Sadly, the holidays are over at least until spring. I always hate going through the wonderful cards that I receive every year and deciding which ones have to go. I never throw out the picture cards from friends and family because I like to compare the kids year after year. Frankly, it’s good to compare the adults as well if they are in it! In my studio, I start photographing holiday cards in September. As a professional photographer, I am obliged to do what I call “parent pleasers”. These are the photographs that grandparents love. You know, the one grandmom takes to the hair salon. Everyone is posed perfectly. Perfect posture, perfect smiles, perfect children. But seriously, is that the photograph that makes you smile each and every time you look at it? So, after I photograph the obvious ones that parents have come to know, then I work my magic. I look for expression and feeling. Working with kids, I know that there is only a small time frame before everyone melts down. Frankly, sometimes that includes me! Make no mistake, photographing children is no easy task. I estimate about a twenty minute window where you have them in control. After that, everything else is a gift.

So, a few pointers to photographing your kids: First, they must be well rested. I usually do children’s sessions in the early morning. Yes, I said early morning. As in 8:30 a.m! Secondly, you must know your equipment. There is no time to experiment photographing a child unless it is your own! Ha! If you are getting paid for the job, you better know your stuff. (That subject in and of itself is an entirely other blog subject.) Lastly, don’t be afraid to ask the kids to do something. Thats right. No, not hard labor. The photograph that is shown here is between two brothers ages 3 and 5. I have photographed them many times before and they were very excited to see me. So, in the first ten to fifteen minutes of my session, they were off the wall with talk, talk, talk. I tried and in fact did get some “parent pleasers”. Them sitting side by side smiling at me. One standing, one sitting, smiling. By then, I asked the younger boy to give a “soft” hug to his older brother. This image was a result of that hug. One shot got it. After that, the younger boy was past his twenty minute window and basically wanted to just lay down and the grass!

The lens I used was an 85 mm 1.2
F 5.6 @ 1/80 second (5.6 because these boys were all over the place!)
Iso was 400

I can only say that it doesn’t hurt to at least try for some emotion in your photography. Your shots will be more memorable.

Oh, and lastly, if you have any questions, you can always shoot me an through my website @ www.lerephoto.com. Find more craziness on Facebook by “liking” my page (Donna Lere Photographer) or for follow me on Twitter @ donnalerephoto.

What are you doing to remember today?

There’s an old saying that goes something like this:
“A photograph isn’t a photograph until it’s printed.”

I love this!

So, with the holidays behind this, we are back into our normal day to day activities. Back to work, school, sports, groceries, and of course wondering when the next snow will be. The decorations are put away, or at least one step closer to the garage. The gifts are in the closet and the leftovers are in the trash can. But wait! You forgot a step! You took the photos (hopefully with a camera and not a camera phone!). The images are still there, just waiting to be printed.
You have two options here. 1. Keep them in your camera and just wait. Wait for what I’m not sure. Perhaps you feel when you get time. Well friends, there is never a perfect time. 2. Take care of those photos NOW and get them printed. Because if you wait, sooner or later they will get erased on your camera and the memory is lost.

So, where do you take them to be printed. Or, better yet you can do it through the computer. There are many consumer places that will gladly print your images. They will take your hard earned money and give you what they feel is a decent print. I am sort of dancing lightly here on several places that you can have your images printed because I don’t want to cause any hard feelings from drug store labs, box store photo machines and online printing sites.

Every year I teach a photo class in my studio. One of the assignments is to take one very colorful photograph filling the frame with at least two vibrant colors and another photograph is of a face close up but outside in light shade filling the frame as well with the face.. One of the photos has to have some white in it. Then take these two images to two different photo labs in the area. They can be your local drug store printer and and even a big box store photo printer. Then we all all view the images together as a group of different places to get images printed from the area. Shazam! A light bulb goes off in each student’s eyes. The color shift from one printing machine to another is just amazing. Skin tones range from “normal” to “alien” looking. However, these printing labs (I’ll call them that for now) just go on taking your money for downright junk they are giving to consumers. Why? Well first of all, because the consumer just doesn’t know what to look for. And secondly, the consumer is looking for the bottom dollar price. So, consumers are happy to pay 13 cents for example for a print, rather than 35 cents a print to have a normal skin tone.

So, here is my advice. First of all, try to stay away from quick photo labs if you can. Lets face it friends, if the place sells band aids, hemorrhoid cream and variety of hair and makeup, it’s probably not interested in giving you the best picture for your lasting memories. The 17 year old behind the printing counter isn’t concerned about changing the chemicals to make the prints look vibrant.
Most online printing labs at at very well known sites to remain nameless should be called “shameless” instead. You get what you pay for. Again, bottom dollar.

Personally, I think the best place to send your pictures as a consumer is a local camera shop. Usually, they take pride in their printing for the everyday folk. There job is just that.. pictures and cameras. Go on their website and see if they have the opportunity to upload your work. Some do and some don’t. Still, it is far cry than the store selling detergent.

For my studio, I send all of my work to a professional lab. Every image is painstakingly color corrected to make sure that it looks amazing. However, for my personal stuff, like the holiday stuff or pictures of my amazing chihuahuas, I do send my stuff to a local camera shop lab.

Point here… Get it printed. Don’t wait. The clock is ticking.

Every year during the holidays, folks ask me for holiday photo tips. I try to guide them based on their photo knowledge. But in reality, this is what I know will happen.
Most if not all of your photos taken this year will be taken from your phone.
You will never, ever get them printed.
You (the picture taker) will never be in any photographs.
Eventually, you will have several hundred photographs on your camera phone and when your phone dies, so will your holiday memories.

So, how does this blog help you? Well, frankly, it is to remind you of that yes, holidays are fun, stressful and expensive. But most of all, it is about enjoying good times and feeling loved and giving love. Several years ago, my dad passed shortly after the holidays. His health was in pretty bad shape and at one point during Christmas, I saw him sitting in chair with no one around. He was hooked up to oxygen and was pretty immobile. I walked over to him and sat next to him and he turned to me and winked. Something that he always did just to me. I reached for my camera and asked my brother to come over for a photo. My dad mustered an expression even though I knew he just ready for God to take him. A little more than a week later, he got the call and didn’t answer my phone calls any more. While preparing his final arrangements, I scrolled through the camera and found this picture which I hold dear to my heart. I made the time to have this special one printed immediately. I value this photograph higher than any money I have in the bank.

My point? Go the extra mile. Use a regular camera. Put aside time right after the holidays to get your images printed. If you don’t print them, why bother taking them?

Here are some photo ideas for the holidays:
Take photos of the decorations. Thats right, the house inside all decorated. That’s a memory.
When folks come over, grab your camera and get them walking in the house with all their packages.
Take a photograph of everyone sitting around the dinner table BEFORE dinner.. Perhaps making a toast.
Take some close ups of people. Yes, they get all weird when you point the camera at them, but so what. Ask them to give you a funny expression.
Give the camera to someone to take YOUR picture.
Give the camera to someone in the 12-16 year old range. They are bored and surely don’t want to be there. So, give them a job.
Don’t forget a pix of the dog and cat. They deserve a memory.
A picture the exact moment the kids see the presents!
Your living room after everyone opened the presents. Yes, the carnage.
Don’t be embarrassed by purposely asking folks to get together for a photo. I always take two because one person blinks.
Although the tree is beautiful, you will need some extra light for these photos so try to open the curtains around the house for added window light.

And lastly, none of this will happen if you are not prepared. So, get the batteries ready. Clear your digital card. Make a memory.

As a professional photographer for many years, I have seen all kinds of things come and go as it relates to photography. The list of trends would astonish you. I remember before digital came along, purchasing a ton of hand coloring markers. Before that, it was hand coloring paints, and in between that were hand coloring pencils. All of course to be used on black and white images to give you a vintage look or a spot of color. Now, it is not too often that you see a black and white photograph with a spot of color (like in the eyes) (Which I find weird but that’s my opinion.)

So how do you find what’s trending in portrait photography. Honestly, it is different for models than for families and kids. However, the next time you are in the book store, pick up a high end magazine and study the use of color, black and white and the look of desaturation. Personally, I have been finishing my images in that “Instagram” look which is a combination of just the right amount of desaturation, contrast, an increase in blacks and a soft skin soft. Much like the Calvin Klein ads or GUESS ads, these pictures can also be black and white as well. My clients love the look and have been preferring it over the standard color. If you are an inspiring photographer, I encourage you to take a good look at trendy high end magazines are showing. Trying something new is exciting. Spot color in photographs is pretty much old school. Remember the old saying which goes something like.. If you are not the lead dog, the scene never changes.

Here is a clear example of young Dominick appearing in three different final images. All are great, but I just love the look of the last one. Opinions? Let me know! Email me at Lerephoto@gmail.com.

IN FULL COLOR

In Black and White.

My favorite.. This kids looks like he is ready for an ad with a major advertising company!

Many years ago, I was invited to a job hiring conference for soon to be graduating photography students from an art school. Always looking for good people, I gladly went to scout out the job candidates. There were other professional photographers there as well both in my field and also various other fields of photography. Students waited in line to sit down with their photographer(s) of their choice. In their hand was their resume and a complete portfolio. Some students were short a few pictures because they hadn’t completed their entire portfolio, but decided to sit down with me and show me their stuff.

Naturally, I expected their resume to be a little light with information since it was only a 2 year school. But in reality, less than 3 percent of the students who sat with me the entire day had ever been a photo assistant. Their resume consisted of things like working at a local convenience store, babysitting, working at the school store. That was not the part that bothered me. Upon showing me their “books” of images, I was truly speechless. After two years in college, their portfolio consisted of sometimes less then ten images. Okay, granted, if they were blown away images, I would not be writing this piece. Can we start with out of focus pictures for one. Add boring, poorly printed and over exposed as another. One student had a total of ten images. Six of the images were of a wicker chair he drug around and took a picture of. I never envisioned a wicker chair in the surf, but there’s always a first. The other 4 images consisted of flowers and his girlfriend. Oh but wait, there’s more. One student had 8 images. Six of them were out of focus. I asked him where he sees himself in 3 years. He said working for Sports Illustrated.

So where does all of this lead to? Frankly, the topic is “Photo assistant equals future photographer.” All of these students handed me a card that had their name and the word “Photographer” under it. I wonder if they knew the difference between an F-stop from a bus stop! There were a few however that looked like they had potential. I asked them if they would be interested in assisting me on jobs. Surprisingly, they said no!

Assisting a professional photographers is a huge part of the learning curve. The things that you can learn by working side by side a professional are lessons that are not taught in any college or classroom.

So, how do you get your foot in the door? Simply find a photographer who’s work you admire. Be honest. Tell them that you will do anything to learn at any cost. Many photographers take on students at no pay! Sort of like an apprentice program. For me, I pay assistants on a sliding scale. The more you work, the more you improve, the more you get paid. Remember, that you are worth nothing to me in the beginning. I have to teach you pretty much everything.
Here are a few things that my photo assistants do on jobs:
Get to job early and scout out locations.
Set up lights and meter them as I like them.
Never late. Let me repeat, Never ever late.
Dress appropriately.
Be my second eyes and ears.
Never give out your own business card!
Carry equipment to car and back into studio.
Have a valid driver’s license
Secure all equipment. Make sure nothing is left behind. Count all lenses, stands, lights, meters.
God forbid if you drop something, tell me. Don’t let me find out on the next job that you dropped a lens and wouldn’t think I wouldn’t notice.
All big decisions are done by the photographer.
Wrangle people.
Chase away people.
Get coffee.
If a light is not popping, whisper it in my ear and not yell it across the room.
Don’t assume anything if you are not sure.
Don’t steal images for your personal portfolio.
And lastly, if you call in sick on the day of a shoot, you are done. Yep, I said fired. Sounds harsh? Frankly, I don’t care. You are there to learn. If this were your business, and you had a big job, would you call in sick because you had a runny nose? If I eventually hire you to shoot and you have cramps that day, I expect you to show up and deal with it. Take an aspirin. When a portrait session is in the books, whether it be professional headshots, a wedding, or a family portrait, a great amount of detail and thought goes into pre-planning. Each person on my team has a job. When the line breaks, it is a trickle down effect..

Eventually, after it appears that you are dedicated, then you will get a chance to shoot. No photographer that I know of will send you out on a job with no prior experience.

In closing, let me say that in close to three decades of shooting, I would still assist another photographer if they were in need. We all learn things from each other. A college degree doesn’t always give you what you need. You may want to be a photographer, but being in the business of photography is a whole other story.

Imagine the possibilities if you open yourself up to learning from someone who has walked in those shoes before you!

This blog is not about photography.. it is about etiquette. The definition of etiquette: “The set of rules or customs which control accepted behavior in particular social groups or social situations.” Whew!

This isn’t a rant or a rave. Just a few sentences that rattle my brain when I see things obviously are wrong with society. I can’t blame the children. They are just a sponge. And in fact, like everyone out there, I probably broke a few dozen etiquette rules in my life. I just recently found out that among the email etiquette rule, you are never supposed to respond to someone’s email by just saying one word… like “Thanks” and hit the send key.

As a parent, I tried to teach my kids to say the usual “please” and “thank you’s” when necessary. To show appreciation for a gift even though it was god awful and ugly as sin. Not to interrupt during an adult’s conversation was big with me. As a child, when my parents had company, I remember not being allowed to hang around the kitchen table while they were conversing with other adults. Just the other day, I was having a conversation with someone when their 10 year old said out loud.. “Mom, you are a liar… it didn’t happen that way!” I was mortified.

Just type in “etiquette” and you will find all types….. Yes, even funeral etiquette. There is etiquette for traveling with dogs as well (who knew?). Some call it common courtesy. Holiday etiquette is a big one. What to give and what to tip. And then there is the party etiquette. Someone once invited me to a party of someone they knew that was having a party. Of course I said “no” because I never got a direct invite from the party givers! Invites should be given out and should be addressed to the person(s) you are inviting. A personal telephone invite is good as well.

I am sad to say I am still waiting for a thank you card for a friend’s wedding I could not attend and gave a rather nice gift. Oh yea, that was over two years ago!

The title of this blog is “No one is late for Oprah”. Why, because last year, Oprah was taping her last few shows and had Jennifer Hudson on. Oprah tapes two shows a day. Jennifer was supposed to tape in the afternoon. The day before, she arrived and did a sound check on the Oprah stage. Then sometime during the night, she left Chicago and few to NY for a party hoping to come back before the taping of the second show the next day!. Unfortunately, New York got a snow storm and Jennifer couldn’t get a commercial flight out as planned. She did eventually get into Chicago, but very very late….. keeping all of Oprah’s staff and audience waiting for a very long time. I remember watching Oprah talk about this incident and I’m sure that Oprah had some words to say regarding the cost and inconvenience of Jennifer Hudson’s actions.
So, in closing…. I just want to remind you to do the right thing. Teach your kids the right thing. Write the thank you cards, don’t send the thank you’s through email, don’t take a phone call during dinner, don’t text someone else while having coffee with someone, keep your elbows off the table and for god’s sake….. say thank you.

Meet Ruth. Does the term “Never judge a book by it’s cover.” sound appropriate here?

Ruth turned the big “five-oh” this year. Needless to say, there is only one word that applies here…. “Whoa!”
There is a great quote I heard:
“Haute Couture should be fun, foolish and almost unwearable.” by Christian Lacroix

No, it’s not “boudoir”. It’s not the showing of your bum. It’s not nude or explicit. What it is, or what I define it is “couture”. High end magazine style photo style shoot complete with hair and makeup. It is my knowledge of great light and how it and how I can apply my techniques to you. It is making who you are feel better about yourself To show you that indeed, you are beautiful despite some self doubt days.

Let me show the world just how beautiful you are.
Contact the studio at 215.968.5220 for more information on Couture sessions. Oh what fun!

Meet Ryan and Laura.
I have known and photographed Laura and her sister before for her high school senior pictures. Growing up, Laura’s parents rented a home at the Jersey beach in the summer. That’s where Laura met Ryan. From there, a friendship turned to gold. A real friendship that is….. Complete with lots of laughter.

With an August wedding planned, we headed down to Ocean City, NJ where all the memories began. Watching these two interact was in and of itself, priceless. Lauren’s infectious laugh compliments Ryan’s warm personality.

Here is just a sample of the amazing time I had sharing an evening under the Jersey sunset with them. I choose in processing to “age” the look, because I just love seeing images look timeless. It just reminds me of the “Hemingway” era. Washed out color photographs adorn the home making memories everywhere! I could picture these images sitting on a piano in years to come when the grand kids come visit!

Too often in my business as a “professional” photographer, I forget to pull out the camera for the “fun” stuff. It is sort of like being a carpenter and after working at someone’s house for 8 hours, you don’t want to pull out the saw and start something at home. I must admit that I do like to go to family parties and NOT bring a camera. People get all bent out of shape if I don’t take pictures. They say things like…. “This is YOUR job!”. I secretly want to scream.

Yesterday was an amazing fall day. The temp was around 72 degrees and it was slightly breezy. The leaves have not yet turned but there is a crispness in the air. I was returning from a job and had all my equipment in the car. Having some time on my side before the next shoot, I stopped at a local nursery. I’m really not a “fall” person. Spring is my season. But I will say that now that I am getting older, I am enjoying the amazing colors that this season brings. I used to laugh when I heard older folks say they were going for a drive to look at the fall foliage! Now it’s me in the car screaming out at everyone to look at that red tree! Have I turned into my grandparents?

Anyway, back to photography! Since it was 2:00 in the afternoon, I knew pictures outside would be a bit washed out. So, I headed inside where there was what seemed like thousands of pumpkins and other gourds. (and other weird-ish looking things.) The perfect light was almost everywhere inside. I walked around the entire inside taking an array of color images. The guy at the cash register watched without saying a word. (Yes, I did purchase a pumpkin at the end.)

So, what would I do with these images? Well, funny that you ask. Now that Facebook is here, you can use one for your background, You can also use one for your Twitter account. You can send one as a post card to a friend or just print one up for your desk.

Here is the one I like the best. I brought the photo into Lightroom, and punched up the color a bit. Also, I added a vignette around the sides. Afterward, I popped it into Photoshop and did an unsharp mask.

Afterwards, I put this pumpkin photo as my background to my Donna Lere Photographer Facebook page. If you wanna see it, pop over to my Facebook page.

All in all, it was a great fall day and I’m glad I took some time to re-smell the roses so to speak!

In the past few years, I have been delighted to be an invited guest to a few weddings.  As a photographer who is normally working the wedding, I try to give each wedding the most amazing coverage and portraits that are fresh and exciting.  Even after being a photographer for close to three decades now, I still study light, cut out great poses from cutting edge magazines and know how to light almost any room.

So, when I attend a wedding as a “guest”, it is my chance to enjoy friends, family and good old fashioned laughs.  My husband knows that I am secretly critiquing the photographer hired for the job, but I try to keep my mouth closed during the event.  Let’s face it… most of us  think we can do better then someone on the hot seat.  With that said, I just want so scream out to brides…. yes brides, because they are usually the decision makers with the wedding arrangements.  So, here is my open letter to brides:
Dear Soon To Be Bride:
Aside from having children, getting married is probably the most special time in your life.  Your guests will be so excited to see you and your groom married.  However, here is what the guests will remember:
A) If it was  hot in the church.
B) If the DJ was horrible and the music was terrible.
C) The groom’s toast or bridesmaid’s toast.
D) Who was dressed inappropriately.

What they won’t remember are the chair covers, the bridal flowers, the table arrangements, or the sorbet served between courses.  In no way am I saying that they are NOT important.  However, if it costs an additional $1500 for chair covers and you skimp by hiring a photographer who lacks experience than you need to re-assess your priorities.  Your photographs are THE only thing that remains after the flowers are dead, the thank you cards are out and your wedding dress sits in your spare closet just waiting for you to get time to figure what to do with it.

Some of the tragic errors I saw in the past few weddings as a guest are:
Missing the photo of the maid of honor toast.
Missing the ring exchange
Using direct flash causing huge shadows.
Running out of flash cards and not able to take pictures until he/she downloads her cards on her laptop to get more space.
Stopping at Rite Aid to buy more digital cards.
Not having an extra battery card, therefore plugging in the charger during the wedding.
Shooting the bride and groom in full sun at 2:00 in the afternoon in a field.
Photographer shooting off camera flash as a main flash during bride dancing with groom first dance and flash never firing and photographer not noticing.
One out of every 5 or 6 flashes working.
Photographer actually stops individual introduction into hall and waits for batteries to recycle.

So, in closing, the best advice I can give you is to really examine your priorities when it comes to planning your day.  Sure, everyone has a budget.  But if you love a photographer’s work… you can make it happen.  You won’t be sorry.  I’ve never heard anyone say they thought those chair covers were amazing.