Loose Talk:The Studio Sinead Photography Blog

The Tudors . . .

photo courtesy Showtime

One of the very few good things about being too sick to get out of bed is having the chance to catch up on some of those unwatched DVDs I've got lying about.

If you know me at all, you know that I'm not very big on TV.  I can't tell you a single thing about the Idols, the Top Models, or the Dancing Stars. And I kind of like it like that. That said, I was very pleased to receive the boxed set of Showtime's The Tudors as a belated Christmas gift. Unfortunately, it sat unopened until last week  because I haven't had the time to get into it.

What a wonderful treat it turned out to be! I loved Jonathan Rhys Meyers as King Henry VIII (well really, ladies -- what's not to like?) and the story, although not entirely accurate in historical terms, moves along wonderfully well.  Add beautiful photography and to-die-for costumes to the mix and you have a winner.

Season Two is currently airing on Showtime, but I'll wait until the next boxed set comes out later this year. Enjoy --but please be reminded that  nudity and sexual situations make this one strictly adult fare.

The Journey . . .

I just saw this beautiful little  Louis Vuitton film on You Tube. Seems a shame to call it advertising. I must find out who shot this. Enjoy the journey.

Love All. Serve All. ...

The caller’s voice was tentative. She said she was getting married in September and needed a photographer, but didn’t know if we’d be interested in talking with her.

Not interested? Why not? I am interested in talking to all prospective clients!

She went on to explain that hers will be a same sex wedding and that she has already been rejected by a vendor or two.

With that in mind, it seems only fitting that I take today, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, to let you know that we welcome everyone at Studio Sinead. And we wait impatiently for the day when equal opportunity will be a fact of life for all.

Luciano Pavarotti ...

From Italy this morning comes the very sad news that Luciano Pavarotti has passed away..

As I mentioned here only a few days ago, I have a love of opera which began in my childhood.

I once had the very distinct honor of hearing Pavarotti live.That concert is something that I will never forget -- in his voice there was a pristine and perfect distillation of time and space. To hear him was to be forced to let everything else fall away and to understand perfectly what it meant to be in the presence of greatness.

Rest in peace, Maestro.

(Photo © Associated Press)

Venus Rising ...

There's something to be said for tenacity.  Yeah, Baby!!

(Photo: ©AP /Kirsty Wigglesworth)

I remember her !

I love it when those of you who read this blog remind me that we have actually created a community here. A few days ago, I received an email from a January 2007 bride. She wrote to bring me up to date about what's been happening in her life (love that, too!) and in passing she happened to mention that she still reads the blog (and do I need to tell you how much I love that ?) and that she thought she recognized a former bride as a guest at a recent wedding.

And indeed, she did.

We are so humbled and amazed and truly happy when a former client likes us enough to recommend us to a friend. This is the "advertising" that every business person craves and that none of us can buy.  We are always so grateful when we are given this gift.

We photographed Jill and Mike's beautiful wedding in November of 2005. Becky, whose wedding we photographed last week, was one of Jill's guests.  When she came to the bride's room at St. John's to say hello to Jill, I met her and photographed -- of all things -- her shoes!  They were gorgeous.

Eventually, Becky called to tell me that she was recently engaged and that Jill had recommended us.

You can see the results of that conversation in the posts below this one.

So to Jill and Becky -- thank you. And to Gianna -- who sent me the email that inspired this post -- thank you, too! All three of you will receive custom-designed Gina Alexander cosmetic bags later this summer. My way of saying that I appreciate you all so very much. And because I hate to post without a photo, please enjoy these images of Jill and Mike as they were on their wedding day -- and as we saw them last week.

Had myself a ball in a small town ...

We had an absolutely wonderful time at Jed and Vicki Taufer's  workshop.We were so impressed by their talent, their kindness, and their willingness to share. We've come back refreshed, renewed and full of great ideas and a new sense of possibility.

Over the next year, you are going to see many changes at Studio Sinead. Most of them will have been inspired by the time we spent with the Taufers. If you are a photographer, I can't encourage you enough to attend this workshop. It is very much worth the effort. As you know, I would have no problem saying so if I thought otherwise.

We also came home with a new appreciation of America's heartland. We had forgotten that there are places where the people still say "good morning", the parking is plentiful (and free!!) and the stresses of every day life seem smaller.

It was very good to take a step back in time. You can see what I mean right here.

So This is Christmas...

So Thankful...

...for so very much.

For my mom, who I'm so enormously lucky to have. Thank you for your endless, boundless, unconditional love, and for the lessons in grace and humility that you teach by example each and every single day.

For my dad, who loved beauty, stressed the importance of education, and from whom I'm pretty sure I inherited the perfectionism that is both my saving grace and my Achilles heel. I miss you so much, Daddy, and I'm so, so grateful for the time we had together.

For my beautiful, talented, wonderful sister. Thank you for being you.

For Garrett, without whom nothing that I have achieved recently would be possible or meaningful. Thank you for being my wonderful, crazy, exacerbating, fabulous Clown Prince. I adore you.

For Ryan, Luke, IIsak and Halii.  I thought I knew what love was. And then I met you guys. I'm so grateful that you are a part of my life and that you allow me to be a part of yours. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I love you all.

For all of you -- my terrific friends and fantastic clients. Thank you for inviting us into your homes, your hearts, your lives. Thank you for what you have shared with us, thank you for taking the time to say that our little photographs have touched your lives in some way. You simply cannot know what that means to me, to Garrett, to our families.  I'm so humbled each and every time one of you shares a little bit of this journey called life with us. In so many ways, I live for you.

For this day, this moment, this life. It's so absolutely wonderful to be right here, right now.

For all of this and so much more, I'm so very thankful.

Adult Education...

Tuition: $675.00

New clothes, manicure, new portfolio: $225.00

Four tanks of gas: $120.00

Two nights in a smoke-filled airport hotel: $200.00

Really bad dinner for three ( no drinks) in above hotel: $50.00

Misc. snacks, food, and walking-around money for family members not attending workshop: $200.00

Parking in the Big City: $30.00

Lesson learned: nobody can teach you how to make your own magic: priceless.

The $1,500.00 photo -- see below: