Elle's Sneak Peek {Part 1}

I first met Elle last fall at the birthday party of a mutual friend. From the moment I saw her, I wanted to photograph her. I knew she would be amazing in front of the camera! But I figured she'd think I was a crazy person if I just walked up to her 5 minutes after meeting her and asked her if she would model for me some time.

I ran into Elle again a few weeks ago at another party hosted by our mutual friend. We got to talking, and I asked her how she felt about having her photo taken. She told me that she loved modeling and that she recently competed to be Miss Kansas! At that point, how could I resist? I asked her if she would be interested in modeling for me and she agreed!

We decided on a two part shoot, and the first part was last night. The second half is scheduled for next week, but I just couldn't wait until then to post photos of the stunning Elle.

We started our shoot by meeting at Elle's apartment, where she gave me free rein to ransack her closet and help her pick out her outfits.  That was the first opportunity I've ever had to dress someone for photos, and I have to admit that I LOVED it!  The second I saw the vest and boots in the first half of these photos, I knew we had to use them!

Once we had picked out her clothes, we headed out and spent our shoot just wandering around taking photos near her apartment.

I told you the smile would be worth the wait, didn't I?!...

Elle was so amazing to photograph because she was up for anything. This shot was taken with her laying on a picnic table in front of a restaurant with diners all around her. When I asked her if she'd be up for climbing up there, she didn't even bat an eye!...

We came upon this building, and I loved the white background and fun windows in these next two photos...

I keep trying to find the right words to describe why I love this photo, but it's just not happening.  I just really like the feel of it....

This next set of photos was taken in front of a store, and the white metal thing you can see is actually a bed frame.  While we were shooting, a guy rode by on his bike and said something like, "Now that's how you sell a bed frame."  It was great!  And I'm sure he's right - a few photos of Elle modeling with the bed frame, and I'm sure the store would have it sold in no time!...

One of the best things about Elle is that she can very easily pull off different looks. She can go from cute girl next door...

to serious and sexy, and completely pull off both looks.  Take it from me, not a lot of people can do that very easily!...

I am IN LOVE with this photo of Elle.  It's definitely one of my favs!...

Seriously. Could she be any more stunning?...

Elle was a-maz-ing during the session from start to finish! It is insanely exhausting posing for the camera, and she did everything I asked her to do without hesitation. And I know that some of the positions I had her pose in were tough to keep for as long as she did.

Elle, thank you, thank you, thank you, for agreeing to model for me and for being so accommodating to all of my requests! I can't wait for the second half of our session!

Stay tuned for more photos of Elle coming up soon.

Michele Whitacre is a portrait photographer serving Phoenix, Arizona and the surrounding area. Visit Michele's website at michelewhitacrephotography.com. Become a fan of Michele's work on Facebook. Follow Michele's updates on Twitter.