I have always felt that the majority of people can be
grouped into 3 categories when it comes to family photographs:

1. Those who think photos are nice to have, but don’t really think it’s too important and don’t really like to bother with a camera …and think that people who take a lot of photos are nuts. They prefer to just enjoy the day, and remember it as they wish.
2. Those who think that it is very important to DOCUMENT an event with photographs…but don’t care so much about the quality of the photo. Just having a photo is good enough, and certainly not worth spending a lot of money on.
3. Those that value photography as both a way to ensure the preservation of memories AND as art. These people take lots of photos themselves, regularly use professional services to make sure that they get good quality, and lovingly display their photographs in their homes as art, as well as keeping them as a record of their families.

All of my clients are firmly in the third category! They
love having great images of their kids, their homes are filled with family
photos of fun times, and they take a lot of pictures themselves. As such, they
are always asking how they can improve their own picture-taking abilities. They
realize that many everyday moments are special, and they want to be able to
capture it in the best way that they can!

I have many friends that are photographers all over the
country, and their clients are exactly the same way! We all put our heads
together and decided that everyone should write about one tip that they could
share to help moms take better pictures of their kids. This is such a talented
group of ladies with a variety of styles, and I’m sure that you will find what
they have to say useful, informative & FUN! Here are the links to each of
their Blogs with their tips – and then get out those cameras and practice!

Rebecca Mudrick of Darling Art Photography in Chapel Hill,
NC talks about one of the basics – how to best compose your shot before you
snap the shutter! You don’t need to think that you “have to have an eye for it”
to do it well…she explains a simple formula that anyone can learn called the Rule of Thirds . You can see a lot more of her work at Darling Art Photography .

Ever have trouble getting your kids a smile that doesn’t look "fake", or worse, getting them to smile at all? Danna Bowes of Calgary, CA shares her tips for  Capturing Genuine Expressions  that will have you smiling, too. And she sure knows how to do it – check out her website at Bowes Photography .

If you think that your photo albums are full of pictures that lack, well, something but you don’t know what it is, check out Brandy Anderson’s tip to Get Out of Your Comfort Zone . Your photos will go from "blah" to "wow" in a flash! And don’t miss Brandy’s wonderful work on her website Fresh Sugar Photography .

Canadian children’s photographer Jenna Slomp shares one of my favorite tips – Turning Off Your Flash . Say goodbye to red eye and ghostly faces forever when you master this technique. Jenna’s website Jenna Slomp Photography is one that you will never tire of looking at!

Angela Calderon, a Los Angeles children’s photographer, knows all about photographing little ones. Her tip is so simple and yet so effective – Get Down!  And just try to get that song out of your head after reading about her tip and checking out the examples! See more of Angela’s work at Angela Calderon Photography .

Newborn photography seems like it should be so easy, but anyone who has tried it knows how hard it is to capture their features and not have the picture look like a blurry bundle in a blanket. Allie Gadziemski of Milwaukee is known for her newborn photography, and she shares her Newborn Tips that will make you think about having another baby (!!!) just to try them out. Check out her website Proud To Introduce .

And last but not least, have you ever wondered why your digital files come back printed as 5x7s or 8x10s with parts cut out of the image? Houston photographer Holly Guillaume takes the mystery out of Cropping , and will show you how to make your images more focused & interesting by cropping them correctly. She has examples that show exactly what she means, and you will finally understand why a 5×7 looks different than an 8×10 – and how to use that to your advantage! See more of her work at Holly Anne Photography .

A big thanks to all of the wonderfully talented photographers who took time to share their tips…I know all of my clients will love them and find them helpful. And I just want to say that I’m glad that none of you live near me, or I would be out of business!

First, let me start off by showing you a picture of my backyard. Not that I’m gloating or anything. And, it’s actually not technically MY backyard, since we are only renting this place until our house is built. It just happens to be where we are lucky enough to live right now.

I’m just saying.

Anyway, when I got up at 6:30 this morning as always, and went to the kitchen to make coffee as always, and then looked out AT MY BACKYARD (see photo above) as always, I saw something floating right in front of us. But I couldn’t tell what it was because it was pretty far out. So I woke up Jim and we both decided that it was something that shouldn’t be there – so we got in our boat & went out to take a closer look – and found this floating, abandoned:

It’s a pretty nice paddle boat!

So we tied it up on our beach and figured that someone would be along today looking for it. But so far nothing. We already have a little paddle boat, so we sure don’t need another, but now I think we may have a problem if no one comes along & claims it. Jim is not going to be happy with me if this sits around on our beach too long and he has to try to find someone who wants it. It is HEAVY! Think I might have to sneak it over to my neighbors dock & tie it up there!

I think we’ve finally turned the corner here in Lake Keowee as far as summer goes. This is just a sample of what I saw on my walk this morning:

In my front yard -

My azaleas in Pittsburgh NEVER looked like this -

Along the Leisure Trail -

My neighbor’s charming gate – destined to be a photo setting!

Another neighbor’s waterfall -

The gazebo where you can get out of the sun (!!!) -

My favorite picture spot as of now -

And take a good look at this piece of land – because it isn’t gonna look like that much longer!!! Stay tuned for some exciting news and pictures!

I saved this link quite awhile ago – I think it would be GREAT for a graduation party. You could use pics from childhood through high school!

How to’s are here:Photo Centerpieces

So I have a little ad that runs on our community TV channel, sort of looks like a slideshow set to music. I get to change the ad out every month, so here is April’s – I thought it fit pretty well with the April showers we’ve been getting. (this is youngest dd Allison on our beach before she left for Argentina, btw!)

I will be in PA for sessions the weekend of May 2-3-4 and I have ONE more session available. If you are interested, give me a call or shoot me an email.

I will also be available in PA the weekend of June 6-7-8. All previous clients of mine get 2007 pricing, and if you get a friend to book the same weekend, you will both get 1/2 off your session fee! Call or email as soon as you can to reserve your spot!

This looks pretty nice – anything to solve the "what-do-I-do-with-these-beautiful-photos" problem!

From Red Envelope