Laura and Emery, Tiburon, CA, Canon Digital Rebel Xti

Another shot from my portrait session last week… I love how romantic this one is.

At a yoga class last night, the teacher was talking about beauty. She talked about those people that might not be magazine quality gorgeous but they carry themselves with such confidence and aliveness and joy that they totally spill over with beauty… I love photographing someone and finding this in them. I love talking with them as I shoot, telling them how beautiful they look, and seeing them relax and unfold before the lens. It is amazing to literally see someone’s face transform as the session goes on.

The last photos I posted are not necessarily great examples of this because these people actually were magazine quality gorgeous, but the process was still the same. At the beginning of the shoot was one face: young, fresh, pretty… and the last shots revealed a more womanly beauty, of a woman totally inhabiting her body. It’s such an honor to witness others in such an intimate way.

Let’s all try to look at ourselves with the kindest of eyes today. When we see the best in people, they unfold before us in the most magical ways.