Do you know someone who’s getting a brand new camera for Christmas? Whether it be a point and shoot or SLR the perfect add on to their camera would be a class so they understand how to use their new toy.

I’m offering both a point and shoot class and a class for those with SLR cameras (digital or film) coming up in January! You can read all the details about the classes and even register here: http://www.photographybycapturelife.com/classes/

If you’d like to have a nice little certificate created and wrapped to give as a gift just let me know and I’ll whip up something beautiful for you.

As a special Merry Christmas treat you can also enter to win a free spot in either class on the classes page or if you are chomping at the bit to get into this class (there’s only 5 spots available) you can use the code CHRISTMAS when you check out for a little discount.

Happy Holidays!

In an effort to reduce my workload while I’m pregnant and on maternity leave I’ve restructured my pricing. This is only temporary to make things easier on me while I transition into being a mommy and ensure my clients don’t have to wait forever to see their photos.

The new pricing will be one all inclusive fee that covers the session and a disk of edited images from the session for $500.

That’s right, one price and you’ll have the digital files and rights to print all the photos from your session. You can also request an online gallery to show off your photos to friends and family for no additional fee and if there’s a product that you’re dying to have I’m more than happy to order it for you.

My goal is to transition back to in person ordering sessions and offering my favorite products and amazing print items in the fall of 2012.

I’ll also be limiting the amount of sessions I take on so if you know you’ll be wanting photos done I encourage you to secure your date ASAP.

It’s that time of year again when Volume One put’s on it’s Best of the Chippewa Valley contest and guess whos name is on the list!?!

If you go check out the Favorite Local Visual Artist category you’ll find Jessica Harrison – Capture Life on there and of course I’d love your vote.

You do have to register to vote which you can do from the contest page or by clicking on the logo on the left, then once you’re logged in then head to the Visual Artist category and pick your favorite, which is hopefully me

Happy voting! You have until August 24th.

Sue and Jeremy were married here in Eau Claire on July 9 It was a crazy hot day but we managed to avoid getting rained on and melting. Sue, Jeremy and the whole wedding party were great fun and they all enjoyed a ride on the go karts at Action City and dancing to pretty much EVERY song the DJ played.

It was a shame to leave at 10pm, the dance floor was still packed!

and thanks to my awesome second shooter  Tabitha Olson

As usual, if they get 10 comments on this post they’ll get a free 11×14 print so leave some love and help them out!

Ceremony | Lutheran Church of St. Matthew

Reception | Metropolis Resort

Flowers | Chippewa Valley Floral

Salon | The Ultimate

So how did your fireworks photos turn out?

Here are some of mine….

You can click on the photos to make them larger Hope you had a wonderful 4th of July!

It’s the 4th of July and lots of you will be attempting some firework photography… make sure you get some great photos by following these tips.

• Use a tripod. You’ll be using a super slow shutter speed and if you’re trying to hand hold your camera your firework trails will come out nice and shaky.
• Turn the flash on your camera off. You won’t be able to use your automatic settings because your camera will have no idea what is going on.
• If you can, use a remote or shutter release cable so that you don’t shake the camera.

If you have a camera that you can manually adjust the settings on try starting with a shutter speed of at least 10 seconds. If you miss the bursts then lengthen your shutter speed, if there’s too much light being let in try closing down your F stop (larger numbers).

Another option, if your camera has it, is to use the bulb settings which allows you to control the amount of time the shutter is open. You can cover your lens with a piece of black cardboard/construction paper and then press the shutter button. Uncover your lens when you hear the fireworks launch and cover it back up once they are done. You can then push your shutter button again without working about camera shake.

Ideally I would close this post with a firework photo I’ve taken but I don’t have the hard drive with me that has those photos so instead here’s the flag flapping in the breeze Happy 4th of July enjoy the fireworks!

Logan is a 2012 Senior Rep! For his session I decided to take him down to the damn that creates Lake Altoona. I managed to make it all the way down to the water without landing myself or my gear in the water and we got some great shots so I’d say the day was a success. We also grabbed a few shots in some of the fun alleys around the studio and of course a couple shots in the studio. You can check out Logan’s slideshow video below and of course don’t forget to leave a comment. If this post gets 10 comments he’ll get a free 11×14 print (in addition to all the great stuff he gets for being a senior rep).

And here’s a fun little video slideshow

This won’t be a normal wedding post as this time I wasn’t the photographer for the wedding but instead in it! I was able to get a few shots with my camera when I wasn’t doing my bridal party duties

Oh, and there's me!

We made an attempt to do some engagement photos for Sue and Jeremy a couple weeks ago and it was windy and cold and miserable. I was able to dress warm, busting out my winter coat, mittens and hat, but unfortunately they had to opt for style over warmth. Luckily we were able to reschedule the second half of the shoot for a day with much warmer weather (about 40 degrees warmer) and I am SO glad that we did! Can you tell which photos were taken on which day?

Also, check out their slideshow video! I’m so excited to start creating these for clients to share with friends and family.

And of course, as always, if Sue and Jeremy get 10 comments on their post they will get a free 11×14 print so don’t be shy, help them out and leave a comment