March 9-16th, 2013
This was my second year to attend WPPI in Las Vegas, the biggest annual convention for professional portrait photographers. I was with Catie Bartlett once again, and our new recruit Jodi Campbell. (We missed our Carly Carlson this year!) We decided to drive this year… and in the words of G.O.B. Bluth, “we made a huge mistake”. Ok, maybe not, but lesson learned and we’ll have to try something different next year. Because 18 strait hours, from Oklahoma to Vegas (and back), in the car is torture. But we had a lot of cool photos opps- a blizzard on the way there, and sight-seeing on the way back.
We stayed in the MGM Grand this year, which was THE BEST, and really the only way to go. Robby & Savannah Doland attended the convention separately, but I was so excited we were able to meet up- love those guys! The biggest lesson I RE-learned this year is not to try to attend a class EVERY block, but rather choose a few topics to focus on, thereby getting a lot more out of it. I probably had a lot more tip if I’d written this post a few months ago, haha. But that was the biggest thing to stick with me. I was a lot better about it this year. I was also stoked to see some of my photo idols in person and sit in on there classes, such as Sue Bryce, and Rob & Vanessa Adams! Rob and Vanessa are incredible talents, and I had the privilege of learning from them both in depth during my trip to Seattle for Creative Live! (But that’s for a later post.)
I focused on stretching the legs of my Canon 5D Mark III, 45mm tilt-shift lens, and my fun new toy- the Fujifilm Instax 210. From here, I’ll tell the story in pictures. (Any photos of me were taken by Catie or Robby.) Many of these images are available to purchase as a print. Please email me if you’re interested!
Triple exposure somewhere in Arizona:
Double exposures on Las Vegas Blvd:
This year we got wind of one of the raddest parties happening during WPPI- LAZERS & BLAZERS! More double exposure experiments, dressed up all fancy before heading out.
Also, if you can’t fully appreciate how jealous you should be about this party… here you go:
http://vimeo.com/61754257
Toward the end of our trip, I had to show Robby & Savannah around my all-time favorite spot in Vegas- The Neon Museum.
Fulfilling our tourist duty:
On the way home, we hit the Hoover Dam (I’d never seen it before)…
…and the Grand Canyon (second visit for me- the first time being also on the way home from my first trip to Vegas):
Grand Canyon Pano:
Somewhere in New Mexico:
As always, can’t wait for next year! Finally posting these photos has made me so anxious. Who’s in??
2013, abandoned, anna lee, antique, Arizona, b&w, barn, black & white, black and white, blizzard, Blvd, Boneyard, bright lights, Canon 5D Mark III, catie bartlett, Color TV by RCA, colors, creative, cute, delapadated, details, dilapidated, double exposure, Downtown Las Vegas, dramatic, drive, famous, fashion, foreground bokeh, fresh, Fujifilm Instax 210, fun, Grand Canyon, Harlem Shake, Hoover Dam, in camera, instant film, Jodi Campbell, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas sign, Lazers & Blazers, letters, lightbulbs, Mark 3, Mid Towner Hotel, miniature, Model, Moulin Rouge, natural, natural light, neon signs, Nevada, New Mexico, okc, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, old, original, outdoor, party, Photo, photo shoot, Photographer, Photography, plan, polaroid, Portraits, pose, road trip, Robby Doland, romantic, Route 66, Savannah Doland, secret, sight-seeing, smile, Stardust, sunlight, sweet, The Neon Museum, The Strip, things to do, tilt-shift, trip, tripple exposure, Tropicana, unique, vintage, vintage tone, VSCO Film, wppi
A final blog post about my zombies-meet-high-fashion photo series “Zombies Are People Too”. Even though there was only one photo from each shoot, model, and location, I had many favorites. It made it difficult to narrow my selections down for the final series. Introducing… the Zombie B-Sides! In other words, a few extra photos that I couldn’t just tuck away without ever showing. Along with these extra releases, this post features some behind the scenes photos with my makeup artist, Jessica, making the magic happen!
See the full, final series in this blog post, and some photos from the show opening at Brass Bell Studios in OKC in this one.
My self-portrait zombie shoot was assisted by Catie Bartlett.
2012, abandonded, Alberto Roubert, anna lee, art show, artificial lighting, behind the scenes, Brass Bell Studios, Brock Lay, Caitlin Dodge Sloat, Caitlin Sloat, Chelsea Cope, Christa May, conceptual series, creative, creepy, dark, different, dramatic, Drop it Modern, drop it modern mermaid, Evan Crowley, fashion, ferris wheel, field, fresh, fun, hair and makeup artist, HMUA, Jessica Dodge Fulton, Junior's, Juniors Oklahoma City, Lindsey Robinson, location, Mad Men style, Model, New York City, night, OK State Fair photo shoot, okc, OKCMOA, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, on location lighting, original, outdoor, Photo, photo shoot, Photographer, Photography, Portraits, pose, salon, silver sequin backdrop, Siren Beauty Lounge, styled shoot, undead, unique, Zombies Are People Too
This project was my baby for over an entire year. It’s no secret I’m completely drawn to the edgy and unusual. I had the inspiration back in a college photo class- many years before the project culminated in a successful show to debut the finalized series at Brass Bell Studios in Oklahoma City back in October. (No mistake that it shared the month with the best holiday- Halloween!) A huge thanks to everyone who came out to support me in one of the artistic accomplishments that I’m most proud of so far. But if you weren’t at the opening, I’m finally releasing the images online here on my blog, so I hope you enjoy!
“ZOMBIES ARE PEOPLE TOO” is a conceptual and artist portrait photography series. The photos force together the opposing aesthetic themes of high-end fashion and the dark style of a modified zombie. It has solidified into a group of styled photo shoots, employing traditional fashion models who are eerily made up to resemble the living dead. The scenes are set in locations across Oklahoma (and one in New York). Click the link below to view the trailer for the series, made by the very talented Andrew Sloat. It was filmed during Caitlin’s shoot in New York.
ZOMBIES ARE PEOPLE TOO – Art Show Trailer
You can also check out the Series mini site, created by Catie Bartlett, here.
I couldn’t have done any of this without the extremely talented Jessica Fulton, my HMUA for the entire project. She was able to execute my vision perfectly and stuck it out with me through the year and a half it took to complete the series. I’d also like to the thank the models who appeared in the photos- for humoring my crazy idea and being willing to go out in public with a pound of black makeup on their faces (especially the guys) and quite possibly scaring some children. Their names are listed with each photo.
Caitlin Sloat:
Evan Crowley:
Lindsey Robinson:
Chelsey Cope:
Brock Lay:
I even included a self-portrait, assisted by Catie Bartlett:
Caitlin Sloat:
Christa May:
Alberto Roubert:
I’ll be following up with some behind the scenes photos and a post about the show opening at Brass Bell. I may also share some B-sides (photos that were not part of the final series, but great none the less). So stay tuned for those!
2012, Alberto Roubert, Andrew Sloat, anna lee, artificial light, black balloons, Brass Bell Studios, bright colors, Brock Lay, Caitlin Sloat, Chelsey Cope, Christa May, cigar, crazy, creative, dark, dark style fashion, Devon tower, different, dramatic, Drop it Modern, eerie, eery, El Reno, Evan Crowley, Fair, fashion, female, field, fresh, fun, funny, HMUA, inspired, interesting, Jessica Dodge Fulton, Junior's cigar lounge, lace blaser, lighting techniques, Lindsey Robinson, living dead, MadMen style shoot, male, mermaid backdrop, Model, MUA, Mustang, natural light, New York, New York City, night, OK, OK State Fairgrounds, okc, OKCMOA rooftop, Oklahoma, oklahoma artist, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, on location lighting, original, outdoor, parking garage, Photo, photo shoot, Photographer, Photography, pin worthy, pinterest, Portraits, pose, repin, self portrait, silver sequin backdrop, Siren Beauty Lounge, skyline, smoke, speedlights, spike jewelry, sunlight, unique, video trailer, white lace dress, zombie fashion, zombie fashion shoot, zombies
I realize that these images barely scratch the surface of the “steampunk” look, but I’ve always been drawn by this style and really wanted to do a steampunk-inspired shoot. I have to give props to Catie Bartlett for shooting these with me! We had so much fun with the dark and whimsical theme, in a perfect, woodsy location, on a nice day in December.
2012, Alice in Wonderland, anna lee, Anna Lee Media, b&w, black & white, black and white, black lace dress, Blair Witch Project, branches, catie bartlett, combat boots, concept shoot, creative, creepy, dark, dead leaves, dead trees, differnt, dramatic, edgy, fashion, feather necklace, film, flip hair back, Forever 21, fresh, grainy, hi lo, hi-low dress, inspired, intense, leather jacket, light leaks, lightroom presets, long brown hair, magical, makeup, Model, moss, mossy ground, natural, natural light, okc, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, oklahoma model, old, original, outdoor, Photo, photo shoot, Photographer, Photography, Portraits, portratis, pose, rebelbelle, red lips, red lipstick, rough, scarey, scary, senior portraits, skirt, smokey eyes, spikes, steam punk, steampunk, studs, supermodel, Tim Burton, top hat, tough, unique, vintage, vintage tone, VSCO, whimsical, whimsy, wind blown hair, witch, witchy, woods, woodsy, woody
2012, 405, American Apparel printed shirts, anna lee, Bike Oklahoma, braid, bright colors, buffalo t-shirt, cardigan, cassie neahring, Chelsea Cope, Christa May, creative, crochet, curls, custom design, cute, designer, details, downtown, dramatic, Etsy, fashion, feather earings, floral dress, Foliage Accessories, fresh, fun, funny, girl model, guy model, hair stylist, hairdo, handmade, handmade bag, handmade hi-low dresses skirts, headband, jewelry, jumpsuit, laugh, leather earings, lightnight bolt necklace, local artists, local crafts, local model, local models, local shops, local stores, locally made, makeup, Massive Downtown, Massive Graphics Screenprinting, Meghan Fossey, Model, Nathan Winfrey, native american graphic design style, natural, natural light, necklace, Nëka Schultz, Norman, okc, Okie, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, oklahoma t-shirt, old, original, Out On A Limb Clothing, outdoor, owl t-shirt, Photo, photo shoot, Photographer, Photography, Portraits, pose, Presley Poe, pretty, red girl mohawk, retail, scarf, screen print, screenprinted dress, senior portraits, setup, smile, styling, stylized, succulent potted plant, sunflare, sunlight, suspenders guy outfit, sweatshirts, t-shirt scarf, tee shirt, Thunder gear, Thunder headband, Thunder t-shirt, Thunder tank top, tshirt, unique, urban catalog shoot, velvet turban, vintage, Westbrook tank top
2012, Angela Lee Owen, anna lee, b&w, backyard, black & white, black and white, candid, cooking, country, creative, cute, details, dinner, documentary, eat, fall, family, fun, funny, goofy, grandparents, hands, holiday, home, ironic, Kathryn Lee, kids, Lance Owen, laugh, leaves, Lesa Lee, lifestyle, Lightroom, Linda Davenport, love, LR3, LR4, Luis Davenport, Luke Owen, lunch, natural, natural light, okc, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, old guys, old men, original, outdoor, parents, personal, Photo, Photographer, Photography, play, playing in the leaves, Portraits, Rachel Lee, retro, Rodney Lee, smile, sunlight, Thanksgiving, throwing leaves in the air, turkey, unique, vintage, vintage tone, VSCO film presets, William Owen
I am so excited to finally announce the series that I’ve been working on for a looooong time, and the show where I will be debuting it! The theme is… wait for it…. ok, you already know- it’s zombies. Zombies meets high fashion, that is.
Brass Bell Studios will host a show opening for my conceptual editorial series, Zombies Are People Too, on Sunday, October 7th from 4:00pm- 7:00pm. Brass Bell Studio is located on the corner of NW 33rd & Villa in Oklahoma City. There is no admission cost, and the show will include a cash bar. After the opening, showings will be available by appointment during the month of October.
Check out the show website to watch the show trailer/sneak peek of one of the zombie shoots created by Andrew Sloat:
www.zombies-are-people-too.com
The idea was conceived years ago while doing a photo assignment for my fashion class. I made up my models to look like zombies to add some sort of creative interest in an otherwise very strait forward technical learning exercise. Since then, I’ve wanted to do an entire series, but take the time to do it right. It’s always been in the back of my mind. Last year, with the help of some awesome people, I decided to make it happen.
I’ve always been drawn to this dark aesthetic- kinda eery and creepy. I’m well-versed in B-horror movies, and Halloween is my favorite holiday. Obviously shooting weddings doesn’t really call for this style much (except of course in the case of the zombie engagement shoot), so when I have the opportunity to shoot photos with an edge, I’m very creatively motivated. I do however have an outlet in this realm when I’m working on some band promos or fashion shoots. (Now, I do want to clarify that the zombie aspect is truly meshed with fashion, so if scary movies aren’t your thing, rest assured that this will be fairly tame. Bloody/gory isn’t part of the vision in this case.)
For this series, I’ve worked with a handful of male and female models and the shoots take place in locations across Oklahoma. I couldn’t have done it without the help of Jessica Fulton, owner of Siren Beauty Lounge. She has been the makeup artist on the series, executing my vision perfectly! I’ve also worked with some fun and eager models who I’m excited to reveal at the show.
It has been a huge undertaking, but I’m extremely excited, and I think it will be the most personally important show I’ve done to date. Hope you can make it! Don’t forget to RSVP to the Facebook event!
2012, Alberto Roubert, anna lee, art show, artist, Brass Bell Studio, Brock Lay, Caitlin Sloat, cash bar, Chelsey Cope, Christa May, conceptual series, cool, creative, creepy, dark, design, designer, different, drinks, Evan Crowley, event, fashion, free, free art show, free event, free food, fresh, fun, funny, high fashion, Jessica Fulton, Lindsey Robinson, local, Model, morose, Music, NW 33rd & Villa, October 7th, OK, okc, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, opening, original, Photo, photo shoot, photo show, Photographer, Photography, Plaza District, Portraits, pose, project, promote, scary, show opening, show poster, Siren Beauty Lounge, things to do in OKC, unique, Zombies Are People Too
My beautiful sister Kathryn often ends up being my go-to model when I feel like shooting, whether I’m trying a new technique, idea, or just for fun. In this session, she shot a few of me as well!
And… one of me:
2012, Alien Bees, alternative, anna lee, artificial light, b&w, backdrop, bandeau top, beautiful, black & white, black and white, black flower hair piece, blonde curly hair, blue background, blue eyes, creative, cute, different, dramatic, fashion, fresh, gaged ears, grey background, Kathryn Lee, lip ring, Model, natural, natural light, okc, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, original, Photo, photo shoot, Photographer, Photography, picture, Portraits, pose, ring flash, romantic, self portrait, senior pictures, senior portraits, sheer shirt, sister, strobe, sweet, unique, vintage tone, winged eyeliner
RAW is an organization that hosts art shows in major cities across the country every month. I participated in OKC’s the second RAW show called Mixology. Thanks so much to every that bought tickets and came to support! I had a great time!
If you’re an artist looking for a venue to display your work, look at becoming a RAW artist! Even if you’re not in Oklahoma City, there may be one near you. Check out their website: http://www.rawartists.org/oklahomacity.
What makes them unique is the multi-sensory aspect they bring to the art show- featuring artists, musicians, fashion designers, models, hair and makeup artists, videographers, and more.
Click on the link below and find my name (#15) to see my video interview at the show!
Anna Lee RAW Video Interview
Blake Fischer:
My beautiful friend Caitlin participating as a model in the Nicole Moan ceramic corset fashion show:
2012, anna lee, art show, artistic, b&w, black & white, black and white, Blake Fischer, bokah, bokeh, bright colors, Caitlin Dodge Sloat, Caitlin Sloat, ceramic corsets, Concert, creative, Cristi Bergeron, cute, details, Farmer's Market, fashion, feather earrings, feather hair clip, feather necklace, field, fire dancer, flaming hulahoop, Foliage, framed, fresh, fun, independant, Jarrett Franklin, Jon Ervin, live, Mat Nicolin, Mixology, mobile walls, Model, Music, national, Nicole Moan, NYC, okc, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, opportunity for local artists, original, paper lanterns, Photo, Photographer, Photography, pose, RAW, red guitar, scene, stage, state, string lights, table, typewriter
On our way back from a wedding, Catie and I stumbled across a really neat abandoned property. We couldn’t resist checking it out! There were still all kinds of furnishings just left inside a few dilapidated buildings, now covered in vines and tall grass. Nature had completely taken over. It was really interesting! The photo of me was taken by Catie.
2012, abandoned, anna lee, b & w, b&w, Binger, black & white, black and white, catie bartlett, collapsing, country, dilapidated, empty, falling down, fashion, middle of nowhere, Model, natural light, nature, OK, okc, Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, old, old chair, old house, Photo, Photographer, Photography, Portraits, retro, senior portraits, sun glasses, sunglasses, tornado damage, unique, vintage tone, vintage tones
