The blog!
Welcome to my blog! Here you will learn who I am: what I love, what I do, and what inspires me. This is a continuation of my story, and I hope eventually our stories will entwine.
I invite, nay, encourage you to connect through comments, facebook, or email. I look forward to our time together!

 

I believe:

Marriage is exquisite : God is bigger than the Boogie Man :            Love is Louder : Pie is the new cupcake : Muppets rule all

 

I value:

Community : Compassion : Honest narrative : My lovely clients :  Documenting life :  A man who cleans the bathroom

 

I swoon over:

Warm light : Clothbound books : Yellow shoes : A soulful harmony : Etsy’s handpicked homepage :  My superb husband

 

I pretend:

I’m a hobbit when I wear my weird awesome Vibram shoes          :  Good beer has no calories  : to have mad dance skills

profile image by Fat Orange Cat Studio
Twitt
twitter facebook rss

Grace & Co. | Newport Beach Family Portraits

May 17th, 2012

Family portraits are not my specialty. As my love for working with couples and artists grow, my focus has shifted significantly. However, it seems that every time I return to California, someone I love has created an adorable tiny human, and then I am weakened by the inevitable cuteness. I’m starting to wonder if my [...]
 

Family portraits are not my specialty. As my love for working with couples and artists grow, my focus has shifted significantly. However, it seems that every time I return to California, someone I love has created an adorable tiny human, and then I am weakened by the inevitable cuteness. I’m starting to wonder if my friends have all made a cute baby pact to lure me back to the West Coast. Instead, I hold myself over by doing sessions with said cute babies.

Last month, I had the pleasure of traveling home to photograph the wedding of a dear friend, which also provided a few sunshiney days to connect with other loved ones. Included in this group were great friends, neighbors, and prior wedding clients, Chris & Andrea… joined by their new, precious, sweet cheeked daughter. My heart melted into a happy puddle.

Meet Grace… and Co.

 

Grace is 100% a daddy’s girl. They call her Chris’ mini-me. But if her name is any indication, she will take after her mother in personality, as Drea is one of the most gracious people I have ever known. Grace was, no surprise, absolutely adorable, as well as a bit of a ham. When her parents paused for a kiss below, her face expressed what her mouth couldn’t yet say: “Excuse me. Attention please. I need one of you kissing each cheek, not each other. Thank you.”
No need to worry Grace. You quickly stole the show again. You always do. ;)

I miss and love you oh so much. Please come back to Boston in a few years to wow Grace with some superb fireworks!

Cheers,

Briana

 

 

 

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

Music Monday | Joss Stone

May 14th, 2012

  Joss Stone | Colour Me Free | Free Me Free Me   Today is a glorious day. In a few short hours, I will visit my surgeon to be freed from this annoying post-surgical splint, living out the rest of my crutchy time in a removable boot cast. This calls for songs about freedom… [...]


Posted in: Music Monday
Expand Close
| No Comments | See Full Post
 

 

Joss Stone | Colour Me Free | Free Me

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

 

Today is a glorious day. In a few short hours, I will visit my surgeon to be freed from this annoying post-surgical splint, living out the rest of my crutchy time in a removable boot cast. This calls for songs about freedom… and a good groove. You can be sure I’ll do my best awkward dancing this afternoon!

Cheers,

Briana

 

 

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

The Smidt Family | A reflection on experience & growth

May 11th, 2012

  This quote has danced in my head for weeks. Business is growing right along with my experience, my talent, and my confidence. As I find myself in the process of rebranding and restructuring, I can’t help but reflect upon the early years. That ongoing conversation with oneself, hand in hand with experience…  making a [...]
 

 

This quote has danced in my head for weeks. Business is growing right along with my experience, my talent, and my confidence. As I find myself in the process of rebranding and restructuring, I can’t help but reflect upon the early years. That ongoing conversation with oneself, hand in hand with experience…  making a habit of continuous reflection is key to growth.

Thinking back, I am thankful for the workshops, the advice given over steaming cups of tea, even the unrequested criticism from strangers. However, I can’t deny that it is my earliest clients who have the bulk of my gratitude. Those who believed in my abilities, as underdeveloped as they may have been. It is because of those people that I continued to work, to improve, and to nurture what has now become my passion.

Last month, I had the chance to revisit one of those former clients. They were my first large family to photograph. I admittedly walked away from that shoot learning more from my mistakes than my successes. However, they have always remained supportive… but I think that trait is in their blood. ;) It brought me great joy to spend another afternoon with this lovely family, and, in my own way, say thank you for believing in me.

Meet the Smidt Family:

 

Our afternoon in Old Towne Orange was colorful…in every sense of the word. ;) Their family shares a connection and a love for each others company that is becoming rare these days, and it is refreshing to be in the presence of that level of commitment. I frequently get a peek into their lives as Alison (the smiley lady rocking the awesome scarf) has become one of my dearest friends, most frequent Boston visitor, and occasional wedding assistant! However, I feel I found a new kindred spirit in lil Katie  (apologies now for her getting a few more solo shots than everyone else, I couldn’t choose)… if she and I were her age at the same time, I’m fairly certain we would have been unstoppable! To each and every Smidt: Thank you for stepping in front of my camera one more time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

Music Monday | The Soggy Bottom Boys

May 7th, 2012

  The Soggy Bottom Boys | O Brother, Where Art Thou? | I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow   My mind is a curious thing. To truly understand me, you must be willing to brave a trip down the rabbit hole! Allow me to use this song [...]
 

 

The Soggy Bottom Boys | O Brother, Where Art Thou? | I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

 

My mind is a curious thing. To truly understand me, you must be willing to brave a trip down the rabbit hole! Allow me to use this song as a means to provide a tiny peek into the ADD thought process that speeds through this crazy brain any given moment. :)

I sat at my laptop today with no clue what song I wanted to share. There is too much musical goodness floating around to narrow down. Sometimes a good distraction leads to the right answer, so out came the iPad, up popped Instagram, and then the following thought frolic came to be:

Ooooooh new comments…

          I should post a new picture of James as my hot nurse….

   I know I was joking about getting a picture of his bum, but I could use some entertainment!

…#thegreatbumchallenge…

              I’m kinda jealous that James has a much cuter rumpus than me…

James should lecture wearing only low rise jeans. His class attendance would be remarkable…

    I probably should get around to reading the Illiad like I told him I would…

                                 Or maybe I’ll just reread the Odyssey. It looks so pretty on my bookcase…

It’s been way too long since I’ve watched  O Brother, Where Art Thou….

        That soundtrack is amazing…

                 Why haven’t I posted anything from that soundtrack on my blog? ….

Soggy Bottom Boys. The Great Bum Challenge. Done and done….

 

If you tracked right along with me, we should hang out more. If you didn’t understand a word I just said, thank you for still loving me. ;)

Cheers,

Briana

 

 

 

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

And the winner is….

May 2nd, 2012

  Congrats Stephen Bayer! I knew in my heart that this would be the winner the moment I saw it, and the voters agreed. Your Pinhole Press prize is coming soon, I can’t wait to see what you do with it! This image is framed and ready to sit by my bedside to make me [...]


Posted in: Personal
Expand Close
| No Comments | See Full Post
 

 

Congrats Stephen Bayer! I knew in my heart that this would be the winner the moment I saw it, and the voters agreed. Your Pinhole Press prize is coming soon, I can’t wait to see what you do with it! This image is framed and ready to sit by my bedside to make me (and likely my nurses) smile.

Cheers,

Briana

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

Monday Morning | Lupe Fiasco

April 30th, 2012

  Lupe Fiasco | Lasers | I Don’t Wanna Care Right Now (feat. MDMA)   I Don’t Wanna Care Right Now (feat. MDMA)     I’m still on a high from Paul + Danielle’s wedding on Saturday. It was one of those nights where I spend hours grinning as I am reminded this is my [...]


Posted in: Music Monday
Expand Close
| No Comments | See Full Post
 

 

Lupe Fiasco | Lasers | I Don’t Wanna Care Right Now (feat. MDMA)

 

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

 
 

I’m still on a high from Paul + Danielle’s wedding on Saturday. It was one of those nights where I spend hours grinning as I am reminded this is my job. Every time I look at the sneak peek, my heart has a little dance party. ;) Between that, and the knowledge that this is my last chance to “dance it out” for at least a month, I had no choice but to share a little Lupe Fiasco. If this song doesn’t make you want to get up & move, you may be a distant cousin of the TinMan.

 

Cheers,

Briana

 
 
 

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

Prologue | Ashley + James

April 25th, 2012

Baby, I’m yours And I’ll be yours until the sun no longer shines, Yours, until the poets run out of rhyme In other words, until the end of time -The Arctic Monkeys       Cheers, Briana
 
Baby, I’m yours
And I’ll be yours until the sun no longer shines,
Yours, until the poets run out of rhyme
In other words, until the end of time
-The Arctic Monkeys
 
 
 

Cheers,

Briana

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

Music Monday | Young the Giant

April 23rd, 2012

Young The Giant | Self-Titled | Cough Syrup 04 Cough Syrup 1   This song seems to fit the day in every way. Dark, twisty, sad, and yet it makes me feel peaceful. Just what the Dr. ordered. Cheers, Briana


Posted in: Music Monday
Expand Close
| No Comments | See Full Post
 

Young The Giant | Self-Titled | Cough Syrup

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

 

This song seems to fit the day in every way. Dark, twisty, sad, and yet it makes me feel peaceful. Just what the Dr. ordered.

Cheers,

Briana

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

A Wee Bit Moore | Submit All the Memes! | Pinhole Press Giveaway

April 20th, 2012

I love humor. I smile or laugh almost as much as I talk, which, believe me, is a difficult feat. I think one of my greatest strengths in life is the ability to find light and humor in just about any situation. Life is often unkind and harsh, and many painful circumstances may arise, but we [...]
 

I love humor. I smile or laugh almost as much as I talk, which, believe me, is a difficult feat. I think one of my greatest strengths in life is the ability to find light and humor in just about any situation. Life is often unkind and harsh, and many painful circumstances may arise, but we can control how we choose to respond. A tendency towards wit and playfulness is undoubtedly a defense mechanism at times, though as far as coping habits go, I wouldn’t prefer any other. 30 years of seeking out hilarity has balanced out my education (both formally and and all those audited courses at the School of Hard Knocks), and produced the well rounded person writing to you now. I love a good debate, thrive on serious & genuine conversation, and have my fair share of dark and twisty… but I believe life is simply to complicated not to find balance by seeking out joy.

How fitting that the inspiration for this giveaway started as a joke. Many enjoyable and ridiculous moment in my life also started that way. Seeing Celine Dion live in concert, a roadtrip to Roswell with my college roommate, the epic Dr Mario tournament of 2004 …. those all started as an off-hand comment and evolved into some of the more hilarious memories of my life. So, I have learned to just roll with it. A few weeks ago, a sweet friend joked about creating a line of “Hey Tumor”  memes,  along the lines of the  adorable Ryan Gosling Hey Girl blog, but with far meaner quips than usual. This evolved into tumor related memes of all varieties, followed by the idea to make a competition with friends, and eventually opened up to everyone in my delightful, creative little world. Which brings us to the competition:

To bring a little light to my current dark situation, please join me in using the stupendous pairing of wit and pop culture, and send me your best surgery related meme! :) To make it fair, I have created an example using my favorite meme of all time (apologies to those who wanted to use this):

 

Get creative. Have a little LOT of fun. You can use an online creator, or photoshop your own, and I’m available by a slew of methods if you feel you need more info to perfect your creation. Please email all submissions to bmoore.photographer@gmail.com by Friday, April 27. The contenders will be voted on over the weekened, likely on my Facebook wall, and the winner will be announced shortly after surgery… via video. Which James will be recording during a hospital interview… while I’m still on my pain meds. Feel free to submit your own questions via comments. Good times and laughter for all.

For a bit of extra fun, the winner will receive a $25 gift certificate to Pinhole Press!!

Why Pinhole Press? I’ve had a hankering to do a giveaway with this company for some time. As a photographer who is obsessed with paper, I can’t help but swoon.  In addition to gorgeous products, I respect this team and the way they run their business…  thoughtful, kind, passionate, and just plain fun. Everything about this company makes me smile, so it just felt right to share a bit of joy in return for your efforts. :)    Please check them out and fall in love yourself.  Below is a few images of my most recent orders… there will be many more to come!

I’m looking forward to many laughs to come! Thank you for making this experience as happy as possible.

Tags / Categories / Comments

breaker

A Wee Bit Moore | Surgeries & Silver Linings

April 18th, 2012

Anyone who enjoys to read or write knows the importance of a good opening. This is something I struggle with the most when I blog. I sat here for a solid 20 minutes, staring at the screen, wishing for a witty way to segue into today’s topic, ignoring the fact that a problem with bad [...]
 

Anyone who enjoys to read or write knows the importance of a good opening. This is something I struggle with the most when I blog. I sat here for a solid 20 minutes, staring at the screen, wishing for a witty way to segue into today’s topic, ignoring the fact that a problem with bad news is that there often is no (appropriately) clever way to share it. That is what makes it so awkward, and in that nature, I’ll just say it… I’m having surgery in 2 weeks. I’m not happy about it. I stare at my ankle, shake my fist, and make my most intimidating face, but no silly gesture can change the facts. So… I vent. I look for the positive when I can. I ignore. Today, I write.

I have struggled with a giant cell bone tumor since before my move to Boston. Thankfully, it is not malignant, but comes with its own set of problems.  They are uncommon, and very little is known about these malicious little suckers. Essentially, they feed off of my bone. The best I can explain is to imagine if The Blob had a teeny tiny baby, which then decided to use my ankle as a crib… and just couldn’t stay away. This will be my 3rd surgery, which is an unusually high recurrence. It’s almost like my prior surgeries were the tumor leaving for college and then moving back in when it couldn’t find a job. But I digress…

In light of everything, there is much to be thankful for. James and I have found ourselves in the best possible situation. If life hands us lemons, we’ll try to squirt them over some lobster. ;) We were lucky enough to schedule the surgery and recovery time over May & June, when I mostly had vacations and workshops scheduled, so I am happy to report I will be back on my feet for the bulk of my wedding season! My surgeon has never seen it come back a 4th time, so we are hopeful that this will be the last time going through this ordeal.  Additionally, we were reminded over the last few weeks just how much our community here has flourished. The outpouring of support has been overwhelming in the best of ways!

A handful of additional silly silver linings:

1. James has agreed to finally watch LOST with me. He claims it’s a pity agreement, I think he is happy to have an excuse to give in to the awesome.

2. Offers of good home-coooked meals are building. As a foodie, I welcome this.

3. I wondered when I would have time to give my new branding and website all the love & attention it needed. Now I know.

4. All of my friends with boring office jobs will get to enjoy more distracting mid-morning conversations via Instant Messenger.

5. Because laughter is the best medicine, I’ve come up with a rather silly give away that will both lift my spirits and provide one lucky reader with something fun in return! Keep your eyes peeled for the full details this Friday!

 

Many thanks to everyone for your support! I look forward to the opportunity to connect more over the blog in the coming months. Lastly, because everything is more fun with a photo, here is a sneak peek at last weeks SoCal family shoot:

 

Cheers,

Briana

 

 

Tags / Categories / Comments

« Older Entries