Stacey Bode Photography

When Lenrose and I met to discuss her Cheeky Lamb boudoir shoot, I knew that we would hit it off great.  She talked about how she’s drawn to images with a certain vintage look to them.  Yes!  I love that look too, and knew she’d be great for it.  So, with the help of fabulous makeup guru Sloane Warren, we helped bring out her inner glamorous bombshell.  So much fun.  Lenrose was  lovely and easy-going, and tolerated all my crazy ideas.  I hope I don’t scare people when I start sentences with “I’m not sure this is physically possible, but….”.  She took it all in stride, and worked her vintage magic in these photos.  Thanks for being such a beautiful subject, Lenrose.

We thought this next one looked oh-so French for some reason.  Ooh la la!

Lenrose did an excellent job choosing her shoot location.  It had a look that blended perfectly with the style of her photos.

I don’t usually like to play favorites with photos, but I may have to make an exception in order to express my love for this last one…

Lenrose, you are one fabulous woman!

I’m helping my Dad with a little photo project he’s getting ready for my Grandma Bode’s birthday next month.  I figured it was about time to post a little ode to grandma, so I grabbed a few of my favorite images to share.  My grandma’s name is Mildred (or “Milly” as we sometimes call her), and she is such a spirited, strong lady, who has one of the biggest laughs you’ll ever hear.  Whenever one of us kids was sad or pouting about something, she’d always chime in with a funny comment to make us laugh.  She also sings some very sassy songs in Luxembourgish (yes, it’s a real language).  She’s also the one who gave me the name Weinerwurst.  Not the most flattering of my nicknames, but still one of my favorites.  Love you, Grandma!

The Bode side of my family are farmers.  My aunt Mary and uncle Dave still run a dairy farm in Wisconsin.  Extremely hard-working folks.  My granny is the one on the left.  You rock those overalls, Grandma!

Here’s one from her wedding day (early 1940s).  So lovely.

Ok, this may not have much to do with my Grandma, except for the fact that this is her sister, Marie.  I just love this photo.

Here’s G-Ma workin’ hard for the money….so you better treat her right!  This is also the photo that sadly made me realize that I look nothing like her…..well, except that I smile really big around food too.

Again, that’s Grandma on the left all gussied up.  Not sure who the other gal is, but I’m guessing they had a swell time that day.

Hey, look what runs in the family!

Happy early birthday, Grandma!!!

Wow, what a trip!  I don’t know how the folks at Bert’s Big Adventure do it, but they keep one-upping themselves.  Last year’s adventure was incredible, and they came up with even more outstanding surprises for the families this year.  As with every BBA, it was VIP all the way for the kids and their families.  Riding in limos, flights in chartered planes, many special events….the list goes on, and no stone is left unturned.

For any readers who aren’t familiar with BBA, you should check out their website HERE.  Each year they select some very special families to take on this trip, and I’ve been lucky to see twice now how much impact is made by all the planning, donations, and caring that goes into this event.

It was so lovely getting to know these wonderful families, and watch them enjoy a few days away from the trials of their everyday lives.  For a little while the stress, worry, and doctor visits are put on hold and replaced with excitement, laughs, and play time.

Here’s a good handful of photos from our adventure.  There are a ton more that I’ll be passing along to the families, but I wanted to post a decent sample of all the fun.  There’s also a slideshow at the end of this post if you want to see even more!

I have to shout-out to my pal and fellow photographer, Robin Nathan.  She came along on this year’s trip, and it was great having her talent and personality along with us.  By the way, that’s her hiding in the back of this next pic…I see you!

My favorite part of this year’s trip was the surprise dance party with all the characters.  The kids AND adults were all having a blast!

The parents wrote such beautiful letters to their children, and read them during the broadcast before we headed back to Atlanta.

The goodbyes are sad, but only temporary.  The staff plans multiple reunion events throughout each year for all the previous BBA families.  So cool!

Thanks to the BBA folks and all the fantastic families for all the truly magical moments!

To view a slideshow of more images from this year’s awesome BBA journey, please click HERE

The awesome folks at Georgia Shakespeare were kind enough to ask me to take some photos for their upcoming shows.  Here’s the way cool part.  They didn’t just want photos of scenes in costumes.  They wanted actual portraits of the actors and staff around the theater.  LOVE that!  Most of the people who work there and appear in these images are friends, so this was a truly sweet experience.  Oh, and if you’ve never been to a show at GA Shakes, you are missing something great.  Go check out their shows…you won’t be sorry.

Hey everybody, check out Rachel’s new headshots!  She is just a lovely, lovely gal.  I’m so glad I got a chance to have fun chatting with her while we took lots and lots of photos.  She was kind enough to let me try some lighting techniques that I hadn’t used for headshots before.  Yay!  I’m so happy with what we were able to get, and Rachel is a total joy to photograph.  Once again, I must shout out to the internet about Sloane Warren, who put some awesome makeup on Rachel’s gorgeous face.

So I had a moment of shock during our shoot.  Rachel and I were talking about her theater work, and she mentioned being in the show “1:23″ with Synchronicity.  My jaw dropped a bit because I photographed that show, and suddenly realized I hadn’t recognized her!  In my lame defense, she did look ENTIRELY different in the show.  Still, I felt really clueless.  Rachel, that just goes to show what a fabulous actress you are!

I have to point out that Rachel does something that amazes me.  Not many people (including myself) can pull off a half-smile with their teeth showing.  When attempting this maneuver, most of us look sleepy, high, or very cow-mouthy.  She has got this expression down, and makes it look effortless and natural.  Awesome.

I can hear agencies across Atlanta screaming at me about this next one.  I typically choose backgrounds that enhance the image, but don’t pull attention from the face.  That’s why I usually don’t put someone in front of cool graffiti.  However, we were both diggin’ this, and since my lighting set-up allowed my to shoot just about anywhere, we went ahead and played a bit.  Woo hoo!

Every headshot session should end this way.  You have to kiss a lot of zombies to find a prince….or something like that.

Thanks so much Rachel!

I am so thrilled to post another Cheeky Lamb boudoir photo shoot, and also to show off how incredible Lisa is.  She was a tad nervous about the whole endeavor, but approached her photo shoot with such a brave and fun attitude.  She is one of the most downright likable people I’ve met.  Also, she’s gorgeous.  If I looked like her, I don’t think I’d be reluctant to have my picture taken.  I’d be demanding it constantly.

One of my favorite moments when Lisa and I were planning her shoot was when she mentioned how in love she is with her husband.  They’ve been together a while, they’re parents, AND they still have the hots for each other.  That is just the coolest.

Here are some images of Lisa looking beyond stunning…

Her smile is so bright and fabulous!

I love these next ones because she is just naturally beautiful.

I think she totally looks like Pam Anderson in these next ones.  Sass-y!

I can’t end this post without two very important shout-outs.  The first one is to Sloane Warren who did Lisa’s hair and makeup, and added to the general atmosphere of fun girliness.  The second shout-out is to LISA, who not only rocked her photo shoot, but she also designed my new photo studio logo and helped design the Cheeky Lamb logo too!!  I know what you’re thinking…..looks AND talent.  You’re probably also thinking it’s not fair.  You’re right.

Here are some new headshots of a wonderful gal named Pamela.  She is such a vibrant human being, and was an absolute pro in front of the camera.  I get told all the time that I look like Tina Fey.  However, I think that Pamela wins this award hands-down!  Am I right?

Pamela, thanks so much for being such a fabulous photo subject!

When I met the adorable Rollins family last year, their first little gal, Ella, was just about to start walking.  She was such a happy and giggly baby.  Well, time sure flies.  She now has a new wonderful sister, Claire.  So much sweetness.  These are the kind of folks that make me love shooting family portraits…..easy-going, patient, and full of laughs.  It was so cool to meet Claire and see how Ella’s personality has grown.  Hooray!

Claire was very accommodating with all the moving her around and accessorizing!

Ella has the BEST smiles!

Pets are always welcomed in my photos!

The pics in the next series are typically my favorite kind…..great families just being themselves!

Thanks so much to the super-fabulous Rollins family!

I apologize for being so MIA lately.  I always forget how crazy this time of year is.  It seems like this should be a slow time to hibernate and get organized.  Instead it’s an action-packed extravaganza!!  I can’t wait to get some more posts up on this here blog.  I’ve got some photos of the wonderful Rollins family, headshots of the gorgeous Ms. Pamela, three more Cheeky Lamb shoots, and of course lots and lots of pics from our BBA trip.

In the meantime, here’s a video that was brought to my attention by my lovely friend Tiff.  During such a busy time, it gave me a very entertaining dose of perspective and reminded me of all the incredibly simple bits of magic that happen every day.  The fella who made this (Will Hoffman) has some really cool stuff on his website if you wanna check it out by clicking here.  Photography is so influenced by moments, and I just ate up every second of this film.  I hope you dig it too.