One of most important goals I have for my business each year is to continue to push myself creatively and do personal work that's inspiring and challenging. Its also very important to me to work with a team of people you respect and trust. This is the first in a series of shoots this year that will showcase my ability to build out an idea, find the right team to collaborate with, and execute on that vision. In my opinion, when these elements come together it can take the final output to the next level.

For this shoot, I developed a concept inspired by a well known jewelry designer and collection I was drawn to. I built a creative brief and explored what would be featured, how I would display the jewelry to convey a feeling and emotion. I wanted it to feel effortless while being very intentional.

One of the most important roles in my creative team was the stylist. Brittany was a referral from the make-up artist (MUA), Lyndsey. Her role is critical to helping bringing a rough idea to life and tell the story. Its also critical to have a MUA that can deliver on what's planned and a model that can interpret the direction given and add her own bit as well. Everyone is an essential part of the team.

The storyline here follows three parts: 1) Preparing for a night out 2) The night out itself and 3) Reflection. The first two images above represent the preparation. Everyone gets ready with this much bling on, right?

The classic little black dress (LBD) helps feature a variety of the pieces we had for this shoot. We simply turned it around for a different perspective. Another aspect I explored in terms of the final output is color or black & white. Which do you like better?

With the level of detail and scrutiny I've given to these images it gives me an appreciation for the final results. There's a LOT of work that goes into the planning and executing of a shoot like this. I really love it though. All of it.

Finally the "reflection" image. What I've gathered here are a small sample of the great images that came from this day. As I mentioned above, I worked with a team of people that I want to thank and recognize for their contribution to this project.

Model: Stephanie Damiano
Stylist: Brittany Rendon
MUA: Lyndsey Ariel
Assistant: Tom Spota
Retouching: Olya Bro
Photographer: Darrin Estep