Although my son Benjamin was here in El Paso for one day a few weeks ago, I made it count. As soon as he got into town, I took him shopping, watched a movie and most thrilling of all, had a ‘Mother & Son’ photoshoot that I had arranged with photographer and graphic designer Stel Bailey.
Stel Bailey and I met through Twitter. I noticed at some point that she was a new military transplant to El Paso and I know that a move like that can be harrowing. So, as we chatted it up, she told me a little bit more about herself and her life. She began working on my professional brand and over the course of several weeks: designed my new logos, typefaces and graphic designs. I will be releasing those soon once the design for the NEW Crystiology is done. I was so impressed by her work that I thought I would also book a photo shoot with her. In this same shoot, I would also take a few solo photos for use on my sites.
Once we started shooting, I quickly realized that modeling could NEVER be a hobby for me. I didn’t know how to pose and often felt self conscious and just plain awkward! I kept in mind that this shoot was all about my son, so I shut my inner critic up and rolled with the punches. I wanted to make sure that he had a set of photos to always keep by his side, especially since he won’t be living with me for some time while I finish my degree. You can read all about that story in my previous post ‘School Days Are Here Again’.
Our first shoot location was at a warehouse on Texas Avenue that have been absolutely in love with for years. Nearly every inch of the building is adorned in some of the most beautiful graffiti you’ve ever seen! I have a very deep connection to graffiti and street art, having been a graf artist myself a VERY long time ago. In fact, one of my upcoming projects is a book on El Paso art and graffiti but I’ll save that story for another day.
After we wrapped up shooting there, we took Stel downtown to the Arts Festival Plaza and San Jacinto Square. There, we shot some really interesting poses and action shots and I got to give Stel a few mini lectures on the history of some of my favorite buildings Downtown.
Stel Bailey is hands down, one of the most genuine and hard working designers and photographers out there. I don’t say it just because she photographed my son and I, but because I placed my brand and image in her capable hands and she elevated it to new highs. We worked closely together over the span of several weeks to fine tune the designs and determine the color schemes that would work best for my personality. She even researched my work and got to know who I am and somehow translated that soul into a design that truly represents ME.
Superfluous praise is not common coming from me. I’m generally a pretty critical person and when I’m presented with anything, I’ll often pick it to bits and find the little things wrong it. I’m not a fan of taking photographs either, but she made it all worthwhile. I encourage you to look through the entire gallery on my Facebook page and check out her work on her website!