Posted on by Krista Guenin · 8 Comments

Haiti

Ok, this is my last post on Haiti, and then I’ll have it all out of my system. Well, I may never really have Haiti out of my system, but at least I’ll stop blogging about it every day :) I just wanted to share with you some of my images from the rest of Haiti – outside the pension. The parts of Haiti that aren’t supported by foreign donations…

As I mentioned a couple posts ago, HFC is situated in a rough neighborhood – Bolosse. The school and the pension are closed off from the neighborhood with guarded gates.


Even the kids who live directly next door, only get to peer in from over the barbed wire. This kid’s house is actually above the fence, and I often found him looking over the wall watching the children playing. It made me sad. He can see these kids having fun, eating food, going to school – and he is kept at a distance. Maybe his family can’t afford to send him to the school? Who knows? But I wonder what goes on in this kid’s heart. Is he jealous? bitter? angry? Does he even care? Only God knows… but I know he watches these kids, a lot…


A few more scenes of the neighborhood, taken from inside the walls of the pension.



oh, I love how she’s standing. her stance is so full of attitude.


this. is. haiti.


We wanted to go for a walk around the neighborhood to get a better picture of what it’s like, but we had to wait until one of the men from the pension could escort us. (there’s a very real danger of kidnapping in Haiti). So, we walked up this hill, and at the top was a garbage dump, of sorts. It was also a soccer field where the local kids play… The garbage is everywhere though. Everywhere.

This kid was playing up there, riding his bike around the dump. And he did NOT like me taking his picture…


We also got to tour one of the high-schools nearby. The school is on the property of a seminary that is loosely affiliated with the pension. This was one of the few places we could walk freely. It was a beautiful campus.


We found some boys in an empty classroom singing and playing instruments. They were happy to let us sit down and listen as they rehearsed for graduation. They were such sweet guys and they drilled us with questions about the US, and how it might be possible for them to get there. For each of them, and for many people in Haiti, the dream is to get to America. That’s the only way they can see their life improving.



This school is also where the kids go for Sunday School before church. There are a bunch of other kids there, and a ton of people at the main church as well. It was cool going to church with them, but I did almost fall asleep ;) When you can’t understand creole, it’s a lot harder to pay attention! So, to stay awake, I took pictures of the cute kids…




But, there’s more to Port-au-Prince than just Bolosse! Here are a few shots from our travels around the city…

The President’s house. It was kind of crazy to see this in the middle of everything else…


local markets line many of the streets


And as I said, there’s garbage everywhere. One of the big problems with this is that when it rains areas can flood because drains are filled with garbage. But one of the reasons flooding in Haiti can be so horrible is because there isn’t good infrastructure to allow for drainage. There is just water everywhere, rushing in torrents down the street, and just everywhere. You can easily see why hurricanes that hit Haiti can be so devastating.


Yeah, this is a street we’re trying to drive on. It gives new meaning to the idea of a traffic jam.


And the lovely tap-taps. The tap-taps are like a cross between a taxi and a bus – but the guys who drive them go all-out to make them unique. Each one seems to have a different theme, and often the music blaring out of them will go along with the theme. It was totally entertaining, but I never did get to ride in one…


A view of Port-au-Prince from the hilltop in Bolosse. You can see the President’s mansion, and the football stadium, and the giant section of blue-ish concrete near the bottom is the cemetery – it’s enormous.


This kid approached our car as we were stopped at the light and asked us for money. This kills me when I’m traveling because I know I can’t give it to them without the car being mobbed, and so I can’t give it to them at all. I apologized, but he was a little annoyed with me…


And this is one of my favorite shots. It is exactly what I think of when I think of Port-au-Prince. Miles and miles of concrete dwellings squished together, taking over every inch of space. The reality that I didn’t get to see is that outside the city, where there’s fewer people living in such tight space, it’s very green and lush and beautiful. Maybe on my next trip to Haiti, I’ll get to experience more of that…


And this last shot is one I took on the plane as we left.


Thank you to Hope For The Children for bringing me down to see and experience Haiti and the work you’re doing there. I hope and pray that the images we captured will help you tell the story of your efforts, and of the children – and that God would use them to bless and increase your ministry.

Posted on by Krista Guenin · 5 Comments

HFC – The School

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I went to Haiti to document the work of Hope For The Children of Haiti. Their Mission is this: Hope for the Children of Haiti is called by God to give Haitian children, particularly orphans, the opportunity to become well rounded adults who are self sufficient in Christ. One of the keys to fulfilling this mission is giving these children a quality education. And so HFC has started a school that teaches not only the orphans who are part of the Pension, but many other local children as well. Here are some images from my time at the school…

When we first arrived at the school that morning, the kids were in the middle of recess, and were playing all over the place. And MAN do the they love the camera!!! I was instantly mobbed! Since I’m supposed to be documenting life at the school, I was getting a little frustrated because this was not a day in the life of the school – this was mob the photographer day :) But, come on, look at how cute they are! Who can stay frustrated for long?



Of course, not all the kids were interested…


Finally, recess was over and everyone went back to class.
This teacher was totally embarrassed that I was taking his picture (in fact, they all were), so I had to crouch outside the door and try to be incognito. Not too easy with my 80-200mm f/2.8 lens on, but it worked somehow :)


The girls taking rigorous notes on the Haitian Revolution


And one of the boys listening attentively


The little ones couldn’t concentrate that hard. Nor could they see very well. We happened to show up the week the generator died, and there was no power at all during the day. Many of the classrooms, like this one, didn’t have any windows and were almost pitch black. But, school continues…




These poor teachers! Every time I walked by the classroom, the kids went nuts trying to get me to take their picture. Kids were coming out into the hallway, getting out of their seats, and totally freaking out. It was a little funny, but the disciplinarian in me wanted to tell them to go sit back down and listen to their teachers! :)


A teacher going over homework in the light from the hallway since her classroom is windowless.


I love this shot of a teacher going through a book in class. There’s something about the way she’s holding the book and the pages that is just beautiful to me.


Lots of answering questions on the chalk board


even when there’s no light to read your work…



Thankfully, the generator has since been fixed the kids have light to read by again! Lack of power in Port-au-Prince and the cost of running a generator is one of the MANY reasons that HFC needs your support!! If you can, please think or pray about supporting this important ministry, so these kids can get a good education and grow up to be self-sufficient adults that make an impact on the future of Haiti!

Posted on by Krista Guenin · 2 Comments

HFC – Life at the Pension

Here’s a little peak at life at the Pension (that’s what they call an orphanage in Haiti)…

They have two main buildings. The main building is the school, girls’ dorm, and space for another adoption agency. The other building is across the street – it’s the boys’ dorm, and it’s called Woodworth’s House (I can’t remember who Woodworth was and why they named the house after him…). Here’s a view of the boys’ house, from the main building. It was laundry day :)


I found this hanging on the wall in the girls’ room. It was incredibly humbling to think of how much this passage must mean to the girl who tacked it on her wall, and how much I have to learn about it’s meaning…


A regular ritual of braiding each other’s hair.


One of the most difficult parts of the trip for me was visiting the babies from the adoption agency. It’s comforting to know that almost all of them will get adopted, most by American or European families. But, seeing their life as it is now… was heartbreaking.


These babies sit in their cribs all day. all. day. There’s a woman in the corner of the room “watching” them, but mostly sitting around. These kids are sitting in wet diapers, stimulating themselves by banging their heads on the mattress, and some seem to have given up and just lay there. The teenage girls from HFC like to play mommy and come get some of the babies a couple times a day – but they don’t take all of them, just the ones they like. I got a few out of their crib and played with them, but I couldn’t take them all out, and it killed me. If you’re even thinking of adopting a child – please consider adopting a child from Haiti or another 3rd-world country. This is the alternative until a family comes along to care for them…


Some of the toddlers from the same agency. It cracks me up that a 3-year-old is braiding the younger one’s hair! Most 3-year-olds can’t tie their shoelaces, how are they gonna braid hair?!


This is one of the little ones from the agency. She followed me around all over the Pension. She wouldn’t let go of my leg, or stop touching my camera, and was just always there. She’s pretty cute, huh? I had to try really hard not to bring her with me…


One of the fabulous cooks at the girls’ dorm. I’m not exactly sure what she’s making there, but I do know that I had to eat it. If you know me at all – you know I’m very picky. A bowl full of mush is not my idea of dinner. But, it’s all they had, and they shared it with me. And I ate it, gratefully.


The view from the dorm. This is practically all these kids see of their community. They live in a really bad neighborhood – very dangerous and violent. They are fiercely protected, and therefore don’t get to play out in the streets or spend time with neighbors. But, they are safe…


This is what teenagers look like at Sunday School… a little bored, and trying not to get in trouble for talking :)


Dinner at the boys’ dorm


The boys’ house-mother


One of the beautiful things about the kids at HFC is that they really are a family. A gigantic family of 60 kids, but a family nonetheless! I love this picture of Wislandy, the youngest girl with her arm around one of her big brothers. It just tells you so much about these kids.


Next up, a look at the school at HFC!

Posted on by Krista Guenin · 4 Comments

Hope For the Children of Haiti – the boys

So, you’ve met some of the girls from Hope For The Children of Haiti – now meet a few of the boys…

Mikenlove hanging out on the porch at the Boys’ House


stuck inside on a rainy day



oh, forget, let’s just go play in the rain! Boys don’t mind getting wet and dirty, right?



they sure love football!



I can’t get over their view from their football field!


Rejoicing over a goal :) This is back at the orphanage where they were playing football with a plastic bottle. It was rather impressive.


One of the things I love about boys in other cultures… They hold hands with each other! It’s precious.


Jefthe looking very serious


studying hard


Richecarde smiling for the camera


and this kid was laughing so hard he fell down :)


The boys were a totally different set of characters than the girls. Much less camera-shy. Some even went out of their way to pose for me – too much even. :)

They were also a really fun group of boys who laugh a lot – which is always a good thing, especially in a place like Haiti!

Posted on by Krista Guenin · 6 Comments

Hope For the Children of Haiti – the girls

If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I went to Haiti in May/June to document the work of Hope For The Children Of Haiti. I’ve held off on blogging about it because I wanted to focus on getting the first few weddings up first. That, and I’ve got like a zillion pictures I’d like to share, so I had to take the time to narrow it down a bit.

I’m finally ready and I thought I’d start with the girls at HFC. There are about 30 of them, ranging from 8 -17 years old. It took a while for them to warm up to me, and to stop running away from my camera, but it was really fun getting to know them. And it was a great reminder that teenagers are teenagers, no matter what country you’re in :)

Here are a few of my favorites of the girls!

waiting to be introduced to the visiting photographer …


hanging in their room – giggling and having fun



Aw, Debbie, she’s such a sweetheart. And would you get a load of those eyes!! Gorgeous!


Wislandy, the baby of the crew. Such a cutie!


Listening intently to a sex-ed talk. Their eyes aren’t glassed over or anything ;)


Chrystel… Little Miss Attitude and the woman in charge (if you ask her). But, I found her in this nice moment doing chores where she was all alone, and let her guard down a bit, and I almost got a smile.


Fabiola hanging out the back of the Tap Tap (it’s basically a pick-up truck with a metal cage on top to keep the passengers safe, or dry)


And, last but not least, Nerline. This girl ran and hid from my camera the ENTIRE time I was in Haiti! On the last day, I had had enough, and I stalked her relentlessly until I got a couple photos of her before she saw me. Somehow, this made her love me dearly. Go figure :) So, here we are, right before I left to go home. She couldn’t stop hugging me and even cried when I left. That’s what I love about teenagers… they’re totally unpredictable.


I wish I could share more with you all, and tell you stories about each and every one of the girls – but there just isn’t enough time in the day! :)

If you’re interested in supporting Hope For The Children of Haiti, and helping these girls get the care and education they need to make a difference for their country, please click here.

Posted on by Krista Guenin · 2 Comments

Evan & Kelly’s Wedding!!

Wow! It’s been WAY too long since I posted anything on this blog of mine! I’m sure you were all checking back each day wondering what the heck had happened to me. I hope you weren’t too worried ;) I have so much to blog about, but I definitely wanted to get this wedding up before anything else!!

Evan & Kelly got married a few weeks ago, on a beautiful sunny day in Cambridge. I started the day with Kelly at the Harvard Faculty Club where she was getting ready. It’s such a cool old building, and I was definitely excited to shoot there for the first time! One of the first things I got to see was the room they were staying in at the Club. It had the coolest window, and I just had to shoot the dress in front of it!


Then it was back downstairs to spend some more time with Kelly and her family. Kelly was a little anxious and definitely wanted to get the show on the road! She just couldn’t wait to get down that aisle and marry Evan, which is the best reason to be anxious before your wedding!



The ceremony was held just a block away at Harvard Memorial Church. The ceremony was so nice, and Evan & Kelly just looked so happy!


After the ceremony, we walked back to the Faculty Club, and made a few stops along the way for some casual portraits.



Are they cute, or what?



Back at the reception, the guests were mingling and enjoying the day, while I was eying the cake… Don’t you just want to pluck off those little flowers and eat ’em?!


Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who felt that way… My assistant, Melissa, totally busted this kid trying to snag a bite!

The first dance as husband & wife…


All day long, you couldn’t get the adorable kids off of the dance floor. Not even during the father-daughter dance!


After a bit of dancing, Evan & Kelly were toasted by their loved ones. The toasts were awesome…lots of tears are the proof!

I love this series! It totally makes me cry because you can just see how close Kelly & her sister are, and how much they love one another. Sisters are awesome!


The Best Man got a few more laughs than tears…


But Kelly’s Dad really takes the cake. I have looked at these images at least 5-6 times now throughout my editing, and I have cried EVERY TIME!! He’s a total crack-up, so I was expecting a really knee-slapping kind of a toast. But, then he starts talking about how when he was a kid he loved the movie Peter Pan (the live-action one w/ Mary Martin – which is a totally great version, btw). And then he goes into this long description of the part where TinkerBell almost dies – and he actually starts crying just talking about it. Which makes all of us cry, of course. I can’t exactly remember how he worked it all out, but in the end he had us all clapping for Evan & Kelly the way kids over the generations have clapped for Tink. I’m telling you, it was the best Dad toast, ever!


Did I mention the adorable kids?



The happy couple enjoying the last dance of the day!

Before the afternoon ended, there was one shot that I HAD to get. I’d been dreaming of it since we visited the Faculty Club during Evan & Kelly’s engagement shoot. The club just has the best staircase, you see…



Evan & Kelly, it was such a wonderful day! You are surrounded by love, and it was an amazing thing to witness. Thank you for trusting me to be a part of your wedding. And thanks for sticking it out to the very end to get my dream shot :) I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you both over the past year – and I look forward to working together to design the perfect album to tell the story of your day! I hope you LOVE the photos!!

Posted on by Krista Guenin · 5 Comments

I LOVE Black & White film!!!!! That’s right, I said FILM!


OK, so those of you who know me, or who have at least met with me once about shooting your wedding, know that I started my photography career shooting black & white film. My first job in photography was for a phenomenal photographer, Steven E. Gross. At the time, Steven shoot ONLY black & white film – and so that’s what I did too. During the 4 years I worked at his studio, Real Life Weddings, we discovered that digital was not invented by the devil, but is in fact, good. So, we all began learning the art of digital photography – or better yet, the art of shooting digital and film at the same wedding. Steven still only shoots black & white film for weddings, and leaves the digital to his second shooting Assoicates – and you’ve got to love him for it! He knows film like the back of his hand, and he has surely perfected the craft. What’s more, he knows that there is NOTHING quite as lovely, as timeless, nor as archival as a black & white fiber base print made by hand in his darkroom. And for weddings, he believes that his clients deserve only the best!

Now, while I’m in complete agreement with Steven on the issue of film – I also love digital! Digital is so flexible, satisfies that instant gratification we all long for, and the quality has improved by leaps and bounds over the past 4-5 years. It’s pretty stinkin’ awesome, actually.

But, then there’s film… mmmmm, film…

So, all of my clients have the option of having some black & white film shot at their wedding. It’s quite a bit more expensive than digital these days, so it’s rare that I get to shoot it (not everyone cares about it the way I do). But, every once in a while, one of those couples come along that get it – they really get it! And recently, that couple came along…

Evan & Kelly sat down with me after their engagement session and showed me some old photographs of, and taken by, Kelly’s great-grandmother. As we flipped through the 70+ year-old photos, we all remarked at how perfectly beautiful they still were. How timeless and classic they felt. And Kelly & Evan decided that they had to have a little of the same from their wedding.

Well, their film came back from the lab the other day and I was SO EXCITED!!! So, even though their digital pics aren’t quite ready for sharing (instant gratification only works if you don’t actually edit the photos… darn digital!), I couldn’t wait another minute to share my favorites from their film! Are you ready??? :)

Here’s my favorite from my 35mm, Nikon F100… Doesn’t Kelly look gorgeous!?!


The week before the wedding, I picked up a new toy. Literally – I picked up a new toy camera! It’s called a Holga and I’ve always wanted one. Since they’re only like $20, it was about time for me to get one already :) But check out how cool the photos are! I’m so pumped!!!





And last, but not least, film from my favorite camera of all time – my Widelux! The Widelux is a true panoramic camera with a lens that rotates and captures 140 degrees. It takes photos that you just CANNOT get with digital! (A lot of people think you can just take a fisheye lens on a digital camera, crop it to pano to get the same effect, but it is NOT the same!!!!) Anywhoo, check ’em out!



Sometimes when I lay on the floor and take pictures like the one above at weddings, with my clunky old Widelux, people look at me like this…

But, it’s worth it! Check out the unique portraits you can get with it!


So, what do YOU think? Is it worth it? I guess you’d have to touch & feel a fiber base print to truly understand, but still…

Ok, I feel better now! Back to work everyone!