A Collaboration for an Extra Special Crown

2 years ago, while covering the Asian Food Fest in Cincinnati, I met Jill Jaiswal. Jill is a henna artist with Jaiswal Design, and like myself, she enjoys donating her talents throughout the community.

On several occasions, Jill and I discussed joining forces to reach out to cancer patients within our communities.  Inspired by similar organizations, we’d hoped to provide portrait sessions to patients that would capture beauty during a not so beautiful moment in their lives.  Alongside the picture taking, Jill would provide a therapeutic henna session, featuring henna designs and applications at the individual’s discretion.

This is Ira.  (Ira happens to be friends with Jill.)

Ira was diagnosed with stage 2B breast cancer on February 26th, 2014.

And Ira agreed to be the face of our “Henna for Heroines” project!

So, on a sunny Sunday in May, a bunch of people met in historic downtown Milford, at The Picture Party Place studio.  Alongside myself, Jill, and Ira, we were joined by photographer and owner of The Picture Party Place, Caroline; make-up artist, Kendall; videographer and founder of Charity Media Cincinnati, Mike; and Gillian, Ira’s teenage daughter.  Everyone gathered to volunteer up their time, and donate their talents to bring our very first “Henna for Heroines” portrait session together.  The day was simply awesome.

And so here she is!

www.eclecticallyforyou.com/henna

So now we are putting this collaboration out there to hopefully bring more people in.  And at the very least, to inspire…

To nominate a survivor for a “Henna for Heroines” session, please click here.

If you are planning to walk at this year’s Race for the Cure on September 14th, please make sure to stop by my booth, say “Hi!” to my grandma, and maybe get a bit of henna art from Jill.  And make sure to watch for Ira and her posse, as she takes part in her first Komen walk.  *If you haven’t registered yet, make sure to use coupon code: Eclectically2014 to save $10.

 

“Thank You!”
-to Jill for your amazing artistry and wonderful nature.
-to Caroline for opening up your studio and keeping my pregnant butt company (ice cream and all.)
-to Mike for documenting the day and talking lenses with me.
-to Kendall for making a beautiful woman feel even more beautiful.
-to Ira for sharing her story and her beauty.

 

My PINK Saturday

My Saturday began at 4:30am with a pick through my pink hair, a pair of pink Strawberry Shortcake knee-high socks, pink capris, pink earrings, nose ring, pink mascara, pink eye shadow, and a purple team shirt.  PINK overkill?  Nah.  Just the perfect look for a perfect day at an amazing event.Saturday, September 14th marked my 3rd year photographing the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. I shoot for all of the survivors, their family and friends; but most importantly to  honor my Mom, a 13 year breast cancer survivor.  I take great pride in what I do and I love that I have the ability to share it with so many people.

Each year, I am joined by other local photographers that are awesome enough to donate their time and talent to covering this HUGE event.  This year, I had the privilege of working with these 4 amazing individuals: Sarah R. of Sarah Anne Photography, Samantha G. of SJG Photography, Lisa H. of Hezlep Photography, and Adam G. of Gabbard Photography.

L-R: Angie, my camera and human wrangler, Lindsey (me,) Sarah, Samantha, Lisa, and Adam.

Not only did I have a great shooting team to work with, but I was fortunate to have my Grandma K. graciously manning my booth space for a 3rd year.

And if that wasn’t enough, my favorite henna artist, Jill Jaiswall hung out at my booth too; offering up some free henna to race participants.Prior to all the running and walking, people congregated around the GABP for some breakfast at the Komen Kafe, takeaways throughout the sponsor expo, and a Jazzercize warm-up on the main stage.This year’s event consisted of a 10K run (8am,) a 5K run/walk (9am,) and a 2K family fun walk (9:30am.)THIS is the 5K crowd and THESE images do not do this crowd justice.
(And the purple shirt with the cutest kid in the world on his shoulders… those are my boys.)Did I mention that I love making new friends?The route took participants across and along the Ohio River, via two bridges and along the Newport Levy.All culminating at my absolute favorite shooting spot… the finish line.And if I could post all 700+ images from that spot on this blog, I would. (But, for those that do want to check out ALL of those finish line shots, I offer up this link.) The smiles, tears, hugs and high-fives were never-ending.  And I do not lie, my human wrangler, Angie has to drag me, kicking and screaming from the finish line every year to make the next deadline in the stadium.

So, what happens inside the Great American Ball Park, you ask?  First, the kids take to the field (well, the brown dirt part around the field) for the Annual Kids Fun Run!And then, every year Komen gets a group shot of all of the survivors in a creative way.  For the 2nd year in a row, this magic was created in the stands (baseball is apparently still happening.)  And along with the group photo, survivors and guests are entertained by performers and speakers. The speakers are amazing. The performances are amazing. The crowd is amazing. The survivors are amazing.  And the entire day (though it is over before noon) is beyond amazing and I cannot wait for next year.

And if you were at the race and would like to find yourself in the crowd OR if you would just like to see all the fun that was missed, please visit my website for the complete collection of images from the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 2013.

I will end this post with a series of photographer action shots. ❤ Lindsey

A Blessingway

Blessingway: an old Navajo ceremony, which celebrates a woman’s rite of passage into motherhood.

I had the honor of attending my very first blessingway a few weeks ago.  This gathering was extra special for me because it was to celebrate a close friend of mine, who is due to give birth to her fourth child this week.  Oh! and guess who gets to photograph the birth?

Trimmed in rainbow (chakra) tones, her gathering was honest, uplifting, and just a beautiful way to spend an afternoon.  We created tools to empower Mom-to-be during labor; received henna treatments; shared stories; and ate some crazy-delicious rainbow cake. 🙂

Please enjoy! Henna art provided by Jill, Jaiswal Design, please check out her Facebook page!
To read more about blessingways, I have created a short list of links:
    What is a Blessingway?
    Blessing Way
    Planning a Blessingway