New video features!

We are so excited to announce the addition of photo videos to our product line! From web video to high-quality DVD, these will be available to all our clients, but are particularly wonderful for seniors and wedding mementos!

Here's a sample I put together to advertise our senior portrait division, Muse Crüe.

Stacey Answers

The studio is coming up on its one-year mark, and in that time, I've gotten a lot of the same questions from clients and from other photographers.  So this is sort of a FAQ post--I'll add to it as I get more questions :)

How old ARE you?
I get this question a lot, though not usually so directly worded.  Let's just say I was in grade school when MTV aired its very first video.  I remember the death of John Lennon, though the Beatles had gone their separate ways before I was born.  I first used an SLR camera (a Leica owned by the school) as a sophomore in high school in the late 80's and have been a shutterbug ever since, though I didn't buy my own SLR until 2000. 

Canon, Nikon, Olympus?
I'm of the firm opinion that it's the skill of the artist, not the tools used, that makes a masterpiece.  But I'm a Canon girl :)  Not because Canon is necessarily any better, but because it's what I know.  My first SLR was a Canon EOS Elan 7e, and I stuck with Canon each time I upgraded mostly so I didn't have to buy all new lenses.

What does 'SLR' mean?
Single Lens Reflex--what you see in the viewfinder is the lens view reflected up to your eye with a mirror.  SLR's have detachable and interchangeable lenses, and digital SLRs still have an actual mechanical shutter like a film camera.

Where do you get your backgrounds and props and stuff?
We are, at our very core, do-it-yourselfers. Most of what we use is handcrafted in house. Rather than spend hundreds of dollars on a single mass-produced backdrop or prop that might be in any number of other studios, we choose to craft one-of-a-kind items ourselves and spend a lot less money.  We hand-paint and/or hand-dye our backdrops and floor cloths.  We hand-make our hats and tutus and hair clips. Not only does that make our product that much more unique, it allows us to charge YOU less money for it.

Do you make hats, backdrops, etc. for sale?
Not at this time.

How come you don't sell images on CD or DVD?
It's a quality thing. So much effort and care goes into each image that I can't fathom allowing them to be mass-printed with snapshot-worthy ink on snapshot-worthy paper at Walmart or CVS. The quality of my work is not defined merely by the image itself, but also the quality of the finished product. We do make exceptions for business headshots and such, which will be printed on business cards, billboards, etc., but in general, the Facebook images are the only digital files we release.

Did you have to go to school to learn how to do this?
This one's a tough one. The only photography-specific course I ever took was that photography class in high school where I learned how to use the camera, process film, darkroom stuff, etc. More useful for what I currently do were all the design classes I took getting certified in interior design, and spending 10+ years in the publishing industry experimenting with styles and refining my skills while crafting book covers.

Cool Creepies

In general, I love creepy crawlies as long as they're outside, and aren't roaches, mosquitoes, or termites. Or on my face.

This beauty spun her web on the back garage a few weeks ago. There were two egg sacs nearby, protected by her massive web. She herself was pretty big, nearly the size of my hand from the tips of her back legs to the tips of her front legs.  She's a garden spider, probably argiope aurantia.  Interestingly, a male of the same species built a web over our front door and hung out for a week.  He'd angled the web in such a way as to not be disturbed by the opening and closing of the storm door, nor by humans coming and going.  I didn't photograph him, but it was cool to watch him wrap up his prey (moths), feed, then carefully unwrap them and let the carcasses drop to the porch, apparently recycling his silk.  When he moved on, he dismantled his web completely and left no trace except for the pile of moth carcasses.

This critter has left the building, so to speak.  A carolina mantis (stagmomantis carolina) molted and left her former exterior on the window screen. (I say 'her' because there's an egg deposit about three feet away.)  I exaggerated the lens flare a little bit in photoshop.

 

Miss A

This little one arrived at our studio asleep in her carrier. Mom got her out, woke her up, and she immediately gave me a big grin. No fusses, no sleepy eyes.  Just smiles.  It was a great shoot!  Her mom is taking advantage of our Baby Faces First Year program, so she'll be coming to see me again soon.

Taylor Senior Pics

Heinously remiss once again with updating this blog. (It's Facebook's fault! :D )

This is Taylor, a member of our Muse Crue. She's a senior rep for the studio, and so beautiful. These senior portraits turned out wonderfully!

Wee T

This little one was not particularly happy to be deviating from normal routine. This is why our free newborn sessions typically go about two hours... adults just can't predict the mood of a week(s)-old baby. We work with whatever mood we get, though, and eventually sleep comes. Even the mad faces are adorable at this age.




*Note to parents: I purposely don't offer any identity information to protect your privacy.

Painted Faces

In April, we ran a 'Fantasy Face' special, and not everyone who wanted to do the photos was able to do so. So yesterday I brought out the makeup and paintbrushes (a bonus to hosting a Brush and a Beverage in our studio is having suitable fantasy face paint always on hand), and did a Fantasy Face session featuring a pair of beautiful best friends.

I'VE DELETED THESE PHOTOS (they were being downloaded to hard drives several times a day)

Miss G

Two is such a fun age. You never know what to expect from a two-year-old in a photo studio. As a photographer, you really just have to play along according to his or her terms, have plenty of cool (and colorful) things to play with, and be prepared to do a lot of photographing crouched on the floor :) Fortunately two-year-olds are experts at being photogenic, so it's easy to get good photos.

Newborn

I did a free newborn session recently with a baby that was SOOOOOoooo good. Content and comfortable, inquisitive and watchful, and even snoozed for me. And didn't poo on me, which is always nice! Woo! I also remembered that I'd made hats, so the brown pixie hat is making its debut.

The consensus here at the studio is that she looks like her mommy. :)


*Note to parents: I purposely don't offer any identity information to protect your privacy.

Sweet Sisters

Had the honor of doing an outdoor portrait session with these beautiful girls a few weeks ago. Oy, that grin!! Can't help but grin back!! Their mom makes *fabulous* bows, barrettes, headbands, and other hair adornments.

Heart-melty toes

These are from a newborn session several days ago, such a sweet baby. This first one is my favorite from the session because of those toes on the edge of the flower pot. Love it!!



*Note to parents: I purposely don't offer any identity information to protect your privacy.

Tweaking the blog

Things may look strange around here for a little bit... I'm tweaking :)

Anticipating Tess

I am aghast that I've not updated this blog in more than a month!! So many photo shoots that haven't yet made it into bloggerspace yet (not MY bloggerspace, anyway). These are photos from another recent maternity session (referred by the couple in this post!). Tara (the mom) was so pleased with the photos, and has already scheduled her newborn session, even though little Tess won't be here for a few more weeks yet!

Le Viking

We've had some nice overcast weather :) Birthday portraits, sort of; he'll be 15 soon. This kid totally owns that casual prep style.

Daaaaaaaavve

Haven't posted any outdoor portraits in a while, so I thought I'd share these today. Fortunately the outside of my studio is fairly versatile, and there are other interesting settings nearby. I'm loving the bench in the third photo--it's looong, much longer than a standard park bench, and weathered just right. It's across the street.

The humble onion -- Updated!

I was visiting my mom and dad's house this evening, and noticed that there were some irises and other flowers in bloom around the 1-acre lot. So I grabbed my camera and went crawling around in the grass, looking for interesting angles and/or critters.

The stunning flowers in the photos below belong to the humble onion. You know, the standard yellow/white onion you get for salads/burgers/sautee? Who knew they produced such a cool flower! I'm so glad my dad never got around to harvesting them from the garden.

I took lots of other photos, too, but these were my favorite, and I'm fairly certain at least one of them is going to be made into a painting for my paint studio, a Brush and a Beverage.




















4/29 Update! What did I tell ya? I had some free moments at the studio today and set to work on painting my humble onions. This painting looks a lot better in person, and I love it :)

Feature in the Burleson Star

Many thanks to my alert friend Susan, or I might have missed this completely! Apparently a feature article on me and my studio ran last Wednesday in the local paper. I knew it was coming, but I didn't know it was already done.

At right, I've cut and pasted the article together into an 8.5x11 size (I'm gonna frame it!). The interviewer didn't quite get facts 100%, but the gist is right on. I'm extremely pleased.

Click on it to see it bigger (and read it). Please keep in mind that I am SOOOOO not photogenic, particularly with worn-off makeup and fluorescent lighting more suited to painting.

Dog on dot

Just a quick share... I've got my chihuahua with me in the studio today. She's already put lots of nose prints on the front doors about eight inches from the bottom, and now she's claimed one of the two round orange rugs. So cute.

Melissa & Armando

I had the honor of photographing an expectant couple today, Melissa and Armando. Maternity portraits are always special, and today's were no different. Lots of fabulous photos; I had a really difficult time narrowing it down to just three to post here.

This couple wasn't afraid to tell me what they wanted. I LOVE when clients do that! The best portraits are a creative collaboration between photographer and photographee(s). The last photo in this post is going on my list of favorite photos ever, and it was his idea. Yay Armando!

She's a rock star

Wanted to share three photos from a quick portrait session today. Trying some new backdrop ideas, and playing with lighting and postwork techniques. I thought it was a rock-star-looking set, so she dressed the part :)