MEGHANN & WILL GET MARRIED!!

While spending a rainy May afternoon working on the details of one of Viva's upcoming weddings at the Museum of Nature, we got to thinking about our very first wedding at this fantastic venue. Viva was lucky to coordinate only the second wedding to take place at the Museum after the extensive renovations were completed last year and could not have been happier with the outcome. The event space is spectacular and the staff are truly top notch.

You'd think coordinating a wedding for a couple getting married in Ottawa but living in New York would be somewhat of a challenge but thanks to Meghann's wonderfully supportive family here in town and the wonders of email, the planning process was not only a breeze but so much fun!

The perfect Ottawa venue + an amazing New York couple = a really fabulous day. Here are a few detail images of Meghann & Will's wedding captured by the award winning Photolux.

ONE PRINCESS BRIDE, TWO LOOKS

It’s becoming more and more common for a bride to show off two different looks on her wedding day. Viva has seen this over the past few years with our own brides and previously blogged about celebrity wedding planner David Tutera’s line of wedding gowns including the “Eva” and “Fergie” - dresses that start out full length for the ceremony with the lower part of the skirt removable to reveal a short party dress for the reception - so it came as no surprise that Kate Middleton chose to change her look too. Designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen, Kate married her prince charming in a fitted white v-neck gown with a long sleeved lace overlay and 2.7 metre train and then transformed into a strapless satin gazar evening dress with diamante embroidered detail around the waist, topping it off with a white angora bolero cardigan. Perfect.

Here are the rest of the details on Kate's wedding day look.

This years first lawn mowing...

Pretty exciting stuff, huh?

Yes it means that winter is truly over, but more significantly... instead of hearing me whine about how cold it is or complaining about shoveling, you'll hear things about heat, rain, and how square wheels really makes it hard for me to push my mower.

;)

I'm a seasonal kind of complainer.

You have less than 48 hours left to act...

You have about 36 hours, until midnight tomorrow (Saturday April 30), to get a set of 3 Lexar 16GB Platinum II 200x compact flash memory cards for only $99 at Adorama. If that price isn't tempting enough they're offering free shipping and are throwing in a memory card wallet to boot.

Not only are these cards fast, but they also hold a bunch too, one card will hold up to 3,200 16MP images (or 2,300 21MP images). Video your thing? One card will hold up to 6 hours of video.

A perspective on just how good a deal this price is their competitors are selling the exact same memory cards at $87 for a set of (just) two. Plus the cost of shipping and no wallet.

If you don't need quite so much card (or want to spend quite so much money) you can get the exact same card in the 4 GB size for just $18 each. Free shipping on these as well.

This is kinda cool...

GamiLight sent me the mockup of some print advertising that they will be doing at upcoming events and much to my (pleasant) surprise it contained a couple of the sample shots I did for the review.

Speaking of the review, you can find our GamiLight posts it here, here, and here.

(clicking on the window will open it larger and in a new window)

My rules for blogging...

Well, less like rules and more like guidelines and observations.

1. Create accounts with feed Burner and Google Analytics:

www.feedburner.com

www.google.com/analytics

It makes no sense to have a blog if you don't get the word out of your existence or know who is visiting you. Feed Burner will get your blog “out there” and track your subscribers, Google Analytics will track your visitors and trends.

2. It’s important to have “Chicklets” on your blog, it makes it very easy for people to subscribe to your blog, readers will quickly tire of "manually" returning to your site see what’s new, as a subscriber they will get an email every time you post something new.

3. Setup Google Alerts - this will send you an email alert every day letting you know what is being said about your blog and who is saying it.

4. When you find traffic that is coming from a specific website or blog (by using analytics or alerts), visit it to determine why and then send the sites writer a thank you note. Traffic is like money and someone has just been very kind to you.

5. Should you write about someone (photographer, vendor, etc.), drop them a note telling them you have done so, not because you are looking for a reciprocal link (or anything else), it’s just the the courteous thing to do, to let folks know when you’ve been talking about them. Often they will link to you because it's beneficial to them as well.

6. In the beginning I never blogged on weekends as traffic drops easily by 40 - 50% (which proves people surf more while at work than at home). I do post now, but it's always "off topic", mostly about things that touch me or topics outside of photography that I consider "important".

7. Often I don't blog on holidays, or holiday weekends other than to recognize it (like "Merry Christmas"), as folks are traveling and/or celebrating and don't have the time for "serious" surfing.

8. If you aren't an everyday blogger try to have "rhythm" to your posting like Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Tuesday and Thursday, or every Monday. Random posting will not help build readership.

9. If you are going to miss blogging for an extended period (like vacation) let folks know, or they may think you have lost interest and they will do the same. I might write a post or two in advance and then post them while on vacation, or I'll post some images I have taken while on vacation.

10. I was very surprised to learn that some of my highest traffic would come from a "personal" postings. I am not suggesting you post personal things in an effort to get traffic, I just mention it as I think it shows people like to learn about who they are following.

11. If I post an image that is not mine (even when I say "here is the work of...") I ALWAYS put their copyright information right on the image myself. I want it absolutely clear to whom the image belongs.

12. ALWAYS give credit where credit is do. If I come across some cool idea or technique that I share on the blog I make sure to give credit (and links).

The last two rules come down to credibility and honesty. 'nough said...

13. I write like my mom or my children will be reading the post.

14. The theme of this blog matches our review policy, I try NEVER to be negative, too many folks eagerly (and with glee) rip something or someone apart (and think they're slick and funny in the process). It's like all the bad examples we see in "reality" TV and I just don't want to participate in that crap. Basically, it all boils down to what our moms always told us “if you don’t have something nice to say, I'll slap the snot right out of you”. ;)

15. Never put your blog (or anything else) before your family.

16. Every single link on your blog should open in a new page, it’s hard enough to get folks to visit your website so why would you want to drive them away riding a link to another website.

The html code that will make a link open in a new page or tab (depending on the browser) is: "target="_blank"

The first snippet of code is what the html of an uploaded image on my blog would look like, the second is with the "target="_blank" in place:

"http://1.bp.blogspot.com/.../Carrie_Sandoval_1.jpg"

"http://1.bp.blogspot.com/.../Carrie_Sandoval_1.jpg target="_blank"

The first snippet of code is what the html of an external link would look like and would replace my blog in their browser with another site, the second snippet is how it should look with the "target="_blank" in place, opening the link in a new window:

"http://capturedbycarrie.com/index2.php"

"http://capturedbycarrie.com/index2.php target="_blank"

That's it, that wraps up my blogging rules and this series. I hope you found a piece of information or two that will help you have a more successful site.

Social media, driving traffic, and a challenge...

Here are some final resources that will help build traffic to your site, use social media to the fullest, and a challenge that will make you a better business person.

1. Buzz Blogger has put together a list of "21 Untapped Traffic Sources" that will help get the word out that you exist and begin the process of building a following for your site.

2. Photo Shelter has done a series of videos "Social Media for Photographers!" that talks about the red hot topic of social media.

3. "The Challenge Training" is a daily 8 week internet marketing training program. There are videos, PDF's, and you can do it online or get it for your iPhone or iPad. This will help you get in a "business frame of mine".

I know, I know, the stuff we have been covering the last few days has not been very exciting, but it is important because the results will establish a solid foundation that will build your online presence.

Later today we will close out (I promise) with my rules for blogging.

Then we can get back to the really exciting stuff, like watching paint dry.

Google Analytics, kicking butt and taking names...

I can't tell you how much I love Google Analytics, the information it provides about the visitors to your site is phenomenal and it's a must have tool.

If you have not yet setup Google Analytics you can watch this step by step video tutorial to get the ball rolling.

One of the things I like to look at in analytics is the ability to check on post popularity, there are times I write a post that I think is going to be killer and it falls flat, other times a simple quick post will hit it out of the park. It's a good way to judge the interests of your visitors and match what you have to say with what they are looking for.

I was pretty surprised to learn that about one third of our readers are from outside of the United States.

You can also learn what days are good to post on and what days are not.

What you can learn is almost endless and amazing.

If you follow this link you'll find 50 resources that will help you get the most out of analytics.

Below is an 8 minute video (done by Google) that will walk you through the analytics interface showing you where to find what you are looking for.

Tomorrow I will wrap things up with my (general) rules for blogging, not that I am a whiz kid at it (or a whiz old man), but in the 5 years I have been doing Weekly Photo Tips I have learned a thing or two about blogging and I will share those lessons with you.

Speaking of image metadata...

What is metadata?

Metadata is a pretty broad term when it comes to web design but for todays post we are going to talk about how it applies to images and/or photographs that we post on websites or a blog.

It's descriptive information (data) in an image file that will identify what its about, who took it, copyright & contact information, camera & exposure information, and descriptive information like keywords.

Why is metadata important? It makes the image readable by Google (and other search engines) which in turns makes the image searchable on the internet and will help improve search engine rankings.

As photographers this is extremely important as our sites are a more image intense environment, so image metadata really is mission critical information.

But image metadata only gets there because we put it there, which is the purpose of this post, to give you the information that will make the process easier.

A very useful free tool (that I use) is ProStockMaster. ProStockMaster is designed to both simplify and optimize the metadata process for folks who sell stock photography and if it helps them to standout in the highly competitive field of stock photography it will certainly help us on on our websites.

ProStockMaster is available for both MAC's and PC's and you can download it right here.

Another option for adding metadata to images is through Lightroom, and you can find a written tutorial here or if you prefer, a video tutorial here and here.

These aren't the only two ways to ad metadata to your images, you can use other (free) programs like FastStone Image Viewer, IrfanView, or "pay" programs like ACDSee and Paintshp Pro (to name a few).

Below is the best video I've seen that explains what image keywords are and why they are important (here is the second best, ironically by the very same person), it's only 3 minutes long and worth every second.

And it comes directly from the horses mouth, Google, so if you don't see the video in your subscription PLEASE return to the blog to watch it.

VIVA LA FUSION!!

Everyone knows Barb Cameron the Wedding Photographer - Barbara Ann Studios offers couples a style that is fresh, romantic, sexy and fun. Not only have her images been featured in countless wedding magazines and on numerous blogs, Barb was recently acknowledged as one of Canada’s Top 30 Inspiring Wedding Photographers for 2011.

Not everyone knows Barb Cameron the Baby Photographer - Wee Bairn Photography was launched when Barb’s former wedding couples started reappearing requesting that she photograph the next stage in their life, their newborn baby.

For those of you that don’t already know, Viva recently welcomed a new bundle of joy into the world and couldn’t wait to have Barb capture her on film. We were even more ecstatic when Barb told us about “fusion”. Combining video with still images, the end result is simply fabulous. Being all about memories, Viva had to have this!

And here it is...



While on a personal level we’re excited to share this with you let’s face it, it’s Viva la wedding. So for all you brides-to-be out there, here's a little wedding fusion... That’s right, Barb does fusion for weddings too! Love!!

Another important (maybe very) first step...

Which maybe I should have posted first in this series, is make sure your site is ready for visitors.

An easy way to do that is to run a report on your website or blog using the Website Grader which is a free service from HubSpot.

The report grades a site using "0 - 100" scale checking things like your indexed pages, meta data, links, image tags, Twitter grade, RSS feed, and so much more. You can read a sample report here (or just run your own and find out what, if any, changes you need to make).

After you see the results you can go about fixing any deficiencies that may have been identified.

You can also run reports on your competition.

And yes, there's and app for that, you can find it here.

You wouldn't have company unless your house is ready (well, us guys would), so don't invite folks over to your site until it's ready to be seen.

It's not sexy... but it is important...

For the next few posts we are going to cover the things that anyone/everyone who has a website or blog needs to do to ensure that folks can find them. That is our intent isn't it, to attract visitors?

A presences on the web is not a "build it and they will come" scenario.

So in this post we are going to cover RSS (Real Simple Syndication).

RSS is a real time saver in that you don't need to keep checking your favorite sites to see if there is anything new since your last visit, instead what happens is when something new is posted you will get a notification email.

If you want folks to follow your website or blog for very long having RSS setup on your site is an absolute MUST.

I use FeedBurner, not only does it provide RSS for your site, it will also give you all kinds of useful statistical information about who is subscribing, where your readers are coming from, and (very important) will help you get the word out that your site exists.

If you follow this link you will see a detailed video tutorial on how to setup an RSS feed with Feedburner.

You can also feed your Facebook page using RSS Graffiti, it will read your feed and write it on your Facebook wall, a very useful tool.

One bad thing about feeds is that videos that are part of your post do not get "fed" through, so if you are one of my blog subscribers you'll need to return to the blog to watch the video below that is a great demonstration of what RSS is and how it works.

Happy Easter...

This is an Easter morning photo from MANY moons ago...

The great Maze of Lucknow

Photographer : Avinash Patra

Three reasons to check out Elena Wilken today...

There are more than three reasons, but that's all I am going to list here today.

1. If you are interested in family portraiture you need to check out her work, there are samples below. This is a link to her site, but don't go there until you have some time spend because I promise once you start looking at her images you will be there for a time... for a long time.

2. Elena gives away some very nice templates every month, here is the link for those.

3. For April Elena is giving away 11 great prizes, none of which I am going to name here because I am going to make you follow this link to see them for yourself. I will say this, I would be very happy to have ANY of the prizes on her giveaway list.

And she gives her readers soooo much more than what I have mentioned here.

Here are four of Elena's images, clicking on any image will allow you to view it larger and in a new window.

Caught jumping on the bed...

Pretty much says it all, don't you think? You can almost hear them laughing.

I love the images you folks submit to our Flickr group.

Another very cool DIY project...

I love DIY (do it yourself) projects, creating things with your own two hands is fun AND these kind of projects tend to save you a bunch of money in the process.

Mathew Monroe has put together a very cool DIY flexible flash arm that will run you less than $15 and is extremely functional.

Here's the link, go check it out... and thank you Mathew!

You have to check out these images...

Here is a sampling of the kind of images you will find over at the Weekly Photo Tips Flickr Group.

Pretty darn good stuff, don't you think?

If you would like to join our group (please, please, please) and share some of your images with us (and the world) you can find instructions right here.

Clicking on any one of these images will open it larger and in a new window (for better viewing).

A deal AND a date...

I have been a fan of Ibarionex Perello since I got into photography. I stumbled upon his podcast "The Candid Frame" back then and have listened to it ever since. Though you may not be familiar with his guests... David Hobby, Chase Jarvis, Joe McNally, Jay Maisel, Rick Sammon, and Tony Sweet... just to name a few.

So what's not to like, he has great guests, comes to the interview from a photographers perspective so he asks questions we the listeners would ask, and he has a voice made for radio.

In case you're not picking up on it, BIG fan here.

As you might imagine I was just a little excited the other day to get his new book "Chasing the Light: Improving Your Photography with Available Light" and though I haven't cracked the cover yet this post could not wait for two reasons:

Reason 1 (the deal). Peachpit is offering 35% discount AND free shipping on the purchase of the book, all you need to do is type in the code "PHOTOCLUB" when you get to the checkout page.

If you would like to read a little before you buy just follow this link where you can download and read the entire fourth chapter of the book "The Color of Light: White Balance".

So, here is the link to the book, go check it out.

Reason 2 (the date). Tonight (April 19th), from 8 - 9pm (ET) Peachpit Photo Club will be hosting the very same Ibarionex Perello. And the topic will be.... LIGHT.

There will be talking and there will be doing, from the webinar page:

"Webinar participants will receive an assignment at the end of the session. Once the assignment is completed, Photo Club members can upload their work to the Peachpit Photo Club Flickr Group where Ibarionex and the Peachpit crew will help critique your work. And of course, there will be a chance for prizes!"

Pretty cool, huh?

Here is the link t to signup for the webinar, you do not want to miss the webinar or this great book offer.

Food & Photography, a tasty combination...

We have been a fan of food photographer Lou Manna for a long time and used the tips and techniques learned from reading his outstanding book "Digital Food Photography" to shoot food for our clients (you can see the images here). If you would like to read our review of his book you can find it right here.

Lou Manna has a new site, well it's more than a site, it's an interactive community where folks can share their own work to be critiqued, get ideas, share information, and more... it shares the name of his book and is called "Digital Food Photography".

You will find articles, videos, and resources like "Taking Better Food Pics" that will, well... help you take better food pics.

;)

And it's not just Lou sharing, it's the entire community of photographers who share with you and with each other.

Speaking of sharing and learning, Lou will be teaching a seminar on May 8th called "Digital Food Photography: Creating Delectable Images" at Adorama (in New York City).

Adorama is sponsoring a bunch of workshops this spring that run just a couple hours to all day affairs and for as little as $25. You can check out the entire list/schedule here.

Check out these Lexar 16GB memory cards...

For the next 12 days you can get 3 Lexar 16GB Platinum II 200x compact flash memory cards for only $99 at Adorama. If that price isn't tempting enough they are offering free shipping and are throwing in a free memory card wallet too.

Not only are these cards fast, they also hold a lot, one card will hold 3,200 16MP images (or 2,300 21MP images). Video your thing? One card will hold up to 6 hours of video.

To give you some perspective on just how good this price is their competition is selling the exact same memory card at $87 for a set of (just) two. Plus shipping and no wallet.

GamiLight 43 softbox update...

Last month we posted our review of the GamiLight 43 softbox (here and here) but at the time it was not yet available for purchase here in America, well it is now.

You can now get your hands on the GamiLight over at Midwest Photo Exchange for the special introductory price of just $49.

Here's another sample shot I took using the GamiLight 43 softbox and below it is the (very) simple lighting setup.

Clicking on either image will open it larger and in a new window.

How 1/100 second can change your image...

Here are two images I shot while covering an event, I was taking a break just as the sun was going down and the sky was outstanding.

These were taken just moments apart, with (essentially) the exact same camera settings.

The only difference between the two shots was shutter speed, in this shot the shutter speed was 1/60s. The blue sky is brighter and where the sky meets the land it is pretty bright (and void of color).


I wasn't unhappy with the shot but thought it could be better so I changed the shutter speed to 1/160s and (I think) it greatly improved the shot, the sky is a deeper blue and there is now more color on the horizon.

The differences aren't "dramatic", just better.

For a better comparison click on either image to view larger and in a new window.

It is often said that if you think you got the shot take a step closer and shoot it again. I would add "shoot it a little different" as well.

I saw something very cool on Strobist...

But then again there is always something cool on Strobist (I know because it's my home page, every time I open my browser I am confronted with coolness).

David posted the videos from the Motley Pixel YouTube channel and they are one of the coolest DIY projects I have ever seen (already making a couple tweaks in my head that include foam tape and a tripod quick release plate).

So either head to the Strobist post or directly to the Motley Pixel (where they have some way cool videos).

THE DRESS YOUR BRIDESMAIDS REALLY WILL WEAR AGAIN!

Every bride-to-be has had this problem when looking for a dress for her bridesmaids - finding something they can still wear once the wedding is over. And while every bride-to-be tries her best the truth is, that bridesmaid dress will most likely hang in the back of a closet somewhere never to see the light of day again. 27 Dresses anyone? Jane (played by Katherine Heigl) is "always a bridesmaid" in the 2008 romantic comedy and has a closet full of bridesmaid dresses to prove it. Fortunately these dreadful dresses have come a long way and Ottawa's best bridal boutiques now carry some oh so chic styles, contrary to what poor Jane had to sport. Styles your bridesmaids would be proud to wear on your wedding day and could pull out again for that New Year's Eve party or special formal function.

One of Viva's favourite bridal boutiques, With Love Bridal, not only carries some fabulously stylish bridesmaid dresses but is now the first boutique in Canada to carry the twobirds bridesmaid dress. It's the dress you can wear 15 ways making it so easy to wear again and again! This dress’ versatility allows your bridesmaids to all wear the same dress, in the same colour, wrapped in the style that suits them best. And even better, because it's so versatile you don’t have to be a bridesmaid to wear it. Viva just might head on over to With Love and get one of these beauties for herself!

Our review of the Quick Spot grids...

We had the pleasure of receiving a couple Quick Spot grids from Harbor Digital Design and they get a two thumbs up from us.

These grids come in 1/8" & 1/4" honeycomb grid size and they come in sizes specific your specific flash model, they are "custom fit" to slide "firmly" on the flash requiring no straps or fasteners of any kind.

And if you shoot with different (size) flashes you can buy just the adapter for the specific flash you want to use it on and attach your grid to it. The adapters run around $12 each.

Harbor Digital also makes Lee filters/gels that slide into these grids, they come in a set of six and include Primary Red, Primary Green, Dark Blue, Medium Yellow, Moroccan Pink, and 1/2 CT Orange.

You can get Quick Spot grids from Adorama for $34 for just the Quick Spot or for $46 you can get the Quick Spot and a set of colored gels, they both include free shipping.

So, watch the video below for the rest of the review.

If you get this post via email you'll need to return to the blog or head directly over to our YouTube channel to watch the video.

Two great finds in one small post...

I know this isn't much notices but tomorrow (Tuesday April 12th) Neil van Niekerk (of Planet Neil fame) will be teaching a 90 minute webinar over at ClickinMoms.

Program description:

A photo session is often a rushed, fast moving event with less than ideal light. But that doesn't mean you can't have great light indoors that approaches studio-quality lighting. Join me as I explain the techniques to create beautiful images while working fast, yet still getting exceptional results from equipment you already have - your on-camera speedlight.

This is a 90 minute webinar that includes live demonstrations, supplemental images shared on-screen, and interactive Q&A between Neil and audience members throughout the presentation.

When: Tuesday, April 12 at 1:00pm EST
Cost: $30

More details for the webinar can be found here.

Now, about ClickinMoms, they are a close-knit community of over 8000 members. 65% of their members are professional photographers, and 35% are either aspiring professionals or passionate hobbyists. What they all share is a commitment to honing the craft in order to deliver extraordinary images for their clients, beautifully capture the lives of their own children, produce works of fine art, or engage in creative self expression.

Information on joining ClickinMoms can be found here.

Incredible love of country and family...

The Ken Burns series "Civil War" is back again on PBS, I had forgotten just how good it is.

There was one segment that moved me the first time around and was so touching it never left me, it's the "Sullivan Ballou Letter"

Any man alive wishes he was capable of writing something so profound about ones love of country and family.

Below is a transcript of that letter, and below it is the video segment taken from the series.

If you get this post via email you may want to return to the blog to watch the video, it's one thing to read it, it's something else to hear it read.


"July 14, 1861
Camp Clark, Washington

My very dear Sarah:

The indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days—perhaps tomorrow. Lest I should not be able to write again, I feel impelled to write a few lines that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more . . .

I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American Civilization now leans on the triumph of the Government and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and sufferings of the Revolution. And I am willing—perfectly willing—to lay down all my joys in this life, to help maintain this Government, and to pay that debt . . .

Sarah, my love for you is deathless, it seems to bind me with mighty cables that nothing but Omnipotence could break; and yet my love of Country comes over me like a strong wind and bears me unresistibly on with all these chains to the battle field.

The memories of the blissful moments I have spent with you come creeping over me, and I feel most gratified to God and to you that I have enjoyed them for so long. And hard it is for me to give them up and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when, God willing, we might still have lived and loved together, and seen our sons grown up to honorable manhood, around us.

I have, I know, but few and small claims upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me—perhaps it is the wafted prayer of my little Edgar, that I shall return to my loved ones unharmed. If I do not my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, and when my last breath escapes me on the battle field, it will whisper your name. Forgive my many faults and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless and foolish I have often times been! How gladly would I wash out with my tears every little spot upon your happiness . . .

But, O Sarah! If the dead can come back to this earth and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you; in the gladdest days and in the darkest nights... always, always, and if there be a soft breeze upon your cheek, it shall be my breath, as the cool air fans your throbbing temple, it shall be my spirit passing by. Sarah do not mourn me dead; think I am gone and wait for thee, for we shall meet again . . ."

Sullivan Ballou was killed a week later at the first Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861.

A shooting assignment...

One of my twins (Katie) is taking photography in high school and had an assignment to shoot at a very old local cemetery (Laurel Hill Cemetery), so I figured that I would shoot as well. This was our first time shooting together and it was fun.

Here are a few of the images from that day.

The one (image) I found most amusing (if you can use that word when talking about cemetery images) was the one of the gate posts on a small family plot, my thought (well, more of a question really) was, at this point in the afterlife does one really need directions?

(click on any image to view larger and in a new window)