I’ll give you an example: when I asked Lori if she would share a personal story for the Coffee Break, she told me,  “We just experienced a favorite family memory recently! It revolved around my Grandmother passing away, but was a great weekend of getting together with extended family and old friends.

My Grandma lived a great, long life and while I’ll miss her, I know she’s out of her broken body and dancing with the angels! That makes me smile. After we got together to celebrate and honor her life (I suppose some call that a funeral), my brother and niece and my son Jaxon and I all went to spend the day at Cedar Point.  We rode every ride and had such a fun day together.”

I love how even in a sad situation, Lori sees the bright side of it and celebrates life.

As a PPA Master, Craftsman, CPP, & ABI (approved business instructor), you can find Lori all over the globe teaching photography workshops and classes… she recently traveled from Texas School straight to Canada for Image Explorations.

Lori started in photography about 10 years ago by photographing her kids, and absolutely fell in love with hand-painting black and white photos.   When you check out Lori’s work at the end of this article, you’ll see that she has clear knack for this art–I love the subtle way she brings out details in her images through the use of color.  Lori has had retail studios, home studios, been completely “on location” and now lives above her retail space in what she calls her “studio home.”

Not only is Lori an amazing photographer and instructor, she’s also an inventor/designer!  I’m thrilled to share this months’ contest prize with you… Lori’s very cool camera straps. Do you need a little Spice in your Camera? Try Pepper! Lori has designed super cute camera straps in a variety of colors and patterns to spice up your shooting style!  Pepper was born out of Lori’s desire to break free from the ordinary and create a completely fresh new look for photographers.  For years, Lori searched for a camera strap that would be as individual as the person wearing it.  Not finding it, she did what we all want to do:  She went out and designed one herself.  Designed with quality and stability in mind, this camera strap is easy to change and can suit any mood.  I’m so excited to get mine!

I think you’ll find Lori’s take on our Learn Grow Share questions very interesting.  Lori says you can plan all day long, but the only way we grow is by actually taking the steps: by doing something.  Well said, Lori!  She’s got some great tips on marketing, and something thought-provoking to say about measuring the quality of your life.  Now grab your coffee and settle in for some wisdom from my new favorite bundle of energy.

What’s something that you feel like you’d like to learn more about, something you are continually learning?

A: I want to learn something new every day! I love to read and really try to stay saturated in business, sales, marketing and personal growth books. I want to learn more about people and why and how they tick! People fascinate me – learning about habits, needs and motivators. I’m continually learning to nurture the relationships in my life. Tony Robbins says that the quality of our lives is in direct proportion to the
quality of our relationships.

What is something that you wish someone would have told you before you had to learn it the hard way?

A: When I began my business as a photographer, it was after owning a hair salon for 10 years. I thought I was a good business person because I loved sales and I loved marketing. What I found out (the hard way) was that being a good business person is all in the numbers. Learning to schedule every part of my workflow was also something that certainly came the “hard way” for me. We all want to “find balance”. And, really, the only way to find any sort of balance, is to have every part of the workflow completely scheduled.

How have you grown in the past five years in your business, in your own personal quest for growth, in your awareness of the world around you?
A: I’ve learned that the only way I can grow is to give. By giving and sharing and letting go of things, we make room for new.

How would you recommend others grow?
A: We grow by doing. I can read, plan, etc but the only way to move forward is to take the steps.

Do you have a favorite marketing tip?
A: We are all marketing all the time! Know who your target client is, know what motivates her and know what her priorities are. How is your target client spending her time and spending her money? Larry Winget (Pitbull of Personal Development) says “your time and money always follow your priorities”. When we know more about our client and what motivates her, what her needs are, we know how to market to her, talk to her and match
the right products and services to her. Help your client design her space (based on needs, priorities and motivators) before the sales appointment. I could go on and on! Marketing your personal brand is something I love to talk about!

Do you have a workshop suggestion, or convention to attend?
A: I love networking with other photographers. Join your state associations and get involved. There are some fabulous workshops out there – too many to mention! Find photographers you connect with and make a list. Set priorities to study with one photographer on your list each year. I recently started www.phototalkforum.com It has been such a great way to connect with other photographers and get to share something every day!

How do you feel that you contribute to the industry?
A: I love this industry and the people in it. I’m so thankful for the opportunity to teach and share with other photographers, and always leave inspired and fulfilled.
This business gets rough! So many that begin from a hobby and something that they love, and it turns into this ugly monster and crying in front of the computer at night! I talk to so many women who’s families are hurting and I have been there!

When you have the opportunity to teach/share there is sometimes the facade that comes along with that… “You make this look so easy!” is something I hear so often. Well, I’m here to tell you, it’s NOT easy! I love getting to share what I’ve been through (the good, the bad and the ugly) with others in the business, especially young women.

——

Lori, your answers were so helpful and thought provoking… I appreciated your advice to find photographers you admire and “follow one a year”… just enough to make it not so overwhelming!

Lori didn’t mention her charitable contribution to the industry, so I wanted to add it here:  Now in its 6th year running, Lori devised a “Little Angels” Calendar that contributes to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.    All images from the “little angels” portrait sessions she offers are considered for the Little Angels Calendar, and all proceeds from the calendars go to the LLS.  Its a truly creative way to give back and “celebrate life with photography.”  Thank you, Lori.

www.nordstromphoto.com
www.spiceupyourcamera.com
www.phototalkforum.com

Some of Lori’s gorgeous and very unique images…

Jeff and his wife, Allison, opened Allison Rodgers Photography in 2004, and in four short years their business has exploded!  Their growth has forced them to move four times, and they presently occupy a 3600 square foot building with six people on staff.  Since opening their studio, they have managed to double their sales each year and are presently regarded as one of the most profitable studios in the United States due to their design skills and marketing strategies.

After years as an Art Director/Web Designer for several agencies in Memphis, Tennessee, Jeff  took his vast computer knowledge to ARP.  Now he oversees all post-processing, file management, orders, quality control, online marketing via twitter, Facebook, and the ARPblog.  Of note, Type Pad, the largest commercial blogging software company, has featured Allison Rodgers Photography on its home page and has listed their blog as one of its Top 10 sites.

Because of his commitment to the idea of creating buzz with viral marketing, clients and peers really get to know ARP before they ever step in the door.  And they do create a buzz!  Just today Allison Rodgers Photography was featured on the front of Marathan Press blog for their work on the show Extreme Makeover Home Edition.

Now YOU can get to know Jeff a little bit more.  Jeff, thank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions, and I really loved what you had to say.   Oh, and thanks for the pennies (you’ll see when you read further).  We start off the interview with some critical insights:

Since you are a superhero in your mind you have to answer this:  Would you rather be able to fly, turn invisible or have the ability to read people’s minds and why?

Good question and an important one. If I turned invisible I suspect that would lead to way too much trouble on my part. Does the invisibility extend to my clothes? Might be awkward in cold climates. Reading peoples minds? That would be very cool but I don’t think my ego could withstand that level of brutal honesty. I would rather live in my fantasy world where my wife actually thinks I am a cutey and comic books are cool. Flying is definitely the best way to go. What better way of getting around than to fly?

LEARN:  What’s something that you feel like you’d like to learn more about, something you are continually learning?

Something I want to learn more about? Photography, videography, bookkeeping, running a business, teaching, speaking, social media, being a better husband and father, God, and maybe one day poetry. These are all things I want to always be improving on. Well, all of them except the poetry.  I can’t really back that one up.

I view photography from a Graphic Design perspective so the things that intrigue me are the more artistic design driven works–surreal photo illustrations, unique lighting techniques, innovative uses of composition and color. This is just what I am personally drawn to. When I was in art school the thing that influenced me the most was seeing the opening credits to the movie Se7en. Kyle Cooper (Imaginary Forces) designed them, and I remember sitting there in awe! It changed the way I looked at design. I have been thinking about this recently because of the hype over the 5D markII and all the talk about the merging of photo/video. I have a lot of photography friends who laugh when someone says “fusion.”(If you listen closely, you can here them laughing right now! )  I think that there is a way to make video more integrated with photography. You just have to be open to new technology and not dismiss new notions because it pushes you out of the little bubble of what is comfortable to you. I don’t know what the future holds for this. I believe it is something everyone needs to be at least familiar with even if it is partnering with someone knowledgeable who can offer this skill set.

What is something that you wish someone would have told you before you had to learn it the hard way?

A happy wife equals a happy life.

Oh, you probably mean photography related. OK!  Get software to track your business. It should be something that tracks your cost of sales, invoices, billing, client database, and some type of scheduling calendar. I don’t care how good you are at Excel spread sheets– that just does not cut it. Maybe it will work for the first six months, but the system you start out with needs to be flexible and able to be easily scaled up to accommodate your growth.  There are a lot of nice apps for this out there. We have been using Successware at the studio for 4 years and are happy with it.

GROW:  How have you grown in the past five years in your business, in your own personal quest for growth, in your awareness of the world around you?

We have grown a LOT over the last 5 years. People tend to get caught up in only focusing on shooting and not even thinking about all the other things you have to do in order to have a successful business. If you want to have a serious viable business that will be around for a long time, then you should join PPA and attend the IUSA pre-con meetings, as well as going to hear the platform speakers during the convention. This is the most cost-effective way of hearing all the big workshop speakers for a fraction of what it would cost to see them at workshops outside the convention. Shooting pictures is maybe 25% what is involved in running a business. Allison and I will be speaking at IUSA2010 in Nashville. I would love to meet all your readers there.

How would you recommend others grow—do you have a favorite marketing tip, workshop suggestion, or convention to attend?

My marketing tip is to get a free twitter account and put a twitter badge on your blog where your clients can choose to read what you are doing.  This tends to add more personality to your blog. You can even carry it a step further and make your twitter feed replace your Facebook status which again spreads your name around. Social media is a broad term, and people HAVE to understand it. Do you want your competitor knowing more about what the “kids” are up to than you?

SHARE:  How do you feel that you contribute to the industry?

I don’t know if anyone has noticed this or not, but I have been going around putting a penny on your front doorstep every Monday morning–just my attempt at getting all my photography buddies excited about the often maligned Mondays.  Beside the Monday morning penny treats, I enjoy speaking on Webinars, speaking at IUSA, and next year’s super secret multi city tour thing for a large non-profit photographer organization that I like a lot but I can’t really talk about that yet. I have been really pushing the whole social media thing for the past year. I feel it is just something that is here to stay, and it IS reshaping the old ways of marketing everyday. Investigate it.

Allison and I offer one on one phone consultations. It is called “He Said : She Said, The Creative Consult”. Consultation time is offered in 1 hour increments. Consults can be weekly appointments with screen share. Topics we cover: Viral Marketing, Shooting, Sales, Marketing, Post-processing and Studio Management.

What is something you would like to share with your follow colleagues?

Sort of playing one tune here BUT get on Facebook and twitter. Seriously, if you have a question, you ask it and in real time get answers. It’s really that easy. I was in a store the other day and ”twittered” a question about an off-brand battery for Canon. I immediately started getting friends’ opinions and ideas about cheaper places to buy them.

How can they turn around and do the same for others?

When you do get a twitter account, don’t just lurk around. Join the conversation, make it your own. This really applies to any of your favorite forums or online communities. Don’t be afraid of getting involved. Your opinion does matter.

Here are a few twitter playground rules to remember: Be nice, treat others how you want to be treated, use appropriate language, and don’t always be negative. Now, for my pet peeve.  When you reply to someone make a complete sentence out of your reply. I mean stop with the one word replies. How is that helpful for me to read?

Favorite charitable contribution?

A television producer friend of mine, Billy Roberts, has a charity that I am wanting to get more involved in. It’s called 5multiplied.

http://www.dropinthebucket.org/5multiplied

Excelsior!

Thank you Jeff!  I am already addicted to twitter and facebook, so I concur with everything you’ve said!  Join the conversation, people.   If you are looking for some help with your studio and want to bump it up to the next level, check out their consulting work here!

I really love Jeff’s perspective and the way that he sees life through his photography.  Check it out for yourself:

Here goes the Schedule, people. Keep up.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 20.

7pm Go Bee Soiree Party with Sara France and sponsored by Pictage

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 21

12pm Pictage User Group Think Tank meeting… Check out their new blog The Photo Life and see what’s happening at a PUG near you!

For much of the day, we’ll be on the tradeshow floor, gathering prizes for our Tuesday platform talk (see below!). If you find us and ask about Olive, you might just win a prize. Try it. Mention Olive AND Jules Cafe and you will get one for sure!

Speaking of Jules Cafe, check out our new SHOP and enter CAFE2011 for cool discounts on everything from Jules NEW Presets & Textures to our very popular Essential Starter Consult Kit!

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 22

3:30pm – 5:30pm Platform Presentation Studio B Preboard by February 18 at the following link: www.preboard.net
The talk is gonna rock, and you don’t want to miss it. If ONLY for the amazing prizes we will be handing out.
Here’s a list of some of the prizes you may find yourself the recipient of, some of our favorite peeps:

Oh, and we’ll be speaking too, in the midst of handing out a plethora of prizes. Found out more:

How to be a Rockstar in your own backyard
We will talk about developing win-win Creative Marketing Events with local businesses to raise the level of awareness in your own community about who you are and what you have to offer. We will cover marketing, sales, pre-visualization, and the important stuff in-between. Learn how to effectively understand your clients’ needs and deliver products and services that your clients’ can’t live without. Come and join us as we talk about some fun and innovative ways to market to clients that will translate into the bottom line for your business — new clients.

7pm – 9pm: Then we go straight from our Platform to a really fun Panel Discussion at the Grand Garden Arena:
Women in Contemporary Photography. We will be joined by some other AMAZING women photographers including Sarah Petty, Catherine Hall, Kay Eskridge, Lindsay Adler, Dawn Shields, Jessica Claire, and Jasmine Star. We’ll be discussing ideas and philosophies of how we’ve made things work in this competitive field.

And Tuesday doesn’t end there!

9pm Nikon party with Junebug weddings! We’ll stop by before heading out to the final resting place…

9pm. to whenever! After all that, you can find us rocking out at Pictage’s Signature Event, Studio 54 It’s Big, It’s Bold, and It’s BACK. Get More at Studio 54.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 23

11a.m. You can find us at the KODAK booth along with Kenny Kim

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24

9am. We are thrilled to do a another performance for the fabulous Photo Ignite with Kevin Kubota. We’ll be joined by some pretty groovy people, including Scott Bourne, Becker, Jasmine Star, Jed & Vicki Taufer, and some new names that you will not want to miss!

We’ll add more as more comes in, but for now, we hope to see you there, and can’t wait for next week!

Joy & Jules

Hi Everyone and Happy Holidays!

Hope you are winding down your Holiday crunch and can take some time for yourself this season. One of the ways you can do that is by taking time to look to the future and think about how you want to structure your photography business to fit your life, and not the other way around.

Jules’ wedding photography business hits its TEN year anniversary this January, 2011, so we are thrilled to be part of this JoySTART your year event with Sarah Petty and her fabulous team. Take the opportunity to learn from so many great photographers about a number of topics… Pick and choose what works for you!

JoySTART Your Year is tailored to whatever education level you are at, starting on December 29, 2010 for FOUR Wednesdays in a row. You don’t have to listen for hours, you can digest small chunks of info, or just tune into the info that you want.

**The best part is that it is all FREE.**

Check it out below:

Learn how to market your business or become more efficient using:
Search Engine Optimization
Social Media
Branding
Workflow
Charitable Marketing

And if you’re looking at expanding into a new niche or need more marketing ideas for your photography business, there are also programs on:
Weddings
Pets
Families
Boudoir
Babies / Kids
High School Seniors

Happiest of Holidays to you and yours this season,

Much love,

Jules & Joy

I only brought my iphone — hey, Chase says the best Camera is the one you have with you — and still got some really fun stuff.  It was so neat to see everything behind the scenes and then watch it again on the Instant Replay.  The whole experience left me with some great new friends and a new respect for all that goes into a live production.  At one point, Tamara was utilizing now famous white board to take notes and called me in to help.  Phew its a lot of work to be on camera!  And Tamara did it for five straight days.   That girl amazes me.

Alison Henrie shot the last picture of me and Tamara, just wanted to give her a little blog love.  Thanks, Alison!  It was so fantastic to meet you!

thanks again for including me, Tamara!  Fabulous job to the entire team at CreativeLive.

A fun shot photographer Jeff Rodgers sent to me during taping. Look ma, I'm on the internet!

Tamara up front and center, while the "famous white board" is still white!

Me, T, and Jerry G! Jerry had a cameo critiquing photos. I was the one who chose from the Flickr stream, so it was fun to see what he said about them!

i love this shot of Chase and his gorgeous wife, Kate. You gotta love a man who can rock a scarf like that.

Chase Jarvis and Tamara Lackey chattin it up on CreativeLive

Behind the scenes!

I stole this from the blog of the talented Alison Henrie! Thank you!

Featuring Jessica Claire, Kevin Kubota, Joy Bianchi Brown & Jules Bianchi, Julia Woods, Kia Bondurant, Sandy Puc, Bev & Tim Walden, Scott & Adina Hayne, Ron Nichols and Sarah Petty, you’ll learn soup to nuts what it takes to sell your art.

These top-earning photographers will teach you what they do to:

P.S. If you can’t tune in on 10.10.10 or just want to learn how to sell better immediately, you can pre-purchase the event and start listening NOW for $59. The regular price for this event is $99 starting 10.10.10 so you can save $40 by buying today and get priority access to $10 selling tools from our speakers.

Check it out:

CLICK HERE to RSVP for tomorrow’s party or do a search for Jules Bianchi Photography while signed into your Facebook page! There will be delicious food courtesy of Three Generation Catering, drinks courtesy of ShootQ and wine courtesy of Ehrenberg Cellars!

Among the list of prizes are:
Camera bags from Tamrac
Spa Certificate from the Claremont
Viva Voce gift certificates
MG Pizza gift certificates
and more!

We want to congratulate all our winners on such great prizes and thank our sponsors too! 

In the meantime, visit the site and have  a great day!