Bitten by the love zombie | News | tribstar.com – Terre Haute Tribune Star

Crawfordsville photographer Lindsey McCaffry loves love. She loves photographing love.

My guilty pleasure is romance movies and chick flicks, McCaffry said about her idea of pairing two strangers and photographing their blind date. These sessions allow me to do things I dont get to do with paid clients. It allows me to explore different areas creatively.

She saw this idea a couple years ago and mentally filed it under someday. When the pandemic struck, McCaffry had the time. She solicits singles to apply to be a model for a blind date. They must agree to being photographed, social media posts of the images and kissing for the camera.

We do try to create a true match that will last, McCaffry said. We do not give them any information about each other. Nothing at all. We blindfold them before they meet each other and then the reveal and everything is done on camera.

Four couples have agreed to the specifics and been on blind dates McCaffry has photographed. The idea has received worldwide attention. Thats how Lebanon Police officer Nick Reynolds heard about the program. The 25-year-old submitted an application for the Halloween shoot.

Im big into horror movies and going to haunted houses, getting dressed up, Reynolds said. Then he found out the next blind date shoot was going to be shot at Fear Farm in Jamestown, which did not open this year due to the pandemic. It was definitely fun to do and a really cool experience.

Jasmine Padgett, a nursing student at Purdue University, also has a similar love of the macabre. The 23-year-old southern Indiana resident said she loves scary stuff.

I love haunted houses, she said. I love scary movies. I enjoy jump scares, if you can get me to be jump scared.

Padgett had also seen the first few dates McCaffry did and had been following the studio. She admits that her dating life was non-existent.

I thought to myself, I dont have anything to lose, she said. We clicked right away, and I think it was awesome that we had downtime to talk and get to know each other.

During the reveal, Padgett said she was surprised in a good way.

I thought he was handsome, she said.

Together, and for the first time, McCaffry created a Halloween theme storyline for the two to act out.

They went on a date through the haunted barn, McCaffry said. They get bit and they slowly turn into zombies over time. Eventually, theyre both full zombies and madly in love with each other.

That may actually be closer to the truth than fiction. Reynolds and Padgett have been on a second date without cameras and are planning a third date.

I think we made a match that will finally last, McCaffry said, noting that the four previous dates did not lead to love.

While the transformation to zombie was happening and extras were being made up, Reynolds and Padgett spent time talking real first date conversations and discovered they actually liked each other.

Even when we got home Saturday night after the shoot, we kind of texted each other, Reynolds said. We were already talking about planning a second date on Sunday.

After an appearance on her nationally-syndicated talk show last Tuesday, Tamron Hall agreed to pay for that second date, which took place at Eddie Merlots Prime Aged Beef and Seafood in Indianapolis.

Weve agreed, we definitely want to go on a third date, Reynolds said.

Padgett said having a relationship in public puts a bit of pressure on them.

There are definitely a lot of people out there that are like, You guys got to make this stick, she said. Weve kind of just gone with the flow and tried to enjoy each others company and not put too much pressure on ourselves.

McCaffry is planning a shoot for December with a Christmas theme for a couple between the ages of 35 to 45. The website to apply is mccaffryphotography.com.

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Bitten by the love zombie | News | tribstar.com - Terre Haute Tribune Star