Portraits of theatre actress Sophia Caressa at the Brooklyn Bridge

Although I am based in Nashville, I consider myself a New York City photographer in NYC as I am there frequently!

Let me start our story by telling you… at no point is it ever too late.

To begin again.
To change something.
To start something new.

Sophia Caressa is a shining, glorious example of this. Her life story is not mine to share, but I will say that she has overcome much loss in her life, from a young age and into adulthood. She is inspiring in how she always picks herself back up and continues to chase after the vibrancy of life.

Sophia is an actress and creative living in New York City. We met about 8 years ago in Nashville, TN. At the beginning of 2022, Sophia walked through yet another hardship. At the end of summer she reached out to me about doing a photo shoot to document the new season of her life she had begun. After this more recent hardship, she was determined to continue rooting herself in her new home, and to continue building a beautiful life for herself. When I booked my flight to New York City, I had no idea just how beautiful this trip would be. These cinematic portraits with depth and feeling were for Sophia, but they deeply impacted me - the Nashville photographer capturing them.

When sharing her creative vision, she told me she wanted to capture photos that portrayed boldness and strength - two things that had become important to her after the pain she had just experienced. She had the idea of a photo shoot incorporating water, and we decided on portraits by the Brooklyn Bridge, at sunrise.

It was when we were in the midst of taking photos ON the bridge that I realized two things. 1. Sunrise is a beautiful symbol of starting over, and there is a boldness to it as you are embarking on a new day - a new day of deciding how you are going to show up, and who you are going to be. And 2. A bridge is a symbol of strength. It not only has to hold the weight of itself, but the pressure of the water below, the strain of the wind, and the pounds of people and cars passing over it each day.

It was perfect.

It felt as though our arrival to this very day and place had been orchestrated just for Sophia - to perfectly capture her.

Taking photos on the Brooklyn Bridge at sunrise was one of the most magical shoots I’ve done in NYC.

Here are some of my favorite photos from our October photo shoot at the Brooklyn Bridge in NYC…

Woman posing on the Brooklyn Bridge for a creative portrait photo shoot with meaning. New York City, NY.

Blurry black and white photo of woman sitting on a bench on the Brooklyn Bridge as people pass.

Actress Sophia Caressa Alan posing on the Brooklyn Bridge at sunrise.