A few nights ago Scott and I went to bed with the desire to shoot a few portraits in our apartment the next morning. Although we are attached at the hip and live freelance lifestyles, finding the spontaneity to shoot (especially for me) hasn't come easy. I tend to overthink and often become overwhelmed with the idea of creating something perfectly— which, for the record, is impossible. I'm slowly learning, however, that there aren't ever "perfect moments" to do anything. As Nike's slogan says, "Just Do It." You've got to put one foot in front of the other, trust yourself (and your creative partner), accept whatever the outcome may be and have fun with it. As adults, I think we tend to think of "doing" as always having to be productive and successful (or in other words perfect). But in continually striving after this goal, we miss out on the whole point of creativity, which is to dig deeper within ourselves, follow our instincts, trust the journey and create from the heart.
That next morning, as Scott set up the lighting and backdrop, I prepped hair and makeup. I'd put together a few inspiration shots the night before, so I had a vision in my mind of what I wanted the general "look" for the shoot to be. The soft lighting and classic look of the vertical portraits were inspired by images that I often see in Self Service, one of my favorite fashion magazines (although as a biannual publication, their magazines feel more like books — beautifully crafted and delightfully heavy). The styling had to be equally minimal and classic (in this case just a gold chain), and the hair and makeup inspiration was a mix of Lauren Bacall and Edita Vilkeviciute (particularly in her latest editorial for Net-A-Porter's The Edit).
Now — I am by no means a pro at hairstyling (I don't even own a hairdryer!), so I knew that creating this look would be a challenge. But alas, as my longtime friend and makeup artist Jeffrey Baum would say, "If you're going to do something, be bold and COMMIT."
Shout out to my incredible husband, Scott. Here is our mini-series:
Photography: Scott Vance
HMU: Alex Noiret
Gold chain: Loren Stewart
