My Favorite Model.

Well, it’s Sunday, and it’s a good day to think about the many ways in which I’m blessed. Since my little Google reminder to make a blog post popped up on me today, I thought I would share one of the blessings I’m thinking about. One of the most important things in my life has always been my family. My younger brother and younger sister are two of the greatest people I know. Over the past several years as we have grown up, we’ve also grown much closer to one another. It’s a truly amazing thing to realize that the little brother I used to play Legos and Barbies with and the sister we used to gang up on have grown into two adults, both unique and wonderful in their own ways, who are two of my best friends.

If you’ve met with me or had a shoot with me recently, you’ve either heard of or met my fabulous assistant Mariah. Well, today’s post is about the pink-haired one herself. Mariah’s my younger sister. She currently attends the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design where she is pursuing a degree in illustration and graphic design. She has always been an artistic person, much like my brother and me, but never seemed to have a strong interest in photography until she graduated from high school and requested an SLR camera as a gift that would be helpful in art school. I helped our mom pick out a Canon so she could use my hand-me-down lenses in the future. Last fall, I invited her to come along on a wedding I photographed and I was impressed. Even as a first-time shooter, over 40 of her images made it into the final DVD. I found out that my talented little sister was a very talented assistant! Since then, she has begun shooting with me regularly and learning all of the important duties of an assistant.

Mariah’s no stranger to being on the other side of the lens, though. Years ago, she became my favorite model when I began taking photography in high school. From the age of six she was always (well, almost!) willing to be my impromptu subject when I had an idea for a portrait. I thought I’d share a handful of fun images from our shooting escapades in this post.

This one is from Colorado, when Mariah and I traveled there in 2005 to attend the gallery opening of a show that featured one of my images at the Museum of Contemporary Art in For Collins, CO. We were exploring the mountains when we captured this image, which was also later featured in an art show in Appleton, WI:

Here’s one of Riah’s senior portraits, with her pet tarantula, Vicious:

Looking sassy in some cute stripes:

Her lips match her hair! Mariah’s hair has been hot pink for five years or so now:

Goofing off on vacation at the cabin in Minocqua, WI:

Manning the booth at the Milwaukee Bridal Show this past May:

To Riah: Thanks for all your help, sissy- you’re an awesome assistant and we’ll be sad to see you go when you return to school in the fall.Â