Client fishing

 Today is: Sell-Myself-Until-I'm-Tired-of-Hearing-Myself-Talk day.

I have a box of business cards in hand and will be visiting as many local spots I can think of with business card sharing spots or community boards.

Trying to push my name out into the marketplace as much as possible before school starts. There is a fine line between what I do and what my studio job offers, so I have to be careful, otherwise I will become a direct competitor.

At this stage, I focus on offering on location portraiture. I want to do more graduation photos, I love sharing in the excited expectations of our high school and college graduates. My favorite subject is children, I absolutely adore their little smiles, big questions and open hearts.

I'm ready to promote the business and hope.  With each client I am one step closer to a referral. My goal is to make my photography skills a sustainable business.

Technology-foo day

While learning from books is great, the web changes so quickly that even the most up to date references (publishing dates between 2008-2010) have obsolete information. These references are a great foundation. At least when I start looking past what I've learned, I won't feel as awkwardly in the void.

I'm trying to update the blog template and learn new hash-tags for Twitter while making my website look better than blah. At least I can't gripe because it's free. Sigh. Sometimes when I stop and think about how many hours I spend learning, modifying, editing and promoting my {photos, advertizing, social network sites, blog} I realize I pay myself less than minimum wage. Luckily, I absolutely love what I do and while it doesn't pay the bills yet, I have hopes to grow into a separate gallery and studio space. For now, I work out of my home. The living room is my office and I diligently type away while hearing the girls scream as they chase each other, trying to "share."

So... 4 hours, 3 how to videos, one crash course and a couple hail mary's later and I'm here trying to wrap up putting a "friend screen" on my Facebook business page.

Its basic purpose is to promote liking the page before viewing content, by placing a temporary screen over the page. Most people don't realize, they can just click on a different tab to make the intro "like us" push disappear. I learned there is also a "friend gate" HTML code that makes visitors invite X number of their friends to visit and like the page before letting them view it. Now that's sneaky.

Well It didn't work, but at least now I know how to make brushes in GIMP. lol Yes, at home I use GIMP. In the office and at school I revel in awe at the power of Photoshop.

And now is when I open a new tab and begin my Google search. Endless resources at my fingertips, most tutorials and tips are free. Like this link, which just described in detail how to create a fan gate by using a free 3rd party app. Check it out. :) As for me, I bookmarked the site, lol. I'll try again tomorrow. 

New studio equipment birthday fundraiser

I want to focus my attention on setting up a home studio. A small donation can help me move closer toward this goal. I list MSRP prices, but of course I will look for the best deals and stretch donation funds to get the best quality at the cheapest price.

There are no increments involved, just whatever your budget can afford. Donations are accepted over time, so $5 here, $20 there, adds up and is more than welcome.


Thank you for taking the time to donate, I appreciate the gift and will offer a free 90 minute photo session to those who donate more than $150.


First 3 items on my list are:

1. A Speedlite ST-E2 transmitter listed price $350 on the Canon website. This is the most immediate need. An infrared transmitter allows my flash unit to sync and fire while not mounted on my camera's hot shoe. This allows me to stave off the purchase of strobes and other lighting equipment since my truncated flash can be mounted on a tripod to create similar lighting.


2. Umbrella lights and soft boxes. Prices vary, 3 lights, a barn door, soft box and bulbs runs about $600. I am looking at different companies to purchase from, including this $170 beginning lighting kit from Owen's Originals. If you have experience and know of any deals or just have good advice to share, please contact me.

3.EF 24-70mm f 2/8L USM lens  Purchasing quality lenses is the biggest financial burden for photographers. This lens is optimal for low light photography and the quality is superb. I've seen this $1300 lens on "sale" for $900 or $1K, but even though that shaves off a couple hundred dollars, it is still out of my current budget.

New semester, new challenges

It's been a while since I've posed to my blog. My photo journalism class also has a blog, so I'll try to keep mine up to date.

It's spring 2011, everyone is talking about transferring, and I've looked at my transcript, I'm almost at that point too.This semester will be the biggest test of faith. I am taking advanced reporting and news photojournalism, as well as environmental geology. My counselor said if my progress report shows steady A/B averages I can enroll for flex 2 and possibly maymester if I find a course that fits the time frame.

Also, for the first time, since 18, I'm not the primary breadwinner. In fact, I currently do not have a job. I write freelance copy for websites and try to keep a steady workload with my photography business. I also drive a taxi on the weekends. I am still looking for a part time Jay Oh Bee,  I really do need the money to pay for tuition and living expenses, but luckily I do have the support of my friends and encouragement of my professors to help pull me through.

There are pros and cons about not working a 40-hr graveyard job 5 nights a week. For one, I get to spend a lot more time with my kiddos. I don't feel like a zombie every day, I still have trouble sleeping though. I get energized at night, even when I've had a full school day. It's taken already two months to try and redefine my sleep cycle. I still get tired and sleep from 4 p.m to 7 p.m. but I'm working on creating a routine.

This semester I am covering government, narrow that down a bit: I'm covering Texas legislation, the House and Senate bills, lobbying efforts, round tables with state representatives and local city council too, as long as it pertains to SAC students, professors and the surrounding community. There are a lot of stories coming through the pipeline and it's scary how the student population is unaware of the cuts they're trying to force us to accept.

The best way to get the word out is to inform the public through our student newspaper. It is now updated daily online at The Ranger.

So far I've written:

Coordinating Board proposes formula change

Handguns on campus revived in Legislature

Students take budget concerns to the Capitol