Truthfully Tara

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Vibrant,

spunky,

authentic,

contagiously enthusiastic,

& so much more:

Meet the one and only Tara Patoile!

She is a human like no other. I am so thankful to have met such an amazing person!

A couple truths about Tara:

She is a role model, a friend, a fascinating story-teller, an effortless relationship builder, an expert marketing technologist (is that a word?), and so much more. She's just all-around empathetic and magnetic WONDERWOMAN.

There's so much more dimension to Tara than her lively presence. She's also one of the most courageous and resilient people I've ever met. Her life story is really something. She has faced all types of tangles, bumps in the road, and adversities in her lifetime.... but you'd never even know with how ebullient she is. She is incredible proof of the power of resilience. 

Tara, thank you for being you. You are a light and a blessing in this world. & thank you for inspiring me to be the best version of myself possible!

Pulse Voter

Meet Pulse: a Stanford student-led startup with the vision of redefining how we engage in politics through technology. To do this, they've developed a non-partisan civic engagement platform that makes politics more accessible and understandable. Personally, as someone who would like to become more politically involved but is overwhelmed by the complexities of doing so, this platform completely changes the game for me. I have no doubt that it'll have this effect on the thousands of other Americans who are in the same boat: willing to but not quite sure how to take that next step in activating their political voice. 

I had the privilege of visiting Stanford and getting to know the Pulse team last weekend. As a business major myself, I had a blast talking marketing, branding, and strategy with them for hours on end. Inevitably, headshots became a part of this discussion -- quality headshots are crucial to developing a brand image of a company.

Did you know that it only takes 1/10th of a second for someone to judge you based on a photo of you? Believe it or not, it's true, and it's backed up by scientific research at Princeton University. A solid headshot is seriously crucial in creating an impressionable profile or website.

Aside from the importance of headshots, headshot shoots themselves don't have to be serious or intimidating by any means. In fact, I strive for them to be the exact opposite. I'm not sure I've ever had so much fun with a headshot shoot as I did with the Pulse team. This shoot was full of energy, laughter, and lots of shenanigans, as you'll see in some of these photos. As a photographer, almost as important as snapping crisp, professional, confidence-boosting headshots is creating a fun enjoyable experience. The photos last forever, but so do the memories of the shoot!

P.S.: Follow along & get engaged with Pulse: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn

Heather: Headshots/Lifestyle Shoot

Heather is one of the kindest souls I know! Not to mention... total girl boss PhD inspiration who has gained insane momentum with her career! She is involved with genetics research at the University of Minnesota which is another reason why I adore her. I love fellow Gophers :-)

The backstory for Heather's session is that it was a headshot session-turned-lifestyle shoot! Normally headshots take about 10 minutes. But Heather's clothes were so cute and it was so nice out that we decided to take some just-for-fun photos too. 

Thanks again, Heather! I loved working with you and I cannot wait for coffee dates and seeing you on campus this fall.