What better way to save memories of the good times that you had this summer with your friends and family then to bring a photographer along! I have had more calls this summer to join the party and capture the moment and I have loved every second of it. This family get together was so much fun!
Well, this has certainly been a whirlwind of a summer. Lots of photo shoots and not much time for sharing. When you are a one stop shop things can get a little hectic this time of year. No complaints! I love my job and a love when a job comes along that is just a little different and fun. This couple approached me about wedding photos and I was able to really go all out and take them out to the beach to do something really creative. I had so much fun with this shoot! Enjoy!
It has been a whirlwind couple weeks and I am sure it has been for all my readers too! We are offering a special back to school mini-session to get everyone geared up for school. Are you tired of the old school photos? Do you want to do something different but don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on a professional session. Well, here is your opportunity! Right now I am offering sessions Saturday September 6th. This mini session would be a 15 minute session with 5-8 digital images and 1 5x7 print for only $60.00 per child. (Ordering other prints is an option too!)
Don't miss out!
If I had a penny for every time someone has said to me, "I don't photograph well", I would be a rich woman. Now I am not saying that we are all Salma Hayek who would look beautiful dressed in a paper bag, but I think that a lot of bad pictures have to do with bad posing. The goal of every photograph is to accentuate the positive and downplay what people do not like about themselves. Part of understanding that comes from taking a lot of portraits and learning what looks good and part of it comes from talking to your clients about what they are happy with and what makes them insecure. Here are some helpful tips to get you started:
Happy Shooting!
How many of us hated our school photos growing up? Now we see the pattern with our own children and their school photos. Boring Backdrops, no personality, nothing that captures them. Let's start the year off the right way by signing your kids up for a back to school mini-session! Here are the details:
30 minute session
8-10 digital images
one 8x10 print
all this for $99.00!
But it gets better...Do you have one than more child and this is starting to add up in your head? Each additional child is only $50.00 for the same session. Our sessions will be held on Saturday September 6th (weather permitting) with a rain date TBD if the weather is a bust! Let's create some memories worth remembering. Spots fill up fast so sign up now!
Some times I get the joy of being able to celebrate and photograph a dear friend at one of their most exciting lifetime moments. Such was the occasion with this maternity photo shoot. I am so over the moon excited for my friends and the new child that they are expecting!
When we are on vacation, if we can, we like to take things slow and have fun. We especially like to stop at fun little places to eat. On our way back from PA, we stopped in a cute little drive in for lunch. Their food was simple but really good. Burgers and Chicken were exactly what a good diner should be and we love diners! I had a Greek Veggie Sandwich, Dave had burger and fries and Lucy had chicken and fries and of course ice cream. If you are looking for a fun little spot to stop on a road trip this is just the place! Vassi's Drive In
Address: 1666 Main St, Hellertown, PA 18055
Phone:(610) 838-1877
I just blogged about my grandparents reaching 70 years together, but 50 years is definitely an accomplishment to be celebrated as well. I could not have been happier to be asked by Nancy and Helmut to be a part of their special day and their party. They picked a beautiful location, The Marina, to celebrate with their family and friends from all over. They asked me to come and photograph the party but to also be available for family photos to anyone who wanted them. What a sweet gracious and fun group of people! Here are just some of the images from that day!
I love taking family photos. I especially love getting calls from family that are vacationing here and want someone to come by to capture the moment for them. It is such a great idea if you and your extended family are coming together for a vacation from different parts of the country to memorialize the moment. Here are just a few of the family images from the last family vacationing photos that I took!
This is what 70 years looks like in a snapshot! Can you imagine being with someone for 70 years. I would have to be 110 for my marriage to reach the 70 year mark...Come on modern medicine!!
My grandparents lived a whole lifetime before me and at 93 they are still going strong..knocking on wood now! I am so blessed to have had them in my life for so long.
Some of my fondest memories are visiting different places in Pennsylvania and the surrounding states with them. They always loved to get up and go and were never afraid to jump in the car for a fun road trip.
My grandfather was the one that went shopping with us. You would think it would be my grandmother but she never cared for it.
My grandmother and I have recently had long conversations about family history and family stories. With the help of a cousin I found on Ancestry.com I have been able to trace our family history back to the Pilgrims (Actually it was mostly Karen who did the tracing) and share with my grandmother that all the stories her grandmother used to tell her were true.
After all this time, my grandparents still hold hands. They are closer to each other than anyone else. I am crossing my fingers for the 75th anniversary. I know if anyone can make it that long it will be them! I love you Nanny and Poppy!
Long before I photographed Mayflower Brewing Company, I very much enjoyed their craft beers. In particular I am a big fan of their porter. It is so smooth and filling and no bitterness at the end. I am not a big fan of the bitter after taste that sometime accompanies a darker brew.
In addition to making a stellar product, Mayflower also supports other local business, in particular local farms. They compost their hops and other organic matter with one of the local farms in the area. This decreases their waste and also goes to support our local food. Something I am a big fan of.
If you have not had a chance to sample Mayflower's brews, there is no time like the present!
Sometimes people will come to me to have me professionally photograph their jewelry lines or small items that they are producing. However there are a lot of individual artisans out there that cannot afford to hire a professional and still want nice looking photos. Here are some suggestions.
1. Use poster board as a backdrop. the white background is smooth and easy to photograph and will not detract from the look of the item.
2. Use external lighting. For a truly professional look you want to use studio lighting but you can get away with setting up some make shift studio lighting of your own. Go buy some silver work lights at home depot and some Halogen bulbs. Position the lights on either side of the item and don't use the flash on the camera and I guarantee you will be happier than if you used the on camera flash.
3.Go buy a plexi-glass frame from Staples and place it under the object. This way you get a slight reflection to add some visual interest but not to mirror the image exactly.
If you have the money, a professional has the equipment to really knock it out of the park ; If you don't these tips will help you to produce images you can be proud of and to sell more product!
Happy Shooting!
Lobster Hut is one of the hidden gems of Plymouth. When you first walk in, it looks like a chain restaurant, No frills. If you are craving good seafood at reasonable prices then this is the way to go. Throw in the deck overlooking the water and you are golden! Still some of the best clam chowder in town!
Boudoir Sessions are a relatively new concept to most people. Some people book sessions for their significant others and some book sessions leading up to a special occasion like a wedding. I believe that the boudoir session should be for the woman who is posing and she should enjoy the images for her own sense of self as much as who she is giving them to.
I want everyone woman who comes through the door to feel special coming in and feel beautiful and thrilled with the images when the session is done.
Here are just some of the boudoir session images I have had the pleasure of taking. This is a recent bridal boudoir shoot before her upcoming wedding! Congratulations G!
I love babies! I love photographing babies! This was a fun new experience for me, photographing cousins! Matthew is 4 months old and Kendal is just newborn, what a great concept though including your family in your session! We also included Kendal's older sister Alaina too!
My great grandmother was a wonderful woman. She was my great grandfather's second wife. They were long time companions and married after my grandparents were married. She was the only mother my grandmother ever knew and the only great grandparent I ever knew. She was there for my grandmother as a part of their household long before she married into the family. A true testament, some people are our quiet heroes. Wonderful people that make our lives better just for being there every day. It seems so long ago since I saw my great grandmother. I was 13 when she passed. And yet, I can remember so clearly the last time I went to visit her and still have that little pang of sadness and longing to see her again.
If you have been reading my blog then you have guessed or seen by now that I am a big supporter of local business. One of the places that I had the pleasure of photographing while I was working with Destination Plymouth is Woods Seafood. They are part fish market and part restaurant. If you live by the water and you love seafood, It is a must to by your fish from a local fish market rather than a grocery store. The fresh is more likely to be fresh rather than flash frozen and the quality is so much better. I have been good to Woods Seafood for my fish since I was too little to buy it myself, I recommend you give them a try, and if you don't feel like cooking then have them cook it for you too!
After taking family photos full time for more than 5 years, I thought I had found a lot of the cool places to take people for photos in the area. But I was blown away when one of the models I worked with showed me a place I had never been to before that totally took my breath away. I immediately called the family I was photographing that weekend and sent her a picture of the location. She was also immediately on board with using this backdrop and we were both excited.
I love working with Monica and her family, They make photo shoots so much fun and I just love spending time with them in general! Here are some of the images we captured from that day.
I have always been a fan of a nice glass of wine, especially this time of year when I can sit on my deck and enjoy the summer nights and the relaxing breeze. On my travels with Destination Plymouth, I was fortunate enough to spend some time at Plymouth Bay Winery in Downtown Plymouth. They were in the middle of doing a tasting for a super cute couple (with their two puppies) while I was there. I was able to witness first hand the time and care they take with customer service. Not only do they have wines, but they also have wine jellies. In addition, they made suggestions about pairing wines, cooking with wine recipes. It was a long tasting with lots of information. It looked like such a fun time that I am planning my own date with Dave to go there and experience it for myself. Looking for something fun for the 4th? Why not have your local winery provide you with something to celebrate!
Happy Fourth of July everyone!!! Leading up to this fun festive time of year, I wanted to give you some pointers on photographing fireworks. First, you need to use a tripod (or another stable surface like a table) to keep your camera from moving. Otherwise you are going to show the vibration of your hand in the picture and it will come out blurry!! We don't want that!
If your camera has a bulb setting, you want to use that and it you have a remote trigger even better. You want to keep the shutter open for the whole time that the firework is in the air to get the most dynamic picture. Open the shutter when the firework goes off and keep it open until it dissapates.
Use a low shutter speed for a clean shot. The natural tendency would be to use a high ISO because it is dark out, but that also brings in all the residual light pollution from every other light source around you. Your sky will look yellow and grainy instead of clean and crisp.
Happy Shooting! Can't wait to see some of those firework pictures!!!
