Working with my favorite caterer again. He was busy catering for a local wine club called Richmond Wine Society. They meet in various locations and sample different wines while they learn about them.
Richmond Wine Society Catered
Byrd Park in Spring
I had such a great time the other day taking pictures at Brown’s Island that I decided to go out again… to a different local park that required GPS. It was another joyous 30 minute photo session to remind myself why I enjoy photography so much.
Here’s another round of afternoon, spring time photos of beautiful blooming trees in historical Byrd Park in Richmond, VA.
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Fun Photography Outing
As someone who really enjoys photography, photography as a career or your passion, can lose its excitement. It’s important to find a one to two hour window where you can go out and just shoot. In outdoor photography, weather plays an important roll which is why I was excited when I found an opportunity to go to Brown’s Island for the blooming trees. It was a beautiful overcast day. When I had taken all the photos I wanted was when a few rain drops began to fall.
It’s good to get in a little camera time without any pressure. It helps to mix things up, try new things and keep the process fun. It can be hard to find that window, but when the weather is right, it is important to go out there and have a good time! Take an little adventure. Explore somewhere new or visit a place that you haven’t been to in a long time (like Brown’s Island or Bell’s Isle).
Not only did I enjoy the process, but I also took in the beauty of the blooming trees, the sound of the river, ducks and even the train. The fresh air (thank you allergy meds!) and breeze was wonderful. The wind blew some pedals off the trees which made me smile (scenes from the “Twilight” series popped in my head). This photo session may have lasted only 30 minutes but it was well worth it and I got some beautiful shots from it. In fact, I enjoyed it enough that the following day, I visited another park and did another session. Be on the look out for those!
Where are some of your favorite places to shoot?
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Group Portraits
There are reasons why group photos should have a limited color scheme and why we like the white tops and khaki pants group portraits. They look unified. It’s a clean look. The focus becomes the people, not the outfits. Simplicity makes for a image better. Too many colors (and patterns) don’t make pretty photos.
The other reason is because you are a group, a team. You should not have any particular person stand out (except in wedding photos - bride and groom should be a strong focal point). If anyone is to stand out at all, it should be the Alpha (boss, president, etc.) but even then, that person should only stand out slightly.
Unless the team wants to look like the furniture grouping from a country magazine, stripes, florals, polka-dots and plaids should not be worn. Try to keep it to solids with maybe one optional pattern (for ties or shirts under a solid jacket or sweater). Be nice to the photographer and your team members and follow the instructions.
Remember to make sure the background and “staging area” is clear of clutter for a cleaner, tighter look. Plants visible over the shoulder or poking out behind people will look like goofy headdresses or tails! This becomes a distraction from the faces of the team and possibly cause the team to look less professional.
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Simple Website Revamping
It doesn’t take a lot to revamp a website. Something as simple as updating photos or removing pages that you never got around to finishing. Do you have services or products you no longer offer? Are your discounts out of date? Are you using different brands than what was posted on website? Do you have new staff (or lose staff)? Something as simple as removing social media links you no longer use (please delete those accounts!!) It doesn’t take a lot.
Updating keeps your content fresh, keeps search engines happy and clients coming back. I know it can be time consuming, but taking that time to make sure it happens can go a long way. You not need to make changes every week, but a site untouch for over a year doesn’t do with with Google.
I just worked with Happy Jack Pancake House over the holidays to revamp their site. It was fun and easy. We emailed and talked on the phone to figure out what they wanted and made sure they got the results they needed. Most of their clients use tablets and smart phones. Their old site was not mobile friendly, but we took steps to make the site mobile friendly in the future. We simplified the pages, updated the design slightly and moved their most important content (hours, address and directions) into a more prominent location. They mentioned they do a lot of updated on Facebook so we added their Facebook feed so the content stays fresh (food pun!).
For more ideas on updating your website, click here.
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Instagram!
I love Instagram! I have been holding off on using it for business because I wanted my photos to go straight to my Business Facebook Page. That wasn’t an option, until recently!! Now Instagram not only allows you to post straight to your Business Facebook Page, it also allows you to have and manage more than one account. Before you would have to log out of one account and log into the other account. That was time consuming and let’s be honest.. with all the passwords we need to know these, trying to remember everything was a hassle. Now,thanks to the new updates, it is so much easier to manage multiple accounts!
Just like in other social media, sometimes having a separation between business and pleasure is needed. My hobbies and personal life have little, if anything to do with my business. I don’t need to post photos of home improvement, new fitness equipment or family time on my business accounts. Business trips, photoshoots, meetings, before and after photos of websites makes a lot more since. Behind the scenes is also a good idea, but not so much the photo of the my dad with the fish he just caught on our family vacation.
So for those who have been holding off on Instagram for business, now is a great time to check it out. It is a great place to connect with more potential customers and clients to find inspiration of your own or connect with other business owners such as yourself.
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VAUMC16
This year UMAC (United Methodist Association of Communicators) was in Portland, Or. It was a quick conference but I still got a lot out of it (not to mention seeing my long time friend after 7 years apart). It was great seeing my other communications friends from around the country and talking shop when we weren’t learning or exploring the city. Thank you Travel Channel and Food Network for telling us such great dining options!! Voodoo Doughnuts (seen on Travel channel) happened several times. We also enjoyed Industrial Cafe and Saloon and Frank’s Noodle House (from Diner’s Drive-ins and Dives).
To see more photos from my adventures in Portland, OR check out my facebook page!
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Happy New Year!
It’s that time of year again when we take the time to evaluate your business. What worked, what didn’t work? Analyze your social media. What did you struggle with? What was a success? Do you need to schedule time for social media to improve what you’re doing? Find a class to improve your skills or give me a call for suggestions.
Also take the time to look at your website. What works? What’s out of date? Are there new products or services that you’re offering. Can you stream line anything? It’s important to update your website. Doing something as simple as replacing your images with recent work can do wonders. Then remember to announce your updated website via social media, emails, newsletters, etc.
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Christmas Ornaments
Here are a few photos that I took. Some are from my personal tree and some are of a tree at my church. These are a few photo ideas that would be great for social media! The images are clear and there is plenty of room for text overlays. Of course, your photos don’t need to be religious in theme, but it’s what I choose. Have fun with the photo shoot and try under different lighting for a variety of options. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
Chrismon Ornaments
Homemade Bell Angle
Cross and Lights
Manger Ornament
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Holiday Banners for Social Media
During the holidays it’s fun to mix up your social media banners for the seasons. You can keep it simple by using photos of your own. Your office Christmas tree, fall leaves, winter scene, etc. If you don’t have images of your own to use, do the following steps to find FREE photos on the internet:
- Go to google.com
- Do a search for your subject
- Click on Image
- Click on Search Tools
- Click on Usage Rights
- Select “Labeled for reuse”
All those photos are free for the taking and using!!
If you want to get more creative and don’t have photoshop, there are free programs available to help you add text to the images, overlap images, crop, etc. www.picmonkey.com is a good option and so is canva.com.
