I’m so fortunate to complete another year of business. I’ve photographed so many amazing families this year! Thank you to EVERYONE who trusted me to photograph them! I am so fortunate to be able to do what I love and to meet so many beautiful and fabulous people. This year marked a year of firsts!!! [...]
I’m so fortunate to complete another year of business. I’ve photographed so many amazing families this year! Thank you to EVERYONE who trusted me to photograph them! I am so fortunate to be able to do what I love and to meet so many beautiful and fabulous people.
This year marked a year of firsts!!! I went to my first workshops, photographed my first set of seniors, photographed a bunch of new and growing families, completed my very first wedding season, and taught my very own Intro to DSLR workshop! I’m looking forward to many more firsts next year. This next year I will be bringing even more amazing and high quality products to my clients and brand new packages with more options to choose from! Stay tuned for all the exciting stuff. Oh, and you’re probably going to get a few more catch up blog posts from 2012! ;) I just have so many more photos to share with you!!
These are just a few of the fabulous people that helped me through this year! Thank you so much for your support!!!
Thank you again everyone! I wish you all a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!!!! May 2013 be even more amazing than 2012!!!
Woohoo!! I’m so excited to be going to Seattle AND I get to shoot some mini sessions while I’m there! I’m so excited to be shooting September 20, 2012 at the beautiful Greenlake location!! Below, you will find information on how I run mini sessions and the time slots available. I hope to see you there!! [...]
Woohoo!! I’m so excited to be going to Seattle AND I get to shoot some mini sessions while I’m there! I’m so excited to be shooting September 20, 2012 at the beautiful Greenlake location!! Below, you will find information on how I run mini sessions and the time slots available. I hope to see you there!!
What is a mini-session?
A mini session is an abbreviated photo session. It is often more cost effective than a full session, however, there are drawbacks. Your photographer isn’t able to get as personal with you as the time in the session is quite limited. Because of these limitations, you may not get the custom experience you would normally receive in a full portrait session. The advantages to this are that the sessions are affordable and quick. With me, the sessions will be 20 minutes in length.
What type of photos do you take with mini sessions?
Families, children, maternity, seniors, or headshots all work! But, remember, that our location is fixed. Does it have to be for the holidays? Of course not! These can serve as a photo session for any occasion!
What is the cost of the session?
There is no cost for the session however, there is a $25 retainer that is required to secure your spot. The $25 will be applied toward the purchase of your photo package and is NON-REFUNDABLE. If you are interested in the details of my packages, please feel free to e-mail me at vicky@victoriaflowerphoto.com and I will be happy to review my packages with you. After your session, I will review and edit your photos and provide you access to a password protected online viewing gallery. After we review your photos, we decide on what photos you would like to order and/or what cards you would like to order. Please note that no packages or photos are included in the session. They must be purchased separately.
Where will the mini sessions take place?
Greenlake, but once your retainer is paid, I will send you information on where to meet me the day of the shoot, September 20!
The time slots open are:
10:00
10:30
11:00 – Booked
11:30 – Booked
If there are any questions or if you want to book a time slot, please feel free to e-mail me at vicky@victoriaflowerphoto.com. I’m happy to assist you in any way I can! I can’t wait to photograph you and your family in gorgeous Seattle.
Well, it’s that time of year to prepare for holiday cards and to document how your families and children have grown over the last year! I’m pleased to announce that I will be doing mini sessions this year on Sunday, September 30 beginning at 10:00 am. What is a mini-session? A mini session is an [...]
Well, it’s that time of year to prepare for holiday cards and to document how your families and children have grown over the last year! I’m pleased to announce that I will be doing mini sessions this year on Sunday, September 30 beginning at 10:00 am.
What is a mini-session?
A mini session is an abbreviated photo session. It is often more cost effective than a full session, however, there are drawbacks. Your photographer isn’t able to get as personal with you as the time in the session is quite limited. Because of these limitations, you may not get the custom experience you would normally receive in a full portrait session. The advantages to this are that the sessions are affordable and quick. With me, the sessions will be 20 minutes in length.
What type of photos do you take with mini sessions?
Families, children, maternity, seniors, or headshots all work! But, remember, that our location is fixed (to a degree — we may walk a block or 2 to change up the scenery). If you want to go down by the river or the bridge, it just won’t work due to our time constraints. It’s something to think about. If you desire a session at a different location, you could hold a picture party or book a full portrait session. You can e-mail me for details on either picture parties or full portrait sessions! Does it have to be for the holidays? Of course not! These can serve as a photo session for any occasion!
What is the cost of the session?
There is no cost for the session however, there is a $25 retainer that is required to secure your spot. The $25 will be applied toward the purchase of your photo package and is NON-REFUNDABLE. If you are interested in the details of my packages, please feel free to e-mail me at vicky@victoriaflowerphoto.com and I will be happy to review my packages with you. After your session, we will meet and go over your photos. After we review your photos, we decide on what photos you would like to order and/or what cards you would like to order. Please note that no packages or photos are included in the session. They must be purchased separately.
Where will the mini sessions take place?
Once you have provided me your retainer, I will send you information on where the session will take place. In general, we will be photographing in Folsom in the down town area.
The time slots open are:
10:00 – Booked
10:30 Booked
11:00 Booked
11:30 Booked
1:00
1:30
2:00
2:30
3:00
3:30 – Booked
4:00 – Booked
If there are any questions or if you want to book a time slot, please feel free to e-mail me at vicky@victoriaflowerphoto.com. I’m happy to assist you in any way I can!
I recently did a shoot with a local actor. She posed a question that a lot of her colleagues were curious about — “How do you pose to get a good photo?”. So, today, I’m going to try and address this issue. Please know that I know I’m no expert. I am just trying to [...]
I recently did a shoot with a local actor. She posed a question that a lot of her colleagues were curious about — “How do you pose to get a good photo?”. So, today, I’m going to try and address this issue. Please know that I know I’m no expert. I am just trying to offer some advice that has worked for me in the past as a client and from my own experiences as a photographer. If this helps anyone, AWESOME!!! If it doesn’t, I apologize and perhaps I’ll be able to assist another time.
First of all, as a photographer, I don’t expect anyone to know how to act in front of the camera unless you’ve done modeling in the past. Most are unsure of what to do in front of the camera and that’s totally fine. How do I know? Because I’m one of those people who just freezes in front of the camera. Have you guys ever seen that episode of Friends where Chandler does that weird smile for his engagement session? The One with The Engagement Picture. I think this explains how some of us feel in front of the camera pretty well!
So, one of the important things you’ll need to do is to find a photographer you can trust. Here’s the thing, to get a phenomenal photo, you have to let your guard down. It’s hard for us to let our guard down in front of complete strangers. I know that we get self conscious and we worry that the person behind the camera will judge us. I’m here to tell you that I don’t ever judge my clients. I try to create a safe environment for folks to let their walls come down. Make sure whoever you choose to be your photographer, that you like them and that you feel comfortable with them. Does it mean that if you’re not comfortable you won’t get good photos? No, but I think if you’re comfortable you’ll get GREAT photos. If a photographer is doing mini sessions, this is a great way to test them out. Mini sessions are usually on a set day and last about 20-30 minutes in length. It’s a quick way to figure out if you jive with a photographer.
Second, learn how to sparkle. Now, I use this term with women. To be honest, I haven’t photographed very many men, so I’m not sure what I would call the male version of sparkle. All this means is that you totally drop your defenses and you work it. Have you ever looked in the mirror and smiled? Then, have you ever looked in the mirror and after you put on make up and then you saw your eyes “smile” or “sparkle”? That’s what I’m looking for. That moment when you just bring it and are completely relaxed. Part of my job is to help you find that. When we do headshot and glamour photography, I work A LOT with my clients on that sparkle. I keep trying to tease that look out to see if I can get that sparkle. Once I get it, I keep clicking away at photos. When I lose it, we reset and try again. What might be helpful is to practice in the mirror. I know, I know! You think I’m totally crazy. The easier it is for you to call that sparkle out on demand, the more amazing photos you’ll have. Can you have good photos without a sparkle, sure. Will you have great photos? I don’t think so. Everyone’s sparkle is a little different. But, you know the exact moment someone sparkles!
This is LK and I did a shoot with her last month (I’ll blog on this one soon!). She is definitely sparkling here.
The third thing to think about is the shoulders. A lot of times when we get nervous or we’re anxious or stressed our shoulders pop up. Sometimes I ask for the shoulders to come up, but sometimes it just looks like my subject is too tense when their shoulders are up by their ears. To help combat this, many times, I’ll ask for my clients to take a deep breath and let it out. This just helps the whole body relax some. I’m not a fan of saying “Relax” when I’m shooting. Some clients don’t realize just how tense they are. So, I provide cues for actions that actually help the client relax. Taking a deep breath is one of them. Sometimes I’ll ask them to shrug their shoulders to their ears and then let them go. This movement also helps us elongate our necks too.
The fourth thing to think about is your weight on your feet. For women, usually, you want your weight on your back leg. This helps give us more of a slender look. I will ask my clients to shift their weight to their back leg. This just makes everything move away from the lens and we all look a little more slender. Another thing that helps us look more slender is to turn your shoulders opposite your hips a little. We all do this to some degree when we take a photo. You turn your hips one direction, let’s say to the right. Your feet will point in that same direction. Next, you’ll turn your shoulders slightly to the left. I usually let my clients know how far to turn. This is a tricky one and you’ll need a mirror.
The next thing I want to talk about is hands. One of my pet peeves as a photographer are hands that aren’t doing anything. I hate dangling hands. I’m not sure why. They just bother me, so I always have the hands doing something (unless they’re out of the frame). So, I’ll hang thumps in pockets, I’ll put hands on the waist, hands behind the back, hands holding on to jackets, hands holding onto people. hands holding on to hands, and whatever else I can do with them so that they’re not dangling around doing nothing. Usually, I’m pretty mindful of the hands, but I know clients are too. They sometimes will ask me about their hands and what to do with them. For all you folks that don’t know, I love television and movies, so here’s another entertaining clip that makes me laugh..
Sorry, I can’t help it. I love funny movies….Okay, back to the task at hand.
Now on to the actual poses. What I like to do is have clients do something rather than sit and look straight ahead. Sometimes I’ll give clients a list of actions to do. I’ll tell the clients to look to the left and put their chin down toward their shoulder and count to 3 and then look up at me or something to that effect. What I basically do is I coach my client through different actions. When you give the brain something to do, it forgets that it’s actually freaked out about photos. So, this helps in getting true emotion and distraction. The same goes for laughs. I get true genuine happy laughs when I actually make people laugh. So, I work really hard to try and catch those real emotions as they are occurring. An example of an action I would call out is, I’ll say something like walk towards me looking down for a few steps than look up at me. Or I might ask them to run their fingers through their hair or for a male to fix their tie.
Now, for boudoir and headshots, it’s not always those true emotions you’re trying to capture. So, then I’ll coach on the actual smile itself. I’ll tell people to smile more or less and I’ll try and provide visuals – like a photo that was taken, or I try and mirror an action for them. In the midst of a shoot, I’m not great with words. I’m much better at showing a client what to do then trying to explain it. I also think that seeing what to do helps us know what we’re doing vs what we’re being asked to do.
Another thing that will help is to do something that helps lift your confidence. For me, when I get my hair and make up done, I stand a little taller and I feel a little better about being in front of the camera. I strongly encourage my glamour girls to have their hair and make-up professionally done for this reason. That extra glam factor helps us all feel a little more confident about ourselves.
I don’t ever really expect the client to know how to pose and some of these little details. I feel like it’s my job to try and help coach them through the process. So, if after these few hints, you’re still having a hard time, make sure you find a good photographer that will help direct you during your shoot. Make sure they put you at ease and you’re comfortable around them. I seem to feel like my shoots are not really shoots. I feel like my shoots seem to feel like it is a bunch of friends hanging out for a few hours.
Thanks so much for reading this pretty long post! Please don’t hesitate to request any other posts on photography related topics! I’m always happy to help!!
You know, when I was growing up, I thought the parties we had were cool, but with Pinterest and Facebook, some of the creatives out there are just blowing my mind with the stuff they come up with. I met K and E about 5 years ago. K and I know each other because [...]
You know, when I was growing up, I thought the parties we had were cool, but with Pinterest and Facebook, some of the creatives out there are just blowing my mind with the stuff they come up with.
I met K and E about 5 years ago. K and I know each other because we went to school together. I introduced her to her wedding photographer who actually allowed me to tag along and shoot K’s wedding too. It was a fabulous experience and I got so many great images that day! K was a gorgeous bride. Now, fast forward a couple of years later, I get a message asking if I had the availability to photograph her twins’ 2nd birthday. Um, of course I would love to!!!!
First, let’s talk about the theme. It was a Little Einstein’s themed party! It was so cute. Talk about creative. K created this beautiful little kid paradise with a playground, a coloring table, a sand box, a jump house and a little water area! I was so impressed with how everything was laid out. She did not miss a single detail!
She had little stations set up and she built all these little areas BY HERSELF!! She built the sandbox and the little playground area!!! SHE BUILT IT!!! I know, I know. This lady is superwoman!!!
So, I was thinking that it’s the bay area and it shouldn’t be too warm. Boy, was I wrong. It was a super hot day in the bay area — in the 90′s and I was not dressed appropriately, but K had planned for that! She had many umbrellas out to shade the grown ups and the little kids! She’s good, people! She thought of everything.
She also had this awesome catering service that came out and served some amazing tacos, burritos, and quesadillas! You know how much I like food, so this was awesome! It was so simple yet really fun and interesting to add to a party! All I know is his name is Abel — sorry — I wish I had a link or other info to share. He cooked a selection of items on demand. The line went quickly and we all definitely had seconds!!
There was also a jump house which all the kids loved playing in. For kiddos, the jump house can seem a little daunting. It looks pretty big to little kids and you have to crawl into it through a little hole. N & N were hesitant at first, but then they warmed up a little bit with help from daddy. You saw the smiles appear after a short period of time. I’m not going to lie. I may have crawled in there myself to jump around.
Don’t you want to just squeeze those cute faces???!!!! So, I’ve always thought that parenting was no easy task, but man, twins are a whole different ball game. E was working hard that day with his boys!!
But I bet seeing those little glowing faces is enough for anyone to do anything to see those smiles and hear those sweet giggles!!
Now, let’s talk about one of my most favorite parts of a party (aside from the main course) — DESSERT!!! K had commissioned a Little Einstein birthday cake! So cute!!! She uses a baker in the bay area and she has had nothing but success with her!!
N&N, happy birthday!!! K and E thank you SO much for inviting me to help celebrate your beautiful kiddos’ birthday! They’re super lucky to have such wonderful parents!! K — I could see all your attention to details and the effort you put into throwing such a special event for your kids! Thank you for letting me capture it!!! I’ll never look at birthday parties with the same eye again!
I have to share with you something that just blew my mind. I got a text from a friend, Amber of Shoop’s Photography. She was asking my availability and if I had any time to do a family portrait session. Sometimes we’ll refer clients to each other when we’re booked or we ask if either would [...]
I have to share with you something that just blew my mind. I got a text from a friend, Amber of Shoop’s Photography. She was asking my availability and if I had any time to do a family portrait session. Sometimes we’ll refer clients to each other when we’re booked or we ask if either would be opposed to helping with a session if they were available. So, I thought nothing of it. I continued to asked about details and realized it was for HER FAMILY!!!! Whoa — wait – time out! “Amber, you want ME to photograph YOUR family?” is what I believe the text said. Okay, I was so flattered!! Sooooooo, flattered. You see, Amber and I met a few years ago. I was wanting to learn more about photography and she needed some help with some things on the back end and voila — an awesome relationship was born. So, she’s seen me from the beginning. She’s coached me through many hurtles and offered me so many opportunities to learn WITHOUT expecting anything in return. Of all the photographers I have contacted, she was ONE OF TWO who was willing to work with me. Amber is amazing and I wouldn’t hesitate referring anyone to her! She is amazing. So, you see, it takes a lot of trust for one photographer to allow another to photograph them. I totally get that and I was blown away she chose me!
Oh, and let’s add that this is the first time they have had someone else photograph them — no pressure! So, with that being said, I was NERVOUS!! I didn’t want to embarrass myself. It was like the teacher asking you to show them how you do something. We’ve shot weddings together, and we jive pretty well together. We have our little dance figured out, but this is different. This time, she is the CLIENT!!! I was excited and nervous all at the same time. I had met, John, her husband, before, but it was my first time meeting the kiddos and they are so sweet! I had a blast hanging out with them. They took me on a little adventure/mini hike through some trails and their little secret family hang out area (sorry, I can’t share — I’ve been vowed to secrecy ). It was such a pretty hike and I think we snagged some fun photos!!!
The above photo was a joint effort between Amber and I. She did the editing, while I snagged the photo! Pretty good looking family, eh???
This was at the beginning of the hike and J, their eldest, was cracking up that I was Mission Impossible style on the ground in a ninja pose! Hahah!! Anything to get the shot! This is probably, one of my favorite family portraits from that day.
As I mentioned, this is the oldest, J. He is a hoot! You forget how young he is when he speaks. He was so well behaved and had some good ideas for the shoot. He was so excited to be out and actually said the shoot was fun! Gasp!!! ;-) There are good genes coursing through the veins of the family!
So, this little guy is the youngest, A. I’m somewhat convinced that he’s going to enter into the scary world of male models because he was always on! I have not yet seen a kiddo turn it on quite like this little one. He was fierce in front of the camera — he was quite comfortable in the spotlight which is super fun when you’re shooting! Sorry, elementary school girls, you’ll have to get in line! ;-). Amber and John, will you be ready for what’s to come in about 12 years????
Together, he and his brother made it a blast to shoot! We all laughed and had a pretty good time just playing in the “wilderness”. These two kiddos really were great! Thanks for making this so easy and fun for me, boys!
Now, onto one of my most favorite photos from the shoot. Amber and John hadn’t had a lot of photos together. I get it. When you’re a photographer and you have a family live and other aspects of your job, its quite difficult to get photos of yourself. So, I was so pleased that we were able to snag these amazing photos!!!
So, I LOVE movies and the quote that comes to mind is “REALLY really good looking”. You know, from Zoolander? Anyway, these two looked so good and I think I know where A gets his fierceness from….papa John. John was such a trooper too — with a bum knee he put up with me telling him to stand up then sit down then squat and stand back up again! Thanks, John — you’re awesome. Plus, that super beautiful wife of yours is pretty amazing too!!!!
So, Felts Family, it was truly and honor and a pleasure to spend some time hanging out with you. Amber, you’re a huge part of where I am in my photography! Thank you for being so helpful and open to bringing up a colleague! I hope our friendship and business relationship continues to grow in this new year and beyond! PS – tell the rest of those good looking dudes a BIG thank you for allowing me to photograph them.
Okay, so I thought I would give Amber a plug here. Amber is having a Budoir Marathon Session at the Citizen Hotel on Sunday, January 29 starting at 3:00 and going until midnight!
You will receive:
One hour private boudoir photography session in a luxurious penthouse suite at the Citizen Hotel (includes an outdoor balcony overlooking the Capitol!)
Professional Hair and Makeup done on location
Up to 3 outfit changes/scenes
Artistically enhanced/retouched images on a private online viewing gallery
10 8×10 sized digital negatives for your personal use
Post-session consultation with specials on books, calendars and more!
This session is valued at over $1000 when booked individually. Your special Marathon price is only $495! Join Amber for a fun day of sipping mimosas and getting pampered while she brings out the beauty in you with special photographs. Leave the worries to Amber – her expert posing and lighting will show your best assets. You’ll leave the hotel that day with an extra pep in your step!Space is LIMITED. Please email Amber at amber@shoopsshutter.com for more information and to book your session.
I first met JH about 2 years ago at the gym. He was this nice guy seemingly obsessed with his chest and biceps — it’s a running joke, people, I’m really not that mean, I promise! Anyway, over the span of 2 years we hung out more, worked out together more, did some break dance [...]
I first met JH about 2 years ago at the gym. He was this nice guy seemingly obsessed with his chest and biceps — it’s a running joke, people, I’m really not that mean, I promise! Anyway, over the span of 2 years we hung out more, worked out together more, did some break dance fighting, and really got to know each other. He is like the brother I never had!!! He’s always looking out for me and I totally appreciate it! He’s a really gentle giant and all around good guy — beautiful person inside and out. For these reasons, he’s an absolute PERFECT match for JL. I met JL a few months after JH, but we really didn’t get to know each other until about a year ago when she and JH became an item! She is genuine — what you see is what you get. She is kind — she will give you the shirt off her back! She is beautiful — inside and out – her soul just radiates from her inner core. She is always there for me. Always with an open arms and a strong shoulder to lean on. Never judgmental. Wow! Really, what could you ask for in a girlfriend. She accepts me for who I am and how I am (I’m a liiiiiiiittle neurotic), but she reminds me to put things in perspective. She gets me.
Uh — enough with the mushy stuff or I’m going to start tearing up. So, a few weeks ago, J and J asked me to photograph them for their very first holiday card together. I was shocked! I couldn’t believe they wanted ME. ME!!!! I may have asked if they were sure, hahha! I’m always so grateful and honored when people CHOOSE me to be their photographer! I get it — people have choices in photography — there are a million of us around.
So, we picked a day to go out and shoot. So, here’s the funny thing, JH is like an inner fierce model. When we joke around at the gym and just take fun photos he’s always got it turned on. We have this photo of him stretching out on the ground one day and I walked by and snapped a photo. I could really embarrass him right now, but I won’t H, I won’t. I captioned the photo, “Hi my name is JH and I’m a scorpio. I like candle lit dinners, moonlit walks along the beach, and puppies.” I think as a gag gift it was made into a shirt — hilarious!!!! So, needless to say he was going to turn on the cheese. But, I also wanted to tap into his fierce GQ side for the shoot, which I didn’t think was going to be too hard. JL is beautiful, like, just beautiful. I can’t even handle it. I don’t think it’s fair to be that beautiful inside and out — should I hate her or something? Hahahaha! No, I think it’s great and we definitely need more people in the world and around us who are that amazing.
Yeah, I know. I don’t even want to talk about how stunning these two are. So, I’ve done a lot of talking about how wonderful they are separately, but together, they are even MORE amazing if you can believe it! It’s like, they’re a Transformer or something. Separately, they’re pretty awesome, but together they’re some super powered robot. Hahaha — bad analogy, I think. Anyway, they really are just the perfect together. They’re so wonderfully supportive of each other, but never really forgetting not to take themselves too seriously. I think they probably razz each other better than I ever could, though, I’ve thrown in some zingers from time to time. I have to give myself credit!
So, they just bought a home and we decided to do their shoot around their property to so we could, one, explore the property, and two, get a fun little walk in. This place was beautiful. The light was gorgeous and it really was perfect day for photos. I told them to be patient with me because I was actually going to take this opportunity to challenge myself with a few different things and I figured who better to test it on then this gorgeous duo! We started our walk and saw this big beautiful tree with the sun shining through the tree juuuuuust right. It was beautiful and I thought we have to stop here!
Gorgeous, right? Absolutely gorgeous! I just couldn’t even handle it. One of my favorite shots of the day for sure and we just got started. We continued our walk over to this bridge. I thought it would be fun to to some photos there. It’s where you see their individual photos above, but we got some other great ones there too!
Oh, yeah. Girlfriend is got it down!!!! She knew exactly what I wanted and how to deliver it!!! Hahaha. JH is definitely holding his own with her! At one point he was working it so hard we totally ended up laughing because did this whole Elvis lip thing. It was so funny!
Stop it JL. Seriously, just stop. She made my job just so stinking easy!
These last two photos really speak to who they are. Really just a fun loving couple who enjoy life and each other’s company!
Thank you JH and JL for letting me document this time in your life together. You’re such amazing people and I really am lucky to have you in my life. In the words of our friend, CS, It’s real!
). It was such a pretty hike and I think we snagged some fun photos!!!
