Castle Point Photography

Hey, Buddy

Dear Everyone, meet Buddy.  

Buddy likes to walk his humans.  

Buddy is my sister's new puppy, adopted at the North Shore Animal League.  I can't even begin to express how green with envy I am.  Bodhi has been asking for a dog for years, but I keep telling him I have to learn how to manage him first before I add a doggie into the mix.  

For now, I get to live vicariously through my sister and pretend he's mine.  Hehehe!

When I first saw Buddy, I was reminded of our childhood dog, Sandy.  Sandy was the best dog, ever.  I know everyone says that about their childhood dog, but truly, she was an amazing animal.  So gentle, so well behaved, so loving, playful, just perfect.  I was three years old when we adopted Sandy, also from the North Shore Animal League, and my sister was seven.  She lived a full life and passed away when I was 18 or 19, right after I left for college.  It occurred to me that my nieces are three and seven right now, exactly the same ages my sister and I were.

What's more amazing to me, is how much Buddy resembles Sandy.  Not exactly, but close enough for two mutts!  Here I am, all of three, with Sandy :

And here is Sandy as a senior,  the winter before she died : 

I am so excited for my nieces to grow up with Buddy, the way I did with Sandy.  And, I'm sure I'll be getting Bodhi a doggie a lot sooner than I thought!

Happy January, Happy New Year : Love, Bodhi

January arrived so quickly, as it always seems to do, chasing after a ridiculous blizzard and quite an intense December.  I am so happy to be starting a New Year in our house, excited to create more memories and experience more life with my beautiful son.  But, Dear Universe, can you please make January a mellow-y sort of month?  Slow it down a bit and let me savor the newness of the year, the quietness of winter, and allow me to breath a bit?  Thank you in advance, I love you, Meredith.

Bodhi and I took a scooter ride over to my sister's house, and I tried to get a few pictures along the way.  Clients ask me all the time if I have a million pictures of Bodhi, and I do...  but, it's getting harder and harder to chase him and convince him to participate.  He is so over my camera and my endless picture taking, but I was able to beg and plead for five minutes of his time.

As usual, our session begins with him pointing and laughing at me.  Apparently, I'm hysterical.

A few weeks ago, he lost his first tooth, and now he has the cutest, most darling little lisp ever.  

I love this beautiful, silly boy so much...

When did my little baby turn into a little man? 

Bodhi : Hurry up, Mommy!

Me : One more picture, and then that's it, ok?

Bodhi : UUGGGHH, fine.

And with that, he's off!

 

Are you sure?

Me : You need a haircut.

Bodhi : I want a mohawk.

Me: Are you suuuuure?

Bodhi : Yes!  I want a mohawk.

Me : Well, ok.  But I'm going to use this as ammunition when you whine that I never let you do anything you want to do.

Bodhi: What's amusician?

 

  

Happy March : Love, Bodhi

March has certainly come in like a Lion here at our house; strong, full of energy and roaring his way through the living room.  Oh wait, that's just Bodhi.  Happy March indeed, both Bodhi and I are happy to see February to the door as it was filled with one illness after the next.  First sinus infections, then bronchitis and pneumonia for me, and when we couldn't possibly get any worse, a friendly stomach virus for both of us last week.  All this served up with a cold, bitter glass of snowstorm, followed by a shot of slush on ice.    Oh Winter, I am so over you.

  

NYC PhotogShootout

One of my favorite things about being a photographer is that I never stop learning.  There is literally an endless amount of information one can digest, with still more information created each time a new toy or gadget hits the market.  Our industry changes and evolves on a day to day basis it seems, and the challenge to keep up can be daunting and exhilarating at the same time.  

It's quite easy to get comfortable in doing what we photographers always do, shooting the same angles and light conditions, using our favorite lenses, even returning to the same locations over and over.  This comfort does not quite keep pace with the speed of the industry, however, and so it's important to challenge ourselves, stretch our limits and try new things.  

This past Saturday I did just that at the NYC PhotogShootout.  For my clients that are reading this wondering what a PhotogShootout is, it's basically a playdate for photographers.  This time around, we had about 75 photographers, 6 models and 4 teachers sharing techniques and tips on lighting, posing and equipment.  The shootouts are also an incredible opportunity to network with other local photographers, something that I think is vital to a photography business.  I have met some amazing photographers and learned so much from these types of events.  It energizes me, inspires me and ignites some new found creativity in me that I carry to future sessions.  

This time around, we had the pleasure of learning from Neil van Nierkerk, Josh Lynn, and Peter Quinn.  The fourth teacher, Jason Groupp, held a private lighting workshop during the shootout, with proceeds being donated to Haiti relief efforts. 

Here are a few of my favorites so far... 

A huge thank you to Rob Nicholson, the founder of PhotogShootout and William Chang who helped to organize the event, our lovely models who braved the freezing cold, and Alexa Prisco and her very talented team for the amazing hair and make-up. 

***

I also want to thank Jason Groupp for an amazing workshop on Fusion that followed the shootout Saturday night.  I am so thankful for Jason, he is one of the most generous photographers I know, always giving his time, his knowledge, his studio space to help elevate the New York community of photographers.  

What is Fusion?   Simply put, it is the combination of video and stills merged together into short films.  Jason has been incorporating  Fusion into his wedding slideshows for a couple of years and is now beginning workshops to help other photographers learn how to do the same.  I can't tell you how excited I am to incorporate this into my own work, and how grateful I am that I was able to attend the FWF workshop and learn from Jason and Lindsey.  I would highly recommend it to other photographers!

I also would like to mention that Jason donated all the workshop proceeds to help the relief efforts in Haiti.  Between his private lighting session and the workshop, he was able to raise over $2000!  Did I mention he was a generous guy? ;)

 ***

lovely winter things

Bodhi: Mommy, what are you writing?

Me: My favorite things about Winter.

Bodhi: Oh, like what?

warm sweaters and pretty scarves

soft snowfalls, fluffy snowflakes, and white snow blankets

that feeling I get in the morning, that it's snowed overnight, before I even open my eyes or my curtains

little footprints and snow angels decorating my yard

eggnog lattes ... MMM... eggnog lattes

rosy cheeks and cold noses

crackling warm fireplace

winter berries and evergreen landscapes

Me: Bodhi, what are your favorite things about Winter?

Bodhi: Well....

seeing the snow

getting to play in the snow

playing with you

snowball fights

EATING SNOW!!!

icicles

hot chocolate

MARSHMALLOWS!!!

making snow angels

Me: What else?

Bodhi: Mommy, can we go play now?  Because that's all I like.

And with that.... Happy Sunday :)

New Year, New-ish Home

This month marks a year that Bodhi and I moved into our new home.  The past year has been full of repairs and painting, landscaping and trimming, cleaning and unpacking and from what I hear... it never ends.  And let me tell you, I believe it!  Our latest adventure involved a squirrel falling down the chimney and running amuck in the living room and kitchen, but not before it scared the you-know-what out of me.  They make a lot of noise on the way down into the fireplace!  One of the perks of living with tons of trees in your yard, I suppose.

But, back to the original purpose of this post.  One of the things that has been on my To-Do list for nearly the whole year has been to decorate my house with my personal photos.  A huge part of my job is helping people decide which images to hang in their homes, and yet, I haven't done this for myself.  So, one of my goals for the New Year was to finally tackle this project and fill my home with my images.  I thought it would also be a great idea to blog about it and show my progress and perhaps offer some tips and ideas about decorating with photography.  I would also love to feature some wall collections from clients' homes as well.

The first spot I'm giving some attention to is a small wall I made frames for some time last year.  I painted them to match the accent wall in the living room and then covered them with paper that coordinates with the color scheme.  I love making these little frames, and I especially love how several look hanging together.  The opening is small, only 2.5", but perfect for some sweet black and white moments.  I hope to accomplish the printing this weekend and report back next week!  Here's a glimpse of the space, complete with Bodhi running to be in the shot...  :)

 

I can't wait for these to be filled!  

It went something like this...

 

Hello, Mr. Fisherman.

A couple of weeks ago, I was driving to my parents house to pick up Bodhi after a session and I had a moment.  You know, one of those moments where life sort of grabs you by the sleeve and says.. "Hey, wait a minute, look right here.  Pay attention."

Driving in my car, I passed this little spot I've passed a zillion times, but something made me turn my car around and go back.  I climbed out of my car to listen to life, to pay attention, to look around a minute. 

This is where I live.  Not at this exact spot, you understand, but I mean I live here.  Amongst this absolute beauty.  Hello amazing fall colors, hello beautiful still water.  Hello peace and quiet, if only for a moment.  Hello, Mr. Fisherman.  Nice to see you.

Not on the Menu.