Before and After {Nathalia's Beauty Portraits}

Here's one of my most recent transformations at the studio.  From casual, fresh clean face to gorgeous cover girl.

Elisa Beauty Portraits

I truly believe every woman IS beautiful and every woman deserves a beautiful, timeless portrait of herself.

This is why for a while I've been specializing in these kinds of portraits: Beauty Portraits.

Give me a call at (801) 687-6258 for a complimentary 10 minute consultation, or give me your email so I can send a beautiful pdf describing the full Beauty Portrait experience your way.

2 Hours Worth of Portraits in 30 Minutes--And How You Can Do It, Too! (Danielle Seniors)

Danielle sought me to do her Senior portraits and I'm so glad she did, 'cuz I got to spend a delightful afternoon working and laughing with this girl and her family. Ok, it wasn't the entire afternoon, though I kinda feel I could shoot her portraits all day long. These were actually shot in less than an hour (her session was only 30 minutes long!) and man, how it was productive (and fun)!

Here's to being efficient and making your clients feel comfortable and look good  in record time! :) 

 How I did it, you might ask?

It's not so much having every single detail planned out as it is to have key poses and looks in your head, and simply directing your client into them! I knew my location beforehand but not the specific spots we were going to shoot at. Then it all boiled down to making those poses and looks work for Danielle and the location at hand. As soon as I knew I had the shot recorded in my camera I would move on, getting an average of 2-3 shots in 3-5 minutes per spot (as opposed to exhausting all looks in a single location).

This approach gave us more effective shooting time and a variety of looks that in the past I would have only been able to get if the session had been 2 hours long!

 On another light, the session was technically a bit longer than 30 minutes (maybe 45-50min) simply because we had to walk from one end of the park to the other. Being Brazilian at heart, I'm really flexible with time: I don't mind going a bit over the time if it's going to lend us amazing light, location or looks.

These last two images were the main hero shots we went for during "overtime", but in my opinion, they were totally worth it! It's towards the end of the session that we get our best creative juices flowing and there's no way I'm gonna let it pass!

Stunning girl, right there! ^

If you would like me to take your headshots or portraits, send me a note on my Contact Page. 

Introducing: Beauty Portraits

This 2015 I have set a commitment to myself and my brand to help all women feel beautiful and see the beauty in themselves. Through my lens.

I am a firm believer in celebrating the beauty we have in ourselves. While some may point and judge at other's physical flaws, I can't help myself but negate these fake statements. I truly believe every man and woman are beautiful. 

However, as a woman, I have often looked at myself in the mirror and not felt too great about myself. I know other women have felt the same. I want to change that.

But if you tell me your nose is too crooked, arms are too thick, or simply "don't photograph well"...let me prove you wrong.

So, if you have ever been at war with the mirror and yourself (or your mom, for that matter), give me a call for your complimentary 10-minute personal consultation. 

Until then...

Stay Beautiful,

xoxo - CM

New website launched!

Hello beauties!

I am SO SO SO pleased to announce I've got myself a new website (and blog!) It has been a labor of love and I've been working on it since last February, making sure it was perfect and truly reflected my work.

So, if you haven't already, check out my new portfolio website, made from scratch by the amazing web developer and designer Nephi Henry, who made sure my dream site was, well, my dream site: minimalist, image-based, and plain beautiful.

And since we're at it, 2014 has been an amazing year of lots of changes, projects and work to be done. I feel I have learned, grown, and accomplished so much (both as individual as well as professional) that I wanted to give a big shout out to all my wonderful supporters, mentors and clients that have made it all possible. THANK YOU!

What a perfect way to end the year and start 2015 fresh and with an energy boost!

While my website is now my go-to portfolio where you can learn about me and my style, this blog will be where you should check often for my weekly posts full of useful and inspirational content for learners and wanderers. Follow by email to be in the loop!

Stay Beautiful,

-CM

Mallory + Russ Engagements

Is there anything more special than taking your engagement photos on the same place of the proposal? This is the case with this sweet couple, Mallory and Russ. I gotta say though it was a beautiful and clear winter day, they sure didn't let the chilly air lower their spirits. Can't wait for their wedding later this year!

2013 Favorite Frames

Honestly I wasn't thinking it was going to be THIS hard to pick my favorites. I guess, because this is the first time I'm doing this, I just realized 365 days are waaay too many to fit into one blog post, so bear with me--I promise these are good. ;)

2013 has been a year of many changes, both personal and professional. I had my first baby back in January and with new life came a new me. With baby and school taking up most of my time, I was determined to explore and expand my craft as much as I could.

I fell in love with the studio and the ability it gives me to control light and make magic from scratch.

I was also able to capture fleeting moments that nobody can predict, and I must say I surprised myself with some of these:

Worked with amazing girls that lit up my life in front and behind the camera:

And I was also lucky enough to spend a beautiful time with beautiful couples in their happy place :)

I also teamed up with commercial photographer Jerry Garns and other amazing apprentices (aka: photo students) and together we produced these two shots. (You won't believe how much time and attention to detail it takes for these commercial-driven shots to happen). You see the lights coming through the window on both shots? They're pretty much made up... ;)

I also had a fine art photo exhibit called Cloud People all about accepting who you are (something I definitely learned a lot about this year): 

...and worked on another fine art project all about auction items. Here's a preview:

To top it all off, I ended the year with a BANG by completing a commercial job for Spa Trouvé (more on that soon) and producing my first ever styled shoot to which here is a special sneak peek:

PHEW! Looking back at all these frames from 2013 makes me giddy for what's in store next year. Is it too much to ask for this same rewarding feeling next December? I do know that I've reinvented myself quite a lot this year and do plan on refining my brand and style even more next year. This in mind, my hope is that this success will only push me to experiment and be inspired by other creatives and amazing clients as well.

HAPPY 2014!