Diana, Asian Princess

If you were a Princess would you look like this?

What little girl hasn't dreamed of being a princess, a jungle queen or a geni in a bottle?  

Let's be honest, does it matter what age you are?  Nope.

You don't outgrow this stuff.  Whether you are 5 or 55 some things stay the same.  Girls crave dress up and the feeling of being someone else.  If we put on different clothing and accessories we are transported and feel like an entirely different being.

So what happens when we acknowledge our hidden princess and invite her out to play armed with the coolest accessories we could find?

We asked Diana Cullen to do just that and model in an Asian Princess inspired shoot.

Our hair and makeup artist, Donna Devlin, transformed Diana from a young Mom and chef who just dropped off her son at school, to a very fetching maiden. Diana was a good sport as we used everything on her; wigs, and pounds of jewelry, miles of fabric, several pairs of eyelashes, lots of eyeliner and if that weren't enough we stuck crystals and clamps on her and then we marched her outside....

And guess what happened?  

This quiet and beguiling woman lit up the grounds.  A gust of wind whipped her thin veil into the air and it trailed behind her like a traffic sign reading, "Nobility ahead."  She clasped on one ankle bracelet after the next so when she walked the tiny bells chimed and when the sun hit the breast plate of jewels it nearly blinded the neighborhood. 

Yet unaware of her allure she went into character without missing a beat and slipped in and out of a zillion subtle poses that made our cameras cry. 

The cameras couldn't stay away from her.  

I won't tell you Diana's secret, but if her face looks familiar it's because you've probably seen it in a glossy magazine.  Yep, she's a card carrying certified hottie and certainly didn't need all this fanfare to draw attention to herself.

Some of these images make my heart ache.  They are just positively gorgeous and will go in my personal collection of all time favorites.

This one above, has a filter on it giving it a look of a finely sketched drawing. LOVE.

Here is a low resolution VIDEO (here) from the shoot.

For a higher res VIDEO (720p)  
click here --->  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THUSIE3aUOI

Thank you Diana, for being the graceful and alluring woman you are, we'll probably always think of you  as our Asian Princess. We loved having you model for us!  And Donna, magician that you are, we love having you work with us. You are a great asset to Pretty Muse.

Stealing makes me sad.  This work is protected under copyright law and no portion of our work may be used or reproduced without our written permission. All rights reserved. (c) 2011

Links:
Diana Cullen:  www.cullen-arycreations.com
Donna Lynn Devlin:  www.donnadevlinhairandmakeup.com
Pretty Muse:  www.prettymuse.com
Also find us on Facebook!

Please note:  Linifotto is becoming Pretty Muse, we are still the same company but felt this name represents our brand much better.  Feel free to visit both Facebook pages for more galleries of our work.  The Pretty Muse website is currently under construction and you will be re-directed to this blog until it's complete.

A word about the music. Cheb Khaled is a VERY famous singer on the other side of the planet. Sadly, most, ok, many, westerners know very little about music outside the US, so I'm very happy to share this song, Aicha. 
Here, the lyrics in English, translated from French.

As if I did not exist,
she passed me by
without a glance
Queen of Saba, I said
"Acha, take: all is for you".
Here the pearls, jewels,
Therefore gold around your neck,
the quite ripe fruits with the honey taste
My life, Acha, if you like me.
I will go where your breath carries us out
In the ebony and ivory countries.
I will erase your tears, your sorrows.
Nothing is too beautiful for one so beautiful.

Oooh, Acha, Acha, listen to me.
Acha, Acha, please do not go.
Acha, Acha, look at me.
Acha, Acha, answer me.

I will say the words of the poems.
I will play the musics of the sky.
I will take the rays of the sun to light the eyes of a queen.

Oooh! Acha, Acha, listen to me.
Acha, Acha, please don't go.





Keywords:
Keywords: linifotto, pretty muse, pretty muse photography, beauty and the beach photography, beauty & the beach photography, photography, Stuart, Stuart, Florida, treasure coast, martin county, florida, martin county florida, jensen beach, psl, port saint lucie, tradition, hutchinson island, beach, asian, fantasy portraiture, women in photography, new ideas for women in portraiture, fun portraiture, diana cullen, diana cullen-ary creations, donna devlin, donna lynn devlin, donna devlin hair and makeup, hmua, stylist, branding, promotional photography, new photography business, sari, bollywood, Aicha, khalid, cheb khalid, pop rai, fantasy portraiture video, 

Sneak Peek - Asian Princess Diana

Meet the lovely Diana Cullen who modeled and played the Asian Princess we asked her to portray for the Pretty Muse cameras. As soon as our stylist tied the first sari around her she seemingly stepped off into a land and time most of us have only dreamed of. But see for yourself in an upcoming post, soon!

I feel the need for incense...

Keywords: linifotto, pretty muse, pretty muse photography, beauty and the beach photography, beauty & the beach photography, photography, Stuart, Stuart, Florida, treasure coast, martin county, florida, martin county florida, jensen beach, psl, hutchinson island, beach, asian, fantasy portraiture, women in photography, new ideas for women in portraiture, fun portraiture, diana cullen, diana cullen-ary creations, donna devlin, hmua, stylist, branading, photography business, donna devlin hair and makeup artist

A Woman 2.0?

A small addition...(Rocker version video)
http://animoto.com/play/pSI3bWZMSRRn3HmwNc90jw

Thank you everyone for hitting this blog HARD guys!!!  Thank you!!  Check out the 'rocker' version of Donna Devlin on the link above.

Thumbnails in Aperture

A Woman

There is definitely something special about Donna Devlin. Not only do daisies sprout from her very toes as she walks, she's seems to have her engine finely tuned for just about anything. And she makes it all look effortless.

She's 42, lives in PSL, Florida and has a very full life.  One of the things I like about Donna is her 100% presence. When she's with you, she's with you. Yet, she's got 15 things going on at any given moment.

She joined us for the first time last month for our Petal shoot with Sami.  She did a great job as our HMUA and she fell into the shoot like a veteran. Instinctively she knew when to grab a reflector or eyeliner and keep running, equally she knew when to pause the shoot to fix a flaw that would mean hours later in post.

So when she told me she's never been photographed I couldn't help but invite her for a simple 'character' shoot. Its a shoot designed to show the person's personality. We get them to warm up to the cameras and show their personality. Easier said that done.  So, she packed her trunk for the shoot, as instructed with all kinds of stuff, and like Mary Poppins' she presented a 'billowy skirt', a 'cool pair of cowboy boots', a 'cozy sweater', an 'interesting piece of jewelry' all on command. Good job!

I'll risk making a tall statement and say that she is what most women want to be when they grow up.  She can juggle a full house with kids and school and sports and soccer games and a rocker husband, her own business or and even those P90X Workouts! (good grief woman!)

She's got the right mix of ambition, mischief, delivery, fairness, sensousness, strength, playfulness and curiousity all mixed together.  She's, she's...for lack of a better term, a woman, aged to perfection.

She delighted and charmed us with her energy and being so wonderfully comfortable in her own skin. Its refreshing to see someone happy to be who they are.

Later when I got home and went through the images I marveled at the ease with which she let us in.
We get a strong sense of who she is, we can see it written all over her. Yet, we don't have her all figured out.

Nope, not this woman. You'll never figure her out. Women will aspire to be more like her (have you seen her arms?) and men? Well, they'll aspire too.  :)

I'll paraphrase from 'Women who run with wolves'... you are just you for today, tomorrow and all it's tomorrowness is another day. You don't know where you'll be or who you'll be. But for today dance in the moment, revel in the pleasure of being you.  There is only one you.  No other creature has ever walked on this earth like you. No other woman walks like you, smells like you or smiles like you.  It would seem Donna wrote the book. :)

Be sure to check out the video.  :)

Please note Linifotto is going to be officially changing the name to Pretty Muse. Website and Facebook links are currently under construction.  So don't forget "Pretty Muse".  It's a better fit, right?


Links:
Linifotto on Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pretty-Muse-Photography/248423378531826?sk=wall
Pretty Muse on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pretty-Muse-Photography/248423378531826?sk=wall

Donna Devlin Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000944132998

Donna Devlin Hair and Makeup website  http://www.donnadevlinhairandmakeup.com/

keywords:  linifotto, linifotto photography, beauty and the beach photography, pretty muse, pretty muse photography, be the muse, model mayhem, stuart florida photography blogger, stuart florida, stuart, florida, treasure coast, treasure coast florida, martin country, martin county florida, stuart blogger, stuart blog, stuart florida blogger, stuart florida blog, treasure coast blogs, new blogs, fresh photography, girlie photography, new portraiture, stuart photographer, stuart photography blog, sami roth, samantha roth, mediary, kiss & makeup, port st. lucie makeup artists, MUA, HMUA, jensen beach, donna devlin, donna devlin hair and makeup

When a woman is a Woman

Some people are effervescent. Some just prance around life with an extra amount of zing. This one, Ms. Donna Devlin, yes the very same Donna who did that amazing makeup job on the Petal Look, got in front of our cameras to feel what it's like being the subject of all that attention.  She tells us she's never done this before.

Reeee-ally?!

She was looking extra fabulous, full of energy and it was all we could do to keep her feet from, well, er....you'll see.

The big video reveal on Wed, followed by a blog post of what its like working with this special woman. Yes, Donna you are definitely a rock star. 

The Petal Look Post

Part 1 

The Goal:  Branding photographs for Linifotto 

The Look:  Vivid colors, strong, impactful, energy, cheeky, whimsey and always girlie

Words that describe our brand:  Feminine, intimate, slightly moody and complicated, muse worthy

CREDITS: (See their links below)

Model:  Sami Roth

HMUA:  Donna Devlin

Styling:  Linifotto and Sami Roth and Donna Devlin

Winner!!!  This is everything I wanted in a promo picture. Strong, Feminine, Cheeky, Energy, Vivid.  Right on the money!  I can envision a banner across my blog with this image.  Sami, you make this look so easy. 

I have to comment on the makeup. It truly merits attention. Even though Sami is a professional MUA, (Makeup Artist) we brought in another professional, Donna Devlin, HMUA (Hair and Makeup Artist) from Port St. Lucie, to make a crazy day better for Sami.  

Donna certainly had a big job on her hands, this was NOT an easy first assignment. Makeup for this kind of shoot has got to be impeccable. This was the SUPER tight shooting. This girl came to rock this shoot and she totally nailed it. Amazing work!

Donna doing her artistry on Sami.

Doing makeup for commercial professional photoshoots and the private sector (like weddings) are part of Donna's regular work schedule and she sailed through our shoot like what I'd imagine a NYC runway HMUA would! I actually kinda fell in love with her. Totally.  Find Donna Devlin by clicking her links below. (And tell her what you think about orange eyeshadow.)

Tiny commentary (That was weird, it's my blog. It's all my commentary. No eye rolling!)  So could  orange eyeshadow be the new black?  Like, why wear black or brown on your eyes when you can wear orange, right?  Work with me, so just go ahead and shave off one of those silk flowers in your kitchen and be-petal yourself.

You know the line, "that a butterfly can flap her wings in South Africa and end up causing a mud slide in California", so you can imagine what effect those petalled eyes might have on the course of mankind. Your batting lashes might save the world in 2012.  Yes, I think I'm on to something here.

OM-gee, ok?  I friggen love this album art feel in the finishing.  I'm so glad I get to do this all the time, there is absolutely nothing I'd rather do.  I've waited most of a life time to do it. 

Ode to Mariah:  Girl, this is a killer mask you made.  Sooo wish you could have been here for this.  And while I'm ode-ing; ode to Manny Librodo and Hilde Marie Johansen, favorite photographer and stylist. Find links to their work below.

 

Note: Stealing makes me sad. 

All photography herein is the sole property of Linifotto and may not be copied or used without my permission. But ask me! :) (c) copyright 2011

This shoot was a total success! I'm very happy, I got exactly what I wanted. It was awesome to work with Sami again, you never cease to amaze, you are definitely muse material!  Donna Devlin, where have you been all my life?  Love, love your artistry. You paid such careful attention to my slightest direction and concern. You are a professional par none!

I've saved this green one for last.  

LJ Masty Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/lj.masty
Linifotto Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Linifotto/150738844987356
Donna Devlin Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000944132998
Donna Devlin Hair and Makeup website  http://www.donnadevlinhairandmakeup.com/
Samantha Roth Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1012745442
Samantha Roth Kiss & Makeup Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kiss-Make-Up/119752024747190
Manny L. Librodo, extraordinary photographer, Facebook Link  http://www.facebook.com/manny.librodo
Manny Librodo, (huge library of work here)  http://www.pbase.com/manny_librodo
Hilde Marie Johansen, who styled the image that inspired this shoot and so much conversation, Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/hilde.m.johansen
Mariah Janbou  http://www.facebook.com/mariahjanbou



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Sneak Peek on the Petal Shoot

You swooned when you saw this face, didn't you?
It's ok. 
You TOE-TELLY swooned!

I saw you.

Full post coming up!

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