Dancers Go To School - Santa Monica DANCER Session
Capturing Rachel’s graceful elegance, thoughtful personality and her long long dancer legs was a dream.
Dancers Getting Degrees
Rachel and I connected a couple of years ago as students getting our BAs in Performance Arts through Saint Mary’s College of California’s LEAP program. The acronym LEAP is Liberal Education for Arts Professionals The program is specifically designed for professional dancers to obtain an internationally recognized Bachelor’s Degree.
I knew about the program for awhile and after a conversation with a LEAP alumni, I applied. My daughter was about to turn one and I was teaching dance regularly, running a dance company and traveling at least one to two weekends a month. Perfect time to take on something like school. I now place my hand on my forehead and shake my head, but I’m doing it and almost done!
A great thing about the program is the availability to continue on with life while completing the degree. A hybrid of face-to-face and web classes, and the ability to get credit from our life experience through essay writing makes getting a degree possible. I never said it was easy, but doable. One of my favorite thing about the program is the people and connections I have made.
Connection through class
Rachel and I were in a few classes together and I was happy when she reached out to chat about doing photos for her senior project, building a website that reflects where she is today as a mature dancer and experienced educator.
To make sure she had a lot of variety, we did two sessions. The first location turned out to be two locations. We met at her house to decide on wardrobe and decided to start shooting there. I love the comfort that comes with capturing someone in the space that they call theirs. We laughed a lot and captured some fun images. Next was sunset at the Santa Monica beach and pier. I knew the location would suit her beautiful dance lines and easy personality.
We planned for a beautiful sunrise shoot at Malibu State Park, but when I arrived the gates were locked tight. We quickly regrouped and shot more of an urban feel around some of the great graffiti murals. We drove a short distance to the Santa Monica Airport and utilized the outside of the L.A. Marler her friends art studio. It was really fun to shoot with Rachel here. She was willing to play and I love all the images from her shoots. Being able to help Rachel put the imagery in place for her website and personal brand was an absolute pleasure.
