Inspiration Award

Since 2000 OC Tanner has donated rings to all the Olympic athletes and staff. During the SLC Olympics they also donated all the medals. Donated every medal and every ring! Amazing. This year they invited the athletes to nominate someone who inspired their Olympic dream. Three winning nominations will be chosen and honored with a special ring designed only for them. I was lucky enough to be invited to work in conjunction with The Inspiration Award, and for three days in Vancouver photographed athletes. These photos will be shown along side their inspirational stories.

It was amazing to be able to hear some of these stories first hand and to meet and photography so many of the athletes...Shaun White, Lindsey Vonn, Louie Vito, Lindsey Jacobellis, Johnny Weir and Seth Westcott...just to name a few! It refreshing to be offered a look beyond all the "hype" and see the love of the sport through these eager and anxious Olympians. The amount of training and sacrifice and determination that all of them possess was awe inspiring. Not to mention they were ALL pleasant, down to earth and delightful human beings. I was so impressed.

Every time I see one of them in print or on TV, I get sympathy butterflies in my stomach. They all deserve the feeling of satisfaction after so much hard work.

Please go here and vote for your favorite stories. Vote as many times as you want and spread the word.

This is an amazing gift of recognition OC Tanner is giving and I was honored to be a part of it.

1. Katie Uhlaender

2. Steve Holcomb

3. Megan Sweeney

4. Nick Baumgartner

5. Emily Cook

grandpa puente







































when my friend steven asked me to take some portraits of his paternal grandfather, the initial idea he had was to recreate a image of gpa puente in his boxing shorts. I was excited. taking photographs showing life, history or stories of individuals are my favorite type of portraits. we never ended up being able to talk this 80 something man into changing into nothing but mini boxing shorts and then letting a complete stranger take photos of him...but in the end it didn't really matter.

he is a natural born story teller. he just talked talked and told and laughed and flattered and charmed his way into the middle of my camera, where I tried to bottle his charisma. we ate some oatmeal, hit some golf balls, rummaged around in the garage. he blew me kisses, told more stories and explained to me who people were in all the frames. we took a small visit to the community senior center where it was evident he had charmed everyone there as well, and then back to the house to pick some avocados off of a huge overgrown avocado tree looming in the backyard.

this whole shoot really got me thinking about how important it is to do family history...not only in writing but also with photographs! I know before I took some photos of my grandma henriksen I thought, "but my grandpa has already passed away...I should have done it earlier...maybe it's too late..". It's NOT too late! don't wait to preserve memories. don't miss a chance to help tell the story of a grandparent or a family member. I want to remember (probably the number one reason why I am a photographer) and I know you want to remember as well.

I feel honored to have been invited into grandpa puentes home. his life has been rich and full and I can tell and feel that he is loved by many people.

If you are interested in having me shoot a photo story of a family member, friend, or yourself, please let me know! It's great to have a nicely composed, picture perfect photo of your child or your family, but how amazing would it be to also document your family doing what it does, LIVING LIFE! in your home, neighborhood, favorite park, eatery...getting ready for school, making dinner, decorating the christmas tree... I would love to create a family history for you through photographs.

tis the season to remember and feel thanks.

xxoo- rachel

face film

I just got back my processed film from the film is not dead workshop and am so excited looking through the images. It was a great week with some great photographers shooting side by side....so I thought it only fitting to showcase some of those photographer faces first in what I'm sure will be MANY hawaii posts to come.

jon making the most NORMAL face I ever saw him make (thanks again and again for such an amazing week...I can still hear your shooting "wooOOooo" in my head).
natalie is SO full of energy and has 3 amazing boys and 1 amazing husband that match her energy. how does she do it all?! quite the inspiration.
leilani spent many years living in laie and was one of our island experts. I loved her free spirit and morning walks along the beach.
tracee was the bombshell photographer and mother of 2. thank you for all your advice on child rearing and motherhood. you took away some of my fears and actually helped me feel a little bit of excitement. not sure about your "baby a year" plan, but we'll see how desperate I get!

grandma henriksen













I have the world's coolest grandmas. my maternal grandmother featured, is a 30yr old disguised as a 80 something yr old. she is bubbly, energetic and still can hike and garden (cross legged). My paternal grandmother is equally as young and is taking me to hawaii with her next week (need I say more?).

my grandma henriksen (maternal) is who this blog post is featuring. her and my grandfather bought this cabin when my mom was still a child. we grew up celebrating holidays there and having cousin sleepovers. we swung on the rope swing, played backwards checkers with my grandpa and searched for "brownies" in the forest. we all fought over who would get to sleep on the smooshiest bed in the attic and loved driving down the road swinging our legs from the back of an open car. sitting around the campfire we would give testimony's and sing family songs including the goodnight song, when we would sing goodnight to every person there by name (even if there were 50 people). my grandpa would cook us floating pancakes for breakfast and grandma would always serve cantaloupe and bacon. I love those memories.

so here is to one of my favorite women on earth. thank you for the notes and gifts under my pillow. thank you for the gold fish. thank you for figi, the pioneers and the prophets. thank you for the music boxes and the laundry shoot. thanks for the wall paper in the laundry room. thank you for letting me live with you that one summer. thanks for being my "other" during a rough time. thanks for giving me space when I needed it and hugs when I wanted to be close. thanks for the orangesicles. thanks for showing up in the PERFECT outfit when I told you to dress for the photo shoot in what you would normally wear to the cabin. thanks for loving me to the moon and back.

I love you too.

xxoo-
rachel

in the future

I will post more of...

the kelly family

madeline & mom

nellie & kent

grandma at the cabin

lisa & dave

I am off to girls camp till saturday. I feel like a horrible bad person for neglecting my blog and so many deserving people from seeing their photos. Believe me when I say it will be a welcome change to catch up on work when I am back saturday. Who knew I could miss photoshop?

until then...

center street on main

Headshots are fun to shoot. It's not about the location or the outfit, just the face and perfect light. It's a scavenger hunt for light and only light.

It's the closest I'll ever come to hunting.

Lara you were a star, looked like a star and hopefully with these shots will become a movie star!!! You can keep you heart in LA, but give Lehi a chance. Cows do have some positives...like cheese.

FAQ About Photo Days.

FAQ:

How much does it cost?

-Each 30min shoot will be $100. this includes time and an 11x14 finished image, a portrait credit of $30, as well as steeply discounted product prices on prints, books, CD’s of images etc..

What are the prices for print, CD and book orders?

-Because you are part of a group photo day you get special discounted pricing! Individual prints will be 20% off my normal prices as well as any book or albums. The biggest discount you get for being a part of a group photo day is on Image Discs. All of the Image Discs are 30% off and the high resolution disc is 50% off!!!!!! On top of all that you get perks for ordering over a certain amount. Here's the breakdown:

-order $100 and receive a complimentary 8x10 print (a $35 value)

-order $300 and receive a complimentary proof set from your session
(a $150 value)

-order $500 and receive a complimentary 7x7-20pg softbound Contemporary Image
Portfolio (a $350 value)

-order $1000 or more and receive a complimentary low resolution Image Disc
(a $500 value)

for a list of the regular pricing click here.

What form of payments do you accept?

-The session fee of $100 will need to be paid by check or cash, but any print, book or CD reorder after you may pay with either Visa or Mastercard, if you prefer.

What equipment do you use?

-Because I prefer to use natural light, I typically use my Canon 5D, numerous lenses, reflectors and a tripod (if needed). Less equipment means I have freedom to move and create a more natural photo shoot.

Can you come do a photo day in my hometown?

-YES! I love to travel and as long as you have at least 5 different groupings interested, plan a date and fly me out!! If you find 10+groupings interested I will fly myself out!

Does it have to be outside, or can I plan a photo day for friends inside my home?

-Definitely. This is a great idea for parties of any kind. Bridal showers, birthdays, holidays, play groups, reading groups, families...the list goes on and on. Whether we plan the day outside or inside it makes no difference.

Please contact me with any questions about photo days or ideas you may have!

Peru 2007

There is no denying the pull I have when creating a photographic image. I pull towards people and color. This is not to say I am not frequently inspired by other things as well....shape, texture, the perfect stream of golden light, like a gift sent by heaven for me and only me......but eyes and color really get me. There is something so rich and expressive in both. Part of me really feels like I am cheating nature if I extract the color that is naturally found in or on something. It was probably my photography ethics class and my photojournalism class in collage that started this line of thinking. I'm already leaving out everything I decide not to include in my camera frame and I really wish I could include everything. Leaving out anything is hard....

So, this taste of the images I took in Peru last month is true to those two loves. Its hard not to feel connected when you lock eyes and lenses with a complete stranger. We may not have been able to carry on a conversation but there is definite communication...and if you browse through my other images you will see the amazing color that is found in Peruvian culture and landscape.

While is was there to hike the Inca Trail I was able to shoot for two different humanitarian organizations, Southern Cross Humanitarian and The Hope Alliance. One was in conjunction with an orphanage we brought supplies too and another was for a village assessment for future dental and medical teams to be brought out. Check out the bottom of this post to find links to the rest of the images.

I loved working with non profits and would love to take more trips like this one where I can give something I have to give. Peru was amazing and now I'm thinking Africa.....







To see more of my favorites from peru go to www.rachelthurston.com/peru
more from the Sunflower Orphanage, www.rachelthurston.com/sunflower

Yoga For Life

One of my best friends and roommates is an amazing yoga instructor. For awhile now she has been asking me to take some photos for her and I finally had time to. I took photos of three of Yoga Works employees. We all had a great time. It was interesting having to shoot them in so many static poses...and now that I think about it there were probably as many great "falling" shots as any perfectly posed ones.

If anyone has any good idea for other twisty photo shoots, give me word.









Kris & Rulan-Living The Good Life

Two of my closest friends came to visit last weekend. Kris is one of my most prized photography friends (check out her work here or here) and her husband Rulon always make sure there are never any dull moments. Grant and I had a great time showing them around LA. Here is the list of things we did between 3pm and midnight:

-ate at In and Out. (Grilled onions all the way!)
-went to a photography exhibit at the Fowler museum on UCLA's campus entitled, "Woman, Water and Wells". Very inspiring.
-walked down the main promenade in santa monica down to the boardwalk and eventually down to the sand, where I took some 10yr anniversary photos for them.
-walked down the pier (sorry about the fish guts kris....oh and my skirt blowing up).
-quick stop at grants place
-dinner at Bossa Nova, our favorite Brazilian restaurant....chicken brochette...
-on to downtown Hollywood to look at the stars and feet and hand prints outside of the chinese theater....fake snow all over the ground. what?
-then our final stop at pinkberry were I tried cocoa pebbles on my frozen yogurt. A perfect ending to a perfect day.

I loved having you guys here! I can't wait to hear all about your cruise!