Lessons

Lesson Info

Your First Styled Shoot

What we're going to move in now is to actually get into a real life example of what it would take to do a first styled shoot so what we're going to be talking about today is taking his student from our own creative life primes and we're going to ask john kane sergeant what his ideas are and then we're going toe massage them to maximize what he could possibly do before he approaches the shoot we will leave out any proposed creative team member names because he hasn't asked anybody yet so we're gonna leave all of those people out of the equation and we're just going to refer to the forces of forest in the designers the designer and his ideas behind it and then we'll see if we can make it better collectively are you ready? John o born ready okay getting the pitch so maybe endless ocean the the decision okay, so yesterday when you went over the goal theme in story actually asked to get the down really quick yesterday so I could go back and massage myself the idea that was coming in my head...

as you're teaching is yesterday and the coolest thing is that my goal in coming here to begin with was in my even submission video hokey cheesy line but something I'm really excited about was um our boots air tight in texas and I want to go back to help others loosen their traditional reigns basically so getting with that I'm saying traditional myself but I have an eye for an eye I love detail so I love shooting editorially or want to learn how to do that better and this should I start with gold femur story? The goal was shot what started their cool goals? There are three main goals and one tree tertiary is means it's the third so forth I don't know if you want to wash your area you're right, okay? So knowing the environment I'm coming back too I said the first goal is to educate traditional brides by demonstrating how an editorial photographic style can enhance the significance of each element without compromising the integrity of a traditional setting and ceremony go on second goal um and this is for me specifically because it's for the community that I'm coming from, I just moved back to dallas and I'm really excited to work with friends that are also in the industry. Andi it's the second goals to collaborate with highland park graduates high school I went to currently propelling the wedding industry market in the greater dallas area so that's the collaborating ok every single person and what's fun is this is I just guess I count this is a blessing because a florist a event designer letting planers all graduates of highland park high school that I know it's going to come back to third, to gain the attention of the community by perpetuating it's perceived values in detail, the third goal, and then this is the quarter or me, amy the quadratic me, I just getting a selling a for you and lastly, and hopefully to attract our ideal brides who share similar values and report and professionalism, as well as a desire for creative and unique touches, toe ad sentiment and meaningful memories to their wedding day and planning so he sound like a graduate student? Yes, I like those were great goals, those were the goals. The same, then is in love with tradition and that's kind of plays off the first goal of I feel like a lot of people have these great traditional weddings and they're missing and they love the details behind them, but they don't capture the details because they're like afraid that an editorial photographer is the person's like up three feet away from them, is there about to kiss and like intruding on the ceremony and to capture like their lips touching? Okay, let's, go with the same, so I want to hear that I won't even see the big picture you go here's story the bride and groom are high school sweethearts he played under the friday night lights of texas football, and she performed at halftime dancing is a drill team, lieutenant reminiscing there boy likes girl youthful season of courtship we want to pull out the colors, textures and sentiments of the identities displayed to impress each other in the eleventh grade uh the images listen the environment and table escape will echo the tradition of the highland park community in texas fashion revolving around friday night specifically the mascot pulling from nostalgic hills of scotland is a fighting scotsman tartan plaid blue gold and white will tie around the design like yellow ribbons or around oak trees during playoffs they want to incorporate modern flair elements like the sheen of gold ribbon and the flow of the drill teams fringe and military routine in a traditional classic setting that protects the integrity of their texas style I would be very I would you know that's so these ill that that's really good I think that it's that if you sent that to a florist perhaps that floors could take those ideas and reinterpret so in the fighting scott fighting scotsman yeah you guys fighting scotsman it might be a little much to maybe have pled tablecloth or something but it could be really cool to maybe have like plaid ribbons around like congratulate congratulatory flags as they walk down the aisle or something so hits do what is representative of them not blatant like cliche out in your face this is what we are but that is not your job to think of it your job as the pitch person is to merely sell an idea and then give it to the creators to make it come to life in a very classy way but I think it was it was really good it was very, very, very good I can't wait to see when you do it now you got to give yourself a deadline to make it happen. One thing that I think of when you mentioned the whole football thing because I know it's a drills squad artistic attributing spot for I immediately think of the pom poms e incorporate something like that in there and the cool thing yesterday it could have been so cheesy it really could like starfish and I was thinking when you were giving the story I thought like the under the sea problem of back to the future oh right and just like right comparing like that kind of like underwater theme versus what was done so elegantly yesterday any style I shoot so it's like I can envision what all of the like blatant cheesy hokey details are right, helpless and not necessarily and not and that's what we bring that's what we bring on a team of collaborators and I would take michelle's idea as with azan interpreter of taste is I might as a girl getting married I might want to stay away from pom poms bites I could incorporate perhaps moms to reflect the idea of pom poms or those like really wide flowers a bunch of them like for billy balls volleyballs would be so cute like a little talking bouquet of like belly balls so cute to get billy belly whatever has been trying to get my own work with people's s o q and then maybe they could be tied with a really thin piece of plaid driven all the way or down the face of it. So it's not our job to interpret it it's going to be the creative team that already we already thinking of all these ideas and then flores is by watching online being like that's the worst either way, there is so many different ways to interpret it, but I think that the idea is solid enough to have some of the look and and feel what you're trying to go for. So I think that's very cool and I know I haven't seen something that's been based either on ice school mascot or this idea of you know, your friday night lights in texas and you being abortion in texas photographer but what does that look like? I think that's very, very, very cool congratulations. So question when he goes to propose this to the other collaborators, does he come up with just like the goal theme story or does he also put together an inspiration board um, it's entirely it's entirely up to you guys. I mean, however much work you want to put into it, but you also have to know that you don't want your inspiration board to intimidate or dissuade what a designer would do, because if if you put too much of your direction and just like that's, not how I saw it, I don't know, I don't wanna hear up with somebody whose taste is like this we'll uh um best nigel, look, if you're really good at it or you feel like you're better like you're not so good with words that you're better with images kind of like this is kind what I was thinking and these are some of the images that I know that you will do your own thing, but this is the idea that's totally find you there isn't a right or wrong, you have to find what plays to your strengths. So you say pitch to designer first I would probably the designer or the florist ok, I think is the cool thing is designers was on mistral team, she probably not watching, but and I think that I'm most proud of in this is that goal of collaborating with other graduates from my high school in this area because there are people that are either in a similar life stager position starting out first three years or even those that are seasoned and doing what they're doing who have a similar sentiment for the community that we've come that's good and it's gonna make her more invested if she's kind of like the girl you're modeling the bride after it might be more appealing to her because she'll like think finally back to her days at highland park in her fringe on her skirt in the cabin control booth what do you want to get to an address as well is maryland will be coming on and about I'm guessing fifteen minutes she's actually maryland is the senior editor of inside weddings and they're actually closing their issue today so I was so surprised that she's actually taking time out of her schedule causes a full day for her she'll probably be in the office for fourteen or fifteen hours so her taking time away until is like we'll never he would squeeze this in so we're just gonna be taking questions at this particular time. But one thing I want to make sure that we all accomplished is that you guys get the questions you wanted answered as he came into this class during the lunch break. Ashleigh and I had an opportunity to briefly chat about one of the things she spoke about her simitian video so actually can I have you repeated and just kind of work like we'll just kind of work that we'll get through that cool so what? I'm asking permission video wass area that and then the weddings and I'm currently photographing are gorgeous they're beautiful mean, they have missed a lot time money into their weddings, but they're not necessarily a new or fresh idea. I'm not walking into a wedding and seeing something like what we saw yesterday I'm seeing a lot of nautical themes, we live near the beach and I understand that, but it's kind of overplayed and as we see the same things over and over, even though they are pretty things and I'm still thinking of looking for the right fit for a feature a lot of times like, well, we're not featuring that cause you've seen a million times, so how is what is the way that you can set yourself apart and photograph and make those weddings? Look, even if it's something overplayed something that would still be futural um I think there's two points of clarification what we photographed yesterday is something I'm not even photographing on at a wedding I'm photographing those were still jews because we use stones shoots tio, push the envelope a bit do I think that it's feasible for the average bride to have a table scape that wraps not just on the top but along the sides for very few brides? That is feasible, but we're having them think differently um so in regards to you, the first thing I would suggest is, after you went after some are critiqued your work, I feel like you're going to go back home and approach how you shoot your details entirely differently, so that will be in and of itself a huge steppingstone, because even if it has been photographed and done before, it's going to make it harder for an editor to turn away simply pretty photographs, because that pushes, and that connects ideas. Also, you are a purveyor of style and taste, and I do think that jar net for post johnette photography, and now jen and ashley can be rebranded to start attracting to start attracting. So the and I know that as clients are choosing photographers, they're not necessarily well versed in what makes a professional photographer, but they know stylistically what appeals to them as you change your vantage point, making sure to highlight those new your new approaches to how your footing a photographing a wedding. I think we'll start appealing to a very different stuff type of bride, because after looking at certain blog's again and again and again and again, and then perhaps she comes across either a feature of yours or your block, and she notices that while the styles are cute and the photo totter photograph well, the photography is really good it's shot slightly different than what she's accustomed to scene so now once you change your vantage point I can't help but feel now they're going to take the extra step to stylized and change the vantage point and her brand yourself I think you're gonna be starting on a whole new ball field I think it's gonna be a good thing for you do I want to know what I want you guys to keep as opposed it about what's going on I have no I really do believe in all my heart that your chute is going to be successful because the goals that you have ellen and I do believe with the bird branding and your vantage point change and the criticism that you received in regards to being so open about that criticism I know it is so hard to have somebody look at your working you guys so graciously gave you the voters to do so so thank you um before we get britney do you have a question? Yeah, I was hanging out in the chat room last night during larry watch and uh I noticed that a lot of people on there we're talking about how they actually have been featured but they haven't seen anything from it that they're not thinking that it's really pushing traffic to their site and things like that so I was just wondering what you would tell someone who has experienced that sort of thing it's kind of getting a little discouraged on that, and I told the ceo junkies I would dedicate a question to them. So this three guys I thiss once for the junkie, okay? I kind of feel like to a certain extent and this is much like much generalization it's like getting on a bike for the first time and then wondering why you didn't win the tour de france it's kind of like it takes a lot of time, it takes a lot of practice and it takes a lot of saturation what they're provide, what bloggers are providing for you, what magazines or providing for you is a platform, but simply because you get on the platform once doesn't necessarily mean that you've crossed the finish line and you've arrived. It takes a law of time for them to consistently put out your work, because, as we understand, as we understand, like abby from sesame, pretty post for weddings a day, so if for instance ah, bride goes, you sound pretty on monday, and then you get featured on tuesday, and then she goes back on wednesday afternoon, she never saw your wedding that's a high likelihood that happening, it could be that the return didn't happen because they didn't have the right fit for the blawg. Or that the blood was really, really small simply saying that up that a wedding blogger feature to you well it seems to me that a lot of brides I kind of have wedding sickness after they go backto work and they really miss their wedding and so what they do is they create a wedding block and so they want to curate other work so it doesn't it just because you have a block and doesn't necessary mean it your professional blogger so if you're working it's featured on the wedding block and you don't think that was a return from it well what did you do the homework in advance to see what kind of statistics that blogger had what kind of reached that blogger had it's totally within your right toe ask what the readership of a blogger is if somebody asks to feature a wedding because what happens is sometimes these bloggers will go out and it's well just say wedding x o x o blawg and if that exists please forgive me if I just made that up okay so wedding excellent so blawg reaches out the editor reaches out to you britain says can we feature fill in maria's wedding on top of the mountain top and your first riches like yes of course but so you so you let it go and then you realize that you know the editor of xoxo really only has seventy readers a day ok that's not a bad thing but two weeks later if you know um blogged o x contacts you and she has three hundred readers a day you can't give it our chances are you jeopardize your opportunity to go to a different blawg where it could have had more reach so don't hesitate to ask if somebody ask you to fish or I'm so honored thank you so much humbly accept the invitation but also feel within your right to say would you mind sharing statistics of how many impressions do you get a day and how many unique hits to get? Because sometimes bloggers will share their impressions which air return visitors versus unique readers I'm very concerned with unique readers as opposed to impression do you have any questions from the internet? We sure do on lengthy from k m robinson photography when submitting to print publications how long do you wait before you try submitting it to another print publication and did they let you know either way that is I think that's going to be definitely be a question for maryland but from my experience it feels like it is the longest process because they have probably been sitting on weddings for six or seven months as they go into print now for what will be featured you know, three a month from now so if a lot of times I was submitted a wedding and they're like we're just not sure and if an editor, if I fall open, another says, we're not sure I'm not going to submit it elsewhere because it's still in contention over there and you don't want to burn any bridges, and then a lot of times, it's happened what he just said at the very end, they feature like, four weddings, you know, they keep siphoning downside to meet down, set me down, and I could have been the fifth wedding or it could have been the eighth wedding. Either way, I didn't make the final cut, and so much time has passed since that initial wedding that it's probably at that time um, I at that time, I usually submitted to a block because I'm not going to try it again to another print publication, because so much time has passed by that time that the wedding actually just becomes extraordinary dated and I know that there's very few magazines that will post a wedding, you know, two or three years old call so but yeah, reaching out to the editor asking great, thanks, I'm going back to when we were talking with john a question from meadow matal photography says holla from whistler, canada hey, um, do you usually contact the creative team by email or phone is one more professional than the other? If you're good on the phone, rita on the phone and terrible on the phone like my mom he's, a voice mail and I was like, you will have a higher likelihood, like paging me or leaving a message on my myspace wall, then you will getting a response from my voicemail I don't I'm not good on the phone email is my love language, I feel like I'm a stronger writer than I am a speaker, so I'm going to be contacting my creative team. The email I feel like that's the best representation and very busy on on a day I don't necessarily want tto have, you know, three or four, twenty five or thirty minute conversations in a date because that's two hours of my work day that's been dedicated to the see virtually the same conversation, so email is what works best for me, but if you're a talker than that's, great, you could definitely use a phone or if you are if you are new and saying are you don't have these established relationships, would you recommend one of the other over the other on dh in regard to talking to the greater teeth or regarding team? Yeah, um, or same same thing I have you're talking, you're talking or if you're right, you're right, I d'oh d'oh! I definitely think I might my, my stance has always been to play to your straight, right? So whatever your strength is plated, that if you're a first year photographer of urine at ten years cool, thank you. Thank you. Um, was there another question that the primes out, right? I do have another question and image of hiss from texas. Is it equally important to push or advertise that you've been published to establish a level of quality on your own blogger site? Um, let me make sure I understand the question, so to broadcast that you've been featured, is that important? Yes, I think it is. I was recently featured I was recently featured in the in the national issue of the not magazine, so the national that not has regional magazines, which I think is a great start for newer photographers, is it's harder to get your work done? I'm sorry, it's, a little bit more complex to get your work featured in the national issue than it is a regional issue, because a regional issue will feature four to five weddings in that particular area. So if you're in the georgetown area, the d c virginia area, they have a magazine, seattle has its own, not l a has its own, not dallas has its own, not so that's a great place to start that was actually my second print publication was the knot in southern california, which is still hold a special place in my heart. I got I shot a wedding in houston, texas, that got featured in the national issue of the night, and I brought a blogger post about it just this past week because I want to let my current client note no and future clients know that I do have relationships with print media, and it is on honor, and I worked very hard for it, and I'm very happy that my clients that can be featured that way. So I definitely think it's good and have contagious to share and showcase what you're doing. But in the same time, if that's all you're doing, if the on ly information or disseminate he's just got featured or it's like, I'm so, you know, retweeting like your own accolades, like people say, I think you're so wonderful. T y happy face like all of that stuff, if that's the only mechanism that you're doing if you're on ly blogging about the other things that are happening happening to highlight you I feel like it might paint you in a search and light so I happen to blood every single day and that one post was just one amongst my obsession can tomato sauce and my dog and what I did last friday night so it's just what I'm doing which I think is a little bit more balanced perspective britney um what about though those little badges that they give you to put on your website or your blogged that says is featured on style me pretty featured on ruffled featured on whatever what do you think about those? Um I think they're freakin brilliant for the blogger gosh, I want to make a badge I got who would drive the oh because you want to know what I mean that's like a pretty link back to them it's freaking brilliant god, what I wouldn't do to create a jazz and star badge that I would want to just send you wear badges will make you look a little girl scout way don't need no stinking badges, ok? What I think is what I think isthe I think that badges are great and I think it's a great way to showcase what you're doing, but do you know to be careful like you know you don't we wantto be careful with who you share your platform with that's it I don't think it's a I don't think it's a good thing or I don't think it's a bad thing whatsoever just make that decision for what you think is best do you think sometimes it kind of loses its esteem because so many photographers have them on there because I think sometimes I go to photographers websites and I guess I guess it would depend on which block it isthe or if it's a print magazine or something but sometimes you see the photographers that I have so many of them that it's almost like oh well every photographer has on there you know so I won't I didn't see a question they're saying ok if that's what you're saying then I will ask if sometimes you think it kind of loses its asst steam mats on so many photographers if it actually helps you if so many photographers have it or not I don't know I don't know if it helps you I don't I don't have that just on my block so I can't speak to that kind of a personal choice it is definitely but I don't think it's a good thing I mean I don't think it's a good thing or a bad thing either way it's a definitely a personal presents yes cannot I was just going to say we have we just got notification that worm rule will be conversing with maryland and ten minutes also a couple more questions great. Well, I just want to say from eye candy and actually we had some folks asking this on the very first day of your workshop was can you please make a badge that says we took your workshop please? Somebody earlier had asked if they could be they say that they have been trained by jasmine star by taking this workshop like waiting to start way wish I would have thought about that or because here's the thing if it happens organically and today like so if I knew like coding or each team out like so what? The badges are basically html code that you put in your block and if I had known that like I could come here and be like, oh here's where you can download it but now if I go home and like two weeks later come out with a badge of ones like who does she think she is help attentions why would it ever have, you know it's like the cave that leads summer camp? Yes, the candidate really of summer camp is like who puts names on their sweater you had your name like hot zone in the badge earlier, you know, that was like adam if I could get now but maybe next no, no little badges for creative live for over a different little workshops that oh my gosh collector. But then there has to be a way to prove that you actually watch them, because you just can't collect them the way that you do. Beanie babies. You know, I think it's cabbage? No, I was ghetto. I never got the cabbage, but I was happy when they came out. The brown one little brown skin way got people. They're saying they're gonna make your badges. Hmm. We love the internet. I know. Gosh, I also like ferraris. I really do like ferraris. I really don't questions. Questions? Yeah. Sorry. Yeah. Yes, mark for the badges. Still, I see. Especially so for the badges. Can we can't differentiate those that watched online versus those that attended? Oh, my god. So basically more once, you know, taken but dazzle e came up with the best freaking idea. Let's, license it and make craig hey, wait. Just created live this creative life session. You mentioned that you belong up every single day from your wedding photography to your the favorite tomato sauce to your dog, right? Yes. So a lot of people are wondering what your daily schedule looks like. How do you fit all that in, um, I, um way, say I'm organized. I'm organized so on sundays I plan what I'm blogging for the week and I try to have the bog post ready the day before said I'm not waking up in trying to scramble for what it is do I think that everybody should be blogging every day? No, not if it doesn't play your strength, not if you don't love it not if it's the thing that you want to dio whatsoever. When I first started, I was walking two, three times a week and there was simply just the stories about my life, and it was an online journal to document my failures because I thought with my whole heart I was going to go backto lost cool and what ended up happening was ended of documenting the minor successes and triumphs along the way, and then actually documented morphing into a legit photography business and has since then has provided me a platform from which to me to share about my dog tomato sauce and I have different topics of the week, so we have tech tips were frequently asked questions we have friday randomness so there's a lot of stuff that's going on that cat is kind of created content and fodder for the block, but I don't want anybody to feel like that's what they should be doing because there isn't a right or wrong it's just a personal fit for you is there a certain type, time of day that you like to have your blood post go out at? Yes. So because I'm blogging the day before, I have my block for the most part, walking with me before. Sometimes I'm blogging, same date, but ideally, I would want it to go live six a m pacific standard, which is nine a m eastern time, and I'll do a social media push around eight between eight and eight fifteen pacific standard, which britain's it around to eleven to eleven. Fifteen eastern time, right before lunch break. Because I feel like when you do a social media push later in the day to try to get people to come back to a site, they've already been too distracted for what's. Been going on, always trying to hit them before the lunch break. I feel works best for me.