Monday, December 26, 2016

2016... A Year End Perspective

Greetings All!

This post is a bit different from our previous posts, as we wanted to just give you our perspective on this past year. When we begin to reflect on our successes and our failures and all of those elements about the year that keep us hopeful for things to come, we decided to provide our readers with an opportunity to check out some the work we did over the course of 2016, just in case you missed it!

We began the year by shooting a beautiful Valentine's Day wedding for our amazing make-up artist, Tynita Lee (Instagram.com/makeupbyTynita) and her new hubby, Adam. We had the pleasure of working with this young couple for the first time when they hired us to do their family/engagement shoot in the fall of 2014. Since that time, we have been their family's photography TEAM and we have truly enjoyed every single minute of it! Check out samples from the time we have spent with the Lee family in their "Love and Fairytales" story. See it here or below.





In March, we decided to get four gorgeous women together to celebrate womanhood and Women's History Month by doing a "Sexy at Any Age" concept shoot. I believe that sometimes as moms and working women, we lose the essence of what it means to be sexy. It is easy to get caught up in the routines of our day to day lives and forget that we are human beings, WOMEN, and we can be very sensual while still being completely covered. I think the ladies in this session proved it is not only possible, but totally ok! Take a look back at our sexy as you want to be session! See it here or below.





When April rolled around, it was time to work with Erica, a business professional who was looking to refresh her brand and get some new images to use for speaking engagements and promotional purposes. She knew the importance of keeping her look and the images she used to represent herself up-to-date and fashionable. Check out details from her "Poised With Purpose" sessio. See it here or below.

Poised With Purpose


What can I say about the "Mr. ADONIS" series? Well, aside from the obvious eye candy, I can definitely say it is our MOST popular and most viewed blog post year after year after year. This series project, which started in 2013, is my "baby" and has been shot during the month of July for the past two years. I hand select each model, coordinate the vision for the session and communicate my vision throughout the process. It really is a lot of fun, and the models are always so real and down-to-earth. The 2016 choice was very modest on top of all of that! Check Reggie out in his debut gig with the TEAM! See it here or below.

Mr. ADONIS 2016


The "Blue Lagoon Meets Melanin Magic" was an idea that kind of just came to mind the minute we wrapped up the Mr. ADONIS shoot (for those of you who do not know, I absolutely LOVE shooting in or near water, so definitely look for more of that in the coming year). The Blue Lagoon was one of my favorite love stories growing up and will probably always hold a pretty significant place in my memory. The "Melanin Magic" piece came from the sheer beauty of all shades of brown skin and how amazing it looks when photographed. 

Anyhow, I knew Reggie would be perfect for this shoot as well, so I called him up to see if he was interested and he answered the call! I actually stumbled upon the leading lady for this session, Simone, as I work (day gig) with her mom. The September match up was set. It was a tough shoot with many twists and turns, but definitely worth the work in the end. See it again here or below.



Guess what? We did a COSPLAY shoot! 

So what is cosplay? Cosplay is a combination of the words, "costume" and "play". It is growing in this era of pop culture and we wanted to get in on all of the excitement! It was our first time shooting one and I honestly believe we will be doing this type of shoot again next year. Shooting cosplay characters is a lot of fun and it lends to a broad stretch of the imagination, so let us know if you are interested! Check out Shay in her debut as, "The Little Red Riding Hood". See it here or below.



 
Of course, we could not wrap up this exciting year without a recap of our family's summer vacation! We are really big on spending time with our kids. Family time is a huge priority in our lives and everything else that we have going on is scheduled around it. Making real experiences for them to remember as they get older is what matters most, so check out our fun times below! See it here or below.



Well here we are, at the end of another year...a year of achievement, a year of joy, a year of sorrow, a year of disappointments and a year of growth. We have enjoyed every shoot for 2016, from families, to seniors, to couples, to concepts; we would not trade our clients for anything! This has been an incredible year for us, and although it did not end the way we had hoped, we are definitely still finishing strong! The best part about the end of the year is, we can reflect on the things we had on our list to accomplish that were left undone, and add them to our new list for the coming year. We always keep a rolling list of new goals so that we are always productive and on track. We hope that all of you also understand the importance of maintaining a goal list. It really is the key to success! #writethevision

Thank you so much for visiting our blog! Keep up with the Team at Photography by Sean Ponder by visiting our website at PhotographybySeanPonder.com or on FaceBook at Facebook.com/PhotographybySeanPonder (Like our page!). You can also follow us on InstaGram at Instagram.com/PhotographybySeanPonder. We follow back! 

Until next time, Peace, Love and Light! Oh and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Angela
The Creative Director
  



PhotographybySeanPonder.com

Thursday, December 1, 2016

The Little Black Dress... Essential Elegance

Tis the Season!

The holidays are finally here! This is the most exciting time of the year, when there is plenty of Christmas cheer and holiday parties galore! So what better time than now to start getting our wardrobes ready for all of the celebrations? Well, here are some tips to help get you ready to step out in style this season.

As women, the single most important essential in our holiday arsenal is the Little Black Dress! The little black dress is a must-have fashion staple for any woman who likes to get dressed and go out on the town. It is a timeless look that is versatile and practical all at the same time. It's the ideal go to option when you have a special event to attend and you have no idea what to wear. Whether the event calls for an after-five look or something simple and informal, this one item in your closet can be easily transformed into something amazing with just the right accessories. The little black dress communicates style, class and sex appeal in a very subtle way, and it is easy to wear for just about any occasion!  





Now accessories are going to play an important role in how you present your overall look. From dainty earrings to choker necklaces and even layered pieces, you can decide just how fancy or conservative you want to be. You can choose from high heels to low heels or whatever suits you (psst... the higher, the better. Trust me.) However you choose to accessorize, if you cater to your own unique personal style, you can never go wrong. Remember though, that the whole purpose behind wearing a little black dress is to be sexy (oh and flirty), so don't be afraid to be adventurous with your accessorizing. It's your night, so feel good and have fun!




Thank you so much for visiting our blog! Keep up with the Team at Photography by Sean Ponder by visiting our website at PhotographybySeanPonder.com or on FaceBook at Facebook.com/PhotographybySeanPonder (Like our page!). You can also follow us on InstaGram at Instagram.com/PhotographybySeanPonder. We follow back! 

Until next time, Peace, Love and Light!

Angela
The Creative Director
  




PhotographybySeanPonder.com

Monday, October 31, 2016

The Little Red Riding Hood - A Cosplay Shoot

Hi All!

So a few weeks ago my hubby posted a video on his FaceBook page about the rapid growth of cosplaying in American popular culture. Cosplay is a combination of the words costume and play. Cosplayers (as they are called) are actually adults who dress up as their favorite character and take on the personification of that character and come to life as performers, either at events, venues or even on the street corner. It is a pretty neat phenomenon, and it lends to the thought that dreams really do come true in the mind of every child that believes, the moment they lay eyes on these real life characters. It's Fantasy meets Reality!

The video hubby posted came with a suggestion that we basically host a cosplay shoot of our own and I was ALL IN! I absolutely LOVE the creativity in what we do! Well, we had a taker... Shay Kura, a brave soul, commented on the post that she was interested in doing a cosplay shoot with us, and so our Fantasy meets Reality experience was officially solidified. With Halloween just around the corner, we thought it would be a great idea to complete and present the shoot in time for a Halloween blog post. It was right on time! Shay ended up choosing the Little Red Riding Hood as her character, which we thought was perfect! Ideas began to flow on props, location and creative ways to present the results, and before long all of the details were decided. We took Shay to a creepy, wooded area for the shoot, as we really needed her to get into character and of course, we know that the Little Red Riding Hood walked through the woods to grandma's house, right? 

Here are a few images from our very first Cosplay shoot with Shay...









  

Needless to say, it was a super fun shoot and we were SO pleased with how Shay just stepped right into it and worked her own magic with the costume. Also, many thanks go out to Tynita Lee (Instagram: @makeupbytynita) for the amazing work on Shay's make-up! This is definitely a shoot we would love to do again... any takers?

Thank you so much for visiting our blog! Keep up with the Team at Photography by Sean Ponder by visiting our website at PhotographybySeanPonder.com or on FaceBook at Facebook.com/PhotographybySeanPonder (Like our page!). You can also follow us on InstaGram at Instagram.com/PhotographybySeanPonder. We follow back! 

Until next time, Peace, Love and Light!

Angela
The Creative Director
  



PhotographybySeanPonder.com

Monday, September 12, 2016

Blue Lagoon Meets Melanin Magic!

Hi All!


Growing up, one of my favorite movies was The Blue Lagoon. Although, I was quite young when it was released, it was the first love story I was ever exposed to and it is still an endearing part of my childhood. This movie came to mind a few months ago, and I had the crazy idea to do a photographic remake, with a twist...we added a touch of melanin magic! So we invited Reggie (Mr. ADONIS 2016, view link here) and up and coming model, Simone to join us for a day trip on-location to a beautiful waterfall, to shoot a remix of the first love story I ever watched. Now let the adventures begin!

We had a pretty steep slope to travel to get down to the location where we would be shooting, and we KNEW we would have a hard hill to climb to get back out, but while we were there we would enjoy our time and make things happen. One of the many things I love about being a part of this husband and wife visionary team, is the magical moment when my husband is able to capture my vision at the exact angle. Actually, this happens pretty often. I realize sometimes the ideas I create in my mind are a bit of a stretch, but when it all comes together, it is so exciting to watch unfold. We just make a really great team!

Enjoy some of these fabulous pics from our day shoot and be sure to check out the "Behind the Scenes" link below!








 





Needless to say, the shoot turned out AMAZING! Yes, the elements were quite a challenge to overcome, but the beautiful ambiance and breathtaking natural backdrop made it all well worth it. We were even able to capture some behind the scenes footage of our day, from watching our glam squad leader, Tynita Lee (check out her Instagram page) transform Simone, to witnessing what really happens when the flash stops. 

(Catch a peek at some of the fun that happened behind the scenes... Just click HERE!)


Thank you so much for visiting our blog! Keep up with the Team at Photography by Sean Ponder by visiting our website at PhotographybySeanPonder.com or on FaceBook at Facebook.com/PhotographybySeanPonder (Like our page!). You can also follow us on InstaGram at Instagram.com/PhotographybySeanPonder. We follow back! 

Until next time, Peace, Love and Light!

Angela
The Creative Director
  



PhotographybySeanPonder.com

Friday, June 10, 2016

We Present to You...Mr. ADONIS 2016!

The TEAM is back at it again!

I know it has been a minute since we hosted a Mr. ADONIS shoot, but we wanted to press pause and focus on doing a shoot for the female counterpart last year. We are now back to the project that started it all, and the one I affectionately call, "My Baby". 

Allow us to present to you, Mr. ADONIS 2016, Reginald (Reggie) Malden! Reggie hails from Nashville, TN and is a fellow Whites Creek High School graduate (once a Cobra, always a Cobra!). By day, Reggie is a case manager, but by night, he is a personal trainer. In addition to working out, he enjoys traveling and spending time with family. A former athlete, Reggie has always been passionate about fitness, and as a trainer, he desires to help others achieve their fitness and overall health goals. 

Now on the day of the shoot, we were faced with a pretty big challenge... it was RAINING! The vision for the shoot was set, so I had been watching the weather reports and praying the rain would hold off; well it didn't. When we arrived and saw the weather conditions, I asked Reggie how he felt about shooting in the rain and he said, "I'm good. Let's do it." YES! The session was still on! 


 




 




All in all, we had a great shoot and Reggie was a trooper for sticking it out in the elements. The rain didn't seem to bother him at all, pose after pose and I have always wanted to do a rain shoot, so at least now I've gotten my feet wet (no pun intended). When I asked Reggie what words of advice he would like to leave our readers with, he simply said, "Make your passion your lifestyle..." Great advice and definitely worth following! Congratulations Reggie and all the best in your future endeavors!

Thank you so much for visiting our blog! Keep up with the Team at Photography by Sean Ponder by visiting our website at www.PhotographybySeanPonder.com or on FaceBook at Facebook.com/PhotographybySeanPonder (Like our page!). You can also follow us on InstaGram at Instagram.com/PhotographybySeanPonder. We follow back! 

Until next time, Peace, Love and Light!

Angela
The Creative Director
  



www.PhotographybySeanPonder.com

Friday, April 15, 2016

Poised With Purpose

Meet Erica Grider... mother of two active sons, a business woman, an entrepreneur, a true go-getter, and a professed woman of God. Erica has a lot going on in her busy life, and is constantly on the go, but she holds it all together with prayer, faith, consistency, and by keeping both feet on the ground.  

Erica approached the TEAM recently about getting some new images done and doing a refresh on her personal brand. She is very passionate about consistency and setting the tone for all of her business dealings. Since she does a lot speaking engagements and is the host of local networking events, she plans to stay on top of a fresh and up-to-date presentation at all times. Having regular head shot sessions are a must if you are a serious professional looking to take your business to the next level. A powerful brand identity is built on the impression that you make and the reputation you create, so therefore your image and presentation mean everything.












MUA: Tynita Lee 
M.A.C. Certified
Photography by Sean Ponder Glam Squad Leader


If it has been a while since you last had some professional head shots taken, or if you have NEVER had any taken at all, then it is definitely time to contact the TEAM and schedule your appointment. Let us help you set a standard for professionalism and presentation that outshines the rest!


(Now booking for Spring and Summer 2016.)


Until next time, Peace, Love and Light!

Angela
The Creative Director