Turning the 'everyday' into something beautiful

About a month ago, a fellow photographer from Indiana blew up on social media after posting before and after shots from a photo shoot that she did in a Hobby Lobby store.

Me being as shy as I am, I've thought about doing photo shoots in stores or other public places before but the thought of people staring at me or getting kicked out of a store scared me.

But Kelsey completely changed the game and has created a whole new trend or photographers.

I think it's so cool to take an ordinary, everyday location and turn it in to something beautiful and creative.

With so many people following Kelsey's lead, it makes me wonder: what are the rules and laws behind something like this?

Here's some things to keep in mind before you go shooting in your local grocery store:

• Check the store's website to see if they have a photography or media policy.

• Call or ask a store manager if they allow photography in the store.

• Avoid using flash.

• Be considerate of guests who are shopping (DON'T take up too much space, stand in the way, block entrances, etc.)

• Don't use something as a prop that you don't intend to buy, or make sure you return it where you found it, in perfect condition.

• Be aware of brand names or logos in your shots, they are most likely subject to copyright.

If you decide not to call ahead or ask a manager, keep in mind that you can be kicked out, banned or arrested for taking photos on private property without permission.

With that in mind, I decided to give the shooting-in-a-store trend a shot (no pun intended) to get some fun Valentine's Day themed photos.

We went to a nearby Target and went to the Valentine's Day aisle.

This shoot was seriously SO much fun and even though I was still kind of nervous about getting in trouble with a store employee, I was so surprised by the fact that people really did not care that we were taking photos in the store.

People were shopping all around us and no one said anything to us. Yeah, we had a few people look at us but not in a way that was rude or uncomfortable.

This shoot is definitely one of my favorites right now and I honestly can't wait to go find another everyday location and turn it into something beautiful.

If you haven't seen Kelsey's photography on Twitter or Instagram, you definitely need to go check her out. She's incredibly talented and it's no wonder she's gained such a huge following after posting her Hobby Lobby and ugly location challenge photos.

Oh, and P.S. Happy Valentine's Day.

– Nicole

#Photography #Portraits #KelseyMaggart #Trending #Lifestyle #UglyLocationChallenge #ValentinesDay