to Janee Garber.

She rocks. Isn’t she stunning!!!

She’s my new esthetician and she can be found at the office of the most fabulous and highly recommend  Dr. Stephen Delatte, Plastic and Reconstuctive Surgeon.

You know… I spend so much time behind the camera (often crawling on the ground for the ‘perfect shot’) and then polishing and perfecting images of other people that I often forget about taking care of myself and my own skin. So I’m doing this for me… and once I’m done… I’m going to schedule a photo session of my own… for myself. I’m actually thinking of setting up some glamour night portrait parties… just for women. We will get all dressed up… get together… and take some fabulous glamourous photos to give to our husbands… and to feel great about ourselves. Anyone interested in this ladies ??? If you know a group of women that would be interested in this… leave me a blog comment!

Anyhoo… thanks again Janee!

If you check out my main website you will see a new (yet still similar) logo and a brand new layout! I am still in the process of updating my business policies and pricing structure for 2010. All these changes will go into affect on January 1st so all new bookings will fall under the new policies and prices. Please note, if you had a session in 2009 but never placed an order from your gallery you have until the end of this month to order prints before the increase in prices goes into effect.

Some changes you should note…

*Session fees will remain mostly the same. I’m going to tack on an extra $50 charge for newborn sessions if I have to pack up and go to your home. Remember session fees include the sales tax. I am also allotting $15 of the session fee to go to pay for location expenses… but if the client wants to have the session at a location that costs more than $15… they are responsible for paying the difference.

*I’m tightening up on the policy about galleries. The galleries will be available for 3 weeks. After your gallery expires you will be sent a bill (a paypal request for payment) for $30  if you want it made available again.

*Minimum orders will be inforced. You should be aware of the minimum order for the type of session you chose to have. If you place an order that is below the minimum you’ll receive and e-mail saying your order cannot be processed until the minimum is reached.

*Brag books of all the images will now sell for $100 each.

*Cards will be custom-designed for you based on your preferences. I will create a design and you will be allowed one revision. Any further changes will incur an additional design fee of $30 to compensate me for my time. Designing cards takes a considerable amount of my time and I try to create the very best design for the pictures you choose. Also PLEASE proofread every word of the card proofs when you view them… I’m a horrible speller!

*All orders over $500 will receive 3 complimentary mini accordions (click here and flip through to see images of these and other products).

*An electronic form must be signed to officially book your session.

*I will be taking a limited amount of sessions so that I don’t get so overwhelmed. Remember, I’m a mother of a 5 and 3-year-old, a registered nurse part time, and I also take on several free-lance graphic design jobs over the course of the year. I’ve got a LOT going on.

Feel free to e-mail me with any questions you may have. If you’d like more insight into the increase in pricing please check out the “why does custom photography cost so much” link at the top.

So I’ve been booking sessions left and right for the next few months. I’ve gotten several requests/inquiries for weekend sessions so I wanted to come and post what I have left that is available.

Here is my schedule for upcoming weekends…

SEPTEMBER:

September 5th - maternity session

September 12th and 13th - senior session/work

September 19th… I have a conference

September 26th/27th … I’m working

So that leaves only the 6th and the 20th in September open if you want a weekend.

OCTOBER:

October 3rd - family session

October 17 - family session

October 24th - mini sessions

So that leaves the 4th, 10th, and 11th of October open if you want a weekend.

NOVEMBER:

November 7th - mini sessions

November 14th - mini session backup date

Sessions done after the 14th will not be eligible for Christmas card orders because I won’t have them ready for you in time.

PLEASE NOTE: All Sunday sessions will be scheduled in the afternoon after 2pm.

E-mail me if you want to reserve a date!

Here is a compilation of ideas from myself and several other fantastic photographers of how to coordinate clothing for your photoshoot.

For families or sibling sessions…

Ideas for seniors…

Yes… I realize I have several e-mails in my inbox that I need to reply to … if you have contacted me this week and not gotten a response yet… I’m so so sorry. I promise when I get a chance I will get back to everyone.

So I said when I started this business that it was going to be part time and that I’d only be doing one shoot per week. Well I’ve taken on a LOT more sessions than I said I would so right now I’m a bit overwhelmed and exhausted. I’m going to go back to booking fewer sessions for my own sanity. Being a full-time mom, part-time nurse, part-time photographer, and part-time graphic designer doesn’t leave much time for anything else. I have been staying up to the wee hours of the early AM to try and catch up… but I still never seem to catch up!!!  I am tired of neglecting my family, I’m tired of neglecting myself, and most of all… I’m just tired. LOL Perhaps I need a class on time management… or maybe I need an assistant….  take that back… what I REALLY need is a vacation!!

Anyhoo… I have noticed some people wanting to book really early for Christmas… smart move. I will likely be doing Mother’s Day Out pictures again in September… then October and November will be reserved for those who want kid/family pictures and custom Christmas cards. I have especially enjoyed doing senior sessions this year and look forward to seeing some 2010 seniors in the upcoming months… book early if you can! The prom shoot (see previous post) was a neat experience and I am considering doing some prom mini sessions next year if I can work it out.

Well… because I can’t make a post and not put up a picture… here is a Rhett collage! I must say he is getting better and better at cooperating for the camera. If you are wondering what he is doing in that middle one.. he is praying. I kept saying, “Look up at me… look at me…” and he replied, “Not right now… I’m praying to Jesus….” that just warms my heart…

I’ve gotten several e-mails about booking sessions and haven’t had time to go through them all yet. If you have contacted me and not gotten a reply… give me a few days…

So after a few phone calls and several e-mails I realized that I sent home the wrong gallery access code. The one on the paper sent home was for the MDO staff. I got the right code for the wrong gallery!! So, I have changed the code for the gallery (of the kid’s pictures) to the one that was reflected in the letter sent home so it should work now…

Sorry about the inconvenience. Some of you were probably wondering if you were just going crazy… LOL… no… it was me!

-Stephanie

This week our family bid farewell to a wonderful man.
My uncle Henry.
He was only 57 years young and his passing came as a total shock to everyone.
In a world with so much evil, it is nothing less than a tragedy to lose a man like this.
He was kind and gentle, adored his family, and always did thoughtful things to serve those around him. I really thought so much of him. Along with being my uncle, he was also my father’s closest friend. I think the thing that sticks out most in my mind about Uncle Henry was the way he cared for his wife, my Aunt Jill. You could just tell how much he loved her. 

As I stood there at the family cemetary… upon grass that Henry had mowed just the week before… I thought about what he must being doing now. I imagined him walking with his Savior and embracing my grandfather and others who had gone on before. Strange how in the midst of all the sadness, there was hope. It brings such peace to me to know that this is not the end. The Lord had already prepared a place for Henry in heaven. One day we will be reunited there with him again. But until that time comes, we will miss you, Uncle Henry. We were privileged to have you in our family.

For all you photographers that live by the cost and do Christmas pictures on the beach… these are for YOU! I actually decided to create these as per someone’s suggestion. If you decide you want both these and my Chocolate Couture Collection you can buy them together for a discount!

for an up-close view of both sets check out my blog… http://mydoodlebugdesignstemplates.blogspot.com/

Christmas cards anyone???
I’ve been hard at work designing and here are the fruits! if you want to book a session for Christmas cards… I’ll be doing them soon. Information on the cost of the press-printed cards can be found on my website under ‘the investment’ section.

For photographers interested in purchasing… follow this link

http://mydoodlebugdesignstemplates.blogspot.com/