Golden with Bri (Patreon)

This set with Bri Mel is easily one of my favorites from the trip. Shot out on the Apache Trail, and honestly, the location does a lot of the heavy lifting—in the best way possible. You’ve got all that depth in the background, layered mountains, and then that last bit of sunlight just skimming across everything right before it drops.

From a shooting standpoint, this was all about timing and direction. We hit that perfect window where the sun is low enough to give you that warm wrap, but not so low that you lose detail. You can see how the light is coming across her body—it’s directional, it’s shaping everything, but it’s still soft enough that it doesn’t get harsh.

I kept most of this pretty simple. No crazy lighting setups, no overcomplicating it—just using what’s there. The contrast of the black Honey Birdette set against those warm desert tones does exactly what you want it to do. It separates her from the background while still letting the whole frame feel cohesive.

Composition-wise, I was really focused on letting the environment breathe. A lot of these are wider than you’d expect, just to show scale. When you’re in a place like that, you don’t want to crop it out—you want to lean into it.

There’s also a mix in here—some more structured poses, and then some that are a bit looser and more natural. That balance is what makes a set feel complete instead of repetitive.