Our new website is now live!
All new pages and easy to use. Visit the site right now by going here: tlcphotography.com. Or, you can just copy that into your browser. Either way, you get to the same place. The first ten visitors to take advantage of online booking for a regular portrait session will get a FREE set of THREE 8×10 prints from their session!
Here are some features we’re happy to include as part of our new site:
- Cleaner design (much less stuff and more information & pictures)
- Quicker access (fast one- or two-click access to the things you want to know now)
- Integrated online booking (you can book online from most places on the site, 24/7)
- Easy to see our current specials and promotions (it’s right on the home page under “Book Now!” – you don’t have to book to see them)
- Blog and contact access on the first page. Don’t hunt for a way to get in touch with us, it’s right there!
- Completely mobile-friendly. Now, all aspects of our website and support sites are mobile-friendly. This means regardless the device you are using, or which functionality you are using on our website, your phones, tablets, laptops AND desktops will adjust properly for the best view.
- Easier updates. It’s now quicker and easier for us to update the pictures and information on our website. So, expect to see new stuff more often!
Thanks for taking the time to look at our new site. We hope to hear from you soon!
A Brief Baby Contest History
Thirteen years ago, we had no idea what we were creating when we crafted a tiny fundraiser for a very big cause. Our objective was to raise funds for a worthy charity. Since then, it has become our annual fundraiser for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Every year has been different. But one thing remains constant; the babies are all beautiful.
The concept is simple enough. The session/entry fee is donated to St. Jude (this year, we raised $560 via the fees), we get quality time with some wonderful families and their babies, and everyone gets great pictures! But there has to be an end result… there has to be a winner – it is a contest after all.
So, there are winners.
How It Works
Each parent picks the photo they want to enter into the contest from the portrait sittings we do. Some choose black & white photos, others color. Some select smiling photos, others where their child is looking away in wonder. But in each case, it’s their own view of just how beautiful their own baby is. And we couldn’t agree more this year with the choices. So many beautiful babies.
There are four judges. Two are in other parts of the country, and two are closer to home. We always make sure that the judges do not know any of the contest entrants or their parents. Their anonymity is also important to the contest results. They are presented the photos in a numbered gallery (no names are used), and rank their favorites based on a very specific criteria (which we explain to each of the parents). They send us their selections as #1, #2 and #3. The baby with the most points… well, wins.
There are five winners. Two honorable mentions, a third, second and grand prize winner. Gratefully, there was no conflict in the numbers… no tie-breaking was needed.
The Results
Here’s how it played out.
Our two honorable mentions:
The third place winner:
Our second place winner:
And this year’s grand prize winner and our Most Beautiful Baby:
The winners are being contacted separately about prizes.
We want to thank our participants, judges, and everyone else who was involved in the contest this year. It was a fabulous fundraiser, and we are planning many more in the future.
To see more of the baby pictures from this year’s contest, visit our Facebook Page. To learn more about our children’s program, visit our website.
So, Kayla got married to the love of her life. But not before we had a conversation about trashing her dress.
A few weeks prior to her beautiful wedding, Kayla asked about doing a Trash The Dress session between her ceremony and her reception. And me being me, I told her I was totally up for it. But there were some shortcomings to consider. One was the amount of time it would take to get to a proper location for a good shoot, as well as setting up lighting and hoping for good weather. With that, and the consideration that she would be going through her entire ceremony in a sopping wet dress, she chose to have a separate session on a later date. This is what we achieved. Captions are below each image.
Enjoying the location and Kayla’s wonderful camera presence.
The perfect moment of lighting & posing.
Perfect lighting is seen & used.
From a different perspective, Kayla was a beauty.
The best part about the work we did with Kayla was that we have known her for awhile, and expected no less than a bride who was ready for an adventure. We had a lot of fun, and the planning process made a huge difference in how the shoot went.
See our website for more information about our weddings or portraits.
This was a brilliant couple. They were getting married in Pennsylvania the following year, but wanted me to create something unique for them in Harpers Ferry, since he and his sister live in this area. They brought their own props, ideas and food, including champagne and a picnic set! I provided the photography and a few ideas of my own. They played along brilliantly. They wanted some vintage-style images from the picnic, and to go out as close to the water, without leaving the park area. And that was fine… it was fun. They’re a great couple.
Wishing them the best luck in their nuptials!
If you ever wanted to meet the ultimate football player physique, you’d just need to meet Adam. Of course, it goes way beyond that. He plays passionately at the game, but is also smart, knows what he wants in life, and has big plans.
Shooting on-location with Adam was a lot of fun, too. Some weeks we spend more time on-location than we do in the studio. Adam was accommodating, even when a large number of his teammates showed up to begin practice.
You can learn more about our senior portraits on our Seniors page.
I’m a big fan of babies… and while there have been a lot of new posing techniques revealed and extolled by many photographers, I remain a fan of the classics, too. Simplicity makes it all about the baby…
Another of the home-schooled students we’ve had the pleasure of photographing this year, Jasmine was the one (of her two other siblings) who wanted pictures the most. She was fun, enjoyed posing, and wanted plenty of variety. We have that!
You know, we get a lot of really great people in our studio. Some have outrageous ideas, and others have no ideas at all. We work with ’em both, of course.
This young lady wanted something a little more retro than most, so we accommodated her. She graduates as a home schooled senior this year, and we wish her all the best.
So, when your photographer advertises that big special offer, which might include a CD of images from the session, you’re ready to jump on it because you love getting the CD, right? What’s not relevant here is how many images you get, or the circumstances. What’s important is that if you only got a CD, you’re not only cheating yourself, but you’re getting cheated. Read on.
Notwithstanding that a CD might cost less than a buck, and that your photographer with a certain style might spend less than a hour on your images, what are you really getting? Yes, you get the experience and professional photography. You get good customer service, a fun time with a genuinely nice person, and even some good pictures. But are you getting something that will last forever?
Do you remember the 8-track tape? Cassette tape? Most people don’t use CDs anymore (they only hold about 700MB), and most use DVDs (which hold over 4GB). But with the advent of Blu-Ray, how long will it be before that DVD is out of date? Or that file format? What will you do in ten years when DVDs are no longer supported by computers (most computers today no longer support floppy drives)?
Here’s something else to consider… where will you store your disk? What will you do with the images on it? Post them on Facebook? How long will they stay there? They may remain on your photo gallery for a long time, but they will get pushed to the bottom like all the others have over time. And forgotten. The disk may get lost or damaged (do you know how to take care of a DVD properly?)
It’s time for you to take control. If your photographer offers only a disk, ask for more. Demand prints. Tell them you want your images to be on the wall, in full view, for all to see. Be proud of your portraits, your wedding, your children and your family! Don’t hide them away on a disk anymore. Put them out for the world to see!
Here’s more to consider. Did you know that children who see pictures of themselves on the walls have a greater sense of well-being and self-confidence as they grow up? They can’t see those pictures of they’re on a disk. And couples who put their wedding pictures on the walls and in an album are more likely to stay together than those who don’t. We have clients who regularly share their pictures on the walls with us – and they have fabulous relationships, wonderful families and beautiful children!
Listen… this is not hard to understand. And yes, we DO sell the image files for most of our sessions and weddings. But we always offer you prints at the same time. And we always will, because they mean you will always see the pictures that you have tucked safely away in a dark storage place (after you made a backup, right?)
So, what are you going to do next time your photographer offers a disk-only portrait session? That’s right, demand prints!
Eddie seemed quiet at first, but quickly became a good conversationalist. We talked about track & field, his desire to work in law enforcement, and graduation.