Sometimes you have a vague idea of a portrait session but it doesn’t fully come together until you see the right model for it. I met James in October of 2020 and we started dating shortly after. I knew I wanted to do some kind of portraits of him (Because he’s obviously the most gorgeous man ever) but had to figure out what kind of style I wanted to do. When we were talking about his family heritage it came to me, Irish farmer immigrant style. Imagine like the folks who traveled on the boats to NYC landing and getting a studio portrait done. I did some research on images to draw inspiration from and had to mix a few styles. I had been wanting to use my green velvet curtains for a shoot and this turned out to be the best one to use them on. I used a spare table and fabric I had on hand, along with a vase I got at an estate sale. I treated the vase with a mixture of paint and baking powder to create a textured effect. I went to the Washington Floral supply and got two bundles of dried oats. They were kind of pricey so I couldn’t get a huge amount, but I wrapped them around a cylinder vase and it made it look like a bigger bundle. If you ever want to do a specific style portrait it just shows you need a few key props to achieve the vibe. I found the shirt and vest at Goodwill, he got the hat online and I already had this outfit. I am super proud of what we created together and am so looking forward to shooting with him again. I had some really great compliments from his family on these and I think I captured a beautiful angle of him. We had fun that day and I am so happy he’s such a supportive boyfriend of my craft. Enjoy these!
