Adventures in LED Hula Hooping
My friend Rachel recently took a hula hooping class in Berkley or Oakland or something, where she learned a lot of hula hoop dance techniques, fun tricks, and eventually did a routine where she set her hoop on FIRE! Rachel kicks ass, yo.
Anyway, we were out seeing her boyfriend Carl's band Level 12 play at a jet ski competition out near Angel's Camp. She brought her (and quite possibly my) new favorite toy, the light up LED hula hoop.
Mark had his camera at this show, so he had the opportunity to take some great shots, and I'm excited to show them to you now!
Oops, dropped it!
This is the result of a .77 second exposure of standard waist hooping. The LEDs change color at an interval of a few seconds, and you can really see where the hoop goes most by the areas where the lighting gets brighter.
A one second exposure of some basic handwork.
Another angle of pretty handwork.
A 5/8 second exposure, this one just looks super trippy.
The guys even had a shot with the hoop, this thing was really the hit of the party. We were on the shore of the reservoir, so there was plenty of room for people to move about safely.
It got a little harder to keep a strapless bathing suit top up when I started getting more into it! Time for a tank top and some faster paced hooping.
Rachel showing us how it's really done!
It looks like she's made herself a ball gown from light trailers. The move she's doing is one of my favorite, and I actually learned how to do it a little last night!
Did I mention that an hour of consistant hula hooping will burn around 600 calories?
More handwork, but at a very pretty angle. 1 second exposure.
Pop those hips, beezy! Heck yeah, this is my absolute favorite move right now, but I haven't quite figured it out yet. Look at the angle at which she has the hoop spinning, it's pretty much 45 degrees. She leans back into the hoop, and hops while popping her hips forward. It takes quite a bit of coordination, but I'll get it eventually.
Putting her hands in and out of the rotating hoop through the openings while it spins.
Can I tell you how much I love this thing?
Figuring out the trick Rachel showed us earlier. You pass the hoop around behind you until there's a little momentum, then spin it around your palm as you lean out in front of yourself.
The yarn ball of lights, if you will, is me successfully spinning the hoop in front of me for a few, then starting the rotation back around me. 2.3 second exposure.
More dresses made of lights for Rachel.
This is the trick I was trying to learn when I showed myself dropping it earlier. It makes an INCREDIBLE effect with the exposure set as long as it was; 6.7 seconds. Awesome picture, Mark, really.
So this move begins by rotating the hoop around your midsection, and placing your hand at the small of your back. The complicated part comes when you simultaneously put your free arm through an opening in the rotation and pull up on the hoop with the hand on your back. Then, to complete this move successfully, you rotate the hoop around your palm in a seamless transition.
Easy? No. Beautiful? Yes.
One more pretty one of some angled handwork.
What do you think? Looks pretty cool, right? Leave me a comment with your thoughts! Wanna try sometime?
The First Two Sugar Snap Peas
They may look small, but let me tell you, these were the most exciting thing to happen to me all week!
I couldn't believe that when I thought I had only two peas on all the vines, I moved some things around and there were these lovely fellows. At that point, they weren't quite so plump.
A few days and some good waterings later, they filled out nicely to these lovely, full pea pods. The best part about sugar snap peas is the crunchy pod, so I was glad to see they were meaty and waxy - sure signs of moist beans.
We had company, so I actually dissected each bean so we could all have half of one, but I was so pleased with my half bean! They were sweet, oh man. And Crunchy! Yum yum, I can't wait for the rest of them to grow grow grow!
Hair Modeling - February 2008 - Rachel and Samantha
Early this year, I had an audition with my Matrix managers. I needed to put together a color design presentation that would show them I was worthy and capable of becoming a Master Artistic Educator.
My friends Rachel and Samantha were great models! They were both willing to let me do pretty much whatever I wanted, and the designs turned out gorgeous.
Both colors had diamond shaped panels of peek-a-boo color in the back of the head that made itself more visible as the hair moved. I cut soft textured layers that exposed a bit of this color, allowing just a hint of what was there to show through when the hair was down.
Both girls were excellent models, and we had a great time shooting! Also, the audition went well, and I'm currently in the process of training for my Master Artistic Educator position. Thanks again ladies!
Hair and Jewelry Modeling - June 2008 - Courtney
My friend Courtney and I decided to do a day's worth of modeling recently. We spent most of the day running around, getting fun outdoor shots.
This is an overpass walkway near my apartments which connects my street to the street on the other side of the freeway. The lighting is always great up here later in the day, since we're way up in the air.
I liked how the curls in this half-up style show off the definition in color caused by Courtney's highlights and lowlights. I accented her blonde pieces with a rich warm brown tone, adding contrast and depth.
This view shows the different sized curls, the larges made on a 1 1/4" curling iron, the tiny ringlets made by spiraling small sections onto a metal tail comb and then lightly pressing with a flat iron while wrapped around the comb end. This creates the effect of a tiny curling iron barrel.
This location really was fun to shoot. We had the space to ourselves, and it overlooks not only the freeway but a section of pretty trees as well. I love the contrast between industrial and natural.
Earlier in the day, we shot at the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden. The light was a little harsh, but I still managed to get some pretty shots. Here's Courtney with my favorite roses in the whole garden, an ivory and peach tone blend. So pretty.
The great thing about the rose garden is that there are so many textural backgrounds to shoot against. I love the contrast of the hard brick against the soft lines of the upstyle.
Fun and playful ends poking out from between the curls lighten up the seriousness of this style. Swooping angles create lift and visual movement, and a little height in the style helps add glamor.
I had a lot of fun working with Courtney for this shoot. It's not very often that I do hair, makeup, and photography all myself, and I also had the added bonus of getting to show my jewelry during this shoot. Every piece of jewelry in the shoot was a HomeGrown Fashion piece.
Thanks for looking!
Paua Shell Necklace
Sometimes simplicity is nature's best compliment.
This paua shell necklace is supported by doubled wax linen cording. A simple loop and tie closure keeps the piece lightweight. The shell has a darker side, and a more ivory side, darker side shown here.
View the listing for this necklace at my store, HomeGrown Fashion.
