A Goodbye to Summer with Hana Haley

In the past four years, I have attempted to put into words how much Hana Haley means to me many times. We meet at a critical, painful point in my life, and she represented the first time I ever worked with a professional photographer. Not knowing what to expect at all, I was practically trembling when I knocked on her door. But the second I met Hana, all my fears melted - she makes you feel like you are the entire universe when you are around her. Hilarious, protective, and radiating light - I see how people are drawn to her everywhere we go.

After doing a shoot every couple months together for around two years, life forced us to take a break that stretched out to three years. This summer, we were finally reunited. After spotting each other in a parking lot, I ran to be enveloped in a familiar hug - it was like no time had passed at all. On both an artistic and personal stand point, I feel like we click together perfectly - like a friendship heart necklace put back together. Originally planning on just catching up over coffee, we did an impromptu shoot that included location hopping, rose garden smelling, eating fries, changing dresses in the backseat, and taking photos in the Photo Booth. All the while, speaking a mile a minute - that night, my voice was raspy from talking (and laughing, and smiling...) so much!

At the end of the day Hana dropped me back home. Clinging to each other, we swore it was not going to be three more years until we see each other again. "I can't even be sad today is over, I'm so grateful it happened at all," I said before letting go. ☆

OUTFIT ONE:
COAT: Jakke * WAITRESS COSTUME: Hot Topic

OUTFIT TWO:
COAT: Miss Patina * DRESS: ASOS

OUTFIT THREE:
BLOUSE: Forever 21 SKIRT: Amazon then I painted cherries on it PURSE: Amazon

Photography Q & A

My interest in taking photos started when I was very young and was fueled by my fear of loss. In my mind, if I could capture a photo of something I loved, it was like I could keep part of it forever. This slowly turned into me starting Mermaidens and investing time and love into learning about photography to better document what I love!

Trying to navigate the photography industry was, and still is, overwhelming and intimidating. While I am very trepidatious to call myself a “photographer” (eep…), I have learned a lot over the past few years and I want to share any knowledge I can with you all! Whether it's with a dslr or iPhone, a snap of a posed model or a candid moment of your friend laughing - I believe everybody should be able to create art and document the important and beautiful things in their lives!

How to get started with photography and with what equipment/software? I know there’s lots of guides online but it’s overwhelming. - Wes
I will be speaking from the perspective of someone entirely self-taught. If you have the resources for classes, that’s definitely a great option, but for me that wasn’t possible.

Here's an actionable list of things you can do to "Start" your journey:

Ask yourself questions and try to narrow down what you want (Do you want a flip out screen? How much are you willing to spend? Etc.)

Google phrases like "best cameras under $600", "best lenses under $400" (depending on your budget), etc., to help you narrow things down

Find out what people you admire use (photographers and youtubers usually list or talk about their favorite equipment somewhere!)

Found a camera/product that sounds good? Cross reference everything - read and watch as many reviews as you can on that specific camera, software, or piece of equipment

Once you have what you need - practice practice practice! Sometimes, trial and error is the best teacher, so let yourself have fun and experiment! Try not to get discouraged or be too hard on yourself at this point, you need to give yourself room to make mistakes so you can grow.

What camera do you use? - Annie
I have a Canon Mark II 7D and use a 18-135 and 50 mm f/1.8 lens interchangeably. I love this camera but there are definite pros and cons - I'm not sure if I'd recommend it for people trying to take self-portraits and it is definitely not a camera for beginners. I also use my pink Fujifilm Instax Mini 8 and an iPhone 7 - both of which I LOVE. iPhones really take amazing photos these days - I highly recommend using them to start out!

How do you put a portfolio together? - Wes
Take as many pictures as possible! Take pictures of your cat, both candids and posed photos of your friends, a pretty street, an experimental self-portrait, the way the sun streams into your room - and then look at them all with a critical eye. Ask your friends which they like if you need to, and then compile your favorites.

How do you take nice looking self portraits? I remember you posting an old vs. new self portrait of yours and the new one looked so much more professional! - Stefania
Thank you so much! I genuinely love taking portraits and feel like I have made a lot of progress in the past few years taking them.

1. Research Light
Honestly, researching portrait lighting on Google and Youtube have been invaluable to me! I saved up for a ring light * and a lighting set and started playing around. Do you need both or either though? Absolutely not. Sitting in front of natural lighting (think open windows) is an amazing and free option - it’s just always cloudy where I live and since this is my job, buying some lights was an investment I (oh so slowly) had to make. Also, look into DIY or store bought reflectors!

* I got this one which I love, some more expensive models come with customizable intensities of light however, and this one doesn’t which is a bit of a con!

This video by Haze Films is a great example of what a difference light positioning can make.

2. Angles
Figure out what angles work best for you - take photos from every angle you can think of!

3. Backgrounds
Play attention to your background! Invest in a paper backdrop, set up a little space in your living space that looks cute, or at the very least, make sure no mess or clutter is visible behind you!

In general, I also highly recommend Maya Washington's incredible Tech Talk series, which is an invaluable resource (go give her a follow and like her videos to give back for all her hard work)!

~ Thanks for reading! Please send me any photos you take - I'd love to see them! Also, if you have any more questions feel free to comment and I'll try to answer in part two ♡

Land Locked Mermaid by Karen Sofia Colon

Last January, I had the pleasure of spending the day with Karen Sofia Colon (and our mutual friend Bao Ngo!) talking, eating ice cream, and collaborating on photos! It was an absolute joy to not only get to pose for this incredibly talented individual - but get to talk to her as well. Karen is remarkably warm, infectious - and has the type of personality that immediately puts you on ease... I hope to be reunited with her soon!

For our shoot together, Karen envisioned me as a mermaid - it was absolutely freezing (it being January when these were taken heh...) and sitting in a metal barrel (... thing?! I'm not sure what this was!) was pretty uncomfortable, but the end result is amazing!

An extra photo we took earlier in the day in the forest.

I have a few projects I'm working on and hope to be updating more frequently soon - I'm looking forward to sharing ♡!

Caramel by Bao Ngo

Happy Friday! I wanted to share this photoshoot I did with the amazing Bao Ngo last January! After spending the day shooting outside in the cold with Karen Sofia Colon and visiting a nearby bakery, we headed to an Airbnb we rented. We cranked up the heater and chatted until Karen fell asleep - while whispering we decided to do another shoot in the cosy, warm Airbnb and it was so nice and relaxing! Here's hoping the stars align and I get to see Bao again soon - truly one of the sweetest, most talented and hilarious people I've had the pleasure of working with! You can see the first shoot we did together here.

Here's to the weekend!

Nature by Jimmy Marble

The other day I was talking to a friend about the Portland International Rose Garden and realized I never shared these photos here! Last Spring, Jimmy Marble and myself shot this photo series there. Jimmy is actually one of my favorite photographers, his work feels like a technicolor dream come to life - so I was so excited to do this shoot when he was visiting Portland!

This is truly the prettiest garden I've visited, and spending a few hours there shooting pictures amidst such a wide variety of roses and perfectly manicured hedges was such a dreamy way to spend the afternoon! ✿❀❃ This photoseries ended up being published in Zeum Magazine issue 11.

(My internal dialog: "Don't blink! Don't blink!" Me: *blinks*)

The Pastels x The Coalition Zine

Anabelle, Chanel, and Clara make up The Pastels - three ultra-talented, gorgeous friends based in Australia who release beauty and lifestyle videos on their YouTube channel. I've been watching for a couple months now, and I'm always floored by their beautifully filmed videos, makeup skills, and genuine, hilarious, and adorable dynamic in their posts! BASICALLY I AM A HUGE FANGIRL OKAY.

Recently they released the dreamiest 70s inspired photoshoot ever on The Coalition Zine. I was absolutely gobsmacked by this gorgeous shoot and had to share! The dreamy filters, light leaks, sun soaked haze, and the girls posing like the coolest girl band of all time - ahhh! And, like everybody else, I've totally gotten bitten by the 70s trend and want a pair of flares, button down skirt, and camp tee...

JOIN THE PASTEL PARTY

Self Portrait: As Jean Shrimpton by Bert Stern

In honor of Spring's arrival, I decided to recreate one of my all time favorite photos - Bert Stern's floral portrait of Jean Shrimpton has always stuck with me for it's sheer beauty.

I plan on doing more self portraits as some of my favorite 60s ladies! I really love taking self portraits - though I do sometimes wish I could just clone myself because it would be easier then running back and forth between the backdrop and the camera, flowers falling out of my hair as I go...!

Happy Spring!

The Inspiration: Jean Shrimpton photographed by Bert Stern for Vogue, 1965