I’m a huge craft beer geek. Lucky for me I live in the Northeast where there are some amazing breweries. We here in Maine are particularly blessed. One of my favorite breweries, Smuttynose, is just over the state line in Portsmouth, NH. They are in the process of building a new facility, but you can still take their awesome tour at the Portsmouth brewery. A fellow craft beer fan and I went to check out what they had on tap, and I brought along my camera to see if there was anything fun to photograph. Their tasting at the beginning AND end of the tour is well worth the small price of admission. It is basically limitless, and if you’re lucky they will have a small cask of something special for you to try. I definitely recommend checking out Smutty beers.

Two weeks ago I had the honor of photographing five amazing women at Salisbury State Beach in Massachusetts.  We were there to shoot promotional images for ReRe Pareo (hand painted silk scarves, sarongs, and pareos).  Sure, it was a bit chilly to be wearing bathing suits and flip flops, but the sun was shining and the sand was warm on our feet.  And I had on a nice woolly coat so I couldn’t really complain.  It was a great afternoon, and I can say without a doubt that these are some of the most fearless women I’ve had the pleasure of photographing.  Not too many woman want to have their pictures taken, especially when wearing a bathing suit.  But these ladies went for it and did whatever we suggested.  To say I was impressed would be an understatement.  Many thanks go out to these gorgeous models for working every inch of silk and beach!  Without their trust the photos would never have come out so well.  Thank you, models!

About a week after the shoot I received the following from Susan, the woman wearing the straw hat in the photo below.  As I read her note I kept thinking of how I was the fortunate one to have had such willing and fabulous models and that it was I who should have been writing thank you notes.  I guess it was just a love fest that day…  Here’s what Susan wrote:

“I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know what a pleasure it was seeing you yesterday.  Your help and support with the photo shoot was amazing.  Your ability to make people feel at ease as well as making them feel ‘beautiful’ is truly a gift.  The shoot was so much fun and you were certainly at the core of that.  Thank you for making me feel beautiful!”

I am very fortunate to have a custom designed silk scarf from ReRe Pareo.  I told Marie the colors of my bathing suit, and she created a gorgeous piece to put on my beach hat.  If you are interested in finding out more about these beautiful one-of-a-kind hand painted silk pieces, please contact Marie at rerepareo@comcast.net.   There is a ReRe Pareo Trunk Show at The Red Pepper Gallery in Chester, CT on June 25 from noon to 3 PM.  ReRe Pareo will be at the Summer Traditions Art Festival at the Brewster Academy in Wolfboro, NH July 22-24.  You can also find ReRe Pareo at the Bedford Craftworkers Guild Shop.  Check their site for hours as it is a seasonal shop.

It’s been 4 or 5 years since I last photographed a bar mitzvah.  I was a little anxious walking into Temple Israel in Portsmouth, NH.  Would I remember the terminology, the protocol, the standard poses, etc.?  And how would I find working with 13 year-olds again?  I am happy to report that it all went well.  My extensive experience with shooting bar mitzvahs came rushing back, and these kids (and their parents) were so fun.  Jordan and Alex probably asked me a hundred times if they could check the back of my camera to see how they looked.  I only caved once — as a general rule I don’t show people the camera LCD because it’s often not an accurate representation of the actual image.   But I know they are anxious to know how they looked so here’s an advance look at some of their pictures.

I’m excited to photograph their party tonight.  On my way out of Portsmouth, I drove by Strawbery Banke to scope out the Sperry Tent set up.  Looked awesome.  Can’t wait to see it all decorated in a couple of hours.

Knock ’em dead this afternoon you two!  You’re going to do great!