In our last newsletter we told about all of our specials that we were doing from now till summer. Tutus and Pearls for Little Girls and Little Guys in Ties on March 2nd and 3rd, Easter Bunnies on March 16th and 17th, National Sibling day on April 10th, a road trip to Watson Mill on June 1st, Sittin' on the dock June 6 th and 7th, Beach Portraits on June 22nd - 25th, Ice Cream and Popsicles on August 9th and 10th and our ongoing Sweet 16 portraits all year! One that started yesterday and is going the rest of the week is our Furry Friends portraits.
Remember when you were a child how your mother used to say, "You are wishing your life away" when you would be wishing summer would hurry up and arrive? And now that you are older you know just what she meant. When our children were babies we would try and help them learn to crawl and walk. Then we would think about how nice it would be when they could dress themselves. As they got older it was being able to drive and then you look back and realize they are gone! Over the last 21 years we have watched our girls grow up and leave home for school and we wonder where all of the years have gone. Over all of the years we have wondered just how we could slow things down and keep them young forever. If you ever figure this one out be sure and let us know!
This is what came to mind this week as I was going through some of the images we have done over the last week or so. So my advice to everyone out there is this: Don't wish your life away. And to enjoy each and every day with your family.
This week we celebrated Valentines day and it made me reflect on friendships. It could be because I received some portraits that Chance and I had taken last fall from a friend. It could also be because three of my closest photography friends helped me out last Friday night photographing a gymnastics center. Or it could be because of all of the comments that friends have made on the portrait that I got after it was posted on Facebook. Whichever of the above it was, I am truly thankful for all of the friends that I have made over the years. A few years ago, after Facebook got us all reconnected, we had a reunion with all of the people that I went to photography school with. It was amazing how close we all are still after all of these years of not seeing each other, we seemed to pick up right were we left off. Friendships are such a treasure both in our private lives as well as our professional lives. I always know that if needed they are there for me and me for them and for that I am truly thankful. The biggest friendship that I am thankful for is for my best friend, the one that works beside me every day and married me almost 25 years ago.
In just a month the Easter Bunnies will be hopping in the studio! It is amazing how fast it comes every year, and I am glad these winter months do pass quickly. The Bunny sessions are for any child as long as they are sitting up on their own. Clothing choices that look best are pastels, light florals, white and light blues. The things to avoid are busy patterns, dark and primary colors. The sessions will be March 16 and 17 and the session fee is only $35. These sessions are always popular and only come around once a year, so don't let this special time in your child's life pass by and not experience this fun session.
This has been a busy week at the studio with a lot of sessions and computer work to do before tomorrow. Tomorrow is when I leave on my last great road trip of the month, and the last one for a while. It seems like the nations eyes are on Florida and the Florida Primary, but mine are on St. Pete Beach. That is where I will spend the weekend and early next week at another great conference, hopefully learning a lot from the nations best photographers about senior and children's portraits. The weekend will be filled with rubbing elbows with some of the best photographers anywhere and the nights will be filled with eating some of the best seafood on the gulf. Yes it seems to always come back to the food! Hopefully I will come back with lots of new ideas and be inspired and ready for the rest of 2012.
This week we have seen a little of everything, but what I want to show you are a couple of girls we photographed Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons.
January is usually a really depressing month. Normally we run nonstop in November and December and then when the slow month of January hits we twiddle our thumbs. Well most professional associations figured this out so they started scheduling conventions and schools in January and February. Funny thing happened this January, we have been busy with appointments and conventions. As a result of this it is almost February already!
So now I want to let you in on a little special. Valentines day is right around the corner and what better gift than a portrait for that someone special? Call Chance if you are interested in doing something and she can give you a really special price if you mention you saw this.
Moving on to the Road Trips part of this. Road trip number one is in the books now with road trip number two right around the corner. This past weekend I headed out for New Orleans with some of my photographer friends to the Professional Photographers of America (PPA) convention. We met up with a lot of our friends from across the country for classes, a huge trade show and parties up and down Bourbon Street. Oops! I forgot about the food! We had some amazing food! After all of that we each came back with a lot of fresh new ideas and some new equipment to start breaking in over the next few months. We will be looking for some models for a few special things we want to try so stay tuned to find out what we will be needing.
The following images were taken in New Orleans. The iPhone camera is all I had for this trip because I traveled light for this one. And in New Orleans you need to be able to run if you have to.
We came in from the North this year, longest bridge I have ever seen! Over 23 miles of this.
This past weekend we spent Saturday morning doing photography for Lashing Out Eyelash Extension Salon. We had some people come in and model for us and had a make-up artist in for the sessions, one of which was a "Sweet 16" session. Before you start calling for appointments for eyelash extensions they came up from St. Simons Island for these so we aren't offering them at this time. However, we can fix you up with the photography and make-up. These are a few from Julia's session, she turned 16 the day before.
Have you ever thought about how much has changed in the last 96 years? Just how much has changed in the last 20 years is almost mind-boggling. I had something very special happen 96 years ago that will always shape who I am and who I will be. What all happened in 1915? These are just a few of the things that happened, Kiwanis International founded in Detroit - I am a member and have been for the last 21 years, House of Representatives rejects proposal to give women right to vote - can you believe that one? Alexander Graham Bell in New York calls Thomas Watson in San Francisco - think about that one the next time you use your cell phone, Cornerstone laid for Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., Edward Stone, 1st U.S. combatant to die in WW I, is mortally wounded, Boston Braves start move from last place to become world series champs and on April 6 Beatrice Jenkins was born - my grandmother.
Yes, that is the big one for me. Without that one I wouldn't be here today. I wouldn't have had my wonderful family. I wouldn't love food nearly as much as I do and I would never have experienced her quiet strength and love. As I post this she is nearing the end of her wonderful life surrounded by friends and family and we are all looking back with fond memories of her life. I feel so honored to have had such an incredible grandmother for 50 years and for my girls to have had her in their lives. "Bea", "Aunt Bea", "B", "Granny", "Granny Bea", Beatrice or whatever you called her you did it with love. She has always been known as a great cook, and whatever she cooked was wonderful. Biscuits, dressing, greens, peas, homemade catchup, chocolate pies, coconut cakes or anything she put on the table was wonderful. I always thought she would be the one to live forever, and still hope and pray she does. They don't still make them like her.
This is from a session we did with her a little over a year ago, I think I posted it then too. The first ones are of her teaching my girls how to cook their favorite thing - her biscuits.
So what do you have with you everywhere you go these days? For most people it would be a cell phone. And from what my girls say, and I notice when I am looking, it is an iPhone. Did you know that my girls are the only people in America that don't have iPhones?
If you have an iPhone there are several apps you just have to have and this is my must have list. Pandora so you can listen to music on your own custom radio station. Toodledo, if you are like me, so you can keep your to do list with you. Foursquare so you can check in at all of the places you go and find great deals at the same time. Twitter and Facebook so you can stay social. GasBuddy so you can find the closest and cheapest gas. UGA Sports, what else do I need to say about that one. SoundHound so you can remember the name of the song you are hearing on the radio. CardStar so you can keep up with all of those store discount cards every store in has now. Angry Birds, gotta have a game. WeatherBug to keep up with the weather. Scanner so you can scan bar codes and find the best place to purchase what you want at the best price. ESPN ScoreCenter, sports scores. And of course you need to upgrade that camera and get Camera+. While we are on the camera you need Tweetpic, 100Cameras, TtV Basic, Effects, Halftone, Flickr and Instagram.
These are just a few I have on my Instagram from this year. (f8guy)
The camera on the iPhone 4 is really good and a lot of fun. One great thing about the camera on the iPhone is that you always have it with you. And if you have upgraded the phone and gotten Camera+ it's even better because of the different controls you have to fix or customize your images. I love using Instagram to share my images. You can share images on Facebook and Twitter from Instagram too. Instagram is a community in itself where you can choose people to follow from friends to celebrities. If you haven't already checked out some of those apps be sure and check them out, most are free too!
Did you just have your baby? We have a special new session this year for babies, 3 days up to about 5 weeks, that is a lot of fun. These are just a few of the images we captured a couple weeks ago. If you are interested in a Santa Baby session give us a call and we can get you in. Just remember this is only for very young babies, less than 2 months old.
