Rock and Roll Photo Shoot Prints

Here are a couple shots from my recent photo shoot. Looking forward to sharing more information with you soon. Prints available

Model: Bettina Martin
MUA: Bettina Martin

Hair: Anna Patten
Styling: Anna Patten
Guitars: Fender/Bettina Martin/Brian Green
Grip: Buzz Patten

Architecture & Works in the Works

Hello out there! I hope that this finds everyone doing well. Things have been pretty busy around here as of late. I have been doing more traveling, planning traveling and unpacking than I have in quite some time. I have been enjoying it to say the least. I love venturing out and exploring new places and things. If you follow my Instagram, you  have seen some of my adventures and you might have noticed my resurgence of architecture photos. It's been an awaking of sorts, a love affair so to speak. I have always had a love of beautiful buildings, but lately, I can't stop looking at and snapping them. There's something so beautiful in lines and design. My favorites seem to be the art deco style buildings and I have fallen in love with Frank Lloyd Wrights work. The way the deco and Wrights buildings were built is so terribly different from today's construction, and I am not just talking materials and such. I have been fascinated with the way that these buildings work with the movement of light. How they gently let it become part of their beauty. For me, its much more warm, more earthy, where today's construction seems to be cold. I love the flow of these buildings, where ascetic beauty is part of the experience instead of just form and function. Must be my old soul. Anyway, I could talk about this all day if you let me, so I will digress and move on to save you all the headache, lol.

I have some exciting works in the works and I can not wait to share it with you all. I am waiting on final confirmation before I do share, but its exciting none the less. A project I have been working on for years is about to see light. That's both terrifying and thrilling! So I have been rotating between bouts of  joy and high anxiety. Sometimes, being an artist is a whole gaggle of emotions and I don't quite know what to do with all of them. I am trying to just focus on the last minute things and save my excitement for the big day! I promise to share the deets as soon as I can!

Here's to hoping that this week has treated you right my friends and that this holiday weekend, will be just as wonderful :)

Anna
Artfully Odd

2016-Bring it On!

I am writing this today with a whole lot of love, joy and excitement in my heart. 2016 is almost here and I just can't wait for all it has in store! Just like a kid on Christmas Even excited! I am usually a pretty positive person, no matter what...but something about this new year has me pretty excited! I think I may know why. Given everything that we have gone through in the past few years, I finally feel like this coming year is my year! The possibilities are endless. I feel like I am standing on the edge of a bridge, waiting to bungee jump off it and for the first time ever...I wont scream, jump back or startle at the sight of the edge in view. I am just going to open my arms wide and free fall and laugh when I bounce back up!

So, what has brought about this change you may ask? Well, I am not sure if most of you will remember the kind of year that we had last year or not. Let me tell you, it was scary and hard and I cried a whole lot. There were so many decisions to be made that totally stressed us all out. Things to worry about that I didn't think I would ever have to to worry about. (Like making sure my will is all in order and my daughter was safe.) And from that, something wonderful happened. I know what's important now and most of all, who is important. I learned not to sweat the small stuff and to just try and go with the flow more. I learned that living life is more important than making plans to live it. Seize the day...seems so corny to say, but it is so very true. So this year, I am doing me, and our family and our life. I am going to try new things, see new sights and meet new people. I am going to do all of those things that I want to do and not worry about whether or not its a good idea. There will be no list making. There will just be jumping off the edge to see what happens. I learned a very valuable lesson. Life is a precious gift and I am done being scared and unhappy to any extent. So, let's get it started.

I will be taking steps to open my store again. It got derailed the first time, but this is the year. I will be booking more shoots this year. I am going to start taking my prints to craft fairs and building a real business. I will be spending my time with my loved ones the way I want. (Lori, we are going to take a page out of your book!) Adventure awaits!!! It awaits us all!

So, what more can I share my friends? If I had any piece of advice, it is to live in the moment. Be present. Put your phone down and open your eyes. Have a conversation with someone. Do something that terrifies you and will exhilarate you all at the same time. Love your family and be there for the friends that are there for you. Forget all of that bullshit that is the past! It will serve you no good now. Be kind to those you meet, for you never know what their path has been like. And finally, find joy! Be joyful! I wish you a very happy and healthy 2016 my friends!

Happy-Happy
Joy-Joy
Anna
Artfully Odd

Oh My Gosh, It's December!

My title says it all really! Where on earth did fall go? Looking back at my posts, I realize that its been some time since I jotted anything down here. I am sorry for that. Fall was a really busy season for us, including our vacation to Niagara Falls. We had such a good time and if you follow me on Facebook, you have seen what a lovely place it is via our photos. However you spent your fall season, I hope it was a good one! Now December is here!!! Can you believe it? We are currently busy getting ready for the holidays. We are looking forward to having a quiet and calm season with our daughter visiting shortly after. I am looking so forward to a calm end to 2015, (It has really been quite a year! The good and the bad.) and all that 2016 has in store for us!

On to artistic endeavors...I have been working on some new photography projects as well as taking on new photo shoots. Its been a lot of fun and I must say, the creativity that I am enjoying has been amazing. I have a new series in the works that I am really excited about! Can't wait to share it all with you. I was lucky enough to have just finish a fantastic shoot with the lovely Kim. She wanted to do something special to honor her family and I think the creative concept we came up with was pretty cool. I am sharing a few shots from the session here and I hope that you like the creativity that went into it. (On and ending note, Kim got permission from the church and the cemetery to be there and shoot photos there. We did this all with respect to her family as well as the other families there.)

Well, that's all for now. I hope that you are enjoying a wonderful week and wish you a lovely weekend!

Artfully Odd
Anna