Phoenica Zhang -The Liberated Collection-

I surveyed the parking lot. I wandered through the layers of questions my mind had created as I sat patiently for my new friend to arrive. I wondered what type of car this Duke bound student would be driving? Would she be talkative over the course of our two hour excursion? Would I find a location that she'd like? Would I find a location that I'd like? Had I put on deodorant? I wondered if she was waiting at a different Best Buy parking lot, having similar contemplations. Moments pass and she arrived. She stepped out of an elongated Cadillac and we exchanged greetings. Holy crap she's tall. Is this Yao Ming's sister? She threw her belongings in my car and she and her friend jumped in.

I appreciate long car rides, especially when I'm accompanied by those I know little about. It allows me to ask an array of questions --the less attention on me the better. I relish in knowing what young people are thinking about, what they think their future looks like, and what they hope to do in this life. It's a reminder to me of the amazing gift of free agency that we all have. Phoenica, who put up with a few hours of name mispronunciation, was a joy to spend an afternoon with. She is wicked intelligent -- #2 GPA in her graduating class, she is a musical maverick who learns to play new musical instruments whenever she desires -- when we had spoke she had just picked up the guitar and ukelele, and she's equipped with athletic prowess. I imagine her 6 foot frame was quite the inside presence on the basketball court when she played for three years at Ironwood High School. Underneath the surface achievements I got to know the weirder, more candid, comical side of Miss Zhang. Laugh out loud moments were had when she whipped up one of her bizarre "scary faces". I know the right environment is being created when an 18 year old is willingly embarrassing herself in front of me. I appreciate the shameless conduct, because usually it's I who is dabbling in such behavior, just to muster a pair of genuine laughs. It also helps to shatter the barrier that separates stranger and friend. Consider those boundaries crossed. This is Phoenica Zhang, and she's been liberated.

Jocelyn Mohrig -The Liberated Collection-

It's late. Your eyes are heavy, pleading for you to give up. Commercials at this hour are almost an excuse to just go to bed. You refuse. It's cold outside. You go limbless and stick your arms in your shirt, but only after you've crawled up to the rough, stucco-roof of your house. If you're a girl, you're probably in an over-sized shirt, hair still wet from the shower you took a few hours ago, which doesn't help with the feeling that you're getting hypothermia. If you're a guy, you're in a tank-top and a pair of basketball shorts you bought when the cool thing to do was hitting up the mall. You try to get comfortable. You're imagining all the other people placing ladders against their houses, making the climb upward. You picture the numberless souls sharing this spectacle with you around the world. Scientists have told you this won't happen for another 40-50 years. Suddenly, It starts. For a few brief moments the sky is on fire, lit up by thousands of streaming meteors acting like bows shooting through the sky in simmering fashion. Your eyes are transfixed, your imagination is illuminated, your mind is mesmerized. A short, but memorable experience of total wonderment. The celestial event is over too quickly.

Though I wasn't in worn out basketball shorts, my shoot with Jocelyn was reminiscent of a extraordinary meteor shower viewing. We connected immediately and never looked back -- I couldn't, it was over far too soon. She opened up and let me in, transforming a 2 1/2 hour shoot into something that felt more like a vacation with a great friend. Jocelyn is blessed with an infectious personality, beaming with positivity -- which stems from her faith, and a unparallelled understanding of fashion, which results in a style that might be impossible to mimic. I wanted to create a sort of runway for her to showcase the creativity in her style that landed her so much vogue in high school. Seriously though, Hollywood's freshest costume designers probably look to her for inspiration. I was amazed at the attention to detail in accessories, and the frugality in her shopping choices --she bought her prom dress at Savers. She's also a lioness on the golf course, blasting balls hundreds of yards in relaxed execution. The girl has got power in her swing. Jocelyn effuses cool. She's got a funky sense of humor when she's totally being herself, and an effortlessness in her ability to charm the socks off ya. I eventually ran out of light, and couldn't shoot her anymore, which led disappointment to creep in. The celestial even was over far too quickly. But the experience is still glowing. This is Jocelyn Mohrig, and she's been liberated.