I am a photographer by trade, an artist by practice, a poet in my dreams, and a writer whenever I feel like it! I am many things and so are you, which is part of what makes being human Truly Spectacular! As a genderqueer and neurodivergent person, I naturally see the world through a squiggly lens. I'm curious about demystifying portraiture by transforming it into an experience that feels less intimidating and more playful—maybe even sacred—like a ritual you can return to over and over again throughout your life.
Simply put, an Embodied Portrait is a photo of you that looks like you — but more importantly, feels like you.
It’s the feeling part that matters most. You might not know how to describe it, but when you see it, you just know.
Being photographed (aka being perceived) can feel kinda weird for a lot of people. I’m here to make it less weird!! And hopefully, a lot more fun.
When I’m photographing someone, I’m not interested in making you look a certain way. This isn’t a performance.
Instead, we’re creating a container together — a little pocket of time where you get to remember how to move your body and be a person. And it will feel good.
It’s a practice space: to play, to rest, to experiment a little (if you want).
It’s an opportunity to see yourself — maybe in a way you haven’t before.
A spacious, intuitive session that’s more like a collaboration than a shoot. No modeling experience needed, no pressure to perform. Just the version of you that exists right now. Show up fully and I’ll take care of the rest.
A one-hour, low-stakes portrait session in a natural daylight studio. You bring yourself (plus an outfit or two), I help you remember what to do with your hands. Together we make something honest and cool. No flash, just a space to play, & portraits that feel like you.
A not-so-traditional session for all kinds of love: romantic, platonic, chosen, all of the above. It’s tender, a little weird (in the best way), + celebratory. Think less “prom pose,” more “holy shit, this is us.”
(coming soon)
Your body holds a language all its own—the way you move, breathe, and even the way you’re sitting right now. It’s happening without you even having to think about it.
The Embodied Portrait Session is an invitation into that language. Part photoshoot, part 1:1 creative workshop, it’s designed to loosen what’s stuck and guide you toward a portrait that feels like you.
Over three weeks, we’ll explore through questions, creative exercises, and conversation—then make a portrait that feels less like a performance and more like a remembering.
“Honestly, ‘using’ the photos isn't even the best part. Truly, getting to undeniably see a side of myself I don't get to see is the best. I hold on to the photos and look at them periodically and it always brings that back.”
-Griffin
“Working with Joy, I was able to let go of my self-consciousness, release the outcome, and just enjoy being in my body in a beautiful location with a wonderful artist. It felt like play, and afterward, I was astonished by how FUN the day was.”
-Stephanie
“I didn't think about how I looked, and that is rare. Radical. So incredibly different. It wasn't about being positioned just so, so as to get a certain shot. It was about dabbling in my own essence, feeling free enough to be seen as I am, not as I wish to be seen.”
-Paulina