So I thought it was the perfect time to share her boudoir session with you guys.

K invited me to hang out with her for an afternoon while she was pitstopping in San Francisco on her honeymoon. What ensued was about two hours worth of playing dress up and whipping our hair back and forth (just kidding, I don’t have any hair. But K totally worked hers for the both of us.)

Happy Birthday, K!

xo,

Maddie

It’s been a while since we blogged a session, hasn’t it? Which feels crazy, because this summer has had Monica and I running all over the place. Shooting, shooting, shooting.

But as things slow down over the next few months, we’ll finally get a chance to share all the work we’ve been doing and the amazing couples we’ve been working with.

So for now, I give you Kate and Gabe. They got married in New Mexico a few weeks ago, but I had a chance to do their engagement session when I was visiting Monica in NYC a few months ago.

Umm… can we talk about the blow up zebra that was just hanging out in their house?!  We are kindred spirits, obviously.

I just couldn’t keep hiding it on my desktop.

Happy Friday from California, y’all.

xo,

Maddie

P.S. I’ll be back on the East Coast for a bit starting next week, and will be scheduling a few mentoring as well as a limited number of boudoir sessions while I’m out there. Contact me at mads@hartandsolphoto.com for more info!

Mentor sessions are $250 for 2-3 hours of consultation on how to improve your online presence including a website analysis, portfolio overview and branding.

Boudoir sessions start at $250.

As Jonas mentions in his recap, the end of the two-day workshop felt like the end of summer camp. I wanted to hang out with our attendees all week and form a photography co-op on the farm where we’d just hang out and learn from each other. But sadly, the fun did come to an end (if only temporarily). So, as I dropped Jonas and Mary off at the airport on Wednesday, I was suddenly left with half a dozen bagels (score!) and my thoughts.

And what I realized was this: for me, this workshop was about so much more than checking something off of my list. It was about creating something from nothing. CoLab started out as an idea, something Emily mentioned to me in passing. That idea turned into a concept (It should be three of us! We should ask this guy Jonas, who is this awesome photographer I’ve never met, but one time I e-mailed him to compliment his work and therefore I feel totally misguidedly confident about asking to join us!) Once we had Jonas on board (who originally said no, by the way. But thanks to that misguided confidence, was, um, coerced into saying yes. Or as he’ll tell you, cyber-bullied) we had a plan. And as each component of the workshop came together, it slowly turned into something real. We had a team. Then we had a website. Then we had a schedule. Then we had attendees. And suddenly it was a workshop.

Leading up to the workshop, it was hard explaining to Jonas and Emily why I wasn’t nervous. Was it because I was used to speaking in public? Was it because I’d gotten a new haircut and two new dresses and was sufficiently distracted from the seriousness of what we were doing? Maybe. But I think it was that for me, by the time the workshop rolled around and the food was ordered and the attendees were confirmed, everything that could have gone wrong, hadn’t. We had already pulled it off, before it even started.

Which I think is exactly the lesson I needed to learn. Because sometimes when you’re working towards a big scary thing, it can be so easy to get caught up in the imaginary figure you’ve got in your head that spells success. Our goals are often represented by numbers, which can make us feel like our success is able to be quantified. But if I learned anything this weekend, it’s that doing something, anything that feels like a reach, that is outside of your comfort zone, that challenges you to go beyond what you consider your capabilities, then you’ve already succeeded.

So when it was all over, and I was driving back to the farm and my bagels(!), I quietly congratulated myself with one of my favorite “Mean Girls” quotes and told myself, “Maddie, you did the damn thing.”

And I’m hoping everyone else in attendance did the same.

xo,

Maddie

So now that you’ve made it through my unintentionally sappy recap, you should also check out what Emily and Jonas had to say about the workshop, because theirs probably sound less like a self-help book than mine. And then you should click here and sign up for our newsletter to get updates on future workshops, including a rumored NYC CoLab experience coming soon!

I know, I know. “It’s 2012,” you snarkily remark.

As this is just a sneak peak and I’d hate to abandon you on a cliffhanger…lets just leave it at…this: there’s really nothing that can keep these two amazing people apart.

More to come, I promise. (“More” may or may not include carousels + ice cream.)

love, Monica

I know A through our mutual photography circles (she’s a super talented photographer too!) So when she signed up for a boudoir session, I was expecting someone who would at the very least understand what it’s like being behind the camera. What I was not prepared for was what a ridiculous model she’d be! I mean, I could tell you how amazing she was. Or you could just look.

xo,

Maddie

Well, I could not have been more delighted than when the lovely M. took me up on my offer.

I’ll be back later to tell you about the experience of working with this foxy lady (who, to my extreme excitement let me do her hair and makeup and outfit styling), but for now here are a few sneak peek photos to gawk at.

You’re welcome.

xo,

Maddie

But quickly we realized that the thing that would make Aubrae & Joel’s wedding special wasn’t going to be the accordion player, or even the amazing scenic tour of central park immediately following the ceremony.

No, What made this wedding special is how awesomely stripped down it is. This day was all about Aubrae & Joel, their guests, and the city. And that, friends, is magic.

Aubrae & Joel, you kick ass. But you already know that.

xo,

Maddie + Monica

Earlier tonight, I made a comment on Twitter about how I’d like to do more boudoir sessions. And not just regular boudoir sessions, but boudoir that really celebrates your body and your beauty as they exists right now. Or as Ang put it, boudoir that says, “You’re hot because you are”, not “You can look hot in spite of being you.”

But it’s one thing to talk about it and it’s another thing to put my money where my mouth is.

So, for one week only, I’ll be running a boudoir special. (In honor of my recent move to the Bay Area, and the amazing ladies that inhabit it.)

The Details

Book a boudoir session before January 13th and receive a discounted rate of $250 (reg. $400)

Each boudoir session with Hart & Sol West is custom created to reflect your personality and aesthetic. No cookie cutter poses here.

Travel within an hour and a half of San Jose, CA is included.

E-mail mads@hartandsolphoto.com for more information and to book your session today!

Above photos are from the very first boudoir shoot I ever did. (This may or may not be my sister).

xo,

Maddie

Monica and I are thrilled to finally be able to show you all the hard work we did last year. You see, up until recently our little operation was slightly overshadowed by the fact that we were both working demanding full-time jobs. But! With our recent bi-coastal departure, we are happy to let you know that half of our operation is currently unchained from her cubicle and now I am letting loose!

On blogging that is.

That’s right, you get to see all of our work from the past year. SO HOLD ON TO YOUR HATS.

At least it looks warm in these pictures, right?

(Secondary photography by: Muneeb Anwar Photography)

Anywho, moving on.

We had the distinct pleasure of photographing Liz & Josh’s amazing wedding in the Hudson Valley last spring. But what made their wedding even more amazing? Was it the horses? No. The beautiful setting? Nope. It was that these guys are legit cool kids. They work in the music industry for goodness sake. Talk about awesome.

So naturally, their wedding featured badass details like knuckle-rings, incredible food, and a playlist that would make L.A. Reid swoon.

Knuckle rings! I’m so jealous.

We have so much love for Liz & Josh and their amazing group of friends and family. Thank you for letting us take part in such an amazing celebration.

You guys rock.

But you know that.

xo,

Maddie + Monica