mellBella Photography

Our H2OOO! set ...
I dare you.

"Water, stories, the body, all the things we do, are mediums that hid and show what's hidden."
~ Rumi

FAQ- What To Wear

It's not about what you SHOULD wear, but it's about what you WANT to wear. Let's talk about it.

What makes you feel Confident? Strong? Happy? Beautiful? Handsome?

What is an outfit you want to try but never have? Is it head-to-toe sparkles? Fabric draped on you like a sculpture? Suspenders and a classic button down?

Do you want a masculine feel? feminine? neither? both?

You bring what you love or at least like (I know it can be nerve wracking).

And if you don't know what to do, I'll suggest some options, and we probably have something you can borrow from our Client Closet in a large variety of sizes.

Let's chat.

Sometimes we go outside...

While I love all the colors... sometimes a black and white portrait focuses the whole image. Meaning... the colors might be distracting but the various shades of gray, black, and white let you focus on the textures, the mood, etc.

A morning stroll around White Point Garden....
a retro style fashion stroll

This client wanted a retro fashion stroll downtown, and we made that happen. This elegant blue dress was the last look.

I love the..
- contrast between the warm wall and the cool dress.
- harsh sunlight and the hard shadows.
- how the shadows and the leaves mimic the details on her dress

I'm so thankful to this really swell person (see vintage compliment?) and to my fabulous friend Heather who was my assistant for the day.

It was A LOT of back and forth, driving, changing, twirling, carrying, laughing, etc. But it was all worth it.

Love this sheer dress! You can borrow it from the mellBella closet at your photo session.

Hair/Makeup:

She's Got Personality!

Personality is defined as "the combination of characteristics or qualities that form an individual's distinctive character."

There's so many things that make you... YOU! One thing doesn't define ALL of you because as a human... it's complicated, messy, beautiful, wonderful, difficult, weird, happy, and soooooo much more.

This lovely person and I wanted to capture different sides of her and her life. She loves pinup style! She was Ms. Wheelchair South Carolina USA.

We also wanted to show that disabilities can look different. For this portrait, I wanted to give her a pageant/fashion feel on a white background with bright lighting... but I wanted her fun-loving personality to shine through.

A great portrait tells a story.
Portrays an emotion.
Elicits a feeling.
Creates a mood.
Captures a moment.

Hair/Makeup by

Do you have an era of fashion that you love?

Sequins and fringe from the 20s? Full skirts from the 50s? Neon from the 80s? Slip dressed from the 90s?

What are your favorite styles?

Hair/Makeup:

I don't want to get stuck in everything ALWAYS looking the same.

Give me a little weird. A little spooky. A little awkward. Let's experiment.

Let's play with light, movement, ideas... let's take some moments to feel.

Hair/Makeup:

Symmetry. Strength. Sublime.

Hair/Makeup Artist:

Yes!!! Everyone deserves to have beautiful portraits of themselves.

Before his portrait session, we talked about outfits, what mood/feeling, looked at styles, etc to make sure we GOT it.

Collaboration is KEY to creating art with people... and this session was a lot of fun.

For this set, we went with a classic white background to give it a fashion magazine/celebrity look. Can we say Harry Styles vibes?

Men's Grooming by

Much of our lives we are between things: circumstances, jobs, people, places, etc. We vary between ages and sizes. We deeply desire to be understood, cared for, and not feel alone. We forget our inherent worth. To you, I dedicate this poem.

The Inbetween by Mell Bell

Winter can be cold and the trees bare branches are exposed.
But they can’t hide their scars nor the animals that live there.
They’ve blossomed and grew earlier in the year, but now it’s time to rest.

Nights are long, and the days are short in Winter.
Nature is slow with purpose and promise.
Animals hibernate and rest.

There’s hints of Spring with small patches of green,
But the air of Winter lingers through the bare branches.
Hope of Spring is not forgotten as the Inbetween
Shows BOTH Winter and Spring are worthy.

The Inbetween but Not Yet is impatient, frustrated.
The Inbetween sees beauty in Winter and Spring,
But cannot see its own.
It feels lonely, unproductive, and useless.

The Inbetween is focused on what it’s NOT.
It’s NOT Winter when Nature rests.
It’s NOT Spring when Nature wakes and blooms.
It’s NOT Summer when everything grows.
It’s NOT Fall when the Harvest comes in. But…

The Inbetween is Change, and change is hard.
The Inbetween transforms the tadpole to the frog.
The Inbetween coaches the caterpillar to a butterfly.

The Inbetween is Hope that has to watch and wait…
To wake Winter
To whisper to Spring
To warm Summer
To wander to Fall
To weave the moments between.

The Inbetween is Authentic. It cannot be otherwise.
The Inbetween is Creative. It must imagine and inspire.
The Inbetween is Experimental. It observes, questions, tries, adapts,
And at times, makes mistakes. But the Inbetween is NOT a mistake.

The Inbetween is Who we were, Who we are, and Who we will be.
Seasons of life have their specific time then end.
But the Inbetween carries them all in a steady embrace.
Equally important and worthy… Always.

"We need Joy as we need air. We need Love as we need water. We need each other as we need the earth we share."
Maya Angelou

As always, there's so much going on and MANY important things that require our time, energy, support, opposition, etc.

Today, I wanted to give you some Joy. Joy and Love and Community are all connected.

"Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope." Maya Angelou

We need each other. We need to celebrate the good. Fight like hell against injustices and harm.

A few local places doing exactly that are:







Please follow, like, and support them.

Makeup:
Locs:

Sometimes I wonder how different we would be if we could rest and not worry? Rest... and not feel guilty that we should be doing more.

REST to care for ourselves.
REST to heal.
REST to refill our patience and endurance.
REST to be better able to take on EVERYTHING!!!
REST to be less irritable.
REST to listen and learn.
REST so we can be active.
REST to help others.
REST to simply REST.

I know there's always something that has to be done. There's someone who needs something from us. There's ALWAYS important, crucial things going on.

But, no one is meant to go, Go, GO 100% of the time. We're human, and humans need rest.

Makeup: Lauren Hall Beauty