i'm having such an amazing time in north carolina. last night, little miss lulu turned the camera on me...and then couldn't figure out why hers didn't spit out a picture, like mine did. more to come of spirited miss lulu...soon. back home late tonight.
i also had the wonderful opportunity to recently share on shutter sisters. you can see the interview here. © deb schwedhelm | tampa children's photographer
learn from yesterday,live for today, hope for tomorrow. the most important thing is... not to stop questioning. - albert einstein
this past week, i had the awesome opportunity to attend jonathan canlas' film is not dead (FIND) workshop, in san diego. and awesome it was!!
i've talked about my longing to shoot film for quite a while now. okay, maybe years. but i had this massive mental block and well, i just kept talking -- while my film cameras (nikon F100 and bronica SQ-AI) just sat, looking oh so very pretty, on the bookshelf directly above my computer.
anyone who reads my blog knows how important i feel learning is -- not only in photography, but in any profession. and i was so excited to learn about film!! :-) the workshop was incredible and i feel i left there a stronger photographer, on many levels.
my expansion into film has only just begun, as i still have so much to learn. but i am crazy excited about the possibilities. i have no idea where this all will take me but my mind and heart are open...and i'm ready for more!! one thing is for sure -- film is definitely not dead.
i encourage each and every one of you to never stop learning and growing. be open to change and don't let fear hold you back from anything your heart desires. embrace the challenges and never stop questioning. you never know what's possible.
sharing a few FIND film photos -- all shot with nikon F100, 50mm 1.4, fuji pro 400H film and processed at walgreens (yes, walgreens). can't wait to see how my film photos look when processed by a real photo lab!! hoping to share those in a few weeks.
and one of skyler, as i was trying to finish off a roll of film...
have i mentioned how excited i am about the possibilities. :-) my heart is so happy.
i also came across this today and just had to share. --
if there was ever a time to dare, to make a difference, to embark on something new, it is now.
not for any grand cause, necessarily... but for something that tugs at your heart, something that's your inspiration, something that's your dream.
you owe it to yourself, to make your days count. have fun, dig deep and dream big.
but know that things worth doing seldom come easy. there will be good days... and bad.
there will be times when you want to turn around, pack it up... and call it quits.
those are the times when you know you are pushing yourself... that you are not afraid to learn by trying.
persist... because with an idea, determination and the right tools, you can do amazing things.
and always remember... that anything is possible.
- author unknown
with every move comes a significant amount of purging, organizing, change and starting new and this year, that includes my business. purging lots of old client files. organizing my business everything, for an exciting and fresh start in tampa. and launching a new website.
this website is my fourth website, in almost exactly four years. i love it so much because of the flexibility and the large images. i'm a firm believer that a photographer's photographs should be what attracts the clients. and all in all, i'm just pretty straightforward and simple and i think that's what this website shows -- just doin' what i love and putting it out there. :-)
so here it is -- come take a look at my new (and i like to think improved) deb schwedhelm photography website. i hope you love it!
also, i'd like to thank my family, friends, mentors, peers and clients for all the support and inspiration over these past four years -- it's been a hell-of-a-fantastic-awesome-and- sometimes-wild-and-crazy ride and i can't wait to see where the next four years take me.
p.s. we're now at T minus 24 until we are officially and completely out of this house. and i'm really kind of sad about it, especially since we don't have a house yet in tampa. this one-year tour here in kansas has been an incredible one and we'll never have another one quite like it!!
i might just have to own this fabulous poster. i mean really...how awesome is this?!
copyright frank chimero when viewing his inspirational design posters, click next image to see them all
your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. and most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. they somehow already know what you truly want to become.- steve jobs
it's so easy to get caught up in being inspired by others', which often results in feeling frustrated and discouraged with our own work. and that's exactly when we need to dig a little deeper, trust ourselves and follow the direction our heart is telling us to go.
...with ME!! :-) jessica, from 503 photography, has been running an awesome series on the MCP actions blog over the past two weeks -- from hobbyist to professional. when the series was first in the works, jessica contacted me, inquiring if i would be willing to be a part of their series' competition and offer a one-hour skype mentoring session. i didn't hesitate for a second, especially after she shared it was going to be associated with step 6: believe in YOU!
so i hope you'll enter the contest. it's so simple -- go to the MCP blog and comment, answering this question:
what is the ONE question you would like to ask a seasoned professional photographer?
winner will be announced tomorrow so be sure to enter today. i can't wait to meet and share with one of you!
check out this auction... portrait commission by edward mapplethorpe (younger brother of robert mapplethorpe) baby must be 11-13 months at time of commission commission to take place sep 7, 2010 - jun 7, 2011, in NYC one 24x20 gelatin silver print, selected by artist (proofs not shown to client) market value: $10,000
images copyright edward mapplethorpe
WOW!
reading the auction details brought me back to when i first started photography and attended cheryl jacob's workshop, in august 2006. i remember it like it was yesterday because it was a big turning point for me -- my aha moment -- where i realized i didn't need to be like everyone. it's okay to be different. it's okay to just be me. at the workshop, cheryl suggested,
i think you should try something different; you should offer client sessions, where the goal is to produce only one or two large, framed prints.
one or two enlargement offerings, with one or two prices. that's it.
and that idea has fluttered around in the back of my head ever since -- wondering if that concept (that type of portrait offering) would be possible. obviously it is for edward mapplethorpe, at a price of $10K. OH-MY-GOSH!! i'm no edward mapplethorpe, but the idea of giving complete trust to the artist, from beginning to end, is something to think about and admire.
and i had no idea that the mapplethorpes had such a difficult past. the article reminded me of jackson pollock's troubled past (loved the movie pollock). thankfully edward mapplethorpe was able to pull away and better himself before total self-destruction.
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in celebration of photographing one-year-olds, i share with you P, who was one, in the photos below and is now almost four. i will be photographing P (for the fourth time), along with her new little sister, in san diego next month. i can't wait to see them again!! :-)
a friend posed this question today on her facebook wall: what is holding you back from booking a family photo session? quite a few women (moms) quickly commented that their weight is holding them back, which made me really sad. and a few posted money, which i understand but i also believe that there's enough photographers out there to cover everybody's budget.
this all led me to thinking about the perfect time.
is there ever a perfect time to have photographs taken of your family?
i posted on our wallflower friends blog today about an awesome article i read, which had the overall theme of taking the time to slow down and appreciate life and the everyday beauty that surrounds us. in a swirly kind of way, i feel what i shared there and what i'm sharing here is totally intertwined.
it's so easy to say -- i'm too fat. i have too much going on. we're too busy. maybe next year.
but i just want to say STOP IT! we need to take the time to appreciate the value of family photos, if not for ourselves (because we're too fat or whatever), then for our children. in 20 years, your children are not going to say,
i really love this photo of my family but i wish my mom had waited until she lost some weight.
and i think about steve's mom, who died when she was 40, only months after being diagnosed with breast cancer. steve was five at the time she passed away. he cherishes every single photo of his mom (not just the ones where she was thin, beautiful and looked perfect).
and kirsten sandstrom, who recently passed away at the age of 37, leaving behind a husband and three young boys. i don't think for one second that those boys will look at photographs of their mom (who pre-cancer probably wished she could have lost some weight) and see her as anything except the most amazing and beautiful mom there ever was.
we never know what tomorrow will bring our way. and life is quickly racing by; before we know it, our kids will be grown and leaving the house.
NO, THERE IS NO PERFECT TIME.
i hope that this will inspire someone, who might be waiting for that perfect time or to lose a couple of pounds, to book a photographer...today!
and let us all try to slow down, remember what's important and see and hear the everyday beauty that surrounds us. © deb schwedhelm | tampa family photographer
i'm so excited to share that leah and i have just opened registration for our fall wallflower friends retreat. it's going to be held october 1st - 3rd at the majestical sundance resort, utah. i really can't say enough about how amazing sundance is!! get all the retreat details here register here limited to 14 photographers
we've made a few changes and have some awesome surprises for this second workshop and...we can't wait!!
read some reviews from our spring retreat here
hope to see you in october!
view larger (better) image here
yep, busy as a bee... i've been photographing and designing books for my little ones' classes (preschool and first grade) the past couple weeks. along with paying taxes, book keeping, calling accountant, working on workshop, ordering and shipping prints, working on a new website, etc...i've been crazy busy. i absolutely love giving this gift to the teachers and parents every year!!
this year for sky's class, i took photos at the beginning of first grade and then the end of the year. it was rather mind-blowing how much some of the kids changed in one year.
for their book, i used both sets of pictures and the kids drew and wrote what they wanted to be when they grow up. reading their writings was one of the cutest things ever. here's a few of my favorites...
I wont to be a farmer becuaes I wont to help peaple eat hulfee.
I wont to be a vet to help animals. And I wont to be a fotogerfer to take beautiful pickshers.
When I grow up I will be a Dr. and a hair stilitst because I'd help pepl and kids. I will be a hair stilitst because I cut hair and do dipheret hair stils.
I what to be a army man becus my Dad was in Irack. I think it is a good job to help the world.
Wen I grow up I want to be a vetcherereen becuse I want to help anamals.
I want to be a arme man becas it is cool. and I like camaflog. I like to get trained.
and this is the preschool book layout (they also drew what they wanted to be when they grow up and then i asked them some questions)...
and speaking of busy, gotta run...having a friend over for dinner and need to grocery shop and clean. i'll have to make sure i buy something hulfee :-)
how did i get so lucky as to have two of the most incredible weekends, back to back?!! last weekend, i flew to salt lake city, for a photography get-together--just a few of us girls, hanging out and having fun. to say the weekend was magical is actually an understatement. we shared. we laughed. we learned. we cried. i left there a better person...a person that embraced and soaked in as much goodness as possible, from each of these fabulous women.
i was also super stoked to find the most breathtaking resort for our fall workshop location. the location alone is crazy inspirational!! we're hoping to share all the details and open registration this coming week. just a few more things to work out before the contract is complete and signed.
i adore this photo so much. i love the way we all seem to be entwined with one another, which is exactly how i feel. a part of them will forever be entwined in my heart and soul. i'm going to print this and keep it on my desk, to remind me every day of their light, love, goodness and inspiration. from left to right: wynona, crystalynn, steph, me, mindy and jefra photo set up by jefra. taken with self timer. and edited by mindy.
and this weekend... terri fischer and julie bartel are visiting ME :-) woot! woot! i thought they were fabulous, knowing them on-line. well, they're even more fabulous in person. we're having a blast. and so much laughter shared!! they are actually flying with steve right now (he got his private pilot license just the other day), which is why i have the time to blog right now. this afternoon will be filled with shopping, shooting and hooking up with another new friend. i just love terri and julie and am so very thankful to have them in my life. they, too, make me a better person.
this past weekend, we had the awesome opportunity to have our family's photos taken by untamed heart photography at the city museum in st louis. and oh...my heart is so darn happy, i can barely stand it. i cannot even begin to express how much i appreciate this gift michelle has given us. friday afternoon, we drove to st louis, to visit michelle and her family. ryder lost his tooth on the drive and we hoped that the tooth fairy would be able to find us. she did. :-) our families had such a great time -- sharing, laughing, playing together!! saturday afternoon was the photo session. and on sunday, we visited grant's farm and then ventured home.
i truly and deeply treasure each and every image michelle has shared with me. needless to say, she's wicked talented. here's a few that she has emailed over the past couple days...
thank you michelle, for the magical photos. for opening your home and your hearts to our family. for the special memories that will forever be a part of us. thank you...for everything!!!
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and in case you were wondering, this is what the four-hour drive home had in store...
p.s. if you're a photographer, please don't forget to take the time to have your own (family's) photos taken!
i loved this recent post on the creative mama blog, sharing thoughts and ideas on photography wall displays. whether your wall space is large or small, i think many of these display ideas can be applied (some of them on a smaller scale). moving to a new house every two-to-three years, i go through the wall display decision making process quite often. i'm now excited to take some of these inspirational ideas with me to our tampa house, this july.
also, i wanted to share this not-so-formal wall display idea, from my own house. we purchased these chalk- and pin-boards years ago from pottery barn kids and they have moved with us to three different houses now.
i just found this tacktile message board and this takboard from CB2, which would also work really well for this type of wall display.
have another photograph display inspiration? please share, i'd love to hear about it.
portfolio updates, that is. i try really hard to keep my portfolio up-to-date. of course, there's some images that will probably never come off my online portfolio but that's because i believe in them so strongly. i feel that a current portfolio is so important, as i want my clients to know exactly what they're getting when they hire me. additionally, hopefully our work continues to evolve and grow over time and therefore, our portfolio and website should too...right?!
i'm pretty comfortable with the amount of images in my online portfolio and therefore, when i have a new photograph that i feel should go in my portfolio, an existing image must come down. well this time, it was really hard; i struggled with which ones to replace.
i hope that when people visit my portfolio, they see that i put my heart and soul into selecting images that clearly represent who i am as a photographer and what i love to shoot.
here's a few of the newly added portfolio images. you can see more here.
i so love what i do!!!
i wanted to share a bit more about our amazing wallflower friends retreat -- a weekend full of sharing, learning, laughing and growing. and the blossoming of 15 fabulous new friendships. the weekend really was incredible -- a dream come true for leah and i. we arrived on thursday, nervous and scared. organizing. prepping. practicing. friday evening brought our welcome reception and dinner. by the end of the night, leah and i were in awe of the fabulous group that had come our way. we couldn't have imagined a more magical mix of inspirational women. and then saturday and sunday...well, we just spilled our hearts and souls and shared everything we could. sunday afternoon, we were exhausted and sad. sad that the workshop had come and gone so quickly. we longed for more! and now...we dream about the next wallflower friends retreat, hopefully this fall, in a location still to be determined.
i also wanted to share that leah and i are super excited about the launch of our new wallflower friends blog -- a place for continued sharing, growing and inspiration.
last but not least, a few photos of the families, who so graciously volunteered to model for us at the retreat. thank you sweet families...for everything!
i saw this video on my friend, joely's, facebook -- sharing that this song will always remind her of kirsten. with a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes, i have to say, it is so incredibly beautiful.
in july 08, joely told with me that her cousin, kirsten (36 and the mother to three young boys), was diagnosed with adrenal cancer. i immediately asked joely, if she would share with kirsten that i would love to do family photos for them...anytime. and that's how our journey together began.
i often get asked about how i get involved with photographing people with cancer. is there a group? a website? well, to be honest, i just ask. i can't say that i've ever sought out any of the people with cancer, who i've photographed. gratefully, our paths simply crossed. of course, i feel that it was just meant to be. i met sam through kiele's deaf itinerant teacher. i met max through sam. i met kirsten through joely.
it did take quite a bit of persistence on my part, to begin photographing sam and his family. and that's ok. i'm sure it's not easy letting someone in like that. i occasionally reminded them that i was still willing, without being too pushy,
whenever they're ready, i am here.
eventually, they did let me in and i photographed sam and his family numerous times over the past four years.
i've shared this before -- i truly feel i've been blessed with this gift of photography. and my heart is always open, willing and longing to give back with it.
this was from the first time i photographed kirsten and her family, in august 2008.
ETA: within minutes of launching this post, i received this from kirsten's husband. this is why i do what i do!!
Dear Deb,
I don’t know if you have heard, but Kirsten passed away last Thursday morning.
I can’t thank you enough for sharing your gift with our family! You have no idea how incredibly meaningful the pictures you took of us are. I remember you telling me the story of your husband and how few pictures he had of his mom. Because of you, we are surrounded by amazing images of Kirsten that constantly remind of us of the incredible person she was, and the incredible spirit and inspiration that she continues to give!
Thank you Deb! You are a wonderful, giving person with a one-of-a-kind gift! Our family is forever indebted to you, and your photographs will always fill our house with happy memories!
if i thought my mind was a swirly mess before, well...now it's a really crazy, swirly, mess. but it's a different kind of mess. a grateful one--trying hard to focus on getting organized and getting something accomplished. i can barely figure out where to start? actually, i think everything on the to-do list has been started and nothing on the to-do list has been checked off. i pretty much just keep bouncing around, from task to task...here, there and everywhere. even sitting here at my keyboard, thinking i finally might have a blog post figured out, i struggle. too many thoughts in my head. too much i want to share.
hmmmm... i guess i'll start with the fact that the wallflower friends retreat was absolutely amazing. seriously. absolutely. amazing!! leah and i feel so very blessed... and thankful!
meet the spring wallflower friends.
hopefully in the next few days, we'll be launching the wallflower friends blog, where we'll share much more about the retreat.
for the moment, let me say that the experience touched my soul and without a doubt, has impacted me for a lifetime.
after the retreat in twentynine palms, i drove to san diego, to shoot 10 client sessions. it's hard for me to explain my feelings through it all. it was definitely more emotional than usual.
having not shot much in kansas city, i had almost forgotten how much shooting means to me; how much photography is a part of my soul. there was actually a time this winter, where i felt that i was losing myself--a misunderstanding of sorts.
and then the shooting in san diego began, and i couldn't have been happier. it was as if a part of me was alive again. i felt like i could have shot 30 more sessions--right then and there. my heart was happy and session by session, my heart was becoming more and more full. and i was becoming more and more alive again.
i had missed shooting even more than i had realized.
in closing, i share a few wallflower friends and san diego images (details coming soon, in future posts :-) ).
p.s. thank you for being patient with my lack of blogging. i'll simply blame it on stress.
canon 5d mark II body canon 5d body SOLD canon 50 f/1.2L SALE PENDING canon 85mm f/1.8 SALE PENDING canon 24-70mm f/2.8L SOLD canon 100mm f/2.8 macro SOLD lensbaby composer with all optics SOLD canon 580EX speedlite SOLD sekonic l-358 light meter SALE PENDING canon (5d mark II) battery grip SOLD see equipment details and prices below.
my plan is to take the 5d mark II and 50mm f/1.2 with me to CA (when i'm there for the wallflower friends retreat) to have them cleaned and inspected by the canon service center (so the buyer is sure they are clean and in perfect working order), making them available to ship the end of march. if interested in purchasing sooner, please email me. everything else is available now.
details | pricing:
canon eos 5d mark II digital camera body purchased 2/15/09 (have copy of original receipt). original box. new: $2499 asking: $2100
canon 5d digital camera body (SOLD) original box. new: $2400 asking: $1000
canon 50mm f/1.2L (SALE PENDING) purchased march or april 2009. i'm pretty sure i can locate the receipt. original box. UV filter. new: $1479 asking: $1200
canon 85mm f/1.8 ((SALE PENDING) not used much. original box. UV filter. new: $380 asking: $250 canon 24-70mm f/2.8L (SOLD) my favorite lens. original box. UV filter. new: $1339 asking: $1000 canon 100mm f/2.8 macro (SOLD) barely used. original box. UV filter. new: $529 asking: $400
lensbaby composer with four optics (SOLD) original box. composer lens and pinhole, plastic, single glass and double glass optics. new: $375 asking: $275
canon speedlite 580EX TTL shoe mount flash (SOLD) used once. new: $580 asking: $400
sekonic L-358 flash light meter (SALE PENDING) barely used but i'm not sure where the shoulder strap is. new: $259 asking: $175 canon (5d mark ii) battery grip (SOLD) never taken out of box. new: $239 asking: $200
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i'm sure lots of people are interested in why i'm switching back to nikon. yes, i used to shoot with nikon and got drawn back to canon because of its performance at high ISOs. but i still dreamt of my nikon days. and after shooting with leah's nikon recently, i was dreaming of nikon even more. so i decided to go back. it's what my heart is telling me is right and so i'm not letting my brain say too much...i'm just doing.
don't get me wrong, i still think canon is great. really great. but i think nikon is a better fit for me.
the video was put together by karen center, for the mom 2.0 summit.
and the words...
WHAT I WOULD TELL HER: (If I knew what to say.) You are a miracle. And I have to love you this fiercely: So that you can feel it even after you leave for school, or even while you are asleep, or even after your childhood becomes a memory. You’ll forget all this when you grow up. But it’s okay. Being a mother means having your heart broken. And it means loving and losing and falling apart and coming back together. And it’s the best there is. And also, sometimes, the worst. Sometimes you won’t have anyone to talk to. Sometimes you’ll wonder if you’ve forgotten who you are. But you must remember this: What you’re doing matters. And you have to be brave with your life so that others can be brave with theirs. The truth is, being a woman is a gift. Tenderness is a gift. Intimacy is a gift. And nurturing the good in this world is a nothing short of a privilege. That’s why I have to love you this way. So I can give what I have to you. So that you can carry it in your body and pass it on. I have watched you sleep. I’ve kissed you a million times. And I know something that you don’t, yet: You are writing the story of your only life every single minute of every day. And my greatest hope for you, sweet child, is that I can teach you how to write a good one.
oh...those words.
if there's one person i stalk and pretty much obsess about, longing for his next post, it's zack arias. i've probably blogged about him three or four times in the past. and i'm not apologizing for blogging about him yet again. he absolutely blows me away. so talented. i attended his one light workshop a year or two ago and he is equally amazing in person. love his wife too.
i feel like there's so much i can learn from zack--on so many levels. i try to soak up every bit he's willing to share. hopefully, when i'm in tampa and a lot closer, i'll manage to see zack a time or two (workshop or something). i don't think i could ever learn enough from that man.
so now that you know my obsession with zack's work (hope i'm not scaring you zack and meg), let me share with you his amazing post from yesterday via his new 365 project blog, DedPxl.
A-MA-ZING!
