2 Great Deals: Photo Books - Creating & Publishing

Thinking about making a photo book or even publishing a book?  Here are a couple of awesome deals for you: the first is a free online training for Lightroom 4, from Scott Kelby of KelbyTraining.com, and the second is a discount to TAP!2013 which is taking place in Orlando, FL next week.

Creating Your Own Photobook in Lightroom 4
Scott Kelby is offering a free 3-day rental of this online class, which is usually priced at $9.99.  It's available for a limited time, so don't miss this one if you're wanting to make your own memory books!

TAP!2013
This is not strictly for photographers, but it's packed full of great learning, especially if you're looking to publish your own book one day.  The event takes place next week, starting on Wednesday 9 Jan and running through to Friday 11 Jan, with pre-conference sessions taking place on Monday and Tuesday.  With keynote speakers such as Guy Kawasaki, Scott Kelby, Skip Cohen, Debbie Bates-Schrott and Jessica Meher, you can't go wrong!

TAP!2013 is a great event at any price, but right now Skip Cohen is offering a fantastic discount for $550 off.  You can find his discount code HERE.

I've already 'purchased' my free Lightroom Photobook tutorial - now to carve out some time over the next three festivity-packed days to watch it!

Happy New Year everyone!  May 2013 be a great year for you.

Mum, Dad & the Boys | Duluth GA Family Photographer

This client was so happy with the headshots I took of her earlier this year that she came back for a portrait photo session.  And lucky for me, because I got to meet their pups!  These two guys are a lot of fun - have a look at my website to see the DVD I made of their shoot.

It was a hoot to let the dogs run around and play while I videoed their games.  Now, if only I could teach my dog to play fetch like these two do!  He has the chase part down, but the fetch?  Not so much...

Anyhow, check out these expressions.  They always make me smile :o)

A Time for Family & Friends

Thanksgiving has come and gone here in the USA and Christmas is coming up soon all over the world.  The holiday season is a time when folks spend time with friends and family, reminiscing about past times, planning fun future activities and enjoying each others' company.

But there's allllllways someone who wants to take photos, right?  And don't we just hate it when we're in the middle of a nice meal and someone decides to snap a photo of us while we're attempting to stuff a forkful in our mouths...

Don't do it, folks!  No-one likes awkward photos of themselves plastered all over the various social media sites, no matter how funny it may seem at the time.  But don't put away that camera completely during this season of gatherings - one day we'll be grateful  for those photos.

Do catch people being themselves and enjoying the moment.  Photograph them around the table, laughing and talking with loved ones.  Use a shallow Depth of Field to cut out the background clutter.  Zoom lenses are great for capturing natural, candid moments, but don't abuse it!  Aim to make people look fantastic, not ugly.

Have a look on my website for a short story about a little girl who'd never seen herself in a photo before.  That's the sort of thing we can do as photographers.

Last year I wrote a post with tips for taking posed photos of large groups.  Try them out at your next party - and especially remember the part about not being grumpy!

Family Fun | Alpharetta GA Family Photographer

How cute are these kids?!  This high energy trio made for a fun family photo shoot on a warm late autumn morning.