Liene Stevens, Emilie Sommer and Angela Adams…oh my!

Email photo (at) emilieinc.com to secure your seat!

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Starting Out Right : One Day Intensive

STARTING OUT RIGHT: ONE-DAY INTENSIVE

This is not a typical workshop.  It’s not a seminar.  If you’re looking for a day of learning more about your camera and shooting pretty models – this isn’t for you.

On the other hand, if you’re ready to go deep – and get serious about your photography business, you can’t afford to miss this. You can’t afford to NOT start out right.

Unlike most photography “workshops,” this isn’t about photography.  It’s based on business principles to help you grow your business.

Jason brings a background in management and marketing from working at as an executive at a Fortune 100 company, and the experience of starting – and building a successful boutique studio based in the midwest.

You’ll leave with answers.  You’ll leave with a PLAN.  You’ll leave with the best practices and key strategies to help grow a business built to last.

KNOWING YOUR NUMBERS

We’ll start by helping define your goals.  Using that as the foundation, we’ll get a grip on the numbers – including pricing, budgets, cash flow, expenses, and more.

MARKETING AND BRAND STRATEGY

Developing a brand – and a marketing strategy to support that brand – are key to finding the right clients.  We’ll go through best practices in marketing and brand development – so that you’ll leave with key principles you can put in to place immediately.

THE CLIENT EXPERIENCE

The relationships you develop with your clients are about more than smiles and smooth talking.  We’ll cover how we walk our clients through from inquiry to completion – and how we start the cycle over.  Our goal is to build clients for life.

SETTING UP SYSTEMS FOR SUCCESS

You only have so much time, and we often find ourselves spending it on things that barely help us get by – and DON’T help us grow our businesses.  We’ll talk about how developing efficient systems can help set your business up for real growth.

WORKFLOW AND SALES

From the time you shoot it, to the time you sell it, we’ll cover how you can develop a workflow and sales process that results in real income and profit.

Sponsored by:

Who should come?: Photographer/Small Business Owners.  Whether you’ve been doing this for less than 2 years or more than 10, this workshop is designed to help you learn best practices to grow your business.

Cost: $450 ONLY $300 per person! Includes all materials [business planning and budgeting tools, contract worksheets, participant manual] and lunch.  Also includes chances at some pretty cool giveaways, including a 6 month free subscription to ShootQ, a Livebooks subscription site, a one-year Pictage Lite membership and MORE!.  More giveaways to be announced shortly!

Dates/Locations: Current Cities include: Atlanta, Nashville, Jackson, MS, New Orleans, San Francisco, Chicago, Cincinnati, Austin and Houston.  For more info, click on the Register Page!

How to Register: Just CLICK HERE to go to the registration page!

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Engage09 The Encore

Emilie and I just returned from a terrific couple of days in Vegas at the Engage09 The Encore, a luxury wedding business seminar! The speaker lineup was terrific…starting with Rebecca Grinnals, who also put on the day, and Marcy Blum to Simon T. Bailey and the brilliant Sean Low. Networking at this event was 2nd to none! Randy Fenoli, Director of Fashion at Kleinfeld in NYC and “Say Yes to the Dress” fame entertained us in the evening at Blush. Our great friend Jennifer Dominick of LoveLifeImages brought her Snapshot Studio to capture some of the fun!

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Pictage : Katrina Families Charity Event

Just four years ago thousands of families from New Orleans and the Gulf Coast states were left homeless, with many of their personal belongings destroyed by the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. A large majority of these families lost what could arguably be their most valued treasures – family photographs.

In response to the disaster wrought by Hurricane Katrina we’ll be providing hundreds of families with charitable mini portrait sessions as part of PartnerCon New Orleans! With YOUR help, all families will be provided a CD of their images the day of the shoot, along with a package of assorted prints delivered to them a few weeks later. This is your opportunity to play a direct role in making a big difference in the lives of others, while simultaneously enriching your PartnerCon experience.

We’re seeking 100 attendee volunteers to make this charitable shoot a success. Reserve your spot now!

The Details:

The shoots will occur on Thursday, November 5, from 1 – 6 pm (volunteer teams will be organized into 2-hour shifts) We’ll be photographing more than 200 families at venues located near the West Bank in New Orleans, just 10-minutes from the hotel. We’ll have 5 – 7 shooting stations set-up (with back-drops) — each family shoot will last approximately 15 minutes. Volunteer teams will be organized in advance of the event – each team will consist of a photographer, assistant, image downloader/laptop attendant, runner and various other roles and responsibilities (team members will have the flexibility to rotate responsibilities). Those that prefer to be the Photographer on their team must supply their own camera and 2 off-camera flash units (we’ll be providing all the other gear, including light/flash stands, remote triggers, backdrops, CF cards, extra batteries, etc).

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Going on tour next week!

I am headed out on the road again!  This time I am on tour with WPPI for liveBooks!  We are hitting some great towns and I look forward to meeting new people and seeing some old friends.  If you are in Atlanta, Minneapolis, Dallas or Boston and want to get together…drop me a line!

4 different cities. 17 different speakers. 4 different topics.

4 CITY ROAD TRIP

This coming September, WPPI is taking the show on the road for the first-ever WPPI Road Trip. You don’t want to miss out on an opportunity like this! Atlanta – Monday, September 21, 2009 Minneapolis – Wednesday, September 23, 2009 Dallas – Monday, September 28, 2009 Boston – Wednesday, September 30, 2009

17 SPEAKERS

Each city will host 4 distinctive speakers that you’ve come to know and love at previous WPPI Conventions. The 2009 WPPI Road Trip roster includes: Bambi Cantrell, Tony Corbell, Jim DiVitale, Kay Eskridge, Beth Forester, Jim Garner, Doug Gordon, Kevin Kubota, Robert Lino, Lori Nordstrom, Sarah Petty, Ken Sklute, John Solano, Eddie Tapp, Vicki Taufer, Jed Taufer and Kirk Voclain.

4 HOT TOPICS

Each stop on the tour will cover 4 specific areas, designed specifically to cultivate your technical skills, inspire creativity and enhance the productivity of your professional photography business. Business & Marketing Lighting & Posing Wedding or Portraits Workflow

ALL FOR JUST $149

Each stop along the WPPI Road Trip includes 4 programs, a buffet lunch and a mini trade show with some of your favorite exhibitors, companies and sponsors all for just $149! Choose 1 city and pay just $149 Or… choose 2 cities and pay just $249 Or… choose 3 cities and pay just $349 And because we know someone will ask, come to all 4 cities for just $399!

BONUS!

For a limited time, WPPI is offering FREE registration to the 2010 WPPI Convention and Trade Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, to all attendees who register and attend any one of the stops on the first-ever WPPI Road Trip! If you’ve never attended WPPI before, there is no time like the present to take advantage of this extraordinary opportunity near you. To find out more about each city and the specific speakers, please click on your city of choice below.

Atlanta Boston Minneapolis Dallas

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Roots Workshop 2010

A huge thanks to Roots Workshop photographer Eric Laurits and emilie inc. multimedia producer Morgan Kirkham for putting together this testimonial video from a few of this year’s student interviews. For more information on the workshop, please bookmark www.rootsworkshop.net, our new dedicated blog! If you take a spin over, you’ll notice some important dates… And so, without further ado, please mark your calendars for September 15th at 9a, and pass the word that Roots ’10 registration will be open to accept students for next summer! That’s right, Roots returns to the Cape July 18-23rd for our third year!! Visit the newly redesigned workshop website for more information and please email me with any questions! Can’t wait!

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Caros Baez Workshop in Chicago on August 19th

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B&H July 27th : FACEBOOK VS. FACE TO FACE

Using Social Media and SEO to Drive More Business to your Door.

Monday, July 27, 2009 | 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Speakers: J Sandifer , Lou Manna
Event Type: Photography
Skill Level: Basic, Intermediate

Register

Social media has transformed the way people communicate by allowing instantaneous exchange of information and the ability to reach a large audience. This new speed of communication and access to large social networks has significantly impacted the way photographers market and promote themselves. Whether it’s a blog, forum, wiki, podcast, vlog or mircroblog, using the Internet is one of the smartest and low-cost ways to grow your business and improve your SEO ranking . Join J Sandifer and Lou Manna at the B&H Event Space, who will draw from their personal stories of success with social media and viral marketing. Lou will discuss how he uses Facebook as his international business hub by promoting his work and driving traffic to his site. J, who has used social media and viral marketing to grow his photography business in Portland, ME, will cover the best social media available to photographers and how to utilize their benefits. He will also emphasize the importance of having a professional website in order to get the most out of social networking. Special attention will be given to Facebook and Twitter, as these are the most popular marketing vehicles that photographers are using on the Web.

J has been with liveBooks for 3 years! He has the pleasure of traveling the country speaking to photography groups of all types. He came to liveBooks as an expert in the wedding industry, and says he continues to learned a ton about the commercial world by sitting on panels with creative directors and art buyers, by speaking to many liveBooks clients on the phone and by swapping secrets with his counterparts who shoot commercially. He truly enjoys consulting photographers on how to grow their businesses. He and his fiancé run a wedding studio in Portland, ME. This past year, they raised their prices by 25% and shot 43 weddings (crazy!). They did this by developing a strong brand and have recently done something quite unique; video testimonials. In today’s market it is important to stand out from the crowd. J’s loves helping photographers grow their businesses and come up with great ideas to make you remarkable!

Lou Manna is an award winning Olympus Visionary photographer whose work has appeared in national ad campaigns, major magazines, and more than forty books. After shooting for the New York Times from 1975 to 1990, he went on to establish his own Fifth Avenue studio, where he works with corporate, advertising and public relations clients to create photos that can only be described as “exquisite.” He has a sense of style, color and composition with an inherent sense of beauty. Lou recently authored his first book, Digital Food Photography, the only book on the art of food photography devoted exclusively to digital technology. He is currently writing another book and teaching digital food photography workshops and private hands on classes in his studio.

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PartnerCon New Orleans 2009!

Testimonials

“PartnerCon is the best industry event I’ve attended.”
David Wittig

“First of all, PartnerCon is a requirement for me every year – I need it! It’s a chance to re-connect – or connect for the first time – with friends met on the forums.”
Shari Zellers

“I love PartnerCon for it’s intimate and personal feel. My favorite part is meeting other photographers and small business owners.”
Shawn Reeder

RULES from a Local Chris Williams!

I think I’ll let everyone in on the secret rules of visiting New Orleans.

1. You are NOT in N-E-W O-R-L-EEEEE-NS, it’s NAW-LINS or NEW OR-LUNS, or even NEW OR-LEE-UNS

2. If you have to ask what you’re eating, it’s best not to know.

3. We eat alligator down here, but it does not taste like chicken no matter what anyone tells you.

4. We also eat Nutria, which is a large rat and also does not taste like chicken.

5. When we say “suck the heads” it’s referring to eating crawfish, not a late night zombie attack on Bourbon St

6. Snowballs are the #3 dessert down here. Yes that’s ice and flavored syrup. And we stand in line in the heat for it.

7. Beignets are our #2 dessert down here, just don’t breathe or sneeze while attempting to eat them. Also you can get them 24 hrs a day.

8. Bananas Foster is our #1 dessert down here, well at least in my book it is. I’d recommend Brennan’s brunch for the true Foster tasting.

9. We don’t really now how to pronounce street names. We say “Charters”for the French street name “Chartres”. It’s best not to ask. But every one of us down here can say Tchoupitoulas!

10. The French and the Spanish had the French Quarter, the too uptight goody English types took everything else but considered the Quarter an unruly place.

11. Where Y’at? Just means “how’s it going?”. Also if everyone keeps calling you “babe or baby”, it’s just our way.

12. When some guy following you tells you he knows where you got your shoes at, tell him “oh these are not my shoes”. Otherwise you are 100% sure to lose at least $20 on a bet.

13. A “Hurricane” is a red fruity potent drink, tastes like Fruit Punch Kool-Aid but after a few you WILL be one of those joining the large group of “photographed passed out people” on Bourbon St. A “Hand Grenade” is the same style, but tasting like Lime Kool-Aid.

14. For real southern drinks, try a Sazerac, Pimms Cup or sip a Mint Julep. Do this of course at a restaurant with open shutters to the street for true effect. I’d suggest Napoleon’s, which was built for you know who, though he never got to see it.

15. No locals do not hang out on Bourbon St so we don’t really notice the smell.

16. It is still illegal to tie up your pet alligator to a fire hydrant.

17. Yes I know some people down here talk like they are from Brooklyn, I still can’t figure it out either. However NO ONE down here talks like in the move “The Big Easy”.

18. We have held more Super Bowls than any other city. The Saints have yet to even go to a Super Bowl in 40 years.

19. A “2nd Line” parade is held after a funeral or a wedding, or any other excuse to parade down the street. Feel free to jump right in.

20. How many other US cities can hold a party for 2 weeks with over a million people an not have more than 500 arrests? Just remember if you get arrested the weekend before Mardi Gras, you stay in jail until Wednesday. No King Cake or Zulu coconut for you. Mardi Gras really started in Mobile,Alabama but let’s not tell anyone.

21. Some people live and work on the Westbank which is actually South of downtown New Orleans. Just easy not to ask.

22. Get in line early at Central Grocery for a muffeletta sandwich. Eat the whole thing and well, you’re crazy.

23. There are 2 directions. You are either headed towards the river or the lake.

24. Our cemeteries sit above ground due to our low lying ground. Buried below ground and the water will cause you to knock against your tomb and keep the neighbors up.

25. Andrew Jackson is our rockstar, he beat the British just down the river after the war was over.

26. We are known as the birthplace of Jazz.

27. Lestat still hangs out in the Garden District.

28. We live in a Parish, we do not know what a county is.

29. We have the oldest operating street car line in the USA, and it can get you just about anywhere from the Fr Qtr to the end of St Charles Ave.

30. And finally, yes the water did go down. The only place in New Orleans still underwater after Katrina is the aquarium.

Le Bon Temps Roule!

__________________
Chris Williams
www.zoeicaimages.net
http://zoeicaimages.blogspot.com
New Orleans, LA
The Only 3rd World Country Inside the USA

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Gene Higa and Justin & Mary Workshop

If you are unable to come to the Roots Workshop and live in the Boston area…you might want to check out this!

Gene Higa and Justin & Mary Workshop

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Increasing Value in your Wedding Photography Business

Two halves of the value fraction

By Seth Godin

In a down economy, marketers fret a lot about price. We think that since times are tough, people care about price and nothing but price.

Of course, people actually care more about value. They care about value more than they used to because they can’t afford to overpay, they don’t want to make a mistake with their money.

Value = benefit/price. That means that one way to make value go up is to lower price, right?

The thing is, there’s another way to make the value go up. Increase what you give. Increase quality and quantity and the unmeasurable pieces that bring confidence and joy to an interaction.

When all of your competitors are busy increasing value by cutting prices, you can actually increase market share by increasing value and raising benefits.

Stop competing and reducing your price…make your photography better! Invest in your yourself and join us for Roots Workshop!!! Em did a post this week on all the spreads from the photojournalistic photography workshop.

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Shooting Workshop

Roots Workshop Promo Video

VIDEO takes a few moments to load…but it is worth it!

There are so many workshops out there right now it is hard to know which ones are good and which ones will not be worth your time.  There are a few out there that will definitely change the way you look at photography and how you approach shooting.  Last summer I was a participant at Roots Workshop on Cape Cod and it certainly took my photography to another level.  I have been working and shooting in the photography industry since 1999 and I feel as though I have really just begun.  Granted I have had no formal training and have relied on different people teaching me throughout the years… but spending 4 days working on my craft with the insightful suggestions of Greg Gibson has taken me to a level that I did not think I would attain.  I still am humbled by so much talent in our industry today, but I feel like I can approach a scene with what I want to do in mind and capture it.

The timing of the workshop could not be better…falling in July when you can really take what you learn and apply it to your weddings the rest of the season.  This year I will be attending the workshop as the cook(notice I didn’t say chef) and look forward to helping out any way I can.

The 2009 staff line-up includes Emilie Sommer (emilie inc.), Greg Gibson (Greg Gibson Photography), Arnold Miller (NewsDay), Jennifer Domenick (love Life Images), Tyler Wirken (Wirken Photography), Mark Adams (Lacour), and Rachel Niesen (LaCour).  Wedding Photography Workshop

Or see it in HD on Vimeo: http://vimeo.com/3766172?pg=embed&sec=

You can see some of the stories that were shot last year here:

Better yet…visit the website!

Roots Workshop

Looking for a lighting workshop?  Check out Miami Wedding Photographer Carlos Baez’s blog!

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Fast Track Workshop

Dane is a friend and there is not a more genuine person out there that you can learn from!

Fast Track Workshop

First, you’ll get everything you need to personally own the Fast Track Philosophy.
Second, you’ll discover the perfect Strategy & Tactics for you to truly lead.
Third, you will be given the Tools and Best Practices necessary to win.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT DANE’S TEACHING…

• “You have had an amazing impact in my life. I am forever changed.” Mike K.
• “In 5 months, we’ve booked 34 weddings and doubled our prices.” – Cali F.
• “Fast Track is the defining photography guide of our time.” – Michael E.
• “What I got from Dane? Confirmation. Determination. Affirmation. Inspiration.” Nina B.
• “Just what I needed at just the right time.” – Chris B.

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Photo Fusion Tour 09

New workshop that will be hitting the road soon with Robert Evans and Curt Apanovich to teach wedding photographers how to shoot and edit video to include in your business.  Sponsored by PhotographyMentor.com and SmugMugpro.

http://www.photofusiontour.com/

Looking forward to seeing more exciting work coming from this crew and how the wedding industry will receive it…

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Pictage Ask and Learn tonight at 7est

We will mainly be talking about branding, but certainly bring any and all questions!  Click here to join the discussion: http://forums.pictage.com/showthread.php?t=29495

You can also take a moment to checkout emilie inc sites:

http://emilieinc.com/

http://emilieincassociates.com/

http://emilieink.com/

Blog http://blog.emilieinc.net

Holiday Newsletter: http://tinyurl.com/5n94p5

Workshop: http://rootsworkshop.com/

Directory: http://www.newsweddingphotographers.com/

Non-profit: http://www.pinkinitiative.org/

Sign up for the Master Class at WPPI, I understand there are still a couple openings!

Some slides for tonight:

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ASMP Minneapolis Tomorrow

ASMP :: Minneapolis

I will be in Minneapolis tomorrow for this event…there are a couple of us meeting up around 2 for coffee.  If you would like to meet up…let me know.

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Blurb : Photography.Book.Now International Salon and Symposium

I will be in NY on Wednesday for this event…if you are going make sure to stop by and say hello!

New York

Wednesday, October 22, 2008
2:30-6:30 pm
RSVP Now

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The Mike Colón Experience Retreat in Paradise!

Kinda hoping I can sponsor this workshop   Mike is stepping it up a bit and taking everyone to Maui!

In celebration of our 10th private workshop, we’ve decided to do something extra special. We are taking The Mike Colón Experience to paradise on the beautiful Pacific Island of Maui! This will be the same great workshop packed with all the topics listed below plus many added perks including 6 days/5 nights accommodations, massages, & gourmet food in a luxurious retreat style setting that is perfect for an inspiring and life-changing experience that will help you take your photography and business another level!

Mike Colón Experience X- (December 7-12, 2008) Retreat in Paradise!

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Apple 5th Avenue Photo Events

Sorry no credit given on Apple site.

767 Fifth Ave. New York City, NY 10153 (212) 336-1440

Store hours:

24/365

Next week is a BIG photo week in NY!  Here is part of the line up at the Apple store:

Special Photo Event: Filmmaking for Photographers with Vincent Laforet October 20, 9:00 a.m, if you haven’t hear fo Vincent or seen Reverie…then climb out from under the rock you have been living under!

Special Photo Event: Effective Web Design and Promotion for Photographers with J Sandifer October 21, 7:00 p.m.

Special Photo Event: Multimedia Photojournalism with Brian Storm, president of MediaStorm October 23, 7:00 p.m …again climb out from under your rock

Special Photo Event: Bookmaking in Aperture with Couture Book with Dave Luebke on October 24, 7:00 p.m.  Not sure who this guys is…just kidding Dave!  Looking forward to it!

Special Photo Event: Fashion Photography with Jon Moe on October 25, 7:00 p.m.

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Upcoming Speaking Engagements

Today I was putting together upcoming speaking engagements for my monthly newsletter and thought I would share that here:

October 21st  New York Apple Store
I will be speaking about what makes a great portfolio website for a photographer.  liveBooks cient, Lou Manna will speak about the evolution of his site, the sequencing of the images in his portfolios and how he markets it and drives traffic to it. Visit Lou’s website at http://www.loumanna.com

October 23rd-25th  New York Photo Plus Expo

November 6th  Minneapolis, MN
Photographer’s Survival Guide for Today’s Market with Amanda Sosa Stone and Suzanne Sease

November 10th Boston, MA
CIPNE Event

December 2nd  Online
The Importance of Building an Enviable Brand WEBINAR with J Sandifer & Emilie Sommer

December 3rd  Online
Pictage Podcast + Ask and Learn with J Sandifer & Emilie Sommer

December 16th New York
Calumet Road Tour Event

Let me know if you think you have a group that would like to have a speaker to talk on marketing, branding or websites.

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