Happy-ness

I could sit here and apologize for my poor neglected blog, but I wont. Because neglecting my blog and other "work" related ventures was necessary to focus on my lovely family. :) During this amazing holiday season I felt the need to focus. To offer my undivided attention and truly milk the holidays for all they offer... being with family, reliving traditions, and savoring life.



Aside from twitter, I essentially cut myself off and loved it.

But now it's back in the saddle.

As we embark on a new adventure in '09, I've been reflecting and forecasting... I thought back to a sweet little gift given to me by a dear dear friend of mine before I left to go home for the holidays. She said it reminded her of me and I was so honored.
Looking at it (especially while in life-thinking-mode), It is a perfect pictoral representation of how I want to live life now, in '09, and always!
The tag line on the box read...

"Happiness... FREE to sing, laugh, dance,...create!"

It made me smile and I couldn't help but share.

So my friends.....CHEERS to a New Year... cheers to being free to sing ( at the top of your lungs, sound of music style), being free to laugh (with good friends till your sides ache), free to dance ( in the empty aisles at walmart at 3am...not that I've done that recently or anything ;] ) and being free to create (creating your life and your impact on the life surrounding you).

Most of all CHEERS to Life, Happy-ness and the Great Adventure of which we are all apart.

(ps) can you tell I'm smiling? :)

Fashion Victim

Being home these last few days have been full of attic digging. Unearthing old pictures and memorabilia has left me in states of nostalgia, laughter, and embarassment. I've rather enjoyed digging up the last 7 years of journals and thumbing through them. Or even discovering lovely lil' gems among the last 20 something years of pictures.
Amidst the "big dig" I stumbled across SEVERAL pictures that make me curl my toes in sheer horror at the sense of fashion I portrayed. Heaven forbid I just wear touches of tie-die, polka-dots, or stripes.... Oh no, I was apparently an all or nothing kinda gal.
Where was "what not to wear" when I was 10?!

Dear Ma,
despite the awful outfits you allowed me to don as a kid, I promise not to let you wear pastel nylon track suits when you are 90.
Devotedly,
me

(ps) Im Persian... that dress is from Iran. I also found that dress in the attic...sadly, it doesn't still fit...darn? ;)

snow.

So I am officially home for the holidays. (yay.)

annnnnd, its snowing! I know it doesn't look like a lot, but I got a little excited so I ran out to the patio in my PJs this morning to make my snow angel. I shoulda let the snow pile up a little more, but like I said.. I was excited. Plus, Portland/Vancouver never gets snow so this is a huge deal.

ha. who says you have to "grow up"?

:)

**Hint Hint**

Dear Mom & Dad,

We go over this every year... and every year I leave you exasperated and utterly frustrated that I COMPLETELY REFUSE to give you a Christmas List. I understand you want to play it 'safe' and ensure I get gifts I actually like, but I'm a hopelessly stubborn mule and continue to take make your life difficult. For that, I apologize.

When it comes to gifts, though, part of the specialness to me is that whoever chooses to give me a gift, gives it out of the fact that they know me and THEY think I will like it. I constantly remark that it takes the magic out of it all when I know what I am getting. Come on, you know I was never the kid who wrote letters to Santa, or even TRIED to peek at my presents before Christmas morning.... I am one who revels in the magic of surprise. Always have been, always will be :)

But this year... I thought I'd meet you half way and give you a little hint. OK, maybe a BIG pictoral hint. :) [see attached]
From here, I go back to my regularly scheduled stubborness.

Love Always,
Shy




























(ps) I know it's not practical because I can't take it back home on the plane with me but I thought I would at least try. (insert batting of eyelashes here) If anything, I had a wonderful time riding up and down the escalators several times to get this shot on my phone. :)

Ohana means family!

While in LA for Thanksgiving I had the privilege of spending time with the wonderful SD Ohana Family!
Now if you are anything like me, you have seen and memorized every cartoon Disney movie (and if they are musical the songs as well) so it came as no shock that the whole time I spent with them I kept randomly blurting out... (in a high pitched voice) "Ohana means Family!"

yup, Im a dork... I know this. ;)

Anyway, Most of you already know them but if you don't.... meet my friends the Baxters...

This would be Rain... David and Kimi's little model. She made my life easy! haha

And this would be the photo rockstar April. Look out world because this gal is the photo dark horse that will put us all out of jobs some day! ;) This whole time I thought she was like 14 or 15 but NO... I made a fool of myself. She's 20! oops.... sorry April love. Anyway, she is quite the little shooter, check her out!

Mr. Ohana himself.

And Mrs. Ohana.

and a totally random moment that I just loved. I think its because this is what I saw several times when the camera wasn't pointed at them and it sums up the two of them to me :)

THE END :)

(ps) they shot OUR family photos too! but you will have to wait for those until mom gets to see them ;)

Show and Tell... (Elyse + John)

I was the kid in kindergarten who took show and tell VERY seriously.... whether that meant bringing my kid sister doll ( along with her ENTIRE wardrobe) into class, gathering every sea shell I had ever collected and dumping them on my desk, or simply lugging my whole toy box into our share circle, I always loved to share more than required, necessary, or even desired... but much like today, I couldn't help it.
I sit here at my editing perch for hours trying to pick images to share on the blog but each time I do, I feel like I am enduring a form of chinese water torture.
No, I am not being dramatic.... just honest.
With each rejection, saying goodbye to an image is one drip...then another drip and another and another.. for hundreds of images. drip. drip. drip. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I think all my images are blog worthy or even that good for that matter... I just want to share my whole experience with each and every one of you EVERY time. I want you to experience everything I experienced and see everything I saw!
I've been told I post too many images, I've been told I need to play a little hard to get and not be so willing to share everything all at once (I think that particular comment was directed at more than my just blog though...hmm?) and I was even told tonight that a good photographer should be able to tell a story in 5 images or less. And yes, I agree with all of them.... but for yesterday, today, and probably for many many posts here-forth, I will continue to post too many images and continue to share more than I need to because I just can't help it.... I don't want to help it. I love life, I love taking pictures of life, and I love sharing life. So cheers to many more hours of chinese water torture and blog posts that are way too long... thank you for being apart of the "share circle" and enduring the full wardrobe display! ;)

[and thank you to all my lovely friends who receive countless emails that say..."which image do you like better, I cant decide?" ;) ]


Now onto John and Elyse...
You all saw the surprise engagement, .... now here is what took place during the day leading up to the moment :)

With Elyse assuming she was just modeling for my portfolio, here are some of the fun images we got.

xoxo!

(ps) special thanks to the Zickell family for granting us access to your lovely cape house to shoot!

Melissa + John | engaged

The longer I live in Boston, the more supah-fun places to shoot I discover. A friend tipped me off to the Boston ICA and it couldn't have been more perfect for these two. These two are true artists...of the musical kind. They have been in a few bands together and have informed me that music will be a huge priority at this wedding. YAY for me.... I have this crazy obsession with music so they are definitely my type of clients... (and friends)

The light...the reflections... the wind... it was a great day to shoot indeed.

I loved the reflection of Melissa laughing in this one :)

Surprise Engagement!

"Someday somebody's gonna ask you, a question you should say yes to...once in your life. Baby tonight, I've got a question for you"
- Old 97's

I woke up to grey dreary weather and a few natural deluges that rendered my morning shower useless. Mumbling a few quick "God, pleeeeease give us good weather" prayers under my breath, I set out for an expectant day of rainy mess. This was one "fashion shoot" that couldn't be cancelled due to inclement weather because it was no ordinary shoot... today was the day John would ask Elyse to be his forever. BUT not until 4:30pm [the scheduled time we decided we would set it all up] ;)

We met up in the a.m. and piled 4 people, 1 dog, and half of Elyse's closet into the SUV. A quick "we-are-starving" pit stop at Starbucks and we hit the road to Cape Cod. With Boston's downpours behind us, the cape welcomed us with bright "soft-box clouds" and 68 degree weather. SERIOUSLY?!...weather.com predicted a 100% chance of rain, but I wasn't complaining ;)

Arriving at the borrowed cape house, we set up camp in the kitchen and began the make-up application and wardrobe selections. Meanwhile John's nerves are writhing his stomach in knots and everyone but Elyse could see it.
[T minus 4.5 hours till showtime].

We begin the shoot and all the while you hear his redundant inquiries of the time. For John the hours inched...for Shyla they flew. ;)

After a few hours of shooting it was obvious that we had to get the show on the road or this poor boy may just die of anxiety.
A few drizzles here and there but the rain held off until an hour before showtime...that was when the skies elicited a 10 minute downpour before ushering in a BEAUTIFUL full half rainbow over the ocean. So we non-chalantly made our way down to the beach, utilizing the now blue sky, and shot a few portraits until it was go-time baby. Hiding the ring in his guitar case, John retrieved the goods from the car and went to join Elyse at the "next spot I would pose them" (aka the jetty). What transpired next is documented in the slideshow below....

walking down to meet Elyse...posing a bit... offering up a sweet prayer...and then the decent to bended knee.
She'd had no idea....

***CLICK HERE***

Melissa + Devang | west haven, ct

Alright my friends... here is the slideshow story of this wonderful Indian Wedding.

enjoy!

***CLICK HERE***

Plus, a few more fun images just for good measure...

Indian wedding...

A few weeks back I was invited to be a part of the wedding of Dev and Mel. I still feel so honored every time I have the privilege of being entrusted to document the commitment ceremony between two people. This one in particular lasted 2.5 hours long and was far from your traditional american ceremony. In addition to length of time... guests were allowed to talk, ice cream sundays were served, and I even caught a member of the wedding party talking on their cell phone during the ceremony...ON THE ALTAR. You couldn't help but laugh at her 16 year olds teenage antics. :) I also couldn't help but soak in the new traditions I was being exposed to. I love different cultures...learning about them, experiencing them and yes, documenting them. Because of you, Dev and Mel, I am richer for being allowed to share in your celebration. thank you.

Due to last minute changes I was scrambling for a second shooter and Tony the Tiger came to the rescue. He was the perfect addition to the day... and even endured all 18 hours without one complaint. The BEST part, however, was how he so graciously "let" me serenade him the whole 2.5 hour drive home. I was the epitome of a 'hairbrush singer' and 'dashboard drummer' that night. He still teases me that I knew every single song that was played at the wedding and on the radio during the entire drive home. Tony you are my hero! (especially for enduring 2.5 hours of my singing!)

anyway, here is a sneak peek of what is to come....

All Hallows Eve

I love Halloween!

sorta.

Technically if we are gonna utilize the word LOVE, then I would save that for Christmas... but I am rather fond of Halloween. Not for any other reason but that I have an excuse to get creative and make costumes. Creativity paired with Candy is awesome in my book! Every Year I partake in hours of imagining, sewing, and creating. Most of the time I create costumes for friends but this year I participated in the fun and my own costume as well.

Sooo... the party theme was Heaven and Hell. If you know anything about me, I am not a big fan of doing the same 'ol same 'ol cliche stuff... so I tried to think of a clever way to symbolize good and evil. And what a better way to symbolize good and evil in Boston then to do Red Sox and Yankees? Sooo my friend Suzanne and I went to the fabric store, broke out the sewing machine and camped out in her basement to create the following costumes.
She was the angel Red Sox and I represented the Evil Empire (yankees)
We each made nearly EVERY aspect of our own costumes except the underarmor, socks and angel wings. Even my horns and devil tail is made of ribbon, felt and coat hanger.

The bottom right are two of the jerseys side by side. The real one we used as an example and our imitation with felt letters. haha
Do you know how many needles and pins we lost between the two of us? I suggest not walking barefoot in Suzanne's basement any time soon ;)

The political costumes were hilarious this year... Our friend Mr Smurf kept getting blue all over us and Matt Grazier was the event's official photographer. wicked fun. Do you know how many people thought my red extensions were a real dye job?! haha

flashdance

I had a little play day today... :)

I don't typically incorporate flash into my shoots but I'm working on trying new things.
Emily here was privileged to experience the shyla-patented 'flashdance' that resulted from scoring some sweet images.
More to come from today, but for now here's a quick preview of some of the experiment that went on this evening.

A little election inspired lighting perhaps? ;)

Love is... | october

While walking along a beach, an elderly gentleman saw someone in the distance leaning down, picking something up and throwing it into the ocean.
As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young girl, picking up starfish one by one and tossing each one gently back into the water.
He came closer still and called out, “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”
The young girl paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”
The old man smiled, and said, “I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?”
To this, the young girl replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”
Upon hearing this, the elderly observer commented, “But, young girl, do you not realise that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”
The young girl listened politely. Then she bent down, picked up another starfish, threw it into the back into the ocean past the breaking waves and said, “It made a difference for that one.”



This month's Love is...focuses on an individual embarking on a year long journey to bring palliative care to individuals dying of AIDS in Africa. It may seem like an insurmountable feat, but even if she spends a year impacting only one life she will have labeled her journey a success.




<< Rewind 15 years ago (think Junior High age)... I read a book about a floating hospital that brought free care to the remote countries of the world and decided then, that that was my life mission....to become a nurse and serve on a Mercy Ship. Nursing remained my occupational goal for years simply so I could be apart of something that brings life-changing results to people of the world. In a nutshell, it was in the late 70's that a young couple set out with a passion to impact lives and their cause was so well received that a full fledged ocean liner was essentially given to them for FREE. This was the beginning of an organization called Mercy Ships and was...no, IS... responsible for touching lives all around the world by bringing the opportunity for basic life saving surgeries to be conducted for free. (Think Operation Smile and Doctors without borders rolled into one)
Here is one photojournalists view of the adventure on Mercy Ships

now >> fast forward 10 years to college. I went to a small christian college where I was surrounded by young adults venturing off and dedicating their lives to helping the less fortunate around the world. Delving deeper and deeper into my passion for photography at the time, I decided I would take pictures as a 'hobby' and use any earnings to fund the trips my friends were embarking on.

And stop at the present.... October 2008. We all know I am not a nurse... and photography has kinda grown into more than a 'hobby' but the underlying passions of the past 15 years have remained a constant thread weaving together the patterns of my life. Dreams and paths may have changed or been altered by life but the foundations/passions on which they were built have not.
Today, at this very moment I have the opportunity to merge both past desires into one action and this brings me to this month's Love is....

Since moving to New England I have become dear friends with a nurse who works up at Boston Children's Hospital. She will be leaving in January to join theMercy Ships team in Benin, Africa for one year. Originally placed as a PACU nurse on the ship, she was recently contacted about the opportunity to go into the villages and provide palliative to those dying of AIDS and are facing the last days of life. I commend her, I admire her, and I want to support her...
Each individual who volunteers on the ship must raise their own support. For Suzanne, that is 11 months of finances she must conjure up. She leaves in January so the next two months will be dedicated to helping her fulfill HER dreams of reaching the world by bringing care and light and love to those who bodies and souls are ravaged by this awful disease.

So my friends, meet Suzanne... we had the opportunity to grab a few fun photos of her a few weeks ago so it is only fitting to share here :)

Africa's newest ray of sunshine...

If anyone would like more information on supporting Suzanne or subscribing to her monthly newsletter, simply shoot me an email (shyla@shylaphotography.com) and I will connect you to her and her blog.