Mini Books are Hot this Summer!

Whether you are a bride, senior, family, or just had a new baby, you will flip for these little accordion books!

Why?

• They're pocket sized!
• They unfold to display two full panels of images
• They're magnetized and look great on the fridge
• They come in sets of 3 so you can keep one and give 2 as gifts

You'll want Mini Books

Your friends and family love you. You'll want to show your images to everyone you know! Mini books are the perfect mini gift for you to give your friends and family and you can keep one for yourself too. The size and value of this mini product makes it irresistible!

Wedding

For the Wedding Party

As a couple you choose your favorite people to spend your wedding day. When the day comes, you are the center of attention. The wedding party is your entourage!

We, as your photographers, can design mini books with images of the wedding party and a few images of the you two. You newlyweds can give each member a mini book as a thank you gift!

For the Family

Weddings bring a family together, looking their best! During the event, we will photograph different combinations of family members. We can then create a few designs for mini books that you, the newlyweds, can give to family members as special gifts.

High School Seniors

For BFFs

As a high school senior you can get more of your favorite images in one little product. In addition to handing out traditional wallet prints, you can give mini books to your closest friends. 

Family

For the kids (and the whole family!)

Parents, you can gift each child a mini book of fun family memories. Include an individual image of each child and add their names and ages. Have a family session every year so the kids can collect more mini books! Mom and Dad you can take your to work with you.  Grandparents love to display theirs on the fridge!

Baby

For baby announcements

As new parents you will love sharing your good news with everyone. In addition to birth announcement cards, you can gift mini books for the extra special people in your baby's life: new grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts and uncles. A mini book shows more newborn images than a card and it's a special gift that people will keep. We can add baby's name and birth stats to personalize mini books even more.

Showered with Love

Boutique cards add an element of whimsy to any announcement. Did you know that you can purchase beautiful, personalized cards from Jenny Lee's Photography? We can create a custom card just for you for any occasion; whether it be baby shower invitations, birth announcements, family holiday cards, birthday party invitations, or thank you cards for all the baby gifts you will be showered with throughout the year!

We also offer save-the-dates and custom wedding invitations.

Give A Gift That Makes Everyone Smile

How to Keep Baby Awake During a Feeding

Before coming to your newborn session you are asked to give baby a good, full feeding, but sometimes baby wants to sleep. This is the one time we want baby to stay awake and get that good full belly, so I've gathered a few tips on how to keep baby awake while breastfeeding or bottle feeding.

• Stop in the middle of the feeding and Burp Baby
• Try keeping baby in a more upright position
• Gently touching baby
• Dance your fingers on the crown of baby's head
• Undress baby
• Massage baby's palms in a circle with your thumbs
• Stop and and change baby's diaper during the feeding
• Feed baby in a bright environment
• Stroke baby's cheeks and lips
• Bicycle baby's arms and legs
• Blow gently into baby's face
• Listen to quick tempo music
• Talk to baby
• Walk fingers up and down baby's spine
• Rub ear or jawline
• Place a fan on mama and baby

These are just a few tips to help you keep baby awake whilst feeding. We want to work together to have the best newborn creative session possible. So you can go home after your session with images like these:

Newborn Photography: Safety First!

Newborns! They are little miracles, bundles of joy, delicate, and precious little beings. I feel so honored to be someone's newborn photographer, but along with that honor I realize the great responsibility that comes along with it. I am not only a newborn photographer, but I am a trained and educated newborn photographer with the knowledge and skills to properly and safely pose babies in the cutest poses imaginable.

So as mom and dad hand over their fresh, new baby to me I'm confident that I can and will treat their baby just as if that baby was my own. I will use my training, knowledge, and skills to keep baby soothed, comforted, and most importantly SAFE! This proper training is EXTREMELY important and I just want to create some awareness that NOT all photographers that are calling themselves "newborn photographers" have had this proper training. It scares me to think that they are trying poses that are not safe without the understanding and education of how those poses are done properly and safely.

I constantly get asked, "How did you get baby to do that?" Well, many of the poses that my assistant and I do together are what you call composite images. Composite images are where two images are taken and combined in photoshop to make one image. These images take extra editing work and it is important for one to know that baby is not doing these poses without assistance.

It's also important to understand that all babies are different, just as each adult or child is different and each deserves respect. Some like to be cuddled up and some like to be sprawled out. Some like their hands by their face, while others don't. As my assistant and I work together to pose baby we go with what may seem more natural to baby. We want to respect baby and how they are feeling. You may find us talking to baby and trying to get to know your little ones cues so that we can read the cries and little noises your little one makes. So if a particular pose we are going for doesn't work for baby, we change it to make it right for that baby.

In my studio safety is first!

Why Swaddle Baby

The question is why swaddle your baby? Swaddling is done in the studio in between sets or even for a particular set up, but whether you are in the studio for your newborn's creative portrait session or at home trying to get baby to sleep, swaddling can be a great tool and technique to learn to soothe your newborn.  Here are just a few reasons to swaddle your newborn:

1) Swaddling reminds baby of being in the womb. Therefore making baby feel soothed, calm, safe, and warm.

2) Babies sleep better and longer

3) There will be less crying

4) Prevents baby from being startled and disturbed by it's own reflexes.

5) Some studies show it reduces SIDS and improves neuromuscular development and can be especially important for premature babies.

Don't know how to swaddle your baby? Take a look at this video: http://www.babycenter.com/2_how-to-swaddle-a-baby_10347122.bc

The relationship between you and a photographer

As you go through the process of custom photography, you spend a great deal of time with your photographer and their staff. As you come back for additional sessions, it is wonderful for the photographer to see how the children are growing and everyone is changing! You might even look back at their sample in the studio and see your portrait from a few years ago. You are sharing a part of your life with your photographer, building a relationship. The result of that relationship is personalized, thoughtful portraits of your family, produced by a trusted family friend.

Custom Photography Advantages

One of the biggest advantages of going with a custom photographer is time. You are not rushed to make a decision to purchase. You are well educated through the process to learn about what the photographer offers and what you might need. Photographers often keep your portraits for a longer time than the chain stores, so you can reorder if you would need to. This does not guarantee that all photographers do this and that your photos will be available forever. With technology changing so rapidly, photographers really don't know how long they can keep your portraits. They have to invest in the software and storage space to keep your portraits so there may be a fee to reorder at a later date or they may require a minimum re-order amount.

What about all the time and investment that your photographer has placed on providing props, clothing, hats, materials, etc. for your portrait session. We spend thousands of dollars per year to keep our studio fully stocked and updated so that you don't have to worry about bringing anything for a newborn or baby plan session. This is HUGE for you as you can come and not need to worry about what your little one will wear or what props to include. 

Another great perk is seeing your family portrait around town or receiving it in the mail. Most custom photographers will ask you to sign a model release. This is to let them use your images as marketing for their studio. You might see your portrait on a billboard, emails, postcards, in business displays or at local events! Imagine your children's faces when they see their photo on a billboard or display! A lot of times, the photographer may gift you the studio sample once the photographer is finished with it!

Next week: The relationship between you and a photographer

Pregnancy Documentation

Are you expecting? Have you thought about ways to document your pregnancy? This is such a great time of expectation, joy, overwhelming feelings, and it is absolutely a time to remember. Here are just a few ideas to get you started on documenting your pregnancy.

1) Ultrasound Pics
Of course, this is a pretty typical keepsake, but it is so amazing to see baby for the first time up on that black and white screen and really baby's first picture! It's definitely something to treasure. It can also be hung up for you to look at on a daily basis and think of the little babe growing inside you.

2) Keep a Diary
Start putting it all into writing! Find yourself a special diary or notebook and pour out your feelings and your thoughts. Also, think about writing to your little one. Let them know how excited you are for their arrival. Want to make it public? Create a blog to share with family and friends.

3) Bump Photos
These can be done by taking selfies each week in the same place to show the growth of your bump!

4) Professional Maternity Images
We recommend booking early in your second trimester to ensure availability for you and your baby! Maternity sessions are creative and fun. You can decide to include your hubby, your kids, or just make it a special session for you to remember.

5) Belly Casting
Belly casting has became quite popular and is a way to create a replica of your pregnant belly.

6) Make a Video
It doesn't have to be fancy, you could even use your phone. It's a nice way to record your voice and daddy's voice and will be a memorable keepsake for baby as they get older.

What can I do with my portrait?

Photographs are an art form, the creation of which involves vision, skill, artistry, and effort. As such, photographs (both digital and printed) are protected by United States Copyright law. Unauthorized copying, printing, or duplication of photographs is in violation of the law and affects a photographers livelihood, reputation and ability to continue to produce high quality artwork.

Copyright of all images by your photographer remains with your photographer and they may not be reproduced in any form without their express written permission. This includes printing them from home printers or from photo labs, photocopying, scanning, or otherwise copying digital or printed photographs, emailing or including digital photographs within other digital files and otherwise sharing and distributing digital or printed images in any unauthorized manner.

Yep. That is the legal mumbo jumbo! This is your photographer's artwork and every reproduction of it affects the photographer. How, you ask? When you scan or take a photo of the artwork, the quality degrades. Then when you print it from the scan, it degrades again. So we know you want to show if off and share your portraits, but we can't have you sharing the degraded copies of our work. If you choose to purchase digital files, you will receive a limited release with reproduction rights. This means that you can print the file as many times as you want up to whatever size is stated on the release. You can not sell or profit from the files. The photographer still owns the copyright to the image, they are just granting you the right to print it.

Next week: Custom Photography Advantages

How do you back up and preserve your digital files?

Once your photographer hands you a disc or emails a copy of your portrait to you, you have the responsibility to back it up and preserve it. We suggest to immediately make a copy of it to another external drive as well as storing it online. We do not know how long CD's and DVD's will be available and they can scratch easily. Technology changes so rapidly, that we can't honestly predict a grand place to store your portraits. When looking for a place to store it online, look for something easy that has a name that has been around for a long time.

The next step is to print a physical copy of the portrait and store it in an archival place. It's important to know that prints are archival, digital files are not. They sell many different boxes that will keep your portrait for a very long time. Make sure you have it dated and easily organized. You might also make another copy to store off site.

When you decide to invest in digital files with us, we provide you with an online pro-level lab for printing. We do NOT suggest any local chain stores to print your portraits. You can print the same portrait with chain stores 20 times and get 20 different color outputs even within the same run.

Next week: What can I do with my portrait?

How do you take care of your portraits?

So now that you have these wonderful keepsake portraits, you must take care of them. This doesn't entail a lot and will ensure the prints last a lifetime. You should handle your prints with care to avoid bending, denting and scratching. When possible avoid exposing your portraits to uv light, direct sunlight, high temperatures and high humidity. You can protect your prints by putting them behind glass with spacers. Do not stick the prints directly behind glass because they will eventually stick to the glass. Avoid contact with liquids and cleaners even if your print is sprayed or protected. Avoid touching prints with your fingers.

We do display many prints in our studio and on location displays with out glass. The prints we sell are mounted and sprayed for protection. This means it shouldn't bubble over time and is protected just like glass, but you still can't get it wet and it will scratch. We suggest you frame your portraits behind a non-glare glass for longevity. We also sell many gallery wrap canvases which are also protected and not suitable for protecting behind glass. These will also need to stay dry and can scratch.

Next week: How do you back up and preserve your digital files?

How often do you need custom photography?

Ultimately, that is your choice. For more clients, they will choose to document more of their children as they are smaller and then milestones as they get older. Babies and toddlers change so rapidly that they need to be photographed more than the tween and teens. We suggest a newborn, 7 month (or when they are sitting), and one year session for their first year. Then we move on to yearly portrait sessions. Once they are seniors in high school, this is typically the last time you really get to have them photographed until their wedding.

You may decide on more per year to update the family portrait. Keep in mind that these are the special portraits that will document their life and they will have as keepsakes forever.

Next week: How do you take care of your portraits?

What should you wear?

The answer would depend on many factors such as weather, location, emotion, message and purpose of the portrait. We suggest to our clients that we want to focus on the face and emotion of the portrait for years to come. We don't want our clients to dress in a manner that distracts from that as a general rule. We tell our clients that long sleeves, darker jewel tones (navy, hunter green, charcoal) and similar colors work the best as a general rule. We try to stay away from black and white as well as distracting patterns or mismatched groupings if at all possible. Try to make the family look great together, but not uniforms. However, you know that any rule can always be broken! Make sure it is something somewhat comfortable. We don't want to be constantly adjusting your outfit. Check your accessories - look polished, but not overdone! Makeup should be daily wear to slightly heavier. Definitely check your nails and toes if they will be showing or your shoes and socks. Don't get your haircut or colored the week of your portrait.

Of course, most clients want to know what is slimming and it is exactly what we suggest as our general rule. Darker colors recede and make thing appear smaller. Clothing is only one of the elements that makes the final image. Custom photographers have studied a great deal on posing and that can really make or break your perception of the final image.

Next week: How often do you need custom photography?

Why are you scheduling and what do you want to do with your portraits?

Building on what questions you have answered two weeks ago,  if you've missed these you may want to go back and read:
Why does custom photography cost so much?
How do you choose your custom photographer?
Why choose custom photography?

There must be a purpose for you to schedule a session. A new baby has arrived! You might be redecorating your home and in need of a new portrait. Maybe it has been a few years since your last family portrait. Your family may have grown in numbers and size. The holidays may be around the corner.

Whatever the reason, please convey this to your photographer before your session, so they have an idea of a certain portrait they will need to take. You may think you want a certain product, but in working with your custom photographer, they will look at your needs and suggest ideas or other products that are available.

Ask yourself, "how do you want to record your family legacy?" Do you want a canvas on the wall or a storybook album to tell the story of your family's interactions?

Next week: What should you wear?

Why does custom photography cost so much?

Custom photography provides a highly personalized experience in which the client gets to pick many pieces of the puzzle that creates a wonderful piece of artwork they can cherish for years to come. That being said, the amount of time and cost to put this together drives the price of this experience.

Chain stores bring in a lot of people for a short cookie cutter experience which creates a product with their artistic stamp. You, as the client, have very little say in what they can actually do with your short period of time and then they go on to the next client.

When you decide on a custom photography experience, the photographer goes through the entire experience with you to bring your vision to life. To do this requires a lot more time and effort from the photographer. Your actual photo session may only take an hour, but your photographer has probably invested around 12-18 hours for a session per client. They do this to create the stellar customer service you may have come to know. They really want to focus on quality and not quantity. They also have the ability to offer different high-quality products.

You have also selected your photographer based on their artistic abilities. Like many other professions, there is a great deal of education and artistic exploration to create their vision. Unfortunately, the professional equipment is not cheap either. Have you wondered how much time or expense your photographer has invested to accumulate their props?

Next week: Why are you scheduling and what do you want to do with your portraits?

The Power of Print

I was recently reminded of the power a photographer has to affect people's legacies and it has reinforced the meaning of what I do as a photographer, and what we do here at Jenny Lee's Photography as we strive to create the best creative photography experience possible. Prints last hundreds of years and get re-discovered generations later.

Your Family's Legacy
Whenever I'm photographing for clients I try to remind myself that the photos are not only for the clients. Often times the portraits will have more meaning for the parents, the grandparents, the children, or the grandchildren that aren't even born yet. One of my favorite photographs is of my grandparents' wedding. There is just one black and white portrait, and it's them, frozen in a moment in time. It's a version of them, that I will never get to meet. It was before I was born. Photography gives us those slices of time, that allows our imagination to fill in the story. For me, it's even more powerful than video.

The portrait below is of my grandfather and grandmother on their wedding day.

As we watch our loved ones pull out albums and look through them, pointing out photographs that made history - their family history - we begin to understand in a much deeper way, the power of photography. And the power of a printed photo. The fact that we can reach out and physically touch something that represents people we love, frozen in time, makes all the difference.

My Family Memories

Every year, I print two family albums. One is just for our professional family portraits and the other one is filled with the normal, everyday events. I also print albums for each of my children on their birthdays. I absolutely love albums and so do my children. 

Create Albums, Create Fine Art Prints

Part of my duty as a photographer is to relay the importance of print. Our phones will die. Hard drives will die. The cloud will never be looked at. Books and prints will be picked up and looked at by generations to come. When I'm gone, our family albums and even this print of my grandparents will be looked at. 

Allow me to design an album and create fine art prints for you and your family. It may take some time and investment, but your family will cherish it forever. 

Jenny Lee's New Photography Studio: Come take the Tour

It has been a long time waiting, but it was well worth the wait to introduce to you my NEW photography studio! The studio is fully stocked and ready for you and your family! The studio is stocked with everything that you will desire for a creative session for your babies from backdrops, floors, fabrics, wraps, baskets, buckets, boxes, hats, hair pretties, and outfits! You get to come and relax and let me and my assistant take care of the rest!

This is the resting area for parents! Get a drink from our mini fridge, read a book, take a nap - simply relax while we work with your little one! 

 This is also the area to browse the fine art products: albums, cards, image boxes, canvases, standouts, frames of all colors and styles. So much fun to feel and touch and see! 

 The studio area! So many backdrops and flooring options that simply roll out and can be easily changed, which makes for more options for you - the client!

 Changing area with wipes and of course hand sanitizer! Keeping germs away is always important while working with babies. Oh, and the mini fridge. Thirsty? Grab a flavored sparkling or still water.

Have you ever wondered how much I invest for photography sessions? Not only do I invest tons of time for your session, but I invest money for props, backdrops, hats, and many other items so that you don't have to.  This is a sneak peek into my storage prop closet which also gives you a sneak peek into how much investment has been made for you, my dear loyal clients!  

 I am in love with this closet that my dear husband put together for me! I must say it is incredible to be able to finally see all the photography props that I have and be able to easily and quickly access them for a portrait session.

Are you ready to come and experience a creative portrait session by Jenny Lee's Photography? Contact Jenny Lee three07-six70-zero747

How do you choose your custom photographer?

Here are a few questions you might want to answer first to make the process easier.

• Who is going to be in the portrait? your immediate family, extended family, just the children? Are there groupings you want taken such as mother and son, just the kids, as well as the entire family?
• Where do you want it taken? Inside the studio, at your home, an outdoor location of your choice?
• Do you want it more posed and formal or journalistic showing how you interact with your family?
• What final products do you want? A large wall portrait, a few gift prints to give, a storyboard depicting a few moments, or a custom album telling about the family and interactions?

Start you search on the internet. First, you need to see who is available to you in your area or as far as you are willing to travel. Then take a look at their web site and see what style they photograph. If you don't know what style you are looking for then look at everyone's portfolio and see what you like. If you are looking for newborn portraits in the studio, do not choose a photographer that only displays senior photography on their web site. 

We suggest that you talk to a few photographers and see if you like the way they interact with you and your family. Ideally, we would love to meet all of our clients in person before the session to build a rapport and get comfortable. This also allows for us to show off some of the products we offer that you may not even know are available.

Ultimately, you will pick your photographer based on their style, relationship, price, and product offering. The hard part if finding someone who meets all of these criteria. So, you will have to prioritize what you want.

Next week: Why does custom photography cost so much?

Why choose custom photography?

Custom photography is a product and experience in which you get to choose the style and final look of your portraits. There are many factors that ultimately make up your final portraits. These may include the photographer's style, location of your portrait session, clothing, props, lighting, mood, your vision meshed with the photographer's vision and the final products you desire.

Photographers that offer custom photography may have many different options available to you that fit their style or may have a very distinct style that you may like and choose. They have the ability to make your experience tailored just for you as opposed to the chain store limits and crowds.

Jenny Lee's photography's studio is stocked full of props, backdrops, wraps, outfits, hats, furs, vintage toys, baskets, etc. We want to work with you to mesh your style with our style to create the best session for you and your family.

Imagine getting your family dressed and ready for your portrait session. Usually that is the most stressful part of any of my sessions. Then you walk into my studio which is ready to go and we start photographing. Family sessions typically take 30-60 minutes. I have had many dads tell me that was pretty painless and thank me for making it so easy and not stressful. Mainly, this is because we have talked before the session and I know what direction we want to go and have it mentally planned out.

Custom photography requires a level of commitment, investment in time, money, and planning on the part of the client and requires a larger time commitment for the photographer as well. When you make an investment in photography, you want it to last a lifetime.

Next week: How to choose your custom photographer.