No Eye Has Seen Photography

Refocus | Can you hear me now?

Alicia Candelora — Mon, 14 May 2012 14:53:28 +0000

I know, I know. I posted a ~~bit~~ long time ago that I wanted to start video blogging and that it was one of the scariest things I could do. That was 3 months ago. And since then I’ve had this nagging voice in my head telling me that I’m failing because I’m not doing them as often as I wanted. And I guess somewhere along the way, that nagging voice just became the norm and I was able to effectively tune it out. Until recently when my Pursuit 31 mentor started getting on my case and emailing me almost daily to ask if I had recorded the newest Refocus video. It was the push that I needed and I finally sat down to record it last weekend.

So…
1. I am still not used to hearing my voice on camera. And I still hate it. I started watching this video and turned it off after 15 seconds. Hopefully you don’t do the same.
2. I still talk too fast. I’m working on that one.
3. I made the decision to only allow 1 take for each of these cause I don’t want it to sound “perfect”. Clearly, my strategy is working because I relentlessly stumbled over words and said “Ummm…” way too many times.
4. I hope this challenges you at least a bit, because it has definitely kicked my butt this week.

Happy Monday!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Meet Seth + Sabrina

Alicia Candelora — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:58:59 +0000

You could hear a pin drop in the room as the professor posed a question which no student dared attempt to answer. Except for him. She took note of this brave guy across the room, the only one who spoke up. Not only was he brave, but she thought he was kinda cute too. Turns out Mr. brave and handsome was her roommates lab partner and through a series of events, Seth and Sabrina eventually became really good friends. And as their friendship progressed over movies and popcorn, late night studying for chemistry tests, and the beautiful change of seasons at Uconn, these two friends began falling in love. And you know what they say. The rest, is just history…

I recently got together with Seth and Sabrina to do their engagement photo session at Wichkam Park in Manchester, CT. I had never been to Wickham Park before and so when I arrived, I was delighted at how pretty it was and how perfect it was for their baseball themed engagement session.

It’s hard to see but that little spec in the distance is the city of Hartford. Wichkam Park had a gorgeous view which made their engagement session there all the better.

The light at Wickham Park was absolutely divine.

Wickham Park is also a wedding venue outside of Hartford and this trellis is one of the places that they do weddings at the park.

Sarah + Martin

Alicia Candelora — Wed, 02 May 2012 18:11:05 +0000

There is always something super special about watching two friends get married. Having the honor of being there when Sarah and Martin got married was no exception. If there were ever two people who were a perfect compliment to each other it is these two and to witness them getting married was a true honor.

Meet Sarah and Martin

Now THOSE are some wedding shoes!!

Sarah and Martin got married at the church in which they met which is also the church that I attended (and loved!) when I lived in Denmark

My good friend, Jakob, shot alongside me for their wedding and he grabbed this amazing shot…among many others!

A little speech rehearsal before dinner

The Bucket List

Alicia Candelora — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 17:38:14 +0000

I’ve kept a list like this for as long as I can remember. I started journaling when I was about 8 years old and around that same time I became obsessed with lists. I remember hearing in some movie that someone had a “bucket list” and after asking my mom what that was she told me it’s a list that people keep of things they want to do in life. In the last year or so, it has become somewhat of a trend in the photography industry to make a sort of bucket list, specifically a “101 in 1001″ list. For all these years I’ve kept my list private but I’ve decided now to go public with it because it seems that as soon as I write things out for the public to see, I tend to be more committed to them. There are, in fact, 101 things on my updated list, though I know I won’t be able to accomplish all of these in 1001 days.

Heres my list, but after you are done reading it, I want you to comment with a few things on YOUR bucket list!!

1. Ride a zip line
2. Photograph a surprise military homecoming
3. Be featured in a magazine
4. Hike a 14’er
5. Bike East to West to raise money for a non-profit
6. Go clamming
7. Be a contestant on either Survivor, The Amazing Race, A wedding reality show, or A Birth Story
8. Go ice fishing
9. ~~Be in a Flash Mob~~ Done! And you can see the video (which I, unfortunately am in a LOT) here.
10. Visit New Zealand
11. Make six figures + in a single year
12. Go white water rafting
13. Learn how to rock climb
14. ~~Fly first class~~. OMG…it was as amazing as they make it sound!!
15. Learn some sick karate moves
16. Bungee jump in Africa
17. Run a 5k
18. Do a flip off a jump while snowboarding (learn to snowboard first?)
19. Surf in Hawaii
20. Speak at a WPPI
21. ~~Get featured on Style Me Pretty~~. Done!
22. Road trip around the country for at least 30 days stopping in Fort Myers, Dallas, Colorado, California, Minnesota, Seattle, Chicago, Niagara falls and any other place that I know people
23. Throw a party. And then some more. And then make sure it becomes routine.
24. Take salsa dancing lessons
25. Go to dinner with someone famous
26. Visit Australia
27. Be on tv
28. Go on a cruise
29. Get featured in Grace Ormonde
30. Have a magical wedding
31. Take ballroom dancing lessons
32. Photograph a wedding in India
33. Go skinny dipping in some remote jungle
34. Host weekly game nights
35. Get my motorcycle drivers permit
36. Read 1 book a month for 12 months in a row
37. Take a CPR class
38. ~~Visit Malaysia~~. It was amazing!
39. Start weekly game nights at my apartment/house
40. Weigh 1_0lbs
41. Own a pair of authentic Badgley’s, Jimmy Choo’s or Louboutin’s.
42. Run a mile a day for 30 consecutive days
43. Be in a community theater musical
44. Visit my best friend in Turkey
45. Take a flying lesson
46. Have a years-worth of income in savings
47. Hire 4 photographers to work as associates under me
48. Sing a “girl power” song at a Karaoke bar, and dance on a table during it
49. Spend an hour on Kverkfjöll
50. Take Grandpa to Italy
51. Accumulate a decent bar stock and learn how to make some killer cocktails
52. Take pole dancing lessons. (What?!?! I hear it’s a great workout!)
53. Spend a month in Italy taking intensive Italian language classes
54. Hot air balloon ride over CT/MA during peak foliage
55. Get my gun/shooting permit. And a gun.
56. Find a way to get Bruce to meet Derek Jeter
57. Give birth to twins (unfortunately I have zero control over this)
58. Plant a garden that yields enough veggies to live off of
59. Watch all the “Godfather” movies in one day
60. Write a book…and get it published
61. Take a self portrait of myself once a month for an entire year
62. Speak at a women’s conference
63. Blog 5 times a week for at least 5 weeks in a row
64. Somehow convince my grandmother to come back to CT, even if just for a visit.
65. Own a nice car…for once.
66. Invent something to help the photography industry
67. Visit the Fiji Islands
68. Learn to grill meat properly
69. Shoot a wedding in Santorini, Greece
70. Do a creative shoot of the kids once a month for an entire year
71. No sugar for 30 days
72. Draw a blueprint for a dream home
73. Build that dream home
74. Mentor a new photographer from the start until he/she becomes “successful”
75. Sew a dress that I would actually wear
76. Attend a fashion show during Copenhagen fashion week
77. Take ballroom dancing lessons
78. Buy something unexpected and amazing for Katie and Bill
79. Visit Alaska
80. Photograph a celebrity wedding (Taylor Swift?)
81. Go deer hunting, successfully.
82. ~~Go cliff jumping in some exotic location overseas.~~ MALTA!!!
83. Make flushmount albums of all my travels
84. Invent a product for photographers
85. Build a tree fort for my siblings
86. Host monthly [fancy] dinner parties
87. Learn to play guitar well
88. Go winter camping
89. Own a natural light studio
90. Get both of my parents to come on a missions trip with me
91. Take salsa dancing lessons
92. Take Bionca to a spa for an entire day
93. Find a church home in America…and get involved with it
94. Learn how to knit
95. Take a drawing/painting class
96. Keep a gratitude journal and write in it once a day for an entire year
97. Plan a swanky New Years Eve Party
98. Go waterskiing
99. Learn to juggle
100. Give blood (need to plan this well since I can’t do so for 18 months after being in certain countries)
101. Write one note of encouragement on a postcard and mail it to someone, every week for a year

Now that I have them written down, you can expect blog posts with updates on my Bucket List! I want to hear, what are some of the things on YOUR bucket list?

Denmark through Instagram

Alicia Candelora — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:17:21 +0000

It should come as no surprise to those of you reading my blog that I have a slight obsession with the country of Denmark. I spent 5 years living in Copenhagen and during that time, this quaint little country completely stole my heart. I recently went there to shoot a wedding and realized that I’ve never really taken or posted pictures of Denmark. When I return in June I plan on doing a full photo tour of the city that I fell in love with but, for now, I want you to see my home away from via Instagram.

Are you on instagram? If so, let’s follow each other! My name is a_candelora

Introducing: Memory lane – Will + Camille

Alicia Candelora — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 16:02:36 +0000

Whenever a couple books me, I make it top priority to get to know them as much as I can. I feel that if I can get to know them well and they can get to know me well, it will result in much more relaxed images on their wedding day. And by the time I get around to shooting and blogging their wedding, I always feel like one blog post just isn’t enough to highlight these amazing people that I get to work with. As a result I recently came up with the idea of doing a new series called “memory lane” where, on their first anniversary, I have each couple choose a few of their favorite images from their wedding day, explain why they were their favorite, and then give some wedding tips or marriage advice to my current and future brides.

Up first (a day late because my WordPress scheduler was off…) is Will and Camille who got married last year at the Villa Barone in Mahopac, NY.

This is after my mom had a melt down because it was really happeneing….her first born was getting married!!!

This speaks for itself..I don’t think I’ve ever seen him this excited before our wedding! The fact that this was captured was amazing!

My dad promised not to cry! He swears he didn’t! This was a huge moment for me as a daddy’s girl:)

Words of wisdom:

-Don’t invite individuals out of obligation or because you feel bad….no one wins!
-Be patient and considerate regarding your future spouse’s feelings/desires while wedding planning!
-HIRE VENDORS!! Don’t have friends and family “promise” to get a friend of a friend do something for “free”…it may come at a higher cost:(. Trust real professionals to do what they do best!
-Surround yourselves with loving, supportive friends and family who will only speak positivity into your future!
-PLAN and GO ON AN EXCELLENT HONEYMOON…..you’ll need it!!!

Meet Patti + Ernesto

Alicia Candelora — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 13:14:33 +0000

I’ll never forget the first time I met her. She came down the hallway of the student dorm with a stride mimicking what would happen if skipping and gliding had a love child, and I thought ‘Oh God, she’s one of THOSE…’. For all I know, she was probably singing something about a spoonful of sugar as well. A mutual friend introduced us and in her high pitched voice with a smile as wide as the east is from the west she said ‘So you are American?!?! I just LOVE Americans! It’s my dream to go to New York someday’. I looked down, rolled my eyes and thought ‘yup, she’s definitely one of THOSE’. Frighteningly optimistic, always bubbly, friends with everyone…definitely not the type of girl that I would ever become friends with. But as any good staff member of a bible school would do, I smiled back, shook her hand and told her New York is every bit as wonderful as in the movies. And then I moved on.

Somewhere along the way, Patti and I ended crossing paths often – cell group at church, Sunday morning music team, leadership team, among other things – and slowly we became good friends. That friendship grew as the years passed and together we embarked on the uncharted territory of our dreams, climbing over every obstacle that came in our way, and stood arm in arm as we figured out some of life’s deepest complexities…like the difference between baking soda and baking powder or WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH DANISH MEN?!?!?. I listened to her weigh the pros and cons of working at one large company over another, always inspired by the strongest and most well known international businesswomen. And after a devastating heartbreak she would text me at midnight almost every night to see how I was doing and if my text back gave her any indication that I was having a rough night, she would immediately hop on her bike and come over to my apartment to cry with me. And then she would tell me that everything is going to be ok as she offered me some Ben & Jerry’s chocolate brownie ice cream which, if she wasn’t already promoted to BFF, definitely scored her some friend points in my book.

Patti is still that optimistic, bubbly, wide smiled girl that I met 7 years ago but since then she has become so, so much more than that to me. She is one of my dearest friends, someone who chooses to love and encourage me despite every flaw I have, and a woman that I have immense respect for. We’ve been through so many of life’s ups an down together. She cheered me on as I took a huge risk of moving back home to start my own business in a saturated market where I had no connections or contacts, and I got to witness her eyes completely light up as she saw Times Square for the first time, walked the streets of 5th avenue, and ate a Magnolias Bakery cheesecake.

When Patti called me last summer and told me she met a ‘really amazing guy’, my heart sunk. I was already defensive for her because I didn’t want her to have her heart broken, yet again, by some guy who was never good enough for her anyway. But as the weeks passed she kept talking about this Latin lover named Ernesto that she was really falling for, fast and hard. Much to my relief, I had a trip to Denmark scheduled for a couple weeks later and told her I’d like to meet him. It was just prior to my arrival that they became ‘official’ so, naturally, I had only one goal for that particular trip…not to get to know Ernesto, but to make it very clear to him that he better not break her heart, or ELSE. The three of us planned on meeting the first Sunday I was there but, for a reason I can’t remember, Patti was unable to make it. So there we sat, this guy named Ernesto and I, as I tried my best to be kind as I grilled him. He told me during our chat that he felt like he was at an interview and he told me just last week that meeting me that Sunday morning was harder than meeting Patti’s father for the first time. Secretly, I am very proud of this.

Over the last few months I’ve been able to get to know Ernesto a bit more and, while he may not be my BFF yet (he hasn’t brought me any Ben & Jerry’s…), I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Patti has found an incredible, incredible man. I am beyond excited to be there this summer to support them as they promise forever to each other and I am so, so honored to have such incredible friends as these two.

This week while I was in Denmark I got together with these lovebirds for an engagement shoot outside Patti’s [stunningly gorgeous] apartment in Copenhagen. These photos are a perfect representation of them as a couple and their relationship. As they walk through life hand in hand, always bearing a smile and offering a glass of wine to whoever visits them, the world better watch out because they are unstoppable and are destined to be world changers.

Love you two more than you know and I can’t wait for June to come…

The launch of Be-YOU-tiful portraits

Alicia Candelora — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 23:33:45 +0000

When I blogged about the launch of the Be-YOU-tiful brand, I was both nervous and excited. I had no idea if any women would sign up, and certainly didn’t think I would receive as many emails as I did about it. The stories were nothing short of inspiring, encouraging, and some of them even heartbreaking. Hard working women who didn’t feel cherished, appreciated, or beautiful. Moms who desperately needed an afternoon to feel pampered, young women with very little self esteem, and ladies who have just been working their tails off lately and needed a day to relax. I was floored, but also very excited because these were exactly the type of women that I wanted to photograph.

We started bright and early Saturday morning, setting up hair and makeup at 6:30AM and getting ready for the first lovely lady to walk through the doors. The day flew by as we listened to my “girl power” iTunes playlist, watched these ladies transform from their makeovers, and ultimately, shine in front of the camera. They al brought their game face and totally blew me away with how confident and natural they were in front of the camera.

Meet the original ladies of my new Be-YOU-tiful brand. I’ll be doing more individual blog posts in the coming week but for now, here are the sneak peeks…

If you or any other women that you know need an girls afternoon out to get complete makeovers and photo shoots done, contact me ASAP. I will only be taking a limited number of sessions each month so as to give each woman the experience that she needs and deserves.

Ecuador, in pictures.

Alicia Candelora — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 17:52:35 +0000

It’s been quite a few years since I have led a trip of this sort. I used to have a system that I followed to make sure all my t’s were crossed and i’s were dotted. But this trip was different. We had all new people joining, going to a place I had never been, and working with an organization that I’ve never worked with. My well thought-through systems just didn’t fit the mold of this trip so I found myself back at square one, trying to do my best to plan and lead this trip effectively. If I were to be honest with myself, I was pretty scared to death. I had visions of this one trip I lead a long time ago where a team member pulled me aside and told me I was the worst leader she had ever met and that she would spend her life making she she never led like me. Ouch. Going into this trip to Ecuador I felt like I had to lead perfectly, be this incredibly strong and hard working person, and always have the exact right words of inspiration to give each team member. Because, clearly, that’s all it takes to be a good leader, right?

Wrong.

Turns out I still had quite a few lessons to learn about leading. And the main one I learned on this trip is that by stepping back and empowering others to flourish in their own strengths a lot can get done. A lot. Working on things they were good at and loved, we were able to get almost everything done that Karissa had planned for the entire week within our first 2 days at the orphanage. Bedrooms were painted, murals were drawn, beds were built, holes were sealed, furniture was stained, and lots of cleaning was done. The team went above and beyond in so many ways and worked tirelessly to get the orphanage ready to open in a couple weeks. I was super proud of them and their hard work. I posted before I left that even if I hand picked a team, I couldn’t have picked better members…and after spending a week with them, I still stand behind that statement. I learned so much from them and loved getting to know them. And somewhere along the way, we had a *bit* of fun.

I know you came here to see pictures, so instead of rambling, I am going to give you what you came for…

When we arrived at the orphanage the bedrooms were painted in solid colors, but Karissa really wanted some cute drawing and murals. She asked if anyone in the team was good at art and a few of us stepped up. With Kristy, Kim and Nicole leading the way, we managed to paint 4 rooms with INCREDIBLE murals and wall paintings.

Michel and Adam hard at work sealing the windows and painting the ceilings.

The volunteer wall

The dream team.

Village life

We didn’t stay here but we had this little feeling that it wouldn’t exactly live up to the standards of a Hilton resort.

The missions house we stayed at had 5 siblings who will be the first ones at the orphanage. They have an incredible story of survival and overcoming…at the young ages of 2, 5, 6, 9 and 13. During our stay at the mission house, these kids stole our hearts.

Delcy, Tito, and jose out on the town with us for dinner and ice cream

In total, we brought 22 suitcases full on donated items. I had NO IDEA that much stuff would be donated, but it is enough to give the orphanage a good kick start when they open their door sin a couple days.

Tito is 6 years old but because of his history, he is only the size of a typical 3 year old. He was one of the sweetest kids I have ever met and if I could take him home with me, I would have.

I may be biased but I kinda think a kid looks good on him. Maria, clearly, doesn’t agree.

Loved this precious little girl. She, too, is much smaller than she should be. At 2 years old she is the size or a normal 9 month old. She is absolutely brilliant and amazed us all wit how much she understood.

Delcy, the little monkey

We spent a day out in a remote village handing out food and playing games with the kids.

Some brilliant person on your team (*cough* KRISTY) had the brilliant idea of playing Duck, Duck, Goose with the village kids. We, appropriately, renamed the game Duck, Duck, Lice after playing. Excuse me as I go scratch my head a bit more…

Passing out bags of food to the villagers.

Yes, that is a monkey drinking Gatorade.

Our team with the villagers.

My partner in crime doing his thing

A little hike throught he jungle to get to a waterfall.

The dream team

Simply Love 2012

Alicia Candelora — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 03:10:21 +0000

I took a deep breath, hit “publish”, and immediately closed my laptop screen. I was scared to death to make the announcement, but excited all the same. I had no idea how people would respond. I was afraid that nobody would sign up and that this project I’ve been dreaming about for a long time would be a tremendous failure. But despite my fears, I hit that publish button.

And you came through.

Within 24 hours I had 4 applications in my inbox, and 7 information inquiries. Two weeks later our trip to Ecuador was filled up with 10 people who I, myself, could not have done a better job at hand-picking. I was blown away at the support and response. Not only from those who joined the team, but from all of you…blog readers I’ve never met, friends, family members. I sat in my parents living room last night attempting to organize all the donations that came in for us to bring to the orphanage in Ecuador. To say that I was overwhelmed is an understatement. Bags upon bags and boxes upon boxes. Formula, toys, books, art supplies, hygiene products, peanut butter, shoes, and clothes. And then some more clothes. Not just your run-of-the-mill, beat up, stained, goodwill-worthy clothes. The clothes that you donated to these orphans were from Baby gap, Ralph Lauren kids, Crewcuts (J.crew kids), Gymboree, The Children’s place, and Old Navy. Nice, nice stuff! All in brand new (with tags!) or like-new condition. And right then I realized that although there are 10 of us leaving shortly to go to Ecuador and serve these orphans for a week, you are coming right along side of us. Because of you, these kids will be the best dressed and best fed orphans in all South America (well, in my opinion!). For that, I am so very grateful.

I think it goes without saying that this will be our first of many trips. I’ve had so many people tell me that they will do all they can to make sure they are able to go with us next year. Not just because people want to travel to some awesome exotic place for a adventurous vacation (which this will be, in part), but because they have a love in their hearts that they want to share with the world. And because I’ve seen an overwhelming response, rooted in love, since I made the announcement about this trip 2 months ago, I’ve decided to call these trips “Simply Love” from now on. So, the Simply Love tour of 2012 is about to go down and I can’t wait to share pictures, videos and stories with you upon our return.

Thank you, again!

Ps – If you are the praying type, we would appreciate your prayers this week! Below is a list of all those who will be in Ecuador for this trip:

Alicia (me!)
Adam
Karissa
Kiarra
Cydney
Kristine
Kimberly
Cameron
Jaleesa
Nicole
Nina
Michel