dont smile now – Shani Barel Photography- Los Angeles Based Photographer » modern photography with a twist of sarcasm

Masthead header
Jan 18 2012

The Prima Ballerina Show

Posted in Commercial, Personal, Portrait, Teens

So I may have an issue with watching too much TV… I may read more books between seasons…and watch much more when it’s back…. and I know you’re wondering what I watch, and when I tell you, you’ll wonder why. So I’ll start with the answer. Once upon a time  (up until 9 years ago) I was an educated, “au courant” young lady who loved movies, read a book a week, visited museums and galleries, traveled the world, watched the news, on BBC and had a long list of documentaries on my Netflix.  And then I got pregnant. And even though the body provides all the nutrients the baby needs, I suspect some of my brain cells went to build Kyle’s actual brain. (I am not saying he has more than anyone else – in fact, the second hand must have been erased before reinstalled in his brain) What I am saying, that after 9 months of 3 Netflix CD sitting on the mantel waiting to be watched, I realized it was time to update my list with what I now refer to”Princess Diary Movies”. If there’s a movie with a  teenager girl, socially awkward, who’s in love with the cool boy, is teased by the mean,  has a geeky best friend , that by the end of predictable 90 minutes has transformed into a a gorgeous could be model rule the world hot girl who actually gets the truly cool boy who was her best friend all along…. then I have watched it! So these days, after two kids, juvenile homework endless play dates  and packing ziploced lunches for years on end, I cant even watch a full 90 minute movie … well, that’s not true, it’s just there are SO MANY TV shows that feature pretty much the same story line or close enough… pretty girl, hot boy, amazing clothes, another hot girl, same cute guy, another bitchy girl, meets pretty girl, chases hot boy out…as long as they’re wearing high fashion, scheming to rule the school and drinking underage… Ia m probably watching it! Gossip Girl, Beverly Hills, Switched At Birth, The Lying Game, Jane By Design, Make It Or break it, revenge…am I forgetting anything? I am sure there are many more shows that I have not tivoed,s and just don’t have enough room on the manage list to record…but I am happy with the short list, especially since I have JUST enough brain cells to watch the show AND blog at the same time….at the same time, oh, I said that already.

Now I haven’t watched a show about Ballerinas (I did get a rare movie outing to watch Black Swan though) but I definitely think they should make one – and if they did, Of COURSE I would watch it!

 

 

 

And since I have been shooting for Knoll for years now – it’s cool to watch the generation grow

 

Share and Enjoy:
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
Posted in Commercial, Personal, Portrait, Teens

no comments

add a comment
link to this post
email a friend
Jan 11 2012

Being 13

Posted in Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Kids portraits, Portrait, Teens

I may have titled a blog post “being 13″ before – (Nope- I ‘ve run a search and this is the first…) it resonates with me, because I remember being 13, I REMEMBER being 13…I dont know what it was like for others – but I remember for me, it was the beginning of self searching – up until the, it was all butterflies and flowers, Snoopy and Mickey, nintendo and Atari, beaches and pools, reading and dreaming. And then I turned 12, and then 13. I started noticing the world around me, realizing I was not the center of it all. I still strugle wh THAT concept…:)I remember being in pain of the realization that the world around us (once I got over the fact that it didn’t revolve around me) was not as pretty, as naive, as nice and fair and just as I thought it was. It was time to re-examine my concepts of my surroundings. Now, I could be romanticizing my “Shani’s Spring” or it could have taken place years before, or after… but when I think about being 13, and when I meet  13 year olds I go back to that feeling – the feeling of discovering the world beyond me, and realizing it is not perfect. I want to say I miss that naivite, but really, I haven’t completely lost it, and being surrounded by dancing teens at a saturday night party, or hanging out with them on a beachy afternoon – I just let their youth rub off on me a little, so that I can keep that same passion for life that they have, that I have, that  I had, at 13. I totally didn’t mean for this post to be a introspection into year far gone, but it is why I love being part of Bar and bat Mitzvahs.. it’s that age between childhood  and adolescents, right before they become just too cool for us grown ups…

And talking about years gone by – I’ve known Jonathan’s mom for at least 10 years, and have an adorable photo of him with my son, when he was 6 months old, so that’s 7.5 years AGO! so being able to photograph him and his parents as a young man, was a sweet moment… (and a reminder how fast time pass and if I blink too many times it will be Kyle’s bar Mitzvah too and I have not saved his Montage pictures in an easy access place) anyway, back to Jonathan – these beach shots were made way back in May – at the always lovely Malibu, California beach. The Bar Mitzvah photos to follow in another post. If you want to view the whole portrait session slideshow click here.

Share and Enjoy:
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
Posted in Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Kids portraits, Portrait, Teens

no comments

add a comment
link to this post
email a friend
Dec 28 2011

Last session of 2011

Posted in Families, Holiday Session, Kids, Kids portraits

This was SUPPOSED to be the last photo session of 2011…I managed to squeeze in a last minute editorial shoot on Thursday just before Christmas weekend, but as I was photographing this dear family, it FELT like the last shoot of 2011. It was a special family session, since the May family have been goo friends since our sons met in pre school and became best friends – and since schools have been changed a couple of times since, the boys dont get to see each other so often, yet pick up where they left when they do get together…so being able to document the changes since our last shoots (which to seems to be unblogged…) and see how both kids have grown, and discuss our girls…Oh GOSH, G-I-R-L-S!!!  made for a fun family session…and just intime to still send out holiday cars! Phew…so between Christmas and New year, here comes the last, but not least of 2011!

Share and Enjoy:
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
Posted in Families, Holiday Session, Kids, Kids portraits

2 comments

add a comment
link to this post
email a friend
Sharon - December 29, 2011 - 2:53 am

Can it be that you are getting better????? I didn’t know it was possible. But it is…
אין מילים – איזו עבודה מעולה!
Happy New Year :-)
Love
Sharon

leonie - December 28, 2011 - 11:06 pm

FABULOUS!!

Dec 16 2011

Stripe Heaven

Posted in Personal, Zoe

Every so often my friend Heather, hand Zoe down some clothes…this is great, not only because of the savings (Reduce, recycle reuse…saving the EARTH here people…) it just solves my styling ( or lack of)  for Zoe.. She just gets a bunch of tops, and only wears the ones she likes…I am so jeans and t-shirt kind of gal myself,  so the bag of clothes usually offers her a variety she may not have gotten with my purchases…Yesterday were lucky enough to receive a loot pack – Zoe was so excited, almost as much as I was – and she laid out all the different clothes in the categories, and even put a couple of outfits together to see how they matched…and at the bottom of the bag, was this glitterlicious, striped dress with beautiful detail in the shoulders…and she picked striped leggings and her striped socks and finished the look with her silver slippers… she looked SO adorable this morning… and then she decided to cover it all with a belly long sleeved orange shirt…I did everything in my power to remain silent, swallow silently and relish in her pure satisfaction with the girl who reflected back at her in the mirror . I asked her – do you like what you see, and with a huge smile she smiled her toothless smile (is that tooth EVER coming in?) and said “yes” she was horrified at the thought that she might have to change into the school-wear as it turned out they moved Spirit Day to Thursday instead of tomorrow – and since I didn’t know about it, (even though Kyle swore it was true) I told her that she was fine with what she’s wearing and that she’d have her jacket on anyway so on one would no wether she was, or was not, wearing her Spirit Day shirt underneath or not… and so we walked to school, a mom, a boy and the happiest “feeling like  a million bucks” girl. When I picked her up from school I thought the outfit was not completely ruined by the orange top, and that she somehow pulled it off…and that maybe I could learn something from her about dressing outside the box…but when we got home I asked to get some photos of her, WITH and WITHOUT the sweater… I posted on FB the two options…if you’re curious… I promise, I let her, and she did, put back the other top, and completely supported her in her choice and I HOPE she didn’t hear me when I muttered, (and I sound SO OBNOXIOUS TO MYSELF.. ” I like it better without but I also like it with…”

But the most important part of this story, is that I got an image I love – I just love this photo of Zoe, as it is a complete representation of myself, who I am and the style I like to portray – and of course, my spirit just lifts with all these STRIPES!!!!

Los Angeles Children

Share and Enjoy:
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
Posted in Personal, Zoe

1 comment

add a comment
link to this post
email a friend
leonie - December 25, 2011 - 4:47 am

Stripe heaven for you, granny heaven for me

F a c e b o o k
F r i e n d