Striving artist! Will work for cash, check MC or Visa!

Striving artist! Will work for cash, check, MC or Visa!

My grandmother used to say, "if you never ask, you'll never get it." Well, I'm asking for your business. Be in touch.

Taking Time to Smell the Tulips

You’ve heard the old adage. Take time to smell the roses, right? Well, roses aren’t in bloom yet in the northwest. Instead I toured the tulips. Occasionally to remind myself that I have a LIFE besides the photography business, I force myself to take on special projects. (Much business has grown out of this practice, but that’s another blog entry.) This was my youngest son first visit to the tulips fields and of course he wanted to touch and eat everything. As the image indicates my older son had a blast!

While I’m neither a tulip nor rose fan, it’s always a blessing to be able to enjoy family and the great outdoors. Our LIFE span on this planet is exteremely short.

Floral Hall

Saturday was spent photographing Colleen and Brian’s wedding at Floral Hall, Everett. This was my second wedding thus far into the wedding season and the weather was great. Also my first wedding away from Whidbey Island so I over allotted for travel time. Being early gave me an opportunity to interact with the bridal party and a wonderful fun filled family.

Easter Portraits

Join in our celebration of Easter Portraits.

Sister's First

Thursday I had a wonderful opportunity to capture a portrait of a close friend and her two sisters. Every year they gather on their deceased mother’s birthday to celebrate LIFE. I thought this was a striking ritual so I offered them a portrait session. They accepted joyfully. Later a sister told me that this was their first professional portrait taken of the three of them. After posting their images online, they made a selection and their images were in their hands in less than twelve hours. WOW! Digital technology at its best.

Three years ago I contracted to photography four out-of-town sisters…well, this session wasn’t as fluid. We scheduled an outdoor session but due to inclement weather I had to set up lights, string cables, setup backdrops at the last minute. The session ran into another session, my family was complaining because we had made previous plans. The whole day snowballed into a big knot in the neck. The following day I revised my workflow and wisely invested in a ceiling lighting and background system. Now I can accommodate small groups in a professional looking environment, offer immediate tethered proofing and printing on location. Was it worth the investment in time and money? Absolutely! My clients seem to appreciate it and sales have doubled. Now there is no reason to walk away with sad faces or to request a reshoot. My clients and I are a team. We shoot, we teach, we listen, we put into practice what we’ve discovered ...we make immediate progress.

Lorijean & Lee...forever

Lee & Lorijean renewed their vows at Hummingbird Farm. The Bohemian theme had everyone swooning in dance.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

My telephone hadn’t rung for so long that I occasionally I’d pick up the receiver to check for a dial tone. Then it happened. I anxiously juggled the phone and baby. A voice on the other end was crackly and unsure. A gentleman’s father had recently moved into an assisted living community and he missed the view from his deck.



“How much will it cost to have a wide angle picture made of Mt Baker and Goat Island?” he asked. “My dad’s birthday is coming up...what will it cost me?”



I really didn’t know how to bid on such a job but during the dry season impoverishment will cause a man to quickly say yes to even the smallest opportunity. I glanced out the window and did a quick weather.com search. The sun was shining with streaks of clouds—perfect day for landscape shooting.



“We’d better move quickly,” I suggested, “today is sunny and rain clouds are in the forecast for the next two weeks. We’d better move while nature is on our side.”



We met on his father’s deck about 45 minutes later. We small-talked a bit while I mounted my camera to a tripod and shot a series of 50 mm images—panning slightly to make sure the edges overlapped. The client said during the younger years the family gathered on the deck drinking beer, socializing, watching eagles and hawks drift across the horizon. Seconds later a red-tailed hawk streaked across the sky. The 10 a.m. sun gently warmed the white of its underbelly. I yanked the camera from the tripod and squeezed off a few shots before the red-tailed disappeared behind the tree line. We both smiled.



Back in the studio I ran Photoshop Merge, cleaned up any misalignments, added two hawks and created a digital 12x48 panoramic. I emailed the client a proof. He was especially glad that all the bothersome telephone poles and wires were removed. We’re talking better than real life.
The finally image was mounted as stretched canvas wrap complete with wire hangers. No frame, no glass, no mess, no fuss! Done deal! All the client had to do was to hang it and sing the birthday song. Happy Birthday, Dad!