The Great Photoshoot Adventure with Eric Adkins
Howdy guys!
It’s been a while since my last post.... *cough* five months *cough* but I’ve got some exciting stuff happening and I’ve been itching to write a new blog post to tell you about it.
First off I want to say thank you to everyone who supported me during the Nashville Rising Star competition. I didn’t make it past the semi finals in March, but I sure did feel loved by you guys! It really opened my eyes to how many people support me and care about my music. That’s enough to feel like a winner!
If you’re wondering what I’ve been up to since then, I landed a weekly gig playing at the Mellow Mushroom in Downtown Franklin every Wednesday night from 7-9pm this Summer. It’s kept me busy and it’s kept food on my table. As a musician that’s all you can ask for haha. I’ll probably write a post soon about Mellow Mushroom because it has been a big blessing in my life.
I have also been traveling with Vintage Market Days. They have them all over the US and I have booked several this fall. That will probably get it's own blog post soon as well. So you guys have a lot to look forward to!
Now that you are semi caught up, that brings me to the subject of this post!
In my apartment building I have become really good friends with my next door neighbor, Chuck. He moved in around July of last year and we got to talking during a fire alarm scare (that’s a whole other story haha). He’s just a really sweet person and has quickly become like a cool Uncle figure to me. He grew up having friends in the music business and he really loved my music. He’s helped me any way he can ever since!
It’s been a couple of years since I had some music promo pictures taken and I had mentioned to Chuck that I was looking to do another photoshoot. As if I haven’t been blessed enough in my life, Chuck called his friend Eric Adkins and asked if he’d be willing to schedule a shoot with me. Eric listened to my music and was on board. So we planned a day to make it happen.
Photography by Eric Adkins
A little bit about Eric: He’s taken pictures for Loretta Lynn, Scotty McCreery, Duck Dynasty, and he does a lot of work for Gary Allan (that’s just to name a few). He’s one of the sweetest, down to earth people you will ever meet.
So, not only did I have Eric set to shoot my pictures, Chuck enlisted the help of Susi Squillace to work her magic with my hair and make up. I had my first ever team of people working on this project with me.
The day was an absolute dream. Susi came that morning to fix my hair and makeup. We had the most fun talking about different stuff. She is one of the most centered people I have ever met. She has a gift for making people feel relaxed and at ease. Plus, I don’t know if you guys have seen any of the selfies I posted that day, but I looked GOOD! It was all thanks to Susi.
After I was prepped and ready to go we hopped in my jeep and headed to a farm in Franklin where we spent hours shooting in different locations and outfits. Chuck was telling me to make a serious face, Eric was making funny noises to make me laugh, we had a blast. When we were finished on the farm we breaked till sunset then drove into Leipers Fork. We had a limited amount of time to catch the sun before it went down. We probably drove for 20 minutes trying to find a field that wasn’t fenced in or privately owned. Finally, we settled on a spot right off the road where they normally park the Dukes of Hazzard car (if you’ve been to Leipers you know what I’m talkin’ about haha). Chuck looked at me and asked if I was okay climbing over the fence to which I replied, “Are you kidding me! I grew up doing stuff like this!” I hiked my dress up and climbed over it like a pro. My NC peeps would be proud of this country girl because once we started taking pictures in the field, the sun started to set. At this point we were literally having to chase the sun. Eric yelled “RUN!” and the three of us took off running to find the light. Chuck holding the reflector, Eric snapping shots while booking it sideways, and me holding my dress praying I don’t step on a snake in the tall grass. The moment was magical and it’s a memory I will never forget.
The man himself! Eric Adkins!
When I can finally share some of the photos I hope you guys will remember that story because it makes me laugh every time I see how great the field shots turned out. We worked for those shots, buddy!
Words can’t fully express how grateful I am to Eric, Chuck, and Susi for making that day happen. Everyone should have a day where they feel that good about themselves and that fabulous! To have a group of people believe in you and help you in any way they can will bring tears to your eyes. They didn’t have to do all of that for me but I was truly blessed by God to have them help me the way they did. I kept having to pinch myself and say thank you as many times possible.
I wanted you all to know the story behind that photoshoot because at a glance it looks really awesome and like I’m doing something major (and believe me it was!!!!, but I also wanted you to know that I couldn’t have done it by myself. It was all them. I was just the one blessed enough to have it happen. It wasn't a team I hired to make me look great, it was a team of people that came together for a girl who will never be able to say thank you enough for the work they did.
So, I hope this excites you to see the finished product! I’m planning a new website relaunch but I don’t have the date for it yet so stay tuned. There are some exciting things to come guys. Thanks for taking the time to read my little blog. I love you!
xxC
Eric Adkins Photo: http://www.ericadkins.photography/#!/page/182710/home
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