Springtime babies on the way...

This past weekend I photographed 3 moms-to-be!! And this weekend I have another family session waiting for baby #3! I LOVE LOVE LOVE maternity sessions!! Here are a few pictures that I took over the weekend. 

In addition to the 3 maternity sessions, I also had 2 one year birthday sessions! Needless to say I have TONS of pictures to go through and edit. But today W's naptime is time for ME! Tonight I will edit my heart out. :)
I need to finish my 2011 scrapbook before Snapfish's birthday in April! Last year I ordered my 2010 scrapbook from Snapfish during its birthday celebration. I got it 50% off which is amazing since my books are over 100 pages. Instead of paying over $200, I paid a little over $100 for it. :)  I was just looking over some of the pages that are finished and cannot believe how fast time flies. Look at W here!!!! So tiny...

New Gift Cards!

I have been working like a busy bee on some new things for my photog biz! Right now I am in the process of making business cards. It is crazy that I never really needed them to get my business going. Facebook was my #1 way of getting clients! 
I am also hoping to make a bigger business card to be printed and put in goodie bags for moms-to-be once they go to their first OB appointment. One of my client's sister works at an OB office and said that she would be happy to add my info to their bags. 
This past weekend I finally made new gift cards! My old ones were OK, but they were just printed on index cards and kind of plain. Here is my new gift card:

Then when I went to order the prints through MPix, I realized I could have a colored back printed for free! So why not showcase the back with my work!? :)

Photog Biz Buzz...

Since I began my own photography business when Weston was 3 months old, my life has been the busiest it has ever been! I am loving it so much, but at times (a lot of times) I am so stressed out. It is so hard to keep up with the house, run a business, and most importantly care for my son! I find myself staying up all hours of the night editing, emailing clients while Weston eats his breakfast, constantly checking my Facebook business page for new likes and comments, packaging CDS ... it is seriously CRAZY! I am so happy that I found something that I love doing where I can stay at home with Weston and also make money (which we definitely need). The only time I am away from him is when I have a session and then everything else can be completed at home. When I started this back at the end of March 2011 (oh my goodness it’s been almost a year) I told friends and family, began a FB page, and then within a few weeks I had many people interested. I just scheduled my sessions whenever I could find someone to watch Weston. Some weeks I would do up to 7 sessions which was outrageous, but at the same time I think it was great way to build clients. 

Listed below are a few things that I have learned: 

1. 3 sessions a week is just the right amount (unless I have some time away during the day to edit)

2. Say NO to people- I always feel bad when someone really wants their pictures taken and I am completely booked. I always end up squeezing them in and then end of getting super stressed out about keeping up with photos. 

3. Create a work schedule- I decided for the spring and summer I will work on Tuesdays and Saturdays with the rain dates being Thursdays and Sundays. My newborn sessions will be on Tuesdays around 12 and then by 4 I can have a family session or two. Saturdays will most likely be 2 family sessions. I have tried to figure out where people would like their session to take place and if I can fit in 2 sessions at the same place back to back it works out perfectly. Less travel for me and also saves a lot of time!

4. Create a weekly schedule- I made a schedule for the week and I am hoping to stick with it! For example on Mondays I will clean the main floor of the house, finish laundry, and work from 8-10pm. Each day I will be working from 8-10pm except for Fridays and Saturdays. I hired a babysitter to come to the house on Tuesdays from 12-6pm. I will have my two to three sessions and hopefully be able to work in between sessions if there is time. So my main goal is not to work on photog business stuff except for those allotted times. If I can do that, then I will really enjoy my time with Weston every day instead of stressing over work! And maybe during nap time I can do something for me!! :)

5. Hire a babysitter- I know I said that above... but having a babysitter will be wonderful! I will not have to worry anymore about who I can find to watch the little man while I go to my sessions. I have not met her in person just yet, but have talked to her quite a bit on the telephone. She is a college student and also her family is good friends with the secretaries at the school I used to work at. And she lives very close to me too! Perfect! For now I am paying one flat rate. Some days I may be longer than usual and other days I may only need her for a few hours. So hopefully it works out for the both of us.

I am really looking forward to my springtime and summer sessions! Here’s hoping for a more organized, less stressful, and fun photography business year 2!!!! Yay!

Lens Buddy

This morning Weston and I woke up and tip-toed quietly down our creaky stairs trying not to wake Daddy. Chad worked until 4am last night finishing up a project for work that is due on Tuesday when he returns. Weston was in the best mood this morning despite his never-ending runny nose, horsy voice, and cough. He played with his tool set as I decided to get a little crafty! I have been wanting to make a buddy for my camera lens. That way my client's kiddos will have something fun to look/smile at! :)

I found this "Shutterbuddy" on Etsy and definitely knew I could remake it for a lot cheaper!

 

I went through my felt stash and picked some fun colors for my little yellow parrot! My mom gave me her 1990's scrunchie so I did not have to make the base of it. Then I cut out all of the parrot's parts: eyes, lids, eyelashes, nose, wings, and feet. His eye balls are buttons! 

I thought Weston would love playing with all of the colorful felt pieces. Instead he blew his nose in them! So I had a pile of snotty scraps that I had to throw away. Yuck! Well, at least he likes to blow his nose!!! When you give him a tissue he will blow. Lil' stinker.

 

I LOVE IT! So cute and just love the cheerful colors. I probably should name her? By the way it took about a half hour to make and I used all of my scraps! Definitely a lot better than $23 (that is how much the purple parrot costs on Etsy). Oh wait.... $26 including shipping. So proud of myself!

This is my craft cabinet. Before I had a craft room but now everything is in this one cabinet. Well I do have a few boxes stashed in other areas around the house/barn. Looks like I need to do a little organizing... ya think?!?

Happy New Year

Hello 2012! I am so excited to see what this year will bring! 2011 was spent learning how to be the best mommy I can be! And boy did I learn a lot! Today Weston and I had a super quick photoshoot to celebrate the New Year!  How cute is this?!?! I think I will be doing this every year with my kids. When they get old enough they can tell me their resolutions, but for now I came up with a few for W! :)

keeping up...

This week has been crazy!! I had 4 scheduled photo sessions, but unfortunately because of the heat two of them were canceled. On Tuesday morning, I had my first shoot of the week and the pictures turned out fabulous!! I was really happy with them and loved the location!! I think it is my new favorite spot! Wednesday afternoon I had a 3 month photoshoot with one absolutely adorable little boy! 3 months is one of the hardest ages for me to photograph. They are not at the age where you can pose them while they sleep like itty bitty newborns and they can't sit up just yet or hold up their heads for a long period of time. I ended up taking my new wooden floor mat and white basket. I took some pictures of him in there and they turned out great!!

On Tuesday, I began the "Summer Smiles" contest on my Facebook page. I started with 217 LIKES on my page and now am up to 850 fans!! Wow! Then came the emails!! A lot of people are interested in booking sessions. So I spent this week trying to catch up on all the emails! I am so happy that I decided to go through with this whole photography business. It is a little overwhelming trying to take care of Weston, keep up with house (which will be a lot harder once we move), editing photos, and finding babysitters to watch him while I have my shoots. My mom gave me some good advice... set aside specific times to do photography stuff (editing, replying back to emails, etc.). The best time for me is probably once Weston goes to sleep at night. So from 8-11pm is work time!! That way when he naps during the day I can get housework accomplished. I am still trying to figure out how many shoots I should plan in a week. 3 or 4?? If I do three, I will definitely be busy... but boy we could use the money! So I think I may alternate weeks. 3 shoots one week and then the next 4. I doubt I will be that busy, but come Fall everyone wants those Christmas pics! Winter will be my slow time so that is when I will get lots done around the house and maybe try to host mini sessions or more contests?? One more thing about photog... last night I bought a backdrop stand!! Thank goodness! I looked a little questionable going into my 3 month shoot with an Elmer's project board! Good thing the mom knew me and could care less! Thanks Diane for understanding!! :)   Now I will look more like a professional with my stand! It should be coming in 2 days! Just in time for my newborn shoot on Wednesday morning!

Weston has been crawling ALL over the place!! I am counting down the days until we can move back into our home!!! This little house that we are staying in now is not baby proofed at all! It is kind of hard to baby proof with boxes and junk ALL over the place! Now that Weston is pulling himself up makes it even worse. He is falling and bonking his head non-stop too! We needed to just get out and go somewhere with space so we headed for Aunt Missy's on Thursday and Friday. 8 more days to get in and paint and 2 more weeks until move in day! Wahoooo!

WPC- Surprise & Orange

Shutterboo Weekly Photo Challenge

Last Wednesday's word was "surprise". Perfect word because for weeks now I have been wanting to take birthday pics of Weston celebrating to give out to family members for their birthday! So here it is:

 And I am a few days early for this week's challenge... the word "orange". Weston and I found this pretty flower in Mumsy's garden.

Taking off...

It seems like my photography business is really taking off! It is a dream job! I am loving every minute!! I cannot believe I actually followed through with my hopes to one day start my own business. It still seems kind of unreal to me! I am having a blast!

At times it is a little overwhelming. Taking pictures of children is hard work! My previous experience as a kindergarten teacher has helped me out tremendously. I am able to get on the children's level and enjoy my time with them as I snap, snap away! But, boy... I sweat my tush off!! I don't know if it is my nerves or if it is hot out, but at the end of the shoot I am soaking wet! 

Right after almost EVERY shoot, I totally panic. Did I do a good job? Did I get enough shots of each kiddo? I should have done this! Oops I wish I did that. Ugh. I just freak out every time. After editing the pictures, I am usually pretty happy with the outcome. I am definitely my own worst critic. 

There is always room to grow. Each day I am learning something new. I am so psyched that I am finally using the manual mode of my camera. I have taught myself all about the aperture, ISO, shutter speed, etc. But again... I can learn more. 

This week I am totally booked with photoshoots. I had 2 last week, a family session tomorrow, 3 month photoshoot on Wednesday, and another family on Saturday. I also have a baby girl due on Tuesday (her mama is getting induced). So I am hoping to take her photos before we leave for the beach on Monday.

I am hosting a photo contest on my Facebook page hoping this will get me more fans which will then get me more clients! I hope! To my Harford County/Baltimore county family and friends who are reading...PLEASE recommend me to anyone/everyone you think may need a photographer. I offer gift certificates too!  

And to finish off my post... I just had to share Weston's 7 month photo shoot! I cannot believe it has been 7 months!!!!! We had so much fun shooting these pictures. My mom would scream, dance, clap, and make funny noises to get Weston to laugh and smile while Uncle Joe was blowing bubbles. Thanks Gaga and Uncle Joe! I cannot wait to get these pictures framed for the bathroom (thanks Katie for the great idea)!! :)

WPC... I am back!!

I did not forget about the Shutterboo Weekly Photo Challenge. I have been trying to keep up with it, but a few weeks just slipped away. The last WPC I had posted was Week 21-Anger. So here are the other photos I completed, but never seemed to have the time or energy to post. There are a few weeks that I missed and I do intend to make them up (someday)!!

Week 24- Shadow (no picture)

I actually had a picture for this one, but deleted it and this is why- I was driving up the driveway coming home from my mom’s house and ALL of the cows were huddled together in this one little bit of shade from the tree’s shadow. I hurried up and parked the car, took Weston out of his car seat, ran into the little house to get my camera, and headed for the cows! In that short of time all of the cows decided to head to another area of the pasture. I was SO upset! It would have been the perfect picture.  

Week 26- Distortion - totally forgot to even look at the challenge word that week. 

Week 22 Brown

Week 23 Open

Week 25- person (my favorite person in the world)

Week 27- nighttime

Prop- repainted pink chair & more...

Do you think this is pink enough? Well, I do!!

I also painted the other chair blue.

Yesterday I stopped by one of my favorite stores, Belle Patri, and bought this old stool. Another possible prop? Maybe for a newborn. It will also be useful in Weston's bedroom. His room (in our soon to be home again) has tall closets and I could never reach the top. So this stool will definitely come in handy and will also go with the vintage decor in his room! (While at Belle Patri, my car broke down. Chad and Harrison had to come to the rescue. Weston and I enjoyed a lemon snowball while waiting. Thank goodness the snowball stand was close by!)

My wonderful hubby bought me lens hoods for both of my lenses!! They came in the mail today. Too bad the storm canceled my photoshoot this evening. I wanted to try them out. I did a few with/without the lens hood and boy you can tell the difference! Although some photos I intentionally want to have the sun flare on the pic. He sent me this picture while I was at my mom's house... I was so happy. :)