This past Sunday I did my first bridal show. I had a booth at the Richmond Bridal Showcase. I was so blessed that both my sister and my boyfriend came down to help with the preparation for the show and the show itself. I could never have pulled it off without them, And believe me, I worked them hard! Lets just say that I had a vision for my booth and when I have a vision stuck in my head, it’s very difficult to persuade me to change course. So, my vision was to create an 8′x8′ wall of postcard-size images as the backdrop for my booth. I figured most of the photographers at the show would go big with their prints, so I thought it would be cool to do the opposite. I wanted people to be drawn into the booth by the wall, to actually step into my space – which was filled to the brim with photo love – and take a moment to absorb my images. So, on an 8′x8′ wall I calculated I could fit 240 images. No problem, I can print 240 postcard-size images! Well, at about 2a.m. Friday morning I was in my kitchen surrounded by 100 prints and my computer decided to start freezing up and shutting down every five minutes. With another 140 prints to go and a full day of work awaiting me at the newspaper on Friday, I went into panic mode. I sent an anxiety-filled text to my boyfriend, who is wonderful and was halfway to Richmond from NoVa by the time I woke up the next morning, and actually went to sleep (after another 2 hours of fighting with my computer of course…). My sister came in Friday night armed with a boatload of energy and art student skills and we put her right to work gluing photos to illustration board. Needless to say, we finished the wall, 48 hours of hard labor and a very sticky kitchen floor later (that photo mount spray goes everywhere!), and were bright and shiny, with very little sleep, to meet all those beautiful brides-to-be, their moms, their girlfriends and of course their enthusiastic fiances in tow at 11 a.m. sharp Sunday morning. The show was great. It was a constant flow of brides who had a distinctive and reassuring appreciation for good, documentary, candid photography. Everyone was excited, a few were slightly overwhelmed (we sent them extra photo love) and my booth seemed to go over well. We had a big bouquet of heart-shaped candy lollypops, which were a success and disappeared rather quickly( we dinitely need a few hundred more of those next year…), photo albums and the of course the blog. Although exhausted, I was actually a little sad when the clock struck 5 and it was all over. In the end, I think I might consider doing this again in the future, I so look forward to the weddings to come this year and I thank everyone who helped Photoladylove pull of her first bridal show!
All photos @ Eva Russo
I spent last weekend in NYC, one of my very favorite places to visit. This visit was a little different than most since I was there for my little sister’s surgery, which was supposed to take place Friday. However, when the surgery was moved from Friday to Monday, we got an extra two days to be holiday tourists in the Big Apple. When out in Brooklyn for lunch on Saturday I started seeing santas EVERYWHERE and I knew a picture would have to be made. I ended up dragging my very patient father and two sisters on a bit of a wild goose chase through the subways as we attempted to follow anyone dressed up in a santa costume to what I imagined was a huge gathering of wannabe jolly old men in red hats. Well, I never did make it to the gathering (which was being communicated via twitter to anyone participating in SantaCon NYC), but I did follow my santas to Manhattan and got a few images I liked before realizing my 11-year-old sister was way more interested in the American Girl Doll museum/store than chasing santa. And my santas were very jolly, they even made a few New Yorkers (or wannabe New Yorkers…) look up bewildered, smile and sing Christmas carols while waiting for their train. I thought that was pretty impressive and it totally made me want to get my santa suit ready for next year. Anyway, enjoy and Happy Holidays!
pre-American Girl doll store we also made it to Rockefeller Center and Times Square
All photos @ Eva Russo
This was my first time shooting Richmond’s Ukrop’s-Supervalu Christmas Parade and it was a lot of fun. I woke up early Saturday morning and the weather was rainy and freezing. I piled on the layers until I felt like the Michelin man and then set out to shoot my second Christmas parade of the season, giant balloons and all. The beauty of a parade is that even with weather like that, people still turn out and the children still seem to love every minute of it. And with elves handing out candy, marching bands drumming out the music and Santa bringing up the rear, how could all those little faces not be smiling? Enjoy!
The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represents the positions, strategies or opinions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
I love photographing food. Chefs present me with their creations and I get to play with food for the next hour or so. I love incorporating the food in the restaurant’s environment, getting so close I can feel the steam coming off it and taking in the full aroma. My last restaurant review for the Richmond Times-Dispatch was of Tandoori Tikka & Kebab, in Midlothian. Va. If you want authentic Indian food from the Punjab region, this is a restaurant you should definitely visit. A window separates the dining area from the kitchen so you can see the chef hard at work along with the tradional tandoor, or clay oven, used to bake the naan and the tandoori chicken. When speaking with chef/owner Krishah Sehgal he emphasized how his guests should come armed with appetites and the desire to experience a selection of authentic, traditional dishes. Mr. Sehgal also spoke of his love of the restaurant business. He is well known in the area for an Indian restaurant he owned many years ago that he sold because, as well as business was going, he could never find enough help. After that he says he did a little of everything, for example entering the hotel business in Williamsburg. Approximately 11 years ago, Mr. Sehgal’s wife passed away of cancer and he changed course yet again, returning to something he missed, cooking the food from his native region for former patrons who for years had asked him to open another restaurant. Following are some of my images from Tandoori Tikka & Kebab: please enjoy!
The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represents the positions, strategies or opinions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Last night I photographed Col. Van T. Barfoot, 90, as he lowered the American flag he flies outside his home. Col. Barfoot is a veteran of three wars, WWII, Korea and Vietnam. At the age of 25, Barfoot lead his squad through a minefield to the German line in Carano, Italy. Here, he destroyed a German machine gun with a hand grenade and then entered the enemy trench. By the time he was done, Barfoot had captured seventeen German soldiers. Later in the same day, he continued to fight in enemy territory and helped two wounded soldiers from his squad to the rear. For his courage, he was awarded the Medal of Honor in the field in front of his soldiers. Now, Col. Barfoot lives in western Henrico County, Va. Every day he flies the flag from sunrise to sundown. According to his subdivision’s homeowners association, Col. Barfoot is in violation because he flies the flag on a flagpole instead of a pole attached to his porch or doorway. He has been ordered to remove the pole by 5p.m. on Friday, December 4 or face legal action. This story has caused a wave of support from all over the country for a veteran and his right to fly the flag of the country he fought for. Newspapers, radio, TV and even facebook are buzzing with the story, but the deadline still looms.
The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represents the positions, strategies or opinions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Now I had heard that John Michael III and his sister Gabrielle were shy, so I was prepared to put in some serious time before they would be comfortable in front of the camera…As it turned out, it took about three seconds for that shyness to disappear and for a wonderful flow of questions and stories to come out of their little mouths. I heard about school, their favorite stuffed animals, all the cleaning up of their toys they’d had to do before I arrived ( I even got to see where some of the toys had been stashed out of sight…). I also got to hear about the affection that these two siblings have for each other and John Michael’s love for “sister,” as he’s called her since she first arrived to grant his wish for a younger sibling. Following are some of the images from an afternoon of playtime on an abnormally warm and beautiful Fall day. A treat all around.
All photos @ Eva Russo
I think I have shin splints…no, I didn’t run 26 miles, or even half that, but I really think I might have shin splints…This past Saturday I covered the HCA Virginia 8K, the McDonald’s Half Marathon and the SunTrust Richmond Marathon for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. And let me tell you that running with full camera gear is ok for a few blocks, but when you have to book it for about 20 blocks in 15 minutes after a full day of race coverage, people start to wonder why the camera lady is tomato-red and looks like she’s going to pass out. Honestly though, it was a blast. I love covering sporting events because of the adrenaline rush, that peak moment, the drive and the emotion, so so much emotion. Watching people cross the finish line after they’ve accomplished the feat of running a marathon (or even an 8K for that matter) is such an exciting occasion. You get to witness pure exhaustion, the total depletion of all strength and energy, but most of all you see that intense satisfaction of having overcome physical and mental mountains to cross a finish line.
Photos by Eva Russo
All photos @ Richmond Times-Dispatch
The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represents the positions, strategies or opinions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Saturday I photographed the second day of this year’s Richmond Folk Festival for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. I actually shot 3 festivals in 2 days this weekend, the Folk Festival, an Italian festival and an Indian festival. Needless to say, I’m sort of festivaled out at this point. However, I truly enjoyed shooting the folk festival. There were so many acts, so many cultural and musical traditions represented, I shot for hours and I could have kept going. Following are some of the images from the day, everything from a Cherokee storyteller (above) to Samba Mapangala and his African rhumba, Swamp Dogg and his fancy shoes, Sounds of Korea, La Gran Banda Columbian brass papayera and the No BS Brass Band and their New Orleans-style memorial parade. Enjoy!
Photos by Eva Russo
All images @ Richmond Times-Dispatch
The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represents the positions, strategies or opinions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
I shot my first NBA game last night, the Washington Wizards against the Memphis Grizzlies. Granted it was a preseason game, but I was psyched and pleasantly surprised when the players actually played rather than just running up and down the court and doing their best not to get hurt. Now, I’m going to be honest and admit that I don’t know any famous basketball players except for maybe three obvious ones (Carmelo Anthony, because I went to school with him, LeBron and Kevin Garnett…oh, and Shaq of course…), but my boyfriend briefed me the night before the game on the players with some notoriety and I faked it as a savvy sports shooter. The game was great, close right up until the end, and the Wizards beat the Grizzlies 101 to 92. I even got a few frames of Allen Iverson (and I now know what he looks like) making the fans at the Siegel Center happy by signing a few autographs. I’ll spare you the captions on these, since the sports guys at the paper still make fun of my sports captions, but enjoy!
Photos by Eva Russo
All photos @ Richmond Times-Dispatch
The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represents the positions, strategies or opinions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
I recently shot the Richmond Times-Dispatch restaurant review for The Fat Goat. Below are images from their caramelized scallops, jumbo lump crab cake and smoked pork tenderloin. This small, unpretentious reataurant has a warm, yet sophisticated ambience and the food looked delicious. I especially liked hearing from chef/owner Lisa about their farm-to-table philosophy and the concept of responsible growing and harvesting food. She told me that ingredients like the figs and honey that they incorporate seasonally into their dishes come from their neighbors. I look forward to returning soon and getting my eat on!
Photos by Eva Russo
All photos @ Richmond Times-Dispatch
The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represents the positions, strategies or opinions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
As his mom says, Beau is ALL BOY. Eighteen months old and fearless, Beau is a joy to photograph. He is in constant motion, up and down those stairs (with mom’s help of course), and has endless energy! This was such a fun shoot and I’m glad I got a chance to photograph Beau solo because soon he’ll have a little sister or brother to share the spotlight with!
All photos @ Eva Russo
