I’m going to go out on a limb here (pun intended), and tell you about Diana’s nature photography. Diana has hoped and prayed for a day (or days) when she can have tons of snow, hundreds of birds, and a long lens. She got just that in mid-February with feet of snow, an unknown number of birds, and a 400mm (effective length) lens. The results, quite honestly, are stunning. Diana’s eye at capturing wildlife has always been spot on. But the nuance she shows in this gallery is pretty much the eye of a years-experienced professional.
I’m not writing this because Diana is also my wife, but because her pictures are worth taking a look at. For now, we’ve put up a print gallery for you to peruse and from which you may wish to purchase prints and canvases. Later, we are planning to add products such as note cards, matted displays and more.
While I also love taking nature shots, there’s something about these that make me think “the birds have expressions.” I wish I could caption them all, but maybe we’ll do something like that later. For now, go take a look. You can either click on the picture above, or click here to go to the gallery. No password is necessary. You can see various birds and bird combinations by clicking in the lower right corner.
In the news recently there have been stories about a massive scam in Boston, where hundreds of brides, vendors, and suppliers were duped into paying thousands of dollars to a bridal show that never really existed. There were a few warning signs, but everything “looked” so good, that people barely gave it a second glance. Below is a link to an article in the Huffington Post that describes some of what people faced:
The tragedy of it all is that someone took advantage of what is to be a happy occasion, essentially preying on people’s upbeat emotions. This is NOT something unique, even in our area. You may remember that there was a wedding photographer in nearby Maryland in recent years who failed to fulfill numerous wedding contracts for albums, prints and more. In that case the photographer even moved out of the area, leaving many former clients with virtually nothing to show for their thousands of dollars in investment toward their photography.
And recently (this has been going around Facebook, especially among professional photographer friends I have on there), there was a photographer on one of the many “Judge” shows who claimed they were a professional, but who apparently could not produce a reasonable print for their client, from whom they took money to do the wedding. Here’s a link to that portion of the show (as found on YouTube):
The point I’m making here is that anyone with a camera can claim to do a good job for you, and even claim to be a professional. But when it comes down to realizing that anyone can say anything, the end result is you didn’t do your homework. There are a lot of unscrupulous people who have absolutely no problem telling you what you want to hear in order to take your money and disappear. There are also plenty of “photographer wannabes” that have little to no professional experience, and who are just taking your money to take pictures with no idea or regard for professional ethics, liability, and the requirements of fulfillment and customer service.
Yes, this is a bit self-serving. I have been a professional photographer since 1984… and a full-time professional since 2001. I’m proud of the reputation we have built with our excellent customer service, awesome clients, and wonderful photography. I cringe when I hear someone say that they are going to hire a ‘friend of a friend,’ or someone they knew in college or high school. And not because it means I don’t get the work (or the income) but because I also genuinely care about our images… which means it pains me to know that someone who has little experience with weddings (which are once in a lifetime events, individually) is doing it without sufficient backup equipment, knowledge of the way certain things work at a wedding, or even liability insurance should something go horribly wrong.
The point is that you have to be careful what you are spending your hard-earned money on. Our economy has changed dramatically in the last couple of years, and while many people are being careful with how much they spend, it should not come at the expense of losing everything to a scam or to someone who does not truly know what they are doing. If you’re planning a wedding or even a family or senior portrait in the coming months, consider what I’ve offered here… great and consistent results come from experienced & professional photographers.
Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, we are offering up another day of beauty!
Those who have taken advantage of our previous days (including the Valentine’s sessions) have been very happy with the experience and with their images. And why wouldn’t they be? The package includes a complete makeover with makeup by Ceejae (a professional make-up artist), hair styling by Brooke, and portraits by Tony. This combo has churned out some amazing images in the past few months, and now it’s your turn.
The package also includes an 8×10 or two 5x7s, and is only $99. Want to bring a friend? If you do, then the price is only $89 each!
Book now by calling 304-263-3100. But do hurry, because the time slots fill up quickly!
In this post, I told you about working with The Alpine Adventure Agency to come up with a photography workshop that combines an amazing vacation, an incredible package chock full of lots of adventure, and an educational workshop that could only take place in the Italian Alps.
Well, everything has been organized and laid out by Daniela Anderson, owner of The Alpine Adventure Agency, and we’re ready to reveal all the details. But before that, let me tell you how I came up with our exclusive workshop program.
It was important for me to first educate you about determining composition and posing. For many who attend this workshop, these segments will be very interactive. I encourage ideas on posing from anyone and everyone, because having interaction means you are getting involved.
There is so much packed into the lighting element, that it will just spin by. But I’m so excited about this part because there is so much to work with in this beautiful environment.
Finally, we’ll start to pull it all together by using new angles, exploring the camera settings and giving you a chance to apply everything you’ve learned in an unprecedented portrait session with a beautiful Italian model… who, by the way, will be accompanying us EVERY day of the workshop. 🙂
Now, on to the details. Daniela Anderson is a wizard at planning exotic vacations, many of which have also included workshops in the arts and crafts arena. And so rather than me duplicating all her efforts, I’m just going to refer you to the page she designed which outlines not only the workshop elements, but all the other details about this fabulous Italian vacation.
We first met Santanna almost exactly three years ago, as an early entrant into our Most Beautiful Baby Contest in 2007. She was cute then, too. One thing about truly fun families who value photography is that they enjoy the experience each and every time. Since Santanna knew me, after a little “I think I know you” time, we were clicking pretty quick, trading high fives and little jokes with each other.
As you can see, she’s grown up pretty well. She’ll be four in May.
Now, this is her new little brother. The name is Reth (pronounced like Reeth), and the personality is positive. He is well-loved and quite the snappy dresser.
From day one, Santanna was a ham… she still is. She insisted on bringing FIVE outfits (we only used four). We loved the fashion show. 🙂
And the cute pair together. Santanna’s mom is a Cowboys fan. Her dad is a Giants fan (hence the Giants jersey (since you can’t see the logo).
Now if you can look at this next picture and honestly say that you didn’t smile, then you have some serious issues. One day, he’ll hate that his mom had pictures of his naked butt. However, until then, he was laughing up a storm about the whole thing.Santanna and Reth’s grandma & mom are VIP clients, and we enjoy seeing them every time they come to the studio. I’m already anticipating the next visit. 🙂
The first time we met Calyssa (and I hope I’m spelling her name right), was in a store where we ran across her mom, Niki. We had previously taken pictures of Carmen, Calyssa’s older sister, and was pleasantly surprised to see the new addition to the family. This is yet another entry into the Most Beautiful Baby Contest.
Grant’s mommy is also one of our wedding clients. We look forward to seeing the whole family on a regular basis. Of course, Grant is also one of our beautiful babies. 🙂
Another of our beautiful babies, Ethan decided he was very interested in a tiny football and a tennis ball… apparently throwing them and then retrieving them himself was his idea of playing catch. 🙂
We’ve photographed Morgan before, and so she was pretty quickly acclimated to the studio. Her parents brought along the red balloons and flowers. She provided the attitude. 🙂
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