Babies and Children… Have  you ever tried to photograph them?  Everyone always comments on the images I do of children; how they all look so angelic, happy and beautiful.  “You really have a way with kids”  they say.  I even shot the children’s division for Nike, so one could conclude that, yes, I have a way with children, but it is not that simple.  Shooting Children can be challenging!

My secret… PATIENCE, lot’s of patience and PSYCHOLOGY.  I know, who would have thought you needed a degree in psych to be a photographer?  Being able to relate to, and on your subjects level, at any level, whether they are an infant or a CEO is key to a great photograph!

To tell you the truth… they cry a lot, CHILDREN that is.  Sometimes they cry  for hours, which often leaves me walking away feeling beaten.  However, at the end of the day when you are reviewing your images, there they are, the PERFECT few shots that make you look and feel like a magician.  Your clients are amazed, happy, thrilled and even in awe at your results, given the circumstances.

Oh yeah… did I forget to mention that you need to SHOOT lots and lots of film?  There is always safety in numbers!

All images were shot with available light with my Canon Mark III and a 70-200mm f2.8 lens

Brooke and Justin first met in the US Military while stationed in Hawaii. They had an immediate connection; both were residents of the beautiful state of Oregon. They stayed in touch after the service, finally reconnecting back at home in Oregon and fell in love.

Their wedding was held at the Barrowcliff Cattle Ranch and Tree Farm in Marcola, which is just outside of Eugene Oregon. The Barrowcliff Ranch was homesteaded by Justin’s family in the mid 1930′s where his family still lives today. This beautiful 400 acre Ranch was the perfect location for Brooke and Justin’s wedding.

Brooke is an avid antique collector and incorporated many of her wonderful pieces throughout the grounds and on the reception tables.  Brooke’s love of vintage farmhouse decor inspired the wedding theme; Rustic Country meets Classic Vintage Elegance. The result was beautiful!

Madison Shanley scheduled an appointment for publicity photographs for the American Idol competition.  She was headed to Hollywood  after receiving the Golden ticket in the Portland Oregon auditions. Our initial plans were to shoot on the streets of downtown Portland, the weather had been unseasonably dry but on this day like a lot of Portland winter days it was raining buckets. Scheduling was tough and we had a tight deadline so we had to move the shoot indoors with no plan B. I am often put on the spot to come up with something great without any preplanning, well this was another one of those times.

I decided if I couldn’t go outside I would bring some of the outside in. We brought in part of my dog’s chain link kennel for a background.  I had my strobes on, but didn’t fire them off, instead I pushed my ISO to 1600 and shot at a 30th of a second at f2.8  to pull in the cross lighting between the blue window light and the yellow modeling light bulbs from the strobes. The result was soft beautiful light.

We wanted a red carpet feel for the second shot. We had a great dress and the hair went up. I had a couple of blue plastic panels in the studio that I placed in a V shape for the background. I used one strobe shooting through the background toward the subject and one umbrella as the main light on her. I love the blue edge light and cast in her hair.

This funky and fun dress was shoved way back in Madison’s Mother’s closet.  This never been worn before designer dress was purchased in NY some 25 years ago and was just the funky, fun look we needed to showcase Madi’s larger than life personality. This was a two light set up as well on white.  One strobe back lighting the subject the other used as the main. I purposefully shot up into the backlight to create some glare rings in the image.

The fourth series was actually shot outside in the rain in a field down the road from my studio.  Madison was a trooper, the whole team was!  It was really cold, muddy and of course very wet. When the images are larger you can see the rain drops streaking downward.

This final image was shot on a white seamless with strobe.  We decided that this particular outfit came across too sexy for a teen so we didn’t release these images to the public. However,  I decided to have a little fun in Photoshop and combined an image of  Madi with a graffiti wall that I shot in NY for this composite. All of the images were shot with my Canon Mark III and the 70-200 2.8 lens.

Madison recently sang the National Anthem at the 50th anniversary of the Daytona 24 in Florida in front of a sold out crowd of 100,000 fans, she also opened for the PBR Tour in Portland in January. This week Madi will be singing at a Hollywood Pre Grammy Party at the home of a music industry mogul that heard her performance at the Daytona 24.

The doors are opening for this young lady and you can follow Madison of course on the American Idol show as well as FB, Twitter and her website.

Styling for the photo shoot by Alexandra Kelsey.

Hair color and cut by Vicki Patrick      Colour on Burnside

Salon: 503-233-6055     Cell: 503-317-8038

All promotional work done by UpStage Events    Della Shanley 503-803-4966

***Did I mention that this beautiful and talented young lady just also happens to be my niece. The photo stylist is my daughter and the hairdresser is my older sister Vicki and Madison’s event director/promoter is my younger sister Della.

I think we make a pretty great team!

Colleen

Photograph from the American Idol website of Madison’s audition.  The body guards were her Uncle Greg and Father Terry Shanley.  Another great promotional idea from her biggest fan and Mother Della Shanley of UpStage Events.

*To bypass the intro and go straight to the love story scroll down to the bottom of page.

Being a photographer is a lot like being a hairdresser, everyone has a story.  My job is to figure out what story they want me to tell through my images. Sometimes that is easy and well, sometimes it is not.

The Studio got a call in December from a return client who wanted me to shoot some bridal shots of her daughter in her wedding gown. She was to be married in Japan and wanted something creative done locally before moving.

On Dec. 16th,  Mom, Dad and Rin showed up at the studio with only a dress and a pair of shoes in hand and absolutely no idea what they wanted photographically, just something different, something that would represent who Rin was.

Obstacle #1- I am primarily an available light photographer by choice and on this particular day we had ice fog, it was too frigid to go outside or so I thought and too dark to shoot inside.

Obstacle #2- When Rin showed up lets just say her attire was a touch alternative. Black skinny jeans, combat boots, hoody pulled over her head and a black leather coat. This was who she was… not like everyone else, she walked her own path. She was a budding musician who likes black and red, that was all I had to work with.

Obstacle #3- When she stepped out of the dressing room there had been a total transformation. Before me stood this soft, beautiful, frail young women. What now I asked myself, how do I blend the two.

Idea #1-  I took Rin into my home where I have a black leather couch with a skylight directly overhead. I positioned her on the couch, lowered my chandelier down from the ceiling for some foreground interest. I got up on a 10 foot ladder with my Canon Mark III and a 24-70 f2.8 lens and shot these images below at  IOS 1250 – 60th of a second @f2.8

By this time I was charged up and wanted to shoot something else.  The week before I had noticed two abandoned train cars left on one of the tracks in Troutdale, I have never seen them do that before.

Idea #2- Take Rin down to the tracks and shoot some environmentals.  Two totally opposing elements; a Bride in a gown on abandoned rail cars, right up my alley!

Obstacle #4- It was freezing outside and I wasn’t even sure if the rail cars would still be there but Rin was all for it.

I shot the follow images with my Canon 70-200 2.8 lens at 1/60 @f3.2-ISO 640The next shot shows a frightened Rin as a train rushes by us on the secondary track.  The whistle was deafening and the wind made the temperature even colder. Rin was amazing, she pulled herself together long enough for me to get some great images of the train streaking behind her.

What follows is a real life story written by Rin’s Mother.  At the time she had no idea that I would attach it exactly as she wrote it.  You see I had called her and left a message saying I would like to feature Rin in a blog and had a couple of questions,  one was how Rin and her fiance’ met?  What I got in return had the makings of a movie.  PLEASE READ ON!

Hi Colleen,

Glad to get your call.

Your ideas for the blog sound terrific.

The way I heard it  .  .  .

Rin took note of Shun on the Portland State University campus.  He is  very handsome and tall and geeky, just like she likes ‘em.

Rin claims she “didn’t stalk him.”  Which of course means, that’s exactly what she did.

Anyway, Rin went up to Shun and told him that they needed to know each other.  He was a little surprised, but as they say “the rest is history.”

 They are living in Tokyo.  He works in business and she is pursuing a music career  (rock and roll;  metal;  alternative).  Guitar and lead singer.

THE FAIRY TALE STORY

Rin’s  fairy tale story is just that.  Her single Mom died when Rin was 12.  By age 15 she was on her own and eventually in that most dreaded of circumstances.  Tom and I watched over her (unbeknown to DHS).  In August 2011, we legally adopted her as our own.

You see, Lucas (our son) was her fiance (not her brother as Deb assumed).  Luke passed away and left us and Rin in a world of hurt.  We huddled together and came out of the grief a new family unit.

Her very scratchy and unusual life has produced a very independent and confident young woman.  Helps that she’s also beautiful.  See, I can say that since she’s my adopted daughter.

Rin doesn’t tell everybody about her childhood, but those close to her always seem to pick up that there’s something inside that’s very unlike most girls her age.  She’s just 22 but she’s lived many, many life-years.  Definitely not a typical girl from Lake Oswego!!

We are so glad that you took Lucas’ senior pictures.  He choose you out of the dozens of mailings we received back in 2004.  And now, you’ve shot the beautiful bridal photos of Rin.

So happy are we.

Thanks, Colleen.

Becky

THE DETAILS

Rin is marrying Shun Oka.

Their wedding will be April 1 (yes April fool’s Day;  they think that will be funny!) in Yamaguchi, Japan.

Shun and many generations of the Oka family are from  Yamaguchi.  Our guide book say it is “in the hills  of far South Japan where old-world atmosphere hangs over a modern city that is cut through by a narrow scenic river.”

The ceremony will be held at the temple garden of Joei-ji.  Cherry blossoms should be in full bloom!!!!  Flickr has some really pretty pictures of the temple garden.

I’m going to scan two of my favorite photos from my wedding.  It was held in 1969!!!!!  One is of me and my Dad,  The other is of me and Tom’s (my husband) grandmother.

My dress was by Priscilla of Boston.  I think it was the second dress I tried on.  I had no big dream plan for my wedding or my dress.  My Mom did the whole thing.  Remember it was 1969!!  And that’s the way Mom ran things. She was good!!

The dress was altered by Sandy at a boutique in Lake Oswego called Silkwood.  The dress had been “preserved” after my wedding. However ketchup still remained as spots down the front of the dress.  Silkwood used “harvested” lace and patched over the stains.  You’d never know.

We found those awesome gloves Rin wore at ZenandCoffee.com.

Her equally awesome wedding ring is by “Chrome Hearts” and is called “Dagger.”  Oh my.

So that’s more than you asked for,  I got carried away.

Thanks Colleen.

Rin’s photos are really special.

How fortunate am I to be a photographer!  We impact peoples lives in ways at times I don’t understand! We capture memories, moments in time that last forever. We make people happy and feel beautiful and important.  How lucky am I that they choose me to do that, that they trust me enough to put themselves in my hands.

I am so Grateful and so Blessed!

Colleen

Eight seconds…that is all they have to stay on is eight seconds.

It sounds easy doesn’t it?  Professional Bull Riding (PBR)

These Cowboys are both crazy and very brave. I have only seen this event on TV until yesterday and I can tell you I have a greater appreciation for the sport. Like all extreme sports the longevity that one can survive I can only imagine is very limited.  The physical beating they take in a mere 8 seconds might possibly equal that of playing an entire professional football game without pads. It was nice to see at least some of the Cowboys wear helmets in the place of Cowboy hats. I am happy to report that no one was seriously injured and all of the contestants were able to walk out of the arena in one piece.

My niece Madison Shanley was invited to sing the National Anthem during the opening ceremony so I was able to get a media pass to attend the event and shoot some pictures.  The conditions were tough for shooting though.  There was not nearly enough available light to really be able to stop the action but I did what I could. These images were shot with my Cannon Mark III and a 70-200 2.8 lens.  I pushed my ISO up to a grainy 3200 and shot at f3.2 @ 320 of a second.  It was not nearly fast enough to get crisp images but I had a blast trying to track the action anyway.

Here is their story written by Jaclyn Cahill.

Jaclyn Cahill of Portland, Oregon and Agim Kaba of New York announced their engagement this past June. Soon after they had a small intimate engagement party at the home of local Portland Photographer Colleen Cahill, mother of the bride. The couple will exchange their vows next August at Mt Hood Bed & Breakfast in Parkdale, Oregon and will be using many of the Hood River areas local vendors for the event.

Jaclyn and Agim met in Los Angeles while she was attending the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and Agim was in town from NY filming a movie.  It was across a crowded room where they first saw each other and while they didn’t speak that night it was obvious to those witnessing that there was a rare connection between them.  After several serendipitous meetings they began to date casually until Agim was to return to New York and the cast of As the World Turns.  Apprehensive to start a serious long distance relationship they both hesitantly agreed to end things.  Months later a fated coincidence would reunite them.  Jaclyn was coming home one night when she realized she had left her phone in the cab. Unaware that Agim had returned to Los Angeles that very day on business and had considered trying to reconnect with her. He had driven by her apartment earlier planning to leaving his number on her car, but hesitated at the last second.  That same night, however, as he stepped from a friends car at around 2am he sees a vision of Jaclyn running down the middle of the street (after the cab) . Oblivious to his presence she starts to pass him, only a shadow to her in the night but as she does he grabs her arm and swings her around into his embrace. It is at this moment that she realizes it is him and overwhelmed by the moment they begin kissing in the street. It was obvious to the both of them that they were meant to be together. They resumed their relationship traveling from coast to coast to be together for quite sometime until Jaclyn graduated from FIDM and soon after moved to New York so they could be together all the time.

Five years later… they are still living in New York City together with their 2.5yr old bulldog Lola … when Agim proposes.

The ring had been a labor of love that Agim had spent months collaborating on with a jeweler to create a design that was truly as one of a kind as his bride to be.  When the design was complete it was set with a diamond that had been her Grandmothers.  Being a visual artist for Urban Outfitters, Jaclyn was excited to plan an engagement party in her hometown of Portland, Oregon that would be uniquely their own.  “Think Picnic Chic” she said as she gathered inspiration with her little sister, and event assistant, Alex.  Together via long distance they thought of every detail, from the salvaged fringe saved from an old display at work, to the paper lanterns gathered over the dining table.

The tables were decorated with old glass bottles pulled from the Cahill creek and my extended families china closets.  The outdoor lights were strung across the deck to cast a romantic glow on the party. We tried to give the desert table that personalized touch  by using crystal serving dishes from my late grandmother and cupcakes decorated with flags made of local maps monogrammed with the Kaba initial.  Guests were invited to drink lemonade from mason jars with straws decorated with the couples initials , soft drinks from an antique Coleman cooler and dined on an array of BBQ food that family and friends had brought.  They took photos in their makeshift photo booth, played croquet, jumped on the trampoline and shared stories as they roasted s’mores around the fire while the sun went down.

It was truly magical and reflective of the couples artistic talent and family devotion.

I will admit that I am a little rusty and forgot to resize and sharpen when building this post so the images appear a little soft.  My Bad It will be perfect next time!  Until then have fun shooting and sharing!  Colleen

This is a guest post by Colleen’s assistant and friend from and for forever, Deb.

I mentioned to my daughter, Halsey, that we should run by the studio and take some shots for her Sam Barlow High School yearbook photo a few Sunday afternoons ago. Colleen happened to be taking family photos that day and I knew she would have a short break to help us out. The deadline for submission was  looming and we had put it off because of her braces.  She got the news that they will not be off until spring by Dr. Tod Hardin’s super orthodontic team. So we had to go for it!  My girl  had stayed up late the night before hanging out her new beau and had about ten minutes to throw something on and off we went.

Colleen has been taking amazing photos of Halsey since she was about 2. She and Colleen have a wonderful connection well beyond the camera however…Halsey adores her. They are ‘two peas in pod’ let’s just say.  Colleen has a daughter 6 months younger than mine and they have practically been raised as siblings, playing together in the summers and after school as we worked in the studio.

Luckily, Alex was working for her Mom on the day we dropped by and she and Colleen helped her with her hair, makeup and clothing. We were able to get some photos of the girls together. It was rather breathtaking, not just how beautiful they have become as they have grown into young women and that Halsey could possibly be Senior in High School, but just how sweet and funny they are with each other after all of these years.

Thanks, Colleen, for again capturing my daughter in such a beautiful way. It has been so good for her self-esteem to know that with your camera you catch her beauty and make her feel so comfortable in her own skin.

… the light… the surroundings… the subject…is this ZEN? It is for me!

Magical, serene  and divine…that is truly the experience when all the elements of a dream photo shoot come together and support the creation of  images like these.  The clover, in full bloom.  The sun, a natural light photographer’s  nirvana. The colors, a peaceful balance of nature.  All just minutes from my Troutdale studio.

This is  Lacey Graham from Divine Yoga , her new business. Lacey is as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. Her voice and warming presence will put you into an immediate state of calm.  Lacey will come to you at home or to your business  or you can go to her to “Awaken the light in you” My family has worked with her personally and I highly recommend her to anyone considering yoga. You can contact her for more information at divineyoga@rocketmail.com

Click here to see more images.

I first met Darian Hall in 2006, she was 11 years old.  She walked into the studio with her mother for a fashion photo shoot.  She was striking…the kind of beautiful that takes your breath away.

The perfect balance from her African American and Caucasian heritage. Those crystal clear eyes and olive skin reminded me of the beautiful women of Polynesian Islands.

Peonies are my favorite flower and they were in full bloom when Darian showed up for the first part of her Senior Session.  I had cut a big bouquet for the studio and a few and fallen on the floor…and the idea was born.  Somehow I wanted to highlight these beautiful flowers with this stunning young lady. Visions of Polynesian beauties adorned with flowers rushed through my head, Darian + flowers + floor = the image below.

Darian has grown into a wonderful young lady and will be a Senior at Lakeridge High School this next year.

We continued her shoot outdoors with more flowers, Daisey’s in a wheat field for variety. I love the softness and innocence of these shots.   If you would like to see more images from Darian’s shoot CLICK HERE.

Lauren Williams will be a Senior next year at Union High School in Washington State, home of the Titans.  Lauren has a passion for many things,  but we chose to focus on her Cheer and Flute, she is very accomplished in both areas.  Lauren is a member of the Union Cheer squad and the Titan marching band. CLICK HERE TO WATCH A U-TUBE clip of their “Battle of the Bands” 2009-10 entry.  Lauren has a romantic, sophisticated look so I chose to light her with a 30′s movie star type of light. Soft yet with a hard edge.  I think the combo worked really well  with her old world beauty.

To see more from Laurens shoot CLICK HERE.