Summer Skin

Squeaky swings and tall grass
The longest shadows ever cast
The waters warm and children swim
We frolicked about in our summer skin

I don't recall a single care
Just greenery and humid air
Then Labor Day came and went
And we shed what was left of our summer skin

On the night you left I came over
And we peeled the freckles from our shoulders
Our brand new coats so flushed and pink
And I knew your heart I couldn't win
Cause the seasons change was a conduit
And we'd left our love in our summer skin

-Death Cab for Cutie

 

Summer is a time of the year for me that represents the peak of all things light, alive and free. As a child those gorgeous July nights were so long and overflowing with promise. We stayed out past sunset with friends, catching fireflies in jars. We would escape to the beach on weekends, or (because my parents were also feeling that summer freeness) we would take off for a few days during the week and head down to the shore.

At the end of August we always vacationed at least two weeks in Rhode Island, and did nothing but live, sleep, breathe, eat the beach. Salty skin and hair, sunburns and freckled noses, clamming and muscle foraging on the rocks. We would spend hours in the salt pond collecting shells and catching crabs. We never ever left the beach before sunset. It was, and still is my mother's favorite time on the beach. (And therefore mine as well). Everyone packs up and heads home, the waves calm a bit, the seagulls pick up the scraps families left behind and the water almost feels warmer than the air.

This time of the day at this time of the year for me symbolizes change; the embracing what lingers of that sweet summer light that dapples in our hair and on our bronzed skin, the freedom of all that screams summer. And it is, for me, a time to be documented.

If you are called to it; if you too yearn for those long summer days and feel that same heart ache when late-August creeps on in on you because you know that September is just around the corner and it' s a sort of bittersweet ending to the most beautiful time of the year, then you will want to keep in touch with me, I promise.

The Beautiful Woman Sessions

"A consequence of female self-love is that the woman grows convinced of social worth. Her love for her body will be unqualified, which is the basis of female identification. If a woman loves her own body, she doesn't grudge what other women do with theirs; if she loves femaleness, she champions its rights. It's true what they say about women: Women are insatiable. We are greedy. Our appetites do need to be controlled if things are to stay in place. If the world were ours too, if we believed we could get away with it, we would ask for more love, more sex, more money, more commitment to children, more food, more care. These sexual, emotional, and physical demands would begin to extend to social demands: payment for care of the elderly, parental leave, childcare, etc. The force of female desire would be so great that society would truly have to reckon with what women want, in bed and in the world."

-Naomi Wolf, The Beauty Myth

 

When I asked Terisa why she wanted to do this session with me, she simply responded,

"I just turned 35 years old, and I don't think I've honestly ever felt more secure with myself and my body. And I want to remember exactly how I feel, right now. This is my birthday gift to myself."
 

My heart and soul goes out to all of the beautiful women out there who have worked hard to take their power back and to love themselves against all opposing factors. We aren't necessarily trained to comfortably embrace our sexuality; our wild, our fire. Being true and honest and unforgivingly authentic isn't always made easy for people, women especially. We are scorned for it; accused of being selfish or made to feel less-than because of it. I applaud you all, and I encourage you to answer those calls when they come.. you, your daughters, and everyone around you deserve that version of you. And if ever you want to document it, you know where I am. 

xo


#thebeautifulwomansessions

Louis // 4 mois

Quand on a la privilège et la chance de photographier les clients plusieurs fois dans un period de leurs vies si précieuse que comme juste avant et après d'avoir eu un bébé, on réalise pourquoi la photographie est si important. Je suis tellement ému par cette belle petite famille; leur histoire d'amour et leur chemin de devenir une famille de trois. Quel honneur d'avoir été choisit pour immortaliser cette belle period de leur vies. 

When given the privilege and the chance to photograph clients multiple times during a period of their lives as precious and magical as just before and after having a baby, you realize why photography is so important. I am so moved by this beautiful little family; their story of love and how they came to being a family of three. What an honor to have been chosen to capture, to freeze in time, this beautiful period in their lives.

Merci tellement Anne et Joe de m'avoir fait confiance. xoxoxo

Michelle & Gaston // Engagement, Quebec City

Last Friday morning I was sitting at home working and I got a text from my girlfriend and fellow photographer and event planner, Melanie. 

"Jenn tu serais dispo pour me remplacer pour une séance à 4:30 aujourd'hui avec une couple de Miami? On est malade.. La famille au complet... "

She, her financé and the kids all had come down with a terrible flu/stomach bug and she wasn't going to be able to make a shoot she had scheduled with a couple visiting from Miami! They were only here for two days, and had just gotten engaged while here! I live 3 minutes from the Chateau Frontenac, where they were staying and so of course I said I could do it for her. And I am so glad I did.. Michelle and Gaston were soooo much fun to shoot! Super laid back and hilarious.. Gaston even helped pull me out of the snowbank when I fell thigh deep into it while shooting them up on Terrace Dufferin that overlooks the promenade and Saint Lawrence. We all had a good laugh, thankfully my cameras were ok! 

We walked around Old Québec for an hour, and made it back to the hotel just in time.. because it started POURING as soon as I walked back out to get to my car! I just love when things work out like that.. sweet serendipity.

Congratulations Michelle and Gaston! Wishing you both much love and joy in the years to come..

bébé Louis // nouveau né

2 semaines et demi, un mois après que j'ai photographié sa maman et son papa pour la première fois, j'ai eu la chance de rencontrer le beau Louis. Une belle séance chez eux, juste après une grosse tempête, dans le confort de leur maison on a capturé ces moments si précieux et brefs de cette belle aventure appelé 'la vie'. 

Bienvenue au monde, Louis.. xoxo

2 and a half weeks old, one month after I photographed his momma and papa for the first time, I had the chance to meet the handsome Louis. Just after a huge snow storm we had a beautiful session in the comfort of their home, capturing these precious, fleeting moments of this beautiful adventure called 'life'. 

Welcome to the world, Louis.. xoxo