Hey Girl, Nice Shot

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

The titles says it all.  For us photographers the holiday season is upon us.  If you have not already started booking your holiday sessions, start NOW!

Last year I just about lost my mind with the holiday season.  I booked too many appointments, mocked up too many holiday cards, and made too many exceptions.  All with a 1 year old and a 2 year old.

So this year I decided to make A LOT of changes to my holiday season to try to make it more manageable, more profitable, and in the end, hopefully less stressful.

Deadlines
My deadlines are more or less the same as last year.  November 8th is the last day I'll do portrait sessions for holiday portraits (um, you know, ideally).  I plan to have all proofs out the door by November 19th and all orders must be placed by December 4th.  Seems possible.  Not even really marketing to new customers.  I expect return customers will more than fill me up.  I've already had all my baby plan people go in and schedule their next sessions and I have three expecting moms that have already scheduled newborn sessions too.  I actually only have about 9 sessions left available and about 140 people on my email list. The math is very much in my favor there.

Sessions
Also, for determining the number of sessions I can handle I actually figured out how many work days I have and then based on that set the number of sessions I can do to have enough time for pictures, proofing, and order processing.  This year I'll also be offering mini-sessions for those that don't need a full portrait session or want to spend a little less.  I actually love mini sessions.  Usually the kids are pretty cooperative because it is so short, I only proof 10-15 pictures per session so the proofing time is significantly smaller, and customers are happy because the packages have a lower price point so they feel like they are getting a deal.  This is a GREAT way to allow my first customers to return even though my pricing has gone up and still get good value for their money.

Pricing
My ala carte pricing has pretty much stayed the same over the last two years and I'm okay with that.  However, a big change I made this summer was to make my packages MUCH bigger and more expensive.  My packages start at $495 and are flexible using the x number of 8x10s or smaller and x number of 16x20s or smaller system.  They have been very popular and I don't get those "well, I just can't get a package to work quite right for me" phone calls any more.

Holiday Cards
Last year I REALLY pushed holiday cards.  I had a setup fee and then a price for 25/50/75/100 cards.  Many of my customers complained about the setup fee.  If they expressed interest in holiday cards I would mock up about 6 styles for them.  It took FOREVER.  Then they would balk at spending the money and not order any, or maybe order cards and a print or two.  Press printed cards are pretty expensive to begin with so my margin on those was pretty low.  So when someone ordered some cards and a print or two the session would have ended up costing my money once I figured in the amount of time I spent on it.  I was determined to make this year better.

Holiday Cards (changes)
One big change this year is that holiday cards are a ADD ON.  I will have a $400 minimum order after the $100 session fee before a customer can order holiday cards (or a $100 minimum order from a mini session).  Also, customers will be presented with a catalog of holiday card templates when they order their cards so they can choose their card and I will then mock up that one card for approval before I place the order.  But I will not be doing them on spec this year and I will only be mocking them up after they have placed an order for them.  This will save me a tremendous amount of time.  I also got rid of the setup fee.  I did raise the price of the cards but I still feel like they are priced reasonably - especially considering they are custom printed cards.

The Beach
Living in Houston many people expressed interest in beach sessions.  Well with gas being the price that it is I didn't want to be driving back and forth.  So I rented a house for one long weekend in October and offered sessions for that weekend.  I've already booked 2 of 4 sessions and I haven't even sent an announcement out yet!  They will be fun and it'll be after Learnfest so I should be ALL ready to go.

The Goods
The holidays are a time for add-on products.  Actually, it would be easier to NOT offer add-on projects but SOOOO many of my clients ask for them.

Holiday Cards
Holiday cards are the number one add on requested so I usually try to plan pretty far in advance what I'll be doing for holiday cards. 

Last year the majority of my holiday cards were from the collection offered by Jamie Schultz Designs.  This year she has 4 holiday collections and they are so flexible you can create flat cards or folded cards from some of the styles.  And there are some trifold styles as well.  Last year I personally sent trifold cards and they really had MAJOR impact.  I used White House Custom Color for my printing and they did a great job.  Definitely visit the Jamie Schultz Designs blog to see ALL the cards she is offering this year and how flexible they are.

I also liked the Design Aglow templates from last year.  They were strikingly elegant and different from what everyone else was offering.  So far this year they have only released one set of templates which have a clean, fun, modern feel to them.  I have the first set and I'm going to keep one of the designs (see top photo) for myself as a holiday thank you card to send to my clients.  The cards are easy to customize both text and the colors so you really can customize for your clients or they are beautiful as is.  UPDATED: Lena Hyde emailed me to let me know that Design Aglow will be coming out with additional holiday card templates over the next month so keep your eyes on their site!

Ornaments
Last year I was asked again and again if I offered photo ornaments and last year, sadly, I did not.  This year however I have a new partner for photo jewelry that also sells photo ornaments!  Little Whimsy not only offers beautiful and custom photo jewelry, but also wooden photo ornaments that intrigue me.  I better order some samples pronto so I have them to show customers.  And their December 1st holiday deadline is completely reasonable (most custom products have MUCH earlier deadline).

Photo Purses
I have to admit, I have a really hard time selling these!  I offer the Gina Alexander bags which are stunning in real life.  I only carry a photo purse now (I have 4 different photo purses to choose from).  I think many people think they are beautiful but think it is a little strange carrying a photo purse.  So this year I think I'm going to try to get more people to buy at least a cosmetic bag or maybe one of their new notebook covers - both of which are lower priced items AND items that make great gifts.

Last year as a bonus/gift for my holiday customers I made them calendars.  I haven't decided yet what I'll do this year.

My Vendor List

• Design Aglow
• Jamie Schultz Designs
• Little Whimsy Photo Jewelry and Gifts
• Gina Alexander Photo Bags
• White House Custom Color

I haven't ordered from them yet but also check out:

• Beyond Red and Green (be sure to also check out her birth announcements-super cute)

Ordering Update

I had a bunch of people emailed me to ask me if I've had any luck getting folks to get their orders in faster and I'm pleased to say YES YES YES!

Here's a list of the changes I have made:

First I updated my contract to state that they would have an online gallery for 7 days for reviewing their images and placing their order.  It used to be 30 days.  I review this when I review the contract with them before they sign in.

Second, at the session I give them an ordering guide.  Mine is based on the Ordering Guide I bought from Jaime Schultz Designs.  It is printed on a double sided flat 5x7 watercolor paper card from White House Custom Color.  I encourage them to take a look at it while they wait for their proofs and start to plan out what images they will need to buy, for whom, and what sizes.  I remind them that when the proofs go up they will only have a week to review them so it is good to do some planning in advance.

Then, when I post their online proofs I again remind them that they have a week. I encourage scheduling a review session usually during that week so they can come see the projected images which is especially helpful if they want to order larger prints.

So, I've had much better results with folks placing their order.  I have still had people asking me to extend their gallery but it seems that everyone is more aware of the timing of placing their orders.  Overall my orders seem to be higher too so that's nice.  Yep, I have rent to pay now and a workshop to finish paying for.

BTW, I had my first customer order of a 30x40 print which was super exciting!

Getting ready to post my holiday prep information, hopefully in the next day or so. 

Post Secret Workshop

So now that it has been a couple of months (already!!!) since The Secret Workshop and I've had some time to digest what I got out of the workshop.  It may not be what you think.



I have had several email messages asking me if I thought it was worth it...and the answer is YES, it was worth it for me.  However, it is not the class for everyone which is clearly noted on their website. 

Before the workshop I was frustrated with my sales, frustrated with the amount of time I was working, the lack of work/life balance, and stressed out about my pictures.

So much has changed and the Secret Workshop was certainly a catalyst for many of the changes.  If nothing else it did inspire me to make some changes in my life which I really needed.  However, someone just starting out would have gotten even more from the class (I was already pretty proficient in Photoshop so while I did get some tips out of it that part was more of a review for me).

I think one of the biggest things that came out of the workshop for me was a major boost in confidence in my photography.  I am now much more actively putting myself out there.  While I didn't change my ala carte pricing, I did totally restructure my packages and that has already lead to some bigger orders.  The funny thing is that when I get orders that are my pre-workshop goal I'm a little sad....my goal per session is MUCH higher now.   But I don't feel the need to apologize for my pricing.  I'm running a business, after all.

Since the workshop I signed a lease for an office space.  While not something that was really discussed at the workshop (Cheryl works from home), I decided that for me it was going to make my life better to split work and the rest of my life out a little bit more.  Not having my work at home hanging over my head has allowed me to be a happier wife and mother.  And going to an office and interacting with others AND getting more work done more efficiently has really helped decrease my everyday stress.  I found a system that is working for me.  I work roughly three days a week and the rest of my time is my time.

Also since the workshop I started a weight loss program with my gym.  Again, it is the taking my life back philosophy that came from the workshop that inspired me to do it.  I always felt like I didn't have time to go to the gym but now I make the time going three days a week to meet with a trainer in a small group.  I have so much more energy and again, am getting more done as a result.  And doing something for myself has felt really good.

The workshop itself is not a technical photography class which actually ended up working for me.  I was stuck in the "shoot manual, use a light meter" outlook and now I'm still shooting in manual mode but setting the camera by what I see in the back of the camera and I'm actually MUCH happier with the results.  My post processing time has actually decreased which means I have time to do more fun stuff like picking a couple of pictures from each session to play with (with textures, extreme post processing, whatever the picture could use to be more artistic).  And I've been able to take on some personal projects like the band photo session I did recently. 

I think the remaining workshops are sold out right now but maybe there will be others?  Cheryl really is inspiring to listen too and I would love to go again just to hear her talk. I felt so good and happy when I left and I'm doing what I can to hold onto that joy.     And now I'm looking forward to my next workshop....Learnfest (also sold out) where I'll get to see how some other super popular and awesome photographers do their thing.  I think the key to any of these workshops is to see what others are doing and incorporate it into the way you want to work or your style BUT I don't think it is to become a copy of that person.

Just One Little Favor

Hey All - The band I photographed a couple of weeks ago, The Tontons, are up for three awards in the Houston Press Music Awards:

• BEST LOCAL ALBUM

• BEST NEW ACT

• BEST FEMALE VOCALIST (Asli Omar)

If you can spare a few minutes it would be awesome if you went over to the Houston Press website to vote for them in those categories.  When I voted I skipped over the categories I knew nothing about so I was able to complete my voting pretty quickly.  And I'd love to be able to say I photographed an award winning band (plus I really do think they are great).

Thank you in advance!!!!

Metallic Gallery Wrap = YUM!!

For awhile I have wanted to try out White House Custom Color's Metallic Gallery Wraps and when I saw the Design Aglow Artist's Studio Elements I knew they would be perfect for my trial.

The Artist's Studio Elements are a collection of templates with with beautiful textured backgrounds layered with photographic design elements.  I choose a favorite picture from my recent trip to Galveston of my daughter running away from me at the beach and one of the backgrounds that I thought coordinated well with the picture.  I upsized the 12x12 template up to a 16x16 gallery wrap size.  The photo part is actually bigger than I visualized. 

The metallic print really looks awesome!  The whole image has a little shimmer to it and the color saturation is great.    I choose the matte lamination option. 

A close up of the print so you can see the texture.  The print is very solid and feels luxurious.  It would definitely be something I'd be excited to give a client.

A side view of the gallery wrap showing the image background wrapping.  You can also get an idea of the
shimmer in the print with this view. 

I am officially in love with both these templates AND the metallic gallery wraps.  My goal is to get three more of the 16x16 squares to hang together on one wall of my office space.

Check out the Design Aglow Artist's Studio Elements.

But wait, aren't you a photographer?

Normally I don't work on Fridays.  I have a nanny Tuesday-Thursday and those are my regular workdays.

Last Friday, however, I did work so I had an extra babysitter come.  Which is totally fine with my kids.  They love the backup babysitter that will get in the pool with them or sit and watch a movie with them. 

I started my morning taking my dear daughter Abby to a local park to photograph a dress I had just received from one of the (now TWOOOO) boutiques I'll be photographing for this season.  The dress, with its vintage styled fabric and pompom fringe was delicious and reminded me of summer, and sherbet for some reason.  Abby, however, being the princess that she is was not impressed by the hot summer day.  And she was happy to tell me about it in her 18 month old way.  So while I realize it is unlikely cooler days are coming (it is Houston after all) I'll have to change my plan for where and when to photograph her in these great outfits.  Or hire a stunt double.  She does suffer from photographer's child syndrome, after all.

After we returned home I switched into my kitten heels and walked across the street to my neighbors house where she was hosting a bridal tea party for her sister.  Hats and all people!   You see, she really wanted someone to photograph the party and even though I technically don't do parties anymore, I didn't want to say no to my neighbor who I see regularly and who has a daughter that I borrow on a regular basis to photograph when I get the urge to take pictures of someone that will actually listen to me.  Ha!  So, I took a bunch of pictures of ladies in hats, a beautiful cake, and flowers galore.  Not really a bad deal but the smell of the quiche really made me hungry.

And Saturday morning I worked on a personal photography project that I'm so excited about.  I recently have become infatuated with a certain Houston based band and offered to do some album style portraits with them, for free.  Yes, FREE.  After all, I am a children's photographer, not a music photographer but I could totally visualize a fun morning with this band and I know I'll be able to really flex my creative muscle with them (and with the post processing - you know, that edgey stuff that doesn't work so well on a portrait of a sweet little 2 year old).   The picture above is my faux album cover.  It was taken in the alley next to my office space with some texture added to give it that grunge look.  More from that session on my Flickr page.

What Are People Saying About You - online

First, I want to say to all the folks that contacted me to let me know that they signed up for Learnfest - YIPPEE!! I will see you there and I'm looking forward to all we are going to learn from those fab ladies!!!  Plus, um, there are definitely worse things than staying on a beachy island for 4 days while we learn.  I will pack my flip-flops!

Now, onto the meat of today's post.  Google Alerts!

If you are not familiar with them, you'll definitely want to go check them out.  Google will allow you to essentially save a keyword phrase to look for in all the online content and when something new is added to the big world wide web, they will email you to let you know something new has been posted that matches the keyword AND send you the link and a little bit of the webpage so you know if you need to follow the link.

There are all sorts of great uses for this.  First, definitely setup a google alert with your name.  That way if you do something newsworthy or someone posts about you on their blog you'll know!  If you have a different business name, set that up as well.  And then you can just have fun with it.  For example, now that I have an office space at Caroline Collective I like to get notified when there is some media coverage of the space so I have a google alert for that (as does monica-hi monica).  Maybe you have one or two main competitors in your area - why not google alert them too so you can see what is being said online about THEM!

Superpower your google alerts - visit this online google alert tutorial.

Eye Candy

It seems like everyone is posting some photographic eye candy this week.  Check them out...

• Design Aglow posted a picture of one of the new White House Custom Color books with the printed cover and hinged inside pages.  I saw of of these at the Bellies and Babies tour and they were awesome.  I'm planning on using one for my new portfolio album that will be parked in my office!
• Joyce Smith posted some pictures of a beautiful client order with some bigger prints and a lovely proof box with matted proofs in it!!!
• Lena Hyde showed a beautiful linen album that just arrived from the binder she uses.  Beautiful!

BTW, Learnfest only has two spots left so if you were hoping to sign up count your pennies and click the "buy" button!

Canvases Arrived

Yahhh!  My canvases arrived today from Canvas On Demand.  I've been SOOOO happy with their quality and the turn around time is fantastic.  I ordered these canvases on Thursday of last week and they arrived this morning (I did choose the rush fee which was only $25 more than standard delivery but totally worth it for 4 canvases).  If you don't already have a professional account with them, go register and they will send you an awesome coupon to order your first sample from them and they have also started a sample program for extra savings on your studio samples (although I didn't use that because I just couldn't bear to add my company name and SAMPLE to the front of the canvas).

The office space is really coming together nicely.  So far I have only hung canvases on the walls-no photographic prints.  Over the sofa is a 30"x45" portrait of my son and a 16x20 portrait from a client session.  Eventually I will fill in the rest of that wall with other color prints from sessions.  The blue wall is my newborn wall. The three hanging are (2) 16"x20" (one black and white and one color) and the larger hanging one is a 24"x36".  The large black and white on the floor will also be hung on that wall but I forgot to choose the finish the back option so I need to do a little extra work to get it hung.  See, 24"x36" prints are just so reasonably sized.  Ha ha ha. 

The view from sitting on the back of my sofa!  The Elfa shelving from The Container Store is working out great for me.  I have so much room for storage and my desk stuff all on one wall.  It really makes a difference is a small space.  You can kind of see that my big work monitor is mounted on the wall and the smaller one is sitting on the desk as is my laptop and a small printer.  My photo printer for emergency prints is sitting on the floor but I have not set it up yet.  My Gina Alexander bags are on the shelf in the upper right side of the wall.

Green Drinks - Wednesday night

If you are in the Houston area and looking for something fun to do Wednesday night head over to Beaver's for their Green Drink Wednesday.  25% of all drinks and appetizers specials will go towards my new home away from home: Caroline Collective. 

Thanks Monica for posting the flyer.