Pollyanna
Remembering the Dress
Chicago, IL
May 31, 2009
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Polly is a friend of my friend whom I lovingly refer to as "Janitor," as he very much reminds me of the character on Scrubs. In truth, "Janitor" is my friend and mechanic, Chris, who works with me at my helicopter job.

Polly just got married last month (April 25th to be exact) in Turks and Caicos. She brought her new husband, Adam, along for today's shoot. We all had a blast working together - my assistant, Nena, included.

Thank you again, Polly and Adam. I'm so glad that sketchy guy in the alley didn't attack you, Polly! Special thanks of course also to Nena - that bag you were lugging around all day gets heavy!!!

To see more photos from Pollyanna's shoot, check out the album on my facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=26604&id=1138585006&l=7de6f2a866

Niki's "Trash" the Dress Session
Downtown Chicago
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Today, I met Niki and her husband, Paul, downtown for a trash the dress session (more of an urban portrait shoot, to be honest). The weather was much too cold to have Niki go into any kind of water, but we did manage to get rained on at the end of the shoot :)

We also were lucky enough to have a few spontaneous things happen - like a large group of Asian tourists ask us to join their group photo, and a few little girls telling their mothers how pretty Niki looked at we were about to cross the street.

The highlight for me? I FINALLY got to use my favorite door in Chicago for a photo shoot :)

Enjoy!

Corin's Trash the Dress Session

Okay, so I admit, this was a mock session. Corin's not really married, and this isn't really her wedding dress. Actually, this is the dress that I found at the thrift store a few months ago. Anyway, Corin decided to help me in my quest to show brides that it's okay to get their gowns dirty. It's all about the pictures anyway!

Thanks again for your help, Corin. You're the best!

Amy's Trash the Dress Session

Before Starting the topic of this blog, I wanted to say that I shot another wedding this past Sunday that I have not edited together yet. To Theresa and Victor - congratulations, and I'll have some pictures to share with you very soon!!!

Monday, I did a trash the dress session with an old high school friend of mine, Amy, who just got married this past May. Amy's mother came along for the session, too. I have to say, I laughed harder than I've laughed in a long time. Amy was such a wonderful person to work with for this project, and I'm so glad we had the chance to do this before she moves to Spain for good.

The shoot took place in Chicago around Navy Pier, State Street and the Ohio Street Beach. While the session is titled trash the dress, it was more of a wet the dress and pick trashy locations to shoot any wearing the dress. She was a trooper though :)

Congratulations on all of life's changes, Amy. I truly hope you enjoy your photos!

Trash the Dress

I've decided to embark on a bit of a project... it's a little something called Trash the Dress, and it started a little over a year ago. See, I've had a hard time understanding why so much money is spent on a garment worn for only one day. Why not create something really memorable after that day is finished? I've also decided that it's a statement to make to brides on their wedding day - their dresses will never look as dirty or destroyed as I hope to make the ones I use in my dress trashing shoots. In other words, STOP WORRYING ABOUT THE DIRT ON THE UNDERSIDE OF THE DRESS. NOBODY EVER SEES IT!!!

Trash the dress is not my idea, unfortunately. There are several photographers out there who do sessions. You can take a look at the original website at www.trashthedress.com. By participating in this project, I hope to help brides have one more fun use out of their gowns that would otherwise sit in a box or a bag in their closets only to discolor after years of storage. I also hope to create some great art.

Anyway, most of the dress trashing photos that I've seen out there have involved beaches, water... you know, stuff the typical bride would NEVER do on her wedding day. I, however, would MUCH rather have my brides (or models, in some cases) do things a little... messier.

Rather than give away some plans, I'll show you the gown that I picked up from a suburban Chicago thrift shop for $17.50. It's already gotten a head start in the trashing department - snags, dirt, discoloring. The most important thing about this gown was that it was cheap and looked fairly modern (i.e. it didn't have those mutton sleeves reminiscent of the 80's).

I have to say, I cannot wait to start trashing!!!