Viral Irish Dance Star
Funny enough, I've known about Mary before Irish Dance Magazine reached out to me to shoot for their March cover. I've seen many of her Tik Tok videos. Even Will Smith dueted her! So when I was requested to shoot Mary, I was pleasantly surprised, and couldn't be more excited to work with her. I'll be sharing some of the images from that shoot.
Flower Wall Vibes
One of my favorite backdrop for shoots, the flower wall really brings a much needed spring feel. Mary has a natural and infectious smiles, so we took advantage of that to show off her pearly whites. The angel wings added a little variety and really pops against the floral background. The image chosen for the cover is the third one. Her hand on her neck and her arm on top of her head creates a natural frame that draws your eyes to the main focus, Mary.
My personal favorite is the side profile image. First, the composition. The tilted angle naturally splits the frame. It adds quite a bit of visual interest. It draws my eyes from her sleeve to her face and her million dollar smile.
Green is in!
When you imagine Ireland, I bet green is the color most people associate Irish culture with. What better color choice for the March issue than green? The solid green really pops against the flower wall, and the light, neutral solid backdrop. I wanted to add some motion in the image, so I asked Mary to flip her hair while on pointe. She nailed the pose flawlessly. The image with the floral chair infused a bit of vintage, Victorian area aesthetics that compliments her shirt. To close out the set, I wanted a 3/4 body length shot that shows off her confidence. The strong, yet feminine pose, really brings out her playful yet self assured side.
Cold never bothered her anyway!
I was a little hesitant to see if Mary would be comfortable shooting outdoors, since it was in the middle of Chicago winter. But she didn't disappoint as she's originally from Wisconsin! The studio is located right next to the L track, and it is the perfect spot for an urban themed dance shoot. I really love the contrast between the elegant dancer and the industrial feel of the iron tracks. Again, the green shirt really makes her pop against the overcast weather we had that afternoon. There is a conscious mix of stationary poses and leaping poses. I just adore her confidence in these shots! The control she has during the frantic street shoot was nothing short of impressive. We had to run out into the middle of the street and capture the shots during the brief moments when there were no cars. I'd like to take this chance to thank mom, who stepped up and became our traffic look out...the fact that we are all still here, healthy, and alive, is in no small part because of her sharp eyes!
After shoot silliness tradition continues.
I always like to close out my shoots with some silly photos. I like to include the people that makes the shoot possible. Being a dance parent is no easy task and I always try to highlight it in my blogs. Mary's mom (Anne Marie), drove over an hour from Wisconsin to Chicago for the shoot...and she has another daughter, who's also a dancer...imagine how much time and energy it takes to take them to and from classes and competitions! I also had Anne Marie take a picture of Mary, and I executing an Irish Dance technique...obviously I gave Mary a few pointers and she is a quick learner! Of course that didn't happen. Mary tried her hardest to teach me a technique, and I'm surprised she didn't run away from seeing my embarrassing form!
It was an amazing experience to shoot for one the most prestigious Irish Dance magazine and it made it even better to be working with such talented and kind dancer and her family!
