Final in Botanical Series: McGill Rose Garden: She’s Hot & I’m Bothered

Bless her little heart. (How southern am I?) It was 95 degrees F, and Bayla is in a sweater for the shoot.  It does not matter that she is my daughter, I would rush the shoot for anyone who is in a sweater in the hot sun longer because I am taking more photos.  Too much empathy on my part… or maybe I was hotter because I was hustling around with all the equipment.  Either way, she was a trooper, suggesting more poses and locations.  Her makeup should have looked like a scary melted clown by the end of the shoot, but she still looked fantastic (thanks Catherine from Closet of Style).  You be the judge.  Just be sure that your high school age boys are not looking over your shoulder!

4th in the Series – Elegant Grunge in the Garden

I love how when she sits down, Bonjour becomes On Tour.  Reminds me of Catherine Russell’s wonderful OINK design on the CSCA pig roast T-shirts a few years back.  What was that roast called?

Botanical Series – #3: aka I have been watching too much Project Runway

This is what inspired this whole Botanical series.  I went to Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens and saw the air plant arches, and I knew I had to create this headpiece out of live air plants.  Then came the bodice of moss.  I wonder if the models on Project Runway get all itchy too.  Then I thought of Bayla and Catherine, and fun ensued.  (Yes, even people who use the word ensued can have fun.)

The man who runs the orchid house at DSBG could not have been nicer.  The mist has a beautiful quality in the morning light.

Botanical Series – Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens: The Black Dress

I have lived in Charlotte for over 30 years and am just now getting to Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens.  Shame on me.

Just love the black dress against the orchid wall.  And love the purses.  And love the flowing blue train. And the collar.  And the girl!!!

Thanks to Catherine for the great hair and makeup and everything that touches Bayla’s body 🙂

First in the Botanical Series – The Hat

My original thought when Catherine and I were planning this botanical series was to create a series of wonderfully styled photos with a botanical theme, in a variety of locations.  We would have a handful of photos that would be tied together through the style and theme.  

Little did I know that I would fall in love with so many photos that we have a series from each location.

With no further ado, here is the first collection in the series.  Thanks to Catherine Horgan, owner of Closet of Style for the wonderful vintage dress, all accessories, and the gorgeous location.  Thanks to our beautiful model, Bayla Yale (you get it from your father’s side).

Coquina Soup… really.

You know those tiny little clam-like things that are about the size of your pinky fingernail, and wash up on the beach?  You know… the ones that burrow down right away, and  leave that little air hole.   Well, you know you are on vacation when you decide to make coquina soup.  (Who has time?)   Luckily, my brother-in-law is a marine biologist, so he could tell me what to do, and luckily all four of us were popping the meats out after I boiled them.  There were 901 of them.  Yes, we counted.

But we were all surprised by how tasty the soup ended up.  I didn’t add any potato or other chowdery things so that folks would know that what they were tasting really was the coquina.  We are ready to open the Coquina Soup Kitchen.  Except each bowl will be very expensive.  It’s very time consuming.

The coquina pop right open when boiled.

The pretty shells once they are open.  Who would have thought that 901 coquinas produces about 3/4 cup of meat.  My daughter said she wouldn’t eat them even if she was on a deserted island.  I think we know otherwise.

Back from vacation, now back to work!

Closet of Style – More than a Fascinator

Catherine Horgan, stylist, owner, creator and style goddess of Closet of Style has done it again!  A flower inspired shoot made us all feel like we were about to look out the window and see the Windsors playing a game of croquet on the front lawn.  From the beautiful vintage dress to the shoes I wish were my size, Catherine makes it look effortless.

Am I the last to know about Blinking Ice Cubes?

I was impressed by a lot at the BOB awards party thrown by Charlotte Magazine and all their sponsors on Thursday night.  But, am I the last to know about blinking ice cubes?  I thought everyone’s frosted beverage glasses were blinking until the fine folks came around distributing blinking plastic ice cubes.  LOVE IT!  They blink in different speeds, and when I got a little nauseated staring at it, you can change it to no blink.  Assuming you don’t mind sticking your hands in your drink.  If you drive by our house and the lights aren’t on, but it looks like we’ve installed a disco ball, you’ll know what we’re doing.

I should add that the blinking ice cubes were sponsored by Blacklion, so they get their money’s worth.  Whitney actually sculpted the original black lions at Concord Mills when it opened (when I was in labor with Bryton) so I already love them.

Named Best of the Best – Charlotte Magazine

Ellen Yale Photography was voted Best Wedding Photographer 2012 – I love the name, the BOB, Best Of the Best Award in Charlotte Magazine.  You can’t beat an award named Bob.  It’s just so friendly.  Fred or Charlie would be good, but not so good as an acronym.  But I digress.

I don’t know who nominated me, or who voted for me, but I am thrilled and honored.  I already checked, and it wasn’t my Mom or husband, so since someone else thinks I’m the best of the best, I am on a photographer high.

I thought I was one of those best kept secrets in Charlotte.  Like Mueller’s hamburgers before they had a sign.  Or one of those clubs in NYC with no sign, you just have to know someone who knows someone, who tells you an address and maybe a secret knock.

So here I am!  And to celebrate, I want to spread the love.  Any wedding photography booked by the end of May will get a 10% discount.

This was addressed ATTN: MANAGEMENT.  I was thinking Ed McMahan had sent it posthumously.

I was impressed by the die cut invitation to the party.  When I saw it, I was beginning to think this was more than just some joke by Ed McMahan.  They wouldn’t waste die cutting on someone who just might be a winner.  Die cutting is for winners.

I Moved a Horse with my Mind

I had an incredible experience yesterday at the Triple Play Farm in Davidson, NC.  I had been hearing more and more about equine facilitated learning, and found the Triple Play Farm on Michelle Icard’s (Michelle in the Middle) blog, and had been emailing Kris Batchelor, the owner, about attending a workshop.  The session I had hoped to get in had just filled up, so I thought I would go to one of the monthly open houses since I was drawn to this place.  Then Kris called with an opportunity.  They needed someone who had never met the herd or been a part of this type of facilitation.  It was going to be a demonstration for a segment on WCNC with Michelle Boudin.  The thought went through my mind that there wasn’t enough time to lose 10 pounds, but heck, I’m in!

I don’t know that much about equine facilitated learning, but I know that we can learn a lot without talking, that nature is a powerful calming agent, and that those dogs always do exactly what the Dog Whisperer wants when he walks in the room.  We’re sending out all sorts of signals with our postures, movements and sounds.  Kris helped me with some basics of what would make sense to the horse.  He and I were in there alone, and he walked, then trotted, then went back to a walk, and came to me.  Then he followed me around.  Pretty cool.  Kris and the fabulous Rosie Molinary talked with me before and after about how it related to my life outside the ring.  What could have been trite actually had some meaning for me.

And that’s what I learned from the experience… when I have a clear purpose, it shows, and others will follow.  And if that’s just a taste of it.  Just think what I’ll get when I go back for the whole seminar.

Thanks to the women who I feel privileged to know… Kris, who is kind and strong and everything a woman should be, Rosie and  Michelle from WCNC.  And Pierre, the photographer… my hat is off to you sir.  You really worked your camera angles in the blazing heat.

Kris (above)

Rosie (above)