Two for one!

Hi!  So your probably scratching your head on the two for one title...  Ill explain. I thought it would be much easier to compile two topics into one blog post, saves me time and maybe you some time :) But I think both are equally good to read.   I will start off on a Mini title of " How I got started" I think everyone likes to read about a photographer and how they got started.... right?... well maybe just the photographer who's in your area and offers photography services.

I'm willing to share my mini novel on how I got started. By the way I kind of talk about it a little on my website in the about me section.. that's also a novel beware :) Some people wouldn't put an about me on their website as long as mine but I think its good to know the person your hiring on to do your photographs!    I started out with a Kodak 8 or 10 mega pixel point and click camera that really only fends for itself by pre programed settings depending on what you were photographing. What it was pretty much doing was the camera is picking and choosing the right setting according to your selection. Anyways I got into the little things like trying to correctly set the kids together to get a somewhat good shot so I could show family, choosing what to photograph at what angle, what was pretty in my eyes and what was just plain ugly.. from there I started to do unique things like photographing the small details of things like an over head shot of my daughter holding a redish orange leaf in her hands that just seemed as if it didn't have a crinkle on it and the fall day light was perfect. After doing these things for a while and just packing around my little camera; my mother law had always lugged around her DSLR camera that she was so famous for using ALL the time and I mean all the time.. not that that is a bad thing, its actually good because she got a lot of good shots because of her consistency to wear that thing around her neck like Jay Z wears his bling around his neck... but back to the fact that this is who really truly introduced me into the life of the DSLR cameras. My mother in law Ann opened that door for me the day she was holding my newborn daughter Karlee back in 2006, she said " here look through the view finder and it will automatically adjust the lens and just push the button" this is while she was holding my daughter over her shoulder sleeping... As soon as I took a few shots I was pleasantly surprised that I could definitely use one of these cameras and thought I just took some amazing pictures! After those pictures one of them was her favorite and it looked just right so from there she printed and framed the picture for keeps.   If I were to have been in a store before when I owned my little what I thought was the best thing on earth Kodak camera and would have even looked in the direction of those big hunky DSLR cams I was immediately intimidated by them and  walked the other way!  but because of Ann she has opened and encouraged a spot for photography in my life, though I never really thought I would eventually want to offer it to the locals in my area it has blossomed that far because of her willingness to share and encourage and show me/teach me all about the cameras other than the manuals themselves fresh out of the box! My desire for a DSLR was strong and eventually was given one by my wonderful husband who also had faith in me to take on more than just a Kodak and no editing skill what so ever.My ability to photograph has always been a natural one but the skill of mastering photo shop is still a work in progress! I have learned much but certainly not all of everything in adobe or at least how to do it along with everything that goes into photography itself... this is why I am glad to say or proud to say I am self taught! getting a degree in it or taking some classes in it is never a bad thing.. I'm considering it just because!  

So this is really how I got started, it might sound kind of not so fascinating but to me its everything, it does mean much to me because I wouldn't be here typing if that one little sentence Ann had said and all the encouraging that she gave along with it. So if Photography is something you TRULY love with your little heart then do it and take the advice many have given to me and I will now give to you.. Keep it up and keep practicing.. If your looking to make a lot of money off it fast ... good luck.  Some of the Professional photographers I have spoken to have said to me its not always about the equipment you have its more about what you know. So with that said learn it up, teach yourself , read, ask and study!   

So what about the other half of this post... oh yes more photography talk!  

Am I a business or a brand? No one has really ever asked me that before but I thought about it and kind of sort of asked myself upon this one. I would have to say that I don't think I'm really a business but I think of myself more of  a brand of photography. I say this because in the state I live in, if you make less than I believe 10- 20 thousand dollars a year off of photography then you really need not to apply for a business license though you are permitted to do to reserve the name even though you are not paying taxes out. In this case that is not the dollar amount I have made! I hope one day photography can bring me to those heights! Under state law if your under that money bracket then your just considered a paid hobbyist or just a hobbyist.   Some people have asked me how I started my own business, again I really don't think of myself in that manner even though I use marketing like listing sites to get myself out there and I carry a business card with my information on them, I believe that I'm just another brand who is bringing what I have to the table if you will because every one is creatively different and unique. I recently have gotten a email of hate against the sole fact that they think I'm running a business that was not anywhere near the level of professional and they also didn't forget to mention that "did you know fact" of 90% Photography businesses fail within the first 5 years?. My response to that was that I never thought or stated I was a business but really just another brand of photography offering what I have at a professional level that is off of what I have done so far and had pleased many. I know I'm not a photographer who works for Elle magazine or anything BUT I know a lot because of my willingness or more like discipline to teach myself on the matter of photography So am I a business? no, a self taught brand of photography? YES! .. this sums up this blog for me again and as always I hope you have enjoyed!   

Vee

Update!

Update on the plague of Homecomings here on Ft. Lewis! I have had two almost back to back homecomings within this month Including the homecoming blog post that started my blog here on blog spot. The first blog post ever made on my page is the First homecoming I have done this year because of a dear friend who has lost her husband recently asked me to come and photograph the homecoming the unit. While I was there I captured many of the random families there that night to show the emotions that were filled in the air through my photographs.

The second and third homecomings were done because of the lovely word of mouth or listing sites that put people in line to have this precious happy day photographed by me. I was honored to do so for the fellow military wives and servicemen for everything they sacrafice even though Iam one myself and completely understand their struggles, pains and final happiness upon the return of their loved ones.

To Mrs. DaLee and her husband Tom, congratulations and welcome home! I captured some of the most unique, emotion filled pictures while the homecoming ceremony took place at the Sheridan Gym on base and the lighting was horrible but with a bit of my knowledge I was able to make it look or at least appear as if lighting wasn't an issue. This couple was fun to photograph as most people are in this situation because of the happiness it brings to not only them but the one behind the lens... me! Maybe its more heartfelt for me because Im a military wife myself but how could it not bring happy tears to your eyes?!

Really truly a beautiful couple! Best of wishes to your family!

My third homecoming family will be posted to this update as soon as they are as always artfully touched :) Thanks for looking!

To little? To much? who knows?!

Hi there Readers!

I really wanted to write a small piece on the following subject : "Photographers who charge to much or to less for their work qualified to be sold as art or not" I have run across so many posts or blogs that deal with the topic of how a newbie photographer charges to much or to less and weather they are qualified or not. While I understand from both avenues on this subject I guess it depends on what going on in within the issue. 

I hear a lot of the saying " You get what you pay for" Not only have I heard it, I have said it myself. I think that a lot of that holds true. There are some people out there that can do photos like no other you have seen before but still offer it at a low price.

Low price can mean different things to different people where $100 is to expensive for some and then there people who figure $350 isn't expensive at all. If It were me I would probably fall in between the two prices depending on what the photographer was offering me and what I would receive in return for my payment.

You get what you pay for when the work looks overly processed by saturation in the skin tones mainly, the photo doesn't have enough light in it to even see whats photographed and everything looks so sharp that it could cut your eyeballs right of the socket! so what did you pay for this ? maybe $25, $50, maybe even $100? FREE? If you paid anything for something like this I'm truly sorry for your loss because this isn't what I would have ever paid for. I'm not saying I'm perfect and I have made my mistakes in the beginning  only to be learned from where need be. I think that if someone is going to offer photography as something that is going to be a paid gig for them then it needs to be respectably comparable to whats being offered by the Pro's educated or self taught because this is whats going to sell not stuff that give people the shriek of "OMG what is that?!" Also If there is someone who is okay maybe semi good but not amazing at what they do then the prices should not be as high as the Trump towers in New York.  Its not right. I think that IF there is caution being used by the person who's trying to offer photography to the locals then they will stop to think if their work is enough to be amateur maybe really good amateur for it to be sold as a service that's comparable or at least good enough for people who enjoy it and also to be comparable to the other newbies/amateurs who are in the same boat.

To even consider a photographer for my choice I would shop to find who makes the Quality and has the skill behind it, again educated or self taught. I say this because some of the best photographers come from both sides with degrees and some without degrees. Also consider their personality and how they are around yourself, kids or family because I feel it would be important to have someone you felt comfortable around. Everyone wants a really good photograph of something at some point in time of their lives and so this makes it an important matter to find this in someone who is talented, skilled or educated in the matter of producing quality images and makes you want to come back because of their personality.

Second look at their prices and compare to the qualified photographers that are in your top 3, 5 or 10 ( if you have that many to choose from) and see which one is going to be of more value to YOU. Sometimes you make sacrifices on what you would want or don't want but in the case of photography and finding a good photographer this shouldn't be a sacrifice to you, though a price can sometimes hinder what we truly want and what we can only afford. In this case I think its safe to say that its okay to continue shopping and you will eventually find something you want but also can afford.

Some photographers who have been going at it for years are furious with the newbies because of the low price offers, fearing that it will take away from them in a location that is shared by many other brands of photography especially if they are a newbie who's really good at what they do and could pass for someone who's also been doing it for years. Then there are some who really could care less. For those who are upset by the newbies that are excellent I think its great to encourage and support a fellow member of the photographers society rather than be angry because the newbie in town may just be doing it as a side hobby that's paid (assuming they have built a respectable portfolio) or they could just be trying to do it full time to depend on it as their primary source of income. If you are a professional who would be nice enough to say " Hey I think your work is amazing and really could sell for more than you are offering it to people for" that's wonderful and helpful to the newbie and creates oodles of joy and happiness for them to receive such a compliment.

I could just LOL because this is a highly debated topic within the world of photography and some wouldn't appreciate this thought I think its good to share.


Though I have never received a degree for photography or fine arts like that, I was a diamond in the rough at least that's how I always thought of it and have had the natural ability to find beauty in the weirdest places or odd ways but it makes me who  I am  in my own brand. I do my photography because I LOVE IT, its fun, because I have been encouraged, because its something I can still do while being a stay at home mother, because I have faith and confidence in it and is my brand I can offer people in my area at a "low" price, remember low can mean anything to anybody. I'm not trying to become rich off of it or make it my primary source of income because if it was my only source I would be charging a lot more than what I do currently. For me I'm being paid for the self taught skill, my talent and my time. Even if your a pro or amateur who's paid for your work we are all still learning new skill in this world of photography, techniques, new software, new cameras are all on the rise and it never ends.. If you think you have simply learned it ALL I wouldn't believe you, if you have learned photography for years and years or months and weeks then I would believe you only because I know its an expanding world and never just stops at the top of what we thought couldn't be tipped by anything else new and upcoming :)

I don't know how many will actually read this but feel free to leave a comment on this thread. Please keep it nice and non cut throat for the rest of us however I do accept constructive criticism  :) Thanks for reading and please be sure to read my other blog posts! 

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