Pushing My Limits

The beginning of 2021 was hectic!  We came to the realization late in 2020 that my mother-in-law would need to live with us on a permanent basis.  The reality was hard to take.  Creatively, I wasn’t photographing anyone outside of myself, my mother-in-law, products, or food.  I needed to create an image that could be included at my exhibit for the Georgetown Texas Photography Exhibit scheduled for March 2021.  What would that image be?  I rented a pantsuit from Lael Collections.  When I saw it in her Instagram Story, I knew that I had to photograph it. I rented the suit, and then winter storm Uri hit Texas!  Our shoot was scheduled for February 20, and the suit didn’t arrive.  Heck, there was no mail delivery, and I was skeptical that the shoot would continue!  Things started to thaw out on Thursday, February 18, but there were so many people without electricity and water.  I put out a last-minute call just in case my model, Julie, couldn’t make it, but she was still available.   Like me, Julie was one of the blessed ones who didn’t lose water or electricity.

I rented the Sekrit Theater for the session.  Let’s face it.  It’s my favorite place for sessions. I rented two hours because I had three looks, and I wanted to make sure that I had sufficient time to capture three looks.  Well, because the suit didn’t arrive in time, I had to come up with a third look.  I checked my closet, and decided to use my black tutu and the pink faux fur jacket that I had purchased last year.   My first look was a cute little cream polka dot dress that I purchased from H&M for about $15.00.  The second look was a dress that I purchased from House of Merci located in the Dallas, TX area.  It’s a gorgeous formal dress that’s gold, brown, and purple.  

 The day was sunny and bright.  The snow started melting on that Friday, and there was still some left on Saturday. However, the temperature was in the 50s!  Can you believe that?  Just two days earlier we were in the 30s.  We met a 12:00pm, and started working.  The first look was the faux fur, and it was giving me a Vogue-like feeling,  The model, Julie, was amazing.  I found her through a makeup artist in one of my Facebook groups.  I told her the theme of the shoot, and she took it from there. 

One of the areas that I knew we needed to utilize was the remodeled bus, and it didn’t disappoint.  It WAS PERFECT!  We spent quite a bit of time inside of the bus.  As we were leaving, I instructed Julie to sit in the driver’s seat.  When she reclined, and placed her feet on the dashboard, I was toast!

Julie changed into the formal dress, and I photographed her on the patio, and near a little tuk tuk.  With the third look, we found a metal circle, and I had Julie sit there.  There was still snow on the ground, and it was the perfect juxtaposition to the dress.

The suit not arriving was fate.  I made do with what I had, and the shoot still turned out well.  I also have another image for my exhibit.  I feel my creativity returning.