Diane Schuller, Your All Occasion Custom Photographer

Meet my tree hugger. Some people might call me a tree hugger because of my strong views on caring for our planet and ourselves, but most people don’t think of dogs as tree huggers. Well, if we take the term literally you can see one of my dogs truly is a tree hugger. I’m sharing this because, the dog in this photo is actually very unwell at the moment. We rushed her to the vet yesterday and, though she’s not yet out of the woods (no pun intended), she seems to be likely making a recovery. The other reason I posted this particular photo of her is because this photo has been picked up by Canwest and will likely be printed in The Edmonton Journal this week.

Since I brought up the environment, I realized I haven’t shared links for my environment column, Everyday Earth Wise, for a long time. It does appear in print each week in the Peace Country Sun newspaper and then a week later, each column is posted online. Here are a couple of the recent columns you may be interested in, but you can always view the archives online to check out other topics:

“Tips to Becoming a Lifelong Clothes Pegger”

“Serving Up Some Compost Tea”

“Greenwashing is Everywhere These Days”

Speaking of trees, they are already beginning to change colour. You know what that means! Fall photo sessions are the busiest time of year. Since they are popular and because I really limit the number of photo sessions I take on, dates book up quickly. If you’re thinking of having a fall photo session, contact me today to book for your colourful autumn photo session (whether you’re one person, a couple, or a family — and yes, we can definitely include your dog(s) or horse(s) too!).

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Photographs Never Forget!  Keeping memories alive with custom portraits and albums.

First I have to tell you all about a giveaway over at Decor Happy. Head on over to enter for their draw for the decorating book, Restore. Recycle. Repurpose. I love decorating ideas that utilize some form of recycling or repurposing and I hope one of us wins the draw for that book! Now on to another tip I have for you that ties in with the title of that giveaway book.

My last post provided you with a great tip for using & displaying all those snapshots you have buried in boxes or albums (see What Can I Do with all my Snapshots). Displaying photos is definitely a part of our decor, of course. Here’s a recycling tip for you. The other day I was in town and stopped by our local thrift store. They had several picture frames and many of them were pictures in frames.  I sorted through them and brought these ones home. I’ll be fixing them up a bit but all it will take is a can of spray paint using a cardboard box (outside) to prevent the wind from blowing the paint everywhere. I’ll paint the frames but that darling photo easel I plan to use as-is. I’ve done this before and highly recommend heading to your local thrift store to see what great finds you can bring home and use for getting some of your photos up on the wall.

The added bonus is when you do something like this, often the frames don’t need any touch up, but even with the fresh touch of paint, I have two new frames and a photo easel at a steal. I paid $ 3.85 for both frames plus the easel. When you’re at the thrift store check for those nice wood recipe boxes. They make ideal photo boxes and if you leave the lid open with a photo or two slipped up, guests will be enticed into looking through them. In the past I’ve often picked up hand made doilies for less than a dollar that I use throughout my home. Don’t get me going on tips for repurposing things either — I could go on and on with that subject!

NEWSLETTER:  I should also mention that I plan to resume producing the monthly newsletter. My newsletter will be filled with tips such as some of the ones I’ve been sharing with you lately. I also plan to include resources and other useful information. I’m going back to the newsletter because I’m needing to refine my online time. This means I will be making far fewer Facebook posts but I will continue to leave the automated setting so all these blog posts go to my Facebook page. But to get all the ‘juicy’ stuff, I’ll be including that in my newsletter. Sure a few things will continue to be included here but the monthly newsletter will have directed content of use to anyone. If you or someone you know may be interested in my monthly newsletter, you can let me know either by adding your name over at my website, enter from the opening page, and click on the little envelope icon that appears at the bottom right of the screen. Alternatively, if you leave me a note above using the Contact tab, so that I have your email address. I will be setting up with an automated email company so I can assure everyone they won’t be spammed and so that it is easy to opt out. It may be a couple weeks before I have all the details ironed out and then I’ll contact everyone. Thank you so much for your loyalty and for your understanding while I work at streamlining this part of my business.

Photographs never forget!

What can I do for YOU? If you’ve been following me for a while, you are aware that I try my best to keep this photo journal focused on my business, with a few personal tidbits tossed in from time to time. In addition to announcing news and promotions, posting client sneak peeks, and showing some of my boutique products, I’ve been trying to share some advice or information about photographs, photography in general, plus some everyday environmental tips (my other passion). I try to give information that will help you organize or display your own photos or those you get from a pro photographer. Some topics are more helpful for those with a small business as well. We all have photographs around the home whether we took them ourselves or hired a custom photographer so I would love to know if there are other topics and tips you might like me to share? I do plan to have a post very soon on how to display your photos in your home or office and have another one planned discussing how not to get burned by hiring an amateur photographer (the ones who tend to hang around Kijiji for instance or who ‘pretend’ to be professionals). But I’m sure there are other topics that would interest you. Do you have a burning question? If you do, I want to hear from you.

For those who don’t follow my Facebook business page, I’m going to take advantage and share some of the tips and helpful information I’ve been sharing over there in the past week or so. It’s a potpourri of information but helpful none-the-less.

• My environment column from last week’s newspaper is now online for the general public. If you have children/grandchildren who are creative, read about this great opportunity! “Show Robert Bateman the Talent of our Canadian Children.”
• TIP: Your home snapshots are safest when printed out; don’t leave them on discs or your computer hard drive! Get them printed and, even if they are in photo boxes, you will still have them. For home printing try www.kodakgallery.ca (or www.kodakgallery.com for those in the USA). Fair prices, many specials, prompt service, easy to do, very reasonable shipping, and good quality for home prints.
• TIP: Selecting a Photographer (don’t be fooled by the cheap prices of amateurs — you get what you pay for).
• From another of my previous environment columns, “Heritage Seeds are A Green Choice this Spring”.
• Never use the sticky type of photo albums. Your photos will eventually adhere and will be damaged (not to mention impossible to remove). Pay the small amount more for acid-free photo albums and you will have your snapshots for generations.

I told you this one was a real potpourri of items. So please, I truly would appreciate if you would take a moment to answer the question, “How may I help you?” Let me know what information I can share that will help YOU.

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The day I photographed this trio of oranges, I had been making our morning cup of cappuccino. I noticed how the sun was beginning to cast shadows on the wall so turned around to have a look at what the sun was up to. I grabbed my camera and took a few photographs of these oranges. It’s not the Grande Canyon or an aerial view of some magnificent landscape but, to me, there was such beauty and delight in how these oranges were being lit by the morning sun.

I remember when I was little how my mom and I would sometimes make orange marmalade. I remember it being a lot of work cutting those rinds into such thin slivers but also remember how enjoyable it was at the same time. Of course, nothing beats homemade orange marmalade especially when made mother-and-daughter style.

Speaking of my mother. Just as my mother did, I have used a clothesline to dry our laundry my entire life. It is truly one of the most enjoyable domestic jobs ever. Nothing beats clothes and laundry fresh off the line — that fresh, natural scent is practically intoxicating.

I hope you’re all enjoying a weekend filled with simple pleasures!

PS: Yes, I was playing around with these images, adding a wee bit of an artist touch.

Since I brought up the topic of hanging laundry on the clothesline, here is a link to another of my environment columns. This one gives tips on hanging clothes on the line.

I have never stopped hanging my clothes out on a clothesline. I used to always hang them out even in winter when they’d freeze solid and would have to be finished indoors. But for the past 3 decades I only dry my clothes in a dryer during the bitter winter months. Today is National Hanging Out Day and I hope you will consider participating or picking up the habit. There are so many advantages: huge energy savings; fresh smelling clothes, sheets, towels; natural stain removal (by the sun); clothes and laundry last much longer when dried on a line; and a wonderfully therapeutic time outdoors while hanging and bringing in the laundry.

As Project Laundry List states, “Some communities prohibit clotheslines, ostensibly, for aesthetic reasons. National Hanging Out Day is a time to protest such draconian covenants. In some states, “Right to Dry” legislation is being introduced to override these restrictive community regulations that ban the use of clotheslines.” Here, here to that!

I’ve written about using clotheslines for the past 3 years in my weekly environment column, Everyday Earth Wise. I hope you’ll check out the link for National Hanging Out Day and consider the many benefits. The fresh scent alone is well worth hanging clothes outdoors.

In fact, one of my photography projects this year is to take photographs of clothes lines with hopes of using the photos for a gallery showing.

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Diane writes a weekly environment column and is a freelance custom photographer serving Alberta from Edmonton, north to Grande Prairie & surrounding areas. Visit her website or connect with her photography page on Facebook.

“The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science.” from Albert Einstein’s essay, “The World As I See It”

Both photos taken in February while driving through the Fraser Canyon in B.C.

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Diane’s Environment column. Here are a couple links to archived columns, “I confess: I compost during winter” and “Easy ‘green’ ways to clean the house.” Enjoy!

For well over a decade now, we use nothing but pure all natural soap. No dyes, no drying chemicals, no phosphates, no perfumes; just pure soap made from ingredients found in Mother Nature. We used to order from a fantastic place out of Ontario, Lake of the Woods Sunrise Soap Company. The only reason we switched from their outstanding product was because we wanted to try and find a supplier closer to home. So now we order from Cascadia Soaps.

At Cascadia Soaps they raise their own goats and make an amazingly smooth and rich soap from the milk of their Nubian Goats. We discovered them about 10 years ago on a trip to Vancouver when we saw their lush display at the Granville Island Public Market. We purchased several bars to take home and try and have been with them ever since. Although you can buy all their natural soaps in bars, we purchase ours in bulk, then cut it ourselves when it arrives. There’s a bit of savings that way but what I really like is to be able to cut the bars nice and thick. These photos show the most recent order that arrived: two logs of lavender goats milk soap and one log of unscented goats milk soap. I love the wholesome earthiness of these soaps but the huge benefits are how gentle they are on my extremely dry & sensitive skin. The other big benefit is that it is so earth friendly to boot! Can’t beat that.

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Diane is a freelance photographer serving Grande Prairie and the Peace River region from her rural residence near Hythe, Alberta. She is available for commercial, environmental, editorial, and portrait assignments. Contact her (above) or visit her website to view her portfolio.

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All photos on this site are Copyright © Diane Schuller, All Rights Reserved. It is illegal to copy, download, take screenshots, or otherwise use these photos without the express written permission of the photographer. Thank you for your respect.

Many of you know that I live my life consciously, always aware of my impact on the environment. I’ve had this awareness since I was a very young girl with my connection to the land and the balance of life that is a circle of life, has always been a part of me. The other day I read a sensible article at PopPhoto about ways to be a greener photographer. One of the points the author of the article made used an apt twist on Mahatma Ghandi’s quote, “You must be the change you want to see in the world.”

Shoot the Change you Want in the World:

I’ve been making an attempt to incorporate more environmentally-friendly practices with my photography but he suggested something that really should have been obvious to me. Not only should we be aware of how we shoot and the practices we incorporate but that awareness should organically flow into what we shoot. Granted, I do take a lot of photos of my personal environment and the nature I live within but there is more.

I hadn’t really thought that the images I shoot, or at least some of them, could also serve to illustrate or represent solutions or simply showcase environmental problems.

Thus, the reason for taking and including this image of the egg cartons. We shop locally for many products, as much as what is available. Every week we attend the Farmer’s Market and purchase all our eggs, fresh produce, local meat (lamb, bison, pork in particular), locally made preserves, and occasionally gift items as well. We bring along our own reuseable cloth bags and, in the case of eggs we always return the egg cartons to the vendor from whom we purchase our eggs. I detest the styrofoam egg cartons because they are so intensely harmful to our environment but at least if we keep them recycling there will be less need for more to be made. The rare time we have to buy eggs at the store (in winter) we select our eggs based on the carton: if the carton is made from recycled paper, that’s our choice; styrofoam gets a pass.

It’s one small thing, but if more of us did one small thing, they all add up to make a big difference. The change we want in the world.

It’s the small things I focus on in my weekly environment column, “Everyday Earth Wise”, for a local newspaper. In the most recent archived column that you can now read online, if you wish, I addressed some small yet simple ways we can conserve water. Click on that link if you’re interested in reading the archived column. (Reminder: the newspaper does not leave these archived columns up for a long time so if it’s something you’re interested in, please print it out for future reference.)

So tell me this, what simple thing do you practice to see the change you want in the world (or what simple change can you adopt)? If you have taken a photo shooting the change you want in the world, please leave a link here and I’ll come take a look!

Diane is an environmentally conscious on-location lifestyle photographer based from Grande Prairie, Alberta. Visit Diane Schuller Photography.

My tulips are blooming!

Yes, finally my tulips are blooming and so are the dandelions. It just so happens, I don’t mind dandelions. In fact, I like them (hence my logo). If, unlike me, you do mind dandelions, I wrote about controlling dandelions in my last week’s environment column for Grande Prairie Ink! You can check out the archive of that article if you like but if you wish to hang on to the information, I’d recommend printing it out. The newspaper does not keep the archives online forever.

Although in last year’s environment column (for the newspaper I write for) I covered several other tips for controlling dandelions without using toxic chemicals, I would love to learn your methods or strategies for controlling dandelions. Please share them here in the comments.

Diane is an on-location lifestyle photographer based from Grande Prairie, Alberta (serving central & northern Alberta/BC). Visit Diane Schuller Photography.

Today is Earth Day around the globe. Being responsible stewards for the environment is not a one-day event; living responsibly every day is how we really make a difference.

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“This we know: the earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth. All things are connected like blood that unites us all. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.” ~Chief Seattle

The environment column I write for one of the local newspapers goes online a week after it appears in the newspaper. For a list of some of my recent columns dedicated to making a difference to the environment, with a focus on simple everyday changes, visit the Everyday Earth Wise archives index. Perhaps you will find some small way you can make a big difference — in your life and to the environment. If each of us makes an effort to make small changes, each of these small changes add up to make big changes. Consider talking to your children and your grandchildren about the environment and being responsible stewards. Help them grow a garden this year, learn to compost, and go for walks in nature. If we teach them now, they grow up learning the important habits of a responsible earth steward. Although it’s best to get outside with them, visit Eco-Kids Canada or Eco-Kids (World) for some great online resources and teaching tools. I’ve listed a few books below for you or the kids but there are many more available at your local library or bookstore. Turn a new leaf starting today!

Before you head off to take some green action, here are links to two of my archived environmental columns. Please note that the newspaper does take these down after a time so if you find either or both of these helpful, I’d recommend printing it out. Here are tips on Repurposing Around the Home and a Do-it-Yourself Eco-Clean Kit. Print them out and put them to use — you’ll be surprised how easy it is to be green and how much money you will save too.

Earth Day is (also) for the Dogs.

Earth Day (Rookie Read-About Holidays)

The Green Book: The Everyday Guide to Saving the Planet One Simple Step at a Time

Everything Kids’ Environment Book: Learn how you can help the environment-by getting involved at school, at home, or at play (Everything Kids Series)

Easy Green Living: The Ultimate Guide to Simple, Eco-Friendly Choices for You and Your Home