Monday, Monday!

Okay, I'm not a Monday hater. How can I be? For me it's a chance for a new start to a new week, and heck, I don't work a 9-5 M-F so that makes a difference. And yes, I'm an optimist. Oh well. I tried to be a pessimist, how depressing!!! I tried to be a realist, but I like my rose colored glasses too much, so there!! :)

Today I realize I read way too many blogs, so I'm deleting some that aren't fun, or interesting or informative. Or in some cases, there's this one...that has just way too much information. I could read it all day and still not be caught up. So that one's going too. Simplify!! Yeah!! That's it!

And I realize too that I'm just not that big a fan of video on blogs. I wasn't sure why, but now I know. They take too long. I'm a super fast reader (thanks to a speed reading class in 3rd grade, not kidding!) I can read a novel in a day and I just don't have the time to sit watch the video. So I don't feel bad about it anymore. But I know that they can be really good, I'm going to try to watch a few more, if they are interesting and I just might be posting more too since I got one of those little pocket size digital video recorders. We'll see. Confused yet?

Okay,so I was watching this one and found it funny because just today I read that some group wants to ban all cell phones in cars, even hands-free. Hmmmmm... so here's the video from [b]ecker. And here's some other things they should ban, as they are just as distracting, right?

***And before anyone goes all postal on me, it's from a blog post of someone being sarcastic, ok?***

No cell phones
No CB's (if the still exist)
No pets in the car
No kids in the car. Multiple charges for multiple kids.
No passengers in the car
No radios, CD players, etc, in the car.(Knew of a girl who hit the guardrails while changing stations!) OMG, arrest her!!
No Makeup.
No shaving.
No reading a Map.(do they still make them?) Okay...so No GPS.
No naughtiness.(Yep, saw it myself from the bus window!)
No... jeez, what did I miss?
No heat controls.
No AC Controls.
Come on now, people, let's focus!
No.... How about no more stupid laws and just have a law against Stupid People. Now that one I like!!
Enjoy your day, and don't leave the house!:)

Smile everyone, it's Monday!

~Valeen

Are You Settling?

No... I don't mean like that! lol I'm sure you aren't, and besides, that's none of my business! But what is my business is wedding photography. I've met with a few couples in the past several months that have chosen exquisite locations for their weddings, picked an incredible menu, selected wonderful designer gowns and the finest in flowers and accessories only to have a minimal budget for the photography. According to a recent poll in CT, the average wedding photographer charges $5500 for a wedding... holy cow!! We aren't even close to that and yet some find us too expensive. So they shop around and settle for less than what they really want. I'm wondering if they realize that only the photographs will be ALL they have to remember from that incredible day? The bouquets are generally forgotten after the intros,the dresses are stepped on and torn, even the centerpieces are given away. Do you know how much food and cake isn't even eaten and thrown away in the kitchen? We go to a lot of weddings and see it at nearly every single one.

I had a wonderful bride last year that told me her sister cried when she saw the wedding pictures we delivered. Of course, that is our goal... to capture the emotion of the day and bring tears to your eyes. So I was quite pleased about what she said... then she went on to tell me it wasn't just that... it was that when the sister got married 5 years ago, they settled on a photographer and have regretted it ever since. She wanted to get married again, just to have us do the photography. As flattered as we were, it still was heartbreaking.

Another photographer's website (of course we look!) had a great quote... "Good work is not cheap, and cheap work is not good." Something to think about.

A great big thank you to all the couples that have booked us for next year, we look forward to your wedding almost as much as you do! :-) We just love weddings and hope that the passion we have will always show in the work that we do.

Artistic Photography and taking pictures

"An artist is not paid for his labor, but for his vision."
~unknown

This was a quote that I came across recently and I've been thinking about it a lot. Maybe I'll add it to my website. I think most anyone can take a picture, some can take good pictures. But for me, it's about more than that, it's about capturing the day with artistic images that will take your breath away every single time you look at them.

So this was just a little ramble about the value of having artistic professional photographers (us) at your wedding. I won't turn this into a rant about the guy who jumped in front of me with a disposable camera to snap a picture, or the woman who stood in the aisle through the entire ceremony at the church taking a video with her point and shoot camera, or the ... oops, that's almost a rant, isn't it?

Back to work now... I have weddings to edit! :-)

A little Rant... about Integrity!

So normally my blog has my gorgeous brides and their weddings... some personal stuff... some cool engagement shoots (ok, that one is coming up tomorrow!) and I don't think I've ever posted a rant before, but anyone who knows me knows that I can do that pretty good too! lol So here goes... a couple months back, I get a call from a photographer, he's young... says no one will even talk to him because of his age and he'd really like to shoot a wedding with us, would that be possible? So Bruce and I say sure, why not? I think we should give as much as we possibly can.

Then just yesterday I see a business card tacked to a bulletin board, and guess what? It's for his wedding photography business with a couple other photographers. Things that make ya go hmmmmmm? So I check out the website and see they are criticizing the way other photographers do things, although not by name. Interesting, but also upsetting. Was I played for a fool? Not real sure, but it's not a good feeling at all.

So a word of advice.... This is a business where your reputation is everything. Believe it or not, it's not just about the photographs, it's about integrity. This has been a disheartening experience, and in this case, age is no excuse.

On the other hand there are quite a few wonderful people in the business that are giving more than is ever expected to make the day absolutely perfect for everyone involved, especially the bride and groom, our customers, our friends... I would list them all if I could. :-) Hi Sue...and Kristel and Antonella, and Ryan, and Kris and, well, you get the idea!

Thanks for listening... I feel better... well, sorta.... now off to edit out some photographs and credits.