A few months ago, I was contacted by a gentleman from the Raw Natural Born Artists organization (www.rawartists.org) to showcase some of my photography. He found me through my Instagram account and reached out to my business email address to gauge if I would be interested in the 2018 Detroit Showcase. Luckily, my cousin- and local artist as well (Lauren Shufeldt- IG @blonxdee) was involved in this show last year so I knew he was legit.
At first, I was torn. I thought it was a really cool show- but it was a little out of my comfort zone. I really enjoy photographing people- but this showcase was to sell your work, and... well... random couples wouldn't sell. So... I shifted my focus to landscapes, but with the show only being three weeks away, trying to get beautiful landscapes throughout Michigan would be really hard to do (with a full-time job, a toddler, photoshoots already taking my time during weekends, and work travel). So- I had to be creative. I am starting to get good at Photoshop and came up with the theme "Michigan Beauty."
Over the past year, I have incorporated boudoir into my photography style. I had only photographed about 4 boudoir shoots, but for this type of a show, boudoir photos would sell. Then, with help from a few friends, I took some landscape photos and merged the images together to create beautiful women with beautiful landscapes. Finally, with the help of my supportive husband, we traveled Detroit and captured some amazing life in the heart of our state. Those photos, mixed with some landscapes from past anniversaries and the help of a few gorgous models, I was able to create my concept.
The night before the show was interesting. I taped off a 6x6 area in my kitchen and with a little help from my husband and toddler, I got a rough idea of how I wanted to set up my showcase area. I printed off the final products to sell, stressed a little- but was also super excited.