DC portrait schedule

As previously posted, I will be in DC 5/3-7. My schedule is very busy with portrait appointments and a wedding, but I do still have some availability on Friday, 5/4. Please let me know if you would like to have your child, pet or family photographed in your home. I'd love to see you!

awww, how sweet

I meant to post this a while ago, but forgot. This is a pic from LaCour's blog that the fabulous Mark Adams took of J and I in Vegas. Too cute!

out of town: Cape Cod

I'll be in Cape Cod for a few days, so if you need me please call my cell phone: 207.272.2285.

Have a great weekend!

A little video clip of how San Francisco's residents mark the Easter holiday: big wheel races down Lombard Street!

Vegas experience

Here is a sweet video Ron Dawson made last week at WPPI. Since I didn't take any pictures during the seminars or tradeshow, this will give you a better idea of the HUGEness of the event.

Baby portrait sessions in DC

So many of my DC brides have been emailing me pictures of your beautiful additions to your family since I photographed your weddings a few years ago. I will be down in Washington for a few days for a wedding on May 5th and would *love* to meet your smiling bundles of joy.

I am currently scheduling portrait sessions in your home (for newborns in their nurseries or just general play-time at the house) in 1 hour sessions for $200 (images will then be posted on Pictage for 60 days if you would like to order prints). Please let me know if you are interested, and your availability, and I will start coordinating times. I haven't made my flight arrangements yet but will fly down a few days prior/post the 5/5 wedding to accommodate your session.

Meantime, keep those pictures coming! And, congratulations!

home sweet home

I had a great week in Vegas catching up with friends, making new ones, and learning about some new products in the market. A quick preview:

• I will be offering Queensberry now instead of Leather Craftsmen for matted albums. It is a bit more high end than LC and they have a few more options to choose from including a gorgeous cream color double mat with a chocolate brown liner that sold me. Oh, and a very sophisticated title page on translucent paper.
• I found a neat new softcover gift book for engagement sessions and family portraits.

• I fell in love with these canvas prints. They instantly make your photographs look like gallery artwork!
• I am excited to announce that I will be designing holiday cards this year! Remember to plan ahead when scheduling those family and child portraits outdoors before winter arrives (I don't want to think about that already!). I will be ordering samples of all of these items to feature my own photography in the upcoming weeks. Please inquire for more specific pricing information if you see something here that peeks your interest.

And stay tuned for some VERY big website information and new perfect pricing™, too...

out of town: Las Vegas

I will be in Las Vegas at WPPI's (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International) annual convention at Paris 3/24-29. In addition to attending seminars, there is an enormous trade show and 10,000 other photographers to network with! I will be checking email and voicemail daily. Have a great week!

non-stop in San Fran

Wow! It's already Friday?

Since I arrived in San Francisco, I have visited with my college friend Ryan Anson (who I haven't seen in 7 years!), a USA Today colleague Michelle Kessler (who I haven't seen for 6 years!), Alisa and Coley (I will be photographing their wedding this summer in Maine), my uncle Bill, my hometown friend Rachel (she is getting married this summer... 6 weeks after her brother!), Cara (I photographed her wedding last Fall in Maine), Matt Chou (a participant I mentored at the Foundation Workshop), not to mention all the folks J works with at liveBooks and photographer Gene Higa. I don't think I have ever taken a 'vacation' like this and been so busy being social! I'm exhausted!

SF is a fun place, with lots of diverse textures and colors and light- a photographer's paradise! This weekend, we'll rent a car and explore some neighborhoods outside of the city. I hear there's lots of snow back at home today- my apologies.

Happy St. Patrick's Day tomorrow! And Happy Birthday, Lawrence!

out of town: San Francisco

I will be in San Fran from 3/13-19. I will be checking email or you can always call my cell phone: 207.272.2285. Have a great week!!

out of town: DC

I will be out of town until Sunday afternoon, 3/4, to photograph a wedding in DC this weekend. Fingers crossed this pending storms stalls a bit so my flight gets out! Please call my cell phone if you need me. Have a great weekend!

Texas- wrap up

Ok. Ok. I promise I'll stop talking about Texas soon. But not yet. The official liveBooks (yes, the company J works for) website for the Foundation Workshop is up: www.fworkshop.com. Take a peek at all the students' great work!

Recognize that smile? A picture from Robert Mirani's picture story on the animal shelter.

A screengrab of the talented Anne Ruthman's portfolio:

And be sure to watch the great slideshow of the week by Sergio who was our official photographer for the week.

Texas- reflection

Wow. What a week! I am home, exhausted, and completely inspired. I walked away from the Foundation 5 Workshop with such a sense of excitement and hope for our industry, and a slew of new friends and colleagues. Many thanks to everyone who gave of their time, skill and friendship to create such a magical experience. I am most definitely already looking forward to next year!

Last night, we celebrated everyone's success with a lavish meal and slideshow presentations of all the amazing photography from the week. Below is a video clip of one of the students, Becca Spears, talking about her experience. Very cool.

Texas- assignment recap

It's hard to believe that the students are already done shooting their assignments! I really enjoyed checking in on their progress, and watching their growth in such a short amount of time was inspiring! I didn't photograph each student I visited, but here are a few I did:
Geoffrey Horowitz works a cool angle at the library.
Robert Mirani gets down low at the dog shelter.
Matt Chou gets in close to the card game at the senior center.
David Murray, Brooks Whittington and Greg Gibson consult with student Becca Spears at the skate park.

Don't forget, there are many more pictures from the week on the Foundation blog.

Visiting Robert at the animal shelter was tough. I have never been to one before, and now I know why. Within seconds of walking in, I had tears streaming down my face. The dogs' soulful eyes and obvious desire for attention and affection was overwhelmingly powerful. I was *this* close to walking home with this adorable black lab mix this afternoon! The Foundation Workshop could have had a mascot!



After many tears, some romps with a dog or two in the 'exercise pen,' I left and later ran into David at another student's assignment. With sunglasses still on to hide my red eyes, I explained that I "lost my s@*! at the animal shelter." He looked immediately concerned, asking questions about what I lost and should we be looking for it. We both got a huge chuckle when I reminded him of the expression and that I simply couldn't keep it together and had been crying. Maybe you had to be there, but nonetheless, it certainly lightened the mood!

I didn't really take any pictures at the actual assignments (it's not about what I could do!), but I did take snag this quick snapshot at the dog agility course that student Tina Carter covered. Cool light!

Thursday will be spent making final edits of the student's picture stories and assembling them for our wrap-up dinner party Thursday evening.

Texas- Wednesday?

Walking down the hall just now, I passed a man firing up his iPod for his morning jog. Me? I am just returning to my room for the night... morning? Whatever. Either way, I haven't gone to sleep yet.

Tuesday was a fantastic day being out in the field assisting the participants with their assignments, offering suggestions and tidbits from my experience (and yes, it made me miss journalism!). Tonight (last night?) was spent editing the student's work on projection screens. Those conversations were as much a learning process as the actual shooting. I loved being a part of it, somuchso that I decided to forego the strangely comfortable hotel bed for a night of back-and-forth banter among colleagues (again, another thing I really miss about journalism).

Wednesday, the students head back out to their assignments again and will try to incorporate what they learned from Tuesday's edit and make their images better. Cool!

For now, tho, I am going to close tight these bat-cave hotel blinds and try to catch some zzzzz....

Texas- Fat Tuesday

Here is our group picture from last night, as well as the link to the Workshop blog (I love that the picture of me from Sunday night is right after Becca told me the bit about me not being intimidating).

Heading out in the field now, to mentor four students today. Their assignments range from a truck stop to a feature on a dog agility trainer. Should be pretty cool! More soon....

Texas- Monday

Phew! I am quite relieved that the most stressful part of this workshop for me- lecturing- is over. And you know, I think it went a-ok. I was both nervous and nauseous- likely from little sleep and too much caffeine. ;) But going first worked out great, because I have been able to enjoy the rest of the presentations without wondering how mine will compare.

On a short break from the talking, participants are out right now taking portraits of another participant. It's a neat exercise and a way to warm up to their intensive journalism assignments which start tomorrow. I was briefly sitting in my hotel room a little bit ago (where I was lovingly greeted with some beautiful congratulatory flowers from J!) and snagged this snapshot out my hotel window of a team working the scene on the pavement below (dear Becca is the model who told me, upon meeting me, that I am a lot less intimidating than she expected based on my credentials. Love her). No, it's not the most amazing photograph... but it gives you a real sense of place, and where the heck we are (or aren't!)- in the middle of nowhere! When I think of Texas, I always think of water towers (thank you, 'Friday Night Lights'), so I was happy that one was positioned correctly behind this quiet road on the backside of our hotel.

Texas- Sunday

After nearly missing our connection in Detroit (literally, by mere minutes), photographer David Murray and I arrived in Texas and have settled into our comfy digs. Most people were arriving today, so we decided to use our only down-time of the week to treat ourselves to pedicures and manicures w/ Jenn Domenick. It was David's first time, and a total hoot (I have pictures on my cell phone camera I will download). After a staff meeting, we all went to Gary Donihoo's beautiful house for a yummy catered Mexican meal where we met all the participants. There is some great talent here! The highlight? Gary's photo booth he rents for weddings... check out all the photographers checking it out below. There's something funny about photographers getting giddy about a photo booth, no? For more info on the photo booths (it's a sweet set-up!), check out boothbooth.com.




Monday is lecture day... and I'm up first at 8:30a. Wish me luck!

out of town: Texas

I am heading to Texas tomorrow, where I will be teaching at the Foundation 5 workshop (I've posted on this before, so I won't bore you again with details. If you want to learn more about it, click here). I haven't been to Texas, or taught at a lengthy workshop before, so this will be an exciting new experience.

I will be back in Maine on Friday, 2/23. I hope to be checking email daily, but if you need me sooner please call my cell phone: 207.272.2285.

J still hasn't made it home because of the weather, but check out the weather I have to look forward to next week! It's not the tropics, but it sure beats here!

There:
Here:
Have a great week! Happy Birthday to Kate and Rachel!

Sleepless in... Denver

J is finally on his way home after being stuck in Denver since Tuesday. He posted this short video he made using my point & shoot camera's video feature on SimplePhoto TV from early this morning. He looks SO tired!!

Philadelphia

On our way to Philadelphia today, we stopped at Canon in Jamesburg, NJ, to have our equipment cleaned. While we were waiting, the amazing Yunghi Kim was waiting, too.

J spoke to another PUG group in downtown Philly at Drexel University earlier tonight. My friend Erica, who lives there, came too, and then we met up with her husband Steve and my childhood friend Nat for dinner.




Erica and Steve's adorable English Setter, Bubba.

the big apple!

We're having a blast in NY! Last night's PUG group (Pictage User Group) was enormous by Pictage standards- more than 30 people! The group leader, Shari Silk, is an old classmate of mine from Syracuse (and she just had a baby last month), so it was fun to catch up. One of J's colleagues from LiveBooks, Corey, also attended the meeting. Afterwards we hit up the W for drinks and strolled around Times Square.

J giving his talk about liveBooks.

Chloe, Phil and Dasha's 11-year old beagle, wasn't impressed.

Check out our near hotel, less than a block from the action of Times Square, Hotel QT! Cool little modern space at an affordable price.

In other news, I heard from a couple I photographed in 2004, Eileen and Mike Ferrier. They had a baby girl and named her Emily- inspired by me! Altho spelled differently, that's a pretty amazing compliment! I can't wait to meet her!
Here's a pic Eileen emailed:


Ok. On to Philly...

out of town: Boston, NY, Philly

I'm on the road this week with J as he talks with photographers about LiveBooks in Boston, NY and Philly. Last night's Boston group was small, but very nice and gave him some great feedback on the product. A special treat? My dear friend Lisl came to share a beer after the meeting.

Vacation, etc.

I am back, and feeling quite refreshed after a relaxing week of beach lounging and margaritas on ice. We had a wonderful time at Ana Y Jose in Tulum, Mexico, and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a private, non-touristy experience. Our accommodations were rustic, yet chic, cabanas with thatched roofs and hammocks and sandy paths leading to the beach. Looking for a destination wedding location? This might just be the spot. If you are planning a trip to the area, please email and I'll gladly share our photos and recommendations of restaurants you must check out, etc.

On my way back, I stopped in Washington, DC, to witness (yes, witness, not work) the very fun wedding of my dear friend Lawrence. His wedding planner, Vicky Choy of Event Accomplished, is one of my brides from a few years ago! And friend and colleague Matt Mendelsohn photographed the event.


In other news, I noticed one of my favorite wedding venues recently updated their website. Take a peek at Church Landing in Meredith, NH, if you are shopping for a New England lake experience: website.

Anyone else mourning the Patriots loss tonight like I am?? Sniff, sniff.
(AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

out of town: Mexico

Most people take vacations during the summer when the weather is warm. I obviously don't because that is prime wedding season. So after a fantastic wedding season has finally wrapped up, I am taking my 'summer vacation,' if you will, in Mexico! I am really looking forward to getting away and relaxing on the beach for a bit before the 2007 season begins. I won't have access to email during this time, but I will be sure to return your messages and phone calls when I return on Sunday, 1/21. Have a great week!

Cancun

It's that time of year when the wedding madness has slowed down, allowing me a little time to breathe. Next month we're headed to Cancun for a little R&R and a little work, too. I haven't been there before and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions on a cool boutique hotel. I've spotted a few eco-friendly gems a little south of Cancun (Ana y Jose, Maya Tulum...). Please let me know if you have any personal favorites! Thanks in advance!