Film Noir, the name brings to mind the romantic look and feel of the films of Yesteryear. The film noir look is mainly a term from the classic Hollywood cinema days depicting old crime dramas with plenty of sex, intrigue, murder, and many other elements that came from the depression era of the United States.

Ever since seeing Humphrey Bogart, Marlene Dietrich, and other classic famous actors and actresses in these classic noir films I have wanted to try and recreate the look. I still feel I have yet to come up with the perfect noir technique, but  as you all have seen from my previous blog entry here, it is fast becoming a favorite of mine! If your wondering about the background behind Miss D, it came from Serendipity Backgrounds, in fact it was my first order with them, it came very quickly, and was quick and simple to set up, and I love how it photographs, I highly recommend getting one of your own! 

I hope you all enjoy these images and make sure to share your love to the model, Miss D, who was kind enough to let me share these with you all, not only is she  multi-talented singer and photographer, but sexy as hell!!! 

Gotta admit, I love girls with tattoos! 

This was one of my absolute favorites of Miss D’s images, when it comes to projecting raw sexual power this girl can bring it!

Straight forward and to the point, well said Miss D!

The last bit I’d like to share is the publication of our images in issue nine, June edition of Cat’s Meow Magazine! I can’t think of a better way to start the day than to wake up, check my email and have a message from a magazine editor telling me they have published not one, but two of my images!! Thank you Bri and Miss A, I couldn’t have done it without you!

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Legends and fairy tales. The appeal to this genre may seem strange to some, but for me this has been a theme I’ve visited many times with my art and photography. For me fairytales hold appeal because they represent a break from the hum-drum many of us experience with our daily lives. When we were young fairytales seemed to be within easy reach and becoming a princess or astronaut seemed as sure as our morning cereal. As we get older the reality sits in and those childhood dreams seem about as possible as pole vaulting to the moon. This is why I always seek to break away from traditional photography and use different techniques and products that will give my clients a piece of fairytale they can have forever. 

I draw inspiration for my fairytale images from many different places. The largest being the work of other great artist such as Natalie Shau in Lithuania, Dorian Cleavenger in Pennsylvania, Lindsay Adler, (with whom I just finished a very awesome class over at creativeLIVE) and many more I’d love to list, but don’t think I’d have the room!

Another reason for fairytale type photography was to set ourselves apart. When we first started Oni Studio we had no idea how many of other photographers there were in the area, and how much competition there was in this industry. Although at that time we were so amateur we couldn’t really call ourselves competition, lol! Once we really got to looking, we found seven other photographers in five mile radius of us. Many of these photographers had been in business for quite a while, were very established and producing very good quality images. It was an intimidating prospect and for a long time we just practiced with our camera trying to see if this was something we really wanted to get heavily invested in. We realized very early in the game that if we wanted to stand out amongst our peers and become successful in the photography industry we would have to produce not only high quality images, but images that would instantly be recognized as our style.  Since I had always been interested in dark fantasy and fairytales I wanted to incorporate it into my photography.  I want people to look at a photograph and right away recognize it and say, “that’s Oni Studio’s work!”.

One of the things I have always been interested in is incorporating fantastic props into our pictures. I didn’t want it to come across as tacky or gimmicky, I wanted the props to add to the image, not be the focus of it, and this is always tricky to pull off. One day while I was browsing Etsy I came across a seller named “Posh Fairytale Couture”, which featured some of the most beautiful photo props I have ever seen. I spent about thirty minutes on her page just in awe of her work. After talking with Rachel, the owner of the company, I discovered she was not only a talented creator, but a very beautiful and nice person, and she was also a military spouse like me!  I cannot recommend Rachel and her company enough. When I was buying the props from her she kept me updated throughout the construction and sent me instragrams of my head dress. Now I know where I’m getting my props from for the next couple of years!

It’s strange, but during the edit the piece began looking familiar to me, and then I realized what I was doing, making it look like “Lily” from the movie “Legend”, (at least subconsciously). I’m sure many of you have never seen this 1986 sleeper film starring Tom Cruise and directed by Ridley Scott, but if you have kids or you like fantasy film it’s a great one to pick up.

The last, (and maybe most exciting!) bit we would like to share with you is the publication of one of my favorite images I did in Essere Magazine! Although the image is one of our older ones it’s still one of my favorites.

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Welcome friends!

Today I would like to introduce our new rewards program and Miss K. was gracious enough to be one of our first participants.  She came in for her very first Boudoir photo shoot few weeks back and now would like to share some of her photos with friends and fans. We hope you enjoy the photos and get to know Miss K. a little. For every individual comment posted on this blog Miss K will receive a FREE 5X7 print from her photo shoot and get a chance to receive a beautiful Image Folio. So the more comments the better!

ONI: What was your favorite part about this shoot?

Miss K.: I liked having my hair and make-up done, it felt like big girl dress up and was really fun.

ONI: We love powerful women. What badass babe do you identify most with?

Miss K.: I know a lot of people do not like Sarah Palin but I think she is really driven and has a strong personality.

ONI: What do you have that other girls don’t?

Miss K.: I was pretty lucky to have a lot of my grandma’s influence growing up!

ONI: When are you happiest?

Miss K.: I am pretty happy right now. My career is good and I am engaged to be married to the love of my life!

ONI: What do you like most about yourself?

Miss K.: My teeth. I had adult braces for two years. The payoff was worth it!

ONI: What’s the best or most creative pick-up line you’ve ever heard?

Miss K.: Was your daddy a thief? Because I could swear he stole the stars of the sky and put them in your eyes!

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As with any skill once you learn the basics you start to build upon them, expand your visions and try new things.  We believe that in business as well as life you have a have variety and always seek to expand and improve in every en devour. =)

After my recent surgery I had a lot of down time to research new photography techniques, and one of the styles I hadn’t tried yet, but thought was very interesting, is bodyscapes. This technique, sometimes referred to as low key lighting, is something I’ve been very enthusiastic about lately and hadn’t explored very much before since I was restricted equipment wise. However, after we splurged a bit at B&H Photo I’ve been delving into this type of photography with a vengeance!

While doing research for this new shooting technique I was contacted by Crystal, who was a prospective client for a wedding shoot (yes I do WEDDINGS!), and during our conversation she mentioned Vantel Pearls, a company she worked for. For those of you who are new readers of our blog, what I do every now and then is highlight a woman owned business, or feature a woman in what would be considered a nontraditional role, to support strong women in our community. So when Crystal and I talked I knew right away how to showcase those beautiful pieces of jewelry. Each pearl is unique and no two strands are exactly the same. Pearls are a timeless classic that should complete every woman’s jewelry box, and Crystal can definitely help you out with that.

I didn’t always appreciate the beauty of a pearl. Not until I started working for a NEX jewelry department and learned more about them and different styles and settings. When Crystal showed me some of the inventory she had on hand and a catalog from the company I was pleasantly surprised. There are so many modern unique pieces to choose from to match any taste and occasion. But don’t take my word for it. Book a home party with Crystal and let her blow your mind!

Hi! My name is Crystal Hetzer. I joined Vantel Pearls in 2007 and the company has given me the opportunity to have a home ran business, still work full time and going to college online full time. I thought about getting into a home business for a while to help with the bills, but I’m not into make-up or expensive clothes, but I do love jewelry. The best thing about pearls is that they are great for every occasion and all the different styles they come in are fantastic!

The one thing I love about doing home parties is that the customer never knows what color, or how big of pearl they are going to get when they pick the oyster. Vantel Pearls has made it easier for customers, in the way that they don’t have to open an oyster if they don’t want and they can order the product with either a white or black pearl. The company focuses on the customer, like other businesses, the hostess gets items at discounts but I feel that Vantel Pearls gives a wide variety of items to choice from to use the discounts on. Also the company is reaching out to customers in different ways. For example, online with demonstrator personal websites, facebook and other media outlets. Every Thursday on facebook they put at least one item up at a deep discount for customers.

Vantel Pearls is committed to the idea of leaving the world a better place, and truly believes that every individual does make a difference. Each time you make a purchase, Vantel Pearls donates a percentage of sales to agencies that provide shelter, counseling and education to families in need.

Vantel Pearls often gets involved with their local schools or other adolescent organizations to talk about bullying and how it relates to a pearl. I believe that this can be directed to not only adolescents but to every person that choses to wear a pearl. “Inside every oyster, there is at least one pearl.  A pearl is formed when an oyster defends against a grain of sand or foreign particle.  The oyster secretes layers and layers of nacre or mother-of-pearl around the irritant.   When we have a challenge, how many of us, as oysters do, find the gift in it-actually turn it into something positive?”

~Crystal Hetzer, Independent Vantel Pearls™ Demonstrator

www.vantelpearls.com/crystalhetzer

360-682-6847

During this photo shoot I tried few different lighting set ups using primarily a strip light. I searched through my trusted “Lighting the Nude: Top Photography Professionals Share Their Secrets” book a number of times for reference and inspiration. I definitely need more practice, but for the first try I am pleased with the result.

What do you think?

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