Hustling

So, I’ve reached a sort of in-between/middle ground/limbo in my journey toward becoming a wedding/portrait photographer. I have the website. I have the gear. I have the studio. I have the post-processing equipment. I have the PPA (Professional Photographers of America) membership. I have the knowledge and resources and a healthy dose of experience. Now it feels like a hurry up and wait period. I don’t do well with that but I am trying to be patient and put in the work to coax this thing into fruition. I have taken many wedding/engagement/bridal photos, but they have all been as a photographer employed through a local wedding venue in Driftwood, TX, so I am unable to use these photos on my website or as part of my marketing. I do have a few photos here and there from personal work, but not enough to present a strong wedding /portrait photographer presence online. So the struggle is being able to book clients who believe in my work without having a lot of work to present to them in order to get them to book me. It’s a catch-22.

I was listening to a Master Photography podcast the other day and they mentioned second shooters. I had never considered branching out to other photographers looking for second shooters. I didn’t even know that is a thing! I feel like I have stumbled upon a proverbial breakthrough (cue a ray of light and a heavenly orchestra sort of soundbyte), or at least another avenue to explore, and at the same time, I feel a little sheepish for not thinking of this possibility already. So now I’m a member of several Central Texas second shooter groups (can someone PLEASE come up with another name for this? It just doesn’t sit well with me in this day and age!), attempting to network with other photographers in and around Austin, TX in order to build my portfolio. These second shooter groups are AMAZING. Even if I am unable to get a gig through these, there is so much useful information available – people are discussing appropriate pricing and sharing their websites in my area – it’s a goldmine of inspiration for me!

I also received an email the other day regarding one of my favorite photographers, Jen Rosenbaum (www.jenerations.com, www.jenrozenbaum.com) who is presenting at a Precision Camera workshop in October…which just happens to be in my area! Precision Camera University (http://www.precision-camera.com/pcu-weekend-2018-registration/) apparently presents this workshop annually, another fact I just learned recently, and I am amazed at the variety of classes offered. I even saw one for a lucha libre wrestling match photo session. They set up a wrestling ring outside of the store in the parking lot, you take a class beforehand, and then you get to be ringside, snapping photos of the wrestlers. I believe they even allow you to use Canon gear that they have available. I'm definitely considering attending the University weekend in the future, but this year it's just not in the books for me, with my trip to Imaging USA 2019 in Atlanta in January.

Imaging USA 2019 will be held at PPA's headquarters in Atlanta in the middle of January and hotels are NOT cheap in the area. I'm still pretty pumped to go because they're celebrating 150 years and the parties are sure to be amazing! I applied for one of four available scholarships that could potentially cover a business workshop and/or some pre-convention classes, which are usually hands-on experiences that I think would expand my knowledge immensely. I may need to alter my flight plans a bit if I win, but it would totally be worth it! 

So, I hope everyone out there is having an amazing summer and getting some good practice shots in, in between all the work you do. I'm excited for summer to end and to get some cooler (is that even possible in Texas?!) weather here. It looks like mid-November is going to be busy for me for wedding photography at The Wildflower Barn, and I can't wait to see the late-year decor and wedding dress trends for 2018. Next weekend is Labor Day Weekend, and I'm working on a special photo project involving a local filmmaker and his cast, and I can't wait to share those photos with you all in the next couple of weeks.

How I Prep for a Shoot

How I prep for a shoot:

6 MONTHS PRIOR:

Ok, by now you should be booked with me if it is a big event (wedding, sporting event, etc). We have worked out the date, I’ve calendared it, you’ve maybe paid some/all of the deposit by now and hopefully we’ve met for coffee and flushed out some ideas/discussed what look you’re going for.

2 MONTHS PRIOR:

I like to check in with clients about once a month to see how they’re feeling and find out if they have any changes, new ideas or fresh inspirations. Anything can happen in a month’s time, so I like to be prepared. Is your cousin from Thailand attending? Maybe you haven’t seen her in several years and you want to make sure I get plenty of photos of you with her. Maybe you’ve updated your photo list for formal pictures after your wedding, due to a recent divorce within your family and there’s a little tension I need to be aware of so that I can make sure to keep certain people separate during photos. Maybe your 4-year old niece is your flower girl and she doesn't like photos so I'll need to bring my lens buddy Elmer (a squeaky elephant that wraps around my lens and elicits many smiles from little ones). Maybe you’ve decided your ceremony time is too late and you will miss the opportunity for Golden Hour photos if you don’t adjust the timeline of events. Maybe you just want to shoot me a link to your Pinterest board, where you have found some super cute ideas for engagement/senior photos. I like to be IN the KNOW. 

A month or two prior to our scheduled shoot I will be doing MAJOR homework. I love, love, LOVE Pinterest, and I have created many boards for both scheduled and potential clients. I will share a few of these with you at the end of this post. I like to share my boards with clients who may be struggling for ideas, whether it's for outfits, makeup, accessories (jewelry, scarves, etc.) locations, poses, props...Pinterest also keeps me inspired, especially when I shoot at the same locations often. I'll check out other photographers and venues and gather some sweet new lighting ideas or discover new angles for capturing jewelry or bouquets.

A week or two away? Now we're getting down to the nitty gritty. I'll check in with you and make sure you are excited as I am about your upcoming date! Any changes? Be sure to let me know. If we're shooting at a location or venue I haven't shot at before, this is when I'll go visit and do a “BSW,” or my “Brain Storm Walkabout.” I'll scout out the area and get an idea of what kind of surroundings I'll have, what kind of shots would look amazing, and what lenses I'll need for those amazing shots. If it's a wedding, I'll check for power outlets so I know whether or not to bring portable chargers. I also try to think about coverage in terms of location in case it rains. We all know Texas weather can sometimes be a little unpredictable, so I like to have a backup plan in case you are unable to reschedule the shoot. Did I mention I like to be prepared?

The day before? Oh my gosh, remember when school would be about to start and you would be sleepless the night before? Yeah, that's totally me. I spend the day before readying my equipment. Batteries? Check. Lenses cleaned? Check. Flashes and camera body functioning? Check. Holster straps secure? Check. List of photos requested by you? Check. Timeline? Check. Extra batteries, lenses, etc.? Check. Plenty of memory cards to capture those awesome shots? Check. Then I double- and triple-check the starting time. This is also about the time I hope and wish and pray to the fair-weather gods to keep the skies beautiful for us the next day. Sometimes they are listening...sometimes they aren't! So much goes into my preparations to capture forever for you...in a photograph.

Pinterest Boards:

https://www.pinterest.com/IvyTendrils/bridal-party/

https://www.pinterest.com/IvyTendrils/groom-groomsmen/

https://www.pinterest.com/IvyTendrils/family-photos/

Big Day!

I have time for a short post this week - tomorrow is my little boy's second birthday, so it's been a flurry of cleaning up the house before the grandparents arrive, both to celebrate and watch my baby while I shoot my first solo wedding for my business this afternoon. I have given up on trying to keep him clean and presentable today - right now we are chilling on the patio where he has graduated from drawing on the concrete with chalk to drawing on my laptop and his clothing. But he's so stinking cute! 

It's supposed to be a gorgeous sunny day in the low 80s, perfect wedding weather! I'm so excited to check out Three Dudes Winery in San Marcos - this will be a new venue for me to shoot at and from what I could see online, there are some amazing spots where I can capture some memorable shots. It will be a small first job, but I am okay with that - it seems like the best way for me to launch this dream of mine - start small and work up to something big!

Today I'll be shooting with my Canon 5D Mark IV and a 50 mm lens for some amazing portraits. I'll also be bringing my Nikon D5100 and a 55-300 zoom lens for those special close-up ceremony moments. I can't wait to share some photos with you and let you all know how it went! Enjoy the day!

Vision

Sorry, everyone, it’s been a while since I last blogged and I apologize! I’ve been SOOOOO sick. For those who don't know, I have asthma but it’s usually dormant. Once a year or so, generally at the beginning of the year when it’s still winter (aka between 60-70 degrees in Texas), I’ll come down with a cold or sinus infection and it will trigger my ASTHMA OF DOOM. I can’t breathe, I can’t stop coughing, I can’t seem to clear out whatever is stuck in my throat. It’s terrible. This year, the plague snuck up on me in March and it pummeled me. At one point I think I had strep, asthma and an ear infection all at the same time. It was UGLY. I think I even worked two weddings in the middle of that funk and looking back, I don’t know how I managed to not drop from exhaustion and the effort of trying to breathe. LOL. But seriously, I decided I needed to rest and get better so I put blogging on hold and now I’m back!

Today I want to bare my soul and tell you about an idea for a project I've been thinking about for a while. I’ll start with a little background about me. I grew up very sheltered in a small, historic town on the banks of the Ohio River. I'm talking brick streets and giant sternwheelers rolling down the river. If you don't know what a sternwheeler is, think Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. There was very little cultural diversity of any kind in my town and at the time, the three economic classes (high, middle, low) were very delineated. Homelessness was unheard of, something you only witnessed when the 6 o’clock evening news referenced a big city, something you read about in the “National News” section of the local newspaper. I personally did not see my first homeless individual until I was in my early 20’s in Charleston, West Virginia, and TBH, I’m not even positive he was homeless; he was just scruffy and bedraggled and begged me for some change for coffee on the sidewalk. However, my reaction to the experience highlights my point that homelessness was not something I was accustomed to seeing, nor was it prevalent in my neighborhood or region.

All of this changed when I moved to Austin, TX in 2013. In Austin, I saw homeless men and women, shuffling down the sidewalks with blankets tied around their shoulders, pushing beaten Walmart shopping carts piled several feet high with scraps of their lives. I saw entire camps carpeting the concrete under the overpasses, some campers having only a flattened cardboard box for a sleeping surface, some with tents, others perched on chairs with their faithful canine companions lolling on the ground nearby. I used to work at the Municipal Court downtown on 7th Street. There would be scores of transients (by the way, I hate that word and I’ll explain why) sheltering under I35 across from the Court and police department. And then one day, they’d be gone – it was like a mass exodus. I later found out from a police officer through work that it was more like a mass eviction. He explained that whenever a celebrity or high-ranking individual visits Austin, a sweep is done. The homeless are arrested and brought to jail for various reasons to get them off the streets while the high status individual is in town, to give the appearance that the city does not have such a huge homeless issue. I have not personally confirmed this but I became more aware of the disappearance of the homeless camps during political seasons or when large events occurred downtown (SXSW, ACL, etc.).

I hope it’s not true that Austin tries to hide its homeless population. They are as much a part of this town and its culture and vibe as anything or anyone else. When we refer to them as transient it connotes that these people are “in between” or here for a brief stay, or temporarily without shelter. Maybe this is our attempt to avoid the shame or pity we feel toward these individuals. Why do we have a place to live and food to eat and clean clothes to wear and access to medical care but they don’t? We don’t like to face the possibility that we have failed as a society to care for our own people. It scares us to look these people in the eye and know that they could be us. We may make up reasons why they are homeless…maybe they have an addiction they refuse to get help for. Maybe they made a bad business decision and lost everything. Maybe they hurt someone in their family and were kicked out. Or maybe the truth is that there isn’t a good, definitive reason, it’s not their fault and it could happen to any of us. Maybe that’s the scariest thing of all. But calling them transient ignores the problem, IMO. They are homeless. They have no home. For some and possibly many of them, this is not a temporary issue. Some, if not many, may never recover their footing and may always be without shelter.

Anyway, I am getting off-track. My idea for a project is to chronicle the character of Austin's homeless population through photography. I want to capture the raw qualities of living life day to day without shelter, in a photojournalistic style. While I think it might be a bit unnerving to delve into that territory, I think presenting the many faces of Austin's homeless people to its citizens in startling black and white imagery would be beneficial. It would shine a light into a very dark corner of Austin's reality. It may even direct enough attention to the problem in order to generate a little more feedback and assistance from the community.

Sorry if this post seems a little dark to some. I just wanted to give you all some background to my inspirations.