"let's do 52" - wk21 & 22

So i'm making up for last week's last of post by giving you two photos today :) i totally spaced last week, and the only pictures i took aren't worth sharing... really, they're the window in my living room. not thrilling at all. anyways, here are some of the things that have gone on this week!
i've been having people ask for gift certificates, and i figured if i was being asked on multiple occasions, i might as well break down and make something generic, and still awesome at the same time. with the help of a sassy designs template, her digital papers, and a cute lorelai, i now have these as part of my products to offer. so yes! if you would like to purchase a gift certificate for yourself or someone you know, send me an email! i'm planning a super awesome summer offer with them as well, so stay tuned for that!
While you're reading this, i am already headed out to second shoot a wedding today with Georgette of G Aronow Photography. It will be my first full wedding of the season, as well as my first time as a second shooter. I spend the past few weeks working with a d300 instead of my usual d80, getting batteries charged, memory cards labeled (really, can you tell they're mine? haha) and making sure i know what to wear! I'm super excited, and i'm sure you'll hear about how it goes soon enough :)

"let's do 52" - wk8

well, it's the end of the week, which means its finally time for the vegas recap! dad and i left friday about 7am for the great voyage down CA-99 through to I-15. yep, we drove the way. we arrive in vegas just after 5 or so, scoped out where to park, and then headed to our hotel to check in. friday was the opening of WPPI-U, which unfolded in to an amazing 2 day session full of information, suggestions, and images. sunday came with classes about posing, lighting, packaging, senior portraiture & topped off with the end of [b]ecker's presentation about where he has come from, and the[b]school. topped off with some panda express, and a runway show... over all a busy and productive sunday!

with doug gordon, nigel barker & jasmine star

monday's 8am came pretty rough. morning class on documentary photography (pretty much my favorite college photo course i've taken) and then it was trade show time! from 10am when the show started to about 3pm, i lapped those rooms. collecting information and samples for labs, albums, and everything in between! i was really trying to put off buying anything until day 2 of the trade show, but after going back to the kelly moore booth three times, and texting my cousin for style validation... well, i came home with a fabulous new camera bag. made sure i saw the lions for amy's benefit, and then it was time for the ever glamorous jasmine star. really, she's a true inspiration. and committed to be my t-ball wedding photographer, but that's another story ;) j* was followed by the photo newbie group dinner, and boy was the food delicious! although, i chowed down on far too many chips before hand, half of my dinner came back to the hotel with me.
before i knew it tuesday was here, and started off with an EXCELLENT presentation by jerry ghionis. all about evoking true emotions while still posing to get the shot, and about 10 more at the same time. more trade show, followed by wandering the strip down to the m&m's store (and being photographed by [b]ecker... making me wish i had cared what shirt i wore today when getting dressed) and then one last stop to say hello again to the lions (who were sleeping). last class about wedding preparation (honestly, i probably could have done without) and then it was time to head home. we left vegas about 6pm, stopped for food & gas barlow, and then finally made it home just around 3am wednesday morning.
overall, i had a blast! i wish i had put myself out there more to meet other photographers, but i was lucky enough to run in to a few familiar faces over the 5 day span. my brain is full of information, ideas, and inspiration that i cannot wait to put in to action!

WPPI - Sunday

Well today is the finishing up of the WPPI-U classes, and the start of my platform and master classes! As well, some potential meeting of other photographers :) So without futher delay, here is what sunday has in store for me!
8:00 - Doug Gordon - Conquer Today's Challenges. Take Control Now
9:30 - Joe McNally - The Language of Light
12:00 - Sal Cincotta - Wedding
2:00 - Jen Hillenga - Seniors/Business & Marketing
3:30 - becker - Wedding
7:00 - Sony Runway Show (hosted by Nigel Barker)
and there you have it!
after today, everything seems to slow down a bit without so many classes right after the other. tomorrow will bring some trade show excitement, and hopefully i won't come home with too many extras ;)

Bella Vista Craft Fair 2010

another craft fair has come and gone, and we felt like someone seasoned craft fair veterans this year. well, in the way of knowing the ins and outs of the whole set up/tear down process and so forth. we felt like our booth was WAY improved from last year and even though we were in a different location, we were still proud of that fact. oh, and i'm almost sure at this point you're thinking "why is emily talking all about something crafty on her photo blog?" and i will answer that "because you get to see the detail shots that aren't posted anywhere else, that's why!"and here is a quick shot of the the walking advertisement we had for probably the 2nd half of the day. not in her silly camera stealing moment, but its just as precious with her profile :)

Pet Photography

When it comes to family portraits, why leave that furry four legged family member behind? Your friends know you have them, your kids love them, and admit it... you post photos of the silly things you find them doing ALL over your facebook profile. alright, i admit it... if you saw my personal facebook page, there is a good dozen or so cell phone quality photos of our cats (usually mushu) doing something strange...So whether it be cat or dog, rabbit or even a pet goldfish, that pet is family, and should feel included to show your family in that stage of their life. shoot! bring the whole pack of puppies, or the caboodle of kittens, i'm up for anything. As long as it helps YOUR family capture who they really are. If your pets are anything like ours, they'll LOVE to have their spot in the limelight... well... unless we're talking about MY cat. sheesh. I'm sure both you and your children will love to have your pets photographed outdoors today, and for years to come.
so take the time to rub your puppy's belly, scratch behind your kitty's ears, and give them some extra love :) Email me today at photogbyem@gmail.com to start booking your family/pet photography session!

Sneak peek selection - august

believe me. i know i'm really lame as a blogger right now.
someday this will all become a better habit
(a dear friend of mine and i are determined to start blogging about more important, sensible things) and along with that i hope that THIS blog becomes of better use to me... well, i guess it should be ME that becomes a better use to this blog

well, anyways. want some photos to look at? of course you do :)first, jake & travis scheduled a couples session after jake's previous "senior portrait-esque" session you saw in the last preview. we decided for a different location, we would go to beal's pointe in granite bay, and use the area surrounding the lake as our scenery. I photographed a family session here a few months ago, and for being the same location, i feel like we were able to capture a totally different feel that was more personal to those two, and not so "cookie cutter."next, which fell much later on in the month, and after a lovely bout of me being sick for a few weeks (not exactly sure with what... but it seems to be over and done with now) i headed on down to modesto for some family portraits of someone i'm sure you're familiar with if you've been a regular follower. My cousin is due with baby number two in october (its a boy!) and wanted to get some family shots done before bb makes his debut. first day was more of a casual session over at the mchenry mansion, which i shot at once before with the orrego family. this shoot was later on in the evening (oh, and in the 100º temperature zone, btw) so we had more open shade in the grassy area of the yard, and had quite a few options to choose from in the yard of the mansion.and then lastly, day two of the modesto sessions was a more formal look over at their LDS church yard. it had a small little "garden" area i suppose you could call it, with a few little trees, a picnic table, and some little rocky areas. this gave lorelai some fun areas to run around and twirl in while getting some of the individual shots. she is quite a character, and i'm sure she'll be a great big sister starting next month! and i've been busting my internet looking skills to find some super adorable baby props to use, and so far, i've got a minimum of 3. and they'll be coming soon to a blog near you next month :)
fact: lisa made lorelai's entire outfit. well, minus the shoes. those came from me ;) but the dress and the bows? all her.

want something like it for your kiddos? check her out over at banana chérie. her blog is about the same shape as mine, but she has a better reason :P she lacks the internet on a daily basis

Stephanie & Jon - Lovebirds

I know Steph has been waiting patiently to see more of these photos, and well, here they are! FINALLY found my lightroom disk (hm. what a concept... it was actually in the box it came in...) got it loaded, and the editing began! It was so hard to pick a few favorites to feature here, but i feel these pretty much summed up the day! We pretty much walked around the whole site, with around every corner going "lets try over here" and "how about right there?" There was so much variety on location, it was pretty much a photographer's dream!
Thanks again to Stephanie and Jon of JSA Photography for being my models for the evening :)

Oreggo Family - Peek

One of my March of Dimes photo session families :) Little Alex is just a year and a half, and was so much fun to photograph. We had our session at the McHenry Mansion in Modesto, CA. Such a great little location, full of different settings within the one area!

family session

a couple weekends ago, i photographed alexis and her family out at beal's pointe, which is one of the entries to folsom lake in granite bay. alexis was a freshman when i was in high school, and i got excited when she came to me, asking about doing this as a mother's day present for her mom this year. the white and denim was a great choice, and the lake had so many fun settings, just on ONE side that we walked down. i imagine if we had gone around the whole area, we could have been there for HOURS shooting :) more pictures are avalible for viewing over on facebook for now.

monICA talks

this april i will be attending my first photography work shop. i have been searching for a workshop in my area for awhile now, and was happy to stumble upon this one.
monICA is a local photographer i have followed from a friend on my facebook page (gotta love those "become a fan" buttons) and i've really liked her work. as well, she owns her own business, and this is her first ever photography work shop that she has hosted. what an even better reason to go :) her first time hosting a workshop, and my first time going! basically, it sounds like she's going to cover her experiences from the past 5 years of her work, what she's come across in the field of photography, what works, what doesn't work, and all that is in between. she's asked us to send questions now to inspire her for potential ideas to talk on... believe me, i've already started putting not just my .02 cents in, but more like my $1.97 worth of what i want to know. of course, wedding photography topped my list of first things to want to know more about. also, what lenses she uses for what situations. a good lens is very key in photography. crappy lens, you'll end up on judge joe brown like this "professional" photographer. haha. another one that came to mind, thanks to my TPP years, is props. Props are SO over enforced in that wretched place, its not even funny. i like the idea of props, but i don't like them to overwhelm the image. i'd love to incorporate a prop that doesn't look out of place, over power the image, or just plain look tacky. so i sent that her way. i'm sure come april 24th she'll be tired of all the questions and info that i want to know, but until then, i'll be thinking of anything and everything to ask her :)
i'm very excited, what can i say? i am still on the search for a wedding specific workshop. i think it would be particularly very helpful for me.