First Friday Window Installation Launch Party!!!

We are so excited to announce, that in a occasion of pure serendipity, we will be featuring empoweredME as a month long window installation at the Phoenix Village Arts Center,207 Bridge St, Phoenixville!

There is no better excuse to have a party than this, right?!! So we are going to lump in First Friday as part of our shindig! The event will run from 6-9pm on March 2nd at the studio of Brian Mengini, 209 Bridge St Phoenixville.

The reception will include music, light refreshments, you can view the window installation ANNNNNDDDD…. wait for it… you can have your own FREE empoweredME portrait taken. You do not need to be a dancer for this, you just need to want to take a stand against cancer and show it you are empowered!

As we were planning this event, which kinda fell in our lap yesterday, we thought… Hmmm, well we will be offering refreshments, why not sell some lemonade and raise some monies for Alexs Lemonade Stand? Makes sense, right? I mean people drink at receptions, lemonade is tasty. So that is what we will do! We will use this as an opportunity to do even more good!

What an amazing night this will be!!! Please make sure you go and bring ALL of your friends!!

My Trip to San Francisco

Not really sure how or where to start this… Here it goes…

Recently, I launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for a book I want to do on men in ballet. The funds would allow me to travel to certain locations to create content for this endeavor. One of the locations I intended to hit was San Francisco. For the last year or so, I was in contact with Tiit Helimets, principal with San Francisco Ballet. We had been talking about working together, so I knew that if I worked with no one else in SF, I HAD to work with him.

Well, finally, the project was funded and I could begin making my plans. I began to look at SFB’s calendar to determine what would be the ideal time to come out. I knew it had to be in between programs if I wanted access to the dancers, but I also knew my best chance was during the season. The break post season presents a multitude of potential scheduling hardships with people vacationing, guesting, etc. I was eager to book it and get it done and the spring/summer months are crazy for me anyway, so the earlier the better…

With that in mind, I determine that between programs 1 & 2 were best for me, so I reached to some of the dancers to see if they would be around, especially Tiit. He said he would be, so I booked my flight. What I did not anticipate then, was the uncertainty to come regarding their availability. Yes, they would be in town, but the question then was would they have time for me? Not my favorite question to raise especially after dropping $400 non refundable or exchangable on this trip.

As the trip neared, even down to the days leading up, the uncertainty still loomed; the “fog” had not lifted from the city by the bay (Like how I did that there??). At some point before I departed, I began to have a dialogue with Teri who pens Odette’s Ordeal, a blog all about San Francisco Ballet. She asked if I was coming to see a show, to which I indicated, “sadly no.” She had suggested I try to work with some of the dancers to which I replied, “yup, already on it.” At this point, I was not worried. I thought I had this trip and the dancers in the bag. Unbeknownst to me, I would come to rely on Teri tremendously, to make my trip a success.

I had a few people working feverishly, campaigning for my trip, trying to line up dancers; trying to establish contact. When dancers are in the midst of production or a harsh rehearsal period, social media (my main means of communication with them) is an afterthought, if a thought at all. A friend of mine asked if I was considering canceling the trip. There was no way I could. Financially, it would not work. All I could do is throw hope up in the air and pray this didnt turn into one helluva vaca! So here I am, the night before I left, and I still had NO contact with the main person I was going to see. I really had little shoots scheduled. When I say little, I really mean none. There were was some interest, plenty of messages out there, but with the dancers not knowing their schedules a few days out, great curious and wonder was abound. Ok, I am not sure if that made sense. I was just trying to really bolster up the verbiage with some dramatic flair.

Thursday is here. Damned. Travel day. No shoots scheduled. No turning back. BOOOOOO!!!! Here goes nothing… I departed for the airport, experiencing some anxiety (in my chest – really). Was a bit home sick. I had only been a week removed from my last trip and being a family man, travel does wear on me. When I arrived in SF, I established contact with Teri and my good friend, Austin and began to figure out what the hell I was going to do. I knew I was going to meet Teri later that night at a club where I was scheduled to shoot Matt Stewart, dancer with San Fran Ballet, whose band was playing.

Until around 5, I was comfortably nestled in Starbucks sucking up coffee, comfort and free wifi. 5:00 finally arrives and by this time, I was feeling sullied. Not sure if that is the proper word, but I was not a happy camper. Here I am on the other side of the country and my only shoot scheduled was a band. WTF? Ugh, this must change! So, I met Teri at the club and we chatted some. She then asked me, “What time are you shooting Tiit?” My response… “I DONT KNOW!” Aye Carumba! I still hadn’t establish contact with him. So she asks, “Do you want me to call him? I have his number.” Well, this was clearly a no brainer. During this call, we established that he had a large chunk of time the following day to work with me AND he invited us to come to the theater and sit in on a company rehearsal on the stage. Teri and I were making plans to grab a bite to eat when she made that call. This was obviously a game changer. Dinner? To hell with food, I am going to the opera house and seeing ballet! AMAZING!!!!!!!! So incredible to be in that opera house watching the company rehearse. Also incredible was to watch Maria Kochetkova rehearse Chroma! This offered a clear take away… I need to get over to Russia. SERIOUSLY!

Also, here was a change in fate for me. Victoria, a soloist with the company (also known from hereon as Vika), had time and came over and chatted with us. Teri had arranged a shoot between her and I the following day. YAY TERI (AGAIN)!!!! So we went back to the club and I shot Matt’s show which was great. BTW, his band is Waking Saints. You should check them out!

The next day, I met Teri and Vika at the studios and we were to drive over to the Palace of Fine Arts. While in the lobby waiting for Vika to come back down, Teri bumped into another dancer from the company she knew, Jordan Hammond. Insert serendipitous moment here… Teri introduced us and informed Jordan I was here and still trying to line up dancers and asked if she was available. She happily said she was! BOOOYAAAAAAAAAAAA! So we quickly established the meeting time and location and said our, “see ya tomorrows!” She was so nice!

Off to the palace we now went for my first dance shoot! Along the drive there, Teri gave me Jordan’s cell # – I wanted to text her and have her invite her friend that she was in the lobby with. This was very much a “pardon the creepy fact that I am texting you and you did not give me your number thing, but hey I gotta question anyway…” Sadly, Patty was leaving the area and would not be back til Sunday night which was too late for me to shoot since I had a Monday am flight. Next time, perhaps…

So, we get to the palace finally and… GAAAAAAAAAAAAA! GORGEOUS!!! We created some amazing images here and we were having fun. This also marked my first trip AWAY from Polk St. YAY!!! Solid start to the day. Vika was very happy with the images too! HAPPY DANCER=HAPPY PHOTOG! We made a quick dash over to the marina and got some shots of her with the Golden Gate in the background. She happened to be wearing a sea foam greenish leo and white tutu. YES WERKK!!!! What an amazing first shoot of my trip, well dance shoot that is. What a sweet and gorgeous person Vika was. When the shoot was finished, we headed back to the SFB studios. That was my home base for meeting dancers. Teri and I were starving as we hadn’t had a real meal in a day. So, we stopped at Peets coffee for some beverages and a nibble. Unfortunately, this put be back a few minutes for a shoot with Tiit Helimets, who met us there. I just had to get something into my system.

Teri, once again, played tour guide and whisked us away to our shoot which took place at Grace Cathedral in Nob Hill area of SF. Tiit has a very manly demeanor and I knew that this cathedral with its architecture would compliment it just perfectly. Yup. I was right! It did. Tiit was great and was very happy with the images. I was so happy to finally have had the chance to meet and work with him! This concluded my day of shooting! Tired and weary from having to shlep my broken wheeled rolling (not really) camera bag all through out the hills of SF, I made my way back home for some rest as well as dump my cards and get the proofs ready! The time zone thing was def playing in…

Saturday arrived and I took the ferry into the city for my first shoot which was with Jordan, who I had met the day before in the lobby. I had decided to have her meeting me at the ferry building for the shoot. Plenty of spots there for scenic images! This also allowed me to sit down for a proper meal at Sinbads. My kind waitress sat me at a table with a waterfront view of the bridge and well, the water! I was also right next to an outlet so I was able to charge my phone! YAY!!!

Jordan was amazing and was very much into the shoot! We clicked right away, shared laughs, we talked about Boston – just had fun! We talked about her and her training, her trip to Boston, Boston IBC. I had to share my London based “mission impossible” story with her. We were somehow on topic… She got a kick out of it. We shot mostly on a pier with the bridge in the background. We did go over to another pier for a slightly different look. On this location, my ship came in! No really, a ship came into the photo! Could not have planned it better!

DOH! I am already at 1700 words and only into my 3rd dance shoot. After the shoot, Jordan and I made our way to the studios. That’s where I was meeting my next dancer, Courtney. We had a nice chat along the way. Once we were off the train, she suggested I shoot at Lyon St steps. She said it was really beautiful and not bogged down with tourists. When I pitched this to Courtney, her eyes lit up and said it was perfect!

Courtney is a soloist with San Francisco Ballet and also the loving wife of Matt Stewart, also a dancer with the company and as I mentioned earlier, front man for Waking Saints. Courtney is a very sweet and beautiful young lady (duh!). She has a very classic look, so we spent a lot time in a romantic tutu skirt in this flowery area. The surroundings had a very Romeo and Juliet gardeny feel and she nailed it. We had fun and got some beautiful elegant images that had a certain fierceness to it. She definitely gave it! After the shoot, we again headed back to the studios and I made my way back home to decompress and prep images. Sadly, tomorrow would be my final day of shooting but likely my most full day!

After a trip to the farmers market, Austin and I drove to our shoot at St Vincents. Austin and I were Facebook friends and I would see her in the studios, etc, when I went to Boston and we would just smile and wave hi. I officially met her when I was in Boston last May for the IBC. We started chatting some on Facebook and were talking about shooting together. We finally were able to make it happen while I was up there in May. We had an amazing shoot then and went for coffee where I bored the hell out of her with my life story lol. JK. We had a great conversation and have been good friends since. So, I was excited to see her and do a new shoot with her. Only this time, it would be more of a fashion shoot and no dance. EEEKKKK! How do I do this? Oofa. Well, we gave it a go and we got some decent shots. I had fun hanging with working with her. Its always relaxed and enjoyable.

When our shoot was over, I made my way to the studios again for my first dance shoot of the day. First up was with Myles Thatcher. He had asked me to shoot him for his moms line of mens ballet tights, Saut de Basque. Myles was great. Turns out he is a local boy. Well local to Philly. Well kinda. He is from Easton. But, if you are on the other side of the country, and you meet someone from the same state, they are local. We are both happy with the images! Next up was Diego. I met and shot Diego at the IBC in Boston last May. This was a short shoot as I was running behind but we had some great images! After Diego, was my final shoot of the trip, Ellen Rose. What a wonderful person and drop dead gorgeous! We shot in the courtyard next to the opera house, against the opera house and well, that’s about it. We are both very happy with the images, but there were a few that were epic! Again, we went with the romantic tutu skirt and since she is from Carolina, it seemed to fit – she also had that classic elegant look.

Back home I went to do my normal routine, eat, dump cards, prep proofs and pass out. I really did have an amazing time in San Francisco! I want to thank Austin and her family for their hospitality, Teri for making all these connections, all of the dancers I worked with, all of the dancers I did not work with but met and made me feel welcomed in SF, the Starbucks on Polk and Market for hours and hours of free wifi and electricity on 2 cups of java and anyone else I may have forgotten!

***there were a few moments in there that I could not recount in this post. You will have to wait for my memoirs to be published!

Simple Man

Too often, society tries to dictate what it means to be a “real man.” They tell you what kind of job is manly, what kind of hobbies, who to love, etc. Those who do not fit their mold get outcast. They are scoffed at; called names. They are called sissy, fag and such. If you don’t fit in their mold, they dont know how to handle it. To them, different equates to bad.

Before us is a shameful epidemic as a result of bullying… Suicide. Young men and boys taking their own lives because someone else viewed them as different and made them pay for being who they are. Now, a mother is without that child because some ignorant fool did not know to accept someone’s individuality.

These external pressures play a role in one’s psyche. There are many and great internal struggles men face with regards to how they “fit” in society, ESP if it’s not the “norm.” What these individuals fail to realize and are blinded of because of stereotypes is just how beautiful they are. It’s their individuality that makes them special; makes them unique – makes them, THEM! Brave is he who stands in the face of intolerance and says, I’m me. I’m amazing. I love me and I’m not changing just because you think I should.

Sadly, not enough of these beautiful spirits feel good enough about themselves to realize it. Often, they feel like a burden or feel so helpless, without a voice or anywhere to turn so they resort to self inflicted pain in the form of self mutilation or even the extreme – suicide.

The song, Simple Man, speaks to whats important. It speaks to the heart of a man. Here are some of the lyrics:

Forget your lust for the rich man’s gold
All that you need is in your soul
And you can do this, oh baby, if you try
All that I want for you my son is to be satisfied

And be a simple kind of man
Be something you love and understand
Baby be a simple kind of man
Oh, won’t you do this for me son if you can? Oh yes, I will

Boy, don’t you worry you’ll find yourself
Follow your heart and nothing else
And you can do this, oh baby, if you try
All that I want for you my son is to be satisfied

The song strikes a strong cord with me due to my son being special needs and the challenges he faces daily and what he may face in the future. My inspiration for a series can come from a number of things – a topic, a title may come to me and sometimes, music. I have always loved this song and knew I wanted to do something with it or inspired by it for my son. I have also wanted to do a series against intolerance. That is what this series, Simple Man, is.

This series will tell the struggles of a male to just exist and follow their chosen path and the ensuing obstacles they will face by just being who they are. Simple Man will push past the issues of intolerance and hatred, bullying and ignorance and delves into ones own inner battles and exploration in the quest for identity.

Here is probably my favorite version of the song. I love it acoustic and in this setting. I feel it brings an honesty to it and more emotion.

Send the Elevator Back Down…

During a speech at Arts Advocacy Day last year, actor Kevin Spacey quoted his mentor, actor Jack Lemmon by saying, “If you’re lucky enough to have done well, then it’s your responsibility to send the elevator back down.”

This is a mindset that I maintain in all facets of my life. I am truly blessed and fortunate to have the rewarding and bustling career that I do, especially in such a short period of time. I know that I alone did not accomplish this. There are MANY people who have come in to my life that have helped push me and my art, my work, who have helped me create bridges, connect the dots and make MANY inroads to get to where I am today.

I am not even five years into my career and I have already traveled internationally, been published in 4 different countries (just in the last year), and worked with dancers from some of the largest most reputable, storied ballet companies in the world. Just this August I had the opportunity to photograph Mariinsky Ballet in the Royal Opera House in London. This, in just under 5 years. To say my career is charmed in an understatement. But, I know I had help and I can likely tell you every person who has come into my life and what their experience did for my career. It is because of this charm; this goodwill that was bestowed upon me, that makes me want to give back, pay it forward, to send the elevator back down.

Spacey goes on to say, “Countries may go to war, but its the arts that unite us. It educates us, it teaches us to be better.”

During the Second World War, Winston Churchill’s finance minister said Britain should cut arts funding to support the war effort. Churchill’s response: “Then what are we fighting for?”

The arts are so vital to our community, to our culture. The arts help build character, they help build, promote and foster confidence and self esteem. They allow for self expression. They unite people. They transcend race and religion. It is PARAMOUNT that all peoples, regardless of abilities, have access to the arts. This is why I create the programs I do.

Folks, we need your help if you can offer it. we are looking for 10 used digital cameras. They can be point and shoot, they can be ay brand. I am working on a program, the details of which will be revealed later. If you have one that you can let go of, please do let us know!

I do realize this is a lofty request and I ask it in the most humblest manner. Your consideration is immensely appreciated!

Advocating Fathers Casting Call

Ok gang… As those of you who know me and/or follow my work, you know how important my role as a father is to me. It is one I cherish and embrace fully. I feel so lucky to have the family I do and do my best to make sure I do not take them for granted.

Some of you may or may not know that I am the primary caretaker of my two children. My wife works full time so I can have the career I do. So, I must juggle my duties as father and photographer. I will not sit here and lie to you. It can be frustrating managing my career and kids, especially with all of the meetings, appointments and schedules for my son and his needs. Quite often, I feel like a failure in regards to the juggling act, but I do my best and hope my kids don’t hate me when they grow up.

Anyway, getting back on track here… I am working on a virtual series paying homage to those fathers who are involved in their special needs child’s life. It takes a strong man, a real man, to accept his child has special needs. It is not always easy to embrace. As a male, it is not always easy to let go of our ideals of what kind of relationship we want to have with our sons or the dreams we have for them and our relationship with them. It is not always easy to accept that we may have to change our dreams; that we may have to create new ones that may not be on the level that we had hoped. The inevitable is that we must. We must be flexible so as to be an active participant in our children’s lives. THIS is what separates the real men from the pack.

I want to create a virtual homage to those REAL men who accept their special needs child’s reality and embrace it; who do all they can to help their child live the fullest life possible and know love. So, I am asking all of you out there to share this with those who you think would be interested and “fit the bill.”

To be considered, you must:

1. be active in your special needs child’s life – really champion them and their progress.
2. be available to come to my studio in Phoenixville for a professional portrait session with your special need child
3. be willing to have your images posted online and take a little bit of credit for what you do. I know this is also not easy for a lot guys. We dont want credit for doing just what we are supposed to be doing. But hopefully this will inspire more to do it!
4. submit a photo of the dad and his special kiddo and a story about how dad is the kiddo’s biggest fan! You will NOT be judged on grammar or photo skills, nor does dad have to had saved the world single handedly.

** photos and stories should be submitted to brian@bmengini.com – Please put advocating father in the subject!

** submissions must be received by February 6th.

** sessions will be scheduled throughout February-April.

Again, the intent of this series is to celebrate those fathers who champion their children. Those who do, need to get more “press.” They need to get more visible recognition!

Fathers Advocating

Malachi 4:6
“6 And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”

Most times, when you think of advocates in the home, you think of mom. This is no slight to dad. Often times it is mom who is the chief care giver and subsequently is at the forefront of the campaigns. This is NOT to say that dad is not supportive. Obviously they are very supportive but typically dad has a full time job.

Special is he, though, who regardless of his occupation, is right there at the forefront advocating and fighting for his child and those like him. Since my son’s diagnosis I’ve made sure to be extremely hands on and at the forefront of his journey. Now, with being self employed, I have even greater flexibility to not only advocate and champion for him but for others as well. I’m also fortunate that through my career and the advocacy work I’ve done, I’ve raised my public profile and therefore able to accomplish more for the greater good. I’ve always felt that if you have a voice or a gift, you have a responsibility to use it to help others.

As fathers, we have a special role in the lives of our children. It is paramount that as men, we step up and take on that role. We must embrace it! If your child may be going through something whether they are special needs, ill or maybe being bullied due to ignorance or intolerance,your role and moreso your presence is more important than ever!

As fathers, we need to not only foster a loving supportive and nurturing environment for our children but they need to know, they need to SEE, that we are right there fighting with and for them every step of the way. They need to experience and know a father’s love and support.

Now, having said all that, I know there are tons of men out there advocating for their children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews, etc. I am friends with a bunch of men who are at the forefront of their kids progress! However, I don’t think enough of it is visible. I feel more people need to know just how many dads are proactive and involved. You don’t need to have started a foundation or organization to be an advocate. You just need to be actively involved in your child’s cause as it were.

I am going to be working on a project to help shed light on those who are fighting the good fight and perhaps a “call to arms” for others! So, let me hear about that advocating dad in your life! Please note, this is NOT a competition to see who can do the most good. Nor is it intended to make any fathers feel less then adequate. You don’t have to have created a pill to “cure” Autism, you can simply be the one who takes your child to therapy and appointments. You just have to be involved. Share your stories please. I will do nothing with the info but read it. Also, let me know where you are from! Lastly, please share!!! Do not keep this to yourself. Pass this along.

2011 Year in Review

Well, this was quite a daunting task… recapping all that happened in the last year. Hope I don’t leave anything out. To say the least, this was a banner year for me. I took on many new clients, both locally and out of state, many of whom have become friends. I launched a few new projects which is always exciting! We launched 2 successful Kickstarter campaigns, one of which took me to London, where I created wonderful imagery and made wonderful new friendships! I also became internationally published this year – 3 different countries outside of the US, actually! I did extensive traveling within the states, which is always exciting and fun. I am going to do a month by month recap. I had several guest postings on the Ballet Bag. I will do my best to be inclusive but I am going off the top of my head and some light tracking on FB, since this is a last minute idea.

January
January brought me some new clients and new work. I shot Jeanette who is now a trainee with San Francisco Ballet, for Tutu.Com. I also had a shoot with Pamela H who is a tap friend of mine. That same day, I shot the Harnett sisters, Genna and Alex. Genna is finishing up school and Alex is now an apprentice with Ballet Arizona. They were in for audition shots. January also took me down to Tampa to shoot Gaspar, the pirate ballet. This month also marked the birth and launch of Hope Dances, my dance outreach program for special needs kids. Last but not least, I worked with a new company. Well it was new to me, Delaware Contemporary Dance Theatre.

February
This month brought me back to South Jersey to work for Dance Factory. I have shot for them for the last few years. Always a fun day and I love Stacey, the director. She is the best! Hope Dances was involved in the first ever Tap Teaser on Tour, which was really exciting. I photographed, Tapas, for Ballet Fleming, of which I am now a steering committee member and their company photographer. In a very ironic twist of fate, I became the back up or plan b to Lois Greenfield who was supposed to do shots for Dance4Life dance school. Things fell through and Ms Chauntee called me and asked if I was available. Fortunately I was. What a fun night that was! That group is just plain ole CRAY CRAY!

March
This was a neat month. I had a few in studio for fun, personal things. I also shot Belfast Connection for their promo content. This was a blast. They are always a hoot and brought in a wee taste of whiskey to help jump start the shoot. I also had in, Isabelle Seiler, who is currently training at JKO school in NYC. I shot a bunch of live Irish bands including Blackthorn and Drop Kick Murphys. DKM was really fun as I went backstage and interviewed Tim Brennan who plays accordian and banjo for the band! I also went up to Boston to shoot Boston Ballet’s rehearsal for ELO Experience. Also, I worked on some personal projects with some of the dancers. I always love going up there!!

April
April brought me to Baltimore to photograph the rehearsals for Rasta Thomas’ Tap Stars as well as headshots for the cast. I also begun shooting for the Inspirational Irish Women nominees. This is a yearly event where a committee votes on and nominates xx number of women who they feel are exceptionally inspirational in the Irish community. Last year they had a painter create the portraits which were done in an abstract method. This year, I was fortunate enough to have been commissioned to create them! On Easter, I had the fun opportunity to travel to NYC to photograph Avi Scher and Dancers, which included Carla Korbes and Seth Orza of Pacfic Northwest Ballet. Barre Boys had their event, Happy Hour which featured an exhibit as well as an hour long performance of men in dance!

May
May is always busy for me. I work with 3 different local dance studios for photo day in May. In addition to that, I did a promo shoot for Too Darn Hot – an all female tap revue. Inspirational Irish Women had their event including the exhibit of my portraits. I photographed a performance on top of the Intrepid battleship. One of the biggest things for me this month was to shoot the first edition of the Boston IBC. What a wonderful opportunity this was! My images from this got some serious action in the press. One of them was in the May or June issue of Auditorium magazine from South Korea.

June
Ah June… mark of summer! This was a pretty active month for me. I had the opportunity to work with a young dancer from the Rock School, Alston MacGill. We had our first ever Dance for Dreams Gala for Hope Dances. Barre Boys celebrated its 1st birthday. I did a shoot with Allie Parsons who was wearing Margot Fonteyn’s original tutu from the birthday offering! I also had shoots with Holly Curran from Ballet Fleming, Kat Richter and Abi Kurdin. I traveled to DC to shoot with Sona from The Washington Ballet, her husband and father as well as with Septime Webre, Artist Director for TWB. I also flew to Tampa for the better part of a week to shoot a ballroom competition. Well, I was the personal photographer for one of the competitors. While there, I met with and shot a dancer from Orlando Ballet as well as Peter Stark.

July
Well, I must be honest. By now, I am deathly tired of planes and airports. I mean seriously. lol. July doesn’t seem to have been as busy. At least according to my calendars as I am going back. In July, I spent probably about 4-5 days in Savannah, George to shoot for DTI, dance competition. My first day down there, I drove to Hilton Head Island where I met and had the chance to work with Angie and Mollie Sansone. Angie dances with Kansas City Ballet and Mollie for Nashville. We did a shoot on a plantation down there. That was really really fun!! The day after I returned home, I had the chance to shoot a dear friend’s wedding. Lisa and I have been friends for a few years – I found her on craigslist. I love her to death. So, it was an emotional day for me. Also this month, I was published in UK’s Dancing Times and Philippines’ Town and Country magazine! I also had the pleasure of working with a set of ballerina twins who happened to have the same disorder my son was diagnosed with. The family and I are dear friends.

August
Now we are talking!! August, aside from being my birthday month, was epic!!! In August, I flew to London for a week. Wow oh wow was this an amazing trip!! I flew out of Philly Intl and into Heathrow. It was an overnight flight going in. I will include my blog which has a daily log for the trip. But, to summarize it, I spent a week in London that was fully funded by my generous supporters. While there, I met with the girls from the Ballet Bag, shot dancers from Royal Ballet, English National Ballet and Hamburg Ballet, saw Mariinsky do Don Q, SHOT Mariinsky’s dress of Robbins/Balanchine Triple Bill, shot Mariinsky principal dancer Igor Kolb on the rooftop of the ROH. Doesn’t get more epic than that!

That was the very beginning of the month. At the very end of it, I traveled to Salt Lake City to lend my services for a fundraiser to benefit a young lady with stage 4 terminal cancer. This trip left me a changed man as well as making some new life long friends! This trip also inspired my new series, empoweredME. What a great way to spend my birthday.

I think one of the headshots I did for the new director of the dance department at Boston Conservatory was in Dance Teacher this month.

September
September was unfortunately quiet for me. We had a Hope Dances-9/11 event which was wonderful. I also had an image from RHPM in the NYTimes Sunday calendar section as well as a 6 page spread in Dance Studio Life with my BIBC images AND a 2 page spread as an ad for DTI. That same RHPM image appeared in Connecticut Magazine either this month or October. I had the pleasure this month of photographing Allenda Witzel, a young ballerina who was studying at Kirov in DC. We had mutual friends at CPYB. Since then, I have remained in touch and friends with her mother.

October
I finally got my mojo back and the phone was ringing like crazy. One of my images was featured on the cover of SI Focus magazine, which is a magazine for those dealing with Sensory Processing Disorder. I had wrote an article for the magazine for this month. One of my images from the ASH Workshop was in Dance Teacher Magazine. I celebrated my second year at the studio (or was it 3?). I picked up a new client, United Dance Merchants of America and shot their Jersey show! We also launched the Portraits of a Disorder exhibit, featuring images of children diagnosed with SPD. At the beginning of the month we had a Barre Boys exhibit at the Performance Garage. I did work for a new client, Jovo Dance, which was great. I love them! Also did some family portraits for the Kurdins. In October, we did a SLEW of shoots for empoweredME! I also was in NY shooting for that and for Tutu.Com including a few shots at the Occupy Wall Street scene. In October I also did the new promo shots for Ballet Fleming. This is always fun as is the theme – FUN. No, that is the theme they go for… fun!

November
This was a great month!!! I started the month by shooting BalletX rehearsal for a piece for the Ballet Bag. I had a small exhibit at the Dance for Dimes event at Widener. I interviewed Pennsylvania Ballet’s Artistic Director, Roy Kaiser for Barre Boys and photographed him at their new property on the Avenue of the Arts. I did a promo shoot for Renaissance Academy’s Nutcracker. Some more empoweredME shoots. I did Chesco’s dance team shots again as well as a new client from the Rock School, Isabel Montague. Ursinus College and PDP brought me back to shoot shows then flew up to Boston to shoot for Boston Conservatory. Some of the dancers needed shots, so the director brought me up. While there, I made some new friends. I had a mini shoot with Amanda who is in Boston Ballet’s school. She wanted images for a Christmas card. I also did a shoot for Alex Heier who is also a student at Boston Ballet and her mom is on their board. What a wonderful family!!! My dear friends, the Ramsay family played host to me as well as chauffeur! This was one of the few times where I was actually sad to be leaving. What an amazing weekend!!!

In my studio, I had a male ballet dancer who is studying at Butler. This was a nice treat. Most of my commissioned work for audition shots are from ballerinas. He was a lot of fun and very open to things!

I also had two of the dancers from the NY Knicks in for headshots. I had shot one of the girls’ sisters a year ago for dance shots. This was a fun session. They were a blast to work with!

Black Friday, I made an impromptu trip to NYC to shoot THE Misty Copeland for empoweredME. What an AMAZING experience that was!!! She was a delight to work with (duh) and seemed to be really happy with the images. They were simple yet powerful! Although I had told my wife that I was free that day to do family things, I simply could not pass on this opportunity. We still got to go to the movies when I got back.

3 days later, I found myself back up in the big apple for a shoot with Jon & Abi Stafford of NYCB for a piece I was doing on brothers and sisters who dance in the same company, for the Ballet Bag. Before my shoot with them, I had lined up a mini shoot and interview with Oliver Swan-Jackson who dances for Suzanne Farrell Ballet, for Barre Boys. He was a lot of fun and a nice guy!

December
This December was much easier then last. I only shot 3 Nutcrackers and they were all within 30 mins of my house which is nice. I launched my very fist coffee table book which was for empoweredME. Artistically, I knocked off one of the things on my bucket list – maternity shoot en pointe! I actually did two! One was with Fang from Koresh Dance and her hubby Tommy Gant who is also a ballet dancer. The second was with Pennsylvania Ballet Soloist, Gabriella Yudenich. Some of my images from CPYB’s Nutcracker last year saw some life this month. One of my snow scenes were part of a 2 page spread in the local paper in Carlisle plus the cover of 717 mag.

DCDT company stopped by the studio for an off the wall shoot. They are always a hoot, esp Ms Chauntee! Project Moshen was in the studio for some new promo shots. That was a lot of fun! I have been friends with Kelli Moshen on FB for a few years now, so it was also nice to meet her!

The last few shoots I had, yielded some of the best images I have created all year. One of my favorites was with Sara Rodriguez from University of Utah. We grabbed 3 different looks in one shoot. So so so awesome! I love her!!! I also had a visit from Lisa Fitzgerald from Exit 12. She was a blast! I ended my work year with a shoot with Simon Hoke, a young budding cavalier who is studying at CPYB.

So, this is 2011 in a nutshell. There are a lot of shoots that took place that did not get mentioned and I enjoyed every one of them! This was a banner year to say the very least! The good thing about doing this is it gives me clear picture of what I did so I can set new goals for 2012! THAT is exciting!

I am taking holiday from Dec 23-Jan 3 to spend time with my family and decompress. When I come back, we will have a new website within days and exciting new content to release!!!

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to you all! Thank you so much for your support, I love you!!!