Stacey Bode Photography

Yay, it’s my second CL Dudes photo shoot, with Kevin!  I was really looking forward to this, since I already knew how super he was to photograph when working with him for the “Men of Dad’s Garage” calendar.  Kev is also a friend, so I already knew that he was a wicked-awesome fella.  Now, after these photos, I also know that he’s got mad skills in front of the camera.  He gave me brooding, silly, and everything in-between.  Nicely done, sir.  I’m still not sure how we got all these pics in one evening…….and I’m not sure if he’ll ever get rid of all the feathers in his place.  Eek!

Kev, thanks for being so wonderful to collaborate with, and for totally turning on your hunky, hunky man charms!

Since he has such a great sense of humor, I wanted to get a shot where we poked fun at the whole boudoir thing.  Yup.

Props to anyone who can make a furry hat and plaid look this good.

Kev, what can I say?  You are dynamite!

Wilbur, Piglet, Porky……avert your eyes.  It’s Baconfest 2011!  Every year, the fabulous Dad’s Garage Theater hosts this fund-raiser fraught with meat, beer, and good times.  If you didn’t make it out this year, you sadly missed The Heavy Petting Zoo, Hobo Wine Tasting, The Creepy Massage Table, and many more wacky activities.  My contribution this time around was the PORKtraits Photo Booth.  Me and my incredible assistant, Gina, made so many silly bacon props.  I have a new love-hate relationship with felt and glue guns.  Hopefully, in the future, I’ll work with a couple who REALLY wants a bacon prop photo booth at their wedding.  Cause I’m aaaallllllll set.

Thanks to everybody who made the booth such a blast, and to everybody who volunteered and who came out to support this swell theater establishment.

To view a slideshow of all the pork-tastic photo booth shenanigans, please click HERE.

We’ll also probably have these pics posted on the Dad’s Garage Facebook page soon, or we’ll put a link there to where you can find the pics (if you’re in one and want to find yo-seff).

Oh, one more thing.  The song I use in the slideshow is “Friends of P” by one of my favorite bands, The Rentals.  For our purposes, the “P” will stand for PORK.  Die-hard fans of the band will know who the real “P” is.  10 points if you do…

When I say “Oh boy!”, I kind of mean it literally.  I’m super excited about launching my CL Dudes, “dudeoir” photography.  Last year, after starting up my Cheeky Lamb boudoir photography for gals and couples, I got a surprising amount of interest from fellas who wanted those types of shoots.  Cool.  I don’t think guys are typically associated with boudoir photography, but the way I like to gear photos for both men and women leans way more toward artistic portraits than the standard sexy-bedroom-type fare.  Here’s the broken-record part of my post.  I think if an image reveals something emotionally-based within a person, that is what’s sensual and provocative.  And now I’m off my soap box.  Wheee!

Rueben was nice enough to be the first-timer with these shoots.  Like I do with the gals and couples, we met to talk about some really specific ideas and moods we wanted to capture.  The shoot was a total blast, and he’s waaaaay easy to photograph.  Seriously, knock it off with all the handsome!  I wasn’t sure if I’d know what the heck to do when it came to shooting dudes instead of ladies, so it helped to be working with someone patient, fun, photogenic…..and who wanted to take a break during shooting to chat, drink whiskey, and eat kettle chips.  Nice.

Now, I don’t like to play favorites with photos, but I have to explain why I particularly enjoy this first one.  It was at the beginning of the shoot, and I had just explained that I’m extremely clumsy, and will probably trip and/or break things.  Before I finished saying it, I fell backwards into an ironing board.  Somehow, I managed to snap this pic of Rueben laughing at me.  So, I love this one because I know it’s him snickering at what a dork I am.

Yo, Roo…..you sir are very VERY.  Thanks for being such a freakin’ rock star.  I hope y’all enjoy the pics!

I admittedly have a lot of “dude” qualities, but I can also be such a girlie-girl!  I love scanning magazines and websites for pretty, pretty things.  So, I thought I’d do a post of sassy little treasures that would be great for boudoir shoots (or for anyone who just wants some fabulous under-things).  When I meet with ladies to plan their Cheeky Lamb boudoir photos, we definitely go over wardrobe and styling ideas.  I thought I’d take it a step further, and post some examples here along with a few links.  Woo hoo!

This first set is from Antrhopologie…..sigh.  That place makes me drool.  They are spot-on when it comes to combining a vintage look with a modern flair.  Swoon!

More from Anthropologie…

These next pics show a more “classic” lingerie style, and these are some high-end brands from Neiman Marcus.  They are more pricey, but that often means you also get softer lace, great construction, etc.

This group I found at Nordstrom.  Still classic, but with the volume turned up a bit!

For ladies with fabulous curvaciousness, of course Lane Bryant has some gorgeous styles.

These next soft, subtle styles are from Saks Fifth Avenue.

I just discovered a place called Figleaves, that has super-pretty options at really affordable prices.  Win-win!

Here’s more from Figleaves.  They particularly have an incredible selection of bottoms!  I kinda want all of these…

Accessories are also fun to play with during shoots.  I just don’t think you can beat Forever 21 on this one.  They have a ton of stuff, and I think everything pictured below is under 10 bucks.  10 bucks!!

I love a good hair toy!  Acres of these can also be found at Forever 21 at crazy-low prices.

Oh yeah, they also have clothing at Forever 21!  I picked out these next styles because some of them fall more into the non-traditional realm.

This final group is from Urban Outfitters, who has lots of quirky, edgy outfit choices.  Love it!

Hopefully, I’ve posted a little something for everybody….and every body (tee hee!).  Now, I’m going to go yell at my underwear drawer for not being cool enough.

When you think “actor” and “Atlanta”, chances are one of the first names that will pop into your head is Daniel May.  I had the pleasure of working with him recently on some new headshots.  We actually did two different shoots since he had a beard and needed some scruffy, brooding pics in addition to his happy, clean-shaven ones.  Taking the first, moody set further proved his acting chops.  This is because he was very convincing as this dark character, yet those of us who know him can tell you that he’s one of the nicest, friendliest guys around.

Gotta give my usual shout-out to Sloane Warren for doing such a great job with makeup.  It’s particularly important for guys to not look made-up, and Sloane totally gets that.

And now, here’s the version of Daniel I think most of us know….

Like I say, the only thing better than a fun shoot is two fun shoots.  Thanks, Daniel for doing such a great job.

I have a new shoot style/genre I’ll be experimenting with this weekend.  Photo playtime = best.  Here’s a hint…..

“Scoundrel?  Scoundrel?  I like the sound of that.” – Han Solo

Being a photographer not only allows me to meet the most awesomest people ever, but sometimes I’m lucky enough to continue to be invited to bring my camera over when their most important events happen.  I met Brittney and Matt during the unforgettable wedding of Christi and Andisheh.  Then, I got to see them again to take photos of Brittney’s adorable sister and niece.  The purpose of this photo playtime was because they had a wonderful baby girl.  Yay!!  It was really cool to see them again, and meet magical little Eleanor.  This post could have had the title, “The Many Faces of Eleanor”.  She is seriously one of the most animated babies I’ve met.  However, she didn’t have nearly enough meltdowns.  She was sooooo tolerant, and surely has a lucrative modeling career ahead of her.

It’s important to include the furry family members too.  Grady totally works the camera.

Brittney and Matt are the best kind of parents.  They approach it with love AND humor.

Who likes her St. Patrick’s Day outfit?  I love this.

Eventually, Eleanor tells us, “enough photos, already!”.  Naps win out over pics every time.

Thanks so much to the way-cool Gove family!!

Weddings Unveiled has put together a fabulous post on their blog of Tom and Julia’s incredible North Carolina wedding.  Woo hoo!  Man, that was a super-wonderful day, and Tom and Julia could not be more lovely.

To see the full post on Weddings Unveiled, click HERE.  Also, thanks to event planner Elizabeth Hempfling for helping to coordinate the post, and for doing a great job at the wedding.

This is a super-girlie post for either ladies planning their wedding, or anyone who likes to look at pretty, pretty things.  So, I’ve never been a fan of David’s Bridal.  I won’t get into the “why” because the only smack-talking I like to post here is typically aimed at myself.  I may just have to eat any of the negative words I’ve used about them for one, single, solitary reason……Vera Wang.  They now offer a line of wedding gowns by her, and they are ridiculously gorgeous.  Prices range from $600 to $1400, which for a designer wedding dress is pretty daggum affordable.

Here are a few of my favorites

Yummy, right?  To see the full line, click HERE and prepare to drool.

This super-delightful gal is Mauree (isn’t that a cool name?).  At the beginning of her shoot she mentioned that she might need a lot of direction.  Usually, the people who say that end up being the easiest to photograph.  This was exactly the case with Mauree.  She totally knew how to work that camera!  She has a fabulous variety of engaging, lovely expressions.  We had a great time taking her headshots, and she is one enjoyable lady.

I have to give a shout-out to my girl Sloane Warren for working her makeup magic once again.  Yay, Sloane!

Thanks so much, Mauree.  You really made the most of your shoot.  Woo hoo!