Friday, February 5, 2010 Posted in children
I LOVE MY JOB!!! It is just so much fun to get to know the families I photograph, and to see their children grow. Lindsey and I were saying that the first time we met Chloe was only 5 weeks old, and we just finished up her 6-month session… time flies! Chloe was an absolute joy to photograph - 6 months is one of my favorite ages… babies can usually sit, but aren’t mobile enough to go anywhere, so it’s relatively easy to get some great images. If you remember Chloe’s last session, she had the tutu in her mouth the entire time, and this session was no different! Lindsey spent quite a bit of time trying to get her to keep the tutus out of her mouth, but I think some of the ones with her eating the tutu are the cutest! I recently built a new tile backdrop, and was so excited to use it for the first time with Chloe… she’s here so often I feel like she is my little guinea pig! We had a great time, and now that I’m finally figuring out photoshop, things are going much better! 
I win, muffin top! Take that Great American Cookie Company!
My great plan for the day was to run a couple of errands and then return some pants {that were too small, by the way} to the mall… and you know, since I was there, maybe make a stop by the GACC for a little treat. :) Well, my plan was not to be. Someone up above was looking down today and intervened. When picking up my children from my mother’s house, I locked my keys in my car. Awesome. Called my husband, who would normally be able to leave work and rescue me with a spare key. Not today! He was on his was to deliver fitness equipment 45 minutes from our home. Awesome. Called my brother-in-law, who manages a car store. He sent reinforcements to jimmy the door open. No such luck. Yep, awesome…
By the time we got the door open, it was nap time and I was exhausted, so we skipped the mall and came home. Maybe we’ll try again tomorrow…
Monday, February 1, 2010 Posted in giveaway
You guys rock! And just like that, 300 fans… I wasn’t really prepared and had planned to take my own photographs of one of my favorite necklaces from NoisyCricket on Etsy {don’t even get me started on the amount of $/time I spend looking there - SO many cute hats and beanies and frames and photography props and rings… you get the idea. I could do a whole post on my goodies from Etsy, but that may be for another time…}, but here I sit in my office, feeling just a little lazy. I’m trying to re-learn my new, “real” version of photoshop, and I think that I have made it through editing something like 4 pictures in about 3 hours… not good people, not good! I put together a collage of your 3 options to win - each is a necklace that can be fully customized, and {maybe?} could be here by V-day!?! No promises…
So, how do I win this awesome prize, you say? Here is the scoop… {1} leave me a comment on the blog or {2} leave me a comment on my facebook fan page. That’s it! Simple! The winner will be randomly drawn from the pool of commenters - a comment on both the blog and facebook get you 2 entries. And if you are Jeni M. I will throw in a couple of twinkies for you if you win ;). Ok… hop to it! Contest will close Tuesday night, Feb 2 at 10pm.
Thursday, January 28, 2010 Posted in products
I am SO excited to show off some of my newest products! There were so many neat ideas for displaying portraits at Imaging USA, and I am so excited to finally be able to show you what you are able to do with your portraits! There is something for everyone and every budget, and so many options!
Fine art acrylics are perfect for a more contemporary way to display your images. Your portrait is printed directly onto a 1/4″ acrylic substrate with a white layer screened to the back to give you vibrant colors and precise detail. The acrylics are mounted with stainless steel mounts 3/4″ from the wall to give the illusion that they are floating. SO neat! Images shown are 16×24″.
One of my personal favorites is the shadow mount. Your portrait is mounted on polystyrene mount board and then mounted to a 1 1/2″ black hardwood frame, giving your image a finished look and ready to hang in your home! Images are each 20×20″.
Prior to us moving into our home, these cut-outs were furnished with mirrors. We promptly removed them. :) We have had our wedding pictures hanging in the cut-outs prior to the canvases, and wanted a cleaner look with something that filled the entire hole, rather than just a small frame. These gallery wrap canvases are so awesome, and can be ordered in any size from 6×6 to 60×60. Talk about options! And the one of Noah holding my tripod? Melt. my. heart. These canvas wraps are each 20×40″. Don’t be afraid of big sizes, it works!!
I am proud to offer canvas clusters in my product line, which allow you to have 10 options of clusters of gallery wraps already organized (which makes it just a little bit easier on both of us when ordering!) :) These look so sharp and neat… I have 2 options to display in my home, and I am SO happy with how they look!
These are a couple of my favorite images, and this canvas grouping is the double-pano. Each canvas is 15×30″.
The accordian mini’s are such a neat product to display your images or to give as a gift! They are 3×3 images with a leather or custom cover, and make a perfect brag book for parents and grandparents, or look great stretched out on a display table. There are 10 image openings, so plenty of room to use your favorite images. I am so excited about these!
The difference between a terrorist and a two year old:
- Both are determined to hurt someone
- Both have an agenda that nobody understands
- Both answer to leaders, but nobody is really in control
- Both never compromise
There were a couple others, but I couldn’t write fast enough… All kidding aside, I took away a wealth of knowledge from my first PPA meeting in Nashville this past month. I learned everything from interacting with toddlers to lighting to studio organization to sales and marketing. I met a great group of photographers from all around the country, and now have a new resource when I have questions. I am so excited to bring back my new ideas and implement them, and I hope to become a better photographer because of the ideas that were shared at IUSA. I have so many ideas for posing and props, many which I have purchased and can’t wait to use! I am saving up for new lighting and {another} new camera, and can’t wait to expand my business! Thanks for all of your support this past year, and I can’t wait to make 2010 the best yet!
Now if only I could win the lottery…
I will no longer be requiring your services two to three times a week. It’s 2010. My muffin top is begging me to stop the addiction. I no longer need to visit you and buy 4 tiara cookies, 1 cookie by the slice, and 2 big bite doozies to satisfy my sugar cravings. My son doesn’t need those delicious chocolate chip cookies that seem to call our names on a semi-daily basis. But how do I stop? You are all I can think about! I am ready to conquer my problem and move on. Maybe next time I’ll be able to just walk by and purchase 1 cookie… dare to dream!
I promise to have a blog post with a little something of substance relating to photography here soon… 3 or 4 sessions coming up this week - no need to fear! My canvas wraps are supposed to arrive tomorrow, so hopefully I’ll get those hung and show you some amazing options for your home too! Happy Monday!
Well folks, I just wanted to give you an few images of my lodging in Nashville at Imaging USA. Lovely. HUGE. Gorgeous. Waterfalls. Everywhere. Flowers. GREEN.
And then I came back to South Dakota. Where my husband had snowplowed trails for our dogs into our backyard. AWESOME.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010 Posted in Newborn
So here I am again, sharing one of my favorite portraits of my family… I recently became a volunteer for Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep, and I had the opportunity to shadow an infant bereavement session last evening. NILMDTS is a world-wide organization that provides professional portraits for families who have suffered the loss of an infant, and although I have never experienced that kind of loss, I can only imagine the pain and grief that a family suffers. This is such a great way for me to give back, a way to honor and remember the beautiful children, to share the spirits of their short lives. Photographs are obviously so important to me, and I know that I would cherish these images forever, and I am so grateful to be able to give that to families in need.
Prior to photographing a session on my own, I am required to do a little training and shadowing. I was just approved as a volunteer over the Christmas holiday, and I contacted another amazing photographer in my area to let her know I would like to shadow her on a session. I got a call last night as I was leaving work that she was headed to the hospital. Oh boy… we were walking into a session where a 2 month old with interrupted SIDS was going to be possibly taken off life support. I immediately started crying in the car, wondering how in the world I was going to witness the pain and grief and loss this family was facing. After arriving at the hospital and praying with my collegue, I gathered myself and we headed up. I can’t explain the experience, but it is one I will never forget. The parents had chosen to keep their little boy with them for a little longer, so I simply watched as Amy captured him with his parents, grandparents, and baby cousin. We were able to stay and photograph his baptism, and while it was one of the most difficult things I’ve witnessed, I know that this family will be forever blessed by the portraits that NILMDTS provides.
So I sit here this morning, wondering what occured over night, wondering if their little boy is still here, or if he has gone ahead to the Heavenly Father, and I hold my children a little tighter, hug them a little longer, and have just a little more patience, because right now, they are here with me and I couldn’t imagine it any other way.
Oh, what a day! Mike claims this has been the longest day of his life, but then again, he tends to exagerate just a bit… :) We were up and at um this morning to get to church, and we actually made it there {almost} on time! The kids were sitting with us in church, Noah coloring and Kate sitting with me when she started to fuss. It rapidly went down hill from there. I took Kate to the nursery, and Noah got up to follow me, thus Mike followed him. Please keep in mind we were sitting in the front row since we were {almost} on time. Trip one out of church. Noah was crying hysterically at this point not wanting to go to the nursery, so Mike stayed outside with him to calm him down for a few minutes and I went back into {the very front} of church. Mike never re-appeared, so I went back out to find out what was going on. Again. Noah was still crying, and I told Mike just to put him in the nursery and come sit down with me. So back in I go. No Mike or Noah. Back out I go. From {the very front} of church. Again. Mike was sitting in the nursery with Noah - we try to leave, he freaks, so we get him. And I decide that he must either sit with us or stay in the nursery. So back into church we all go, crying, screaming Noah and all. That lasts all of 2 seconds until Mike takes him out again. I wait, then get up. We try the nursery thing again - utter failure. He is now sobbing and hiccuping and a snotty mess, so Mike goes back into church (yes, again!), and I stay in the nursery with the kids. Does this ever happen to anyone else out there? Yeesh!
Noah remained owly all afternoon until I took him to the store, where he actually behaved himself pretty well. I got a few new photo props, so I decided to have myself a little “session” with the kiddos. Not much cooperation. And did I mention that I attempted this by myself for a bit until Mike got home from his run? Well, I did. It did not go well. At all. Lots of crying… Mike finally came home, and the poor guy just wanted to watch the football game, but I insisted that he “assist” me… not the best idea I’ve ever had. Lots of yelling and crying again. I did manage to get some cute shots illustrating my new props, so the day wasn’t a total loss… I have chosen not to include all of the portraits with crying involved. You are welcome.
I got these aweome tutus and bloomers in Nashville, and I am so excited to use them in my studio! I wanted to show you a close-up of Kate’s thighs, which, by the way, have slimmed down considerably since she has started walking. Can you imagine the before shots? Holy cow! We have to hold her jeans and bounce her into them to get most of them over those legs! 
Noah was really not into getting his picture taken, but sure did want to help take the pictures! He is making me proud!
Yes, folks, I too bribe my children at my sessions…
by eggebraaten11
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