adventures with Matt // to the mountaintop

A couple weekends ago while I was driving home, I saw fog rolling over the mountains. For some reason, I got an incredible urge to drive to the top and make some photos, so Matt kindly agreed to come along with me. Our results were nothing short of fantastic. We felt like we had been transported to another world while looking at the fog and clouds completely engulfing the city. We could have been miles above everything, the clouds were so thick. It was slightly chilly and we were the only ones there, and I felt like we were the only humans left on the planet. I'm truly at a loss for words in trying to describe it.




And the photos I took don't do it justice either. We produced two images that day, the first being this one:



with Matt being my handsome model, and the second being this one:



which you really have to view here in full screen.



Look at that handsome guy! I'm really lucky to have someone so supportive of what I do, someone who is willing to drive me through dense fog and model in the cold, who actually enjoys going on adventures like this with me!




Have a great day!

my week in instagram #52

my beautiful, beautiful state // frolfing



missing the gorgeous state of Oregon



week long camp adventures


My instagram (@impulsings) was taken over for the most part with day camp excursions, as I wanted to do a fun instagram thing on the website, but I did manage to get in a couple noncamp photos in! (random: I can't upload to pictures from my house aka where I spend 99% of my day, so if I ever want to instagram, I have to be down the mountain and we all know how often I go out ...)

Other things that happened this week:

1. My life was taken over by taking and processing photos, so I didn't do much else except eat and sleep.
2. Except that's not completely true, because late into the night I've been reading again! It's a slow pace, but I'm glad to be doing it.
3. Matt bought me an awesome computer game called To The Moon, that I started and finished on Saturday night. Ugh. I cried so much. So. Much. It's such a good story.
4. I got to go see Tim Hawkins in concert! I got to see him two years ago with Matt, and it was great to see him again. (Also, you should click on the link, because that blog/photos (ie my photography) are hilarious/cringe worthy. And incredibly short lived. Oy. But fun to look back on.)
5. Endless browsing on modcloth for things to decorate my future apartment I'll be living in with my friends in just a month and a half ... I'm so excited! It's going to be the single cutest apartment in the history of cuteness and apartments. I'm SO excited to be with my friends again and be in Oregon again. Counting down the days!

Hope you had a great week! It's been an incredibly long one for me, but fun. I took a week off from my internship for camp, and it feels like I've been gone for months. Well, it's back to the daily grind for this girl! If you can count web design and photoshoot adventures daily grinds.

expedition day camp 2013

Whew! What a crazy, hot, exhausting, adventurous week this has been! This is the second year that I've gotten to photograph these adorable kids, and they certainly kept me busy! From scavenger hunts at the museum to panning for gold, from water wars to watching how volcanoes and earthquakes work, we all had a ton of fun! Above are some of my favorite moments that I got to capture. You can also view and purchase all the photos I took here--because there were certainly a lot of great moments! These kids are just the sweetest, and I'm so glad I got to spend an entire week adventuring with them.

film friday: apricot

Back when I very first started dating Matt, I went through a phase when I would watch hours of short films on vimeo.com. This was one of the first films I watched, and it's still probably my absolute favorite. Sadly it was deleted from vimeo (and I nearly had a heart attack because I thought I would never get to watch it again), but thankfully it was still on youtube. I've watched it so many times I can't keep count, and every time it makes me tear up. You may need to watch it through a couple times to figure out all the meanings (or you may be smarter than me and get it the first time). It's such a beautiful film. Ugh, I can't get over how wonderful it is. The storyline, the camera shots, the shallow depth of field, the visual pieces the viewer has to put together to grasp the storyline ... it's perfect.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

daydreaming

dress: target // shirt/tights: thrifted // socks: gift // boots: forever 21 // eevee brooch: c/o denton's inventions // thank you to Matt for being my human tripod





I still have two more outfits to post from the remix my closet post, but seeing that a. I haven't photographed those outfits yet (and don't really feel like doing so at this exact moment), and b. I don't want to fall off the face of the blogging planet, I shall leave you with some photos from a few days ago! All this week I've been taking photos for a day camp, which you can see the progress of here, and it's been pretty eventful to say the least! I'm learning just how much I hate bad lighting, from poorly lit museums to harsh overhead sunlight, and I'm learning how to compensate. Seriously, if it weren't for RAW files (which basically saves all the data of the photograph so you can change the exposure and stuff later), I would be in big trouble. It's been tiring running around, trying to shoot down kids (with the camera!) for hours, and then coming home and sorting through hundreds of photos, processing them, and putting them online in a timely manner for people to purchase. But I've gotten some great photos from it, so I'm happy.






Hope you have a great rest of the week!

mixology results // cupcakes & zigzags

This outfit was picked out by Ali, who decided to pair my pink dress from passing whimsies with my fun cupcake socks! This sort of mustard yellow wouldn't be the first color I would think of when deciding what to pair with pink, but in little doses it works well. I also threw in my striped shirt to peek through the back of the dress (and I can already tell I'm going to be wearing lots of different shirts with this dress this way).



This ensemble was put together by Rhesa, and honestly, I didn't think it was going to work out. But the moment I put on the combinations she suggested, it ended up being one of my favorite outfits from the bunch! That just goes to show that even if you don't think something will match, you have to try it on to be certain. Even I would have never thought of this combination, but you can guarantee that I will be wearing this outfit as much as I possibly can.

Hope you have a great day!

mixology results // floral on floral

Here's an outfit put together by Hilary from the remix my closet post! The floral lace plays nicely with my floral skirt, and the purple is a bold contrasting color against all the reds and oranges in the skirt! If there's one thing I've learned about print mixing, it's this: confidence, above all else, is key. The reason I'm so good at mixing crazy things together is because of my non-concern with what others will think of me. Like any human, that's not always the case in my instance, but I try to always wear something that I'm comfortable in, but also pushes me a little bit.

In real life news, all this week I'm taking photos of my church's day camp (so if you've emailed me recently, I'll try to get back with you tomorrow)! You can view and purchase photos here and see a little bit of what I'm up to every day this week. It's pretty tiring taking pictures for four hours and then coming home and sorting through them for five hours. But I'm loving every second and getting some great images out of it as well!

Hope your day is awesome.

mixology results // stripes, geometry, and contrasting colors

Today we will be looking really quickly at three outfits from the remix my closet post, starting with an outfit put together by Sara! This outfit I think I've already worn twice, but it's just so fun that I can't help it! This is the perfect outfit to show how any color works with any other color. The blue in the shirt isn't related to any colors in the skirt--in the way that there are blues in the skirt as well--but because all colors are the same color intensity, they work. The stripes are, of course, a neutral pattern, so it works with any other pattern, including the fun pattern in my neutral colored cardigan!



This outfit was put together by Hannah, featuring the same cardigan. The pattern works well with the pattern in my dress, not only because they are both geometric patterns, but because one is a large pattern and the other is small. I added a pop of color in the shoes and I was good to go!



Hannah also picked out this outfit, using the shirt as a jumping point. She pulled the purple from the color in my shirt to tie in with my skirt, and then threw in a contrasting color of green to make the outfit a bit more interesting. Here is another mixology result showcasing the green + purple combination!

Check back tomorrow for more mixology results!

my week in instagram #51

a beautiful view // a yummy drink // a silly guy // follow @impulsings

What's up everyone! Sorry it's been so quiet around here (at least, it feels that way to me). I've been busy running around, acting like a tourist in my own city, which is one of my favorite things to do. I actually shot a lot more dslr photos than instagram photos, mostly because I didn't have reception a lot of the places I went and therefore didn't bother with taking cell phone pictures. But I can't wait to share with you guys the pictures (and videos!) I did take.

Other things that happened this week:

1. Bought a camera bag! After so many years without one, and just stuffing my cameras and lenses into a too small purse (or carrying multiple purses around), I finally bought a camera bag, which I received in the mail today. So exciting!

2. Listened to mixtapes on 8tracks.com. My favorite thing currently.

3. Went on a date with Matt! We dressed up all fancy and he took me to a fancy restaurant. They even offered us wine--something that never happens to me, but always happens to him. Newsflash, I'm older than him. But being the law-abiding citizens that we were, we opted for water.

4. Went sledding. Yep, in July. We gathered quite the crowd at the base of the glacier while we screamed down the ice and snow on our sleds. It was blissful.

Hope your week was fantastic!

july goals

If you've been reading my blog for the past couple of months, you may have noticed that I've basically failed on my new year's resolutions. So in an effort to not completely give up, I'm working on some easier, monthly goals. I'm trying to become more organized generally in life, so that's also kind of the reason why I'm going to start doing monthly goals as well. We shall see how this goes.

• Write ten pages in my novel
• Complete (and post) one diy project
• Complete keywording on current arcangel stock images
• Upload 10 more arcangel images
• Do one photoshoot
• Sketch more
• Read one book
• One week of remixing each month
• Organize my external hardrive

Here's to July!

film friday

DARK SIDE OF THE LENS from Astray Films on Vimeo.

For this installation of film friday, I leave you with a beautiful film that needs no description from me. Enjoy.

mixology results // red, white, and blue

jeans: target // shirts: thrifted // boots: gift // jacket: forever 21 (old)





This is an outfit that my friend Ali put together from my remix my closet post, and I thought it would be perfect for the fourth of July! I added the blue polka dots for the festivities, and it was the perfect outfit for a cold Alaska day. All our warm weather disappeared, and this is what a typical Alaska summer feels like. Cold, overcast, maybe a day or two of sunshine, but certainly not on a holiday. That's okay though, I don't mind it. Today we ran around outside, doing a lot of touristy things for my extended family that's vacationing up here, and this beach was one of the places that we went to! I'll have more pictures from today up soon.





Hope you're having a great day!

happy fourth

Happy fourth of July everyone! And happy Independence Day to my American friends. I may or may not have an outfit post up today, as my family from the lower forty eight just flew in last night for the celebrations and vacationing. But you can look back a year ago and see my outfit from 2012, just for kicks. I hope you have a great and safe day filled with celebration and appreciation!

mixology results // green + purple

dress/tights/belt: thrifted // cardigan: ? // boots: forever 21





This is the outfit Z put together for me from my remix my closet post. I added the belt to go with the leopard print on the inside of my boots, and to add another print. Since both of the prints are neutral colors, they work. Since they are contrasting prints, one geometric, one organic, they work. Since on print is big and one is small, they work. I loved the colors in the cardigan/tights that she picked, and probably wouldn't have thought to pair them together! Since the purple and green are both dark colors, they look pretty awesome next to each other!






In other news, my grandparents, aunt, uncle, and cousin are all coming up for the fourth of July! So I'm a bit unsure how posts will go for the next few days since I'm being kicked out of my room and there will be a lot of extra peering eyes to creep on me while I take outfit pictures, but I can guarantee there will be a lot of fun event photos for you to look forward to!

Have a great day everyone.

june photos

"take me back"



"moonmaker"



"gold"

(I'll be doing another post on "gold", which will include a video and some behind the scenes photos!)

As I suspected from the beginning of the month, I didn't create as many pieces for June. But the pieces I did create I am extremely proud of. It's definitely an effort of quality over quantity, and I'll take just a few amazing ideas over a lot of mediocre ones.

january/february // march // april // may