An American Hero

It was only 26 degrees outside when we left the house Wednesday morning to do a photo shoot for a family whose son will be deployed next Tuesday. He has just joined the airforce, and mom thought it would be nice to have some last-minute photos done.

In a perfect world, I would have changed a few things about the circumstances surrounding the photo shoot, but not because of the family, or because it was an inconvenience to shoot last-minute. Actually, it was because I acted as an irresponsible ‘hired’ photographer in the events leading up to it. Since it’s not so far in the past, let me remind you that Tuesday was voting day. All across the country, any politically conscious person was keeping a close eye on the races for all sorts of different issues and seats from house of representatives to Governors. The most interesting, nail-biting, suspense-filled race of all to me was the Governors race. I tell myself every single year that I’ll just go to bed and hope we know who it is by the next morning….but that never happens. I stayed up until around 1:30AM watching the gap between the tight Governors race for our state fall between just FOUR to a few thousand votes. It was more insane than watching any World Series or Superbowl I have ever seen. Ideally, I should have gone to bed much earlier than that.

Secondly, as mentioned above, it was freezing cold outside (literally), just two hours before the shoot was scheduled to start at 10Am. We could see our breath! Plus, the sun was shining SO brightly that I became concerned about the harsh shadows and blinding effects, especially considering that we would be shooting down by the ocean.

However, when I arrived, I was greeted by a pleasant three person family with a great sense of humor. All of my fears about the bright sun were immediately calmed once I realized that we could do the majority of their shoot in the woods along the walking trails. The trees offered a nice, shady canopy for the occasion. I think I was more concerned about doing an exceptional job because I was shooting for a member of the armed forces, which is a great honor. These photos will mean SO much to this mom when her son leaves on Tuesday, and I realize that even though I’ve never had to watch a child or close relative get shipped out to a war before….but as a human being, I think we can all understand the possibilities of the harsh realities that sometimes happen. I wanted these photos to be very special for this family.

As we walked along the trails, I was much more at ease seeing that this family was not only very “handsome”, but they were more than willing to try new things. They were willing to have fun, and not just “get it over with”. I was also pleased that the shoot was one of the most efficient sessions we’ve had in a long time, and I was very satisfied with the outcome when proofing the photos. The family was a lot of fun to be around in general. They were very candid…and the special thing about shooting on location at Moose Point State Park is that it is where Matt and Shirley go married! In fact, the photo of Matt & Shirley was taken just before the clearing along the walking trail where they said their vows about 10 years ago!

Enjoy the sneak peek below. Alec, we are so honored to have met you. We will be praying for your safe return. Thank you to Shirley and Matt for giving us the opportunity to work with you. It was a pleasure!

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School Days!

I received a flyer last week telling me that my children’s school would be hosting “picture day”….the strange thing about the flyer was that I received it just TWO DAYS before picture day was scheduled to take place. I’m not sure who is to blame for the poor planning, but I was unimpressed that a state-wide photography chain couldn’t give parents more notice. Although I personally had money to pay for a package of photos- I was annoyed at the fact that I know that other parents are hurting for money to put food on the table, let alone school pictures….so I thought it would have been nice for them to have a little more advance notice than just two days.

I’ve never been particularly impressed with the quality of school portraits. I will say that I feel that school pictures overall have improved from what they were like when I was in elementary school with neat backgrounds, props, and better ‘posing’ styles….but since I’m a photographer myself, and a ridiculous perfectionist- I’d much rather do my children’s school portraits myself.

Today, I got my kids home from school, dressed them up and brought them all down to the Footbridge area in Belfast….even the baby (who is obviously not in school yet). There was this really neat rock wall that lined the road that I’ve been eyeballing for quite some time, hoping to convince some of my Searsport Seniors to allow me to do their photos against it as a backdrop (no luck yet)…so I used it on my daughter and son who are in Kindergarten and first grade. I was absolutely thrilled with the texture and overall dynamic background it created. My daughter was more comfortable with the rock wall than my son, so I feel that her photos came out looking more relaxed and natural.

Later, we moved down to the public parking area where I photographed each child individually, two at a time and then all three together. I can photograph anyone else’s multiple children at one time with much greater ease than I can my own children. Our son has ASD, which makes it incredibly difficult for him to even desire to look in the direction of the camera. Our oldest daughter is incredibly photogenic and just plain beautiful. She looks good no matter where you put her. Then there’s the baby….and she is……an almost two year old mind-of-her-own little ham who will say “cheese” until you’re about to lose your mind….but she will ONLY look toward the camera when SHE wants to: which means that most of our shots of her are “action” shots. Oh well, I guess I can’t complain. Better than not having any photos of her at all.

When the day was done, we walked away with quite a few nice photos. I just thought I would share a few with you!

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Wild Horses and Great Expectations

Have I mentioned that every time I do a Senior Photo Shoot that something always happens that makes the experience interesting, and sometimes bizarre?! It’s funny how these teenagers tend to attract odd circumstances, and to tell you the truth, I don’t mind. It gives me something to blog about.

“C” will be graduating from Hampden Academy in June 2011. She hopes to pursue a career as an OB/GYN at Northwestern, if memory serves me right. She is a basketball player for the Broncos, and has a very friendly, outgoing personality.

What Made her shoot so interesting was her horse, Cheyenne. Apparently, this poor  horse had never been photographed by a professional photographer and got a little spooked by the reflector that we were using to block the sunlight. Though she remained calm, but skeptical at first…we thought it would be a good idea to let her sniff the reflector so she could know that we were not intending to hurt her. However, this only frightened her more, and she took off, running around the yard. She wasn’t just running, she was FRISKY. She was sliding down the damp hill sides, and jumping all over the place.

Of course, I thought it would make some great photos, so I started taking pictures. My husband’s take on it is exactly this, “I was trying to protect you, every time the horse came near…and here you were, ‘ooohh, look at the pretty horsey! Let me take a picture!”. I can’t deny that I was captivated by the majesty of this huge animal frolicking in the yard so freely, and YES…of course, I took pictures!

We also had another furry friend join us for the shoot as well. Sidney is the beloved family golden retriever. She lives up to her breed in every way possible. She as truly delightful, and I was able to capture a few great ‘dog-smiles’ with her and “C” to gether.

“C”‘s pictures were all taken outside in natural light, including those with a backdrop. We spent a considerable amount of time controlling the light. We had a lot of  harsh light and shadows to deal with that day. The wind was also a factor. However, “C” is a beautiful gal and taking stunning photos of her wasn’t too difficult for us at all. The only thing hard for her was getting her to practice her “serious” face….apparently she is rarely found without a smile!

Thank you to the Flewelling family for making us part of your Senior Photography experience. It was a pleasure getting to know you.

P.S. Thanks “Dad” for helping us block!

P.S.S. Here’s a sneak peek at “C”‘s Senior Photos So far!

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TWINS!!!

Today’s Senior Portrait Session was unique. Although, it seems as though every time I have a Senior session, something interesting happens. I met the funniest set of twins today (my first, in fact). E and R had a very quirky, fun relationship, and I thoroughly enjoyed working with them.

We started off at Fort Point State Park at the lighthouse. It was a beautiful, sunny day even though the shadows were a bit harsh. After we finished our first round of portraits, R looked up at the sky and informed me that it would rain within the next 24 hours. R has been a boy scout (now, an Eagle Scout) since he was just a young boy and he enjoys studying the weather. Dismissing that comment as nothing more than useful information, after picking his brain about how he reached his conclusions- we continued on to find another location for the next round of portraits.

We wound up down at the pier at Fort Point State Park. It was the strangest thing, I had my face behind the camera, the sun was bright and cheery and then suddenly, a dark cloud loomed above. We stood there, marveling at the sky for a few moments, discussing how “angry” it looked and figured it would probably start raining soon. So, I offered to finish their Senior Portraits at no additional charge on a different day because I didn’t want to risk getting my camera/equipment wet. As we were packing up, a speed boat came right up to the dock at the end of the pier. A man shouted to us from the boat asking, “Hey, where all the white women at?!”. It was VERY random, and we thought it was funny. R shouted back, “Elsewhere!!”. The speed boat drove off. Odd.

Then, my cell phone rang…it was my husband calling. I interrupted him before he could get a word in edgewise because the wind picked up and it seemed evident that it was definitely going to rain (I guess “R” was correct!). I told my husband, “I have to go so I can get to the car, I think it’s going to rain any second now!”. He confirmed my suspicions by telling me that it had just finished down-pouring on Church Street, about 3 miles up the road.

No sooner did I hang up with him, and we felt the first drops of rain. I began having a mini freak-out session since I was wearing a white shirt….ladies, I’m sure you can understand my dilemma! For those of you who are not familiar with Fort Point State Park, the pier feels like it’s about a half mile away from the lighthouse parking lot where both our vehicles were located at the time…. I didn’t run, but I certainly put on a pretty fast paced brisk walk for someone who is still out of shape. It wouldn’t have been SOOoo bad, but there was a young man on the shoot (since he was a Senior I was photographing), not to mention today just happened to be FREE admission to State/National parks, so there were quite a few more people than there would have typically been!

Needless to say, God was good to us and held the rain back so that we could get to our cars before it let loose- which I appreciated very much! I will give them a second photo session to give them a better variety on another day….but enjoy the sneak preview we have available right now!

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Little Peanut!

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of photographing a great family at Mossman Park in Searsport. “Mom” had hoped to get some great shots of “L” for her 2 year pictures, but little “L” had a different plan! It didn’t take long for me to figure out that she was totally fine having her portraits done, as long as she was the one calling the shots! This is very typical of young children, and I didn’t mind since it’s often very difficult to pose little ones.

We even snagged a few great shots of “L”‘s big sister, “K”. “K” is about 11 or 12 years old, and very photogenic. The only thing I would have changed on this shoot is that I would have spent more time with “K” because she was so great with the camera. She’s a natural “model”  and I loved how no matter what “pose” she put herself in, she looked fantastic!

I was able to snag a couple of great family shots as well. I even got some of “K” with her Dad! “K” is starting to approach the age where she’ll start to be

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completely annoyed with her parents, so I feel blessed that I was able to get one of what is likely the last “Daddy’s little girl” pictures she’ll have with her father….well, until the wedding anyway!

Thank you to the Smith-Shute family for giving me the opportunity to capture  your beautiful little family through my lens!

Rapunzel’s Senior Photo Shoot

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Yesterdays photo shoot with Christin was a lot of fun. We achived a lot of “firsts” yesterday during the session. She set the record for the most outfit changes, longest senior portrait shoot(although you cannot tell just HOW long her hair is from THESE photos, I assure you- it IS VERY long!) , most number of photos taken for a senior session, longest hair ever photographed by us, first session partially photographed at a car dealership (see www.gregsautosales.net)  and many others.

For a sweet, young gal who claims to be camera shy because she believes she is not photogenic- I think she’ll see herself in a different light after she sees her senior portraits. Here is a sneak peak at a few photos we have ready so far! Enjoy, Christin and family- and thanks for making us part of your Senior experience!

Beautiful Wedding

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On Saturday, August 14 2010, JC Photography had the honor of photographing a very sweet wedding between a bride and a groom who were clearly madly in love. Their love story started where they  met online three years ago when the bride lived in her native land,Thailand, and the groom was serving our country in Iraq. The bride and the groom dated throughout those 3 long years. He waited 10 long months to marry this young lady after proposing to her, and after what they’ve been through- that must have seemed like an eternity to wait.

The weather was perfect that day, and the ceremony was simple and sweet, just like the couple. They were surrounded by a small group of the grooms family and friends who welcomed the new bride with open arms.

I had the opportunity to take a few photos as the ladies were getting ready for the wedding ceremony. The soon to be mother in law had worked diligently to prepare the most perfect wedding for her son and daughter in law. The maid of honor will also be a daughter in law as soon as she is married into the family in a few months. Sadly, I will not have the pleasure of photographing another beautiful,photogenic bride in the family because they are planning on getting married in Jamaica!

The ceremony was beautiful. It was in no way over embellished. It was very simple and truly lovely. It was an intimate, small gathering and the family was so loving and inviting. Reflecting back on my own wedding seven years ago, I wish we had gone with our own idea for a similar small wedding- although I’ll never be a bride again on this Earth…I’ll just have to convince my husband that we need to renew our vows, and do it right the next time!

We were so thankful for the opportunity to be part of such a special, and beautiful day. I know that these two love birds will bless each other deeply throughout their years. May God richly bless your marriage Ben and Fon Patrick!

Seniors On The Green

We had already attempted to shoot this session three different times on three different days. For various reasons, we had to reschedule. This time, the third time really was a charm. The photo shoot went well.

We started our shoot at the fountain where we knew we would get some great shots. Right next to that was the ninth hole. What’s a Senior Shoot at the golf course without a photo at the ninth hole?! After that, we rode a golf cart around the course since it was about 3 miles long, and we were racing the clock until the sun was going to set. I let Allen drive…..and he gave me quite a ride. I thought it was a little funny that what was visible from the parking lot was that all of the “roads” that the carts were supposed to drive on were paved. However, when we started riding around the course, NONE of the other paths were paved. They looked almost like ATV trails, and Allen had no mercy on me, but the course was a great place for photos.

After the golf course photos were done, we headed down to Mossman Park to grab a few shots by the ocean. The rocky landscapes and the water made some great backgrounds. After almost two hours of photo shooting caused my “model” to become tired. It definitely seems like guys are not so excited to take pictures like girls do. Girls will stay there for a few hours if  you let them!

Here are some sneak previews from the session:

What makes a PROFESSIONAL Photographer & Other stuff..

Awhile back, there was a comment made on either my husbands Facebook page or a mutual friend of ours. This person was a teenager who seemed to be peeved that “anyone and everyone” wants to be a professional photographer, and markets themselves as such these days. Generally speaking, I would tend to agree with this concern.

Based on my own experience as a photographer, it is indeed true that almost every shoot I go on, SOMEONE says that want to be a professional photographer. Suddenly, many people love photography and everyone who loves it thinks they can just become one by self-proclamation.

Furthermore, it is also true that teenagers and stay at home moms alike are creating businesses from scratch with little or no money. Is that a crime? No!  Does that mean they are good at photography, just because they claim to be professional? No (buyer beware!) !!! Is it necessarily the best thing for real professional photographers that so many people are self-proclaiming professionals? Definitely NOT!

What makes a professional photographer?  It’s a question that gets asked a lot. I hope to get a real answer to this question someday too.  I’d like to call myself a professional photographer in addition to being a ‘professional’ stay at home mom among other things.  I know that there isn’t a definitive answer, but here are seven possible credentials that would make one a professional photographer:

Does it Pay The Rent/Bills?– People say that if you make at least 80 % of your living from your business, you are a pro.  It all depends on the person, but overall, if you can make enough to live on your photography salary, this seems to be the number one qualification of being a professional photographer. I would tend to believe that this might not be a good qualifier these days because of the fact that we are in a colossal economic slump. I know that a lot of photographers are struggling to pay much of anything right now. Nevertheless, I believe that this is still a qualifier. Having enough money from your photography business to actually pay your bills would indicate that you do have enough business that people regard you as a professional…but again, there are a lot of great photographers who are “starving artists” lately.

Impressive With Photoshop skills? –Many people have impressive Photoshopping skills. The unsurpassed power of Adobe Photoshop  and other professional photo editing software programs like Lightroom make it easy to make a “so-so” photographs stand out from the rest. The truth is that  photographers have always been able to edit a photo in some way, to an extent. I think Photoshop has made it much easier. However, I would personally tend to say that this doesn’t qualify you as a professional photographer, but a professional photo editor (there are other titles that could be used to describe this talent). It is still an enticing money making career though, and I don’t want to take anything away from the amazingly talented people who take boring photos and make them fabulous. It definitely takes talent.

Number of publications? – I know several photographers who have some of their photographs published  in local magazines,museums, brochures , and other media venues. Some have even photographed TV Personalities. Though only one or two of these people would consider themselves professionals, I have to wonder, does the number of clients or publications you’ve been published in automatically make you a professional photographer? You can be a stellar photographer, but have few clients because of the recession, your prices, or the simple fact that your style doesn’t jive with media venues that might publish you.Plus, in this day and age, it’s not always WHAT you know…it’s WHO you know. If you don’t know the right people, you may not get published even if you deserve to!  It’s an interesting paradigm.

Technical quality of their work? – Some people can read a digital camera manual and master the major features that impact a given situation (shutter speed, aperture, sharpness, ISO, etc.). Does that make them professional?  At the very least, it makes them very intelligent. However, without having the primary artistic elements of color, composition, lighting, perspective, negative space (and many other things)  even the most impressive sharp, undistorted photographs can be lack interest, and boring to look at.  Mastering the technical elements of the picture and your camera is important, but there is definitely more to making a great picture than what can be taught in the manual.

People calling you a pro? – Another potential qualification of a professional photographer I’ve heard of is that people regard you as a professional. To me, this seems to be one of the greatest honors. It means that OTHER people regard YOU so highly that they feel that YOU have all of the skills, knowledge and tools to actually pay you the honor of calling you a professional. If people are constantly asking for your advice or critiques, your expertise, or consistently refers other clientes to you for advice or to have their pictures taken could all be seen as evidence of your professional photographer status. I believe this is one of THE most important qualifications because in photography, your clients ARE your business. They are the ones who ensure that the first suggested qualifier is met (paying the bills).

The “EYE” factor? – They have an “eye” for it. Some photographers just have that uncanny ability to create stunning photos that draw you in, and make you say “wow.”  Sometimes it evokes a strong emotion, sometimes it takes you to the scene where it was taken, and other times, it just makes you want to laugh or cry.  It’s often difficult to put into words what it actually is, but we know it when we see it.  Is a professional someone who can force a feeling like this in their photos more often than other photographers can? I believe that this is also another qualifier probably equally as important as having others consider you to be a professional. This “EYE” factor is typically something the person is born with…it comes from God..it’s in their “blood”…whatever it is- it cannot be taught and it’s hard to find. Therefore, those photographers with the “Eye” for photography are incredibly talented, and highly desirable.

Something else?

Is there something else that you feel makes a professional photographer? What sets apart an amateur or hobbyist from a true professional?

This weekend is going to be quite busy. We are celebrating the birthdays of our son and daughter at Belfast Park this Saturday…which is also one of the days of the Maine Celtic Celebration. There is a parade the morning of the birthday party, our party is in the afternoon, and then there are going to be Fireworks…JUST for my son and daughter! (wink wink)…You’d better believe there will be MUCH celebrating and many photos so stay tuned for that.

Busy-Ness

I know it’s been far too long since we’ve written on this blog. I promise you, we have in fact been busy with photography. We have had family, maternity, Senior and Prom portrait shoots. Several of you have emailed and asked where we’ve been, so I’ll just fill you in!

March-May were filled with a Southern Maine family shoot on a rainy day. Unfortunately, I cannot share those previews because the family wanted to keep the pictures private. In April, we were hired to photograph the Searsport High School prom. It was a blast! The results were stunning! We had a great time, and have gained back the trust of several high schoolers who were discouraged over the last few years by the results from the portrait photographers who were hired to do their prom. Here’s a peek:

At the beginning of June, we did a maternity shoot. I was very pleased with the results, and we have a few images to share from that.

Toward the middle of June, we began getting calls for Senior Portrait Sessions. Our slots have booked up very quickly, and we only have about three sessions left. So, if you were hoping to have us do your pictures, now would be the time to call before we get completely filled up.

In the mean time, we have a couple of family sesisons to do for about three different families. We are now booking into September for all sessions. September is actually going to be busy in general (not just with our photography business), but in life in general. I have been helping the YMCA to organize an unprecidented Biggest Loser Competition that will begin on Wednesday September 8th at 6:30PM. Registration for the event begins on July 23rd until August 26th- pick up your application at the front desk and email me for details. JC Photography will be donating the Before and After pictures of the contestants. The three grand prize winners will also win a free professional portrait session as well! There are weekly challenges and prizes awarded to the winning contestant. It will be great fun, and we hope to see YOU there!

Our vehicle should finally be lettered by the end of August. We are thinking of only lettering the side windows with white vinyl lettering…so, we’ll be easy to spot!

We’re looking forward to your portrait session, so call us today to set up an appointment!