Natalie Smith

Since the beginning of my friendship with Natalie, I took notice of her dedication to the things in life that bring her passion - her family, her music, and her drive to make her dream of a future with yoga a reality. I am so inspired by her visions of owning a studio and creating a community for everyone to enjoy and thrive in. I can't wait to see where her goals take her!

Suzanne Morgan McLean

Suzanne Morgan McClean is a strong and savvy business owner and licensed therapist whose ambitions have driven her to fuse her love and involvement with yoga into her therapy methods. Her gentleness and approachability is unveiled in her smile and soft eyes. Meet Suzanne :)

Rosy Nah Pech-Tucker

Rosy is a sweet, quiet soul. She has so much love in her heart, and determination in her yoga practice. Like myself, Rosy is a teeny yogini...we both stand at approximately 5 feet tall, but our inner strength would never reflect that. Her photos were taken at the State Botanical Gardens in Athens, Georgia.

Patricia Ramirez Pickney

Patty is a dear friend and mentor of mine whose heart and spirit shines brighter than anyone I've ever met. I think this shows through her photos. She's the type of client who knows how to have fun with a photoshoot, and those are the best clients to work with! Her images are beautiful and her wisdom is infinite, and I can't wait to share her beauty with the world.

Yoga Portraits

For the past year or so I've constructed a sort of vision or dream to create a photography series of yoga portraits. I've admired artists like Robert Sturman who have created beautiful images by focusing on something so simple as the grace of body movement placed in an everyday kind of environment. The idea that the power of the human form can produce a beautiful image challenged and enticed me. I will still post products and news regarding the yoga world on my blog, but I plan to use my blog as a forum to spread these images to create a movement in the photography world. We see sports photography, fashion photography, and posed portraits everyday, but I'm compelled to spread the beauty of yoga portraits. Not only do I see this direction as unchartered territory, but the empowerment it gives to the man or woman in the photographs is priceless. The joy I bring to my clients by documenting a hobby and skill that they cultivated with their own inner strength cannot be matched. It's not about mastering a pose or bragging about how perfect your practice is, rather documenting a milestone in your life and the incredible accomplishments your efforts have brought forth. I hope others enjoy this project as much as I do. The photos in this post can be credited to HMarie Photography based in Northeast Georgia.

The Upanishads

I've recently began a class at the University of Georgia called Literature of Self. The synchronicity between my academics (The Literature of Self and Asian Religious Art History) and the beginning of my journey into my 200-hr teacher training has been such a blessing to me. I don't think any of my classmates really understood why I smiled seeing an image of B.K.S. Iyengar from Light On Yoga being projected in my Art History course. Little did they know, I have been studying these images and this book for teacher training. As for my literature class, our first two texts in my literature class are The Upanishads and Bhagavad Ghita, two texts that set the foundation for Indian spirituality, culture, and even the teachings of yoga. The texts are translated from Sanskrit...being such a beautiful language, I am sure some of the lovely quality of these words are lost. There is beauty, inspiration, and enlightenment to be found all through these texts, but the following quote really struck me and I felt impelled to share it with anyone this post may reach. I encourage you to read it and really consider it in your relationship with your SELF:

OM. In the centre of the castle of Brahman, our own body, there is a small shrine in the form of a lotus flower, and within can be found a small space. We should find who dwells there, and we should want to know him. - The Upanishads

Yoga Brand Thrives in a Struggling Economy

"Lululemon has seen a sales growth of 40.6% and an income growth of 51.10% in the last year."

Check out this article about how Lululemon is killin it!
In comparison to big names like Adidas and Under Armour, Lululemon beat both companies in sales and income growth.

They also have a great blog that I like to follow.

As someone who dreams to make a career out of her passion for yoga, it's refreshing, relieving, and exciting to see that the yoga industry is surviving and thriving during a very tough economical time for our country.

Keep it up, yogis!