delightful duo ~ fargo outdoor portraiture

I had SO much fun with this mother & daughter duo today.  The weather was FANTASTIC and we had a great time.  I have to admit, I am having a hard time thinning out the proofs and it was even harder to get just a couple previews, they are all really cute!  Very photogenic ladies I tell you.  Enjoy!

Photoshop Quick Tip ~ Prairie Yarns

If you've ever met me in person and talked with me for any amount of time, you'd discover that I have an obsession with fiber arts.  I'm talking knitting, crochet, spinning, and all other (wool) fiber goodness.  I'm also what many might call a "yarn snob" in that I only use good quality stuff. 

Well, in Fargo we are fortunate to have a couple nice yarn shops.  One that I tend to visit most often is Prairie Yarns.  When the owner asked me to take a few pictures of the new shop (they moved into a new site last fall) and of course I jumped at the opportunity to support another local business.  She wanted a panoramic image and I didn't have enough space to just get it all in one shot; this required me to take several shots then compile them into one. 

Here's the result-

To do this using Photoshop here are the steps:
1.) Shoot several overlapping images and get 'em on your computer (its best that they are all the same camera settings, so use manual settings on your SLR to ensure your color/shutter/aperture, etc. is consistent)
2.) In Photoshop, click on File -->  Automate --> Photomerge
3.) A dialog box will show up and that's where you'll pick which images are going to be combined
4.) Wait patiently as Photoshop processes the files.  If you only 3-4 it shouldn't take too long, but its does take some processing time.
5.)  Once its done, THEN do your image adjustments for contrast, brightness, etc. so that the same setting is used for the whole image

Voila, thats it!  Really, its that easy!

landen! ~ audubon newborn photography

So, these pictures were taken the day before his due date, when he was three months old!  Yeppers, this little man was born pretty early, but is entirely perfect :)  Didn't score too many sleepy pictures, but it was really fun to have him in for his "newborn" session.

 

  

Photoshop Quick Tip ~ Family Vacation

This past winter our family went on a big vacation to DisneyWorld and on a cruise to Mexico.  Of course, when we went it was a replay of a Lampoon's vacation, but we all had fun (even though it was C-O-L-D the whole time!)  I did manage to get a couple shots of my daughter in the hot tub and my niece in the hotel room with my little Sony CyberShot camera that I thought were cute, but they needed some fixing up.

For both of these I followed the same steps.

1.)  Open file then go to Image --> Adjustments --> Brightness and Contrast (Make adjustments to your liking.)
2.)  Click OK then again Image --> Adjustments --> Photo Filter (Use the drop down and find one that makes your picture look better!  Don't forget to adjust the density slider and see how that changes the image.)

That is all.  Really, just two steps.  Not too shabby, eh?

Little Beauties ~ Fargo Natural Light Photography

These two little beauties were so fantastic to work with. I had gotten to take pictures of them last fall as well and this time they proved again that they are just so well behaved and very photogenic :)  We also got some super fun pictures with balloons, playing peek-a-boo, and family shots.  LOVE these little beauties!

FYI- the hat is from SM Creations based locally.  She does fabulous work and can custom make just about anything knitted or crocheted.  Hat prices start at about $15 depending on style.  She also can make matching sweater/pant sets!  Get a free 5x7 from me with any purchase from her!  Call or email me for her contact info.

LIMITED Promotion ~ Digital Image Editing

I want to show off some of the stuff I can produce so I'm offering a very limited promotion for FIVE free basic image edits for the first five people who email me.  Please email me first to make sure I haven't already hit the limit and I will also provide details on how to get me the files.  I will retouch five of your own images, convert them to black & white or vintage and then send them back to you.  OR I can use those five images in a digital scrapbook page layout.  This is really a very limited time promotion, so if you want to get in on it email me at brandi @ sprayphotography . com (remember to format properly removing spaces!)

You must have photographer permission for all images submitted!  If you are unsure please check with the photographer first. 

Mr J is SO Big ~ Fargo Family Photography

Its hard to believe this little man is having his first birthday!  I've felt so blessed to get to know him and his family over the last year taking tons of pictures of Mr J.  He's turning into a little man!  And, he's a little peanut, just like my own little peanut!

Big News! Updated Pricing for 2011!

Over the last few years I've looked at what customers were asking for and what people REALLY seem to want.  When it comes down to it, most want a CD with their session images on it.  Many photographers do not offer this or have high pricing on them because they want to retain rights to the images. I do agree with this practice but have found that it didn't quite fit with my business model so I've limited printing to proof size 4x6's for CD's in the past.

However, I've decided that I am going to start offering CD's with HIGH RESOLUTION print permission starting March 15, 2011!  This will be included for all sessions. By printing your own pictures you will likely save money and its practical for me since I will have less backend processing/handling so I can spend more time with family.  Printing will still be available through me, but I can also suggest places to print your own.

I'm also very pleased to announce that I will begin offering my digital design and editing services as well.  You take the pictures, I do the editing!  Watch for a special promo (i.e. FREE sample) to be posted soon to Facebook fans. 

Without further ado- here's the new stuff!

2011 Pricing

Photography Service
$150 includes on location session and 25-35 high resolution images on CD with print permission

Extras with session $25 each
a) three collage or card designs and web version of all images
b) all other unedited images from same session
c) basic photobook design in square or landscape format ready to print


Photo Editing & Design Services
Basic editing (including b/w, sepia, vintage, and skin smoothing)
$30 for first 10 images then $1 per add'l image
Advanced editing (selective coloring, headswap, remove objects from image)
$5 per image and includes two versions of image

Photobook design (you supply pictures, you must have photographer permission to print for all images)
$35 BASIC- up to 75 images (approx 20 pages and includes basic editing
$60 FULL- up to 75 images with digital scrapbook design
Photobook printing is also available through me, please inquire for specifics.

Image scanning
$25 per hour (approx 60 images per hour)
Your images my printing is 1/3 of regular print pricing with any other service