http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=9947704&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=00ADEF&fullscreen=1 I was mesmerized by these moon jellyfish at the Vancouver Aquarium....so I pulled out my trusty iphone and recorded a few seconds. Now I really want one as a pet.
Thanks Owusu & Hannibal for the sound.
I beautiful sustainable restaurant I ate at while in Vancouver.
It was waterside and every plate was a peice of art.
C Restaurant also had really delicious sourdough bread served with creamed butter and sprinkled with sea salt.
It was pretty much heaven.
You did good Vancouver. You did good.
Excuse my Lazy blogging this week. A post with lots of photos tomorrow. I just tweeted about this but for those of you not on Twitter...
Read This:
And please for the love of us trying to keep face, FOLLOW IT.
(AND as long as you love what you do how you shoot and how you choose to edit, and are happy....well then just keep being happy. Art is subjective. I know that...I am just agreeing for my sake with her, that doesn't mean everyone has to agree with us....even though you should. HA!)
I keep wanting to make every "professional" photographer share unedited, raw, strait out of the camera images. That would be the most fair assessment of skill and experience for clients.
Maybe I will do a more in depth post on this later..could be interesting.
This Janet Jackson inspired shoot took me back to the 90's..a ninth grade dance company concert to be exact.
Who doesn't love to photograph hair flips?
Thanks to Eliza for featuring my work and thanks to team "Julio" for protecting me from oncoming traffic as I shot.
See the issue online here. and subscribe to the magazine here.
Credits: Written & Styled by Heidi Howard Photography by Rachel Thurston Makeup by Rimi Lee Hair by Julio Modeled by Rebecca De Costa w/ Next
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJRMwdmFYWg&hl=en_US&fs=1&] Eddie and Breanne, can we be you?
This made my day...and lets be honest, probably my whole life.
Come back to LA, RIGHT NOW.
(This self timer photo is from our weekend in San Luis Obispo...more coming once I get film back)
Happy weekend blog family.
For 14 years my Thurston Grandparents lived in La Jolla California. I loved as a young girl flying to stay with them, playing on the beach, shopping at the NEX and watching Elvis movies. One of my favorite memories was my Grandma making sticky rice for us to take on our flight home. She would soak the rice and pull out her sticky rice basket and the finished product would be wrapped in tinfoil for us to nibble on while traveling.
I have wanted to buy myself the setup for awhile now and every time I ate mango with sweet sticky rice was reminded of that fact.
As one of Grant's birthday presents, I bought "him" the magic maker:
I bought the kit from Import Foods...complete with a cheesecloth and a bag of Thai sweet rice.
Here is the recipe I pulled from the site:
Method: Rinse rice 2-3 times, until water runs clear.Place rinsed rice in a bowl and fill with cool water so the water is approximately 2-3 inches above the rice (see Step 1). Let the rice stand in water for 6-8 hours. Drain the rice, place it in a cheesecloth, wrap it up and put the cheesecloth inside bamboo steamer. Put 6-8 cups of water in sticky rice steamer. Then place bamboo steamer inside sticky rice steamer (see step 2). Be sure the bottom of the bamboo steamer does not touch the boiling water. Place a standard 8 inch lid loosely over the top of the bamboo steamer (see Step 3). Now turn on the heat (Med/High) and steam the rice for 45 minutes (or until tender). Enjoy!
It works and it's delicious. I might just have to plan a mango and sticky rice night and invite everyone over.
...Rachel Allison!
She wants one, she gets one.
This lady also has a love of the photographic image. Check out her photography site, here.
Rachel shoot me an email (rachel@rachelthurston.com) and let me know where to send this list making mama and I will mail it out pronto.
There were a few of you, win or not, who expressed interest in possibly buying a calendar....I am up for ordering a bunch, but need to know how many are really interested. Email me or leave a comment if you want to know more. I'm guessing the cost will be around $30. Not the cheapest calendar out there but worth it!
Thanks to everyone who loved the list making madness as much as me. Why in the world I have to create my own calendar with months and weeks and NOTE SPACE, is beyond me. This is what people need!
Giveaways warm my soul. I already have an idea for the next one....
If you haven't see Eliza Magazine's fall travel issue yet...you are missing out. There are a lot of pretty pictures in there. One is mine (think perfume) Fun!
See the issue online here. and subscribe to the magazine here.
Credits: Written by Heidi Howard Photographed by Rachel Thurston Makeup by Rachel Rose Desimone (using Benefit Cosmetics) Hair by Julio Modeled by Heather Kemesky w/ Ford
I have spent way too much time in my life looking for the perfect day planners/calendars. I love my paper calendars. I need them. I need to scribble and make lists. LOTS of lists. I need to use my medium bic blue ball point pens.
After searching everywhere for a book that included a month at a glance, week at a glance and plenty of note taking space, I screamed one last time and decided to take matters into my own hands.
The concept was my idea (with inspiration from past Staples calendar that they stopped making) and the genius behind the layout and creation was Julia's.
Since the printer messed up on the first batch (with minor margin issues) we have 2, slightly imperfect calendars to giveaway. The calendar months go through February of next year.
To enter leave a comment on this post and to double your chances leave one on Julia's blog as well. We will pick the winners and mail you these beauties asap. Entries can be made until Tuesday, Feb 23 midnight PST.
Cover is made of thick frosted plastic 
There is a 2010 and 2011 year at a glance..which I use to keep track of potential jobs & booked jobs. I love being able to see my whole year in one place.
Month at a glance with a facing blank page for notes (print flaw, far right numbers cut off...)
Week at a glance with a blank page for notes
back cover
Good luck fellow list makers.
1. Get married on an airplane Imagine all of your friends and family flying to an exotic location to celebrate the marriage that took place while flying with your “head in the clouds”…or “floating on air”…a walk down the aisle, bridesmaids and groomsmen dressed in the likeness of 1960’s flight attendants….AND completely unique & amazing photographs. Think about it.
2. Wear something huge on your head A hat perhaps. A HUGE flower. A big collection of fabric and lace and twine and netting piled high. I have the need to shoot head décor.
3. A casually dressed wedding …and by casual I mean jeans & tee shirts. Why do you have to wear a wedding dress and a tux? You don’t. Wear something more you…but maybe not a bathrobe. Maybe get married sitting in the back of a open bed truck driving somewhere fast.
4. A traditional Luau complete w/ an underground pig roasting…and lau lau and poi and lomi lomi AND a ukulele.
5. Elope And have me there to document so your family and friends aren’t that mad. The two of you, an officiator and me. I’m thinking a huge field under a big beautiful tree. Somewhere vast and open. So romantic. Make it all about the commitment between the two of you and no one else. Maybe pack a picnic dinner to eat after…complete with all of your favorite cheeses and fruits. Dream.
6. Poolside Wedding Everyone in swimming suits (OK fine you can wear a cover up). Bride and Groom get married and then everyone goes for a swim. Big sunglasses, flarey light, laying on your lawn chair being served daiquiris and bite sized eats. Great music. Great party, don’t you think?
7. Get married on the subway in NYC during rush hour!! Body to body vows. Think about the amazing variety of people that would witness. I love the feeling of strangers all in it together. Start your marriage with the world cheering you on.
8. Get married in the first place you met. Go back and commemorate fate (or destiny, or timing or any other blessed force) that brought the two of you into each others lives.
9. Get married under the cherry blossoms in Japan. Preferably during the first two weeks in April. Breathtaking.
10. Celebrate in a way that means something to you. Don’t be afraid to be different. Make it match the meaning behind the act.
Leather Craftsmen is one of my favorite bookbinding companies.
This is the 10x10 high end album I offer wedding clients but I think it would also be a nice book to fill with family or vacation memories.
I just love the simplicity and timelessness it has.
I prefer to lay the images out on the pages in a way that doesn't detract from the subject....no crazy overlapping collages in this house.
Let me know if you want one. I can hook you up.
(This custom book was designed for these folks. Loved this wedding)
Jane looks like she has a pretty happy life, doesn't she? I would say so.
Congratulations and many, many blessings to your new family of three. I need to come over and kiss her a little bit more.
In the spirit of all things Olympic I decided to post my Olympic look-a-like...Oksana Baiul.
When she won the Gold medal I was in middle school and EVERYBODY was calling me Oksana. People were bringing me magazine cutouts, writing me notes about it and calling me from their long cord landlines.
I met Oskana's coach, who is now Johnny Weir's coach, in Vancouver and she didn't think we looked every much a like, "except maybe in your noses".
So try to imagine me 15lbs lighter and 14. Do you see it?
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
"Van" as the locals liked to call it, was pretty great. I had been to Vancouver before but had never been behind the scenes with the athletes. It was a pretty cool expierence.
I am going to post some of my favorite shots on Monday. In the meantime enjoy the opening ceremony and your love filled weekend.
AND this is my 501st blog post. Wowy. Can't believe I have that much to share and show. Here's to 500 more!
Happy birthday to my handsome man. You don't look a day over 18 and apparently have the worlds healthiest heart.
Here's to a year of not waiting, taking risks and ordering lots of desserts so I can have bites.
What would my world be like without you? Crummy. With you is so much better. Can't wait for our weekend road trip. As part of your gift I promise not to get car sick (or at least act like I'm not).
Haylie and Ross's super awesome wedding was featured on La Belle Bride yesterday.
Thank you so much for sharing my work and spreading Parisan love around.
Check out La Belle Bride for this and other wedding inspiration.
(PS. Having too good of a time in Vancouver. Follow me on twitter for updates....and to find out how much I am eating and how many muscles I am shooting. Excited to share the images and stories when I return).
Local artist Lara Fisher, of L. Fisher Design, had me photograph a few of her pieces that are displayed and sold at