Search this site:            

An update of sorts

Posted on March 14, 2011

It’s been a ridiculous amount of time since my last update and so much has happened (personally) that I believe it’s time for an update.

For years I’ve been dealing with health problems, which I don’t really want to get into here, but at the end of 2010 things finally came to the point where I really, really needed to do something about them. My biggest complaint is pain and while I do not have MS or Fibromyalgia, I am experiencing chronic pain that exhausts me and disrupts my workflow, quite often forcing me into bed and on medication and in so much pain that all I want to do is cry and whine about it.

Because I have family that includes four children, plus a full-time job, in addition to my part-time photography business, I’ve had to try to dedicate my efforts there. I fell ridiculously behind with my editing and to those brides and couples I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies.

In the last few months I have been to numerous doctor’s appointments and have had surgery and more appointments (all which require trips to Memphis). My surgery was a diagnostic laproscopy, which sounds like an easy-peasy, no-big-deal thing, but I had minor complications result and was in bed for five days, unable to get around. And then the pain began again. Originally my doctor believed it to be one thing and during surgery she decided my pain came from complications from the C-section I had five years ago, but apparently that’s not the cause, either (or maybe it really is and surgery didn’t fix it). They don’t know what’s wrong with me, really, and we’re still struggling to find out.

Meanwhile, I am trying different medications to help alleviate my pain and it will be July before we know if it will work. And my body doesn’t usually respond well to this type of medication, to hormones, so that is taking a toll on me as well.

I’ve had to scale back my workload with my photography business and haven’t accepted many new sessions, just because I cannot physically handle it too often. And by too often, I really mean more than once or twice a month. Going into 2011, I had several weddings already on the books and will honor those commitments, but at this time I cannot physically handle any more until I have these issues worked out.

And what that means is that this business is, essentially, on hold indefinitely.

I hate to say this because I was so excited about EDP a year ago when I started this journey. I was so excited to start 2011 with new marketing materials and wanted to ramp it up with the goal of eventually making this my full-time job. But I just can’t do it and I have to listen to my body and slow it down. Right now I need to focus on my health, focus on my family and focus on making sure our needs are met.

I want to thank the brides and the engaged couples who have been patient with me these last few months and I want to apologize to those whom I cannot accommodate. I would be more than happy to refer you to someone who can help (there are a lot of fabulous wedding and engagement photographers in the region).

Thank you for sticking with me.

It’s all about giving.

Posted on November 5, 2010

There is an amazing movement in the global photography industry called Help-Portrait, a movement where photographers come together to give their time, talents and expertise to those in need.

It’s not about building a portfolio.

It’s not about sharing photos.

It’s not about money.

It’s all about giving.

The premise is simple: as photographers, you take photos of a family (or subjects) who wouldn’t necessarily be able to afford a session, you have those photos printed and you give them away.

I follow the movement’s founder, Jeremy Cowart of Nashville, on Twitter and had heard of it, and have heard of the project but never took the time to read about it until today. It’s a wonderful movement with which I’m proud to be involved.

The global event will take place on Saturday, Dec. 4 and I’m working with other local photographers to organize an event locally. Tipton County was hit hard by the recession, leaving more than 1100 people jobless after factory lay-offs and closures. There are broken families, families struggling with overcoming addiction, family struggling with overcoming tragedy. And these families are just that, families.

And every family needs a portrait.

That’s what this project is about: giving families the portrait they can’t afford to have taken.

One day next month a group of photographers will gather together, we’ll set up our equipment and we’ll spend the day capturing portraits of families in need. We’ll print these photos for them and give them away, no strings attached.

Giving. That’s what it’s all about.

(If you’re a local photographer, I invite you to join us.)

Closing out 2010

Posted on October 30, 2010

My posting here has been inconsistent lately and for that I apologize. There’s so much I want to say, so many images I am eager to share with you and a few changes I need to announce, but first I must get through my editing.

Since August I have been busier with this business than I imagined. I am so, so grateful! It’s a wonderful feeling to set modest goals and exceed those. October has brought a session every weekend (except this one) and November is already completely booked!

From the bottom of my heart, thank you!

I decided in September I would only take a limited number of family sessions in addition to my usual engagement sessions and wedding and as October drew to a close, I realized I would need to put a cap on the number of remaining sessions, period. I offered my last three sessions to Facebook fans this week and now they’re all booked, meaning I am completely booked for the remainder of 2010.

I  am reserving December as behind-the-scenes time, where I will focus on making changes necessary for the upcoming year in addition to celebrating the holidays (and three birthdays!) with my family.

I will begin booking 2011 engagement sessions on November 15, 2010 – and if you book your e-session or wedding by November 30, you’ll still receive the 2010 price. (I generally only take one wedding per month and January and March have been booked.)

I will take a limited number of family sessions (usually 3-5) each quarter because I truly love engagement and couples sessions and weddings, this is where I want to continue my focus in 2011.

I have also started a referral rewards program where word of mouth advertising can earn you free photos!

Again, I want to thank each and every one of you for reading, for being a fan and for being a client. So far this journey has been fantastic for me (and for you too, I hope) and I only plan for bigger and better things in 2011!

An EDP tour

Posted on August 27, 2010

Ever wonder where the magic of Echo Day Photography happens? I’m now excited to show you!

A year ago, my husband and I started work on our laundry room to office conversion.

We moved into our house in November 2008. Our laundry room used to be this small closet under our stairs. It was great in theory, very accessible and the hot pink color I painted inside was motivational, but we had a small problem: we didn’t have a dryer vent.

Not having a vent meant that we had to run the dryer with the closet doors open for ventilation. We were afraid the heat would eventually warp the doors.* And the humidity fogged up all of our windows and made all of our non-porous surfaces wet and the lint drove our allergies nuts. Later, through a friend who knew the previous homeowner (gotta love a small town!), I found out that the builders originally forgot to put in a vent (which was corroborated with our septic guy a few months ago) and so the homeowners rigged one, then tiled over the rigged vent later.

I hate that and I also hate this tile. I want carpet or hardwood. But that’s another topic.

In February 2009 we initially discussed converting the laundry room to an office and it’s nice to see it finally finished. We moved our washer and dryer into our garage, a move that led to us having to replace the washer after the temperatures dropped to single digits and our pipes froze. Great decision, right?

I painted the office (and our little bathroom, but we’re not talking about that) a light blue, reupholstered and painted antique chairs and my husband installed a wood desk top with a plexiglass cover.

Like most wives, I’ve been nagging Darin about the shelves he promised for several months. Last week we finally got them in! I painted them white to go with the chairs (though the color on the chairs is a light, light blue) and Darin installed them.

And it’s done! Finally! After a year! (And I finally have a lens that can photograph this space – another reason to celebrate!)

How awesome does it look?!

We don’t have another office space (we have four children), so this small space has to function as a home office, home-based business office and kid office (storing their art supplies and such). Talk about multi-tasking! I have to store my cameras, lenses, tripod, flashes, etc. here in addition to all of the books and magazines I’m reading, my promotional products, blank DVDs and cases, backup discs, samples, forms and contracts, important documents, school picture day proofs, drawings, camcorder and all of the other menial things (like bills!).

I keep my camera bag in the spare chair to store all of my flashes, memory cards, lenses, batteries, chargers, etc. The rolling filing cabinet between the chairs holds important paperwork, Christmas stationery I didn’t use last year, construction paper and coloring books.

I really love this because I’ve incorporated many functions into this space, but also several things I love: photography and vintage cameras, the beach, books and my family.

The old Mason jar is recycled from our 2009 wedding, which was recycled from my grandmother’s basement, and contains shells I’ve picked up from the beaches of the Outer Banks. The other jars hold markers and crayons and give a little color. Along the top shelf are my books (including my Book of Common Prayer and New Testament), shell jar (we also have two of these in the living room and two in the master bath), boat I bought off of a friend for $4, a box of my promo items, pool blue stickers from Archivers (rectange and circle), blank DVDs and cases and magazine boxes for glossies as well as important stuff. The double horizontal boxes on the bottom shelf contain samples and user manuals, an old Yashica camera, photo of our family from our July 4 trip to the zoo, kids’ art supplies, a photo of my church family from our food packing event and some fun, pretty ceramic vases and a candle.

On the desk top: my external drive and card reader, a lamp I want to replace, of course the all-important MacBook, my calendar and catch-all center (pens, pencils, return address stamp, to-do list pad, CDs, thank you notes, etc.), my late grandmother’s hobnail container that is currently empty, my handheld scanner (muy importante for a reporter or anyone else who’s nosy), plus the mail (my new voter registration card came that day), my file folders and some junk I need to put away already.

You totally caught me on a clean day. Thank you!

I’m really in a sharing mood, so you get to see the inside of some of the boxes. Lucky you! This is the inside of the kids’ box: mini composition book, glue, scissors, stencils, colored pencils and regular-sized markers and whatever else may be lurking inside.

My samples from minted, WHCC and Miller’s. In the bottom drawer I have all of my user manuals, software, product keys, warranties. This is a fun box here, let me say.

As much as I love everything else, the desk top is my favorite part. I love being able to slip keepsakes between the wood and the plexi glass! I have envelopes decorated for me by two of the children, a little Post-It gallery my son Jaylen drew that night, a paper airplane he decorated for me (complete with “I [heart] you Mom” – aww!) and a few other things. It’s super sweet!

Each of our children has quite an imagination, but Jaylen is the one who most often translates it into drawing. The furthest left is “sun people”, then a monster truck, a house and pickles. lol. He’s so silly (but he LOVES pickles)!

This is one of my favorite things. Ever.

And of course, a little office nook this cute wouldn’t come without its issues, right? Of course not. I use an aircard from Verizon for Internet and, well, our service sucks. See, we live in a hollow (or holler, if you’re a Randy Travis fan) and we have very spotty service with both AT&T and Verizon (so much for more bars in more places and 97 percent coverage, right?).

It’s supposed to be akin to broadband, but it’s slower than dial-up in certain areas of the house. The office being one of those. In terms of bars, I have one bar in the office, two everywhere else. But if we go up to the lake, where you aren’t supposed to get service, I have four bars.

Go figure.

*When we converted to an office, we took the doors off and reused them. One was painted black, topped with plexi glass and is now the tabletop for my husband’s work bench; the other was used as a flat surface to hold items when they were being spray-painted.

Behind the Lens

Posted on August 1, 2010

As a member of the media (my day job), I can certainly tell you it is competitive. We’re each trying to do the best job possible, get the best stories and think outside the box when brainstorming which stories to bring our readers/viewers. And when we have the same story – breaking news – we’re each trying to get the story out first, get it right and do better than the other guy.

It’s pretty stressful.

And then you have my part-time gig as a photographer. You’d think that wandering around with beautiful people, snapping photos along the way, was as stress-free as it could be, right? Ha. Having a photography business is completely stressful.

First you have the business side of things: Are my prices affordable? Am I making a profit? How do I market to my target client? Should I buy the new, top of the line camera or should I wait until I turn a profit? How do I pull in more business? Are my customers happy? What cool things can I offer them?

And you have the artsy, technical side: Should I use the 50mm? Smile or smirk? Two steps to the left makes SUCH a difference in lighting. The sun’s going down – open up the aperture. He’s running faster than I planned – increase the shutter speed. I hate manual focus – her ear’s in focus, her eyes aren’t (ugh!). Is that poison ivy?

But perhaps the most stressful thing is other photographers. Every single day there is drama between photographers. Every. Single. Day. And it’s unnecessary.

Photographers get mad if another photographer starts a business, even if they aren’t marketing to the same people or doing the same type of photography.

Photographers regularly insult one another regarding level of skill and equipment, often saying one photographer isn’t good enough because he or she still has things to learn or has an entry-level camera. They are quick to put one another down, quick to point out mistakes, quick to look down their noses because the other photographer may be doing something they don’t consider appealing.

One of the biggest insults hurled from photographer to photographer is calling someone a MWAC, especially if they’ve gone pro. MWAC means Mom with a Camera. It’s not meant as a compliment, usually.

They get mad when a newbie photographer hits the scene with lower prices, accusing them of trying to undercut the competition. Established photographers also get angry when another photographer advertises or tries to market their business.

It’s hard out here for a photographer. Especially if, like me, you’re new to the professional scene. Now, I’m not saying our local photographers have been ugly to me, but I see this behavior online quite a bit. Thankfully no one’s ever come out and said something inappropriate and unprofessional to me, but it happens to other people all the time. Actually, it happens behind their back all the time.

Once I was doing a business story with a local photographer and I asked about competition with her former mentor who is now her competitor; she told me that he once said there were thousands of people in this county and two of them, more than enough clients for both of them (I’m paraphrasing).

And this is the truth. Estimates put our county at 60,000 people. I counted 10-15 pro or semi-pro photographers a couple of weeks ago, which means we have more than enough people to photograph. Living in a bigger city, the numbers increase on both sides, but there are still thousands more clients than photographers.

If you shoot children and another photographer shoots weddings, you’re really not competitors. You should network and recommend one another. Do your thing, let her do hers. It’s really that simple.

And we all start somewhere, right? We aren’t born knowing when to choose which f-stop, when to change shutter speeds or how to make a difficult subject relax and enjoy his session. Some of us don’t know the trick to making a newborn sleep through a session, how to shoot modern photojournalistic weddings or even when to crop vertically instead of horizontally. Some photographers know all of these things and are flawless in their execution, but I guarantee not one person knows everything.

We’re artists. We see things differently. We’re not all going to have the same photos. Get over it.

Some of us – myself included – can’t afford $3,000 cameras. This is likely why we’re in business: to make money. When we begin to turn a profit, then we’ll be able to work up to the bigger purchases. It’s also not all about the equipment, it’s how you use what you have.

Price is a HUGE bone of contention with other photographers. When we set our prices we may not want to undercut other photographers, but since we aren’t established we probably cannot ask for a $100 session fee and still book enough clients to pay the bills. You have to start somewhere, then you can go up. But if I’m okay with making 10 percent profit, for instance, while you’re working hard to make 40, that’s my business, not yours. Literally and figuratively. It’s quite likely that pricing is nothing personal, it’s just business.

Maybe it’s because I’m still relatively wet behind the ears, but I don’t see a need for such drama. Competing is one thing; putting others down, making them feel inferior, is another. I think it’s time the photographers in this industry give up the insults and try to build each other up instead of tearing one another down.

Back in the saddle

Posted on June 17, 2010

It’s been nearly two months since I’ve touched this blog.

In the weeks I’ve been absent we had a major flooding event in Tipton County, I inherited a TON of responsibilities at my day job, my former mother-in-law passed away and we traveled to Alabama for the funeral, my children finished the school year and we went to San Antonio for vacation.

All of that from May 1-31.

My former mother-in-law’s funeral was held on the same day as Joshua and Erika, our beautiful bride pictured above, were married. Gwen, who assisted during that shoot and was going to second shoot the wedding, shot some great images for them and I am so thankful she was there to step in.

I almost feel as if May was in the way of my shooting. I had a maternity shoot scheduled for May 16; the night prior, the glowing mama and I nailed down a location and I was very much looking forward to shooting her photos. She was due in early June and had a hard pregnancy, which prevented a session earlier on. But, as May would have it, that shoot didn’t happen. Our session was scheduled for the afternoon, but the baby came early! He was born that morning. lol.

These past few weeks I haven’t picked up my camera unless I had to, with the exception of vacation snapshots. I usually read dozens of photography blogs, network with other photographers and work on my skills constantly, but I haven’t had the time to desire to even do any of that.

The flood and the increased responsibilities at work had me exhausted. One week I worked more than 90 hours, the other weeks I worked 60 or more. I now have help, thankfully, and can devote some of my free time back to my business. Gwen, who was my supervisor, left the paper to pursue other opportunities and with having to absorb all of her duties, complete all of mine and train two new writers, I was swamped. And oh so stressed. I was prepared to close this business because I thought my life, until I’d finally had enough, would revolve around the newspaper.

But I likely will not have to do that. And I am so thankful.

I’m eager to return to shooting and at this point would love to shoot some duets. If you’re in the area, give me a call: 731-612-2723!