Heidi is one of our many repeat customers. She has been to our studio so many times it started to feel like hanging out with a friend instead of working with a client.  Surely you guys remember some of the memorable shots of Heidi that were posted before.

Working with Heidi is always such a pleasure. Her outfits are colorful and fun, her body art, most of which is done by Tiny Tim’s Tattoo, is tasteful and unique.  In addition to Heidi being a hair stylist she is also a big fan of wigs, so I can always expect her hair to look amazing and match the look we are going for.

When Heidi was here few weeks ago for another fun shoot I found out that her sister Amy is a horse trainer with Fire Mountain Friesians and they have two horses that they are working on at home.  For a while now I’ve been thinking of doing a location shoot with a horse and since I knew that Heidi can deliver the look I had in mind I asked if she would be interested in modeling for me.

Gladly she said yes!

An involved shoot like this needs a lot more people to pull it off than normal. I needed Heidi to model, Amy to attend to the horse, and Dawn to help out with lighting and equipment as well as take some behind the scene shots. I, of course, am busy with Holiday shoots at the studio, so it took about three weeks to find the right day for everyone to get together.

It was a cold rainy morning in Sedro-Wooley when we arrived to Heidi’s house. That was the first time I met King, a beautiful and energetic, but gentle horse. I felt a little bit bad for asking Heidi to wear almost nothing in such a cold weather, but once she got on King’s back, his body heat was keeping her nice and toasty.

 

Doing a shoot with any animal is a whole lot different than just photographing people. The obvious communication problem is not the only thing. Animals are unpredictable and fast moving. While directing the poses, lighting and shooting I still had to keep one eye open for King walking right into the camera and another to watch out for horse poop.

Few days before the shoot Heidi got a cute, but super short haircut. Not the look we were going for here. Thankfully she has plenty of wigs to choose from. This one was great. It looks natural and compliments the shots. It kind of matches the horse mane, and I loved that!

As you can see we got some great shots that day. It was definitely an educational experience for me as a photographer, but also a fun day doing something I love!

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

 

Moving is a lot of work! It took so much longer than I planned to get everything set up and get the studio up and running, but it is almost there. Few minor touches and fix ups and we are ready to roll! Here are some shots of the progress =)

Meanwhile we have been busy doing location shoots. It’s getting colder and colder and we all know that rainy fall will be upon us in a few weeks. So if you are still thinking of an outside shoot, don’t wait any longer. Give me a call and we will set up your appointment!

Veronica and I met as mutual co-workers on Whidbey Island. She was always interested in doing a shoot and we’ve talked about different ideas and outfits. At the time she was pregnant with her son and after his birth moved out of state while her husband went on deployment. For months she worked hard to get her body back and kept in touch with me about her progress.

Now that Veronica is back in Oak Harbor we got a chance to set up her appointment for a Glamour — Boudoir shoot and show off her post-baby curves. She said that she was nervous, but I think she did a wonderful job and we hope to see more of her in the studio!

 

 

Here is what Veronica had to say about her shoot with us:

“My first Shoot with Oni Studio was in one word AMAZING. I honestly went into the shoot so nervous and scared thinking that I wouldn’t be “good” enough. I was worried that I didn’t have the right look. Within a matter of minutes, Victoria made me feel at ease and comfortable. This was the first time I have “put” myself out there and that thought alone was nerve racking. But Victoria eased me into feeling comfortable with her and with myself.”

Honestly the hardest thing to do was to pose in positions and to share the camera with their cat… HE is a camera whore. HAHA excuse my French. haha.

But on a serious note, I had a wonderful time, and I am so pleased with how my photos turned out and I cannot wait until I do another shoot with them. Thank you guys so much for making me feel and look wonderful.”

You might remember Crystal from a shoot we posted a few months back. She is a stunning woman, a pleasure to work with, and her first shoot with us was very popular. This is a photo of our first shoot in case a reminder is needed.

This time I wanted to do a location shoot and after talking it over with Crystal we decided to meet at the railroad tracks in Burlington, WA.

I invited my friend Lola to come along and help out. She is not new to the scene either. Lola is also a model and has shot with us a few times. She also brings her fun personality and expertise to the table, and even though she does not know it yet, she is my new assistant =)

The day started out perfect. It was a little rainy and overcast, exactly what I had in mind, but when we got to Burlington, the sun came out! What are the chances of that here in Washington? Still, we got a lot of great shots. Some were planned…

And some just kind of happened…

Believe it or not, but in this picture Crystal is still wearing her dress! This is one of the reasons I love photography… the control you get to show whatever you want your viewer to see. Here are a few more of my favorite shots: