Easter is April 8 this year… and boy howdy did that just creep up on us or what???
Well, we sometimes get to take the Easter weekend off, and we sometimes don’t. This year, it is one that we will. So, that said, we’re going to be closed on Saturday, April 7 so that we can enjoy a three-day weekend. If you need us, you know how to get at us…
- Through the website
- Via our Facebook page
- Call the studio (304-263-3100) and leave a voice message
- Owl-gram (you must be a 2nd year Wizard to use this service)
Enjoy your Easter holiday… if that includes a spring break or something along those lines, please be careful and come see us this spring!
It is about this time each year that we start our quest for qualified help for the summer positions listed below. But please, before you apply blindly you must understand a few things about the job(s) and us. The jobs are most usually filled by people who are happy, eager to learn, don’t mind working with creative people (we aren’t the easiest), and have a mind that can create along with us. We are a mom and pop shop, albeit one that acts and thinks on a bigger scale than that. You should think that way, too. The job descriptions don’t begin to scratch the surface. 🙂
- Studio assistant – This person will help greet clients, show them to the dressing room(s), help carry clothes and props, setup sets, scenes, props and lights, watch and suggest alterations to hair, lighting, props and anything else, do the bidding of the photographer (i.e., get drinks, etc.) and clean up the studio when we’re done for the day.
- Studio receptionist – This person will help greet clients, show them to the dressing room(s), get orders that are ready, take orders as needed, help with marketing, product, order assembly, framing, mounting, cleaning, and anything else we need for you to do.
Both positions are part-time, not permanent (although the potential is there), and have variable hours (i.e., there is no fixed schedule). We are happy to work around school schedules, other jobs, children’s schedules, etc. The perfect candidate for either position will be someone who doesn’t “need” the job, but wants to augment their income in our fast-paced studio.
Basically, we need good people who want to have fun, don’t mind doing grunt work, and can remain chipper at all times. While we cannot legally state we need someone “of a certain age,” we are truly discerning and up front about the job during any interview. If you’re a wallflower, please don’t contact us. We want people who are going to work WITH us, not just FOR us.
To apply, do one of the following:
- Comment on this blog post with your name and how we can contact you. Remember that all blog comments are public, though.
- Email me at tony@tlcphotography.com.
- Send me a private message on Facebook. (www.facebook.com/tlc.photography)
PLEASE do not call. The reason is simple… we want to leave the phone open for client calls. If you contact us via messaging, we can email you with information that you can read at your convenience and respond accordingly.
Thanks for looking!
Wouldn’t it be terribly cruel if I just left it as that? And then told you there’s no free stuff? I’m not… but that would be so rude! 🙂
We’re getting ready to start a few give-aways around here. We’re giving away stuff… like engagement sessions, proposal sessions, family sessions, portrait packages, large prints, small prints, and yes, even a wedding.
But you have to stay tuned.
They’re coming soon. Check back at least once a week if you don’t see or blog entry on Facebook or our website.
BTW, the picture above is the eyes of a good friend and client’s daughter. This was a couple of years ago… it’s such an attention getter, isn’t it? 🙂
About four years ago, we replaced our HTML website with an all-Flash website, and then later added in some very important directional elements that helped people “find their way” in our complex website structure.
On Monday, March 12, we are changing the entire look of our website. It will encompass all of the elements of our existing three sites (main, seniors and workshops) as well as making the links to client galleries and Diana’s nature photography easier to get to.
We invite you to visit our new site, which is a hybrid design that incorporates both HTML and Flash with a very strict database structure that makes everything seem more common across all platforms. It’s even mobile friendly!
We’ve added all the basics, including all new galleries (pictures never before seen on our website), and intend to add much more for you to look at. This will include some behind-the-scenes photos and video, instructional videos that complement our workshops, and some great announcements for specials that go hand in hand with our social network pages and our blog.
Enjoy! To see it, go to www.tlcphotography.com.
This is bridal show season. Everyone and their uncle’s brother’s sister’s relative from Europe is putting one on in some fashion or another. In year’s past, we have participated in many of them. And they can be a lot of fun, but are also a lot of work. In most cases, there is about two hours of setting your booth, and another 5-7 hours of talking with brides, grooms, parents, other vendors. Well… it’s exhausting.
In the past few years, we’ve narrowed it down to just one show a year. The best reason I can give you is that shows cost money, time, and are a lot of work. Since only about 15% of our business is weddings, we just cannot justify the additional expense for the return. This Sunday, we are attending a bridal show in Hagerstown, hosted by The Herald-Mail. If you’re going to be around the Valley Mall from 11-6, please feel free to stop by (psst, free chocolate!!!
We always look forward to meeting new people, talking about the latest and greatest venues and hoping against hope that we aren’t bombarded with an overload of noise from a nearby booth. So far, that hasn’t been an issue.
Have a great evening!
Not a reference to the Spongey fella that lives in a citrus fruit.
When I first started in photography, I was in high school. It was a pretty cool experience to play around with exposure and development settings in the darkroom. Most photographers starting out today have not had to spend hours in a darkroom to get results, and are satisfied with instant gratification. Count me among them, of course. I relish my days of darkroom tedium, as it has prepared me for the patience I would need later in my career. But I also like looking at the back of the camera and thinking “okay, that worked!”
As I branched out in my career, it was important for me to learn from other professionals. There were really three types of educational opportunities; internship, apprentice and assistant. I interned with one photographer, but for only a short time. I apprenticed with two photographers for about two years. And I assisted whenever I could. I can’t remember how many photographers I assisted. But that’s not the point.
The point is that instead of just picking up my camera and starting to take pictures, I worked WITH a seasoned professional. I learned (practically absorbed) everything possible, even if it didn’t seem to have bearing on my future as a pro. Then, I wasn’t sure that professional photography would work out for me, and wanted to be prepared for whatever might happen next. By the time I was in my fifth year, I knew a LOT about flowers, dresses, tuxedos, cakes and music (or at least playing it).
Which leads me to the post’s title. What I have long offered is the ability for any student or young photographer to intern or apprentice with me. No, internships don’t pay money. Apprenticeships pay little. The payback is the experience, exposure and thrill of working for and with someone who has had the long-term experience to pass along. But this is not just an offer to work with me as an intern.
It is also a big time request for you to intern, apprentice AND assist with anyone who could help further your career. Offer to take out the trash, clean toilets and sweep the porch in exchange for some “sit in the corner and watch” time at the next session. Go visit a church (or ten) and watch how a wedding unfolds… and ask questions. Offer to do something for the church in return for putting up with you.
Photography evolved beyond the darkroom.
But it did not evolve beyond the absolute need for photographers to get experience WITH experienced professionals. Don’t be lazy… go help someone, and help yourself in return.
Ever wonder how much your brain can hold? I have a theory (not scientifically based whatsoever) that your brain retains everything you’ve ever learned or seen, heard or done. Yes, all of it. Over time, though, your brain has this keen ability to relegate those things which are “useful as experience” to less than a “remember every detail” role.
With that in mind, I have an opinion about how we decide how things are done in our lives, especially as it relates to those things we do on a regular basis. Driving, for example. We take for granted that the car will start in the same way, that we’ll engage the transmission, pull back or forward to leave the driveway or parking spot and then drive on to our destination. With those repeated instances, we begin to use that experience as things that we will do naturally.
The same kind of thing might occur within our jobs. Someone who may come to me for a portrait session may not realize that a “hidden” part of my job is to size up their family, to analyze their face, or to evaluated their wardrobe as part of how I plan to pose, light or create their images. To me, it is routine… part of what I do… and is the experience which allows me to do my job without much in the way of complication.
Going back to the driving analogy for a moment… suppose you are traveling at 70 mph (although I realize some of you may travel faster). You are buffeted in your path by a car some 100 feet behind you, a tractor-trailer beside you and a car 300 feet ahead of you. Suddenly, the tractor-trailer begins to veer into your lane and intends to occupy it – all without having given you the courtesy of a signal. What do you do next? And if you hesitate, you risk quite a bit.
As the driver of a motor vehicle for over 35 years, I know what I would do.
As the driver of a camera in hundreds of weddings, thousands of portrait sessions, and for hundreds of thousands of people in all… my experience comes into play every day.
Every. Single. Day.
What happens if something goes wrong? My brain instantly uses all that experience and comes up with the best possible solution. And all that without letting you know that anything might be wrong.
Experience counts.
Oh to be young and crazy again… or at least attend more weddings of young and crazy people. I love getting to connect with brides & grooms because it makes our time together at the wedding that much more productive. And I really connected with these two. They were the perfect couple, and we had a great time with them.
Apparently they were engaged at Bavarian Inn some time ago, and came back to the Inn from their home in Pennsylvania just to have portraits taken. These are just a few.
It’s been a year, but not a long one. Congratulations to Stephanie and B.J. on their first wedding anniversary.
