Nico Nordström Photography

We wanted to do a shoot indicative of The Afterlife, or Purgatory. We were going through a Lana Del Rey phase at the time and were inspired by her Born to Die music video in a beautiful ornate church. 

We lit the main scene with only a projector image of cathedral windows and a hint of a light on the left side, which was pretty tricky. The light had to light her face properly, while not overshadowing the projector.

We shot at our friend Michael’s beautiful estate, where we shot most of the series at. We pulled together all the resources that we could - I had the corset lying around, Sabrina and Danni put together the skirt and head piece, and we spray painted fake flowers to add texture to the ground. The bench is from my piano that I’ve had my whole life, and we covered it with all the black tulle that we could find, and I hand painted the textured gray backdrop.

For the next scene we used the same backdrop, and added fog to add atmosphere.

In our production meetings we knew that we would need something to indicate the afterlife, like a halo. We scoured art history books to find inspiration on the perfect halo shape - we knew we would need something extravagant and not cheesy, but the problem is always budget. 

We brainstormed for a while, and after breaking down the shape we figured out that shish kabob sticks would be the best way to go. Danni put it all together, and her design turned out beautifully.

Shoots are hard, but we like to have fun on set :) 

Danni making wardrobe adjustments, and me staring at something haha

hair, wardrobe, and makeup prep

This shoot was one of the times when we got by with pure luck. We were searching everywhere for a throne, and knew that we couldn’t build one, couldn’t buy one, and didn’t even know of a place where we could rent one.

I put out a post on Facebook asking if anyone had/or knew of someone that had a throne. No one did. But one of my Facebook friends said that they found some on Craigslist, and that I should check it out. I contacted the ad poster, and we worked out a deal, trading photos for the throne rental. We didn’t know much about the situation, just that the guy was really kind and that he said we could shoot at the house he was selling and sent over the real estate website.

Well. It turns out it wasn’t “just a house”, it was a gorgeous massive estate in one of Houston’s most affluential areas, and they already had a crimson red room. I just about had a heart attack from shock. I could not believe we had gotten so incredibly lucky!!

So Danni, Michi, Michi’s friend Mary Ann, Sarah, Sam, and I caravanned 3 hours over to Houston to shoot. We shot this just before finals, which is when I notoriously always get sick from stress. It turned out that I had the flu, and was absolutely miserable the entire shoot haha The kind woman that owned the house made me tons of tea, and gave me medicine though.

We knew that we wanted to use the gorgeous red drapes, but didn’t want to get the white column or hallway in the shot, so we fashioned a makeshift wall out of tons of red silk. It was seriously an engineering feat haha Here’s Michi and Sarah building the set.

As you can see, we completely took over their house! We laid a black backdrop on the floor to disguise the wood flooring, and collected tons of candles from around their house to add to the scene.

This wig was probably one of the craziest from this entire shoot. and unfortunately for our model Sam, “craziest” and “beautiful” translates directly into “heavy” and “scalp ruining”. This thing was MASSIVE y’all. It was also incredibly heavy, so for every shot Michi had to stand behind Sam and help hold it up and support it. In one of the shots, I almost forgot to Photoshop Michi’s hands out of the image hahah 

Danni made the necklace out of a cheap Party City necklace, and candle wax - it turned out wonderfully. Before we got to the shoot we went to Party City and bought everything red that we could find.

We were pretty worried about the extreme fire hazard we had created by having fabric, hair, and people running around next to all of the lit candles. While we were dressing the set we smelled an awful smell, only to realize that Danni’s flowing skirt had caught fire! We extinguished it before anything crazy happened haha

Sabrina wasn’t able to be at the shoot, but she did a fantastic job creating the wardrobe, and Danni did a wonderful job styling it all. We had Danni’s van packed with everything we could think of - bolts of fabric, backdrops, flowers, a saber (aka a spray painted and bedazzled curtain rod), and literally anything red and opulent that any of us had. 

They also had an amazing hairless cat named Moses, that I absolutely adored. He let me carry him around on my shoulder for forever haha

We had seen this massive and amazing mirror in the entry way living room, and knew that we had to use it. The only problem being that we knew the room’s colors didn’t match our color scheme. Photoshop to the rescue!! We filled the room with fog (my favorite), and shot our second scene in here. 

It was a long, fun, and very tiring shoot day but I’m so grateful to the amazing family that let us take over their home, to my team that worked so tirelessly, and for DayQuil for saving my life.

Afterwards we all packed up in the rain, and headed back to Austin. Halfway through the trip, Danni and I’s phones were blowing up with notifications about tornado sightings. We were in a van packed with things that could very easily impale us, and the van was swaying all over the place. Needless to say, we were freaking out a bit. We pulled over to a random truck stop Denny’s at around 10pm and drank hot chocolate, laughed, and marveled at how lucky we were to find everything. 

Despite the tornado, having the flu, and only our base team members this day, all in all it was wonderful memories, and so much fun <3 

This was definitely the most intense out of all of the shoots. The prop work alone was an absolute nightmare haha It took numerous 16+ hour work days to complete the props, wig, set, and then the photoshoot itself.

We knew in our production meetings that we were going to need A LOT of cakes.... there was only one problem - cakes don’t like to sit beautifully intact for days and under hot lights. We knew our only option would be to make fake cakes. 

Michi’s friend Pascal at Bake Austin is an expert cake maker and is so extremely talented. She taught us how to make the cakes and have them look real. 

Danni, Michi, Pascal and I spent days making the cakes. We used styrofoam as the base for them, and then covered them in joint compound (what’s used on walls for construction work) to make it appear as icing. We huddled around Pascal’s kitchen table with wine and good music and worked tirelessly - covering the styrofoam in “icing”, sculpting, and spray painting.

Once we got the bases done, and they had a few days to dry it came time to start adding the designs. Danni and I holed up in my apartment for two days and did nothing but watch Marie Antoinette on repeat and decorate cakes.

We used anything and everything we could get our hands on - fake flowers (some new, and some old from Sabrina’s wedding), old Mardi Gras beads I got in New Orleans, poof pant as icing, doilies, and tons and tons of hot glue to name a few. My apartment looked like Hobby Lobby threw up in it haha

^ Me being miserable on day 2 of making cakes 

We hand dyed the gloves in my kitchen, and worked for hours upon hours and stayed up most of the night before the shoot working.

When Danni picked me up the next morning we loaded her van up with cakes, on top of everything else it was already packed with for the shoot. 

Our friend Michael let us take over his gorgeous house once again for our shoot, we will forever be thankful for his generosity <3 

We were able to do some of the set up in the days prior to the shoot, transforming Michael’s modern luxe estate into a Rococo dream. 

Literally everyone helped finalize the props and set up the scene, with Ryan being the head of the set design and production. We had our model Sam making fake macaroons with oreos dipped in colored white chocolate (PS try this, it’s delicious), Michi brought tons of fruit and cheeses, Sarah and Michi did intricate decor on the cakes, Danni made sure things were in order and did set design, Sabrina took care of all textiles (drapes, table cloth, chair wraps, etc.), and my assistant Monique and I helped with the set and prop finishing touches.

We recycled drapes from the first Lingerie Scene, used a backdrop stand to insure that the chandeliers we borrowed (aka bought and returned) from Home Depot were in the scene, and taped all fabric against the wall to camouflage the modern tiling.

We used curtain rods and hooked them onto the light fixtures to hang the curtains from. To get over the issue of length, we had to attach them to ribbon and masking tape them to the tiling.

This was the greatest team effort ever, every single person helped and worked tirelessly to make the shoot successful. 

It’s important to have fun and laugh on set, hence me being a nun covered in 60 feet of tulle hahah

By the time that we finished dressing the set, it was nightfall. Meaning that I had to put lights outside the window to simulate morning light. Lighting this scene still gives me nightmares haha I’m neurotic about lighting, and to light the props and Sam properly was intense but fun and challenging. 

Michi and Sarah did a great job on the wig, I still don’t understand the engineering of how it didn’t fall haha We used real orchids in it after realized how fake the faux flowers looked. We wanted a wig reminiscent of cake, but to also looked dishelved from the party the night before.

Sarah meticulously working on Sam’s makeup

Side note: I was a really poor college student at the time that we made this shoot, and stereotypically did not want *any* food to go to waste. We were going to throw the actual fruit, cheeses, and “macaroons” away after the shoot, but in true college student fashion I took gallon bags of food home. I had fabulous wine and cheese parties by myself for days hahah :) 

Trying to figure out the perfect prop and lighting setup, with paint all over my hands from days of cake making. This shoot seriously gave me a complex against cake, I never eat it anymore haha 

While we shot the large cake scene in the living room, Michi and Ryan set up the scene in the bathroom. We’ve loved this free standing bathtub forever, and knew we HAD to shoot there. I picked up pillow stuffing from a local craft store, and Sabrina spray painted it pink and added clear Christmas ornaments to simulate a styled bubble bath. 

I’ve also always wanted an excuse to put a lit chandelier on the ground, and finally got the opportunity! Just like with the other scene we had to simulate morning light, so I put my large Octabox light with an orange filter on it outside the window. 

By the time that we finished the shoot it was well after midnight and we were exhausted. This shoot was absolute labor of love, with emphasis on labor haha I could never in my wildest dreams have pulled a shoot off without such a talented and dedicated team. I love you all. And to everyone that took the time to read this blog post, much less make it all the way to the end - I appreciate you so very much <3 

To see a behind the scenes video captured by the incredibly talented Kandu Films check it out: 

We had just over one week to put this shoot together. Danni was moving, our schedules were cramped, and we had to work like wild women to put this all together.

Our sweet friend and talented designer Sally Daneshjou, let us use her beautiful home and gorgeous designs. In addition to Sally’s designs, we used gowns from Chasity Sereal, beautifully tailored suits from Ross Bennett, and a custom outfit for the scene on the stairs.

Here the boys try on their suits before hair and makeup.

Getting the dresses figured out for the girls.

Sarah working her magic with the makeup

The hair and makeup station

We had to rearrange the living room a bit to fit our vision, and I gathered candelabras from around the house.

Light tests

We arrived early, and shoot lasted well into the night. We had wigs, makeup, feathers, and champagne everywhere by the end!

Here’s the command center for hair prep. Michi made all the wigs prior to the shoot, and on the day of the girls had to be wig wrapped and prepped, and the guys hair had to be styled and colored to fit the theme.

Danni checking out the massive wig

Hair touch ups by Emilee

The models during a snack break :)

Both scenes were pretty challenging to shoot, not only in posing and composing the scene, but in the actual shooting as well. To save time we ended up going with natural lighting for the main scene, and then once it was dark we used artificial for the scene on the stairs.

It was a long, stressful, and fun day, and I’m so grateful to everyone that helped out with the scene <3

This was our first shoot in the entire series, and we definitely started off with a bang. Michi had a very kind friend Michael, who agreed to let us shoot in his beautiful home. We knew that we would need a large four post bed for this scene, and his was perfect. 

We are very grateful to him for letting us completely take over his house on numerous occasions, and without him this project wouldn’t have been anything close to what it is.  The core team had numerous long meetings as to how we were going to transform his bedroom - we researched tons of different types of bedding, decorations, and interior design history. Sabrina made countless trips out to his house to measure and fit all the bedding that you see in the final photos - she made the swags, curtains/canopy, decorative pillows, the throw blanket, and even made the upholstered headboard and footboard. We borrowed $3,000 worth of bedspreads and a few pillows from Wildflower Organics to help give the lush vibe that we needed.

Being that we had no budget, we had to get very creative in making the props. Thankfully we all have hoarder tendencies and already had a few things, and we reused anything we could find. 

For example, Danni made the staff from a curtain rod and some old jewelry, and we spray painted it gold. Seriously, Krylon should have sponsored us we spray painted so many things gold haha It was things like this that helped make the project possible, being able to work together and find creative cheap solutions to expensive problems.

Michi wanted to incorporate some modern elements by doing the fringe rather than a purely timepiece wig. She added the crown to symbolize the arrival to a new life as the Dauphine of France. 

Here’s a sense of the chaos that goes on behind the scenes. Not all shoots are this crazy, but when there’s so many props and so much set design it changes things a bit. We completely took over Michael’s living room and bedroom. The bedroom was for the set, and the living room for props being finalized. 

Every single one of us on set that day worked hard hot glue gunning, setting up, and perfecting everything that is in the scene. Danni had a hand in everything from the concept, to the styling, creating the props, and helping the posing. 

My view while working on some of the props. The perfume bottle I got for my 16th birthday, and had been saving it for 7 years for the perfect photoshoot occasion and it finally came! (RIP Brittany Spears’ perfume line). We painted and completely repurposed it, added a ridiculous amount of pearls to everything we could find, and used more hot glue than I’ve ever used in my life. 

Danni got the shoes that Sam (our Marie) was wearing from Goodwill and covered them in lace and pearls. We all drank all of the caffeine that day and worked so hard as a team to make our opulent vision come to life. 

Things like this are why I “hate” having the credits section, because it is truly a collaboration and we all work very hard in our own respective field but support, help, and mold each other throughout the entire project.

Lighting the set was REAL rough. Having to properly light four separate models as well as the scene completely on the spot, without having time to do a light test previously, was difficult. We used numerous different light sources with different modifiers to give it the feel that we wanted.

Ryan worked tirelessly to insure that everything was perfectly in its spot, and that everything flowed. 

Lauren and Sarah did an amazing job on the makeup. Lauren did Sam’s makeup and made it dewy and fresh, and Sarah did the guys makeup to make sure that everything was as high of quality as it could be.

The post production on this set was also very difficult, every single detail had to be dodged and burned to create depth, colors had to be hand painted in, and gaps in our budget had to be smoothed to create a set that really appeared as opulent as it did in person as it did on camera.

Overall it was a very long few days of set up, shooting, and tear down, but it was so worth it in the end. We had such a dedicated and passionate team that worked so hard to make it all possible. 

And last but not least.... the greatest photo I have ever taken hahaha: 

My friend and assistant Justin standing in for a lighting test with a Dorito. 

To see more check out our website:

When we first discussed having an arrival scene, we knew it was going to have to involve a horse - challenge number one. Danni, Michi, and I were all sitting around Danni’s kitchen table brainstorming, and I said that if we’re going to have a horse then we should dye it pink! Danni had her original concept of wanting Marie to look very innocent, fresh faced, and young - so we based our color palette, wardrobe, and mood around this theme. 

We discussed the possibility of Photoshopping the horse pink, but where’s the fun in that? Who doesn’t want to hang out around a pink horse? Being that we’re in Texas, we found a sweet friend Kristine who had a beautiful Polish Arabian horse named Tiffany. 

A few days before the shoot my fiancé Decker and I headed out to the ranch to dye her with special CTFA certified horse dye. Decker, Kristine, Kristine’s mother Susan, and I spent the afternoon hanging out and dyeing Tiffany - definitely not a usual way to spend an afternoon haha Being that she was previously a show horse, and 27 (which would put her in the Senior category), she never even batted an eye. After she was dyed, she pranced around the ranch - we’re pretty sure that she knew she looked fabulous ;) 

We had an amazing hat made by Claudia Medina that we used for the shoot, and Danni and Sabrina were in charge of the wardrobe - with Danni being the creative director/stylist, and Sabrina doing the sewing and providing tons of great technical input. The top was from an old nightgown from Goodwill that Sabrina completely refashioned, and everything was sewn by hand with love. 

On the day of the shoot we found a bunch of flowers (which I think were probably weeds) on the side of the road, and we knew the yellow would pop perfectly with the pink. So Ryan (the set designer), my assistant Gabrielle, and I hopped the barbed wire fence and borrowed their weeds and put them together in huge piles while successfully dodging bees and “cow pies”.

Because we were going to be using all natural lighting, Decker and I fashioned together a homemade skrim (to diffuse some harsh light) with piping and bed sheets. Danni and Michi had huge tupperware containers in the cars filled with anything you could image - lace, hair pieces, feathers, pearls, bows, flowers, etc. It was awesome.

While Sarah began the makeup on Sam and Michi did finishing touches on the wig - Ryan got started on dressing the set, Sabrina made last minute wardrobe touch ups, Danni was coordinating the details, and I began to set up my equipment and help Ryan out when I could.

Michi was in charge of hair but is terribly allergic to horses, so after Sarah finished the makeup they teamed up to beautifully braid and decorate Tiffany’s hair. Michi ended up forcing through her allergy in order to help the shoot. The flowers in Tiffany’s mane were leftover flowers from Sabrina’s wedding that she had saved, and the ribbon on the harness we saved and reused for most of the Marie shoots.

Being that there were no horse harnesses/reigns to fit our vision, Danni painstakingly wrapped one in white leather, and put little dots of gold poof paint to give it that little extra charm. It turned out marvelous, and I was so happy when the details translated well on camera. 

When Marie Antoinette came over to France from Vienna, she had to give up her beloved dog before she was allowed to cross over into French territory. It was deemed unbefitting to have a dog’s dirty paws around a woman who had to look her best at all times. So we brought on Sabrina’s little dog Trixi, affectionately know as Piggie. Sabrina had tried to dye her purple with Kool Aid, but it didn’t stick and she licked whatever did stick off haha So instead we covered her in roses, and she napped luxuriously on a pillow for the majority of the shoot.

Danni styled everything on the shoot from the large things such as the main costume, to the most minute of details such as the exact color of bows to match the theme. They say that the details are what makes big projects, and even after hours of editing I would still notice tiny details that she had thoughtfully implemented. Nothing was store bought, everything was crafted with love, passion, and an eye for detail.

Ryan spent hours upon hours setting up one scene, rushing over to set up another while we were shooting, hanging things in trees, and working tirelessly. Since we were shooting while he was dressing the set, he had to make many executive decisions on his own. All of which turned out marvelously. Because Michi wasn’t able to be around the horse, her and her son also assisted Ryan on some of the set construction.

The wig was also a labor of love. Every week Michi and Sarah would meet up and work on the wigs for this series for hours upon hours. These wigs are much more than merely hair, or something you might find at a cheap Halloween store - they are more along the lines of art and sculpture. This wig alone took about 20 hours. Michi had to make sure that every curl was in place, that no flow of the hair had been set off course, and on top of all that, that it would be wearable. After each photoshoot, she would spend time massaging Sam’s head because of how sore the wigs made her scalp. Sam handled it like a champion and true professional, and never complained.

Sarah did a brilliant job on the makeup, making sure that every color was perfect, every line was crisp, and that it was modern yet still fit with the theme. 

When it came down to actually begin shooting the piece, it was incredibly difficult. Massive live animals don’t care that you need them to stand a certain way, at a certain angle, and on a certain target. At points Tiffany would get bored, and try to walk off with Sam still sitting on top of her. Kristine and her mom Susan bribed Tiffany with treats though, so she was happy to comply. 

Sam did an amazing job of not only modeling, but translating the character into something believable. It was just as much about acting as it was about modeling. She dealt with our neurotic tendencies with a smile, showing up to numerous fittings, wearing an extremely heavy wig for hours, and helping out in any way that should could. Having such talented, passionate, and fun models on set is paramount to a successful shoot, and we couldn’t have asked for a better model for this project. 

I had originally planned to shoot this set with a large softbox to make sure everything was really crisp and consistent, but we were warned that Tiffany did not like large objects and could frighten. We wanted to definitely avoid this, so we used only natural lighting, with the exception of when the sun began to go down. We had to use a very large Octabox from far away with the strobe turned off so that Tiffany would remain chill. 

When we first saw Sam on the horse with all the details in place we were giddy - what had only lived as notes in a sketchbook and reference photos in a group chat was now actually in front of us in all its grandeur. We gasped, squealed, and I definitely did a happy dance haha 

The shoot lasted for around 14 hours from arrival to tear down. By the end we were taking everything down with a floodlight and our phone flashlights as our only way of seeing in the pitch black. We laughed, we had stressful times, and most of all loved what we had all worked so hard to put together.

Because of our extreme budgetary restraints, many things had to be Photoshopped to look polished and believable. This made the post processing a long and arduous process. Every gap in the leaves had to be filled in, the flowers more lush and alive after being trampled on, wardrobe colors changed to match exactly, Tiffany’s color had to be even and consistent, and numerous pieces of the set decor had to be replicated. We worked hard as a team to understand where our limitations were on set, and what we could make up for in post.

After the shoot I would send edits to Danni and Michi where we had numerous meetings on how to handle the final edits - at one point it was extremely too edited, and then on the other end of the spectrum too bare. For one of the images, it was actually shot at night and I had to completely replace the background from another photo in the same spot that was shot during the day. So they helped tremendously in keeping the edits in line with our original expectations, while also helping to exceed them. 

Published in Elegant Magazine Creative Direction: Danni Ordonez, Nico Nordström, Michi Lafary Concept: Danni Ordonez and Michi Lafary Photographer - Nico Nordström Fashion Stylist - Danni Ordóñez Styling Wig Maker - Michi Lafary MUA/ Wig Assistant - Sarah Contey Model - Samantha Gloor Set - Ryan Blair Wardrobe Assistant - Sabrina Sew and Sew Photography Assistance- Gabrielle Nicole, Decker Derdeyn Wig & Hair Assistance - Sarah Contey Set Assistance and Horse Handler- Susan Conner Set Assistance and Horse Handler- Kristine Dupuis Hat Designer - Claudia Medina Horse- Tiffany, Polish Arabian

Thank you tremendously to everyone involved in this project <3 It was truly a group effort, and so much love, blood, sweat and tears was put into this.

To see more, visit our website:

My best friend recently got married to the man of her dreams, and I got to be a bridesmaid in their wedding - which meant I couldn’t photograph it haha :( So, we did a “day after” portrait session together <3 

Angelina and I met during art school a few years back. We both wanted to get a course override to get into a very popular (and completely full) studio art class. We waited anxiously with our course override forms waiting for the professor to come into class - then we noticed each other. She saw me not so casually head to the door to find the professor first, which then led to us running down the hallway racing each other to get to the professor first. We finally found the professor who begrudgingly let us both into the course. Through that class I met three of my greatest friends. 

We took the afternoon to head to a local park here in Austin, and take some portraits of them - everything was perfect. There were peacocks(!!) running around, beautiful golden evening light, and this beautiful couple. My job was ridiculously easy, and fun.

Thankfully, we live in Texas - so despite it being January, the weather was in the 70′s, breezy, and beautiful. I’m absolutely obsessed with this location! The foliage, peacocks, and beautiful landscaping is so on point. 

Muse: R'Bonney Nola Designer: Mysterious by NPN Photography/Makeup: Nico Nordström Hair: Michi Lafary Styling: Danni Ordonez Black/red Necklace: Sugar Gay Isber Published in Scorpio Jin Magazine We drove straight through from Austin to White Sands in New Mexico. We arrived late in the night, and slept in the car in a Walmart parking lot. Four people in a minivan with tons of couture, luggage, and stuff was no easy task haha I slept half on my seat, and half on my camera bag. We slept for around 4 hours, and got R’Bonney ready in the parking lot of Walmart - we got lots of weird looks as I was covering her forehead with bindis!

We heading out to White Sands and finished getting R’Bonney ready in the desert. We were astounded by how beautiful everything was, I’ve never seen any place so bright in my life!

We all ran around flopping and jumping on the sand - which I am still finding in my camera bag! It was so magical and joyous. Suddenly it didn’t matter that we were exhausted, had been driving for 12 hours, and were hungry. We were rolling around in cool sand in a warm desert and it. was. AWESOME. !!

^ Danni and Michi working their magic <3 

I found the perfect hill where you could see the gorgeous New Mexico horizon line, the lighting was great, and the hill had the right angle. We ran up like Christmas morning was waiting at the top :) 

The wind was amazing and it was blowing the lush organza fabric so beautifully! It was pure magic to see in real life, especially since we were all alone - it was so believable that R’Bonney was some sort of fabulous desert dweller. 

^ comparing talons haha

We shot for a few hours, using nothing but natural lighting. We blared fun music, ran around the desert, got gnarly sunburns, and created art and beautiful memories <3 I love my Valley of the Moon ladies so much, there aren’t many people I could travel across America with - but these women are the best. 

And here’s a before/after just for fun! :) 

Model: Brittany Sifford  Photography: Nico Nordström Designer: Michelle Hébert | Art & Fashion Jewelry: M.ecstatic Jewelry  

Brittany and I shot this during our roadtrip from Austin to San Francisco <3 We had driven from San Francisco to Los Angeles for most of the day, and arrived at a friend's house around midnight - only to have to wake up and head to Malibu at 5 am. We were exhausted and went to Del Taco before bed.  I woke up at 5 am to start packing and prepare for this shoot, we left as the sun was rising and it was stunning. I felt kind of weird, but chalked it up to no sleep and too much time spent in the car. We arrived in Malibu around two hours later, stopping at Starbucks for brain fuel. As soon as I got out of the car I knew that something was wrong, and hoped that I was just dehydrated or carsick or something. We continued our drive in search of this cave, and we hauled the dress and all of my equipment across the deep sand and onto the rocks. I immediately broke out in a sweat, and felt incredibly nauseous - and it's then when I realized that I had gotten food poisoning from stupid Del Taco.

I went and got ill on a secluded part of the beach, and I began feeling incredibly exhausted, achy, and nauseous. I've never gotten food poisoning before, and I'm a big baby when it comes to being sick haha I was so upset, I was all the way in California with a rental car as my only home, at the photoshoot of my dreams, and I couldn't stop throwing up.

^ this is me dying.

Brittany and I quickly discovered that we would have to rock climb down to the bottom to reach the cave. I sat defeated on my camera box, head in my hands. I'd been planning and looking forward to this shoot - only to have it all fall apart. I just wanted to cry and go throw up on some rocks. I told Brittany I couldn't make the climb, I'm afraid of heights, have thousands in photo equipment to haul down there, and not to mention the dress was in my camera box for safe keeping and I was terrified of harming it. She looked me straight in the face, and told me to get it together - we didn't come all this way for nothing and we're getting the photo. She assured me that the climb wouldn't be so bad, and that I could handle it. I sighed because I knew she was right, and that I would have to persevere through this food poisoning and do the shoot.

^ The moment we realized we'd straight up have to rock climb, wait on a ledge for the tide to go out, and then run into the cave :( haha

So we walked across the treacherous, incredibly tall, and slippery rocks to get the edge by the cave and I was trippin (emotionally not literally!). We had to step over dead birds, secure our footing, and then walk. All whilst avoiding the waves that were crashing dangerously close to where we were.

Brittany made the climb down first to show me that it was doable. We had to take our shoes off in the cold (it was around 40 degrees), and climb down. I threw up on a seagull, who was not amused that I was sick, and then proceeded to hand Brittany the equipment and climb down. I stepped down into the water on accident, so I was now soaked, sick, cold, and "dying". I then looked up in complete awe of the beauty of the cave - it was unlike anything I'd ever seen. Majestic, beautiful, and strong.

We escaped the tide in the belly of the cave, and sought refuge. We carefully got Brittany in the dress, and got the jewelry on her. Although the cave protected us from the wind and water, it was filled with dead birds, fish, and general seaweed grossness. I was overcome by the smell and threw up into the ocean yet again.

It was then that I saw Brittany in the dress, against the crashing of the ocean waves, and I knew that this had all been worth it. It was a magnificent sight, the cave with the raw beauty of the dress that fit Brittany wonderfully. I breathed a sigh of relief, we had done it. We started shooting in between bouts of sickness, and it was then that I realized how funny the whole situation was. I was at the shoot of my dreams, with a dear friend, a dress that I'd admired for forever, in a cave thousands of miles from home and I was deathly ill. So rather than being disappointed as I had been, I just laughed it all off. Brittany was perched on a ledge as we were shooting, and I was just getting ill and laughing - which was then a cycle. So Brittany and I are just laughing at how ridiculous of a situation this was, we had fun getting the shots that we needed and enjoyed what a beautiful adventure we were blessed with.

In the end, I'm incredibly grateful that Brittany pushed me to do this, it was what I needed and it was an adventure of a lifetime. Sometimes, even when things are terrible it's incredibly important to persevere through the bad times to get through to the wonderful ones. It's specifically important to me that the timing of this was in December, we took this just a few days after the anniversary of the death of a childhood friend. So it was not only a way to have fun and create art, but a way to process emotions and help to cleanse my soul.  I wouldn't have traded this experience for anything, and I feel so blessed to have such kind, loving, and amazing friends to create art with and adventure. A big thank you to Brittany for being such a wonderful friend, and to Michelle Hebert for lending me her beautiful creations, and to Michelle Sanchez for trusting me with her gorgeous jewelry <3 Love and light to you all that create art with me, and love and light to you all that care enough to look at what we create, and to read a super long blog post about it xx

P.S.

To see a behind the scenes look of how I edit, click HERE to see my newest YouTube video <3  (I'm still working on the quality and learning about video editing, but it will give you an idea of my post processing!) 

Golden Polaroid taken from the belly of a cave <3 

Model: Brittany Sifford

Photography: Nico Nordström