:: THIS IS LAYLI SAMIMI'S BLOG ::: 11.11

11.28.2011

trunks of vintage memories.

my grandfather is in the front of the photo

my grandparents are amazing. and i wish so badly that i knew them when these photos were taken. some times we take life and age for granted. once they were as young as me and my siblings and they did things we do now. what i wouldn't give to be able to share a cup of coffee with my grandparents when they were my age and have a real sweet heart-to-heart about things. my Moore grandparents are still alive and i love to ask them stories about their lives, cos they weren't always my grandparents. like they used to ride horses with their buddies. they're badass.

11.25.2011

HERE'S TO LONGING #34

[#34]

photography by samimi-extremie and quotes by her & her loved ones;

new piece up every friday. see all of them here.

happy friday, ya'll. i don't know about you guys but we're going up the california coast with my baby sister. #sofreakinpumped

11.22.2011

on sisters.

my dearest sister towfigh and i have long talked about this notion of sisters, in fact, she was the one who introduced me to this "name" for your loved ladies in your life. i have since adopted this title for myself, in my life and it make so much sense.

lovely towfigh was visiting in LA this past week, she left yesterday, and it was super hard for me to have her leave, tearing at my heartstrings, and it really struck me again. as it does every time i see one of my sisters. upon reflection, i know how lucky i am, how humbled i am, how happy i am, and how on earth was i lucky enough to have so many strong, amazing, powerful, beautiful, hilarious, intelligent, creative women in my life.

i can honestly say with all conviction -- if i didn't have them in my life, i wouldn't have the support that i have, i wouldn't be as strong as i am, i wouldn't feel as loved as i do.

i don't know how many of you have powerful intimate relationships with your women [and men]. i don't know how many of you share your deepest thoughts & feelings, pain & fear, successes & failures with them. but i encourage each of you, to push yourself a bit farther, dig in a bit deeper, explore the capacity of true friendship, and when you are able to lead with your vulnerability, let your guard down, express the unspoken and engage your loved ones in your truth, your fear, your light -- that to me, is what TRUE friendship is, what TRUE family is - those that will love you unconditionally, goofy or sad, angry or joyfully confident. and always be there to listen and encourage.

i just wanted to write in so many words, about how touched and moved i am by the love i feel for my sisters. and i wanted to share with you these stop-my-breath-heart-racingly BEAUTIFUL portraits, in hopes that their power & radiance will rub off on you, too.

and how lucky am i? i get to see this beautiful baby sister tomorrow. in LA. i'm speechless and excited beyond belief:

11.21.2011

lash samimi aazami adventures part 2

as you may have noticed, my dear friend ryan came to visit from the congo last week and we shot one million photographs. i know you'll get overwhelmed by the amount of photographs i post about our trip, so i will share the part by part. here is part II, part I was the part that i posted below with the 35mm photos.

i have been wanting to shoot in our loved living room since we moved in, and what better opportunity then when ryan can be a part of the photoshoot and take radtastic photos. here are [a lot] of my favorites:

11.20.2011

sorry...

...but what the hell is going on with american apparel??


ummm, what "classic guy" is he?!?

HAHHAHAHAHA!
yep. they've officially lost it.

11.18.2011

HERE'S TO LONGING #32

[#32]

photography by samimi-extremie and quotes by her & her loved ones;

new piece up every friday. see all of them here.

11.16.2011

the slickness of the sickness.

when my dearest friend, ryan lash comes to visit me, there is no end in sight with the number of photos we take. this trip, we shot with my fuji instax cam, my 2 35mm cams and his glorious DSLR. here are some of the best shots from one of the rolls of film. i love how dark they are, and how they really captured the mood of the day when we were out in malibu. it was magical. and we saw 100+ dolphins. i ain't lyin'.

this one and the one below are some of the best of the roll, in my opinion.

one of the faves of lasher.

possibly my favorite shot in a long while.

hey little guy!

haunting & creepy. just the way we like to shoot.

best seat IN THE WORLD.

11.15.2011

my father knows the way of my heart.

my father sent this to me today saying, "this is very cool, thought of you". well, i watched the entire video, and was so deeply moved by it. i don't believe there is anything more powerful and fascinating than individuals speaking their truth, sharing their intimate thoughts on what REALLY means anything in this world. i am so over surface interactions and shallow obligations. if only all of my conversations could be of great meaning, reaching a deeper understanding and a shared connection [i'm working on it ;)].
WISDOM Trailer from Andrew Zuckerman Studio on Vimeo.

11.11.2011

HERE'S TO LONGING #31

[#31]

photography by samimi-extremie and quotes by her & her loved ones;

new piece up every friday. see all of them here.

11.08.2011

epic for a couple reasons.

here are some 35mm shots i just got developed. they are epic for a number of reasons. i feel as if the photos themselves are quite epic, meaning, the scale, the place - how the cops were chasing after baktash and i when we were standing on the roof/railing of the griffith observatory. but the main reason that these photos are epic is because - in the next couple of months, i'll be welcoming my fourth - FOURTH [!!!] beloved sister in to my life and family. her name is fiona and i love her very much. i am beyond ecstatic for her and my brother in law bobby. these photos summarize my excitement and grand scale awesomeness that i feel about these two becoming married. aren't these SICK photos?!?!?