The Concept
Clarissa has more floral dresses than anyone I know so she was perfect for this concept, floral inspired Birmingham portraits. This was the second time we’ve gotten together for floral inspired portraits; the first was about five years ago. (Don’t miss those photos in the second half of this post.) She shared a handful of dresses with me through quick phone pics, and I scoured the web for my favorite fabric that was similar to my favorites of her dresses.
The Location
I decided to photograph in a parking lot for a few reasons.
Photographing outdoors is my favorite.
I didn’t want to lug gear into a studio or pay a rental fee.
The ground was saturated from so much rain.
We found a lot that we thought was perfect, a church parking lot. It was a Friday, not a busy church day; in fact, I was surprised to see anyone there at all. We chose a spot off in the corner with ample space around us. I like the tree line behind the backdrop, so I decided to leave it in the background of some photos.
The Scandal
Big surprise! We had to pack it up early and leave the lot! This mega church was afraid my little ol’ business would benefit financially from our photo session and they wouldn’t, and it was “against church policy”. Some of you reading this will side with the church, but I bet most of you will scratch your heads and wonder why it mattered so much, just like us! I take chances during personal shoots sometimes that I wouldn’t take with clients, but I can honestly say, I’ve never put anyone in danger. When we leave, there isn’t any trace of us being there. This was the first time I’ve ever been told to leave a location after being a photographer for thirty years. The worst part was that we didn’t get to photograph Clarissa in her last dress. The funniest part- it was the church I went to in high school.
Props
I don’t often use props in photo sessions with clients. Sometimes I may incorporate something into a creative session though. Clarissa had tulle and flowers and I’m up for trying just about anything suggested, so we used them both. I like the results!
The First Floral Session
Several years before, we created floral inspired Birmingham portraits! Here are a few favorites from that session. And again, we photographed in a parking lot. But guess what? We didn’t get told to leave! I call that a successful shoot.
These portrait sessions were some of my favorites! I love playing with visual fields and the mix of floral backdrops with floral dresses is just the kind of maximalism I can get behind!
To see more portraits of beautiful people, please visit my gallery of individual’s portraits. If you have been inspired to schedule a portrait session with me, I hope you’ll follow this link and get in touch.
