Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA

Down at Mardi Gras this year, I had myself a ball & a biscuit of a time, soaking up sunshine, snappin’ away left and right, sippin’ on lemonade shandies, and stuffing myself with seafood (and po-boys) at every opportunity. A beautiful, blissful week of costumes, libations, friendship, and parading through my favorite streets and old haunts. I spent all of Mardi Gras day dressed head to toe as a rose garden, an homage to my time spent living in New Orleans, the city where I fully blossomed into my true self.

I drove home with not one, but two, full size king cakes in my passenger seat to prolong the sweet celebrations as long as reasonably possible, as well as a couple bags of fresh coffee beans from the French Truck. Now I’m able to wake up with a little taste of New Orleans from the comfort of my own home, at least for a little while.

Upon my return home after three weeks of traveling, I came to discover upon developing my film that my once-trusty point and shoot camera had been a little shaken up, maybe took one too many rough and tumbles, as mysterious black borders and lines unknowingly appeared across multiple rolls of film. At first glance of the negatives, I felt the onset of heartbreak as I realized some photos would be completely lost to time. I paused, took a moment and some deep breaths, and allowed myself to embrace the abstract framing and the creative decisions it allowed me to make with my final photos, lending a hand to the creativity and freedom that bleeds out of the soul of the city of New Orleans.

I’m learning from this as it’s a beautiful little reminder to always be present in the moment and to remember that life ain’t always perfect. It’s not always gonna be what you expect. It’s a little rough around the edges, and you’ve gotta embrace the beauty inside of what you do have and are able to experience.

Laissez les bon temps rouler, they say!

until next year ~

xo

SS18 Lookbook for Original Fuzz

I recently shot the fresh, mod-inspried lookbook for the Spring Summer 2018 Collection: Modern Vintage & The Reclaimed Series for Original Fuzz
 

LOOKBOOK

models: Rachel Wayne (The Daily Bloom) & Justin Landis (Western Medication)
flowers:  The Daily Bloom
styling: Electric Thread
photos: me

Diet Cig x Bristol Live

Back in the fall, Diet Cig was the cover stars of Bristol Live magazine, based in Bristol, UK. 

READ THEIR FULL INTERVIEW HERE!

Alex and Noah, DIET CIG

Cut Worms x POND Mag

Cut Worms recently did an "interview" with POND MAG in the style of a playlist, my photo is included from an afternoon during SXSW in Austin, Texas.

"I love film and television. Throughout my life, it has often been through these mediums that I've been introduced to a lot of the music I love. In high school I used to rent movies from Blockbuster all the time and watch them in my basement and sometimes play guitar and write at the same time. I got really into David Bowie after I saw Wes Anderson's The Life Aquatic for the first time. I delved into girl groups and early Rolling Stones records after watching Scorsese's Mean Streets. Lately I've been really interested in how music is a huge source of power in film and TV. The music often makes the film or show and, in my opinion, doesn't usually get the lion's share of credit." 

- MAX CLARKE

HEAR THE FULL PLAYLIST HERE!

Five Years of #SXSHESHREDS

“Those who have ever been to a She Shreds show before know the drill: community first, everyone is welcome, and no one is “good for a girl”, they’re just good. Fans and musicians come to our shows to be surrounded by people they love and look up to in an environment that in other contexts might be controlled by corporations. This necessity to be surrounded by an alternative yet necessary perspective on the music industry, one that celebrates diversity and identity is what fosters the spaces that She Shreds creates—no one can stop us from honoring that.”

— Fabi Reyna, Editor in Chief, She Shreds

I'm honored I was able to be a part of the She Shreds SXSW experience this year. I was involved with the one two years ago, as well, but this one was especially... special. Originally, the day was supposed to be at a space called Kinda Tropical - an old gas station convenience store turned cafe and small local market with cool teas, local beers, iced coffee on tap, and breakfast tacos. Everything was beautiful - the aesthetic could not have been more ideal and She Shreds had swagged up the place with decor, merch, cacti, banners, prayer flags, gender neutral bathrooms, and a breezy little stage on the back patio. The sun was beaming, and Shamir took the stage as I sipped the first few sips of my extra strong, bone chilling iced coffee as I began to shoot photos for the day.

And then... barely 30 minutes into the set, cops appeared and began roaming around the scene, eventually shutting us down due to a double whammy of overcapacity and unknown lack of a permit from our venue. Everyone lingered around like "Whaaat" for about the length of time that it took to make some phone calls, secure a new location, pack up all the merch, the gear, and relocate EVERYONE - the whole dang crew of show-goers and show-players. The Sahara Lounge saved the day in under 45 minutes. The show must go on!

Everyone packed into the teeny tiny super cozy bar that smells of old (and new) Lonestar beer. Like 500 bodies. A whole community. We were still all in this together, no one was letting anyone give up. The bands played on, and the day evolved into it's own beautiful success story. I was there to document the whole dang thing and I'm happy to share my photos of #SXSHESHREDS with y'all. 

FULL STORY AND ALL PHOTOS HERE!

Thanks for reading, see you out there next year!

xo, Emily

French Vanilla

French Vanilla

Speedy Ortiz

And to close this out, here's me, fresh faced and super stoked to shoot the full day ahead!