Sunday, November 28, 2010

Baby "B" | Hello World | Potterville Michigan Newborn Photographer

One thing i have been wanting to do is really start taking my Newborn Photography to a new level. And thank to such great people in the community i am getting the opportunity to try it out on actual babies HAHA. Today i was able to accomplish something i haven't been able to before. Thanks to my wonderful Assistant Carli, a couple of willing parents and one handsome little dude. I am just on cloud 9 about these pictures. So i had to get a couple of them up for others to see. I hope you enjoy them as much as i do!






Such a Handsome little man!

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Small Business Saturday Fun!!!


Its Small Business Saturday!!!
To Celebrate my good friend Carli and i have gotten together to bring you a special!
Here is how it works.....

1. "Like" and Post a Link to Carli's Page on your Facebook



2. "Like" and Post a Link to my Page on your Facebook


3. Come back here and comment that you did so. The first 5 people to comment that they did wins.....
*A $50 Gift Certificate from Amanda Marie Photography
for a 2011 Session
&
 * 15% off a Family Service with Carli Silvas at Missy's Shop of Style in Downtown Charlotte
 You can get your family looking all Spiffy before your session!


Happy Small Business Day from your Local Small Business Owners!!!

Friday, November 26, 2010

Florabella Giveaway!!!

Hey Photogs!!! Florabella have an awesome giveaway going on. Get there Here!

Its a day of Grand Give Away's for sure!


Hope you are all having a fabulous Black Friday with lots of Deals!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

BLACK FRIDAY GIVEAWAY!!! Winner Announced

Photobucket

WINNER IS #7  They said....
I left some "love" on your page! ;-)
~Bridget


How to Enter?!?!
 Its so easy!

Each way is another entry into the drawing. I will be using a random number generator to pick the winner. Winner will be announced Saturday morning at 9am.

                       1. Visit my Facebook Here and "Like my Page" Leave me some love on my page
                      
          2. Repost the link below to this giveaway on your Facebook Page 
http://tiny.cc/i50oc
                       
                       3. Tweet this giveaway.    http://tiny.cc/i50oc

                       4. After you complete an entry leave a comment here. Leave a different comment for  each entry you complete.

**ONLY COMMENTS ON THE THIS BLOG COUNT....BE SURE TO LEAVE THEM HERE
*Winner has 24 hours to respond back to me or i choose a new number. Make sure you check back*

 That's it! Tada! Good luck to to you all! And remember you don't have to keep the free session you can give it away as a gift to family or friends!





        

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

True Love | Lansing Michigan Family Photographer

True Love is something only the person experiencing can really ever understand. True Love comes in many forms. None stronger than the Love between a parent and a child. To me it seems to be the strongest,  most joyously painful love of all. Only those with a child can ever really understand the love we have for such a small soul. Not even the child can ever really truly know the love we have for them. This picture screams TRUE LOVE to me. So i felt the need to share it.

***Remember: A perfect picture is not always formed from the one you have in your head. But by the one that is formed in your heart or soul from a moment that really happened.





Monday, November 22, 2010

Charlotte Michigan Portrait Photographer | New Policies: 2011

When you start your business on friendships and family members it makes it easy for things to be left undone or  procrastinate on something. Now that my business has officially taken off to new heights, i think its time to install some policies. These will help things run smoother for me and Clients as well. I feel like my blogs are going to be logistical until after the first of the year. But i want everyone to know what is going on in Amanda Marie's world so we can all have a smooth process. And Speedy!

      Some of these are new and some remain the same. If you have any questions you can contact me any time at Amandamlipsey@yahoo.com

 * Creative Session Fee is now due at the time of Booking. Why? When i book your date i am counting on it. Photographers only take a certain amount of appointments and just like you we budget our money. So if you back out and we cannot replace a session in that day it can really mess up our program. You can get a full refund within 24hrs of booking the session. After that it is a sliding scale down to the date.

 *All print orders MUST be placed within 2 weeks of receiving link to Proof Gallery. Again we can only pay ourselves when we get paid. This also helps streamline my work and keeps me on schedule.

* Galleries will be deleted after the 2 weeks. There will be a $25 republishing fee for the Gallery to be put up again

 *All Session booking should take place via Website or Email. Facebook is just not reliable enough to count on. No Facebook inquiries will be returned

* All Client proofing will be done online via my Website. You will be provided a unique password to access them. Feel Free to share the password with others. The more the merrier i say.

Most Photographers do these things i just have been learning why. It definitely makes life easier for everyone when things are clearly laid out and done in an orderly fashion...Who knew?! HAHA My Dad always tells me to quit trying to reinvent the wheel. I now understand what he speaks of.

 I really appreciate all of the people who have been supporting me from the beginning. You have helped me grow so much. If not for your time and patience there is no way i could do this. Thank you so much!

Proofing Made Easy!

I have been working on ways to make my business better and easier for clients...And for myself. I have learned this past year about many ways to make things faster. If you are one of my wedding clients you know how slow its been. I feel like i have been in front of my computer for more than half the year. With that said i want to explain the new Client Proofing.


 What is Client Proofing?

This is where you view your images and decide on which ones you would like to order

In the past i have been editing every picture to a T. Only to have people order a handful of the different images. After speaking with an instructor and also other Photogs i realized i have been doing it all wrong.

How does the new Proofing work?

If you visit my website Amanda-mariephotography.com you will see a client proofing button at the top. Click on that button. There will be a place for you to insert the password i provide you with. Here is where you will view your images. Next you will decide on which images you would like. Some will be full edited to show you what a final image looks like. When you order you can choose to have black and white, color or even a hazy tone. I will then fully edit all the photos you choose.

 How does this make things better?
 This makes it so i can get your pictures edited printed and back to you faster...Woooohoo everyone loves that.

More changes are coming for 2011. You will be able to choose and also order your pictures in the same spot. There will be bigger collection options and SO much more! Stay Tuned!

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Journeys are Hard

With the winter coming i think i am feeling the affects of winter depression. It happens this time of year to me. I start to feel claustrophobic and cold. Two things i sincerely despise. I have the RV itch really bad too. I have put so much energy into trying to figure out how we are going to do this. Its still quite some time away but i am just wishing so hard. I have been visiting some on Craigslist and other places but i feel like i am just torturing myself. On a more positive note i have been doing so well at saving my pennies for this. I just want so bad to be out on the road teaching my children about real things. Having real rich experiences that cost next to nothing. I know the right one will come along at the right time. I just wish the right time was now. I have never been a patient person. I wont pretend that i am.

On another topic we have been doing pretty well at changing out food thinking. I have totally given in and eaten some really nasty stuff. Only to feel guilty and yucky sick moments later. BUT we are learning and getting there.

I feel like i am taking so many new journeys that may be overwhelming me. So i have tried to just focus on a couple of things at a time. Honestly, its not working HAHA. I cannot help it. I long to know new things. I am an over analyzer. I need to learn the begeezus out of everything i learn. And well it works for me.

Its late and i should be sleeping. But all i can do is sit here and think and wish.



I always feel weird taking pictures of myself. But i felt an updated photo was seriously necessary

Party Time with Miss "M" | Charlotte Michigan Child Photographer

Miss "M" turned 1!! She celebrated in Charlotte Michigan at Grandma and Papa's house. "M" Mommy and Daddy actually live out of state and came back for a visit. I was very excited when her momma called for me to photograph her birthday party. Check out her celebration below. I think she had a pretty special day complete with lots of family, friends, gifts and CAKE!













Thanks Again for having me!

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Playing Catch Up!

I have been going off on tangents about so many things on here. I am feeling guilty i have not shared any photos of all my beautiful clients. So here is a catch up post on the wonderful people i call my photography family.












These are just a few. I think i may have to do a second catch up blog. Shame on me for not keeping up!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Learning, Journeys + Rants

Oh life how fast you go!


I have been feeling so overwhelmed these days. I have started so many Journeys at once. I am assuming this is where the problem stems from. Not to mention the fact that i think i took on WAY too much work for my first year. Am i regretting that? Absolutely not!! I am just disappointed with my turn around time. Mostly with Weddings. I have learned so much this year though. I am making big changes for next year.

I am so thankful for the wonderful clients i was so blessed to learn on this year. They have all been so patient and understanding. I guess i miss judged the amount of time that goes into weddings. I have also been learning some ways to streamline my work flow which has helped tremendously.

Work has slowed down with the colder days that have been arriving. I was a little nervous for that to happen in the beginning. But now i am basking in it,  as i am getting caught up on so many edits.

These past couple months have been hard on my body. My body has not liked me. I had some heart issues last month and took a decent fall this month. The heart scared me. Scared me so bad all i wanted to do was hold my children. I was too afraid to do anything else. I drove myself crazy with thoughts of what if... I then ran straight to my insurance agent and did the responsible life insurance thing. It didn't make me feel any better.

As for the leg.  It still hurts, a lot. But its been a blessing. I have tackled so many edits in my comfy chair. It feels good.

The new life Journey we are on will come in many blogs. We are aching for change. Jeremy and i are no straight line thinkers. We have always been different. Even before we met each other. We long to just be ourselves. But we find  that mainstream society is trying to hide us in the cube if its thoughts and ways. We just see life a bit differently. A bit more sacred and on a timer. I don't believe in status quo. I don't believe that "Things" make the person. We are conditioned to believe bigger is better and more means more important. I wont lie i myself have been caught up in those thoughts before. But it always leaves me feeling yucky. Every designer must have bag i purchased, i just felt dirty and fake. The sad thing. Most of THEM were fake. I don't need to make up for a poor childhood with bags and shoes. And by "poor childhood" i am referring to money, not memories. I have great memories but my mother was a single mother for a long time. Therefore that meant we didn't get everything we wanted.

I have found a number of blogs that have been so awesome in helping me head in the direction i want to go. I would love for you to experience them and support them as well. Check them out! Who knows maybe you might find a new way of thinking too. And the list goes like this HappyJanssens, The Organic Sister, and RowdyKittens. There are a few more but my eyes are closing on their own right now. Time to sleep. Thanks for reading my rant.