How To Succeed

I remember it so clearly. My husband and I lived a bit more upstate and we had only the 2 little ones at the time both under 2. We had one car. My hubby's pride & joy. A maroon colored Honda Accord (with a black hood....DON'T ASK...lol) My hubby loved that car. He had a work car so when he worked I had that car home all to myself. Though I didn't go ANYWHERE, EVER. No, I wasn't lazy, or tired and I loved the car as well. But the problem was, it was stick shift. And I COULDN'T drive it if I wanted to.

My husband, Joe, would constantly ask if I wanted to learn but I was always so intimidated. Well.... when the weather got REALLY nice, I began to be upset that I couldn't take the kids out anywhere because I couldn't drive them. So I talked to my husband and off we went. A sitter stayed home with the children (family rather) and we went to this large empty parking lot. Lots of stalling and bad noises coming from the car. I could see my husband holding back the tears....lol. 

When I got the jist of it in the parking lot, it was time to take it on the road. WHAT!? NO WAY!? ARE YOU KIDDING?! I was so nervous. I wasn't scared of anything bad happening... I was scared Id stall out in front of people. But off we went. About the second block down... a stop sign *GASP*.... I stopped, as did the cars behind me. And then stalled out. I then panicked. Cars behind me honking as I'm trying to get myself together and more honking. I started crying right there, got out and made my husband drive. I realized what I was afraid of. I wasn't afraid of getting it wrong. I was afraid of what OTHERS thought about me getting it wrong! I was afraid that others would think wrongly and get upset with me and for whatever reason, what others thought had mattered to me. And so it upset me. 

I went home upset and never wanted to get in that car again. Still my 2 babies looked at me and I KNEW we couldn't sit in the house all summer long. So I said to myself..."Self..... SO WHAT!? Who cares what anyone else thinks!? I don't give a hoot!" So about a week later I had my husband take me out once more. We started in the lot and when I got comfortable, off we went for the short ride home. When I got to that stop sign I was so nervous. Cars were once again behind me and I prayed I didn't stall out and block them. But I did. This time I remind myself that I don't give a hoot what they think, I'm going to do it. I gathered myself, started the car back up and off I went. I may have stalled 2 or 3 more times but I didn't give up. I got where I needed to get and didn't get upset when I got it wrong in fear of what others were thinking. I had done it! Of course more practice made perfect and also about 2 clutch's payed the price.... but if I went on fearing what others thought I would have been stuck home forever. 

The moral here should be plain as day. Do what you need to do to succeed without worrying about what others will think when you fail. Once you don't give a hoot, you will push farther to succeed! 

http://www.jmpny.com

Sexy in Vegas

So as most of you know, I went to Vegas not long ago to a huge photography convention. (NERD!...lol.) I soaked up every bit I could learn! I roomed with 2 AWESOME photographers as well. One from California and the other from Canada. They were great fun and we all in all had a great experience. So what to do with your friends when you're bored in your hotel room with all this new knowledge? PLAY!!! I was lucky enough to have a gorgeous roomie (well 2 gorgeous roomies but one was on a photography adventure) and so I ran with it. Grabbed my camera and played with some light. I had learned that day to see light differently form Susan Stripling and obviously in the tiny, orange-y lit ugly hotel room... I found beauty in light at nearly 2AM Vegas time (whatever that is...lmao).

Say hi to Kelly. :) "HI KELLY!"

Look! You can be sexy as heck WITH clothes ON too!!

  Fun in the hall....lol. Hotel peeps thought we were nuts. Though they're not too far off. ;)

Then the super sexy began......

Now how gorgeous is this girl?! Thank you SO much Kelly for being my model in Vegas! I would show more but.... what happens in Vegas, STAYS in Vegas. ;)

http://www.jmpny.com

Shoot For Your Future

So I have to ask you..... I know we ALL love taking photos of our friends and family whether recreational or professional, but how many of those shots are YOU in? I look at my photos of my children and see hardly ANY of me. Forget about recently. 

I would KILL for an image of me and my parents and brothers together. I don't think that image EVER existed. But as my parents split up when I was young that opportunity never came about. I'm tearing up as I write this because as badly as I wish I had that image to look at, I don't. And I want my children to have that! 

We don't know what the future holds for us and tomorrow may not come. We may want to wait and lose a few pounds or whatever the reason but honestly, you don't know that you have that time. And I would HATE for my children not to have a family image to look at of us all together and happy. My personal project is to take a photo of us all together. I URGE you all to PLEASE take that family shot as well. Your children will cherish it and thank you for it when they're adults. So go, pick up your camera, set the timer and capture today!

http://www.jmpny.com

Stop Bullying and Start Educating

I'm not even sure what to say. 

I had posted a blog here the other day but have since removed it after thinking it maybe was the wrong way of going about it. (see i make mistakes too) So here's take 2. 

I am a photographer. Other than that, I am a wife, a mom, and a friend of many. I was not born with the knowledge of photography. I don't think anyone has been. With that being said... photographers EVERYWHERE you need to just look at yourselves. If you're taking part in hurting someone, name calling, disrespecting someone online, its bullying. PLAIN AND SIMPLE. No matter the reason, or the intent. Its bullying. There are parents all over the place who defend beating their child due to the child's actions. There is NO action to cause me to beat my child, so there should be NO reason to bully another human being. You don't know the mental state of anyone whom you're targeting. With all the suicides we see due to bullying you should be ASHAMED of yourselves. How do we teach our children not to bully others or succumb to bullying when you do just that? Teach by example. JUST BE NICE!

This has stemmed from photographers posting images of other photographers with bad, unsafe newborn poses. Now, most professionals know the safety and how to create these images without harming the baby. But NEW photographers may not. There is NO REASON to be mean to these photographers. If you want to help, email them directly and nicely explain and be there to HELP. Not everyone starting out (or even pros for that matter) can afford $1500 workshops to learn proper techniques. If we want to make photographers look better as a whole, we need to be there for the newbies and educate them so that there isn't a horrible accident. If you can, share the knowledge. Post blogs on safety or when you see something...don't post it for all to laugh at or send the witch hunt, HELP THEM. There's plenty of things I did wrong that I had to learn on my own. And I'm sure you've made mistakes too. 

THINK before you SPEAK. If you have nothing nice to say....say NOTHING.

If you are a photographer and need any help, please email me at info@jmpny.com and ill be GLAD to assist in ANY way! I WILL be looking into a way to host a FREE workshop on baby posing and safety in the future.

http://www.jmpny.com

Guest Blogger: Lara White

Id like to first, personally thank Lara White for doing this blog post for me. I am a HUGE fan of her work and what she does to help those of us in the photographic community. If you're not a fan of her Facebook page PLEASE do so now HERE. The inspiration is so great I thought I just had to share it with you all! 

How to Stay Organized with Wedding Editorial Submissions

Have you tried to submit your wedding images to a magazine a few times, only to be extremely frustrated by the process? It can be daunting to put together a submission packet, especially if you havent done it before.

When it comes to the process of getting your wedding images published in wedding magazines and blogs, you'll need to keep yourself organized in a couple of ways. This will be a huge timesaver for you, and by having a process in place, it helps ensure you'll actually submit more frequently.

Start with a Spreadsheet

First, you'll want a spreadsheet that contains all the contact information, submission guidlines and deadlines so you have all the details you need organized into one place. This takes time to pull together, but once you have this list, you'll find it much, much easier to submit regularly. Bonus timesaver tip, if you set the spreadsheet up correctly, you can also print the address labels right from the list, saving yourself time. 

Document Your Editorial Coverage

The second document you'll want to create is a list of everything you've been published in, or are expecting (an editor has told you they are strongly considering a particular wedding).

You also need to keep track of where a wedding has been published so you can be sure to remove it from consideration from other magazines. However, if one magazine is featuring only the cake, it's usually fine to allow another magazine to use an image of the ceremony details. It's mainly the real weddings features that require exclusivity. Keeping track of requests will help you manage this side of the process.

Sometimes you'll get an email from a magazine that they are going to publish something, and then you don't hear anything else from them for 8 months. You might miss the feature if you don't remember to pick up that issue when it comes out almost a year later, and look through it cover to cover. Some magazines will send you a copy of the issue, others don't.

I keep a list of "expected editorial" in my purse so when I'm at a bookstore, I comb through magazines for a particular feature. Often I will find images published in places that I was never told about or confirmed with; always a nice surprise. The point is, it's up to you to track your own press, as frequently magazine editors are working under tight deadlines, and they need an image to introduce a certain story or trend alert.

The other benefit to having this list of everything you've ever been published in, over time the list begins to add up, and it's wonderful to be able to put your hands on a list of everything you've ever been published in if you need to.

Once you start submitting regularly...you'll get published. And then you'll get published more frequently. One of the biggest secrets to getting your work published regularly is to submit regularly. Sounds simple, and it actually is.

Do you want to learn more about getting published?I've written a 55 page ebook that goes into great detail, including how to create images magazines will love. It's completely free and available for you to download, so grab your copy now. Get Published: A Guide for Wedding Photographers will guide you step-by-step through the process of submitting your work and getting it published.

by: Lara White

Facebook: www.facebook.com/photominteducation

blog: www.photomint.com/blog

free get published ebook: www.photomint.com/getpublished

http://www.jmpny.com

If I Were Famous

So how many of you have thought, "I wish I were famous!"? I bet quite a few of you. We imagine the life, the money, the homes the notoriety. It all seems quite awesome. 

Well as a photographer I think the same. In the photographic community we have our famous (or how we like to say) 'rock star photographers'. And I dream of it daily. I dream of speaking in Vegas, I dream of the high end celebrity clientele. I dream of the magazine covers my photos can be on. Its all so freaking awesome!

Its also frustrating. Frustrating to not know what it takes. Frustrating to watch those around you get where you want to be. And frustrating that its not you and may never be.

But last night....it REALLY hit me. I had somewhat of a revelation. I sat and REALLY thought about a so-called 'rock star photographers' life. And heres what I thought.... They are always on planes traveling going from town to town even different countries to host their workshops and speak. They are busy working their ASSES off to get in magazines and be the best and entering competitions and being what it takes. They are giving up the ONE thing I hold dear to me. TIME!

I have 4 little babies who need me. They are the reason I do what I do. The reason im able to follow my passion. Because of them Im a better photographer. I love having the freedom to take them to the park, or go play with them when they ask. Helping them with their homework. Even the potty training, spitting up and other messes us parents have to deal with on the daily.... I WANT IT ALL!!! I could never give that up to be a 'rock star photographer'. I could never trade in goodnight kisses for a phone call from a hotel in a far away city. 

So what I realized is that I was chasing something I REALLY dont want after all. Im perfectly happy catering to the wonderful clients I have now, working at a slower pace for the sake of my family. Sometimes its nice to imagine 'what if?' but when you actually think of what it takes, it may NOT be what you want. And so, I may not be in any magazines.....but I will be in my children's childhood memories. <3

http://www.jmpny.com