I love doing in home sessions because both the kids and the parents are so much more relaxed than being in the studio.  It gives me a chance to sit with the kids for a few minutes (and with boys this always means showing them all the stuff in my camera bag…”boys and their toys” starts at an early age) and do the session in a comfortable safe place for them.  I like using blankets and pillows and things that actually belong to the kids rather than the stuff I keep in the studio.

I especially love the photo of a new family laughing in their own home….

For those hearty souls who plan a winter wedding I recently wrote this article about winter wedding photography.  Though it’s primarily written towards wedding photographers, it may give you some insights and tips on how to approach your winter wedding photos.

Many thanks to the folks at Adoramapix for asking me to guest blog for them today!

Read the Article HERE

Whatcha do with that thing, anyway?

“DIY” has become sort of a dirty word on the vendor end of weddings.  Often “crafty” brides are seen as…well…cheap.  I think it’s gotten a bad wrap and Kate and Drew proved me right. DIY doesn’t have to mean cheap, it can also mean highly personalizing your wedding details for all the right reasons.

Check out Kate and Drew’s Story on Wedding Pickle! 

I  use unlicensed music in my slideshows, and have for a few years.

If you asked me if I’ve ever used only royalty free  music in my slideshows in my career, my answer would be the same if you asked me if I always report items paid in cash to the gubment ;

“As far as you know, I have”

In all seriousness, a few years ago I got a clue about copyrighted music when a popular photo I took went viral and  ended up on every wedding blog/bridal blog/stock photo site with nary a print credit.

Then, I got it.  It sucked.  Someone took something I created and used it for their own financial gain.

In my mind, all I was doing was synching some pretty pictures to my clients first dance song to “personalize” it so they could watch it at home, I wasn’t charging for it, so it was fine, right?    I was wrong.

You know, assuming I ever allegedly did that…

So when I make the slideshows for my clients and they ask for a copyrighted song, my answer is that I cannot do that.

Still think it’s okay?

Read this.

Best Western Milwaukee Plus is located at 5105 S Howell Avenue and the fair runs from 11-4

I know immediately what they are. They’re snapshots.  The friend with a good camera has a good camera and nothing more.  They don’t understand lighting, or composition or posing people correctly.  Once in awhile they might get lucky and those are the ones that are deemed “okay”.  Ever hear the phrase “I don’t know anything about art but I know what I like?”

I don’t care if you’re curvy or twiggy, good posing (and lighting) makes a world of difference in the outcome of a photograph.  The camera only adds 10 pounds if you let it, folks. Pro photographers spend years learning not only how to use the camera in certain lighting conditions but learning how to pose people for a more flattering photo.

And here’s where I am going to really bust out a  terribly sexist view:  I see poor posing  most often in male wedding photographers work.  Go ahead, report me.  Here’s a conversation I had with a male photographer friend (and he knows who he is) not too long ago

Mr: “Hey take a look at this awesome bridal portrait.  I’m really proud of it, it’s dead on in the tonality. I am not kidding the histogram is RIGHT ON.  All the detail in the dress is there and the skin tones are dead on and the blacks are like, off the chart good”

Me:  She’s going to hate it.

Mr: WTF are you talking about?

Me: She’s what, a size 6 ? You shot her from below, dude.  I don’t know how you did it but you made her have extra chins.  You cut off her train. I can’t see her left arm so she looks like an amputee.  And there’s a cross growing out of her head on the altar.

*Stunned silence*

We’re still friends, by the way.  And I was right about that portrait, she hated it.

I came across this blog post by a Australian photographer named Sue Bryce that shows beautifully how posing a person makes a world of difference.    Check it out and prepare to be amazed.