Go out and shoot!

I love feeling inspired. If we want to be in a creative industry, we have to constantly find new ways to improve and think outside the box. I find inspiration in lots of places. Most of the time, when my husband and I are driving, I look outside the window and observe my surroundings. I look around to see if I can find any new places that I want to do a shoot in. I imagine how my photos will look like and I envision how I want them to look like. That is my favorite part. I make a mental note to go back their in the future. I love open fields and urban, grungy places.

Looking at other photographers beautiful work is definilty another form in finding inspiration. I have done endless reading and played around alot with my camera settings and make mental notes of what they can do for my pictures in different lighting situations. I've practiced alot indoors in my own home, on my husband, my dog, on myself, on shoes, on flowers, on many friends. I take my camera everywhere I can and take pictures whenever I possibly can. I love it. Then I shot my first engagement session, then my first wedding, and then my second wedding, and a few as a second shooter. The more I shot, the better I got. The better I got to know my camera, my flash and my lens...and I love it...and I don't ever want to stop. Lately, I've been doing a few shoots here and there which I absolutely enjoyed doing, but I want to do more. New things. I want to start shooting at those locations that I made mental notes on. I keep putting that off because I just get too busy with other things. I want to make my visions a reality and they are just dying to explode out of me and into my camera.

I've heard this many times and I couldn't agree more: To improve as a photographer, you must GO OUT and SHOOT! This article talks about the importance of that and how you should not be afraid to just get out there, even if you think people might look at you weired. It also talks about how some people think that if you have the top notch gear to start off with, then you will miracously become a good photographer right away. I found this quote a while ago that has always been in the back of my mind and that I firmly believe in it:

'A typewriter never wrote a great novel any more than a camera took a great picture.' - Someone smart

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Here is the article from DPS :

For the earlier part of my venture into the photography hobby, I spent most of my time developing myself indoors. Reading articles, magazines, forums, RRS feeds and blogs. That’s not BAD and I strongly suggest continuing to read and grow in your knowledge of the craft, but the only TRUE way to improve is to put everything we learn and read into PRACTICE. Go out and shoot!

Disregard all fear of what people will think of you as you snap away on the street or at your favorite venue or park. “Oh what a tourist!”, “That camera’s not even that great”, “That looks like a cheap kit lens”, etc. Don’t let others or the price/quality of your gear set limitations on you! We all have to start somewhere.

I’ve read it numerous times here on the DPS forums and elsewhere. It’s not the quality or price of the camera, but the photographer BEHIND the camera that makes or breaks an image. The only way we can improve our photography is to practice and shoot a lot, not by breaking the bank and buying the latest and greatest.

I’m an introvert by nature, so going out and shooting random people, street life, and the like is NOT my forte. I get pretty intimidated when people start staring at me while I take pictures, and self-conscious. On a recent drive, I decided that I need to just break out of my comfort zone. I need to GO OUT and SHOOT. I stopped my car and had the experience of my lifetime. I ended up chatting it up with a few homeless men and bought them a meal in exchange for some pictures and conversation.

All of the research I did online definitely helped in me choosing to put my 50 f/1.8 on and shooting at the correct aperture without chimping, but only by putting it all into practice can I see what all that research and reading was about.

Anaya and Family: Part II

*All photos are property of Jackie Beale Photography

Previously, I posted about my my first baby shoot I did a couple of weeks ago. Little Anaya was such a great sport and just adorable to photograph. She has three older brothers who I took a few shots as well.

Here are a few more of my favorites from the shoot that I want to share :)

Marketing Tips

This post is not about ME giving out marketing tips. I am far from being a marketing expert but I do admire the masterminds that can whip up extraordinary advice from experience and that know how to structure pricing for their photography business. I find that fascinating. I've spent quite some time reading up on things like this and printing out any information that catches my attention.

One article that I've recently read includes 6 helpful tips on how to market your business. It's funny that one thing I noticed when I read the article was that not once did they mention about advertising in magazines or buying emails from vendors. This type of advertisment could be good but the odds of booking alot of valid leads this way is not very high. One lead can reach hundreds of photographers and the percentage that that lead will book you is pretty low, as so I've heard. So how can one really stand out from amongst hundreds of local photographers?

One thing I learned, and it's my favorite tip from the article, is creating your very own promotional video. To be really honest, I do find this a little intimidating, only because I get scared thinking about not knowing what to say or how to express myself. But I think the best way to really make people drawn to you is to just be yourself and creatively express your style of photography and what you want your clients to know about you. This is something I really, truely, want to work on in the future and I get super excited just thinking about the endless possiblilities :)

Another tip mentioned was creating a blog and updating as often as you can. Hmmmm I could say that I'm all good there :) But there's always room for improvement.

Twitter. I do have a twitter account but I don't update as much. To be honest, I really don't see the point in doing this often. I have a facebook account that I started a long time ago and it has built up from there. I'm working on making it business like as well. You also have the option of updating your status there, so it is somewhat like twitter I suppose. What I do like about twitter though is that when you update there, it updates your blog feed and your facebook :)

Be sure to read the article by clicking HERE. I felt inspired after reading it and I'm sure it has and will help many others as well.

Canvas print contest

I absolutely LOVE photos on canvases! I prefer them over framed, although frames are very pretty as well. But I just think that prints, or artwork, on a canvas just look so fresh and modern and can really enhance your home decor...and I'm all about that!

A while ago, I came across a very cool and informative photography blog. She constantly has these really cool contests for us to win some cool stuff. She also has created amazing actions for photoshop users that really just take your images to the next level! Right now, I use Totally Rad Actions for all my images and they have really changed my photography! I don't know how I lived without them. In the very very near future though, I also plan on buying me some MCP photoshop actions that I know will also help me with my post processing.

Here is the contest that MCP actions blog is hosting:

I am entering this photo in the MCP Actions/Color Inc. Win a Gallery Wrap Canvas Photo Contest at http://mcpactions.com/blog. I certify that I took this photo and give both parties permission to use this photograph on their blogs/sites.





This is the image that I entered for the contest. It's from a recent baby shoot I did for friends of mine. They are in love with this picture and I really want them to have a nice canvas of their baby so that's why I decided to submit this one. I really hope I make the top 10 for voting. I'll keep my blog updated to see how it goes :)

Photos are priceless

Today I had a moment.

A moment when a photographer feels truely blessed for doing what they love and a feeling of fullfillment when giving to others memories that pass the test of time.

I will keep this short and sweet because I don't want to give out too much personal information but I had to document part of this in my blog because I want to go back and remember how I felt today.

I have a friend who has been through rough times with her pregnacies. She had one miscarriage which was just devastating to all of us, but thanks to God, she was able to muster up the strength to over come it and try again. She is a very strong woman. Her prayers were answered once again when she found out she was pregnant with a baby boy. Both her and her husband made sure she and her baby received regular check ups from the doctor to make sure everything went as smoothly as possible during this pregnacy. I really wanted to do something special for them so I asked if I could have a maternity session with her and she happily oblidged. It made me so happy just being with her that afternoon because I know how much these photos will mean to her and as I was taking the photos, I kept thinking all what she went through and that made me love what I was doing even more.

A couple of weeks after that, we got the news that she gave birth to her son who was about 4 weeks premature. Her baby had to stay in ICU for a while because his lungs were not fully developed. I immediatly panicked and said a prayer in my mind for them and their baby. I wanted to visit them but could not just yet. I had planned on giving her the CD I made with her pictures before she had the baby so I really felt bummed about that too and now I wasn't so sure if she even wanted them because of what had happened. I was really scared for the worst and thought that if anything happened, she wouldn't want pictures that would bring back sad memories. I would be responsible for that and that really scared me too...big time!

Thankfully though, her baby made it through the rough seas and is now 5 pounds and in his mothers arms, along with his big brother and daddy, receiving all the love that he deserves. I was finally able to give her the photos today and she just laughed when she found out that I had thought she didn't want them. It just made me feel so happy and blessed to give someone a sliver of happiness and joy. The same joy I receive when I document these memories. Memories that pass the test of time.

Happy Wednesday :)

Mariaangeles & David - Wedding

*All photos are property of Jackie Beale Photography

We had such a wonderful time at Mariaangeles and David wedding. I had the opportunity to shoot their engagement session but at the wedding, we were able to enjoy the evening as guests. We all witnessed two beautiful lives become one outside the Sawgrass Marriott on a beautiful crystal lake. Both of them truely glowed and it was nothing but all smiles and love. You could see how proud her dad was to walk his only daughter down the aisle and into the arms of her forever partner, friend and soul mate.

I am truely happy for the both of them and I know that this is only the beginning to a wonderful life together.

Moments after being pronounced as husband and wife. Mariangeles glances at her parents :)

The first dance

I ADORED mariaangeles lazaro wedding gown, and earrings, and bracelet. Simply stunning!



Friends at our table





I shot Chivonne and Kyle day after session a few months ago. They totally rocked! :)



I love this picture of mariangele's mom laughing and just having a good time :)








The father-daughter dance. It was very emotional for the both of them.

Changes and a baby post

*All photos are property of Jackie Beale Photography. Please do not steal them

You may or may not have noticed but I've been playing with my blog header a little bit, changing the images and re-arranging things. I'd like to have a really pretty collage of a few images for now, but in the future, what I really want is to have pictures taken of myself. I'm afraid that this might come off as being vain, which I'm really nervous about, but many times, I've heard the importance of having some nice profile pictures for your website and blog to show your prospective clients who you are. I'm a big time visual person so I really want to incorporate some nice photos of me on my sites. In the mean time though, I'll have a pretty collage up until I can get decent photos of myself :)

Speaking of pretty photos, I have a few of my favorites to show you here from a recent baby session. Baby Anaya was born about two months ago. She has two beautiful parents and three adorable brothers, so you know she will be well taken care of. I've never done a baby session before so I had asked Amanda, her mom, to see if I could come over their house one day and take a few pictures for my portfolio. I had such a great time and I am so greatful that they were able to give me this awesome opportunity.

Here she is, the most cutest baby!

Don't you just love those skin folds :)

My FAVORITE picture ever!!!!!!

MAC-ing out

I'm such a sucker for makeup, especialy M.A.C makeup! I can't get enough of their awesomely bold colors. It's like a form of art to me. When I was in highschool, I took art classes and my favorite kind of paint was acrylic. Why? Because of their bold colors and because it dries really quickly and does not flake out or looses it's color over time. It's a type of paint that is so easy to manage and mix. It just paints divinely on any canvas.


I see makeup the same way. I love creating new eyeshadows and mixing them up and using different brushes and techniques. I'm no pro at applying makeup but I love experimenting :) I'm a sucker for makeup. I'll buy tons of it but rarely use it on a daily basis. I know, it does not make sense at all, but I guess it's just one of my costly habits, among other things. I just like to have a nice collection in case I need it for a very special occassion. I have really sensitive skin so I stay away from most foundations that have scents or too oily, or just too many things put into it. Nothing spells icky like wearing heavy makeup on a hot sunny day dripping down your face. Lancome foundation works best for me because it feels so natural when I put it on and really light, which I love :) I do, however, love to MAC out for weddings, or indoor celebrations and events.


Their eyeshadows are AMAZING and my favorites! I actually have a few of the colors here :)

and look at this beautiful canvas! I'm sure it took many tries to perfect this vision :)

Makeup is a form of art. Sometimes we are afraid to get out of our comfort box and try new things. We won't know and will always feel held back and creatively empty unless we fail and keep trying until we find our own beautiful and unique style, hmmmmm, much like photography :)

How to shoot a large wedding party

When you hear someone say they will be photographing a large wedding party or the bride says I have a large wedding party, what number comes to your mind? Maybe 7 or more, perhaps 15?.......hmmmm, try 34!!!

This amazing photographer shares her experience on how she got 'the shot' for a super large wedding party of 34. And this is not your typical traditional shot, it has some spunk! Sounds impossible to be untraditional and creative in a large group right? Lets read on...

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“What have I gotten myself into?”

The thought struck my brain as I surveyed the scene before me. Up to this point, I entertained nothing but positive, reassuring self-talk about this situation. It was necessary for my own peace of mind. But as I stood there with my camera on my shoulder, the tiniest whisper of doubt forced its way into my thoughts.

“Can I really do this?!?”

No time to find out otherwise. I shook my head, gave a big smile, and projected my voice to the crowd as I directed with my hands: “Okay! Ladies and gentleman! If I can have everyone’s attention! I need all the ladies over here, and all the guys over here! Thanks everyone! That’s great!” I did my best to encourage them – these individuals who comprised what I referred to as “the most magnanimous wedding party of the year.”

15 girls. 17 guys. 1 bride and 1 groom.

A wedding party of 34 people!

When I was first contracted to shoot this wedding, I knew it would be a challenge. But I am an engaging, personable photographer with experience under my belt. I thought I could do it.

I did my research. I spent more time looking at other photographers’ work than I did for all my other weddings, combined. Seriously, with such a large wedding party, I couldn’t afford anything but success.

“And this. It is my defining moment.”

I turned my mind back to the situation at hand and went through all the tips I could recall on large wedding party shots.

* Create the final shot with several small groups. (In my case, it was many, many small groups)
* Create your groups in levels. (I brought along 4 benches for that.)
* Incorporate movement. (With that many people, I knew it would be easy for everyone to look stiff, so I had to keep things spontaneous.)

I would have preferred a wide-open field for the shot, but the weather wasn’t on my side. So I arranged to use the train station for bridal party shots. A covered courtyard. Bricks and color. Two pillars to support group arrangements.

It was perfect.

I started with a group of bridesmaids. “All right, you lovely ladies please come here.” I placed them in the very middle, between the pillars. Next I pulled out my benches to create additional levels and placed them just in front of the pillars. “You two ladies, please share this bench – that’s perfect.” I selected another bridesmaid and a flower girl. “And you ladies on this bench.”

I took a breath and counted.

“Okay. 9 down. 28 more to go.”

“Next we’ll have you three gentlemen next to this pillar.” I guided them over, directing two to stand, and two to kneel. “This is perfect! You’re doing fabulous, everyone!” I had to work to keep everyone engaged while I focused on arranging the rest of the party.

“Let’s have you six gentlemen in the back here. You, sir, and your son next to the pillar, here. The other four of you will stand in this far corner. Oh, and you ma’am, and you ma’am,” I motioned for one more bridesmaid and the other flower girl. “Fill in this hole, just like this. Perfect.”

“Twelve more. Then the bride and groom.”

I added the last four bridesmaids. Two in the back, two next to the pillar.

“Eight more.”

“The five of you gentlemen, let’s place you right behind the ladies in the middle – yes, our fabulous tall gentlemen, there. Wonderful. Now the little boys, let’s place you – one next to the pillar, here, and one next to the flower girl, here.”

I looked them over again. “Fabulous, everyone! Now, can you all see me from where you are? Because if you can’t see me, I can’t see you.” Everyone shifts just a little bit and I nod. “Perfect. Now let’s add the Bride and Groom.” I placed them in the middle, closer to the camera, and made sure they were in focus. “That’s wonderful, everyone!” I took a few test shots and made sure my settings were correct.

Small aperture = large f/stop number (to make sure as many people are in focus as possible.)Moderate shutter speed (slow enough to let in the beautiful, diffused light, but fast enough to avoid motion blur.)
Mid Range ISO (as sensitive as necessary for the aperture and shutter speed.)

The shot was perfect.

“Except…”

I looked above the viewfinder of my camera and address the wedding party. “People! This is a great day! Two lovely individuals are celebrating the start of a new life together! This is something to be excited about! You all look like you are becoming bored!”

Everyone laughs, just as I hoped. I took a few shots with the genuine smiles and then decide to mix things up a bit. “You all have been absolutely wonderful. Thank you so much for your patience! Now one final thing before we move on. I want each of you to strike your favorite dance pose! Right now! Come on! You’ll dance tonight at the reception, and I just want you to pull out you favorite move right now!”

In a matter of 5 seconds, everyone was laughing and posing and looking perfectly natural, and even like they were having fun.

“Thank God. I did it.”

After a rapid succession of shots (just to be sure no one was blinking), I let everyone go – no worse for the wear, and not too crabby either.

The Bride and Groom smiled at me, and I returned the warmth. “Now, let’s get some shots of you love birds inside…”

As I led them away, I was amazed that went so well. Everything happened so quickly I could hardly believe it.

Bridal portraits with 34 people.

Possible?

Absolutely.

***************************************and here is her resulting shot**************************

Photographer credit:Christina Nichole Photography

In the works: Sneak preview

This will be short and sweet as I am about to pass out from exhaustion. I am sooo excited to announce that I am currently working on building my new website! I can't wait until it's all ready but here is a snap shot to show you what's in store:







Happy Sunday :)

Gear (and geek) talk

Well maybe I'm no geek when it comes to the technical side of things. But I do love talking about camera gear and always learning what different types of lenses can do. A while ago, I talked about what lense would be next on my list to rent, or to purchase and I have to say that I really liked the 17-40. It's actually lighter than it looks, even if it's a L-series lens. Zoom lenses aren't as fast or as sharp as primes are, but this lens really did good in that area. Most of the images I took with it came out really sharp and pretty. I mostly used it for the formals and wedding party group shots. It served me well :)

To be honest though, I think I am going to hold off in purchasing this lens, or maybe just put it a few steps down on my wish list. Reason being is that I absolutely love prime lenses and I want to invest in a prime lens that gives me a wide angle. Prime lenses give you the best bokeh, in my opinion, and are super fast in low lighting conditions and are tact sharp when you lock in that focus.

That is why I have put the 28mm 1.8 on my next rental/purchase list, whichever comes first :)