this blog has no name

my commute

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 02:07:00 +0000

I took this video with my phone on my way to work this morning. I see people riding horses down the street here everyday.

This one got away.

(Song: "Wild Horses" by the Rolling Stones)

experimentation

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 23:25:00 +0000

Austin Sunrise 9/2/2008 – 7:31 AM

from the train

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 23:15:00 +0000

These are two photographs I took from the window of a train, going from Virgina to New York, one evening in an October, not so very long ago.

My dear friend Kathleen said of them:

"This is the way we see. I really enjoy these in that way. They remind me of memories from rushed moments. Like living in a wonderful city for a year. Like being with good friends for a weekend. Like a short lived romance."

That is pretty much the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. I'm not quite sure as of yet, where I am headed with these, but it's leaning toward installation. We shall see...

Cameras: A Series

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 23:07:00 +0000

I started collecting film cameras a few years ago. I'm interested in antiquated (or soon to be) technology in general, and analog photography in particular. The play between camera, film and developing, and the unique qualities of the images that result, hold a particular fascination for me. Each combination produces photographs with specific characteristics, tones, and moods, which I relate back to the object of the camera itself. Over time, I've come to see these objects as having their own personalities. With this series of portraits I'm attempting a bit of anthropomorphizing, and hoping to capture that personality. Stoic, whimsical, elegant, or goofy, these are the class photos of my little collection of misfit cameras.

First in my series is the Tower Reflex 65, circa 1959

Second in my series is the Polaroid Sun 660 Autofocus, circa 1981

(shamefull braggartry ahead)

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 19:16:00 +0000

Well, what do you know?... Another piece of mine is currently gracing the Urban Outfitters print shop's landing page.

That's "the King of Van Horn" up there.

First, Way Up High #2. Now, this. How neat is that?

not much ado, about not a whole lot... true story.

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 19:30:00 +0000

It has been nine months since last I touched this blog, and I'm pretty sure that makes me a bad blogger. At the very least, it makes me an absentee blogger, and for this I must admit I feel a bit... bad? Guilty? There's somethin' Catholic happening there... At any rate, without further a-do, I offer you that book cover I was talking about in my last post (oh, so long ago). I've included two very different versions for your review. I hope you like 'em, too. xo C

the Author

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 04:47:00 +0000

This is Miss Gutierrez. She wrote a book. I took her picture to put on the inside jacket of that book, and I'll be designing the outside of it, too. Here are a couple shots from our session. I think I'll end up going black and white with the final image, but for now...

I like colors.

i (might) heart new york city

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 05:20:00 +0000

...It sure is growing on me...
I was back last week to shoot portfolio and lifestyle images for a website I'm working on. It was all hustle and bustle and business for sure. There wasn't too much time for the aimless meandering I usually like to do, but my good friend Adriana & I managed to work a bit in. Here's a few pictures from our New York City wanderings:

in Alfred

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 03:15:00 +0000

When I was 'Upstate' in a land called New York,

I took pictures of two pretty ladies.

One was Kathleen,

the other was Brighid.

Darrell + Tamara 4eva: My foray into wedding photography

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 01:48:00 +0000

So here're some shots from my very first wedding gig, when I was second shooter for Megan Smith back in June. The UT themed wedding of Tamara & Darrell was held on June 12 in Round Rock, Texas, at Casa Blanca on Brushy Creek. The venue was gorgeous, the bride stunning. It was a feast for the eyes and heart, what with all the love and exchanging of vows and such. It was my job to shoot for 'details and coverage'. Basically, I tried to be shooting in the opposite direction (or from the opposite side) of Megan, at all times. It was exciting and really challenging, and my hat is off to all you wedding photogs out there. Thanks again Megan, and congratulations Tamara & Darrell! Here go some of my favorites...

ATX sunday afternoon

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 03:08:00 +0000

Scott Brackett of Okkervil River & Brackett & Co. cooks right tasty french toast, and makes a toy piano sound like magic. He knows a thing or two about song writing, and is ever-so-gracious to boot. Back in June, he was kind enough to let me take his portrait.

South Philly, Born & Raised

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 01:56:00 +0000

Paul C.
Philadelphia, PA

for San Francisco, forever ago

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 19:33:00 +0000

I just installed a new hard-drive on my trusty laptop, allowing me to transfer a ton of old photos from the archive to my working computer. It's been a long walk down my digital memory lane, and I've come across many photos that weren't so much forgotten, as de-prioritized, set aside at the time. They were, for whatever reason, deemed not good enough or important enough to spend time on, and I'm enjoying picking them back up again. A couple things struck me as I looked through these old files of mine. First, I remember every single one of these shoots. I expected I would be flipping through and think, "Oh man, I totally don't remember taking that." That didn't happen. I remember each and every location and time. Even more surprisingly, I remember how I felt when I was taking them. I suppose it makes sense, since photography is my craft and I take it seriously, even when I'm just goofing around. But it took me by surprise, remembering so acutely how I felt. There is something about this unpacking of old things put away, dusting off of photographs and memories. I am so happy to have all these moments together for the first time, at my finger tips. I get to carry them all with me, wherever I go on these travels o' mine now, like I guess they kinda always have been.

I took these photos on May 1, 2007. It was a few weeks before graduation, and I was feeling a little (make that a lot) overwhelmed. I was pretty unsure about what was going to happen next. What I did know, was that I had just given 30 days notice to my landlord, giving up my awesome little studio in the Sunset in San Francisco, to spend the summer in Austin. I LOVED that apartment. But five years in the city, and I was ready to hit the road. I woke up that morning, turned in my notice, got in my car, and started driving down Great Highway. Through the Presido and across the Golden Gate I went. Got on Highway 1 in Mill Valley, just like I always did, and headed through Muir woods and up the coast.

I stopped at the abandoned house that my friend Erin and I had visited a couple years before, on one of our 'adventures in trespassing'. We called it the Candyman House because, after hopping the fence and traipsing around the property for a while, we slowly became aware of a weird hum all around the place. Turns out, the eves of the house were full of beehives, and we were surrounded by bees. Like hundreds and hundreds of bees. They were everywhere, on everything. I had never known a bee to just sit down and chill out on a blade of grass, but the ground was covered with them. That was just after she found the carcass of some long-dead animal in the corral behind the house. We decided that it was all pretty creepy, and we had better hightail it outta that place, because nobody, but nobody, was gonna hear our screams. The house had since been fixed up a bit, boarded up and painted and such. I climbed the fence again, by myself this time, and took a few photos with the intention of sending them to her, and then just never did get around to it.

I drove up to Point Reyes National Seashore next, and took the road for as long as it would take me. Made a bunch of meandering turns and got myself good and lost, out there in the mist, with the grays and the greens and the salt air. At the top of some hill somewhere, just before sunset, I found this big crazy dead tree.

The fog was rolling in all around, and I was utterly alone. It was incredibly peaceful, and in the hours I had spent driving around the park, I hadn't seen a single other person. I was enjoying all the solitude when it occurred to me rather suddenly, that I was in fact lost, and that the sun was setting. And that in the hours I had been driving around that place, wouldn't you know it, I hadn't seen a single other soul. And then I thought I had better hightail it outta there, and find my way back to the highway while I still had some light to drive by. But man, that Queen Anne's lace sure was pretty. A whole hillside of it.

I made it to 101 just after sunset, and headed for the city. Before I crossed the bridge, I pulled off down around Horseshoe Bay and took some photos of the Golden Gate Bridge. Long exposures made the water look still and the fog glow.

Newport "Old School"

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 03:12:00 +0000

my Aquidneck Island, RI, USA:

a photolog for my Aunties Claire, Rita, & Teresa xo

UrbanOutfitters.com + Society6 + Me = RAD!

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 14:50:00 +0000

Big news: A couple of months ago, Society6 asked for artists who where interested in selling in collaboration with UrbanOutfitters.com to submit their stuff. I signed up, and my shot "Way Up High #2" was chosen to be a part. There are Giclée prints in two sizes, as well as a laptop, iPhone, & iPod skins available. I am stoked.

Here's the official blurb:

"Urban Outfitters has teamed up with Society6, an international artist community representing more than 70 countries worldwide, to bring you the PRINT SHOP. We have curated a gallery with our favorites from the Society6 community. Select your favorite piece and choose to have it printed as a gallery-quality art print, iPhone skin or laptop skin. We will continuously comb through their enormous archives to bring you this curated collection of our favorites. Any items ordered from the PRINT SHOP will be processed and shipped by Society6"

Right on.

Step 1: UrbanOutfitters.com Print Shop:

Step 2: Get your prints @ Society6

Step 3: Get your laptop skins

Step 4: Get your iPhone/iPod skins

Here's my dedicated spot:

Calendar Girl Erin (a.k.a. "Our Pin-Up Shoot")

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 21:09:00 +0000

While in Austin this week, I thought I would try my hand at some pin-up photography for funsies. Much obliged to my friend, favorite model & muse, Miss Erin B, for indulging me and being adorable all at the same time... Va-va-voom!

From Calendar Girl

daydreamer

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 22:51:00 +0000

Ms. Maya

Web Designery

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 01:04:00 +0000

SO... things have been pretty busy on the design front these days, as well. Here are some links to a project I just finished for the Robinson Law Firm in San Diego. Ms. Tanya L. Robinson, Esq. (one of my best gals) commissioned me to design and implement the online presence for her new law practice. Continuing on the theme we developed for her business cards and professional stationary, I designed a website, blog, and twitter profile for her firm.

The Robinson Law Firm - Web Design

Legal Briefs by the Robinson Law Firm - Blog Design

Likewise, I recently completed the Imperchostra Project's website. What is this Imperchorstra Project anyway? Well... Imperchorstra is the story of two musicians and a writer, who set out to study six types of American music, while on a year-long road trip in a 1954 Chevy. Imperchorstra is comprised of Connon Finn, Daniel Finn, Rachel Fields, and the many musicians and friends they will meet along the way (like me!).

"It’s a journey and musical apprenticeship through the Blue Highways of sound—from Electronica to Native American music. Focusing on each genre’s techniques and traditions, the project explores the rhythmic substructures that characterize each different musical style, while also experimenting with new techniques in Conner Finn, Daniel Finn, and Rachel Fields’ roving Improvisational Percussion Orchestras."

Imperchorstra - Web Design

Let Sleeping Babies Lie & the New American Gothic

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:10:00 +0000

Spring is upon us, my friends, for those of us on the west coast at least. And with it come babies, everywhere I turn it seems... The little angel below is Alexander Xavier, in his first photo shoot. At 5 months old he was duly plump, happy, and for the majority of the shoot, asleep. That was just fine with me and mommy. We worked around it, and got these quintessential "baby sleeping on a puffy cloud in heaven" shots. I'm all for fine arty goodness as much as the next gal, but sometimes, every once in a while, you just gotta take the cute shots that make you smile. These made me smile. What about you?...

On a similar note, meet Maya and Todd. They are expecting their first child any day now, and in preparation have just purchased their first home. A fixer-upper in a great neighborhood in LA, the house was just about as adorable as the couple within it. To commemorate these two milestones, we took some 'new home' and pregnancy portraits. These guys were so much fun to shoot! Not shy in front of the camera, and with great senses of humor, they made the day such a pleasure. We played around with several looks, and even took our take on American Gothic. I'm please as punch with the way they turned out, and can't wait to meet their new baby!

**UPDATE** The Baby's arrived! A brand new beautiful baby girl. :)

Cups o' Joe Go Green

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 06:14:00 +0000

Here's a little something new from yours truly, a logo design for CafeEarth in Silverton, Oregon. CafeEarth is the latest offering from the Silverton Green Store, whose mission it is to "promote personal and planetary well-being, by offering a full range of products and information for an environmentally sustainable lifestyle." Get your morning cup, and rest assured that it was grown, harvested, roasted, and served in an organic and environmentally sustainable manner. Right on, Silverton Green Store. This little logo will be used on their menus and such, and is even being made into a sign. Yay! My first sign. I can't wait to see it...

· Such a Pretty Face ·

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 07:19:00 +0000

a . k . a . "MY LA STORIES"

These are the first of a new series I'm doing in and around Los Angeles. Thus far, they're turning out a wee bit moody and maybe a dash esoteric, but I hope ya'all dig 'em just the same. And if you do dig them, maybe say... like them so much you would like a print of your very own... Why, please feel free to check out my new space on Society6. You can buy prints from me, and check out some other work from really amazing artists. Word.

JPG: Magazine - Nostalgia & Decay

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:40:00 +0000

Hey folks,
I submitted some photos to JPG Magazine. If you like 'em, please feel free to vote me up.
Thanks!
JPG: Nature Takes Back
JPG: Sun Leisure Motel

Texas River Song

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 18:11:00 +0000

I was in Austin this week for a visit (by the way: it was awesome), and while I was there I had the chance to work on a couple of upcoming projects. What's this Imperchorstra thing anyway? Well...
I'm still not sayin' ;) I am, however, posting some photos from this week's shoot. Our location was east Austin, namely Longbranch Saloon (far and away my favorite bar in Austin, maybe even the world) and the back patio of Blue Dalia Bistro.
I love this shoot.
Maybe it's because I finally got to photograph in Longbranch, a spot I have been saving for the perfect project for, like, I don't know.... two years. Or perhaps it's that I've been away from Texas for a while so everything: the weather, the light, the bikes, the people, everything was feeling all extra-special like. Whatever it was, this shoot makes my heart smile. Not in the "I'm so happy I could skip-idee-doo-da" kinda way, it's more an "absence made my heart grow ever-so fonder, and isn't this life just plain beautiful" kind of feeling. Sentimental much?! Sure... why not? :)

sshhh... sneak preview...

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 23:04:00 +0000

Here's a little something I've been working on; some logo and T-shirt designs for an upcoming project.

I am not at liberty to say much more about it at the moment, except:

1. the folks involved are rad
2. it's a big ol' project
3. i've signed on as designer & webmistress.

Oh, and I'll be doing their promo shots, too. It's a-gonna be a good one, kids, but sssshhhhhhhhhh for now... Mum's the word... :D

Is summer over already?

noreply@blogger.com (Christina Shaffell) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 16:34:00 +0000

Nope! Not quite, yet. We have a few more weeks left until Summer officially becomes Fall, and getting in just under the wire (September 12, 2009) is the MAD Studio/Gallery Summer Art Exhibit. Oh, and did I mention that I'm gonna be showing some new stuff? I am :D
It's a day show and should be good fun for the whole family. 'Nuff said.