into the spirit of drinking holidays.

New Earth Farm

ammie posted about a tree planting event on a farm in pungo that anyone could come and volunteer. she and i drove up to New Earth Farm together on an early saturday afternoon.

mulch was hauled and shoveled to nourish and protect the newly planted trees.

we dug holes.

... lots of holes.





thank you farmer john for the opportunity to serve.

Allegiance

Just outside the Planned Parenthood building in Virginia Beach, I looked up through the driver's side window and paused for a moment to reflect on a sign of the times.