This… was supposed to be a simple shoot.

Ace of Staves 1.1

This was a card we mostly agreed about, which was nice- the staves are fire, and passion, and energy. I was really stuck on motion, at least in part because so many of the blades images had been very static. So we talked it over and made a plan- go to a park we knew of, build a bonfire, and do some shots in front of it.

Ace of Staves 2.2

And then… there was the simple matter of the giant, padlocked, wrought iron grill in front of the fire pit…

So, says I, look! The leaves are yellow! We can totally still do this card. Here, stand here, and here, I will drag these picnic tables, and here, pretend you’re doing tai chi with this stick, and no, I’m totally not going to break my neck balancing on one foot on top of this barbecue pit so I can shoot you from above…

Ace of Staves 3.1

I really like the action shots the best, but the others turned out well also. The colors were great- it was one of the few truly sunny days we had in January, and even though things didn’t necessarily go as planned, I think the images are actually among some of my favorites.

Ace of Staves 5.1

And, in the end, Stephanie did get her fire. 🙂