New Referral Program

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In the words of The Weeknd, "I come alive in the Fall time."

I often find myself taking a brief hiatus from "being in your face" during the grueling Summer months. October is always the month I begin something fresh & new with my brand. When I was younger, September represented the beginning (it's when school starts). October really solidified it being the beginning though because it was actually when the true school work began. Funny to think about it now, October is when I started everything. It's when I started using Twitter as @photosbynae. It's when I started using Instagram. It's when I created my first actual website which is probably still around on Wix. It's when I created this very website you're on now. Something about Fall makes me want to press the start button.

This Fall, I bring to you my new Referral Program! A lot of you've heard about me or saw my work because of a past client of mine. Whether it was to schedule a photoshoot or for me to design you a logo or website, you've heard of me through word-out-mouth. I think that's amazing!

If you tell a friend or family member about my photo services & they book a complete photography session with me, you'll receive $25 off your next service. My services are as followed: photoshoots, graphic design, video content, & web design. If 5 of your friends &/or family members book a photo shoot with me, you'll get a complimentary photoshoot. YES! A FREE SHOOT! Contact me directly & let's begin something new!

-MoNae

Extra's Blue October Shoot

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I had just arrived in Vegas when I got a text from one of my most frequent clients - Extra. Extra is a Hip Hop Recording Artist based in NYC. He was referred to me about 2 years ago from another client. Since then, we've done about 4 photo shoots and I've designed his website. He's been one of my most loyal clients so of course I had to answer his call while I'm on vacation. 

Extra was about to begin working on his next project entitled, "Blue October" and asked me if I could take a few photos and design the cover art. I said sure, so we set a date for the shoot.

2 weeks after I came back from vacation, Extra double checked to see if we were still on for the shoot and if I had any ideas for the cover. We were good for the shoot, but I didn't have a clue what I was going to do about the cover. I looked at images from past shoots & ran to Pinterest (I freaking live on Pinterest) for inspiration. My "shmoke & a pancake" Pinterest board caught my eye immediately. I had already owned a blue smoke bomb, which was perfect because of the album title and I've really been wanting to use it for a shoot. I texted him to tell him my idea and he loved it!

The day of the shoot, I was super excited. I had been on a hiatus dealing with life and this was the first photo shoot I've done in a while. Out of everything I do for work, I enjoy photography the most. Creative shoots especially make me extremely happy. Extra chose an outdoor basketball court in Bushwick, Brooklyn for the shoot. I was kind of nervous to shoot there because the court is right next to a school park in a residential area. I didn't want anyone to be alarmed by the smoke bomb and call the cops or something. Lol. I've only used a smoke bomb once for a music video I shot and I was all the way in no-man's land in the middle of winter. No people. No cops. When we got to the basketball court, I scoped out the place (because I was so nervous) to make sure there were no snitches, proper shade and lighting and a cool enough background for the photos. I took some test shots to make sure my camera settings were right then told Extra all the rules while dealing with the smoke bomb. He pulled the keyring and boom - it didn't work. 😡  Then he reattached the keyring to the wire and pulled again. This time, it was successful.

So happy about the way the images turned out. I processed them in Lightroom and designed the cover art in Photoshop. Extra's EP will be released in October and I'm happy I got to be apart of the process. See more the images from the photo shoot below.

10 Years: College Dropout

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February 10, 2004 - Kanye Omari West released his debut album "College Dropout"

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If you know me, you know that Kanye is at the top my most influential people list. Since day 1, I've paid attention to this guy. In the beginning, it was just about his music. Shit was dope. The strength Kanye showed on "Through the Wire" (the first single) was impeccable. You can literally hear and FEEL his pain throughout the entire song. The day I heard that song is the day I fell IN LOVE with Hip Hop. From that point on, I knew to expect nothing but greatness from him.

Being a Jay Z fan, I knew who Kanye was but I didn't know WHO KANYE WAS. "College Dropout" introduced his skill of creativity I love today and proved how brave & committed he was to bringing something brand new in Hip Hop. From the skits to the POWERFUL tone of "Jesus Walks", "College Dropout" is HANDS DOWN one of the BEST Hip Hop albums IMO. I recently got to see Kanye at the Barclays Center for the Yeezus tour and witnessing him perform "Jesus Walks" honestly made me a bigger fan. The way he felt back then poured out of his performance and it was truly inspiring. 

You can tell just by looking at him how far he's came as an artist. His music will forever be timeless. What he's done with "College Dropout" to "Yeezus" has kept Hip Hop on its toes. All of his albums in the past 10 years exceed way beyond light years what anyone has done in the music industry to this day. His thoughts, growth and movements throughout the years prove that we as Hip Hop fans NEED him. I especially need him and I look forward to the next 10 years of creativity! 

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Thank you Kanye - for the amazing production, lyrics, badassness, honesty, G.O.O.D. Music, DONDA, and most importantly for being YOU and not compromising who you are and what you believe in for ANYONE. You have inspired me to work hard AND smart to continue to take my art to MY ultimate level. I am a God.

Below you can peep Kanye's tweets today about "College Dropout". My favorite was "The doors may be heavier, but I promise you WE WILL BREAK THEM."

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