Beautiful Ayla from Posey School of Dance in Northport Village, NY is among the most spirited and talented ballerinas I get to work with. Like her fellow corps members, Ayla is a true team player. The spirit at Posey is like none other, a shared joy. Watching Ayla come along as a performer over the years has been thrilling. She's enthusiastic and works hard. It's clear that ballet sits in the center of her heart. 

      I was very fortunate to grab her for some impromptu shots earlier in the month. She was a good sport about it. It gave me the opportunity to see how far she's come since I first worked with her. She studies throughout the year and participates in challenging summer intensives.  I immediately saw that her determination is paying off. I have been shooting ballet long enough to recognize that point (or should I say, "pointe") when a ballerina assumes the art as her own. Ayla has always presented a unique charm and personality. That's what makes her so much fun to work with. To see her own maturity in technique and movement, however, was amazing. She now makes everything worth photographing and I have many project ideas to bother her with in the coming years. This is just one of the several stunning images from our session.

      In this time of thanks, I am grateful to be able to work with her, grateful to work with her talented and beautiful peers at Posey as well. I will be joining all of them in the coming weeks for their Nutcracker performance. I have the feeling it will be AMAZING. Thank you, Ayla for this lovely portrait. Keep doing GREAT things!  Ayla studies under Elsa Posey and Kimberly Wager.