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North Carolina brand & portrait photographer, essential oils advocate, military wife, and your biggest cheerleader in creating your own better.  Because after all, better is where you belong.  Make yourself at home! 

Hi, friend!  I'm Corry.

Can I just say that this was a ONCE IN A LIFETIME experience!!!

 

I was sooooooo thrilled to be able to share this destination shoot with these awesome Seniors and moms!!!

 

We had been planning this trip for months!!  When you are coordinating a trip for 18, it takes MONTHS!! hahahaha  But considering all that we were doing that needed security clearances, it was imperative that we made sure we began preparations months out.  And my assistant Jen did an awesome job!!

 

But you also know what they say about planning…always have a plan A, B, C…and maybe D…I think we ended up operating on plan G at some point during this trip. 🙂  hahahahahha

 

We had several  life lessons in being flexible and being  problem solvers!

 

Can we say crazy mix up with hotel reservations?!?!

 

On our first day, we headed into the city and enjoyed a day full of sight-seeing.  There was the White House ( you can literally feel the history when looking at past Presidents’ china sets, wall portraits, and stand in the ballrooms you see during press conferences), The American History Museum, The Natural History Museum, dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, and then a wonderful evening at the Marine Barracks at 8th and I where we saw the Silent Drill Team perform.  Whew…we were all worn out!!!!!!

 

The next day we headed over to the Marine Corps Base at Quantico where we were given a tour of the Presidential Helicopter Squadron and were even able to sit in the VERY SEAT that many Presidents have also sat in!!  My husband worked there, so it was great to be able to share this experience with my Seniors.  It was a GREAT tour!!

 

We then headed into hair and makeup to prep for our drive back into the city for our Photo Shoot at the Jefferson Memorial.  Can I tell you that I began to sweat a little when I checked the weather app one last time before the drive in…um…it looked like we’d have about an hour window to get the shoot in because a HUGE storm was coming in.  Luckily, I had scouted the location a few months back and knew right where I wanted to do the shoot….now we just prayed the whole ride into the city….and let me just say that I refreshed the radar on my phone so much that my finger was hurting!! hahahahahahaha

 

And for once, the weather app was right!!! We literally did a one hour shoot before we raced back to the vans to avoid the torrential downpours that followed!  The coolest part was the sky….you could literally see the storm rolling in.  Boy were we blessed it all worked out!!!

 

So if you are going to shoot in DC, one of my suggestions would be to use the Tidal Basin area around the Washington monument area.  I’ve done that area before and it’s THE MOST popular area while the Cherry Blossoms are in bloom.  I always suggest that you shoot early in the morning of late in the evening to try to avoid crowds.  There are several parking areas around the Tidal Basin which helps when you are working with clients.

 

The area we used for this shoot was the Jefferson Memorial.  There are parking areas in the Ohio St and Buckeye St area.  It was super easy to park and we had a little walk to get over to the Memorial.

 

If you shoot on the front side of the Memorial in the big grassy, lawn-like area…you can get the Jefferson Memorial and the Washington Monument in the distance.  It makes for a super cool shot!!

 

We then walked around to the front side of the Jefferson Memorial and were able to do shots with the Tidal Basin and Washington Monument in our background.  Then we headed up the steps of the Jefferson Memorial and got some beautiful backdrops with the columns and steps.

 

Once inside, the columns are STUNNING!!!!!  You can’t take a bad picture in there!!

 

I’d suggest you go late in the evening as lighting is great and the crowds have typically thinned out.

 

All of our teens were so AMAZING!!!  They dealt with the heat like champs, they had wonderful manners, and were just so much fun to hang out with!!!  I pray everyone enjoyed their trip and their beautiful images from the shoot!!  It was truly a trip to remember!!!  It was a blessing to be able to share this experience with them and to make these awesome memories together!!  I know this shoot will forever hold a special place in my heart!!

 

Semper Fidelis!

 

(all sightseeing pics are from my iphone…it was too hot to lug around my big camera and I couldn’t take a “pro” camera into a few locations…hahahaha)

The storm that was rolling in as we ran for our cars!! hahhahaha

 

Washington DC Senior Destination Shoot….Location Scouting in Washington, DC

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Charlotte Staton, Charlotte Staton Design

"A personal branding photoshoot with Corry was the best decision I have ever made for my growing business."

Julia Sampsel, The Simplified House

"The images from my branding shoot turned out beautifully and have made building my website and online presence so much easier."

Linda St. Amant, Sprinkled Designs

"To anyone thinking of booking with Corry, don't think twice! She truly understands how to make your business shine via photography."

Kimberly Turner, Frosted Cakery

"I knew having professional photos for my business was important, but I didn’t know how huge the impact would actually be! Highly recommend!"

Christy Grifaldo, Grifaldo Properties

"You can't help but smile and laugh the whole time you're shooting with Corry, making it so easy to work with her."

Because after all, empowered women, empower women.

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