Once upon a time there was a beautiful elven maiden who loved to walk in the forest. The trees loved her in return, for she brought them beautiful songs. As she passed by, their deep roots would stretch further into the earth, and their branches would shiver with joy.
One day while wandering below the boughs, she decided to visit her favorite place to gaze at the mountains.
The cliffs overlooked a large valley, surrounded by mountain peeks that seemed to go on forever. The sun was setting as her piercing eyes crossed the valley.
There, far below, in a little clearing beneath the great Pines, sat a mortal man, playing his flute in the warm sun. The trees around him were shivering and dancing to the music.
"I must go to him," she thought, as she turned and her swift feet carried her down the slopes.

Today I'm sharing my favorite styled photoshoot from 2014! This was a personal projects during one of my busiest weddings seasons. I had wanted to create an elven-inspired photoshoot that I could submit to magazines and photography blogs to be featured (a very common practice for wedding photographers), while creating a beautiful set of images for myself.

I hired a model, went to the thrift store and collected goods, got some flowers from the local market, and worked with a local bridal shop to borrow a beautiful gown. It was such a fun day and I'm still dreaming of the beautiful warm sun as it set over the mountains.

Inspired by one of my favorite Tolkien poems:

"All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost."

This session was shot on 35mm and 120mm medium format films.
To date, this is my favorite photoshoot I've ever done. Why? Because it was 100% from my imagination, not for a client. To me, that is when I make my best work.