In my post on Sunday about contracts I briefly mentioned I had my heart set on purchasing a Shootsac this week.  Well, on Monday I DID IT!! I'm the proud owner of a Shootsac bag and "Cheerful" cover (a new pattern).

I often find inspiration in patterns.  How they connect, how colors are integrated, the color schemes a designer/company chose to go with the pattern, what the textures like, etc.  It inspires me with layouts sometimes, sometimes with photography even because I think that a fabric can feel a certain way whether happy, sad, whatever, and it inspires me to do crafty things too.

Here's the fabric of my new Shootsac bag cover:

It's cheery, it bright.  It's fun.  It reminds me of me actually. :-)  I think that the doodling on the fabric and the different patterns in the petals of the flowers is really whimsical too actually and I try to be that way and as a result I find that I tend to try to be whimsical with my photo shoots.

I find a lot of inspiration in fabrics in the pages of catalogs too.  I love looking through the Crate and Barrel catalog.  This comforter reminds me how effective simple shadows and silhouettes can be:

Fabrics also inspire me to think outside the box and out of my own comfort zone.  Urban Outfitters is another catalog I receive in the mail.  This dress isn't necessarily something I'd buy but maybe it's something a potential client would.  Also, it sort of reminds me of a desert (I guess New Mexico/Arizona popped into my head when I saw it) and it makes me think of unique locations I may not otherwise dream of.

I hope it's inspired you to give some thought to the pages of the next catalog you thumb through in your house!  There's more in there than what's for sale.

Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday!

Last Sunday I blogged about contracts (including getting paid).  This is a continuation of that post since I've researched it a bit further and have learned new information from last week.

I asked around to see how people formulate their contracts for their photography businesses.  Some people draft them themselves and have their lawyers review them to make sure they're "kosher" while others have turned to pre-existing contracts that are available for purchase online.  I think I may go with that option!  Why spend time drafting my own contract if someone else has already made a killer document that considers all bases? 

Two such contracts I was directed to were:

1. Designs Aglow Wedding Photography Contract (currently $150)
2. Photographer's Tool Kit Contracts (which has a variety of contracts but comparatively speaking their wedding contract's currenly $49/$59)

Photographer's Tool Kit offers a wedding contract, portrait session contract, and associate's contract (for someone that assists for you, like a second shooter).  You can actually purchase all three for $105/$125 depending on whether you're a Sole Proprietor or Corporation/LLC. 

Actually, I just saw on their site they have a commercial photography contract too.  Just an FYI in case anyone reading is looking for something like that.

I'm sure if you wanted to continue searching for more options online for contracts their certainly out there!  But for me, this is perfectly fine because I trust and respect those that recommended it to me and the price is right.

Regarding "how to get paid," I researched this a bit too.  I thought most people went with a third party vendor that could accept credit cards but I was wrong!  I actually thought most people would not accept checks due to fear of the checks bouncing but it turns out that's what most people I asked do!  They brought up a good point - clients need to pay in advance so there's no question checks can bounce!  They pay a deposit to hold their date then the balance in advance of the actual event as well.  I feel more comfortable with this option now.

The down side to accepting credit cards is that you have to pay a third party vendor a percentage, just like PayPal. However, if that's the route you want to take just do your research before deciding to go with one company over another.  Also, negotiate with them to get the percentage fee down.  Someone said all they had to do was ask and voila!  The percentage fee her company charged her was lowered.  Never hurts to ask, right?

But back to PayPal as an option.  I never even thought to look into it.  I use it for personal reasons and have a personal account like I'm sure most readers out there do.  But if you go to their site and look on their top toolbar you'll see the following tabs, "Home," "Personal," "Business," and "Developers."  Here's the business tab link.  Paypal can do a number of things for you as a businnes, dealing with money. 

1. Accept credit cards on a website
2. Accept credit cards by "Virtual Terminal," which is by phone, fax or mail
3. Add PayPal as a payment option on your site (if people want to directly pay you from their PayPal account)
4. Issue rebates and commissions

I think the plus side to using a name like PayPal is that it's well known and people trust it.  Of course one service isn't necessarily the answer.  If people don't want to pay by check or cash (I'm envisioning cash for the lesser expensive things like portrait sessions) then I'll have to have an additional option so perhaps PayPal's great to keep in the back of my mind.  Someone mentioned it's about $30/mth for a business account with PayPal but I haven't gotten that far into my research to confirm this.

The bottom line is that it's a business so don't skimp on a good, solid contract.  And of course seeing as it is a business and most likely a source of income for you, you'll certainly want to get paid!  I hope that this post has helped you out a little bit like the information greatly helped me.

On another note the huge WPPI (Wedding & Portrait Photographers International) convention is this week in Las Vegas.  About 10,000 people attend and, sadly, I will not be one of them.  I didn't find out about it until a few weeks ago so it was unlikely I could pick up and go with a full time job I care greatly about and the funds just weren't there so I'm going to plan on going/saving for next year's convention!  I hope that some of my peers and [b] schoolers bring back tons of information to share!

Luckily some vendors are offering special deals this week on their products - the same deals they're offering at the convention are being offered on their sites.  I've had my heart set on a Shootsac for a while now and this week's the week I'm going to get one because they're on sale, starting tomorrow, for three days!

Here's the bag, with the cool "switch the covers" feature.  

And here's the promotional trade show pricing that lasts until Wednesday this week:

It's a bag for carrying lenses while shooting.  It's not intended for holding your camera body and/or storing lenses while you're not shooting.  I have my Crumpler for that!

I also hope that Bludomain will reveal their new site designs this week because I'm so anxious to see them!

I'm off to enjoy the Academy Awards.  Happy Oscar Sunday!

Back to the topic of the day...

It's true.  Brunch is my absolute favorite meal.  I love food and I appreciate it so it's not that I don't adore breakfast, lunch and dinner on their own (and all snacks and desserts that go along with it) but hands down, brunch is my favorite, particularly on a Saturday or Sunday (because, quite frankly, I work during the week). 

I love that after I've worked a hard week and have deserved some relaxation time I can get up on a Saturday, weather is beautiful (hopefully - I live in sunny Florida, after all) and go somewhere to eat brunch outside, enjoy the company I'm with, fresh air, sunshine and people watch.  And of course some delicious brunch foods and a cup of coffee or glass of unsweetened iced tea with Sweet 'n' Low and extra lemons (just how my mom made it for me growing up).  And on Sunday, it's a great celebration for a good weekend passed and the work week coming up.

I love brunch so much I scrapbook about it, take photos of the meals, and dream about where I can go when I hear that the weather's going to be great. 

Scrap box I have for brunch places:

For as much as I love brunch out at restaurants and tables on the sidewalk in Winter Park, FL and other great finds, I like to be conscious of the money I spend (I need to save for camera supplies and craft stuff!) so I do enjoy brunch at my apartment most weekends and take the time to relax with whatever I've cooked, watch TV or eat on my balcony, and just enjoy the day. 

Here's a photo I took one day a while ago of a rainbow I saw on my balcony after the rain had just stopped.  I love "rainbow season" in Florida!

As I mentioned, I love to have brunch in Winter Park, on Park Avenue.  It's just outside of Orlando.  Here's a photo of one of the places I enjoy, Park Plaza Gardens.

Here's me eating brunch there last year (I admit this photo's a year old...but I don't have recent photos - guess I'll have to go there for brunch soon again!).

The one below is of the food I got in Washington, DC summer 2009 with my aunt Tina and best friend, Lindsey.  I love sweet potato fries!!  I can't remember the name of the place but it was so good.  My aunt jokes that no one can touch the food before I can take a photo of it.

Cheesecake Factory has one hell of a breakfast/brunch menu too.  Here's my boyfriend Dan and me eating there in December.  My preference is always to sit outside but it was super cold that day!

Happy Saturday!  I think I'm going to go play with my new Adobe Lightroom Actions from Totally Rad Actions!!

So I checked at 9:11pm (I'm on EST) when I realize what time it was and anxiously scrolled down before the page loaded and saw about 5 photos posted and didn't see mine.  So I thought, "Wow great photos!  I didn't expect to win anyway." (Which is true.)  Then I just scrolled to the top one more time to read what Laurel wrote and to see which of the 5 had won, assuming a few seconds later the page had fully loaded and BAM!  There was my photo at the very top of the page! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I....AM....FLOORED!  It's true that a TON of TLC went into the photo but I never thought I'd win.  I'm one of those "never win anything" people (as I'm sure many of you may be too because there's a lot more "don't win anything" people than there are "always win something" people) and to win something I actually thought I deserved for my sincere effort was SO WONDERFUL!  I feel so special that they acknowledged the work and passion that went into my submission. 

To everyone else who entered: I was blown away by all your work and, as a lover of photography, cupcakes and the artistic process, I am sincere when I say I'm I am honored to be amongst such a fierce group of competitors and peers.

Here's my submission and the winning entry!

And here was the email I submitted along with it to let Laurel and the judges know the detail, care and time and energy that went into my photo:

To Laurel and Cupcake Panel -

When I read about this contest I was immediately energized and anxious to enter.  I'm a cake decorator and photographer (aspiring professional anyway) and this was the perfect opportunity to practice and fine tune my skills in both.  There was some self-imposed pressure when I started to think what I would do.  How would I get your attention?  Make my cupcakes sparkle and shine?  Make it unique?  When it came down to it, I decided to be me.  To emulate my personality and passion through a clear vision.

The vision that popped into my head was of a few cupcakes in a row (five to be exact - a nice number with a beginning, middle and end) with varying purple shades of buttercream frosting, some white sprinkles (to keep it classy!), silver cupcake papers and a bold painting in the background.  I love bright, bold colors and always gravitate towards gradients/ombre so I envisioned a backdrop that would illustrate falling sprinkles; they'd be dense on top and sparse at the bottom.  Bright orange and yellow paint would complete the look I was going for - lavender to purple cupcakes with an orange to yellow painting...delicious in every way.  (I like to paint when I have the time so now I was combining three hobbies: baking, photography and painting. Glorious!)

A LOT of T.L.C went into the shoot, which I took very seriously artistically, personally and professionally.  I spent a good 5 hours drawing my design on the canvas and painting it (I'm a perfectionist) and at least that long on the cupcakes between making them, filling them (they're actually chocolate cupcakes with a chocolate chip cannoli filling), and mixing the buttercream colors (which took longer than I'd like to admit to get the colors just right).  After that was all done, I spent quite a lot of time getting just the right "dome" on the actual cupcake when I piped the frosting on them (deciding it wasn't good enough a few times and scraping the icing off to try, try again!) then added sprinkles and it was time to shoot!  I set up a glorified baked goods photo shoot (cupcakes deserve star treatment, of course) in my apartment's humble kitchen on my black granite counter tops at about 1:00am (natural light's my preference but I work full time and the sun's down by the time I get home). I shot for an hour or so - hundreds of photos with two different lenses.  The reflection of the cupcakes and the painting in the polished stone was a very happy, welcomed surprise. 

I have to say that I'm really proud of my entry and it turned out better than I had imagined.   So much time and energy went into every detail of the photo that is attached.  More importantly, it's filled with love and care for the processes and art forms it took to create it from baking to painting to photography. 

BE SURE TO TREAT YOURSELF TO SOMETHING *SWEET* TODAY!  I know I will be. :-) HAPPY FRIDAY!

Here's a few of my favorite pieces from the results.

12x12" My Minds Eye sheet of paper, "Photo Details Life Stories Paper" (Life Stories is a line of theirs).  I love the line items on the right! 

Hambly Studios is awesome.  They're one of my favorite companies.  They have these amazing "Photography Rub Ons" in black, hot pink and silver.  Apparently they're so popular, Two Peas is currently sold out of the black. (Hambly has an incredible cupcake transparency, by the way - I cannot wait to get my hands on it!)

And lastly, I really love this stamp by Studio Calico. Need I say more?

Let me know if you find any cool craft thing having to do with cameras or photography and I'll do the same. 

Have a wonderful Thursday! 

AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST FRIEND ANYONE COULD ASK FOR, BECCA!  I LOVE YOU!!

This project's from Classic Bride.  I love ranunculus flowers too so when I saw the flowers in the bottles it immediately caught my eye.  I love how thick the glass is and the different colors.  It's just so light and airy.

How cool is this Kodak camera from CollectibleCameras.com?  I love that there's a history linked to the vintage items and it just exudes that it has a history.  And I really like that looking at a vintage camera like this reminds me that I'm engaging in a profession and hobby that has been around a long, long time and has helped us capture memories of the past.

I found this vintage shelf on Etsy.  I lovvveeee this color!  I may have to get this one day.  If you're interested, the seller's name is cottagehomedecor, by the way.

Jessica Claire's vintage photography look she can achieve is incredible.  It's part of why I love checking out her site a few times a week!  I also love the look of this wedding. Check out more from Jessica's blog post here.

I'll probably be posting about more vintage finds that inspire me in the future so stay tuned if they inspire you too!

Enjoy you Wednesday...halfway to the weekend!

I used to see photos of couples and families in other geographical locations and get jealous.  Particularly of the photo shoots in amazing praries and mountain regions with wonderful grasses all around and impressive natural landscapes that rose tall in the background.  And granted we still don't have that in Florida (not anywhere I know of anyway) but I don't get as envious knowing that if you look carefully enough beautiful places are all around.  I think this is why I'd never prefer studio photography.  Why stay indoors when you can go outside and explore?

From nearby parks to loading docks to a baby's room furnished by loving parents, there's really gorgeous settings all around us.  Here's a few photos I've taken that I was happily surprised with the setting(s).

I did a newborn shoot with my friend Crystal's baby Adeline last week.  I was a little nervous that the lighting may not be great, where would we shoot cool pictures, what if the baby was non-cooperative, etc. but the truth was that I had an awesome lens that made the lighting a non-issue (50mm f/1.4), the baby's room was so gorgeous (I'd been to her house before but that was long before she was even pregnant) it provided amazing photo ops, and I realized that even if all that didn't fall into place simply photographing Adeline in her parents' arms was plenty.  Here's proof:

This next shoot was of my co-worker Kathy and her daughter, Jennifer.  They were the ones that suggested this location.  It's what I would consider a super small park by their home.  It's on a lake and has this great gazebo we took photos at as well.  But one of my favorites was just of them sitting on a picnic table with the warm glow of the sun hitting them.  To me this park's a hidden gem.  You definitely either need to get lost to find it or know where it is from someone that's been there before.  Now I know where it is because they showed me and I can use it again!  Who knew it was tucked away in the neighborhood though?  Again, a beautiful surprise!

And lastly, the Trash the Dress shoot I did with the photography meet up group was truly eye-opening.  We went to Old Winter Garden in Florida (about 30 minutes from where I live), where I've been before, but never looked at it this way!  We went up and down the streets looking for really cool places to shoot.  And we found them. :-)  But again, never take for granted the beauty of a simple brick wall!

HAPPY MONDAY!  Get out there and TAKE PHOTOS!

I've been researching/contemplating so much information about what goes into a contract.  Ignorance is not a good thing in this situation, of course, but you know how ignorance is bliss sometimes?  Well, I think that often the further I get into my research. 

This post is a "to be continued" one since there's no way I can cover everything in one entry (and honestly it's SO gorgeous in Orlando today I'd be a fool to sit inside on the computer as the day passes me by - there's photos to be taken, air to breathe, sun to be soaked up) but here's my thoughts so far that I will elaborate on in the upcomings days/weeks. 

Contracts to include:

• Day/time/duration of shoot
• Location (exact location(s))
• What is to be delivered (whether it's an album, disk, online catalog, etc.)
• Copyright Information
• Price for services (however you decide it's best for you to handle this whether it's all inclusive, a la carte, etc.)
• How you are to be paid (credit card, check, cash, etc.)
• Emergency Clause (what happens if for some extenuating circumstance you're not able to be there?)

So I'll let that simmer.  Hopefully I've piqued your interest and you'll continue to follow along, even providing any advice you can offer

Happy Sunday!

I created the card below with the following: Jolee's Boutique lobster sticker (yes, pre-made), a navy blue "Slick Writer" pen by American Crafts, Cosmo Cricket "Get Happy" papers, and a cool EK Success paper punch, and the "lobster" was stamped with KI Memories stamps I got from Joanns.  And of course stamps/embossing powders/and a heat gun.

Here's the front:

And the front from an angle so you can see what's raised and flat:

And the inside:

And of course the envelope because I always try to make the envelope special too:

I still love those old school label makers!  They actually remind me of my mom because there was one in our house when I was growing up and she taught me how to use it when I was really young.

Happy Thursday!

I found Sweet and Saucy's website through Twitter.  (They're located in Long Beach, CA, btw.)  I was instantly amazed by the work they do.  The cake below spoke to me.  I often envy clean, simple design that makes a statement because I think effective minimalism is difficult to achieve.  This cake makes a statement, is elegant and reminds me how effective lines (the branches) can give the viewer's eyes direction when looking at the piece of art (which is what I think these types of cakes are).  It really has some awesome detailing (side pieces in some really wonderful earth tones) to that's tastefully done.  And as a cake designer, trust me when I tell you that CLEAN fondant cakes like this are very, very difficult to do successfully because the simplier the design the more more indents, bubbles, etc. show in the fondant and the more obvious mistakes are in piping details with gel/buttercream and such.  So again, I'm in awe of their work.

 Please click the photo for a direct link to their website post that contains this cake. 

Photo credit: Meg Perotti photography, cake by Sweet and Saucy

Please visit their site and check out their gallery for more inspirational creations.

And while I'm at it, I thought I'd post a photo of a cake I made last week for a friend's birthday for her, myself and three others to share.  I'm no Sweet and Saucy shop but I do what I can in my kitchen for family and friends. :-)  (More cake photos on my Facebook fan page if you're interested see.) It was actually challenging for me because I don't normally cover a cake in buttercream for the "outside" base (I usually do fondant) and it was the first time I decorated a cake with gumpaste flowers!

 Have a sweet and inspired day!