Astrid Adventures

Memoirs Part 1

I apologize for the lack of updates or photos or anything. I have been sick as I mentioned and kinda just carrying on as much as I can with focusing my energy on work and trying to learn why I might be sick. New theory is that my anxiety is manifesting into a physical form in my body. It could make sense. I started having issues after a burn out episode a few years back. I've always had a few weird things here and there, but things really turned around that time period.
So I've been dying...

Well I tried

First attempt at using a fog machine for photos. I suppose they're suppose to create this much softness and darkness in photos, which feels wrong, but is an artistic choice by many photographers. It may be something I get use to or something I practice until I like it. Some times there was way too much fog and I am only a shadow of a person in the photos. On the back of the camera it looks very cool, while editing I often hated it. I do see parts of it I like in certain light, but it's inter...

A Haunted House

It probably wasn't haunted. I never experienced any odd moments there other than the toilet that wouldn't stop running. Some of the decor and spots were beautiful and some were.... creepy as all hell. It was awesome for Halloween and I wish I'd shot more self portraits there, but I didn't have enough time to really get all I could from the house. I only regret how uncomfortable it felt being alone there, especially before and after sleeping, but I would immediately forget in that bed. That be...

Peacock Feather Figure Set

To the final moment. I like that Patreon challenges me to take more self portraits and put these sets together. Then I have to edit them and post them. It's a good way to force myself to keep trying and practicing even if I'm not motivated. This month was exceptionally busy. I stopped the office job and then went right into tour. I was able to shoot these before I hit the road, but never found time to edit until now. I tried yesterday, but I was so tired from tour I've been mostly asleep. I ...

France Set 2

Continuation from last month. More of this set from our chateau in France.

France was really beautiful although dry. Still if I could move somewhere I think I could see myself in Southern France. I don't know what I'd do there for work, but it is a beautiful area, the people were so kind and the area so inspiring. I liked it so much. I hope I'll go back again in the future, but I can't say for sure when that opportunity will come again.

I flew into Paris and then just narrowly c...

France Body Scapes in street light

I did some in black and white and some in color. The skin tones came out perfectly and the black in white just has such a feeling to it. I wanted to try using only the street lights for a series and didn't consider how interesting and unusual the lighting would be in a way I haven't created in studio. I never know quite how night time photography will work out, and I'm impressed how well my camera handled it.

The streets of France are so exquisite. I've fallen so in love with France fo...

Southern France

Sorry it's near the end of the month! I wanted to have sets from France for you and got sidetracked with all the work of hosting a workshop, travel and then healing from getting a bit sick.

Southern France was so beautiful, and I will be telling you all so much more over the next couple of months. Unfortunately for now, I'm jetlagged and recovering

Southern France

Sorry it's near the end of the month! I wanted to have sets from France for you and got sidetracked with all the work of hosting a workshop, travel and then healing from getting a bit sick.

Southern France was so beautiful, and I will be telling you all so much more over the next couple of months. Unfortunately for now, I'm jetlagged and recovering

Sheer Dress

I know I've been wanting to explore more fabrics. This dress is one of my favorites. It's hard with fabrics. I love the draping and material, but I don't want to lose the shape of the body, which is why I so enjoy the more sheer materials.

Curveballs and Waterfalls

Sorry I'm so behind on publishing! Technically still within the month, but I hate to leave you all hanging and worrying I might not post. Though to be honest I'm not sure how many people care about my posts. I know some people just follow to support and I can't tell you how kind it is to have you here to just believe in me.

July has been a long month! Not to get too personal: my boyfriend and I talked about getting engaged (not engaged yet, just talking about it, but that's a huge ste...

Hands 2

I forget what a challenge and interest hands are. It takes me back to a class I had in high school for creative writing. We had an assignment to describe hands. There is so much character to hands. Their roughness and shape and skin to the tension in them. It's hard to capture from memory or thought the details and proportions, not that many people's hand proportions will be like another.

I learned to hold my hands for modeling from ballet when I was a kid. My teacher taught us to jus...

From a past life

Only a few months ago I was in Florida taking self portraits and now I'm working an office job from 8-5. It's not my favorite life transition, but I'm learning a lot. I hoped for a bit more time to relax and work on edits and art, but I've had to put that mostly on the back burner. I've been growing more depressed, but I knew I would. I knew I'd have to take some time away from my passion to advance to new stages. I want to get back into modeling more soon, but I need to learn more skills t...

Portraits and what not

I ended up with so many of these because I didn't anticipate having any good images. I just kept shooting to experiment with this lighting and crop. I needed to play and get outside my usual self because it wasn't working the way I wanted it to. I feel like I still don't know what I'm doing half the time, but then I see the results and it's like all the years have made it easy to find my way. This. isall natural light from my sky light. I was playing with the tiny bit of soft light coming thr...

Is this home?

Found myself back in Florida this last weekend and felt immediately more tranquil. The way the humidity blends with the warmth feels comforting. The jungle is so alive around me. I just hope this place doesn't get taken over and trampled on.

Since moving to South Carolina, I've been hoping to find a similar magic and feeling about the area. I've found so many places are special but it takes a while to see them. I've been so caught up in my new job though I haven't had the time to explo...

New Space, New Face

I came to South Carolina with a few presumptions. It wasn't my first or second or third choice of places to move to, but it's the opportunity that life gave me. If modeling has taught me anything its to seize the opportunities no matter how strange and confusing they seem. Somehow it has led me down my best path and favorite adventures. I'm hoping to find a place that exceeds my expectations. I'm just now exploring the areas I'm close to. I hope to find little treasures. I'll be here for a wh...

My last stop in Iceland

I've now edited quite a few sets from Iceland and I'm excited to start sharing more of them. I was so nervous I'd hardly get anything at all. I had an expectation of Iceland that wasn't fulfilled. I imagined Several hikes and photographic areas. And that would've been true except for the number of other tourists at every spot. Partially, I think I went at the wrong time of year. It wasn't yet tourist season, but what tourists there were squeezed into the spaces available. Part of the island...

Underwater Photo References

It was a very cold day in very chilly water if you can tell by the goose bumps. The spring wasn't the most clear from all the rain that hit us (of course) of this day, but it did mean that all the people left, leaving the spring mostly private. This was a new spot for me. The spring had a lot of algae growth which can look cool or kinda gross, like you can see in the sand of these shots. I saw a few fish called gars. They were smaller and bright with spots.

I've been trying to create m...

The beaches of Florida

I went down to Florida this week with a friend of mine purely for vacation and we shot a ton of self portraits. I wanted to show her many of the reasons I love Florida and I think she did find many of them inspiring! I'm so glad. It was a chilly week though! And we got cold so quickly, especially near the water, but it ended up being worth it every time. The world is so special. Like just magical on its own.

Another friend sent me an AI image, stating how she wishes the world could be ...

Green on green

I've been trying to work on this fantasy style I've liked but I'm trying to find myself in it. I've been doing a lot more big dresses the last year. It's hard not to feel lost in all the fabric. It's a change from modeling nude in some ways. It's like always having a prop. In some ways I'm limited. With a prop, some hand is always preoccupied and interacting with it. In the fabric,  I have to find how to keep my legs important and relevant in the shot whether or not they're visible. My a...

Dramatic Poses with Chair

I did it! I started my reference set store on my website! It doesn't have a lot yet. I have to work out some issues with setting up downloads for raw images. The website doesn't allow a lot of room for big files, but I can find a way around that. I like being able to sell raw images for people to edit and use as they like, as well as edited versions that are easy for quick reference sets. I've added a few edited sets on to my store that you can check out. 2024-02-11 22:16:49 +0000 UTC View Post

Snow Day

There are a lot of them, but I was more inspired than usual. I finally go to shoot in the snow. I don't know that these are my usual style, but I loved trying it. It wasn't as cold as I thought it would be, but I was pretty cold by the end of it.  Reminds me a lot of a storybook. These were all shot at Raccoon Creek Creative Studio near Philadelphia.

I love the snow in the trees and I really wanted to capture that. Hopefully I'll get more opportunity in the future. This was very sp...

Shell and Pearls

This ended up being my largest collection of photos yet it's inspired me to try to reset up my store for next month! I've been meaning to start a store to sell figure reference sets again, but I've been touring so much and so frequently I've been struggling to do so.  I really wanted to start when I had a larger collection of underwater photos to choose from, but it's very hard to take self portraits underwater! So it'll have to wait. I do still have some underwater and above water sets ...

A blanket

blanket series. Trying to incorporate props more now that I randomly grabbed a blanket. They can also so much change the mood and character. I think blankets or fabric can be done so often because they are drape and fall so differently on or around the body or how it interacts with gravity. Do you think you'd find this with props as well? Would holding a book change so much from holding a bursh or a knife? Maybe I'll try it and see.

Hidden Spaces in Vast Lands

Happy holidays to all who celebrate something, whether that be a winter spiritual event or the new year.  This month was extra special to me as I celebrated my 30th birthday and the end of another year. In the past I mention how hard this time of year is for most people. I truly empathize with the anxieties and depression that come with the change of time. This year, I truly put effort to celebrate my birthday and I feel so rewarded despite how tricky parts of it were. I think I almost e...

Glory in Arkansas

This is from years ago when I first discovered Arkansas. A memory popped up on my social media about it a few days ago, but I never forget. I treated myself. I felt inspired to get a cool airbnb in a tent and then go on a hike after my photoshoot this day. I found this waterfall that was a short hike, though obviously there was no water during the time. It was late fall and beautiful everywhere. I loved the mossy rocks, the dark cavern, etc. I could've stayed longer but it was dark already by...

Window Back Lighting

I love backlighting for the glow. It is otherworldly. Or it can be dark and more of a silhouette. Editing the images for this month made me realize I want to focus on character and emotions for a while. I've been focusing on light and shapes this year because it's where I've been at mentally, but really I have so much bottled up and it'd be a good use of my expression and a new inspiration to draw on. I do find inspiration in my setting, but I want to build on that more and creating a natural...

Waterfalls

Sorry I've been away for so long. I got so wrapped up in my latest tour in Florida. It's been a good tour. I've been feeling more inspired than i have in a long time, but I think Florida always inspires me with its nature. The weather has been wonderful too. This time of year is usually good for Florida. It's a little cooler and not frequently raining.

These photos are obviously not from Florida. My friend, Christian, and I have been hiking around the Tennessee and Georgia border last w...

Natural light and contrast

There is nothing like natural light. But I also love a good white wall.

The end of tour until October!

Some new self portraits. I'm finally at the end of a 4 month tour, though I think I've really been touring non stop since March. It's been hard to keep up, but while it was hard it was worth it. I learned something, mostly my limits. These are self portraits I hadn't gotten to edited but took back in April. Looking at myself a few months ago I can see how much touring has changed me this year. I've gained a lot of weight and a few inches of my hair fell out! It has been a rough year! But that...

Windows in the Proparazzi Studio

This was an interesting kind of cross lighting. I tried to stay in the shadows because the light from the windows could be very hard, unless a cloud came by, and as you can tell, the light was stronger through one window than the other. 

I love the tones of this set. I wish I could make my apartment like this. That's the craziest part of traveling, is how often I wish I could bring ideas and things home with me. I often go to a place and think how beautiful it looks. I'm glad I nev...