I only have good things to say about Kim + Ryan. Their energy and love for each other made this session easy as pie. I can’t wait to return to Portland for their October wedding.
I’ve moved!
Oregon,
You’ve taught me that there’s beauty in an untouched forest and therapeutic benefits to a night of solid rain. You’ve proved that there ARE families who grow their own vegetables and raise their own livestock. Cows really do live in some people’s backyards. And while I fought you long and hard, you won the battle and taught me the value of things like fleece coats, Birkenstocks and weatherproof boots.
Most importantly you provided me with a wonderful community to learn from and grow in, full of beautiful friends who truly made Oregon a place to call home. But California is calling and its time to jump back into the freeway grind with all my other L.A. lovers obsessed with consistent weather, taco trucks and a real beach (I still refuse to count the Oregon coast).
I’ll be seeing you again soon,
B
p.s. I am still traveling to Oregon for photo adventures! Stay tuned for possible session openings in October and July. If you are interested in hiring me for a wedding in Oregon, have no fear! I am very much available for travel.
{wedding} caitlin + kyle
A huge thank you to friend and partner-in-crime, Nathan Worden, for asking me to assist and, of course, a thank you to Caitlin + Kyle for sharing their beautiful wedding day with us.
{engagement} Kristina + Jamal
All I’m going to say is I could’ve photographed Kristina + Jamal for days. DAYS.
{tanzania} Lengasti. Day of Ceremony, part one.
On our third day in the village we were able to experience a new version of the Maasai female circumcision ceremony. Circumcision for both men and women in the Maasai culture is a monumental rite of passage. With village politics and new ways of thinking that are too complex for a short blog intro, the physical circumcision part of the female ceremony is no longer publicly allowed. However, the celebration still continues as a way to mark the girls into womanhood. The day begins with the slaughtering of cows for the ceremonial feast. Before the sun came up, we woke and walked to the boma to witness four cows slaughtered. In Maasai culture, cattle is everything — food, material, culture. Their lifestyle revolves around their cattle because their survival depends on it.
PLEASE READ:
There was a lot of hemming and hawing about whether or not I would post these pictures and, if so, how many. Some of these pictures may not be suited for those of you who could find yourself queasy. However, all of the pictures I have chosen to post reflect a beautiful tradition that has been carried out the same way for generations. I am so blessed that I was able to experience and photograph such a private and important ritual.
{tanzania} Lengasti at dusk
Lengasti has a stillness to it that I’ve never experienced before. A quick look towards the village before sunset and you’d think every one was tucked away into their homes. Walk through the village, however, and you discover many are still up and about, quietly working their way towards sleep. Cows are being tended to, men are finishing their gatherings and meetings, children are finding their way back home.
Lengasti is beautiful. The view from Lengasti — of both Mt. Meru and Mt. Kilimanjaro — is beautiful. But the people of Lengasti are what truly transcends any misconceptions or stereotypes about what a Maasai village is or should be. Walking around the village at the end of our first full day in Lengasti, I felt incredibly comfortable amongst strangers who spoke another language. So much can be said without language — with a touch to a child’s head, a wide grin, a solemn bow of respect.
{tanzania} lengasti school
The school in Lengasti village faces many of the same problems as other poor and rural areas of the world. There’s a lack of just about anything you could think of when it comes to a school — desks, books, water, chalk. Every year each child is supposed to receive 15, they’re lucky to receive 5. Items like pencils, uniforms and notebooks are the responsibility of the student and the family, many of which are too poor to purchase the items and are forced the send their children to school empty-handed. Hours away from the nearest city, Lengasti is considered very rural even to other Tanzanians, making it harder to find teachers who are willing to make the move and are qualified enough to teach.
Despite the lack of supplies, teachers, and funding, there are still children showing up for school every day. When speaking to some of the elders of the community, a lot of emotional weight goes into the idea of education. I think many of the members of the Lengasti community know that the condition of this school will greatly affect the generations to come. There is a huge desire to give the children of Lengasti a great education. But when all of the school funding comes from a national level and the entire community is too poor to make up the difference, where do you begin?
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