MarcusDilanoPhotography
Maryland Portrait and Wedding Photographers
Meowth
Model Katla Gray Agency: Genesis level
Well I guess it has been awhile since I’ve created a blog post. All I can really say is that we’ve been very busy trying to grow the business. Today I am sharing an Image from a Cosplay shoot I did a few weeks ago.
Katla is a model with the Genesislevel agency located here in the DMV. I’ve worked with her a few times over the years and when she reached out to ask if I would be interested in doing a Cosplay shoot I said sure.
Meowth is the name of the character she was playing for the first look. Meowth is a Pokémon character and thankfully after the shoot, my son was able to fill in a few blanks for me because I really had no idea who Meowth was. I always have fun working with Katla and this time was no different. There will be many more images to come from this shoot.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Maggie & Melissa
Models: Maggie & Melissa MUA: Styled By Jadae
Last weekend we had a portrait session with Maggie, pictured on the left in the image above here in Columbia Maryland. Maggie had just happened to bring her friend Melissa with her so we ended up working with both of these young ladies. We are very thrilled with the results from the session.
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Howard County Maryland Portrait and Wedding Photographers
Mary
Sharing an image from our session with Mary. More images to come in the coming weeks.
Fashionable Day at the Beach
Model Ronlet Lovejoy
We had an amazing time working with Ronlet at the beach on Wednesday. Everytime we work with her we come away with some pretty strong images. Looking forward to sharing images from her shoot in the coming weeks!
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
A Walk on the Beach
Model: Jessica
Management: Strong Arm Division
A few weeks ago we had a wonderful time working with Jessica, a model with Strong Arm Division. Here are a few images from the first segment of the shoot.
Pashmina
Model: Alex Dukee
Location: Annapolis Maryland
2016 has been an unbelievably busy year for us. We don’t have any complaints because we’ve been blessed but we’ve also had very little to no downtime whatsoever. As of today we have about 12 jobs which range from senior portraits to weddings & modeling shoots to get through within the next 30 days. We’ll end up leaving office to head to the ones in our homes until about the middle of next month. Due to being very busy, we have not kept up with our blog for the majority of this year. During the winter months that will change and I am very excited to not only share the work but all of the stuff I’ve learned throughout the year.
This image was taken last week at a beach in Annapolis Maryland. This was the first time that I got a chance play with an adjustable variable neutral density filter that I picked up from Amazon over the summer. The filter which is a ZOMEI 82mm ND Fader Neutral Density Adjustable Variable Filter was purchased on accident because I already have a 10 stop ND filter from Hoya. My intention was to purchase a few lens and camera caps but at some point earlier in the year I must have put this item in my cart and I didn’t notice this item was still there.
The photo above was taken with the Tamron 24-70 mm at f3.2 at ISO 100. I had an Alien Bee 1600 eight feet away from my model and the power was set to 1/32 power . Well due to the filter, the image degradation clearly visible no matter what ND setting I used. Thankfully this was just a $30 purchase because I would have to guess that in order to get good to great image quality from a variable ND filter, one would have to pay at least 10 times this amount if not more. All that being said, I still like the image and I just wish I had remembered to bring the my 10 stop ND filter with me.
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Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Pretty in Blue
Model: Alex Dukee
Location: Georgetown Washington DC
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of working with Alex Dukee in Georgetown which located in Washington D.C. This was technically not our first shoot together because she was one of the models involved in a shoot we did for Mixed Elements Salon Spa & Boutique. There were quite a few other models involved for that shoot so we didn’t really didn’t have a lot of time to work with Alex.
Since I had already worked with Alex, albeit for a short time, we were able to get into the shoot pretty quickly. I was having a lot of fun during this shoot before she brought up that she’s a Philadelphia Eagles Fan. I quickly recovered and just thanked the heavens that I wasn’t working one of those dreaded Cowboy fans! Seriously though, Alex was awesome to work with and I have a others different series I plan on sharing from this shoot. I’m definitely looking forward to our next shoot which is in less than two weeks!
A Free Spirit
Fashion Blogger: Ciara
Location: Marriottsville Maryland
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Howard County Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Jennifer
Jennifer Connor
The first time we worked with Jennifer it was 22 degree January morning. Due to the weather that shoot only lasted 20 minutes before we called it a wrap. At the end of that shoot we promised her that we would make sure to schedule the next shoot sometime in the summer. Due to scheduling conflicts the summer shoot didn’t happen either
Finally,this past weekend we were able to work together again . It was 43 degrees and windy during the time of the shoot. Based on what she was wearing, it may have felt like it was below 30 degrees especially due to the high wind gusts. We are just glad to finally work with her again and we will share more images in the coming days.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Boho Fashion Shoot with Ciara
Model and MUA: Ciara
Location: Mount Hebron Maryland
Over the coming weeks we will share a few images from our session with Ciara at a park in Mount Hebron Maryland. Ciara, a fashion blogger and make up artist was awesome to work. I am very pleased with how the images turned out from our shoot!
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Annalise
Senior Portrait of Annalise
Two years ago, we had the joy of doing a modeling session with Annalise. She was only fifteen at the time but at that point, she was one of the most impressive models we had worked with. At 5’11 she was very much in demand in the local market and not only was she strong at posing, but she could give us numerous expressions too.
When her mother contacted us earlier last month about scheduling a senior portrait session, we were beyond excited to work with her again! Annalise has stopped modeling to focus on school and other extracurricular activities. She is in the midst of deciding which schools she would like to attend and her goal is to get a degree in bio engineering. We are wishing her the best as she prepares for the next chapter in her life.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Alex for Mixed Elements Salon Spa & Boutique
Model: Alex
Hair: Keya Neal
MUA: Jesslyn Paige Bryan
Location: Mixed Elements Salon Spa & Boutique
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
http://www.mixedelements.me
A Warrior
Model: Tara Rivera
Hair: Sandy Barone
MUA: Tara Rivera
Location: Mixed Elements Salon Spa & Boutique
Yesterday we had another awesome shoot with the team over at Mixed Elements Salon in Gambrills Maryland. The theme for the shoot was Tribal so we used the woods next to the Salon for this shoot! The shoot took place in the woods next tot he salon and while walking around we came across an arrow laying on the ground. Apparently there is an archery field next to the woods we were shooting in. Trust me when I say I didn’t let my mind dwell on that for too long otherwise I would have spent most of the time staring up in the sky wondering if an additional arrows would come out of no where!
We had a fantastic time and we are really excited with what we were able to capture during this shoot. More images to come soon!
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
http://www.mixedelements.me
Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Improvising
Model: Karina
Location: Frederick Maryland
This image is from yesterday’s session with Karina in downtown Frederick Maryland. This was a bohochic inspired fashion & lifestyle session and although it was fun, the lighting conditions were not ideal. I typically like to shoot at very low apertures so that I can isolate my subject and remove a lot of the distractions from the image. Unfortunately almost everywhere that I thought would make for a great backdrop was just covered in sun. Since we have started doing more shoots at the beach, I have gotten used to lugging around one set of Alien Bee’s in order to help out in situations such as the one I found myself in yesterday.
I decided if I wanted to force the issue and use this location I would have to try and over power the sun in order to get what I wanted. I placed the Alien Bees 4 feet to the left of Karina and I used it at ½ power for this image. I used an f stop of F22, speed 160 and the ISO was set at 100. I have never shot anything at f22 before and I tend to stay well below f2.0 while shooting engagement sessions, portraits or model work. In the editing process I also like to remove vibrancy and a little contrast from my images because I like a light and airy mood for my images. That being said I like the results from this shoot and going forward I will probably try and re-create images that have more of an edgy look to them.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Mini Session with Hunter
Model: Hunter
Location: Old Town Alexandria
On Saturday we had a good time working with Hunter in Old Town Alexandria Virginia. It was a relatively short session because she had to head into DC and take part in DC’s fashion week. We are very happy with what we were able to capture in a limited amount of time.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Old Town Alexandria Virginia
Beauty at the Beach
Model: Kayla
Location: Sandy Point Beach Maryland
I’ve have to say that I absolutely love working with Kayla. Over the years we have done about seven shoots together and each one has been a lot of fun. I definitely appreciate that she always brings her A game to echo shoot!
Can you believe that less than a year ago, Kayla gave birth to a beautiful baby boy! Looking forward to sharing more images from her session.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Howard County Maryland Portrait Wedding Photographers
Allison Coachella Inspired Shoot
Model: Allison
Location: Howard County Conservatory
Melanie
Model: Melanie
Sandy Point Beach Maryland
We have spent a lot of time this summer shooting our modeling sessions at Sandy Point Beach. Today I am sharing one of my favorite images from my session with Melanie. At times I wish I lived on the West Coast so I could shoot on beaches all year long. Thankfully dreaming doesn’t cost a thing.
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Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Tennis Shoot with Ronlet
Model: Ronlet Lovejoy
For about a year now I have wanted to do a shoot at one of the tennis courts in the area. After months of procrastinating, I finally got it done. Here is one of the images from the shoot.
Summer of Swimwear Lindey Image #1
Model: Lindey Frances
Location: Annapolis Maryland
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Howard County Maryland Portrait and Wedding Photographers
A Swimwear Summer Kayla Image 1
Model: Kayla Certain
Location: Annapolis Maryland
Earlier this year while looking through our portfolio, we realized that in the six years we have been shooting together, we had not attempted to shoot swim wear. We notice that it is mainly your California and Florida based photographers that shoot the majority of swimsuit shoots we come across on the Interwebs. This summer we decided to give it a go so besides a few summer weddings, over the last few months we’ve setup a few shoots at Sandy Point Beach in Annapolis Maryland.
Our sessions have been starting at 6 am in the morning and we typically end close to 9 am. We also chose to work with models that we have worked with in the past. That way not too much time was needed trying to build a rapport while racing against the sun rising too far high up into the sky. The equipment we brought with us to the beach consisted of two Alien Bee’s Strobes, beauty dishes, umbrellas as well as few speed lights. For the majority of the sessions, we stuck with just using the Alien Bee’s strobes.
On one hand the shoots were a lot of fun, on the other hand they were probably the most challenging shoots we have ever done. Dealing with the variety of lighting conditions, equipment, posing, facial expressions and sometimes jelly fish have made for some great memories but also interesting challenges. We will share more details regarding our experiences & lessons learned in blog post to follow.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Howard County Maryland Wedding and Portrait Photographers
Hannah
Model: Hannah
Location: Jerusalem Mills Maryland
On Saturday morning I had the pleasure of working with Hannah, an 8 year old model from Delaware. It has been at least three years since we have last worked with a child model. I wasn’t nervous per say, more so curious about how the session would turn out.
Well once I was introduced to Hannah I knew that the shoot would turn out well. She was an absolute joy to work with and she has such a big personality for a someone in such a tiny package. I will share more images in the coming weeks from her session.
Sumi
Well so far 2016 has been filled with ups and downs. We are still busy as ever but not as active here as we’ve been in the past. I’m hoping that will change soon.
Above is an image from our session with Sumi. She looks great rocking this dress from Free Republic.
California Dreaming
Model: Allison
Location: Sandy Point Beach
After a month off due to vacation and an unfortunate hospital stay due to a infection in my foot, I am back to blogging again. Looking forward to seeing everyone’s posts and I am sure I have a lot to catch up on. Today I am sharing an image from Sunday mornings shoot at Sandy Point Beach in Maryland. This was my first attempt at doing a swimsuit shoot and this is one of my favorite images from the session.
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Howard County Maryland Wedding and Portrait Photographers
Patricia Decked out in Michael Kors
Model: Patricia Location: National Harbor Washington DC Dress & Shoes: Michael Kors Accessories: Bebe
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Howard County Maryland Portrait and Wedding Photographers
Katie at Union Station Washington DC
Katie Dress: Forever 21
Well we are in May and April’s showers seem to want to hang out a bit more here in the Mid-Atlantic. I think it has been raining on and off since last Thursday and almost everyday this week we will have a chance of rain.
Our shoot with Katie was originally scheduled for the National Harbor but after doing our first session with another model there that morning, we realized that the location just wouldn’t work. So I called Katie and told her change of plans, we are going to do her session at Union Station because that way we could shoot inside if needs be. Although it never stopped drizzling we did have a period of very light rain which we were able to take advantage of. We are looking forward to sharing images from this session in the coming days.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Joy
Kevin & Nichole at Merdian Hill Park Washington DC
Esmerelda
The Beautiful Esmerelda at the National Harbor in Washington DC
Dwayne & Mary
Well our wedding season kicked off on Saturday with Dwayne & Mary’s wedding in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. We’re looking forward to sharing more images from their wedding in the coming weeks.
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DMV Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Beautiful Blues
Model: Kayla Certain Location: Naval Academy
This is another one of my favorite images from my session with Kayla’s a few weeks ago and it was taken on the grounds of the Naval Academy in Annapolis Maryland. The gate to enter was open but I was a little worried about walking in there with two cameras around my neck. I have seen photographs other photographers have taken in at this location so I figured we should be okay.
I jokingly mentioned to Kayla that I hope we don’t need some kind of security clearance to walk around the property. Kayla then told me that she has the security clearance to get into a lot of places. Her comment prompted me not to ask any more questions on the topic. Later I did find out that visitors are welcome on the grounds as long as you have government issued ID.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Dwayne and Mary’s Engagement Session Alexandria Virginia
This afternoon we have the pleasure of photographing this beautiful couple’s wedding day in Alexandria,Virginia. Dwayne and Mary choose Alexandria as the location for their engagement session because they love the area and spend a lot of time there on the weekends. We could tell they knew the area because they were able to point out of different buildings and discuss the rich history behind them. We are looking forward to capturing all the beautiful moments of their day. Below are a few of the images from their session.
Julia’s Test Shoot Wrap up
My session with Julia was the shortest shoot I have done in awhile. It was due to a mini bout of April snow showers twenty minutes into the session. I’ve found in my experience that it takes a good fifteen to twenty minutes to establish a comfort level with a model that we haven’t work with before. We knew we were taking a bit of a risk although the weather report indicated we should have been clear for the time the shoot was scheduled.
Although our scheduled two hour session really turned into twenty minutes of shooting time, I am still pleased with the images from the shoot. We will try again when she is home from school this summer.
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Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Model: Julia Location: Arlington Virginia
The Dancer
Model: Victoria
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Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
A Sleeping Beauty
Tara Rivera
Would you believe that I came across this scene while traipsing through the woods? Guess I wouldn’t either.
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Maryland Wedding & Portrait Photographers
The Dancer Harpers Fery
Model: Victoria Location: Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
On Saturday, Marcus and I visited Harpers Ferry West Virginia for our session with Victoria as well as for our final meeting with a couple whose wedding we are photographing in a few weeks.
Victoria is originally from Monrovia and she started dancing at the age of sixteen. One of the things we have come to notice while working with dancers is that there posture is never rigid and everything they do tends to have fluidity. We will share more images from Victoria’s session with us in the coming weeks.
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Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Being Different is Beautiful
Model: Tara Rivera
Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
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The Diva
Model: Ronlet Lovejoy
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Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Power
Models Amanda Lee & Justin Hair: Patrik Simpson MUA: Emily Moesner Stylist: Sandy Barone & Allie Daly
” The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any. ” – Alice Walker
A Classy Dame
Model: Laura Michelle for Mixed Elements Salon Spa & Boutique
Location: Blue Dolphin Grill
MUA: Emily Moesner
Hair: Patrik Simpson
Stylist: Sandy Barone
http://www.mixedelements.me
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Julia
On Saturday morning I had the pleasure of working with Julia, a college student at George Mason University. We decided to use the city of Arlington, Virginia as the backdrop for the shoot. Unfortunately, twenty minutes into the session, it started snowing so it ended up being one of my shortest sessions in sometime. This is my favorite image from her mini-session and I am sure we will work together again later in the year.
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
My Dreams
Model: Tara Rivera Location: Governors Reserve Bowie Maryland
See that golden hue
Burning in the west
My dreams are with that color
My dreams are the sun
The sun always sets
But never seems to rise
That sun carries my dreams
Slowly out of my reach
I watch it slide away
Leaving me behind
The color disappears
My dreams are with that sun
Whenever the sun sets
It rises in another place
A place blessed by that light
My dreams are hidden in that light
At my window seat
I watch the sun take it all away
My dreams are with the sun
My dreams are the sun
Quiet Noise
Model:Kayla Certain Location: Annapolis Waterfront
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Howard County Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
Just a Kiss
It was just a Kiss
A harmless little Kiss
But it was so tender & so sweet
I completely succumbed
To your charms as they unfolded I wanted to Kiss and Kiss again
Oh the magic of it all
How was I to know when it began
That I would definitely fall in love forever
And we vowed we’d part absolutely positively NEVER
Oh the magic of just a Kiss
Mrs. Bennett
Model: Tara Rivera Location: Bowie Maryland
If, however, your feelings have changed,
I will have to tell you: you have bewitched me…
http://www.marcusdilanophotography.com
Maryland Portrait & Wedding Photographers
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