Remove Steps & Make Things Easier to Increase Your Success Rate

Ok, weird mystery. I love blogging for myself but I hate creating blogs for the Happy Film Company. What's with that? I dread it and I procrastinate it and then two weeks later I realize I haven't blogged a family photo shoot and I'm fallin' behind and gettin' stressed and oh help.

Likewise, I have these fantastic writing spells where I blog here everyday for a weekend and then a creative drought arrives and you guys don't hear from me for a month. Again....what the heck?

I work at a yoga studio near my house and I get an awesome employee benefit - unlimited yoga classes. Lucky much? But day after day I struggle to get myself to yoga mat. Clearly my years of blaming my 'lack of yoga' on 'lack of money' is a theory that is flying out the window as we speak.

So this leaves me wondering...why do I have things in my life that I want to do....but don't do.
Maybe it's because I have so many thoughts in my mind, so many events on my calendar, that these little tasks seem daunting. My favorite motto that helps me with tricky conundrums like this....Simplify Simplify Simplify — Henry David Thoreau 

Every difficult task, break it down into small pieces and figure out which pieces make you suffer the most. See if you can remove those pieces or change them to make them easier to swallow. It's like Canned Responses in Gmail. If you don't have to type out your name at the end of every single email, that's one less thing you have to do, which makes it one step easier to get through your inbox each day.

I've started making little changes, like keeping my yoga mat in the car - always ready to go. I now schedule my appointments & photo shoots so they end just in time for me to make it to the next yoga class on the schedule.



Up until this week, I've always uploaded a photo of myself at the bottom of every blog post. For some silly reason my blogging platform still doesn't allow you to create signatures or templates. Whaaaat??? I know. So anyway, that 30 seconds of uploading a photo is a pain every time and I'm so over it! I've stopped including that picture and already blogging is a little easier for me. It makes me kinda sad because I like including my photo at the end of of my posts because I think it make it more personal but if that step is tripping me up and making me avoid blogging, it's probably not worth it right now. Sacrifices.

When you're struggling to do something in your life or business, step back and look at the specific steps that you're dreading. See if you can change one little step and maybe the whole experience will change too! :D

xoxo
Chamonix

Adventure Inspiration from the Couch :: Laura Dekker's Maidentrip

I lie on the couch, staring out the window towards the beautiful Cascade Mountain range and wonder to myself...why am I lying on the couch? I felt like I should totally have been up in the mountains. But all I really wanted to do was lounge around and watch TV. Don't worry - not the channel flicking kind of TV. I pretty much gave that up in high school. Nowadays when I watch TV it is always on Netflix / Hulu and at least has some purpose behind it rather than looking around for whatever is on.



Anyway, yesterday afternoon, the sun was shining and I decided to watch a documentary (I love docos!) called Maidentrip about the Laura Dekker - the youngest person to circumnavigate the world as a solo-sailor. I'm so totally loving my adventure documentaries these days. They are so inspirational. As the final credits rolled onto the screen I felt this urge to go adventuring too. But the reality is, my knees suck too much to let me be a mountaineer, I don't own a bike, and I currently have no experience working on a boat. So I probably have a long way to go.

But it dawned on my, I have my camera and although I do say so myself, I ain't that bad at using it. For the 30th time in the last month, I started daydreaming about being an adventure photographer / film maker. I love the idea of documenting exciting and inspirational adventures. So far I have one part of that puzzle - camera skills. Now I just need to start venturing off the couch. haha

What adventures are you dreaming of today?
xoxo
Chamonix

thePhotoChicks Podcast — Golden Oldies & New Interviews

When was the last time you sat around laughing at yourself? For Miss Cheryl Ford, apparently that's all the time. haha (Sorry for the spotlight Cheryl.) I just love it when Cheryl sends me a text and tells me she's listening to our old podcast episodes and laughing out loud. It's pretty shameful but we do find ourselves hilarious — I think that's a good thing though. haha Those were the good old days of thePhotoChicks, when Cheryl and Chamonix spilled their guts about photography business and life and we went on tangents about cupcakes and road-trips and laughed hysterically at nothing. Nowadays, we're still having fun but we've cranked up the cool factor on our podcast.

We are now interviewing other photographers every week, asking them all the same set of questions and hearing about their personal journeys in the photography industry. Even if no one ever listened to our episodes, Cheryl and I would still keep this podcast going. We are so inspired by every photographer we meet (on Skype) haha and each 30 minute episode is an amazing outlet, a little change from the everyday march of running a business.

We love hearing from our photography buddies and interview alumni who send us little messages and Instagram photos when they're listening to thePhotoChicks. Apparently, our show is great entertainment while you edit photos. Perfect! That's exactly what we want and it's so rewarding to be contributing to the photography community in this uber-techie way. We love it.

If you'd like to listen to thePhotoChicks podcast, here are some of our most recent episodes (and some of the golden oldies). Enjoy!!

Interviews:Interview with Naomi Levit — Wedding & Portrait Photographer (Hawaii)
Interview with Katie Cann-McTaggart — Seattle Wedding & Portrait Photographer (Seattle)
Interview with Tobin Smith — Glamour Portrait Photographer (Vancouver, Canada)
Interview with Carly Bish — Wedding & Portrait Photographer (Seattle)
Interview with Melissa Kilner — Wedding Photographer (Seattle)

Golden Oldies:
Mistakes We Made in Our First Year of Business
Annoying Things About Photographers
Business Dreams & Photography Fantasies

xoxo
Chamonix

Pricing Your Photography by Demand Instead of by Principle

"$10,00, Are you kidding me?" the lady said to Picasso. "You only took 5 minutes to do that sketch. Isn't $10,000 a lot for 5 minutes of work?" — “The sketch may have taken me five minutes, but the learning took me 30 years,” Picasso retorted.

Photographers love throwing this story around. It's a way to make yourself feel better when people tell you your photography prices are too expensive. It's like we have to remind ourselves that we are amazingly talented "artistes" and our digital images are "priceless works of art". Well, I'm kinda over it. 

I'm tired of watching people's faces fall when they look at my prices. I'm tried of explaining why a digital image is more valuable than a print. I'm tired of puffing up my chest and pretending to be some fancy million-dollar artist that I'm not (yet).

I want to stop charging prices based on principle and start charging prices based on demand. 
I'm not going to charge $3,000 for a box of photos because "that's what I should charge because I'm a fancy-pants talented artist that's worked hard to get where I am and now you get to pay me for it." I'm going to charge $3,000 only when there are 3,000 people banging down my door begging me to photograph them and they're all offering to pay me $4,000 to be first in line.
The price increases because there is demand. 

I think it's ridiculous to charge through-the-roof prices when you're just getting started and your inbox is empty and your voicemail-box is empty and your bank account is....empty. Some people say that slapping that high price tag on your website right from the beginning will make you look more experienced and desirable. They say it's important to enter the photography market "at the right level" rather than trying to climb up the ladder. (I totally bought into all of this when I was starting my business.) 

I agree that you shouldn't sell yourself short and market yourself as a "budget" photographer when you want to be a luxury photography. Not a good idea. But if your goal is to be a luxury photography, the reality is ... you're probably going to take a few years to get there. Your prices will be much lower now than they will be in the future. Fact. Accept that fact and be comfortable with charging a fair but modest amount now. 

A lower (more realistic) price point will make it easier for you to get new business in through the door — which is what you really need right now. As the business pours in, the prices can start to slowly climb the mountain. And like I said before, when the clients are climbing in through your windows and vents, then you can start charging ridiculous prices because people will basically be throwing money at you. (Now isn't that a nice idea...haha).

xoxo
Chamonix

Sending "Elle Woods Style" Welcome Videos to Photography Clients

It was 2am. I was sitting like a mouse in my in-laws kitchen — gross computer light glowing on my face. I saw the ad for a "Social Media Assistant" at creativeLIVE and I was sold. What would set me apart? I HAD TO GET THIS JOB! It was kinda scary but I made a video. I did one take and told myself that even though it wasn't very professional or polished, it would show my personality and hopefully win them over. Well, I had the job in less than 48hrs.

Two years later, I applied for another job with a video. Less than 48hrs, I had the job. 10 months later (i.e. yesterday), I applied for yet another job with yet another video and boom, they liked me and I'm hired.

When it comes to applying for jobs, sending a video with the application is valuable because 1) it does make you stand out and 2) it's basically an interview — they get to see your face, listen to you speak, hear a little about you etc... before they even ask for an interview, you hand (a.k.a. send) it to them. Now you're already at the next stage of the application process — leaps ahead of anyone else who has applied. It worked for Elle Woods after all. ;)

With "normal" jobs, you're usually the one that approaches the business and you hope they hire you. With photography jobs, your clients are approaching you and you hope they hire you.

Either way, you're trying to sell yourself and win people over and get them to say, "You're hired."

I send little 2min "hello, i'm Chamonix" videos to almost all my potential clients (sometimes it's hard to produce if the computer isn't behaving). They usually love it and make some comment about how they "loved the personal response." These videos are my way of creating that personal connection quickly before they move on and hire someone else.

When I started making videos it was awkward and embarrassing. But with practice came comfort and with comfort came fun. Now I love making these little videos and I would encourage everyone to try it. Maybe one day someone will send me a video... ;) I can't wait.

xoxo

Chamonix

the Glorious Agonies of Editing Photos of Women — Seattle Nude Portraits by Chamonix Thurston-Rattue

So I just spent the last 2 hours hunched over my keyboard in the dark, furiously smoothing skin with my Intuos tablet (love that thing!) and feeling the world's heaviest dilemma bearing down on my shoulders..... which preset should I use? Dun Dun Duuuuuunnnnnn!!!! When it comes to editing pictures of families, I've got one set preset that is pretty much always my go-to and I always love it. But when it comes to editing photos of women it's different every single darn time! What's with that? The mood of the shoot, the woman's personality, the lighting, the backdrop and clothing yadda yadda — it all has a bigger impact on the editing style. So tonight, I'm sitting down to edit my first women's portrait session in like 4 or 5 months and I'm shocked at how challenging it is — I'd totally forgotten. My memory had wiped away all those hours of toiling over wrinkles, blemishes and fat rolls. Plus, in the last 6 months, I've finally started coming to terms with "who I am as an artist" (gracious I hate that expression) and really embracing / getting excited about pushing myself to try new things and accept what I like (and not what I think I should do or what other people want me to do). So finally, I'm back here behind my computer, staying up late (I haven't even eaten dinner yet - grumble grumble) and after hours spent on one flippin' picture, I'm proud to announce — I love it! (See photo below!) Hallelujah. Now on to the other 50 images from that shoot. haha Good thing I'm photographing women as a hobby at the moment or there would be a very horrific editing bill coming someone's way! Massive thank you to Taylor, our beautiful model, for waiting for me while I edit her beautiful photos. I loved working with her and it's so fun working on her images and seeing her laughing and having fun in front of the camera. I love it! Have a wonderful day of editing, my dear photography friends - you are not alone! 

~ xoxo Chamonix

the Glorious Agonies of Editing Photos of Women — Seattle Nude Portraits by Chamonix Thurston-Rattue

So I just spent the last 2 hours hunched over my keyboard in the dark, furiously smoothing skin with my Intuos tablet (love that thing!) and feeling the world's heaviest dilemma bearing down on my shoulders..... which preset should I use? Dun Dun Duuuuuunnnnnn!!!! When it comes to editing pictures of families, I've got one set preset that is pretty much always my go-to and I always love it. But when it comes to editing photos of women it's different every single darn time! What's with that? The mood of the shoot, the woman's personality, the lighting, the backdrop and clothing yadda yadda — it all has a bigger impact on the editing style. So tonight, I'm sitting down to edit my first women's portrait session in like 4 or 5 months and I'm shocked at how challenging it is — I'd totally forgotten. My memory had wiped away all those hours of toiling over wrinkles, blemishes and fat rolls. Plus, in the last 6 months, I've finally started coming to terms with "who I am as an artist" (gracious I hate that expression) and really embracing / getting excited about pushing myself to try new things and accept what I like (and not what I think I should do or what other people want me to do). So finally, I'm back here behind my computer, staying up late (I haven't even eaten dinner yet - grumble grumble) and after hours spent on one flippin' picture, I'm proud to announce — I love it! (See photo below!) Hallelujah. Now on to the other 50 images from that shoot. haha Good thing I'm photographing women as a hobby at the moment or there would be a very horrific editing bill coming someone's way! Massive thank you to Taylor, our beautiful model, for waiting for me while I edit her beautiful photos. I loved working with her and it's so fun working on her images and seeing her laughing and having fun in front of the camera. I love it! Have a wonderful day of editing, my dear photography friends - you are not alone! 

~ xoxo Chamonix

Creating Bad Work on Purpose to Strengthen your Creativity

What the heck was I doing? This was a terrible idea. The sun was too bright across half of her face, the background looked hella weird and I'm pretty sure I took 200 pictures of the same pose. This was a bad idea and I can't believe I ever thought it would work.

I haven't seen the pictures from this morning's photo shoot yet but there's no way I could describe them as amazing. And yet, I'm so happy. I had an idea and I brought it to life. I hauled a table into the forest with my bare hands. I spend $10 on a kind-of -ugly kind-of-awesome bedsheet. I got a freshly cleaned pair of jean shorts covered in dirt. I'll probably wake up tomorrow with bug bites. So worth it.  

The beauty of the experiment is that it gives your imagination a chance to come to life. Daydreams and visions leave your mind and materialize into the world before you. Sometimes they look exactly how you envisioned. Sometimes they are the next best #pinterestfail - Either way, you are liberating your ideas and strengthening your creativity. One experiment at a time you are becoming better at your craft. An artist. An expert. (This is what I'm telling myself, anyway. lol)

This is the "behind the scenes" before photo.
I can't wait to dive into the edit of the actual photo shoot and see if there's anything good in there. ha!
Have a wonderful day experimenting :D
xoxo
Chamonix

The Purple Dress and Why Do I Want to Take Nude Portraits of Women

There is was... the most beautiful purple ball gown with sparkles I've ever seen. I paid $30 and took it home to my studio, hoping that one day I'd find the Cinderella who would actually fit into this tiny garment. Last summer, I photographed my friend Alena in this beautiful dress and I was amazed at how beautiful she looked. That bone structure is killer and just wearing the dress seemed to bring out a new side to her personality.

As much as I love beautiful dresses and all the wonderful things they do for the female figure (and confidence), I think that sometimes clothes get in the way of us actually seeing the woman inside them. We love dressing up but when the camera joins the party, dressing up seems to turn into a fashion photo shoot — women cross their fingers and hope they'll at least resemble the women in magazines, in the fancy clothes, in the broken doll poses. Frankly, I'm sick of the fashion. Our world has gone a bit overboard with how much importance we place on clothing.

Clothes say so much about who we are and what we like. That said, I also like that without clothes we are all on an equal playing field. I like the idea that when you see a photo of a naked woman, you can't make the same judgements about her that you could if she were wearing clothes. You don't know if she's preppy or grungy or hipster or retro. She's just naked. All you can look at is her face and the shape of her body and the texture of her skin. It's extremely vulnerable and I love that.

Most women aren't comfortable being seen naked, let alone being photographed that way.  I'm in that camp too. The idea of having my nude portrait taken makes me feel so shy and embarrassed. I think this is probably because I don't like how I look when I see myself naked in the mirror. I know I'm not alone with this. I also know that being photographed nude is a great way to overcome this fear and take one step closer to embracing your own body however it looks. So maybe one day soon I'll challenge myself to this experience.

What I can do right now though is offer my photography skills to other women who are ready to be photographed nude. I want to take photos that show a woman looking her most beautiful without the distraction of clothing. Photos that can't be dated by clothing. Photos that aren't all about the awesome dress. I want to take photos that are so simple and focused on a woman's body, her face and how she feels about herself. I want my photos to be honest. I want them to embrace the reality of how women look and what makes women beautiful (and the answer to that questions is not clothing).

Having said all of that, I do think that these photos of Alena in this purple dress are an incredible example of clothing at its best. Both Alena and the dress look gorgeous and Iw on't lie — I'm so proud of these photos. I feel like they may be my best work. Thank you beautiful purple dress for adding a little sparkle to this shoot. (So maybe sometimes I'll use clothing haha)

xoxo

Chamonix

When Pricing Your Photography Don't Forget About the Hidden Costs

Our jaws probably dropped to the floor. Cheryl and I looked at each other, shook our heads and then looked at Cindy and said, "We can help you." haha

This morning, I went to coffee (which always means Zen Green Tea) with Cheryl (my best photography buddy) & Cindy (a photographer we've been mentoring together for a couple years). Our conversation wiggled its way to the all encumbering topic of PRICING. Cindy shocked us when she told us how many (too many) hours she's been spending editing her photos. Just the costs of her time & labor would force her prices up through the roof.

We grabbed a pen and paper and hashed out the finances of one photo shoot:

Cost of Goods:
Welcome Packet — $8
Shipping Cost for Welcome Packet — $5
Branded USB Flash Drive (for delivering images) — $10
Shipping for USB Flash Drive — $5

Cost of Services:
Hair & Makeup — $140
Photographer's Time — $50 / hr (2hrs)
Photo Editing Time — $50 / hr (2hrs)
or Outsourcing Photo Shoot — $20
Office Stuff (Sending Emailing, Phone Calls, Consultations, Uploading Images to Gallery etc..) — $50 /hr (2hrs)

Total Cost of Goods: $28
Total Cost of Labor: $460
Total Cost: $488

*And this is not even considering the overhead of just running the business. This is just specifically for one shoot — not thinking about more general expenses like paying for your editing software, camera equipment, online gallery subscription etc... We're just trying to keep it simple here. 

So anyway, we realized that we have to be charging about $500 minimum just to cover the costs of doing a photo shoot. We haven't even discussed charging for images/prints yet, which is where many photographers make their profit. If you sell images separately, and you charged $30 / digital image and you sold 30 digital images, now you're making an additional $900 for your shoot. That can pretty much be a large chunk of gross profit. Hooray!

If Cindy felt it was too expensive to charge $500 for a photo shoot and then an additional (up to) $99 for photos afterwards. She could fudge the numbers a little and take a risk. If she charges less for her photo shoot, say $200, then she needs to make sure she makes up the difference ($288) with print sales in order to cover the costs ($488) of producing that shoot.

However she breaks down the price, she has to be aware of the hidden costs that come with time & labor spent on a project. If she spent 30 hours working on a photo shoot, even if she charged $488 for the shoot and sold $900 worth of prints, she would still be in the red, not making enough money to cover her labor costs.

It's easy to brush aside labor costs when you're getting started and I'm actually really comfortable doing it myself. I don't think people should worry about it too much when you're just desperately trying to get experience and build a portfolio. At that beginning stage of your photography career, I think the best action you can take is to work as much as possible (even for free). Work and work and work some more!!! And while you're doing all this working, start getting into efficient habits. If you practice spending no more than 2hrs of editing right from the beginning, then once you graduate to the next levels of business and you really start to value the cost of your own time, you'll already be accustomed to working quickly to preserve your hard-earned money, not letting labor costs suck it away into the black hole that is Lightroom/Photoshop. haha

Set those timers on your phones, start working faster, and stop forgetting that your time is part of the cost of your product. Good luck my friends. :)
xoxo
Chamonix

Green with Envy — Comparing Yourself to Other Photographers

I love the TV Show "ONCE Upon a Time". Recently, the Wicked Witch of the West has joined the show and we find out how she turned green. It's envy. Every time she was jealous of someone, a little patch of her skin turned green. Patch by patch, her whole body became covered in green. In the show, the first time we see this green creeping envy, it starts on the side of her neck.

I spent my first year as a photographer, sitting behind my computer (even at 3am) surfing through other photographer's websites. I was desperate to learn more and get inspiration from their amazing photos. At first it was an innocent hunt for inspiration but then it became obsession, a sick addiction that made me compare myself to photographers who had been practicing for decades longer than I'd even been alive. It made me feel bad about myself. I stared at the screen wishing I could take pictures like that and write interesting blog posts like they did and even dress as stylishly as all of them seemed to do so naturally.

A couple years into the biz, and I realized something had to change. I was in this nasty cycle of feeling so proud of my own work and then hating on myself because someone else took a pretty picture too. Jealous much? So I cut myself off completely. In early 2013, I stopped following other photographers on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, blogs, etc... I still don't have any idea what they're doing — even my best photography friends. How mysterious my world is now, haha.

It's so refreshing to be floating through life without that nasty comparison breathing down my neck every day. But of course, sometimes it sneaks up on me. I'll accidentally see something that someone else is doing. I'll overhear someone praising another photographer. Whatever it is, sometimes I feel this little fire in my chest and I wouldn't be surprised if green patches were breaking out on my neck. And then the little Tinkerbell on my shoulder gives me a pep talk and calms me down, reminding me to focus on my own thing and be happy for other photographers who are creating beautiful work. use that energy to fuel my own pursuit of artistic greatness rather than letting it suck me into a muddy ditch of jealousy induced creativity death. (I guess I'm feelin' poetic this mornin' lol)

Anywhosie, my encouragement for you today:
stop comparing yourself to others or you'll turn green. ;)

xoxo,
Chamonix

{Grateful On Sunday} Joyrides, Turquoise and Selfies

Today, I went to the river with my friends Hanna and Cheryl. We took photos of each other (we all needed new headshots). When we were at the river, this little rubber boat with three young guys floated on by us. Of course, the boys shouted out and asked us to join them — ha! An hour or so later, we were sitting 10 miles away at a riverside Mexican restaurant having dinner. I looked out at the view and low and behold, a little rubber boat with three boys was floating by. Oh, and did I mention that while we were walking at the river, we passed by a couple who were getting their portraits taken? Because while we were eating dinner, they also walked by the building we were in. Crazy coincidence? Sometimes the world is a funny place. Thank you so much Cheryl & Hanna for all your funny stories and words of wisdom. I love you girls and I am grateful for you both.

Today I am also grateful for my parent's new hot tub,

 joyrides with Miggy,

 a BBQ with Hanna & Cheryl's families + amazing fried onions (thank you Cheryl),

my funny little cat,

my attempt at food photography that I'm still pretty chuffed about,

 the ability to take selfies,

 my turquoise jewelry collection,

 all the pretty little buttercups outside,

 spending hours at a bookstore,

 books with beautiful covers,

 all the beautiful turquoise jewelry at World Market (I just wish I wore necklaces)

 all the turquoise earrings at World Market (now we're talkin' — come to mamma!)

 celebrating my 1/2 birthday! I'm 25.5 now!

sunset joyrides with Miggy,

 the beautiful views of the Cascade Mountains from the Snoqualmie Valley,

recording inspiring interviews for thePhotoChicks podcast,

my car rolled down a hill (accidentally) and didn't hit anything AND stopped before the trees! hallelujah!

 all the beautiful peonies,

 adorable packaging,

blue skies,

 photo shoots on sunny days with friends,

 when the city spends money on beautiful flowers,

 this view from a special little place in the valley,

 and the fact Miggy stopped the car so I could take that picture,

 oh and did I mention joyrides through the forest with Miggy,

 and the view when I look up from our convertible (I love being under trees!) 

all the old barns we pass,

and feeling happy when I look at all these pictures. :D

What are you grateful for today?

xoxo

Chamonix

Practicing and Challenging to Become an Expert Photographer

She's going to be naked in a forest with a giant sheet hanging behind her. That's my new vision. I'm trying something new this month to push my comfort zone and improve my photography skills. Miggy and I have gone to the library a few times this month and each time he comes home with a giant stack of books. Last week, he was reading about "Expertise" and he gave me a little lecture in all the must know key points from his study session. The main point you need to hear about is this:

To become an expert in something, you need to be regularly putting yourself in uncomfortable and challenging situations that force you to learn new techniques, experiment, learn from specialists, and overcome the obstacles. 

The 6 months I spent in Hawaii at a photography studio (we were always shooting on the beach in hot bright sunshine) was a fantastic example of this point. Coming from the PNW, I was afraid to shoot in the bright hot sun. I was under the impression that hot sunshine is the photographer's enemy. But in Hawaii, I had no choice. Sweat was dripping down my back, my eyes hurt from squinting, my feet were dry from the sand, my thighs were chaffing from sweat and sand that stuck to my skin — it was not a pretty picture. BUT.... while dealing with all of that, I still had to take pretty pictures. My boss had been shooting on Maui's sunny beaches for 7 years and I definitely consider her to be a hot sunshine photography specialist. She showed me tricks, drew diagrams, critiqued every shoot I did, and gave me the chance to practice over and over. When I left Hawaii, I was so comfortable shooting in sun (almost more comfortable that in the shade — I know, crazy!) and I was a much better photographer overall because I was constantly being challenged and therefore improving.

Now that I'm back in Seattle, I'm looking for new ways to keep the challenge and growth alive. I'm playing with food photography, wedding videography, landscape photography and of course women's portraits. And as I mentioned before, my current challenge is nude portraits in my outdoor studio. Let's see what happens!

xoxo
Chamonix

How are you challenging yourself to become an expert?

Learning How to FOCUS - Growing a Photography Business in Seattle

When I lived in Maui, Hawaii, I had a 30 minute commute to the photography studio every day. I think 30 minutes is such a perfect commute time, especially when you are a big fan of a 30 minute podcast called "Entrepreneur on Fire" ha! It fits perfectly and I arrive at my destination full of inspiration. The show's host, John Lee Dumas, has a little saying... "FOCUS: Follow One Course Until Success". 

This little acronym is going to change my life. It's been my mantra lately and it's keeping me on track. I have a naturally tendency (inherited from my mother, I think) to over-achieve and bite off more than I can chew. It all boils down to good old fashion enthusiasm. I want to stick my finger in too many pies and as a result, I don't make any progress. I spread myself too thin and start to stagnate and feel exhausted. Talk about depressing.

Every day, I'm reminding myself to FOCUS. I've prioritized my projects and goals. I've got an on-going list of things I would like to do one day - knowing that that day is not today. Right now, I'm prioritizing my family film business (the Happy Film Company). That is the #1 project that I am FOCUSing on. Once that reaches "success", I will move on to FOCUS on my women's portraiture. I decided to organize it this way because I have a very clear vision for the Happy Film Company but my visions for women's portraiture is very blurry and therefore much more stressful. I'm going to let that whole side of my passion and business simmer and develop on the side until the vision is clear. 

Check out the Happy Film Company website!

Do you struggle to FOCUS?

What are you FOCUSing on right now?

Any advice for us spread-thinners to help us FOCUS?

Behind the Scenes of Cheryl Ford's Bridal Veil Shoot — Featuring Hanna Mazur, Seattle Make Up Artist

I am so excited to be reunited with my photography friends Cheryl Ford Photography & Hanna Mazur, Seattle Make Up Artist! This weekend, the girls were working together on a photo shoot with Princess Bride Couture Bridal Salon at Country Village, Bothell — they were showing off bridal veils and matching them with wedding dresses. Cheryl invited me along and we surprised Hanna who had no idea I would be there (and since I just got back from Maui, we were all pretty excited to see each other!) Of course, I brought along my camera to capture some behind the scenes for both these lovely girls. Cheryl is always silly and I love the funny faces she makes when her face is smushed against her camera! ha! I LOVE photographing Hanna while she does makeup. She's so gentle and tranquil. I'm really excited that I had this opportunity to capture lots of pretty pictures of Hanna at work. It's so hard to not take 1,000 photos of her make up bag, brushes & palettes. So pretty! Thank you ladies for a fun afternoon together. I'm excited for all the new adventures we have ahead of us this year!

Cheryl Ford Photography

Hanna Mazur, Make Up Artist

Princess Bride Couture Bridal Salon

Model: Ivy

Check out my last blog post: Grateful on Sunday: Last Week in Maui