Meagan Abell Photography

Warehouses and Wandering

admin — Fri, 17 May 2013 20:47:29 +0000

I absolutely loved going up to Lynchburg with Richard to visit my sweet friends McKenzie and Mariah. They actually didn’t know each other at all before that day, I just LOVE bringing people together

We ended up exploring an old warehouse, almost dying by falling off a ladder and through a roof, we mocked high school girls in the most ridiculous prom dresses I have ever seen, and we reenacted “How Animals Eat Their Food” Senior Photo Edition. McKenzie was a zebra. We had a blast, and then we hit up Outback and had a ridiculous amount of awkward run-ins with prom girls in the bathroom. They was seriously almost a girl fight STRAIGHT outta Mean Girls, I kid you not.

All in all, an extremely successful trip.

Freelensing

admin — Thu, 16 May 2013 02:10:59 +0000

Freelensing is a technique that I’ve just started trying out recently, and I’m ALREADY in love!! It’s kind of terrifying because it involves detaching your lens from your camera, and leaving your sensor a bit exposed, but as long as you don’t go CRAZY, you should be perfectly fine. It creates this dreamy bokeh that you just can’t GET with Photoshop or just normal photography! These were taken on the fly the first time I really did freelensing!

All done with a Canon 50mm f1.2

If you’d like to read more on freelensing check out THIS article by Ryan Brenizer

Jacqueline+Daniel: Carytown Engagement Session

admin — Fri, 10 May 2013 17:33:17 +0000

We met in Carytown on what seemed to be a gloomy overcast day, but one look at Jacqueline’s colorful outfit and beaming smile, and knew that the gloom wouldn’t last! I had a great time walking around with these two, and ESPECIALLY photographing them, can you say photogenic?? These were all shot on the SAME block! There’s an amazing amount of variety in the city, I love it!

Congrats Jacqueline+Daniel! Can’t wait for your wedding at Maymont in August

Hazy Richmond Afternoons.

admin — Thu, 02 May 2013 03:40:36 +0000

Lennon and Yoko’s Secret Lovechild.

admin — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:36:14 +0000

She loves hippie skirts and round glasses, she obsesses over Janis Joplin and prefers things of the vintage persuasion.

Model: Meeza

Styling: Tremayne Hill

The Importance of Supporting Each Other

admin — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 08:37:01 +0000

Lately I’ve been encountering a LOT of negativity in the photography world, and that’s one thing I am SO not down with. It’s really tough seeing artists bringing other artists down, and it just causes a lot of bad blood between professionals. THANKFULLY I’ve been blessed enough to be surrounded by super supportive and passionate people. Two that I definitely wanna brag about are Michael and Carina, of Michael and Carina Photography! How me met was super spontaneous, but I fully believe we were meant to become friends! These two have an amazing heart and passion for photography and for their clients, not to mention they’re both ridiculously talented! Seriously, they have an amazing eye for light and use it to their full advantage, and I love seeing their work pretty up my newsfeed on a daily basis! When they were in Richmond for an engagement session, we met up earlier in the day to grab some lunch and go shooting, (duh). It’s probably the best thing ever to work with a couple who are photographers, because they pretty much posed themselves and shooting them was effortless! They also brought along little August, their chihuahua, but he had NO desire to cooperate. I then had the pleasure of assisting them during their e-session and getting a behind the scenes look of how they work, (plus I learned how to shoot with a Contax!!), which was awesome. The whole day I was reminded how lucky I am to have such awesome friends who are so supportive and encouraging, instead of some who would rather trash talk and gossip about others they don’t like. I really believe that who we surround ourselves with have a huge impact on who were are as individuals! Which is mostly why I surround myself with super gorgeous people

I bet a lot of people wonder why I tend to brag on other photographers, because doesn’t that affect my business, and maybe they’ll like their work more than mine? And I answer them this: I am confident in my work and what I do, I know there are plenty of people who are much better than I am, but people choose to work with me because they enjoy my style and who I am. I brag on people because I admire them. I don’t expect them to “return the favor”; I don’t expect anything at all. Being kind and building one another up should just be something that we do naturally! So let’s just take a second, turn to the photographer next to you, and give em a big ol squeeze, but make sure you ask first or else things are gonna get weird.

If you’d like to read a little bit more about these two read THIS POST

Michael and Carina’s Facebook Page

Michael and Carina’s Website

Urbanna, VA

admin — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 05:35:06 +0000

Urbanna is a very special place to me-it was one of the coolest places my Grandfather took me on my grandparent’s boat, and it holds a lot of memories of him. It’s one of the tiniest little towns ever, but it’s packed with life and beauty and adventure. My grandfather passed away in 2010 and my grandmother had to sell the boat, so I hadn’t been back to the bay in a really long while. So I decided to take my babely friend Leney along for an impromptu trip there to revisit the place and see how it’s changed. Turns out it was the same adorable little town that I remember, but now I appreciated what it had to offer even more! The amount of abandoned houses, history, and gorgeous backdrops astounded me. We even found some treasures. In town we met a sweet lady named Megan who we slightly creeped out as we were jumping around behind her restaurant, thankfully she was totally cool with it! We barely even scratched the surface of possibilities with photos, and I had the best adventure with one of my friends. I CANNOT wait to go back!!

FILM: Excerpts from Book I

admin — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 03:43:14 +0000

I’ve been doing a LOT of 35mm film lately, and I wanted to share a few of my favorites!!

All are shot with a Canon ae-1 and Kodak 400 ISO film.

Baby Annabelle

admin — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 17:48:02 +0000

So I don’t typically do many newborn/baby shoots, simply because I know there are people who specialize in them, and it’s not my particular forte! That being said, I was stoked to do a lifestyle session with Ryan, Bethany, and sweet baby Annabelle! We were so lucky that day, Annabelle was perfectly behaved, and the only fussiness we had only lasted a couple minutes. Talk about great timing!! I thoroughly enjoyed watching this little family interact. My favorite moments were completely candid, seriously, you can just feel the love pouring out from these happy parents!! (Plus they had Annabelle in a pink tutu, and I’m a bit obsessed with tutus!!!) I hope you enjoy a little peek into this precious family’s life as much as I did!!

Ashley+Jake: Steampunk and Treasure Hunts

admin — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 18:17:19 +0000

Where could I even begin? This was probably one of the most fun, interesting and coolest themed weddings I have ever been lucky enough to photograph. Ashley+Jake are an awesome couple with an awesome group of family and friends!! (Plus Ashley loves Cheerwine so OBVIOUSLY she’s great!)

For those of you who don’t know what “Steampunk” is, it’s actually a sub-genre of science fiction, and it involves a lot of mechanical elements, and is based on the idea of steam power being a primary power source. It’s really so much more than I could explain so if you’d like to read up more check it out HERE! Needless to say, with Steampunk being the theme, you KNEW it was going to be fantastic.

Walking into the Berkeley Hotel, you could immediately distinguish the wedding “party” vs the normal crowd. I was so impressed with the costumes, it was like I had stepped back into a Jules Verne novel!! The day began with a trolley treasure hunt around Richmond to find Captain Chimborazo…through foreign lands and terrifying clans of drunken Richmonders, the brave and gallant crew trekked! Check out their adventure, and see if they made it to their destination!

I will leave you with some wise words from our friend Jim:

“Circus clowns scare me

I hate them, wedding people

Stop touching me there”

Ceremony/Reception: The Old City Bar

Centerpieces/Florals: Three Pearls Paperie