Celeste and Iris (From Long Ago)

Celeste is an amazing woman with so many talents and strengths. She is a beautiful writer, mother, farmer, lover. Her coming into my life has been a blessing since day one.

Watching other mothers with their children is so beautiful to me. I like the simplicity of shooting at home, where people are most comfortable. When I think about the images of my son and I that are special to me, it is photos of us being naturally ourselves. I want to look back to see bits of our home, things we used to do together.

Sara and Emily

This shoot is about best friends celebrating over 15 years of support and friendship. We are also celebrating our sweet Sara’s glorious journey into Motherhood. I was so thrilled when Sara reached out about this session. These two sweet women mean so much to me. They are dear friends of mine. I have had the extreme honor of documenting so many special moments in their lives. They are both artist, so they push me to get as wild as I want with their images. We shot 35mm, Polaroid, Holga, and digital, each medium adds it’s own special charm.

Sara’s babe, Ziggy will be here soon. Send her lots of love and good vibes for a safe, gentle birth.

Facory Events Spring Shoot

I recently had the opportunity to create with some very amazing women. Celeste of Village General had the idea of doing a Spring shoot for fun. She called up Chelsee of Conscious Seed to bring some of her amazing self care/love products and styling skills, and I contacted one of my favorite muses Amber to model for us. Sarah at Factory Events offered her beautiful, light filled space. It was the perfect day!

The past year has been so wild, we just wanted to use the shoot as a reason to get loose and have some fun. I love how dreamy and warm everything turned out. Please check out all of these amazing Woman owned businesses and show them lots of love.

Senior Photos OTR Cincincinnati

Meeting Eden was one of the highlights of my year. It was so inspiring walking around downtown getting to know her during her senior portrait session. She is a photographer, who is already producing beautiful work, as well as a very caring human being. I left her session very inspired and so happy to see another young person soar. Sending so much love to you Eden, the world is better with you in it.

Senior Photos Cincinnati Nature Center

What a wild year for high school Seniors this year. I have had the absolute pleasure of spending some time with a lot of young adults over the past few months and I can’t say enough how absolutely impressed and inspired by their strength and resolve. They keep pushing forward with a positive attitude.

I have been photographing Alyssa’s family for over 10 years. What an honor it has been documenting so many milestones and watching the children grow into amazing adults. I can’t say thank you enough to all of the very special families who have been with me on my photo journey. Every single time I get to spend a few hours with them, I always come home with a heart full of love.

For Alyssa’s photos we went to Cincinnati Nature Center and walked around Old Milford. It was so much fun celebrating such an amazing young woman. Thank you Mose family!

Amy Jo and Wolf

This duo is so dear to my heart. It was such pleasure visiting them on their family farm for this session. We took photos in the same creek that three generations of children have played in, that is so special. I love incorporating sacred places and objects into photos, I think it makes the photos even more powerful. I envision them being appreciated years later by future generations.

Enjoy this session of one of the coolest Mother and Son teams in town, Amy Jo and Wolf. Keep your eyes on Wolf, he is one of the most creative kids I know. I admire Amy Jo so much for providing him the space to be his true self. Also, we cannot do a proper photo session together without masks and makeup.

Angela's Downtown Maternity Session

Covid has dramatically changed a lot in all of our lives. We are all learning to adapt and be open to major changes and shifts to our habits. Covid has changed the way I photograph portrait sessions. All of my sessions are outside and I am using with a new lens that allows me to distance myself more. I actually love the way the way the lens looks in natural light, so no complaints here. Giving instructions through a mask is sometimes hard, but more often than not, my clients and I just get in sync pretty quickly. I am able to shoot naturally without too much direction.

My heart goes out to all of the new Mother’s who are birthing their babes during this pandemic. With only one person of support allowed in the room during delivery, people are forced to make some difficult decisions. If your partner or Mother is there, you cannot have a Doula there. Once they bring their baby home, family visits are limited. I can imagine it might feel even more isolating than usual especially during the winter months. Sending love to you sweet Mama’s, please know there is a big circle of giving energy around you at all times. All of the mama’s who came before you are sending love and light your way. I hope you can feel it and remember it when you go through some of the emotional first days of Motherhood. We love you and we are here for you.

Angela was such a pleasure to photograph. She wanted to do a shoot in her downtown neighborhood. This might be my first maternity shoot in the city. We dug into the idea that we are not just Mothers. We are business owners, professionals, doctors, attorneys. It is important to celebrate who we are and to really pay homage to the many roles Women take on with grace and strength.

Also, LOOK AT THAT RED DRESS! YES!!

Let us all lift Angela up as she will be birthing her babe int he next couple of weeks. <3 I hope she has the beautiful birth experience she desires.

Celebrating Deana

I was recently commisioned by Deana to create images to help her celebrate her Birthday, which is today! Lately, I have been thinking about the photography and the role it plays in people’s lives. We can capture everything with our phone, some new phones are better than my camera. I am grateful for that, I use mine for photos of my son all of the time. But, there is something else that happens when you are truly seen by another person. I can’t explain what it is, but when it happens it feels like magic. I realize my job is not essential, but I do believe it is important. Though it might feel like the world is falling apart some days, we still deserve to be able to experience happiness and to love ourselves. It is my extreme pleasure to provide space for people to do that.

Happy Birthday sweet Deana! It has been wonderful getting to know you, I hope you are smothered in love today!

Wednesday and Desi

It is always a treat for me when I get to celebrate my friends. It was a really beautiful day catching up on Wednesday’s family farm. I loved that we got to dig into some solo shots of Wednesday, she is always so fun to get creative with. Her little guy, Desi is such a sweetheart. Distanced photo sessions are so good for my soul right now. I appreciate the connection so much.

Autumn is lingering around this year, I have room for a couple more sessions in November. I would love to spend them photographing your family. I am booking outdoor only sessions for now.

Ode To Joy Twins!

To all of the parents out there doing their best to keep themselves together so that their children feel like everything is together, I see you. It’s tough out there. The weather is changing and the feeling in the air is heavy.

I am especially thinking of new parents today. The ones who are still in the trenches of the very isolating first few months of parenthood. I want you to know you are not alone in your feelings and I hope that you have support.

I photographed this sweet family a couple of months ago in their back yard, I am sure John, Claire and their tiny babies have grown so much since then. Photographing families, experiencing their joy brings me so much joy. I am so grateful for the families who have invited me to document their joy. The photos we make during this very uncertain time in our lives will serve as mementos of happiness and resilience.

Heart and Soul Wheat Paste Locations

The Heart and Soul wheat paste pieces are mini photo murals hanging all over Cincinnati. Inspired by the Black Lives Matter Movement. I photographed 18 amazing Black Womxn with the intention of elevating their voices and to add inspiring images to the community. I asked 8 youth apprentices to collaborate with me by adding their own art to the images. The finished pieces have been wheat pasted throughout Cincinnati. I am grateful to Artworks and FotoFocus for making this project possible. I am especially grateful to all of the amazing Womxn who shared their stories with me throughout the project.

My collaborators who added design elements to the pieces are Izzy Chinchilla, Jessi DeNoma, Hafsatou Diakho, Shawn Kuchenmeister, Destine Laudat, Elizabeth Poselski, Rory Walsh, Myles Williams, and Chris Harrison.

Here is the list where you can find the images:

  • Annie Ruth, Bailey, and Skye at Avondale Business Center, Avondale – 3635 Reading Road

  • Nancy, Crystal, and Taren at Cream + Sugar Coffeehouse, Evanston – 3546 Montgomery Road

  • Aliah at The Welcome Project, Camp Washington – 2936 Colerain Avenue

  • Ewaniki and Adalia at CampSITE Sculpture Park, 2866 Colerain Avenue

  • Bebe and Nia at Artsville, Madisonville – 5021 Whetsel Avenue

  • Schera and Amber at New Generations Banquet Hall, Bond Hill – 4595 Paddock Road

  • Aprina, Kimberly and Honour at The Neighborhood House, West End – 901 Findlay Street

  • Sesheta at a private residence, West End – 1801 Baymiller Street

  • Kimberly at a private residence, West End – 1900 Baymiller Street

Heart and Soul Amber

This is my last Heart and Soul feature. I have been working so hard over the past few of months creating these images, working with the young artist on the designs, editing 10,000 images, learning to accept the love I have been graciously given by everyone involved. It has been one of the most beautiful, eye opening experiences of my life. I am looking forward to finally being able to sit with this project and really see it now that it is almost finished. Artworks is finishing up the install next week. I will then be able to share a map of all of the locations.

One of my favorite quotes that I play in my head daily, especially when I feel overwhelmed and helpless is “Tend to the part of the garden that you can touch” It is easy to get so wrapped up in fear, and a feeling of not knowing what to do that we get paralyzed and end up doing nothing. I have been stuck there many times. Right now, that feeling can be intensified for a lot of people. Your heart is good, you want to help but you dont know where to start. I suggest you start with asking yourself questions and make the changes within yourself to make sure your life is inclusive, inviting, and loving. Think about your own biases and where they come from. We are programmed to think a certain way and we can be unprogrammed. It takes work. Look at your family, your children. What are you teaching them? How inclusive is their life? Are you having the difficult conversations necassary to make change. I encourage you to talk to your Black neighbors, your Black co-workers, your Black friends. Tell them you love them. I encourage you to stand up for them even when they are not there. I hope you will lead with your heart and with empathy. Love your neighbor, because your neighbor is you.

This is my friend Amber, who I have admired from afar for years. She was supposed to be part of a big project I put together last year on my birthday, but recently told me she didn’t come because she felt uncomfortable knowing she was the only Black Womxn there. This broke my heart, and opened my eyes. I appreciate her honesty in everything she does. She is an activist, a model, and a muse. My time with her was so inspiring, the way she opened up to me and mused with me was beautiful. Watching her dance across the field, laughing, and feeling so confident and free was a feeling I wish every Womxn could experience. I am so grateful for Amber and for every single Womxn who trusted me to tell their story. My heart is full. <3

Coming September 2020, ‘Heart and Soul’ is a photo installation project that was created to elevate the voices of some of Cincinnati’s amazing Black Womxn. Commissioned by Artworks and funded by FotoFocus I worked with 8 youth apprentices to make mini murals created with painted photos that will be wheat pasted on Black Owned businesses around Cincinnati.









Heart and Soul Kimberly

Kimberly’s story was so touching and inspiring. She runs an amazing organization called Ladies of Leadership. A description from their site. “We are an organization that is focused on building and enhancing leadership and interpersonal skills for inner city  ​young ladies in impoverished communities.  We build sisterhood and trust through mentoring so that young ladies develop a sense of worth and confidence.”

Kimberly took her own life experiences and used them to help others. I think that is one of the most important things we can do for each other, share our stories and learn from each other. If you have been down and got back up, share that with others so they can pull from your strength. If you are in a position to help, Ladies of Leadership accepts donations to help cover the costs for young girls to be part of the mentorship program. You can donate to this amazing organization here.

Coming September 2020, ‘Heart and Soul’ is a photo installation project that was created to elevate the voices of some of Cincinnati’s amazing Black Womxn. Commissioned by Artworks and funded by FotoFocus I worked with 8 youth apprentices to make mini murals created with painted photos that will be wheat pasted on Black Owned businesses around Cincinnati.

Heart and Soul Aliah

Many times throughout the pandemic I have been immensely impressed by young adults. Just like us, they are going through some of the toughest experiences in our lifetime. All of the events and milestones that we have celebrated without thought, have been altered or cancelled for them. They miss their friends and freedom. They are inheriting a world that is deeply divided and hurting, yet their optimism is unwavering. Children and young adults are resilient and strong, we all have so much to learn from them.

Aliah is a high school senior this year. At a young age she is already very responsible and creative. She wrote a very potent piece called Racism in Waldorf which digs into Waldorf founder, Rudolph Steiner’s many lectures which contain openly racist ideas, alongside her own experiences with racism at Waldorf schools.

A small snippet from her piece…

“Just as older conditions which have degenerated to the ape species seem grotesque to us today, so do materialistic races remain at the standpoint of evil, and will people the earth as evil races. I​ t will lie entirely with humanity as to whether a soul will remain in the bad race or will ascend by spiritual culture to a good race.
—Rudolph Steiner, ​Theosophy of the Rosicrucian: ​“The Future of Man” (1907)

Steiner believed that white Europeans were the most superior race, but he also argued that people of other races could ascend to be white through reincarnation (another one of his beliefs) and spiritual awakening. Dr. Peter Staudenmaier, a philosopher from Cornell University, argues: “Waldorf advocates and sympathizers may unknowingly help prepare the ideological groundwork for another unforeseen shift in the broader cultural terrain, in which notions of racial and ethnic superiority and inferiority could once again take on a spiritual significance...in a changed social and political context.” Staudenmaier worries that well-meaning Waldorf teachers may be instilling racism in their charges because although Steiner’s lectures and books are not widely read by ​students​ of Waldorf schools, Waldorf ​teachers​ are required to read his works extensively. Exposure to these harmful ideas may have an impact on how Waldorf teachers handle (or don’t handle) racism in their schools.

Modern Waldorf schools have tried ​to purify​ Steiner’s ideas and accept students of all races and religions. In 1999 the General Council of the Anthroposophical Society in America denied all allegations of racism, announcing: “We explicitly reject any racial theory that may be construed to be part of Rudolf Steiner's writings. The Anthroposophical Society in America is an open, public society and it rejects any purported spiritual or scientific theory on the basis of which the alleged superiority of one race is justified at the expense of another race.” “

I hope the entire work is available for everyone to read soon.

Coming September 2020, ‘Heart and Soul’ is a photo installation project that was created to elevate the voices of some of Cincinnati’s amazing Black Womxn. Commissioned by Artworks and funded by FotoFocus I worked with 8 youth apprentices to make mini murals created with painted photos that will be wheat pasted on Black Owned businesses around Cincinnati.

Heart and Soul Skye

I have been a big fan of Skye’s photography since I first saw it via a friend’s Instagram feed. Their work has so much power and conviction. When I contacted them to be part of the Heart and Soul project I explained I was celebrating some of the amazing Womxn in the city. They told me they loved the idea, but they did not identify as a Womxn, they identify as non-binary. This opened up the project to an even broader level of representation, and helped me understand so much more about my new friend.

I want to share a bit of what Skye wrote to me after I asked them to be part of the project, “I think including Black gender variant femmes/trans folx is really important. We are disproportionately harmed, seconded only by Black women. The erasure of an intrinsic part of my identity is something I face often. As a queer body, people don’t see you and that leaves us vulnerable to harm from all directions, even within our own community".”

I am grateful that Skye took the time to help me understand them. Opening myself up to empathy and understanding is my number one goal as we move through so many cultural and community changes. Respecting pronouns and how people are identified and addressed is very important. It is a way to make sure everyone feels seen. One of my youth artist in this project also identifies as non binary , learning about Skye made them feel represented, they were able to connect with Skye and choose to work on their photos. This made the project become even more meaningful for all of us. Our capacity for learning about one another, growing, and changing is everlasting.

Coming September 2020, ‘Heart and Soul’ is a photo installation project that was created to elevate the voices of some of Cincinnati’s amazing Black Womxn. Commissioned by Artworks and funded by FotoFocus I worked with 8 youth apprentices to make mini murals created with painted photos that will be wheat pasted on Black Owned businesses around Cincinnati.