iPhone Series | Ubud, Bali

Ubud was by far my favorite stop in Bali. Notwithstanding hordes of {Austrailian!} tourists, it is simply a magical place, known to vagabounds worldwide as the cultural capital of Indonesia. As I mentioned before, these are only iPhone photos from my trip and when business slows for the winter, I will begin posting stunning SLR photos from my collection. For now, enjoy these teasers. 

*** ALL IMAGES TAKEN WITH iPHONE 4***

A sunset view over the rice paddies in the city center. 

Attending a Balinese Cremation is hard to come by; EVERYONE hopes to have this opportunity during a trip to Bali and we were oh-so-lucky that the Queen had passed just before our arrival. Below is a picture of the royal officals loading her body onto her palatial burial stand, which was carried 2 miles through a village by a group of men, with a full procession in tow.  Simply amazing to witness!

A view of a temple at dusk from the popular Cafe Lotus. 

Yummy Crispy Duck lunch with traditional accompaniments! 

Our first Ubud lunch at Cafe Wayan. 

A night time performance at the Royal Palace. 

The Monkey Forest where it is highly advised to keep your belongings locked and stowed during your stroll. 

A beautiful driveway in Bali City Center.

Rose petal bath, ginger biscuits and tea post 5 hour Balinese spa treatment. The best I ever had! 

Ubud Dream homestay, our room with a view and delicious bed and breakfast. 

After leaving Ubud, we spent 4 days on the beach in Amed, not without stopping for lunch with this beautiful jungle view. 

DISCLAIMER:  these are low quality videos of the palace performance and monkey forest. Dizzy but fun!

iPhone Series | Sanur Beach, Bali

If you follow me in Instagram (@isquizzle) you have probably seen most of the photos I am  featuring in this iPhone series. I promise there are more "fancy" photos from my DSLR to come, but I have SO MANY great IG photos, it's hard not to share!

After a 3 day stay in Yogya, we landed in Sanur Beach, Bali. A GREAT, less commercial alternative to Kuta, we enjoyed a couple days beachside before heading inland to the cultural capital, Ubud. 

Here's a photo from my morning jog at low tide - this was a fisherman knee deep in the Bali Sea. 

 

 Temples accesible by boat at high tide or a swim/wade at low tide. 

Stumbling upon this night food market, we nearly lost our minds in epicurean heaven. My favorites were the dessert stands which reminded me of my childhood visits to the swapmeet, whiel feasting on Filipino treats.

Faces of Harlem: Austin | Harlem Portrait Photographer

Austin is "fun, fresh, and fit," or so that's how he described himself to me during our time together. I'm a believer! Also referred to Faces of Harlem by Christina (and Earnest), he is a social media mogul on the rise and has been in and out of Harlem since his early days of college at Columbia University. You can see more, including slide shows at Faces of Harlem's new home, http://ilenesquiresphotography.blogspot.com/p/faces-of-harlem.html. Please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured for this project or know of someone who is. 

Faces of Harlem: Shaun & Thysha | Harlem Portrait Photographer

It's true that there is a six degrees of separation rule uptown. Thysha and her partner Shaun, are exactly the people I'm taking about when I write that. We just kept running into each other over the years and I was so excited to finally shoot them in Thysha's brand new Central Harlem home. 

Shaun and Thysha are lucky in love so much so that I felt like I should look away a few times during the shoot! It is so wonderful to shoot more beautiful, regal Harlemites. You can see more, including slide shows at Faces of Harlem's new home, http://ilenesquiresphotography.blogspot.com/p/faces-of-harlem.html. Please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured for this project or know of someone who is. 

And since it's Friday, here's to a little vintage fun!

Faces of Harlem: Maggie | Harlem Portrait Photographer

Maggie was referred by Christina, who was one of the first subjects I shot for this project and she, simply put, is a stunner. An actress on the rise, Maggie split the years of her youth between Cincinnati and Harlem, ultimately settling down in the apartment she was born in after college in Rhode Island. You can see more, including slide shows at Faces of Harlem's new home, http://ilenesquiresphotography.blogspot.com/p/faces-of-harlem.html. Please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured for this project or know of someone who is. 

Faces of Harlem: Latressa | Harlem Portrait Photographer

Latressa came to me after I was featured on her friend Bridgette's blog. That's a testament to how this project works; it's simply been one neighborly referral after another! Also residing in Sugar Hill, Latressa has a commanding, regal presence. You can see more, including slide shows at Faces of Harlem's new home, http://ilenesquiresphotography.blogspot.com/p/faces-of-harlem.html. Please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured for this project or know of someone who is. 

Faces of Harlem: Gary | Harlem Portrait Photographer

Gary was referred by Charreah, who I shot in the Winter and he was courageous enough to brave the heat one HOT morning last week. Gary is a journalist who has been in Sugar Hill the past few years. You can see more, including slide shows at Faces of Harlem's new home, http://ilenesquiresphotography.blogspot.com/p/faces-of-harlem.html. Please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured for this project or know of someone who is. 

Ilene Squires Photography Featured in Lookbook.nu

You might remember when I feaured Justin in a sneak peak of my Faces of Harlem project a couple months ago. The project was put on hold once the holidays rolled around and will be up and running again after the first of the year. This time with a new look and it's own separate home! For now, one of  my images from Justin's shoot seems to be making it's way around the web, seen most recently on Lookbook.nu. Enjoy!

Ilene Squires Photography Featured on Tucked LLC

When I shot Justin for my Faces of Harlem project, he mentioned potentially using some of my images on his site TUCKED LLC. Well here are the images from a feature last Friday. Enjoy! 

Faces of Harlem: Renauld | Harlem Portrait Photographer

Renauld is not only friends with Brian, one of my very first faces you can check out HERE, but he also went to school in Tenessee with my husband, Jorge. Naturally, we were destined to work together! If you haven't guessed, Renauld has done some commercial work himself. I mean, how could he not with those dimples and stature?! He only affirms my belief that beautiful people make my job as a photographer infinitely easier and since there were so many shots to choose from, I decided to feature just one. In moving forward with my Faces of Harlem Project I am thinking of creating a separate space for images to live which I will be launching by the end of the year. New Years surprise? Maybe! For now, enjoy what I've offered of Renauld and please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured for this project or know of someone who is. 

Faces of Harlem Sneak Peak: Michelle Patrick | Harlem Portrait Photographer

Michelle Patrick and I had the pleasure of meeting through her goddaughter Alice, who I featured a couple of weeks ago HERE. For years now, I've heard about Michelle and all the lovely eccentricities  about Alice's  own family and her New York experience. (Alice hails from the Westside, as does yours truly). That said, I had no doubt Michelle would be candid and witty just the way Alice is. When I initially reached out to Michelle about coming to her Sugar Hill residence to snap a few portraits for my project, she extended an invitation to come to her birthday party where there would be "... women of all shapes and sizes."  Elated, I of course packed my equipment up for a quick jaunt uptown! A former soap opera writer, Michelle had quite an eclectic group of friends who had many stories about the way  "... the city used to be" to boot. My favorite ditty was the stairwell tour where I learned Michelle's personal history; she had images dating back to the turn of the century and stories to match! Here's a sneak peak and please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured or know of someone who is. 

Faces of Harlem: Jonte Edwards | Harlem Portrait Photographer

As many of you read in my FACES OF HARLEM SNEAK PEAK last month, you learned that I'm working on a personal project uncovering the beauty of The New Harlem Renaissance. My day job and marathon training is keeping me quite busy these days so editing has been, well, on hold this past month. Shooting beautiful Harlemites, however, has not! So here's  to another sneak peak of Jonte Edwards, my most recent subject. He's stunning on the inside and out! All of the faces I have shot and will shoot in the coming month will be featured ASAP (think Thanksgiving, break time!). Please email me at ilene {dot} squires {at} gmail {dot} com if you are interested in being featured for this project or know of someone who is.