Light Painting with Ballyknock Photography

October 4, 2016September 30, 2016 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ 1 Comment

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You’ve seen quite a few photos by Adrian Cunningham, otherwise known as Ballyknock Photo over the last two years. (Check out this one, this one and this recent one here.) I figured it was about time I payed him back, so a few weeks ago, we headed to an empty beach just before sunset and made some awesome images!

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Adi has been into long-exposure night shots for a while now, has also done some artsy work with sparks and steel wool, and recently he discovered Eric Paré’s light painting work and tutorials online and was hooked! 5R0A2862 5R0A2882

For each shot, I stood perfectly still for somewhere between 10-30 seconds while Adi triggered the shutter on the camera to open remotely, then waved a lighted tube behind me. The results are varied and awesome! 5R0A2894-Edit

These are just a few of my favorites—check out more from this session and others, along with the rest of his work here!

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Bluebonnet Inspired Texas Styled Shoot

May 15, 2016April 23, 2016 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

A few weeks back, I offered letterpress work to a handful of photographers to feature in styled shoots this spring. The images are starting to come in and I’m so excited to share with you!

View More: http://kaylinanortonphotography.pass.us/texaswildflowers

This first shoot took place in Texas and was inspired by wildflowers! The images really speak for themselves in this one, so I’m going to let them do just that! Make sure to scroll all the way down to see all the vendors!

View More: http://kaylinanortonphotography.pass.us/texaswildflowers

Photography: kaylinanorton.com

Design & Rentals: rusticchicevents.com

Hair & Make-up: janelle-christine.com

Flowers: brambleandbee.com

Paper Goods: 622press.com

Cake: sinfullysweetcake.com

Hair Accessories: Bel Mariage

Model: Jill Stiebel

Still Alice

March 24, 2016March 16, 2016 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

I mentioned my upcoming Alice in Wonderland styled photo shoot in my last post, but I realized I didn’t give you very many sneak peeks! So this post is where I spill all the beans. big_rose_5R0A4029

The first rose I tackled was actually the giant number above. The planner for the shoot envisioned the bridesmaids with two huge individual white roses instead of a bouquet. They were time consuming and between two of them used up an entire roll of crepe paper, but super fun to make and turned out beautifully! I’m so excited to see them worked into the shoot. (Photo by Adrian Cunningham)

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The bride’s peony and rose bouquet is a little more my style, but I also put quite a few Alice-esque twists on it. Lots of red and white roses—of course—and I also worked in a few “leaves” made from playing cards, with the Queen of Hearts featuring prominently. This photo is just a quick phone snap—can’t wait to see what the professional photographer does with these!

Want to inquire about wedding services or your own everlasting bouquet? Get in touch!

Roses Reign

March 21, 2016March 21, 2016 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

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I’ve figured out how to make lots of crepe paper flowers—peonies, poppies, daisies, tulips, crocuses and lots more—but I’ve put off classic roses. They’ve never been one of my favorite flowers because they seem to be a sort of default buy (When in doubt, go with a dozen red roses, right?), they seem almost ordinary in my mind. That was, until, last weekend.

I was recently asked to contribute to an Alice in Wonderland themed styled shoot, so it was time to finally tackle the rose! It took me a few tries, but once I got it, I REALLY got it. And now I’m in love with roses!

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The spiraling center, radiating delicate curled petals… I just love everything about them. Of course my favorites are the unexpected colors though! These yellow beauties are my favorites, but orange is next on the docket, so that may change. You can order yours here! rose_yellow_5R0A4067

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rose_yellow_gradient_1656 Once I had the basics mastered, I started experimenting with mixing petal colors, and even made one very special hand-painted rosebud for the Alice shoot (remember that about a hundred rose photos ago?). rose_dipdyed_1596

When I was finished with my rose production extravaganza, I asked my photographer friend Adi to come over and snap a few pics. He took the shot of the white bouquet at the very top of my post as well as this one below! Check out more of his work on his newly launched website! roses_red_5R0A4052

Art Directors Anonymous

November 28, 2015November 27, 2015 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ 3 Comments

Hello, my name is Kristin and I’m an art director. It’s been 14 months since my last photo shoot…

When I was working at the magazine, I coordinated/styled/directed a dozen or so shoots every month. At least one was a complex fashion shoot, consisting of days of scouting, planning and styling, a full day of shooting, several more days of choosing and editing photos and then designing a 4-10 page feature. And that was only my part in it: we also had a hair and makeup team, clothing stylist, photographer, interns and editorial team on hand to pull it all together. Sometimes these days were downright incredible—everyone involved was in a flow state where creativity abounds and beautiful results were almost effortless. Other times, not so much.

So, as rewarding as seeing your work in publication month after month can be, after sixty of them, I was ready for a little break. Until now.

Last weekend, I gathered a few friends—a dental assistant who moonlights as a model and an IT professional/talented self-taught photographer—for a shoot featuring my paper flowers. We headed to Horseshoe Beach for some boho bridal images, then down the road to The Reefs for an incredible sunset view.

I thought the shoot would be successful—Allison is gorgeous and moves effortlessly, Adi is more talented than he’ll ever admit and Bermuda scenery can’t be beat—but honestly, even I am blown away with the results. So without further adieu, here are just a few of my favorite shots. I’ll be unveiling the rest over the next few months, so check back!

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