Monika Dechene » Portraits

One Last Beautiful Autumn Day

Monika — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 20:16:44 +0000

The summer months have long given way for the crisp and cool months of autumn. For most of the United States, that means sunny days that highlight the gorgeous hues of red, orange, and yellow. It’s a beautiful time before the cold pushes people inside for a mug of steaming hot chocolate. In the Pacific Northwest, it means a transitional period when the days become eerily too short and the blue sky becomes a blanket of grey clouds. There are those rare magnificent days, however, when the clouds disappear, blue clouds are vibrant, and autumn colours come alive with the lingering sunlight. Sunday was such a day, and boy howdy did I take advantage of it!

Peter is a charming young man. I should know, seeing as he’s my little baby brother and all. Okay, so he’s not so little and not a baby anymore, but you really can’t blame me for teasing. Peter is significantly cooler than my husband and I (combined). Significantly. That said, there are benefits to being the elder sibling – you get to boss around your younger sibling. I dragged him outside and made him model his coolness for my lens. With what I can only assume to be the last beautiful day in the Pacific Northwest, I’m very thankful for the reprieve from the clouds and rain. It was an absolutely perfect day, and a portrait session to celebrate the beauty that is autumn just seemed, well, absolutely perfect.

Portland Street Performers: Break Dancers

Monika — Tue, 31 May 2011 06:23:09 +0000

This week marks the Portland Rose Festival, one of the most renowned festivals in the country. Unfortunately, Mark and I will be missing most of the Rose Festival as we’ll be in California to watch my brother’s high school graduation. Since today was an absolutely gorgeous day in Portland, Mark and I took a little adventure to the City Fair. After we enjoyed a few sweet fair treats and rode the ferris wheel, we strolled along the river and happened to catch two guys enjoying the weather as they wowed the crowd with a little dance show. Break dancers are always fun to watch!

Fun in The Pearl with Caroline and Lukas

Monika — Thu, 12 May 2011 02:16:04 +0000

Yesterday, I met with Heather and her darling children, Caroline and Lukas. Caroline was the adorably spunky flower girl at Nessa’s and Marwan’s wedding last June. Caroline is still as amazingly spunky, with a beautiful smile and great energy. Lukas is turning 2-years old this month (Happy Early Birthday Lukas!), and he’s just one of the most lovable toddlers you could ever meet. Heather wanted to really focus on her children’s personalities, and she picked some amazing activities. I love it when parents want to let their kids run around and get dirty! We had a lovely picnic under the shade of a new tree at Tanner Springs Park. After some running around, we wandered off to the Cool Moon Ice-Cream parlor for double scoops of double-dipped chocolate (by the way, those photographs had me cracking up in my editing stage). We burnt off all the sugar at Jamison Square to enjoy the fountain on the hot day. It was a pretty awesome day, and I was so happy to enjoy the beautiful Portland weather with Heather, Caroline, and Lukas. Thanks guys for the laughs and great company!

Diane & Andrew: Engagement Portraits in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii

Monika — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 02:36:43 +0000

My sister-in-law recently received a proposal from a very nice man (who we tease mercilessly for being a defense attorney — we tease because we love, Andrew!). When we found out that Mark’s family would be meeting up for a Hawaiian holiday, it only became natural that an engagement session would get squeezed into the fun adventures and calm relaxing moments that come with holidays on a beautiful tropical paradise. I had imagined palm trees, blue skies, sunset strolls, and a very sexy (Sorry, Mark!) hyperfocus-type of shot of the Diane and Andrew in the water kissing with the underwater scene to kind of draw you into this moment — kind of a two worlds in one photograph deal. Yet, one can never control the weather, and this becomes especially true for tropical islands. We woke up to find the threat of rain looming over us on the day of our scheduled engagement session. We attempted (oh how we attempted) to beat the oncoming downpour, but just as we reached our session destination… BOOM! Rain. Oh.My.Goodness.The.Rain. Luckily, the lobby area of our condo was lush with tropical plants and plenty of cover that would protect us from the rain. We played with our setting, trying to find a little bit of that Hawaiian paradise inside while it rained. When there was a break, we headed outside to get a shot with the lava rocks.

It’s a little edgier than I had imagined their engagement to be, but Diane’s and Andrew’s affections for each other really softened the gloomy atmosphere that a tropical rain can sometimes bring. They were amazing models, adapting to the change of location and the change of weather. Plus, bonus point, they were willing to put up with my weird instructions… like taking off their sandals and walking on pebbles so that we could fake an intimate garden. One could have never guessed that the garden was really surrounded by several condos.

Congratulations Diane and Andrew! Mark and I can’t wait for your wonderful day, and it’ll be great to see family from near and far!

A Single Moment: Passion by the Ocean

Monika — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 03:07:24 +0000

My Favourites of 2010

Monika — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 00:34:44 +0000

It’s the first day of the new year, and I wanted to take a moment to share some of my favourite photographs from 2010. It was such a brilliant year for me, complete with moments I shall never forget thanks to such wonderful people. I had the absolute honour of meeting so many magnificent individuals and capturing some of the most emotional moments of their lives. It was hard to choose my favourite images, and I had to narrow it down further as I tried to put together this entry to share. However, as my best friend Nora Warens told me, that’s a great problem to have! Special thanks to my great friend and partner in crime, Diana Matthews of Creative Moments Photography. Sharing these events with her was absolute fun, and I adore working with her.

Happy New Year, everyone! I’ve got my camera poised and ready to capture the joys and surprises of 2011. I can’t wait to see you on the other side of my lens!

Seductive Lady A

Monika — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 19:08:03 +0000

This is all you get of the amazingly seductive Lady A.

Relative-T

Monika — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 18:03:14 +0000

I had meant to post this sooner, but I’ve been fighting the amazing battle against a tree-infested Raleigh. With allergies finally starting to settle down, I can sit down long enough to type up the wonderful adeventure with Relative-T. Last year, our session included an awesome urban motif around downtown Raleigh. The red brick and metal really created an awesome backdrop for their very hip and awesome personalities. This time around, we’d try to bring the hip and modern into a more natural setting. The beautiful day was pure perfection, with a beautiful sky that just lit their smiles and their attitude. After we walked around Duke Gardens for a bit, we found a little nook behind a beautiful brick building on Duke’s campus to do something a little more edgy. It was quite a lot of fun and it was great seeing Relative-T again!

Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T Relative-T

Revisiting Relative-T

Monika — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 16:16:55 +0000

Today, I’ll be off photographing local brother-sister rap/R&B duo, Relative-T (pronounced “relativity”), in Durham. I had the chance to meet this dynamic duo in 2008, when we took an edgy and urban style to their portraits. I’m excited to see what today’s photographs will bring, especially since today promises to be another rather beautiful day in North Carolina! Be sure to check back soon for their photographs!

The Girl with the Yellow Balloon

Monika — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 02:02:43 +0000

I absolutely adore meeting new clients and photographing their portraits and events. It’s a great perk of what I do, and I cannot express the joy I feel when I see their smiling faces through the lens of my camera. Yet, there are times when I just love grabbing a friend and doing something different. I get a rush when I grab my gear and decide to just go, letting inspiration guide and sway me. It’s a time when I can experiment with colour and new photography styles and compositions. I’ve found these moments to be great for defining my style and my art.

On Saturday, a good friend, Toni, and I went on a little adventure of our own. The weather was perfect, a prime example of the magnificent temperatures of a Southern spring. I braved the pollen and Toni braved my insane instructions. Toni, the wonderful smiling spirit that she is, donned her awesomely purple dress and sassy yellow shoes and became the girl with the yellow balloon. Er, I should say balloons, as we were trailed by three sunshine-bright yellow balloons. Toni was an amazing friend and model, and words cannot express how thankful I am that she became my inspiration for the day. She was a spot of pure smiles with her purple dress, and the yellow balloons just perked up the twinkle in her eyes in every shot.

I had wanted to hit the light right before sunset, but poor timing on my part had us smack-dab in the glorious high sun. It’s one of a photographer’s ultimate challenges – harsh lights, harsh shadows. It can make for rather washed out photographs and a sweaty model. I’m glad we didn’t turn away from the light. Some of the most light intense photographs from this session are my favourites!

Beauty All Smiles! Reflections Reflections in the Window Running Through the Looking Glass Sunshine Smiles Jumping Sunshine in the Flowers Mirrors Lines Drowning in the Sun's Warmth Mellow Purple and a Hint of Sassy Yellow Spring Colours Yellow and Green