Diane Jarvis-Schuller

Pork roast and butternut squash

I’m busy “waiting to put it in the oven” so I can get that pet contest posted but I’ve encountered a glitch. There are several photographers talking about a ‘new rule’ at Facebook regarding not doing promotions, contests, and such. Apparently they say people can have their account removed from Facebook for doing such things because these activities are allegedly against the rules / terms of service. Since I don’t want my business page deleted and because I don’t want to disappoint anyone who enters the contest, I decided to delay posting the launch of the contest until I can get more information. So our contest is still “waiting to be put in the oven.” I was up very late last night reading the terms of service at Facebook and found nothing at all about that. I also Googled and, other than finding some blog posts, could not find anything definitive. I see people conducting contests left, right, and center on Facebook but I do want to follow the rules if they are there.

Anyway, out of an abundance of caution, I am rethinking how on earth I can do this contest without creating hours of work keeping track of things. If any of you wonderful readers has some definitive information regarding these new Facebook rules, or has an uncomplicated way of conducting a pet contest through my blog, I’m open to hearing any and all suggestions. I’d really like to get this contest “in the oven”. I have one idea for conducting the entire contest here on the blog so if we don’t come up with solutions for using Facebook then I’m prepared to get started by running it here (trouble is I won’t be able to ‘show’ all the images that come in until the finalists are selected).

“Boats are the nearest thing to dreams that hands have ever made.” ~ Unknown

We reached 100 over at the Diane Schuller Photography Facebook page! We have two winners: the person drawn from all those who joined in an effort to reach the magic 100 and the person who referred her. So who are the lucky winners? Kathren J-F is the new member whose name was drawn and she was referred by Kristen M-H. I really look forward to meeting both of you and taking some special photos for you to treasure. Thank you so much to everyone who joined and who recommended your friends — you are the greatest.

There are more exciting things coming up (spring mini-sessions, discount on the new digital packages, another model search) and the next one to be announced is a pet contest. This one is open to everyone. I’ll announce it on the Facebook fan page first and then share details here as well. So please let your friends know and have them join the Facebook fan page so they can get in on some of these upcoming events!

I’m so busy that I’m not keeping up with things here at the blog. Lots of photos to share. I have some fantastic images I took of some senior music students — oh how I would love to do more photo shoots with teens! (send them my way folks — I’ll make them look great!) I also have a newborn session to share, two different freelance editorial samples, and more. See, told you I had a lot of photos to share. A few are already up at the FB fan page but they’re small so I’ll post a few here as well. It’s busy for me right now but I’m going to do my best to get some of the photos from these shoots up for you to see.

QUESTION: If you were looking for a photographer, what would be the FIRST place you would go to locate one?

a) The phone book (Yellow Pages)

b) Google

c) Facebook

d) Ask a friend or relative

e) Other (and let me know what that would be)

“There are three forms of visual art: Painting is art to look at, sculpture is art you can walk around, and architecture is art you can walk through.” ~ Dan Rice

I’m enjoying going through my archive of photos. When I visit different places, it’s both the people and the architecture that strike me as the most interesting. I normally avoid the tourist traps and especially those annoying, ubiquitous souvenir shops. Whether it’s people or architecture, I appreciate the complex and carefully designed structure of things. I’d rather bring home photographs of the people and places I visit, or hand made products artisans there have created; those are souvenirs with worth. What do you appreciate most when you visit places away from home?

When work, commitment, and pleasure all become one and you reach that deep well where passion lives, nothing is impossible.~Unknown author.

The year is not over yet and, despite the snow and cold, I still have a few photo shoots scheduled but things are slowing down as winter blows in and people prepare for the holiday season. I’m excited this week. I’ve been contemplating and planning for 2010. There are a number of changes coming up that I’m really quite excited about sharing with everyone. I’m also going to share some images from 2009 in future posts this month — a bit of a wink on the year that will soon slip and slide its way into a fresh new year.

When I began upon this photographic journey year before last, I had no idea it would grow and evolve the way it has. I’m so fortunate. I’ve met some wonderful people, shared special moments and milestones, and have grown along the way. When I began, my focus was on capturing special moments between people while avoiding the cheesy or posed shots. Somewhere along the path this year, I shifted to more of those posed shots though I still managed to keep the cheesy ones at bay. In recent weeks as I’ve been putting together my plans and goals for next year and the future, this is one thing that needs to be addressed. Although I fully realize some people do want posed images, I plan to coax those from my repertoire in 2010. Sure, I’ll continue to accommodate those clients who want the occasional posed image, but I plan to focus far more on my original love and talent at capturing the emotions and unique relationships of my clients. I plan to tell their story through images. This is quite different from what many people think of in terms of portraits. I want to capture those special looks on people’s faces, or a certain body language that only those close to them really know, a certain stage in a child’s life, or the unique way a person looks or react to their loved ones. Those are the moments I’m after. It really is a type of storytelling, which isn’t a complete surprise when you consider how many years I’ve spent writing about people. This is nothing to be fearful of; quite the contrary. What it means with me going back to my original focus is that my clients will have portraits that are more of a treasure — these will be heirloom images capturing a chapter in their life. Capturing these chapters through images excites me. I can hardly wait to get back to my original journey — it’s much like having gone on a hike and taking a different path than originally planned — taking the well worn path rather than that special one where fewer travel. No harm done, saw some great sights, and still ended up at the same destination. I simply plan to take that special path where fewer have travelled. Ralph Waldo Emerson said it best, “Do not follow where the path may lead.  Go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail.”

Wherever you go, go with all your heart.  ~Confucius

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Diane captures special moments and emotions of people as well as their connection with their pets. Visit Diane Schuller Photography.

A long while ago Shutter Sisters had a post about black and white photos. Maya at Springtree Road blog celebrates November in Black and White. Black & white photography is one of my passions. Likely because I grew up with black and white (yes, I’m that old). Now that I have my own [digital] darkroom I spend a lot of time converting numerous images to black and white, or sepia, or one of the many versions of the vintage look.

Trouble is, I have so many to choose from. Soft ones, high contrast ones, high key, and all sorts that fall somewhere in between.

Diane is a lifestyle photographer serving Grande Prairie & Northern Alberta. Visit Diane Schuller Photography.

Continuing from my previous post, I’m coming through by showing samples of the CD Covers I have been making. As many of you know, I don’t give high resolution photo files on CD (for very good reason). I do offer a low resolution file, not suitable for printing, but ideal for sharing images in blogs, Facebook, etc. but charge accordingly because it’s prints I prefer people to enjoy and show off in their homes. A while ago, I had been wanting to create a few CDs with samples of my work to give to a couple friends and a family member. I don’t have a printer that prints directly on CDs (though that would be the ideal and most professional looking), so had contemplated what other options I had for personalizing the CDs.

I decided against the stick on CD labels because they are known to peel and jam up inside CD players or computers. I sure didn’t want that! I found templates for printing out the square labels that slip inside the cover of the plastic jewel cases, but was still hoping for something just a bit nicer. Then someone in one of the photography groups mentioned trying the template at bighugelabs.com for making a personalized CD cover. I checked it out and liked the idea. It also seemed easy enough to do so I thought I’d try it out. It was surprisingly easy to make and all I had to do was create my cover image in Photoshop, upload it to www.bighugelabs.com, print it out using their template, and cut along the edges. It turned out really well. The first ones I only used a single sheet of printer paper and thought it needed a bit more heft so I laminated a second sheet of paper to the back, let it dry, and that greatly improved it. Since then I’ve improved upon them by printing on a lightweight card stock (so I don’t have to monkey around with laminating). My husband LOVES them and thinks I should sell them! Now that’s quite an endorsement (though I have no intention of selling them) because he is so fussy and always looks at things with an eye to quality.

I finally remembered to take photos of a couple of the earlier ones so you can see what they look like. These two are ones I gave to clients as a token of my appreciation — they contain a mini slideshow in pdf format. After cutting it out, the paper is folded in and I sealed it with a custom sticker. I think they would be great gift ideas even if you’re not a photographer. If you take photos of your kids, or pets, or both, it would be a great gift for aunts & uncles, siblings, parents, grandparents, or whoever. Another gift idea would be if you had taken photos of a family or workplace event, or a fun day with friends, to do up a CD of the photos to give to each person who was there as a Christmas gift. With your CD cover you can personalize it, the CD and cover are something you have made (so it’s really appreciated), and it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. Who wouldn’t want to receive a gift from the heart like this?!

There was a time I would never have considered photographing something from a garden or nature, or anything for that matter, that I felt was less-than-perfect in presentation — like this delightful, blousy oriental poppy. Although strongly drawn to its colour, texture, and beauty I would have given it a pass simply because the quack grass has grown and intertwined among it’s slender stem and frilly bloom. Yet now I feel that is what gives this so much more appeal. The ordinary becoming sweet in its position in life (not to mention in this overgrown garden).

Here is another of life’s sweet ordinary. Although today I’ve chosen to use nature’s sweet ordinary, it applies to people as well. Perhaps that is why I’m so drawn to lifestyle photography more than any other. It’s all about life and seeing the beauty from within rather than focusing on perceived perfection or striving to manipulate people into uncomfortable positions and poses.

“Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it” ~Confucius

I have a busy day ahead preparing for my upcoming trip to Edmonton. I have some writing to be completed, phone calls to be made, paperwork, dogs to walk, laundry & ironing, then tomorrow it’s pack, dogwalk, and get ready for the six-hour drive to the city. Have a great weekend  and may you see the beauty beneath the surface!

PS: For everyone who is participating in Scott Kelby’s Worldwide Photowalk on Saturday, have a fantastic time! (many communities still have some openings available, believe it or not!)

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Diane is an award winning short story writer and a photographer serving Grande Prairie & northern Alberta. Visit Diane Schuller Photography.

A couple months ago Shutter Sisters featured a post about nifty camera straps (recycled seat belts at PhotoJojo) and strap slipcovers (various individuals at Etsy). Today my cyberfriend Junie Moon has shared how she made her own camera slipcovers for hers and her husband’s camera strap. I urge you to check out her post because, not only is it an easy peasy project, but what great results. At the end of her post she provides a list of resources for other online how-to instructions. I’m really partial to dots or stripes so I might just check out the scrap material bin in town to see if I find some material to create one of my own. If I end up not finding the time or energy for that, there are always all those great ready-made ones available from Etsy sellers. Enjoy!

I would love to change my camera straps from boring black & yellow to something snazzy. What a perfect gift idea but I doubt my husband would ever think of getting one, no matter how much I might hint (great guy that he is!). If you have one, whether you made it yourself or it came from one of the Etsy sellers, please leave a link here so I can pop by and take a look!

Sometimes technology is the bane of my existence. I’m not the most tech-savvy person that’s for sure but some things such as ordering prints for clients should not be so difficult. Originally I tried the local labs but found the quality to be inconsistent as well as a few other issues that I won’t get into here. So then I tried an online venue based out of Ontario. The quality is pretty good and when I first used them they were quite prompt in getting my orders done and mailed. Recently I’ve been researching more options for professional printing. The companies I’ve researched recently tend to range in quality and what they offer with huge gaps between each one. There is a company based in the USA that is used extensively by photographers as well as some photographers north of 49. I’ve investigated them and would LOVE to use them despite the huge amount of extra money I would end up paying simply based on the exchange on the dollar plus their high shipping costs. They produce a quality product, they have excellent resource material, and so much more. They’re perfect — except they’re in the USA. There are a few photographers who have been raving over a new Canadian company and I’ve thought I might give them a try. Over the past week or ten days I have spent hours of time trying to get set up, try their online ordering, etc. and all to no avail. The technology just keeps slapping up barriers no matter what I try.

On one of my outstanding client orders, I have been waiting for weeks for the prints to arrive (the place I’ve been using based in Ontario). They still are not here and I’m getting very annoyed. This is not good service and it makes me look bad. So now with the technological problems I’m experiencing with that Canadian printer and the poor service with the current printer, I’m this close to ordering test prints from the US-based printer. Ensuring a quality product for clients is not easy — though it should be! I’ve done my part but now I’m dependent upon these printers. Sorry to vent folks. I’m a tad frustrated. If anyone is looking for a great business opportunity, we need many more companies in Canada who provide top quality products and services to photographers. What a great business that would be for someone ready to provide a quality product (great prints, canvases, album pages, and so on) together with great service to photographers.

I promise to be back on track when I post my next journal entry. I have hours of work to get done so I’ll do some pondering while I debate what to do about my printing dilemma. Enjoy the two images I’ve offered today as a soft landing spot compared to my moaning and groaning!

The reason I haven’t been posting is because I’m struggling with a bad flu (yes, again). Today is Canada Day so a big shout out to all my Canadian neighbours! Enjoy the day spent outdoors away from the computer. 

See you when I’m feeling better. If wishes could come true, this is where I’d want to be today.