Category Archives: Cup of Bunn

I am a photographer and openly share many aspects of my business, but I also share the personal side of Bunn that has made me who I am today. I have been fortunate to have worked with many wonderful professionals in the wedding and boudoir industry, many of whom I am blessed to call friends. When I am not being a photographer, I am at home being a wife to my amazing husband; together, he and I help take care of his ailing mother, sharing our experience through an on-going series of personal and raw photographs I call “The Lola Diaries.” We lost our beautiful fur baby, Maile, a few years ago and I dedicated a very emotional post to her in April 2012, sharing the day she was put to sleep after losing her battle with cancer. (It was truly one of the hardest things I ever had to share and it still breaks my heart whenever I read it.) We now have a real-life ewok, Koda, who keeps us busy with his knotted hair and is frequently featured in my iPhone photographs on Instagram.

Bunn Salarzon - boudoir photography portland

 RODAN & FIELDS CONSULTANT

Honestly, I didn’t really take much care of my skin until recently when I’ve seen the results on my mom and some friends. My mom struggled with the effects of poor (yet very expensive) products for over 33 years. She tried one product from my recommendation and now she’s one of my top Preferred Customers because nothing else worked for her, not even a series of dermatology appointments.

I really love that I can work this business from just my smartphone, anywhere in the world. At the same time, be able to juggle my other businesses and available for my toddler while my husband works his regular full-time job.

SAVVI (Women’s Athleisure Wear)

It wasn’t even on my radar to add another business to my plate — not because I was too busy or anything — it was because I felt that everyone was already jumping on this wagon. But, then it dawned on me (as I was Marie Kondo-ing my wardrobe closet) that all these pieces of clothing that I’ve invested in, to dress as a professional, never really helped me much other than appearance-wise. If I was going to replenish my wardrobe, spend the money on new stuff, then I want to make it work for me in the long-run.

So, I finally circled back to that one friend who has been trying to share this business with me for awhile. (That’s you, Krista!) I’m officially a Brand Partner!

ARE YOU GOING TO TRY TO RECRUIT ME?

Haha! No, I’m not. (Not unless you want to!?) If that was my only goal then I’ve failed it over and over already. I’m just here to share what I can offer and be that connection for you whenever you’re ready to learn more about these businesses. If you so feel incline to share my posts on my behalf, then that’ll help me greatly!

DO YOU ALSO DO REAL ESTATE?

Yes/No. I’m trying to dabble in some real estate (more details to come!).

Currently, the only real estate that I’m managing is my photography studio that’s available to rent for your private events, meetings, photo shoots and more. It’s a lovely little white studio in the Fairview Village that I’m pretty proud of. → Read More

THE MOM BLOGGER?

You know, I just love documenting people and now I have an extra special reason to do it daily… When I finally became a mom, after waiting 15 years for this title, I get to be my son Oliver’s personal director.

CUP OF BUNN?

My first documentary “gig” actually started with Romie’s mom whom lived with us for nearly a decade and struggled with Dementia. I kept a photo journal on Instagram called The Lola Diaries. After she had passed on, we became parents to a beautiful little baby boy whom we named Oliver. Now, this account is of our new life after infertility and adoption. Follow us on Instagram at Cup of Bun!

HELLO, I’M BUNN… A MOM, WIFE & PHOTOGRAPHER (always).

I’ve photographed families for 14 years, now I am a mom after 15 years of infertility. God had a plan for me all along, but it wasn’t until March 7, 2017, that I realized what He had designed for my future. Through open adoption my husband and I finally became parents. It was the one dream we both dreamt of for over 15 years and never thought it would come true for us… We were wrong. Oliver Tate Salarzon found us on that fateful day. We are his and he is ours, forever. → Read More

We’ve been so blessed by Oliver that our adoption story was secretly submitted then chosen by a local baker Sugar Geek Show as part of their regular appearances on the Food Network’s show Ridiculous Cakes. How awesome was that?! It was such a surreal experience and one that we will never forget. Have you seen our episode with the 3-foot-tall-larger-than-life Irish bear cake designed by Liz Marek?! It was just incredible! Oh, and the cake was so yummy! We didn’t even want to cut into it.

(Header images by ANIKO Photography; shot on location at Opal 28 for Oliver’s first birthday party.)

girlfriends in swimwear on sandy beach

I have made a commitment to not use models or “strangers.”

When clients hire me for their boudoir photos, I do not share their images without their written consent. Their images are their images. (It’s a very private thing.)

I still have to market my Boudoir Photography work, to show what I can offer. That’s where styled photo shoots come in. But, I don’t like using models for these projects… it sets a very unrealistic visual for women (and men) who are interested to work with me.

My clients are everyday people so I like to use everyday people. This group of women are real-life friends; I believe some are coworkers. They agreed to hang out with me for a few hours on a sandy beach somewhere on Sauvie Island, Oregon. The only rule was: Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable. Oh, and must have fun!

They brought the fun (aka bottles of yummy!) and I brought my Canon 35mm film camera with 50mm f/1.2L lens; that was all. It was a very good opportunity for me to see what I could do with posing five women in the same frame. Sure, there were lots of trials and errors but that’s also why us photographers do what we call styled shoots. We use this time to practice so that we’re not practicing while on your time that you paid us for.

Of course, I often get inquiries from folks asking if they could be in my next styled shoots… The short answer: No, but thank you for your interest in working with me.

As I piece together everything to restart my photography business in 2020, I have made a commitment to not use models or “strangers” but past clients who have already invested in me. They’re also already familiar with how I work so we can spend more time creating great images while we catch up on each other’s lives.

Bunn Salarzon - portland newborn photography

I HAD THE PERFECT PHOTO STUDIO… THEN I LOST IT.

Actually, I got scammed out of my Portland photo studio.

Never did I think it could happen to me. We had a signed lease agreement and everything; I read every single word of it, there was nothing on it that said the guy was a scheming con artist. I didn’t discover this until I Googled his name Christopher Wyland… after the judge awarded the Plaintiff (building owner) and evicted me from it. This happened in 2015 and I still haven’t gotten over it.

I worked so hard on this photo studio, invested a lot of money and poured so much love into it. It was almost perfect for me. I no longer had to rent from others because I had a space of my own to be creative as I wanted to be. And I was just getting started. (Sadly, it didn’t last long.)

I didn’t take official photos of the space but these are images I took on my smartphone to quickly capture angles to share with friends. To say that I was so proud of all that I’ve accomplished thus far is an understatement. It was a photo studio where I created artwork for my clients, but I didn’t want it to look and feel like a typical studio… I was making it into a home and that’s what I wanted everyone to feel the second they stepped inside my little world. It was barely all coming together, still so much left to do to design it like a live-in condo— then I found an eviction notice taped on the door. It devastated me.

white portrait studio with large windows
white office space with big windows
white office space with windows and skylight
white IKEA KALLAX bookcase
high ceiling white photography studio

Fast forward five years later into a new decade and a new me, I’ve returned to the photography world and I am looking for a creative space of my own. Again. However, I’d be lying to myself if I didn’t admit that I still compare everything to this first space that I got to call my own, albeit for such a short time.

It was 657 SF with a glass wall dividing the space where I did all my photo shoots and the other side was the client lounge area complete with a skylight and changing area behind those green curtains. It was on the top/third floor so there was not a single building or tree blocking the large window which means there was always a good amount of light coming into the studio even on cloudy days. It would’ve been perfect if it was a corner suite with two large windows. The building had an industrial elevator like something out of New York City; although it always had issues it was still super cute and great photo opp for city-themed photo shoots. (I called it the NYC Loft.)

Bluehour Restaurant was right across the way as well as TILT (a great burger and beer joint!); down the street was Whole Foods Market and easy freeway access. Honestly, it was almost perfect despite unpredictable street parking availability.

My monthly rent was just a little over $1,000 which was doable on my own so I didn’t have to rely on co-opt. I did rent it out to hourly and daily renters, that was a very effective option for when I wasn’t using the space. So, where do I go from here? Will I ever find a space like this or better? Unfortunately, I’ve found nothing like it so far.