Hi, I’m Lacie! I was born an artist and knew that was what I wanted to do not long after I could hold a pencil. And not just any artist, but a portrait artist. I received my Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art in 2007, emphasizing portrait drawing and painting. I studied all the fundaments of art, composition, and design in a highly competitive art program. In 2009-2012, my favorite medium shifted to photography while teaching art, photography, graphic design, and Photoshop at our local Naples High School, as well as in adult education classes.
In 2012, I decided that I wanted to grow my family and have flexibility by starting my own photography business. I started specializing in Naples family photography. I would describe my style of photography as being vibrant and bold. I often shoot portraits at sunset at my favorite place, the beach! Using off-camera flashes allows me to light the subject(s) while retaining the beautiful and vibrant colors of the sky and background.
Feeling the stress from being a Mom-prenuer and the job I loved to do, I decided to take some time and focus on my health. I fell in love with the gym and lifting weights, and in 2015, I competed in my first bodybuilding competition in the Figure division. I fell in love with the sport. Besides seeing the obvious physical transformation, I went through a huge mental transformation as well. Through hard work and consistency, I felt a sense of achievement that carried into other aspects of my life. Through putting myself out there and being vulnerable up on stage, I gained so much mental strength on confidence, that it completely changed the way I saw myself. I found that sculpting my body and presenting on stage was another medium of creating art. I began documenting my fitness journey to inspire others, and that’s when the name Creating a Figure was born. I also began being on the other side of the camera and started modeling.
After a miraculous healing from a traumatic brain injury (AVM rupture) and craniotomy in 2017, I gained a new appreciation for life and the beauty in it. There was no holding back on the dreams I wanted to pursue. I made a comeback to the stage a year after my craniotomy in 2018, and went on to win my pro cards in both Figure and Bikini divisions, win Miss Bikini Universe in the NGA in 2019, compete as Pro in several natural bodybuilding federations and as an amateur in the NPC, and coach posing.
I wanted to somehow marry both my passions of photography and fitness together. In 2020, I started traveling and photographing bodybuilding competitions and athletes. I was surrounded with the most amazing people with a champion and positive mindset. I started living by a motto that “I am both a masterpiece and a work in progress simultaneously.” I want to inspire people, especially women, to love where they are at, feel beautiful, and appreciate their bodies while bettering themselves. I modeled for my first boudoir photo shoot in 2021, and it was such an amazing and empowering experience, that I wanted open a studio and give that gift to all women, not just athletes. I now split my time between on-location photo shoots and at my studio in Naples for boudoir, fitness, and personal branding.