Deborah Zoe | Photographer

A Boston area photographer, I had the pleasure of meeting Deborah Zoe through an email. Yup, just like that. She sent me an email asking to go to coffee and I happened to have a few free days, so we met. And have continued to meet on occasion when my schedule allows. Nestled into the tiny little Atomic Cafe booth overrun with college and master's students....we found out a common ground outside photography that is foundational to our lives. A few elements of my beings we thought were rather isolated in our little corner of the world. But we each found a friend in a fellow photographer that extends beyond the lens.

So, internet, meet Deborah. Some of you may already know her, but meet the Deborah I saw. The little spitfire who really can work the camera if you get silly enough ;)

(ps) proof that Deborah is my kind of lady, she hired me to do her shoot and then sent me an Anthro gift card as an extra thank you. Girl after my own heart right there. Thanks, lady friend ;)

Tiny Dancer.

As a young girl, I would pour over library books about ballerinas and even wrote a report on how I would be a choreographer someday. Not a lick of dance training... not a lick of grace... but plenty of research. ;)
It was my dream to take ballet lessons and prance around on pointe, but finances did not offer me such indulgences. I still marvel at the beauty of the tiny dancers and have an insatiable obsession with dancing feet, and dancing images. ;)

If you know me, I still pirouette around any open floor space... perhaps some dreams never die!

Anywho, a few weekends back, I had the opportunity to shoot a pretty lil' ballerina down at the Navy Yard. Allow me to share....

:)

Parissa | senior portraits

Meet Paris. My baby sister. Another Dalirifar girl.

I'd rather not talk about the fact that I remember when she was born, or that I am 11 years older than her which means I graduated HS 11 years ago, or that she got the perfectly tan persian skin while I glow in the dark, or that her hair is NATURALLY that curly, thick, and perfect. No, let's not talk about that.

Let's talk about how wonderful she is and how tender and precious her heart is. Or maybe how amazing her voice is. or how she just got accepted to the top party school in the country and I want to lock her in a cage so she can't go.

You know what?
Actually, how about if I just stop talking about her because I could keep you here all day but I am sure you have better things to do :)

So let's just get to it, The beautiful soul that is my little sister Paris....

Beth | amazon woman

Beth is one of those woman you can easily be jealous of. I'm sure there was a green tint to my skin during our whole shoot.
6ft tall... legs that go to heaven every time... and that hair. OH that hair!
She doesn't need to wear heels and even though she once dated a 5'4'' man, she landed herself a 6'4'' hubby. She is a real live amazon woman.
Oh and it gets better.... she doesnt need to stand on a chair to take pictures. Did I mention she is a photographer? Not a model like you would assume. She actually hired me to take headshots for her new website. The headshots took a turn towards fun when she busted out her wedding dress..... OH yeah.

see.. we started with headshots

Then out came the dress

and BAM... I LOVE this one.

:)

The rugged artsy type.

Monday:
10:30am: I show up at the :e:-loft with the ingredients to make breakfast and start our day off right. You know, a hearty warm breakfast so we could attack the day with strength and vigor. [see 12:30 pm]

11am: Sorted through Eric's closet picking out his wardrobe. He was my life-sized barbie doll. "Here put this on... take that off...um... and you can just leave that off if you like. ;) We concocted some great entertaining outfits but I was banned from capturing them on camera. Something about not trusting me? blah blah blah... I dont know WHY he couldn't trust innocent ol' me.

12:30pm: Gave up on breakfast and ate granola bars instead. haha. I made quiche but for some reason something went wrong and I ended up using it as a frisbee into the garbage can :) If anyone can tell me WHY the quiche wouldn't solidify in the center you will be my hero. Egg soup wasn't on the menu so Nature Valley came to the rescue.

2pm -6pm: drive out to Marblehead and start the shoot. The weather was forecasted to be nice but alas it rained...and rained...and rained... so what was supposed to be an outdoorsey rugged man shoot had to be moved inside. Luckily, my new place has an old barn so we morphed it into a rugged...uh... artsy-man shoot. Eric played the part (or just played himself) quite well.

Check out the fun from the day....

You probably can't tell because of the smile but I think this is where Eric started not liking me. Something about being barefoot with no jacket in a drafty barn.

And then I think this is where Eric started HATING me. "Let's remove the hat too please, Eric."

The end. :)

A lil' Anne, a lil' Martha, and a lil' boat.

My sweet friend Annemarie came out to Boston to play this weekend.
And even though we spent the majority of her trip out on Martha's Vineyard shooting a wedding, our adventures were glorious none the less.
Accompanied by my friend Suzanne, the three of us ladies staged a hostel takeover of the island.
[Well, sorta].
We just decided to get a little adventurous and stay in a hostel instead of a hotel since we were extending our trip a few days anyway. If you know me, you know I prefer the adventurous stuff so why not?! We had the place to ourselves and truly lived the life. Wine out of plastic cups is truly classy, right? ha.

Anyway, yesterday morning we woke up early for a little hair/make-up session and then snuck out before the rain hit for a few photos of my lovely friend. Due to time limitations, we wrapped up the shoot on the ferry...where I think we got the best shots!

What's up with my guilty pleasure of fashiony shoots. I just can't get enough.

oh, and sorry gentleman...she's taken ;)

Isabella-Marie

Um, This little girl has officially captured my heart.
we went for a walk on the beach today and here is part of our conversation...

Isabella: I have a boyfriend.
Shyla: OH, Reallllly?
Isabella: yes.
Shyla: well, what does he look like?
Isabella: dark hair and blue eyes
Shyla: ooooh, sounds like my kinda guy. What is his name?
Isabella: Eric.
Shyla: I see. And where did you meet him?
Isabella: Oh, I havent met him yet because he is married to Ariel. but when I grow up I am going to marry Prince Eric and share him with Ariel. I even kissed him on the TV screen.

LOL. OK, so this is a glimpse into the world of 3 year old Isabella-Marie. She (like myself when I was 9) is in love with Prince Eric from the Little Mermaid. I cant get enough of her!
We had sooo much fun playing today... we built sand castles, made bracelets out of seaweed, made up stories, danced to her favorite song "Everytime we Touch" and THEN did a photoshoot.

It was indeed the perfect day.

and then we had some MORE fun... ;)

Look, I even did a slideshow because she is so stinkin' cute.

Ghosts and Gravestones

Imagine...
* 100 lbs of dry ice
* being locked inside an ancient 17th century graveyard until midnight
* along with 11 actors dressed as if they were just raised from the dead

it was quite the experience.

My buddy Michael was contracted through trolley tours of Boston and he invited me along for the Ghosts and Gravestones assignment.

I was busy with dollies, lights, coffins and not burning my flip flop donned toes with dry ice, so I only got a few shots on the Trolley and at the burial ground before the sun went down.... but just wait till you see the REAL ones ;)

I loved this group! There is something magical about actors...something about the way they transform a story from simple words to a multi sensory experience. A few gave me a demo of their presentation and I was so intrigued.... I LOVE STORIES. If anyone ever want to go on the tour, let me know... They granted me and my guests free admission anytime I want ;)

Copps Hill Burial Ground in the North End...

:)

Maine-ly Gwyneth

This weekend offered the MOST BEAUTIFUL weather so I hopped on up to New Hampshire for a little outdoor adventure. Long walks, lakes, sleeping in the grass, the woods, ice cream cones... essentially its been pure heaven.
My heart sings in nature...squeals is probably more like it actually. I've contemplated forgoing the idea of buying a home and simply buying a plot of land with a tent. You think I could run a photo-biz from a tent?

hmmm....

Anyway, to top it all off, I did a fun shoot today in York, Maine. I had the opportunity to visit this area of Maine last fall and fell in love with it. It is what sparked the desire to move East....yup.... I LOVE NEW ENGLAND! I truly believe that moving here is by far one of the best decisions I have ever made.

ok, enough rambling...

This is Gwyn... Gwyn is most definitely a supah-star :)

And, Maine light? seriously?!... it rocks my face off!

Have a fabulous Holiday everyone! :)