Holly ❤️

In the Fall of 2018 I met Jon, a wonderful man and photographer. We were paired, at a workshop we were at, for a rather intense exercise...and a friendship was sealed. Shortly thereafter I had the pleasure of meeting his equally awesome wife, and instantly fell in love with her resilient, warm, and grateful spirit. (worth noting here is that while Jon & Holly were here for our first dinner together we received ‘the call’ from the vet saying that our precious, and very ill pup, Dixie, could not be treated...Holly was inimitable in her generous and caring support that night, and I remain deeply appreciative.)

For Christmas that year Jon gifted Holly a gift certificate for a portrait session with me; he’s a skilled photographer but thought she might enjoy the different dynamic of being photographed by someone she isn’t married to. 😉

A few months ago Holly received a diagnosis of Breast Cancer. It was a blow to her, to Jon, and to all of us who care for them. Shortly after receiving the news, Holly reached out to me to ask if we could secretly schedule her session...she wanted to not only capture “Holly, in that moment”, before any surgery or treatment, but she was mostly and especially keen to be able to gift images to Jon, her mom, and her kids for Christmas. With conspiratorial emails and texts, and help from her daughter Kenzie and niece Mary-Kate, we managed to pull it off with Jon none the wiser – a feat considering I had coffee with him a few days prior and had to be super mindful to not blurt out anything that might give us away!

We managed to shoot, she chose her images on the sly while on vacation with Jon in Hawaii, I edited them and got them printed, Mary-Kate picked them up and delivered them to Kenzie, and – BOOM – we got’er done before I left on my vacation & she started treatment. Women are truly incredible...and Holly epitomizes this!

I love this shot...I love how carefree Holly looks, dancing and laughing 😊. I love the joy I feel when I look at her here. May we all, even amidst the toughest of times, be able to tap into our carefree spirits the way Holly does. 🙏🏼

When I say ‘every woman deserves a portrait she loves.’ I mean it wholeheartedly. I also recognize that for many women the idea of being photographed is intimidating at least and uncomfortable at best...BUT having images of your beautiful self is so empowering – that chance to see ‘you’ as your loved ones do – and it is also an enormous gift to you and to all who love you. Providing this service to all women, and with very special reverence toward women facing or who have faced serious illness, is my heart’s work and my great honour. While I so wish I could go back in time to have professional portraits of my mom, portraits that she loved; it brings me comfort knowing that I can play a role in other women having images of themselves that show their badass, generous, kind, strong, resilient, graceful, and vulnerable natures…that show their authenticity.

Thank you, Holly, for your trust, for your inspiring nature, and for allowing me to share your beauty & grace with the world...all of it takes courage. I know I can speak for the collective when I say: we are sending you love & light as you embark on this new journey...you’ve got this! Thank you, Jon, for trusting me to create portraits of this woman you love…we couldn’t have known how special this gift would come to be, and I’m so grateful I was in a position to provide something special to Holly, to you, and to your family.

xo Lori

#portrait #warrior # cancer #breastcancer #resilience #courage #gratitude #woman #strength # beauty #grace #bnw #instagood #compassion #purpose #heartswork #fuckcancer #dancing #flowposing #canon #alienskin #yyc #studio #tombaker #wellspring #supportingwomen #lorimaloneyphotography #everywomandeservesaportraitsheloves

And she said: "...something BRIGHT :)"

Hurriedly getting errands done before the kids were off on Christmas break; we stopped in to a local favourite for a drink and to evaluate our to-do list…which is where I met Terra...

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Occasionally on workshops I’ve worked up the nerve to ask strangers to be in my photos, and I’ve certainly had clients who were referred and whom I didn’t know until they arrived at the studio, but what I’d never done is given my business card to a complete stranger and asked them to model for me. However, here was this stunning redhead whose entire being screamed * vibrancy and fun and openness and kindness * and I knew I’d regret not asking! So, I handed her my card, told her I was in the midst of relaunching/rebranding my portrait business, and wondered if she’d be keen to model for my portfolio build….and she said, ‘yes’!!

Prior to our shoot I asked her if there was any specific style or mood she’d most like - after all, our interactions with others should never be one-sided - and her reply was, “I'm thinking I would like something playful and upbeat! Laughter, smiling, something BRIGHT :)”

Given her hopes, I knew I wanted something fun as a backdrop. I stopped in at the fabric store and found this funky, metallic material that - depending on the light - sparkled with rainbow-goodness. When Terra arrived I gave her the option of a few backdrops but was thrilled when she enthusiastically chose the material!

Together we spent the morning chasing rainbows (literally —> CHASING…this material proved faaaarrrrr more challenging to light & photograph than I’d expected!)…there was much laughter while we chatted, and I love the images we created together and hope that she will too!

Terra, who is super authentic, couldn’t ever just ‘smile’…she’s wholehearted and real, as is her laugh which she broke out often and which filled the room. I can’t tell you the joy I felt in spending time with her.

Interestingly, for me, is that most of my favourites are from candid moments captured….moments that, while shooting at a wide open aperture (due to the rainbow chasing ;) ), I didn’t nail the focus but instead - wonderfully - captured the spirit in the room.

If you’re ever presented with a smile that captures your attention…like Terra’s did mine…don’t let the moment go without telling them. More smiles, more sharing, more kindness, and more connection…the world could use it!

Terra is an intuitive guide, helping people align/re-align with their core selves through a variety of modalities (Akashic Records, aromatherapy, reiki, and more - I’ll post her website below) and, given that we were also going to shoot for my #onething project for which she chose #love, I asked her to bring her tarot cards thinking that we could maybe incorporate them into that shot. I ended up using another image for the project, one that I felt conveyed #love in a less literal and more profound way (you can see it here: https://www.facebook.com/LoriMaloneyPhoto/photos/a.104128082974864/2061278767259776/?type=3&theater ), but I loved these too much to not share! It’s so important to me that, whilst building my portfolio, I was able to honour Terra and her life’s work…’cause, I mean, honouring the woman in front of me is my life’s work!

Terra’s reply when I asked what about #love resonated with her:

”Love is the highest vibrational feeling one can experience and emote. Love is kindness; it is strength; it is truth. Love is the answer to everything and the ultimate healing remedy. Where there is love there is no fear and no hate. Living in love means you are living from the heart and when you are connected to your heart, you are connected to your spiritual being and core truth.” Beautiful.

It wasn’t in this moment, rather it was earlier, that Terra had me pick a card and we pondered it together. Soooo interesting… I can’t wait to have a reading with her!

Terra is an effervescent soul who is quick to laugh and to have fun…but she is also deeply soulful. These last two images I think help portray her more serious side: the intuitive, thoughtful, and intentional aspects of who she is. Noteworthy is that her mission is to help you (us!) “live your passion, purpose and soul’s potential.”

As Terra recently commented, “the Universe is always giving us little nudges…”, and I feel so grateful that I listened to the nudge that day in December and asked her to sit for me. Life is full of opportunities and choices and blessings…and what a thrill when we indulge ourselves in all of them! Thank you, Terra, for your open heart and warm soul…after a tough month or two for me, you filled my cup! So excited for future adventures with you, both in your studio and mine!

xo Lori

If you’re interested in Terra’s work, her website is: https://www.heart2heartjourney.com and she’s on IG @heart2heartjourney and FB Heart2Heart Journey.

Friday confessions after #tbt...

The incomparable Maya Angelou said it best, ‘when we know better, we do better.’

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about an upcoming trip to Brazil…the excitement to see dear friends; fireside, guitar-accompanied, sing-alongs on the beach under an expansive sky of moon and stars; the freshly made juice from the fruit of the Caju; hearing Portuguese all around me (bliss!); introducing my loved ones to each other; fresh mangoes; the ocean breeze on my salty-wet hair and face; a cold beer in hand with my toes nestled in the perfectly white sand - I mean, the list is glorious and nearly endless…but, this list - in my head - has also included some trepidation about wearing a Brazilian bikini again at 45 vs. 19. I’ve said to friends, it feels like going to my 30 year high school reunion nearly naked :O LOL

Yesterday, as my #tbt post on my personal Instagram stories, I shared a picture taken of me c. 1993 on a trip to Fernando de Noronha with friends. My caption on the photo read: “Headed back to Noronha next year & I vow to be ‘shoot-ready!’ I posted and carried on with my day…but, in the back of my mind I felt unsettled with my post. Then, laying in bed after a long, full day, I realized that my unease was actually me feeling hypocritical.

How many times have I spoken or written words akin to “you are beautiful NOW”? And I have meant it genuinely and wholeheartedly every.damned.time! I love that we come in all shapes and sizes…I love that we all have our own journeys that show up in our scars, rolls, eyes…I love when a woman, despite feeling vulnerable, allows me the honour of holding up a mirror - so to speak - so that she may see what we all see…I love encouraging us, as a society, to stop equating beauty with air-brushed, unrealistic, magazine cover ‘perfection’…and, I’m cognizant that we don’t ever know what tomorrow will bring and so we should all be seizing and celebrating the day, this day, everyday! …and, yet, here I was feeling - and advertising - that I need to somehow drop 30 years of life to be ‘shoot ready’. Bleh. This is really hard to admit, and harder to admit ‘out loud’.

After some soul searching this morning I opted to - rather than delete the post and be left feeling regret or shame - edit the caption to ‘strong and healthy!’, and to own that I too am a work in progress - body and mind. The fact is that over the last 5 or 6 years I’ve abandoned many/most of the healthy lifestyle habits I’d adopted - in 2011 I was in the best shape I’ve ever been in…life got messy and I gave up on myself a little (not to mention struggled with some disruptive health stuff). BUT, today is a new day and ‘when we know better, we do better’; therefore - just like the accomplished bookkeeper in debt, or the overweight fitness expert, or the doctor who smokes - I can believe passionately in what I advocate —> that you are beautiful, today, just as you are, while also acknowledging that I need to personally work on believing this of myself too.

I still intend to continue creating a healthier lifestyle for myself because I know I feel good when I’m eating well, getting enough sleep, drinking more water than wine, and exercising…AND of course donning an itsy-bitsy bikini is good motivation ;) , and I also know - and anyone around me can attest - that I’ve never NOT worn a bikini, ‘cause —> life’s short, wear the bikini! :)

So…onward toward being as genuinely kind & compassionate with myself as I am toward others and my apologies for not walking the talk. I’m learning and grateful for the lessons.

xo Lori

PS my chosen word for 2019 is ‘discipline’, a word for me to create intention around…this post has helped me see that it is all too easy to allow it to be a hammer instead of a cheerleader. More than WHAT we say to ourselves, it matters HOW we say it… I’m going to actively work on demanding better of my inner voice and I hope you will too!