Copasetic: A Photo Gallery

Sometimes you find yourself at a networking event, meet some cool people, and all of a sudden you're doing a spontaneous shoot with a model you just met at said event. I met the talented and super bubbly Andrelina Perazzo while at an event in the LA Art District for the collective and agency I'm with called TGS Collective; my sister had worked with her before but conversation was nothing but full of positive vibes and inspiration. We noticed a gorgeous VW van in the valet parking lot next door, and couldn't help but to create some magic with what we had. To our luck, one of the valets was the owner of the bus and said it was totally fine to shoot with it! We were inspired by the vibrant and matching colors of the bus with Andrelina's outfit, and pulled together an edgy and moody vibe. Sometimes the most random shoots end up turning into something special! Check out what we captured below and be sure to follow Andrelina on her socials! 

What would you like to see next? What's the most spontaneous thing you've ever done? Leave a comment below and let me know! Would love to hear some cool stories you might have! Make sure to subscribe to my newsletter, and follow me on Instagram to stay up to date on all things photo! 

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Artist Feature: Corii

As any other Saturday morning may go, from brewing coffee and trying to recover from Friday night festivities, my friend Corii came in with her contagious energy that instantly makes you feel a bit more awake (even before a glass of coffee). I had asked her to come over, told her about how I started blogging and wanted to ask a few questions about her and her music, and all in all, just another excuse to hang out and have fun. She's one of those people you feel an instant connection with, and I can honestly say she's someone I felt as if I had known for years, even though we had only just met a few months ago from a mutual friend while at Disneyland. 

With her charm and infectious laugh, there was no doubt in my mind that I wanted to feature her on my site!

Who is Corii? Find out below by checking out the interview. 

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Me: Alright so, for anyone who might not know you, what's your name, where are you from, and what is your favorite song at the moment?

Corii: Okay so, my name is Corii [artist name], I'm from New Jersey, and my favorite song at the moment... 

M: I know, there's so many good ones out there right now!

C: Oh my god dude, this is like asking me what my favorite potato chip is [laughs] I'm gonna say Concentrate by Demi Lovato.

M: Ugh that album is so good.

C: I'm obsessed. 

M: So how long have you been in the industry?

C: I went to music school, and then probably the first time that I released something that considers me being in the industry would probably be in 2010, I would say. I mean, I started writing and putting songs out when I was younger, that was before Spotify and stuff, so 2009. I was still working in studios, but I would say consider it more serious around 2010 or 2011. 

M: And what made you get into the music scene?

C: Well, I'm only really good at music so...

M: That's how I feel about art in general so I understand.

C:  Exactly! I have always just loved singing, I became more comfortable with songwriting when I was in my senior year of high school, that's when I really got into it. Before, I was just singing other people's songs, and then I got really into writing my own stuff. I think that's how it started, I just wanted to write my feelings because I had my first breakup, so I had to release it someway.

M:  What was your first concert?

C: My first concert?! So I would say my first concert was at Berkley, it was when I had a different [artist] name, but that was my first big concert, and then I got into another one and another one, and it just kinda lead from there and continued. But my biggest show was when I opened for The Weekend Riot at the Trocadero in Philly. But my first big concert where people actually came just to see me I was in college at Berkley. And then I had my own big show at the Hard Rock in Philly, and then it got bigger when I opened for the Weekend Riot.

M: So awesome! And how big was the crowd for that one?

C:  We sold it out, I couldn't tell you the exact number but I'm sure the guys would know.

M: We'll just ask Bruce next time we see him [laughs]

C: Yes exactly, but I want to say it was around 250 or something around that!

M: Awesome! If you could tour with anyone, who would it be and why? What's your dream lineup? 

C: It's hard because my dream lineup, to what I am, is different. I'm obsessed with Paramore, everyone knows that, like I would love to tour with her. I'll pick three; Paramore, Demi Lovato, and Sia. 

M: Interesting! So if you could compare your sound to anyone, who would it be? So people can get an idea of what type of music you do.

C: I'd say probably Sia, like a mix of her and Demi. More Demi vocally, and with Sia, I like to put a little dark twist on things, and belt really high. That's what both of them do, so I would saw the two of them. 

M:  They both have a sort of unique sound as far as pop music goes, because they're always changing what they do, you know?

C:  Oh definitely, Sia has one of the most distinctive voices ever; like one of the songs I'll be releasing very shortly, everyone says it sounds very much like Chandelier, so I would definitely say Sia, but Demi too, just because I love to belt really high, and both of them do that.

M: What's something that most people might not know about you?

C: I'm pretty much an open book, but I guess for people who might not know me, I would say I'm really really into working out, like I was a really big runner and super into that, but I got injured so I stopped doing that, but a low-key passion of mine has been running. I did cross-country like I did it for a different college because I was going to music school. I've done a half-marathon, I still haven't done a full marathon yet, but I do love running a lot.

M: Nice. And what would you say is something you like to do to refocus, like what you do for your "me time"? Whether it be yoga, or reading, or what's something you do for you?

C: Definitely running or spinning, and I also love cooking.

M: Oh fun! What's your favorite dish to cook?

C: The best thing I've made this year is borsh soup. 

M: What the heck is that?!

C:  [laughs] It's a beet soup; I learned it at the restaurant I worked at. I'm not gonna lie, when I made it and took a bite of it I was so impressed with myself. I had never heard of it either, but I always like to try new things. Like if I try something new when I'm out somewhere, I want to try it out myself at home. It's just very comforting to get out and do food shopping, and then coming out and prepping, like cutting celery, and just being in my own zone. You don't really have to worry about other things and just be in your zone. 

M: What's some advice that you might have for when creatives get stuck in a rut?

C: Honestly, I think my biggest advice is to not compare ourselves to others. I feel like that's what we as creatives do, and whenever we see someone do something that you think is better than what you're doing, you're holding yourself back. I know for me, I'm a perfectionist, so I'm constantly fighting myself all the time, so it gets me stuck in ruts. I'm doing all these things but then I'm always like "oh my gosh, that wasn't good enough, I'm not gonna post that", when it's really your own self that's holding you back, so I always say try to not compare yourself to others and try to put things out and do things, and if people like it, then great, and if they don't, they don't, because if not, then you didn't even get the chance to show that. 

M: I completely agree. So, final question, what's one thing you want to do before you die? What's at the top fo your bucket list?

C: Top tier priority, would be to go to Ireland with my dad. We're Irish and Italian, but everyone has been to Ireland except me, because my sisters and cousins and such are 10 years older than me, so I was in 3rd grade or something, and everyone went to Ireland except me, and my parents had already done as well. They felt bad about it so they decided to take me to Disneyworld to make up for it, even though we went to Disneyworld a ton of times (I love it though, obviously). I just have this dream to take my dad to Ireland one day, just the two of us, drink beer, and see where we're from and learn the culture and whatnot. 

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Corii will be releasing her first official single, Good Love, in May! Be sure to follow her at all her socials below:

Like what you see here? Let me know in the comments who'd you like me to interview and shoot with next! And be sure to follow me on my socials if you don't already! Thanks for taking the time out of your day for checking my site out, and I hope to hear from you soon!

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TGS Lake Arrowhead: Unplugged - Photo Gallery

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In late March, a group of artists and talent that are part of the amazing creative community called The Gypsy Shack Collective (@tgscollective) got to disconnect from social media and hang out, create, and work on ourselves as artists up at a cute little AirBnB CEO Alex Morehouse (@chiefwolfblood) found as a space to stay for the weekend. From learning and growing as individuals and as a whole, to hanging out and building friendship and bonding over The Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, it turned out to be something wonderful, something all of us should do more often. We get so obsessed with scrolling on our phones, that we miss building real connections with people we have been blessed to have in our real lives. If there was something I learned from that weekend, was to appreciate the friends you have and the people you have yet to meet, focus on your dreams, and make them reality. Below you can find the full gallery from the weekend as a whole (click the photos for the full gallery on Flickr), and be sure to follow everyone on their socials! (See below for their usernames)

Models: @chiefwolfblood, @kirpasudick, @paolanieblaa, @clairealydean. Makeup: @kyrstamua

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Thanks for taking the time to check out my site, and leave a comment below of what you think of the idea of having a weekend getaway. What's your dream spot you would go to right now to get away from everything? 

Be sure to follow me on my socials @maxbakerphoto if you don't already, and follow the amazing talent from this weekend! 

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TGS Colorful - Photo Gallery

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TGS, aka The Gypsy Shack, is a creative collective of diverse artists, who hosts workshops every month to create, grow, and teach with people of different backgrounds to work together and network. Last month in a loft somewhere in Downtown LA, CEO & Creator of TGS Alex Morehouse lead an all day event where artists could purchase tickets and learn from other creatives at the themed workshop entitled "Colorful", because of the technicolor walls and decor that could be found within the studio.

Models and photographers from around the area gathered here, some meeting for the first time, creating magical content, sharing and showing off what each person can bring to the table with their knowledge and experience. It was a day for the books, and all of us got to connect and build relationships with people we never thought we'd meet, all thanks to social media and the amazing community Morehouse has been able to create through TGS. Below is a gallery of images captured while I got to attend, with the different talent that participated in the day. If you're interested in getting involved with something like this or wanting to build connections and work on your craft, TGS hosts these type of events every month. You can simply go to tgscollective.com and find everything you need to know there! I highly recommend it! Enjoy the full gallery below of what I was able to capture at the workshop:

Models in frame:  @rosedinardo, @_atfashion_, @heathafeatha69, @meli_topete, and @toria.webber as found on Instagram

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Be sure to follow all the talent from this shoot, and keep up with me on all social media: @maxbakerphoto

I'll be posting more content like this soon! Please leave a comment below on what type of stuff you'd like to see me feature on the blog, whether it be full photo galleries, BTS on shoots, music reviews, etc. Thank you for taking the time to check my site out and if you found me through here, feel free to shoot me a message on instagram! Would love to hear from you! 

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