Rhiannon - Wizard of Oz Inspired Shoot

When Rhiannon was two years old, her grandmother dressed her up as Dorothy.  Ever since then, Wizard of Oz has been her favorite movie. She approached me with the idea of doing a Wizard of Oz inspired photoshoot for her senior portraits, and I couldn't be more excited to bring her vision to life.We made a list of props and items that would bring the theme to the forefront - Dorothy's outfit, lollipop and mini-bouquet, a woven basket, apples, and Rhiannon's boyfriend's dog made an appearance as our "Toto."  The week leading up to her session, Rhiannon surprised me by painting yellow bricks to bring to her photoshoot, and her mom set up the yellow brick road for us while we were shooting in the woods for the apple scene.One of the outfits that Rhiannon pinned on her photoshoot pinterest board was her winter formal gown.  It was a gorgeous Cinderella blue mermaid dress, and I knew immediately it was going to be one of my favorite outfits.Rhiannon was also a painter, so we had her bring her easel for a few shots.  Then as the sun came down and lit up her hair, we did some casual free flowing photos that captured her personality.

Once I started to get to know Rhiannon a little better, it wasn't a surprised to me why she related to the character of Dorothy,  It became very clear to me how much she values family, and the phrase "there's no place like home" likely rings true to her heart.  Rhiannon also exhibits the same optimism and hope that Dorothy shown throughout the film, that somewhere over the rainbow, dreams do come true.

-XO, Ling