On the day of the Spruill family session, we were scheduled to shoot outdoors. But as I traveled to their home, the sky got darker and more ominous the closer I got to their home. By the time I parked in their driveway, the sky had opened up with a torrential downpour. It's a good thing my equipment was nicely packed... it stayed dry but I was soaked.

Rain or not, everybody was upbeat and ready to shoot. When plan A gets squashed, I shift gears for plan B. So I set up for an indoor shoot. As you can guess from the first photo, this is a football family. Sometimes when you shoot indoors, you have to move things. They really were great, and very accomodating. I had them rearranging furniture, clearing out space for my lights... but I made sure everything was back in order before I left.

Just as we were finishing up, low and behold, the rain stopped and the sun came out nice and bright. So I suggested we go out and get a few quick shots. I love when a plan comes together... even if it means weathering a storm first.

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Happy Holidays!

Sadeqa Johnson, author of the new forthcoming novel, "Love in a Carry-On Bag."

In the book's story, quite a few scenes take place in a jazz club. So the idea came to try and play off that. I didn't want a stuffy "I'm a writer" look. A big thanks and shout out to Dawn Fitch of Pooka Boutique in Orange, NJ for letting us use a section of her shop. With the beautiful exposed brick wall and seating area, I felt I could really get the environmental feel that I wanted. In the shop that day they were playing The Dana Owens Album* by Queen Latifah, which give a perfect vibe to the setting. It turned out to be two hours of great fun, as you can see from the images. The day was not without it's drama though. You can read Sadeqa's account of the experience in her blog entry, Pose for the Camera Now Click! Find Sadeqa on Twitter, @Sadeqasays.

By the way, the fantastic job on hair was done by Betty at Anthony Garubo Salon salon in Maplewood, NJ. Makeup was by celebrity makeup artist Lenny Hamilton, who has an office in Newark, NJ.

*Feel free to use my affiliate link to check it out to check out the album.

 An alternate to the opening shot. This image almost didn't make it in the final cut because I thought it was too dark. Sadeqa liked it so much, I attempted a bit of post production adjustment in Lightroom.

Dameon Reilly and Hope Wade, in a scene from the stage play - "All My Struggles 2 - The Wedding Plan?" Nov 12, 2011, Apollo Theater, New York City.

All My Struggles 2 - "The Wedding Plan?" is the second part to the story created by writer, director and producer Monique Lisa. It's a "dramatic comedy of love, betrayal, lies..." I had an opportunity to check out the first part back in June while visiting in Washington DC. They were having a debut there during the DC Black Theater Festival and I believe several of the cast members have won awards for their performances... kudos to them!

On Nov 12, 2011, the new show debuted at the Apollo Theater in NYC and I had the pleasure of shooting the show. I tried not to get too caught up in the show, but couldn't help myself... I was working after all. ;)  I was also pleased to photograph the show because it gave me an opportunity to support Monique Lisa, who is an old friend, along with many others who are in the play and part of the crew. I suggest you keep Monique Lisa and Dream Achievers Productions on your radar. I see big things on the horizon. Kudos to them all for another production well done.

I don't want to give away too much of the story, but here are a few images to give you a peek into the stage presentation.

Anissa Chalmers presents Monique with a bouquet of flowers in honor of her birthday, which was the next day.

Monique with her husband Dameon Reilly, who plays the role of Pastor Robert in the play. 

The Preparation

The First Look

A Little Bit of Fun

The ceremony began just as the sun was setting, and it was dark very quickly.

And they partied into the night.

Love in a Carry-On Bag, the debut novel by Sadeqa Johnson will be available March 2012. Cover design by Mary Brown.

It's the story of a long-distance relationship between Erica Shaw and Warren Prince. She is an ambitious publicity manager for a publishing company in New York City. He is a Washington D.C. computer engineer by day and a "sexy-lipped" trumpet player by night. There are a lot of weekend trips on Amtrak but the question is, how long can their love endure the distance? I don't know, but I can't wait to read the finished book for the answer.

Look for it in March 2012. Oh, and for the e-book converts, that format will be available too.

The stage of the State Theatre is beautifully decorated and turned in the banquet hall.

I enjoy when I get the opportunity to shoot for the State Theatre NJ in New Brunswick NJ. Their special events are always so interesting. This particular night they hosted a dinner to honor their big contributors, board memebers and trustees. The stage becomes the banquet hall. Each table is decorated with a centerpiece that reflects the theme of an upcoming show. It all looks pretty nifty.

They actually have some great shows and family events too, so be sure to check them out if you're in the NJ area.

It's that time of year again. Almost magically, the leaves turn from green to beautiful shades of gold and red. The beauty of the season, as the leaves begin to turn colors, take a bit of the sting out of the fact that the weather is getting colder. The landscapes become canvases of beautiful art. I enjoy being able to freeze those scenes in time, because before we know it all the trees will be bare. Please feel free to use this image as your desktop calendar for your computer monitor.

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Photographing your life: New York, New Jersey and beyond.

Sometimes, when I take an event assignment, I never know who I might be photographing. Back in the spring I was hired to photograph a surprise 85th birthday celebration. I have to admit, my first thought was, "Why would someone want to surprise an 85-year-old woman?" The client said it was her mother and I didn't get much other info besides the time and place, etc.

As the day progressed, I discovered that the guest of honor was Hyacinth Walters, a former Olympic athlete. She was in the 1952 summer Olympic games in Helsinki for the Jamaican team. Now how cool is that? It was such a blessing to hear her relatives and friends stand up and speak about her athletic career and how she's such an inspiration. Evidently she is also considered a bit of a globetrotter and loves to travel. The theme of the party was travel as you'll see from the different flags on the dinner tables and designer bag cake.