The annual Chief Petty Officer (CPO) pinning ceremony is one of my favorite events to photograph of all time! Last year, I photographed two brand new Chiefs, while this year I had the honor of photographing SIX! These six included four Navy Chiefs and two Air Force Master Sergeants. You might be thinking, “I had no idea other branches of the military could partake in CPO Training!” And, that’s because it is quite a rare opportunity. Occasionally members of other branches are invited to participate, be accepted into the CPO Mess, and be pinned as Chiefs. This made photographing this year’s ceremony even more exciting!

Congratulations to Chief Aragon, Chief Beatty, Chief Harden, Chief James, Master Sergeant Chavez and Master Sergeant (Sel) Garza! Thank you all so much for this opportunity. What an honor!

SIGONELLA CHIEF PETTY OFFICER PINNING | 2019

Chief Aragon

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Chief Beatty

Master Sergeant Chavez

Master Sergeant (Sel) Garza

Chief Harden

Chief James

Congratulations to all of those whom were tested, tried, and accepted as a Navy Chief Petty Officer this year!

Okay, so it’s no secret that I LOVE SENIOR PORTRAITS!! There is just so much excitement surrounding them.  Last year of high school! College! Boys! A fun photoshoot to share with your family and friends!  For Alex, it was about a little bit more than those things; it was also about leaving the island.

While senior sessions traditionally take place in the beginning of one’s senior year, Alex elected to have hers at the end.  When I met her, she was just preparing for her last few weeks in Sicily before some travel and then COLLEGE!!! What an exciting time in life. 

Alex brought her S-T-Y-L-E and her family, which I loved!  I’m pretty sure she’s secretly a model, but I’ll let you be the judge! 

Alex, thank you so much for trusting me with your photos.  I hope you love them and will cherish your last few months in Sicily forever.  Best of luck in college and your future endeavors. 

Alex | Brucoli Senior Portraits

I’ve had a few other photoshoots in Bellini Park before (like this one), but none with a “farewell to Sicily” theme.  I honestly have no idea why I haven’t blogged Karryne’s images already.  I’ll attribute it to the fact that I have a growing backlog of blog posts to make.  Look out world, I’m about to step up my blog game!

Karryne’s session is the third farewell session I’ve shot (see more here and here) and they just keep getting better and better. I think I’m in love with these types of shoots because of the pure emotion going into them. Now that I’ve been here for almost a year and a half, I can say that leaving the island is probably quite hard.  Karryne was a breeze to work with and she really brought it for this shoot. With every snap of the camera, I was more and more in love with the images. We even did a little city night shooting at the end. Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom to check those out!

Karryne, thanks so much for trusting me. I hope you had as much fun at your shoot as I did!

Karryne | Farewell to Sicily

What could be cooler than having your senior portraits taken in Sicily, Italy?  I honestly don’t know if anything can top that!  When I met Alex, I knew from the start her senior portraits were going to be some of my favorites to date!  I learned quickly that Alex also loves photography and might be just as into Instagram as I am.  She has impeccable style, grace and beauty, so it’s no surprise that she looks like a professional model in her portraits!

It was really fun designing a session to capture Alex’s personality and charm!  We met in Oritgia, on the south eastern coast of Sicily.  From there we took a nice stroll around the island, stopping here and there to snap some stunning portraits!  We spent some time talking about photography, high school, and her upcoming big move back to the US for college.

Alex, it was such a pleasure getting to know you and having the opportunity to photography such a momentous occasion in your life!  I hope you love the photos as much as I do!

 

Alex’s Senior Portraits

I know they are traditionally called a “cake smash,” but this one was definitely a “cake bash” because the whole family had fun! Little Lincoln is turning O-N-E soon and his parents wanted to commemorate this special time with a smash! His mom did an ahhhhmazing job making all of the decor (I mean just LOOK at that banner!!). Lincoln was seriously crazy for the cake. He tried his best to dig in on his own, but it was just too difficult for him to get into. So, mom, dad, and big sister Hailey joined in on the fun! Everyone took turns feeding Lincoln, he fed himself, and there was even and impromptu cake fight!!

Kelsey and Justin, thanks so much for having a blast with me this morning! I’m not sure I’ve laughed that hard in a long time. I hope you LOVE the photos!! Happy FIRST Birthday, Lincoln!!

Lincoln Turns ONE | Cake Smash

If this post seems a bit different than those you’ve seen on my blog in the past, it’s because it is 🙂

I recently just put the finishing touches on a little boudoir studio and couldn’t wait to get someone in it!! I’ve known this person for a little while now and I was so excited to get her in front of my camera. I knew from the beginning I was just going to LOVE this shoot. She is fun, she is sassy, and she is seriously gorgeous! I am so honored to have been entrusted to capture such intimate photos for this friend.

I’ll just share a few of my personal favorites here with you and leave the rest to her.

 

MRS L

From the moment I met Ana, I knew her portrait session was going to be one of my favorites!  Ana is a senior at Sigonella High School here in Sicily.  For her senior portraits, Ana wanted her images to reflect living and graduating from a high school in Sicily (a girl after my own heart)! What better location than one of the most famous ceramic towns in all of Italy – the very Sicilian and UNESCO World Heritage town of Caltagirone!  Unlike Cefalù, I had previously explored Caltagirone once or twice before.  So, I knew exactly where I wanted to take Ana!

In preparation for her session, Ana told me that she wanted to look and feel like herself.  She also also warned me that she had no previous modeling experience.  I think you’ll find this hard to believe when you see her gorgeous photos!

Ana, I had so much fun running around Caltagirone with you! You are so kind and sweet, and I am SO honored you picked me to capture your senior portraits. I hope you love them!!

 

Ana’s Senior Portraits

I was incredibly honored to have had the opportunity to capture these important career milestones for two Chief Petty Officers at the 2018 Sigonella Chief Petty Officer pinning ceremony.  Congratulations to Chief Kane, Chief Walther, and all of the other newly pinned Chiefs!

Sigonellea Chief Petty Officer Pinning | 2018

Marissa and her family were my very first (non-family) clients EVER! So, I was really honored when she asked me to shoot Carter’s 1st Birthday photos.  It has honestly been so much fun watching Carter grow though out his first year, I couldn’t wait to see what big boy outfits he would bring along for his session.  I have to say, he’s one of the cutest one-year old’s I’ve seen.  And he certainly loved the cake!!

Thank you again, Marissa, for entrusting me with your baby’s FIRST birthday photos! I love you cherish them for all the years to come!

 

 

Last month, I wrapped up my first year of my 30’s! Who would I be not to commemorate this milestone with a mini birthday shoot? If you know me, you know that doughnuts are my FAVORITE!!! My original idea was just to snap ONE photo with my festive birthday doughnut….

 

But Chalupa had other plans….. Chalupa is my shadow. She also loves consuming (fruits, veggies, sticks, grass, coins…). You name it, she will eat it.  So, of course where there are doughnuts there is a Chalupa saying, “Mom, feed me!! Please!!”  Thanks to my sweet husband for snapping one… or ten shots for me 😉