WENDY HURST PORTRAIT

Model: Michelle Brooke Makeup Artist: ReyzelAbrea Diamse Hair Stylist: Magdalena Dominguez Jewelry Designer: Lisa Bayer at From Earth Jewelry Photography & Concept: Wendy Hurst Portrait Part of me wants to write something philosophical about butterflies and their place in nature, how they are a beautiful part of the ecosystem to be admired and preserved; but I don't know what to say, so I'll write about my inspiration for this shoot instead: butterflies . Preserved butterflies. Take a look at the necklaces featured in these images. Lisa Bayer designed this jewelry using real, preserved butterflies. The wings are flexible and their beauty is undeniable. One day last April I saw a Facebook post from her as she was seeking models for a different photo shoot altogether. The blue one in particular caught my eye as distinctly unique and a perfect match to some blue fabric I already had in my stash but wasn't sure what to do with. If you've read m...

What is a casting call? A casting call is a posting with the intent to recruit participants in a mutual cause, like an audition or photo shoot. Components of an Effective Casting Call An effective casting call answers the WH-questions in as few words as possible. It's a delicate balance between giving too much information right away and providing too little to generate interest. Typical WH-Questions to Answer Whom are you seeking? What talent do you need? Models? Makeup artists? Hair stylists? Photographers? How many of each? What is expected of participants? What criteria do they need to meet? For example, do they need to be 18 years or older? Where will the shoot take place? When will it happen? How long will it last? Why should they participate? After identifying the types of talent you need, I consider the "Why" to be most important. The more someone can catch your vision, the more likely you are to find people willing to work with you. Give th...

Model, Makeup & Styling: Rachelle Rydman Photos: Wendy Hurst Portrait When I took my first drawing class in college the professor taught us to draw what our eyes see. Not what we think we are seeing ("a car", "an apple", "a plant"), but to draw what our eyes perceived. Triangles, shapes, negative space, light and darkness, relative size and distances. Our minds have learned to combine these elements as objects with words. Learning to draw adequately, which I am not a master at doing, requires teaching the mind to recognize what makes up what we see and how we interpret the world. He also taught us to learn from the masters by emulating them. Experiment with their styles, practice their techniques they use to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the hat and learn how to apply it to one's own personal style. Style is a hard nut to crack. Gregory Heisler, one of the greatest and well-known photographers of all time, describes style as something s...

"Forward",  Self Portrait Survival is a basic instinct. When hard times come it’s a natural response to fight back against the opposing force, at least for awhile. My encouragement for you this week is to keep moving forward. Let the turmoil happen around you and don’t look back. Let it inspire you! You have places to go, things to see, art to create!  What will your mind see today?

"Holding On" Model: Rachelle Rydman Photographer: Wendy Hurst Portrait Sometimes I get stuck in a corner and start to wonder, who put me there? How long has it been? How do I get out? As the answers come my perspective starts to change. I put myself there. It's been a long time. And when surrounded by beautiful things in the place where I've planted, I start to question:  Do I actually want to get out? About the Series Remember when I blogged about seeing old locations in new ways ? I've scouted locations for a rainy day before, specifically on a cute little stretch of historical buildings in a city called Bountiful, Utah. I've done photo shoots there before but never on a truly rainy day. Last Sunday was that day. I took to the streets scouting for a sheltered place. Balconies of vacant shops, fire escapes on the sides of buildings, awnings that have seen better days. I love that stuff. So let me ask you this: Have you ever looked at...

What's the most memorable image you can think of right now? Science confirms that memories can be generated through an emotional response to a situation. If you thought of an image when I asked the question, that means you had an emotional response. Whether it was a good one or a bad one doesn't matter. You remember it because it made you feel something. I live in Utah, which is pioneer country. Near downtown Salt Lake City there are spacious granite buildings, old factory buildings and easy access to several canyons of the Rocky Mountains. If one spent enough time browsing the works of most photographers in Utah, he or she might notice a few locations frequented more than others. Places like Memory Grove Park, Exchange Place and the Utah State Capitol are quite popular and, with practice, recognizable. Like listening to the same song on the radio over and over again (I'm a nineties girl), seeing the same locations used in similar ways over and over again can make their...

I'm kind of a hoarder. When I got married I brought boxes and boxes of irrational keepsakes that almost filled up a spare room. Each time I visited the space I got rid of a box, suddenly recognizing the junk it really was. Mostly trash, really. Old gum wrappers, faded movie tickets for movies I didn't even really like, broken toys from childhood, half-used bottles of lotion crusted and discolored with age. They were valuable to me when I put them into storage, but garbage is garbage. I started with that. Secondhand or repurposing old things, though, is very different than keeping trash. It's turning something old into something new. I like to think that's one of the reasons I'm drawn to storytelling conceptual portrait photography: the ability to see things as more than they were intended. Be warned: while seeing old things in new ways will certainly help inspire you, it can also take over your physical space (I'm not kidding). Here are three things I le...