Piazza della Signoria, Florence; Italy

The Loggia dei Lanzi - Restoration on  Giambologna's The Rape of the Sabine Women

Serenata, The Serenade, Rome; Italy.

The serenade.  It is common for the man to serenade the woman before he proposes marriage to her.  He either performs the serenade himself or enlists the help of his musically-inclined friends.  Often he will ask her father for his daughter’s hand in marriage before proposing to her.

Paolo & Paola, our friends from Roma, took us to their friend's Serenade.  It was in a small town, about an hour from Rome.  While the Groom serenades his Wife-to-be, with classic Italian tunes, a friend takes up a single red rose to her.  When she throws the rose off the balcony to her love below, she has accepted his proposal.  Ahhh Love...

Colder Weather - Zac Brown Band

Colder Weather - Zac Brown Band

If you haven't heard it yet, it's time you did.  Never usually put music up, but couldn't resist this one.

Getmarried.com

Denise & Kenneth, Hotel Zaza, Houston, Texas.

Just joined Getmarried.com have a look and please pass it on!

http://www.getmarried.com/local-wedding-vendors/Houston_East_Texas/Photographers/weddings-by-alefiya/

Carlos & Crytal - Engagement Session Houston, Texas

It was my second shoot with Crystal & Carlos before there wedding. Had a fun filled day first at the Cockrell Butterfly Center and then at one of the few remaining drive-in Cinema's in Texas.

Winning entry for Black & White Spider Awards - Harini for KT Brown

http://www.thespiderawards.com/gala/index.php

Photography - Alefiya Akbarally
Location - Helga's Folly; Kandy
Designer - KT Brown

Make-up - Jacquie Mei (The Make Up Box)

Hair - Nimal Abeysiriwardana

Models - Harini Jayaweera & Shelomi Obeyesekere

Remembering...The Price of a Picture.

Deaths of Photographers Hetherington and Hondros Up Stakes in Libya - Newsweek

Muslim schoolgirls play on the seashore in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Photograph: Christian Aid/Tim A Hetherington

Annie, you did it again.

So its rarely I walk past the magazine racks at Target and gets stopped in my tracks. But this red headed bombshell just got me going. Was it the picture or the subject? I think it was the perfect marriage of both.

Annie Leibovitz photographed Rihanna for this months issue of Vogue. Her images were so manufactured yet raw. Much like Rihanna. I love how Annie, who emerged with The Rolling Stones in the 70's can become so intimate with someone who is defining the pop-culture of today. A career spanning 40 years, so consistent and brilliant.

Of course its an ode to the photographer and the photographed. The camera almost seems non- existent.

I need to find my rolling stone...

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R & R - Viva la Vida

For more images visit - http://www.facebook.com/album.php?id=118214744895126&aid=31559

Sunari & Adnan; Mount Lavinia, Sri Lanka

For more visit - http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=31496&id=118214744895126&saved & http://weddingsbyalefiya.com

Farida and Adam; Family Portraits

Nanna's Helper; Malabe, Sri Lanka

Jared and Lisa - Bridal Shoot, Houston, Texas. Love like this is worth dying for!

For more on this shoot and others please visit www.weddingsbyalefiya.com and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alefiya-Akbarally-Photography/118214744895126.

Beach Batik -Romanthi Maria for Buddhi Batik

For the whole set visit me on facebook -http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=23562&id=118214744895126

Women's Voices; Living Room Art, Voices Breaking Boundries; Sixth Ward, Houston.

A historical Sixth Ward home hosts "Women’s Voices: Honoring Alice Valdez and Sheema Kermani".
For more see - http://www.vbbarts.org/calendar.shtml

5 minutes of Emancipation; Life Is Living; Emancipation Park, Houston.

The Mitchell Center, in partnership with artist-in-residence Marc Bamuthi Joseph, the Living Word Project and Youth Speaks, Inc., hosted Life Is Living Houston, a hip-hop-based environmental justice festival. Focused primarily on Houston's Third Ward neighborhood, the festival further connects University of Houston with its surrounding community and celebrates the extraordinary people who sustain the cultural life in and around the Third Ward.

t-b (1) Emancipation Park; Houston. (2) Aquaponics display by Keba Armand Konte (3) Live graffiti display on 20 car-hoods

Dig deeper - http://www.lifeisliving.org/

Happy Halloween in Houston

t-b Logan; aged 4 named after Wolverine from the X-men. He's dad is die hard fan.

(centre) Jason. Inflatable pumpkin/ghost chocolate dispenser.

Bahama Mama; Bahamas

t-b - Dolphin's Cay, Atlantis - The Lost World of Atlantis; Paradise Island, Bahama Mama Memorabilia; Paradise Island, Art for a Cause; Habour Island, Bahamas.

The Presley Women - Priscilla & Lisa Marie Presley

A photo of a portrait at Graceland.

Watch Oprah's interview with Lisa Marie -

1/3 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LngoYj4ML4&feature=related

2/3 -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diA9ochtq6I&feature=related

3/3 -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2C5nPLc6_I&feature=related

Home of Elvis - Graceland, Memphis, Tennessee.

Elvis Presley's 14 acre mansion.
top-bottom - Living Room, Billiards Room and Media Room with white monkey.