Awkward Things You Might Hear Me Say

"I wish the flowers would stop trying to involve me in their love lives."

Actually, I'm usually a bit more graphic about it when I've been sneezing for a few hours, but for today there is rain and the damp keeps the pollen from attacking my face.  Even so, I have been spending the day cleaning cameras like crazy and trying not to feed my Pinterest addiction with yet more frilly wedding photography.  I need to stop drooling over barn and beach weddings until later this spring when I can start shooting them more often, for now I am just focused on building ideas.

I've changed editing programs after my favorite publisher/printer stated hey would no longer be supporting the previous one.  I don't normally use third party "actions" for editing, but there are a few unique ones I adore for this set so it may be a change for the better.  Also, it allows me to reduce the time spent fighting with individual tools because I am obsessive over getting skin, hair and eyes to look ideal in my photography.

On the up-side, I've managed to hear from a number of weddings and our June and July dates are filling up again.  Couples still looking should request their day soon, and those thinking about a 2015 date will get fresh new images in the next few weeks to give them some ideas for their day.

Pinterest Ate My Soul

Oh the horror!

I have avoided joining Pinterest in a non-business aspect for as long as I could.  I'm obsessed with looking up wedding gowns if I'm not in the studio or at a wedding, so I've taken care to avoid the easy way to feed that need for flowing girly gowns.

Unfortunately, I am once again on bedrest after giving my doctors a heart attack by almost having a heart attack while in for what should have been a routine exam.  A friend sent me a note suggesting I check out "that site with the pictures" because I was fretting over how to plan a combined nursery for the toddler and newborn... and so I have fallen into the void of Pinterest.

I promise to come up for air and share things now and again, including the super cool news that we have a new camera on the way!  (this is almost as exciting to me as the new baby)  I have had to admit my poor darling has outlived her use as a primary shooter for weddings, and so she is being retired to the hands of my second shooter to live out her days as a studio and occasional wedding clicker if something goes wrong.

I am also happy to be the one back at the keys doing the emailing.  When you request info or contact us for a consultation, it is now "Akelis" herself answering the emails.  Normally it is Tanya doing this while I am out in the studio or running off to photograph a bride, but when all I have to do all day is edit images and play on Pinterest, it makes sense I be the one you hear from.

Models and local brides looking to perhaps do something a little different should check back at the end of this month for an open casting call.  I will be updating and creating new gallery displays for images in the near future.  Boudoir subjects can expect to hear from me soon if we want to share your lovely shots and had not previously obtained approval.  Couples booking for the up coming season of weddings can expect to be splashed all over the web as I find new ways to get your lovely mug out there.  And as always, recommendations from friends about using a photographer are always welcome as brides have so much to plan and do!

-Jeannine-

Working Poor Wedding Planning

With unemployment higher than ever and weddings becoming more extravagant with every celebrity under the sun looking to show off for the paparazzi, planning a wedding has become a dream many couples simply cannot afford.  Fresh out of college and struggling just to feed themselves on minimum wage, often a bride and groom can no longer fall back on parents either.  Wedding loans and DIY can go a long way in stretching a budget, but not everyone can handle the idea of an intimate gathering or elopement.

I decided recently that I am uncomfortable with how so many photographers turn down elopements or low budget events and flat ignore or insult the needs of a couple strapped for cash.  It is true that albums are expensive to order and my time is indeed valuable.  But weddings are often the one time where getting to be photographed is not faced with dread.  There is so much value already placed on the bride being beautiful, and this means those photos framed and displayed for guests will mean so much more to the couple.

Being on a budget does not mean a couple expects lower quality images.  The comments about "getting what you pay for" with photographers should not have to mean blurry or poorly white-balanced snapshots from a camera phone or point-and-shoot pocket camera.  Rather, a groom should look just as dapper in $600 photography as they would at $6000; and digital copy should be the norm, not the exception.

To fix the problem of prices, I have made a new rule for my business plan.  I will never quote any couple a package price exceeding $2000.  I begin all wedding packages at $500, hourly shooting at $75, and boudoir or engagement sessions at $125.  Digital copy is included with every booking and extra copies of CDs are $5 per copy.

As always, interested couples should contact me with their needs and I will work with them to see what best suits their budget.

Toes In The Sand

Saturday was my first beach wedding of the 2013 season.  The bride and groom picked a great spot and made the best of a rainy day to celebrate the start to a whole new life.  I wanted a share a little summary of the day and some of my favorite moments with you all.

Congratulations again on your marriage!