C. Family Preview | Hampton Roads Portrait Photographer

Hi.

Did you see the post on Facebook that said that I'm headed on a completely UNPLUGGED vacation starting this weekend? That's right, completely unplugged: no computer *gasp!* and no phone either until September 8th! I'm pretty excited about it but also a little bit anxious- NO facebook?! NO e-mail?! Seriously?! Yep, seriously! But to be honest I'm more excited than nervous for this chance to truly relax and focus on life in the moment- so bring it on vacay!

Before I go I thought it was only fair to leave my recent family session with a few extra previews to tide them over until I get back. 

 
Aren't their red, white, and blue outfits just the BEST?! I loved their patriotic themed session- it was too cute!
More of this creative and oh-so-sweet family when I get back!

PLUS when I get back maybe we'll start the second edition of "Where in the World is Sarah Elle Photography!" What do you think?!

Best,
Sarah

In-person Consultations | Hampton Roads Portrait Photographer

Hi!

Tonight I had the fantastic pleasure of meeting up with one of my newest Seniors, Cait, and her mom, Lynne, for Cait's in-person consultation.

 

In-person consultations are included in EVERY SINGLE Senior portrait PACKAGE- they're that important! Being able to meet my Seniors ahead of time enables me to not only get to know them but for them to get to know a little about me, too! But even more important is that we get to meet at Starbucks!

Ok, so not really the most important part- but it's true, I super enjoy meeting at Starbucks because otherwise I don't really get a chance to go there :)

But the real reason I automatically have in-person consultations as part of each Senior session is that it gives you and me a chance to brainstorm, throw ideas out at each other, discuss what you truly envision for your session, and the BIG ultra-super-mondo reason I highly encourage participating in the in-person consultations: it means that the day of the shoot you and I are no longer strangers! :)

You wouldn't believe how LESS scary it feels the day of the shoot since you already know a little about who I am and will already have a sense of what to expect from me the day of the shoot. Plus you will know what I look like by that time and won't have to be nervous about wondering if you'll know how to find me when you show up for the session! 

Being comfortable with me will help you be comfortable in front of my camera (which I know can be difficult if your mom or dad is really the one who booked the session); so having an in-person consultation is key to your comfort- and is the whole reason why I include them in the Senior session packages.

That and my need for a little bit o' Starbucks ;)

***Side note: you seriously will want to stay tuned for Cait's session later this Fall- after tonight's meeting I can guarantee you that it is going to be AWESOME!
*UPDATE: Cait's session really WAS awesome and seriously did not dissapoint! I can prove it! Check it out here.

The Reason for all the Harping | Professional Hair and Makeup and What it Can Bring to Your Session.

Hi.

As some of you may know (and I hope you all know) I work with some awesome gals in the hair and makeup department. I don't offer hair and makeup automatically with my package options for a couple of reasons: 1. I would have to increase the price of the sessions and that would deter some from being able to book due to the cost 2. Not everyone can wear the same kind of makeup- allergies, personal choices [e.g. vegan lifestyles], etc. And let's face it; I can't realistically ask my gals to carry all the types that exist out there just in case.

But then why do you encourage us so much to get hair and makeup added on to our packages, Sarah? That is a fantastic question and I am so glad you asked! ;)

Having a professional hair and makeup artist come to your house before your shoot is incredible (did you catch that? I said TO YOUR HOUSE! You don't even have to get out of your pj's for it!). It leaves the craziness of trying to manage your hair in the hands of someone who does it FOR. A. LIVING. This is what my gals do. They're trained in it, went to school for it, have an actual license to do your hair- And they're really good at it, too!

Remember when you got married (or if you're not married yet remember prom?-side note if you're not married yet get a hold me- we need to chat about your engagement session!) and someone else handled the craziness of your hair style? You got to choose your own look and had complete control over the outcome but you didn't have to try to figure out how to do that awesome twisted double braid back tuck with a curly twist contraption you saw Jennifer Aniston wear to the Golden Globes? You just got to sit back and enjoy while someone else worked their magic. What confidence you felt with that super awesome style, right?

And even better? Makeup! Can you imagine having someone who knows all about blending and what looks best with skin tones and blouse colors handling your eye-shadow's for you? Even more relieving is knowing you don't have to worry about it. Come the day of your session someone else is going to pump you up and rock out those awesome looks for you.

And that's just it- it's for YOU. It's to help you feel the best you can for your session. There is truly nothing like knowing you're going to get pampered and then be the center of attention for photos that will last forever. Wouldn't you want to know you look your best in your photos before you head out for the shoot? I promise you (yep, that's right, I brought out the "p" word) that you will feel incredible before stepping in front of that camera if you choose to go with professional hair and makeup. Not only does hiring a professional ease your worries about finding the "perfect look" but it truly and honestly makes you feel 100 times more confident in front of the camera. And trust me....it will show ;)

And as a side note: When you add on hair and makeup you're not paying me any extra money. It goes straight to them. As many who have added on hair and makeup will tell you they usually end up paying the artist directly when they are finished. I just feel it adds THAT much more to your look, your session, your confidence, and your final images that it was important enough to share my feelings with you all. :)

Best,
Sarah

Q&A in Richmond- Networking it, Baby!

This past weekend I completed two pretty big "firsts" in my life (both of which were outside of my comfort zone- not the easiest task, you know?): 

1. I completed my very first 8k...which just so happened to be a mud run complete with mud pits, sand dunes, and walls to surpass. Holy moly scary!

2. I traveled to Richmond and participated in my very first Q&A session held by a local photographer that I seriously admire- the one and only adorable Amanda of Amanda Hedgepeth Photography. What's more is that it was a luncheon at a Mexican restaurant with other photogs. Nothing like walking into a place where you normally stuff your face full of nachos and not knowing who you're going to sit down with for the next FOUR hours! 

There was one small snag with my trip to Richmond: I get really nervous about being late so I left pretty early in the morning to make sure I found the place. And find it i did: an HOUR early. So what does a photog do when they're super early and don't know the area? Take pictures of course! 

 Baby ducks!!

Nice attempt at camouflage, birdman ;)

An hour later I made my way back to Plaza Azteca. There were a lot of cameras and a lot of chips all over the place. I'd say that's pretty typical for a photog lunch date, wouldn't you?

It's pretty fair to say I asked a LOT of questions. Have you had your session with me, yet? Yes? Ok, then you know how much I love to talk! ;)

Post-Q&A we headed outside to talk tech: camera functions! Here are a few shots from the rest of the day and some of the fantastic women I had the opportunity to meet this weekend: 

 (Amanda, of Amanda Hedgepeth Photography)

 (Jessica, of Jessica Emmaleen Photography)

 

 (The gorgeous mama-to-be, Carrie, of Tupilo Photography)

( Kristy, of Kristy Carranza Photography, and Amber, of Amber Lane Photography)

(Kari, of KCillo Photography)

It's really interesting to see how others approach the same shot.

...and since i obviously couldn't take a picture of myself, here is one of me from Carrie: 

me!

Choosing to snag a seat in the Q&A with Amanda and making the trip to Richmond was one of the best things I could have done for the business. I networked, I chatted, I made friends, but I also learned. I learned about myself; I learned about where I want to take my business; and maybe the most important thing of all: I learned that I am ready for more.

 I am ready for bigger and better things for myself as a photographer and for Sarah Elle Photography. And that means BIGGER and BETTER things for all of you! Bigger packages, better equipment with which to take your images, better and BIGGER experience for each of you from initial inquiry all the way to the delivery of your beautiful images- lots of new goodies in between :)

I can't wait to see what the rest of 2013 has in store and even more so I can't wait to share it with all of YOU!

Best,
Sarah

p.s. And the win for best remark of the day: when Kristy told me I remind her of Jordana Brewster from The Fast and the Furious. I've been told I look like Rachel Ray, Sara Bareilles, and now Jordana Brewster.... I'm sticking with the last one. What do you think? New career as her stand in at events?? ;)

LAUNCH PARTY!!

Wow.

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am to be writing this post. My BRAND NEW SITE is officially live!!! You can see it in all it's beauty at (drum roll please!).................................. 

 www.sarahelle.com

I have been working on this for over 2 months now and slowly but surely was able to tweak it just right and now it is live for all to see! With the new site comes new colors, new logo, new branding, and lots of excitement! Take a look at it and see what different things you notice! :)

Along the way I had help from my friends, from my family, from photog folks, and from YOU. That's right, I was even able to get real feedback from you guys and I can't express how grateful I am for that! You guys ROCK!

To celebrate this new chapter of Sarah Elle Photography I've decided to throw an AWESOME launch party complete with super great prizes: Free mini-session, free Starbucks, a gift certificate to Timeline Designs, AND free hair and makeup to add to your next session!

You all know my gal Rylee, of Dolled Up by Rylee (check out her facebook here) and how awesome she is; well I am pleased to now also be working with another super awesome lady: Tiana of Tiana Marie Artistry. Now there are TWO fabulous gals to choose from for your hair and makeup! To jump right in with Tiana and give you all a sense of what she can bring to a session she has graciously offered up herself as one of the fabulous prizes!  

 PLUS, I am so pleased to be partnering with another military spouse for one of the fantastic prizes: a gift certificate to Timeline Designs. Be sure to check out her facebook and leave some love for my friend Alexis as you start to dream up the unique look for your custom sign. She makes all those cute "home is where the military sends us" signs and a lot of other really cute and unique things to really add some personal touches to your home!

So go on and scope out all the prizes below, decide which one you really hope to win, enter, share with friends, and get super excited because the new website is finally HERE!!!

Welcome to the party! :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Little Bit of ME!

Hi!

I made the decision a while ago that I wanted to do a weekly blog post to keep you all in the loop-MY loop- and made the random decision that that day would be Thursday. Well...today's Thursday! All day today I contemplated what I wanted to write about and it finally hit me: I should tell you about ME. If you're reading this then that means that you follow me on facebook; so you already know that:

1. I have the sweetest little Yorkie named Charlie {Dog}

 

 2. I am a military spouse (yay mil families!)

3. I'm obsessed with my mustard yellow camera bag. I mean seriously...who takes their camera bag out for its own photo shoot??

and 4. I currently live (and shoot) in Virginia. But did you know that I'm also a licensed counselor? Or that I'm from Pennsylvania? Or that I have family members that live all over the world (it's true! Ireland, California, France, Michigan, etc.)? Or that my relationship with photography started 8 years ago?!

It's that last part I really want to tell you about: me and photography. 

When I was in High School I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life- to be honest, most days I'm still not sure what I want to do with my life (but that's what makes being a mil spouse so great, right? I get to change locations and goals every few years!). What I do know (and knew back then, too) was that I love photography. I love growing and creating and experimenting with different looks, editing styles, angles, lenses, etc. Ok now I'm getting off track....

So back to High School: At the time I was in a photography course and was in love with being able to tell the stories of the world around me through images. I decided to apply to a university known for their photojournalism program. I'll never forget the photography teacher I had at the time telling me "don't be surprised if they don't accept you; they're a really good program." Exactly what a kid needs to hear, right?

Well that only lit a fire under my behind and I was now more determined than ever to be accepted. I showed up for my interview equipped with my "portfolio" of images printed in 5x7's from my dad's computer to a room filled with super "artsy" looking kids with giant prints and official looking carrying cases. 

WHOA was I out of my league. 

But you know what happened? I got in! I guess that day it was my story that was told through the images: my story as a budding photog with some serious dreams.

Fast forward to now. Now I shoot with the very same camera body (I've upgraded to some super awesome lenses in the mean time); I shoot portraiture photography and not photojournalism; and through the help of some awesome photog friends I'm learning and growing and experiencing the business side of things. I like to think that I still tell stories through my images, though- the story of a person, a family, a relationship. 

I think from now on I'm going to call my style: photojournalistic portraiture. :)

What do you think?!

Best,

Sarah

Life: As it is.

Hi!

I have a new project; maybe you’ve heard of it? It’s called “Life: As it is.” This project is very close to my heart as it attempts to illustrate my philosophy behind portrait photography.

Photography, to me, is about capturing life’s moments- carving out that moment in time and documenting the way you smile, your chosen hairstyle that year, the way Uncle Bill crinkles up his nose when he laughs after telling a joke, or the way your daughter stands on her toes to be bigger than her brother. It’s about truly capturing your life as it is in that very moment- a moment we never get to relive- except through those photographs we took to capture them.

Almost 100% of the time I get inquiries for portrait sessions from individuals and families who want to document a particular milestone (an anniversary, a birth, a homecoming, etc.). Don’t get me wrong, I think these are fantastic reasons to hire a photographer and I hire photographers when I have a milestone, too (we take pictures on our anniversary every single year and I’ve already planned out who I want as my homecoming photographer and my husband doesn’t even have orders yet to deploy!)! But with these inquiry’s I also often hear that people “haven’t had pictures since [their] wedding” or “I’m always the one taking the pictures; it will be nice to be in front of the camera for once” or even “oh no, I’m only interested in pictures of the kids;  I don’t like to have my picture taken.”

 The goal behind Life: As it is is to encourage people not to wait for milestones or wait to “lose a few pounds” before they get in front of the camera. Life is now. This is a moment you will never get back…it is who you are and is a part of who you will become. Don’t wait until your hair grows back out or you fit into those jeans from high school or you wake up and realize it’s been 7 years since you last had photos. Today is your life. Today is your chance to capture it exactly as it is and keep it forever.

With that mentality I have set out to document the life of individuals and families in the area who deserve to be reminded that this part of their life is worth capturing on camera. My hope is to do a segment of Life: As it is every season and in doing so document different portions of life as it is in this world. To do that I needed help….

So, to get the project rolling I opened it up for nominations and I was extremely humbled by the response. It was great to see others nominating people they felt deserved to be featured and it was even cooler to see people nominating themselves and admitting that perhaps it was time to get back in front of the camera. I am so very pleased to announce that the chosen nomination for the first installment of Life: As it is is...........


 actually it's two people!

In one case it is a mother nominated by her daughter and in the other case it is a daughter nominated by her mother. So join me in my excitment as I am honored to announce that Mary Tigner (nominated by daughter Rebecca) and Lauren (nominated by her mother Marie Banner Lewis) are the first two individuals who will be featured in Life: As it is. I am sincerely looking forward to getting to know them both and am eager to document their life as it as and share it with you all this Fall.
  
Stay tuned to the blog because I want to make this project into something BIG and I hope to be able to showcase each individual/family that was nominated.

Best,
Sarah

p.s. new to the blog? be sure to check out my first "welcome" post here or my crash course to Sarah post here!

*for the first installment featuring Lauren, click here !

New Beginnings.

Hi! 

And welcome to the brand new blog! Since today is the first day of a brand new month I figured it was the perfect day to break in the blog! I am so excited to begin to be able to share my sessions and thoughts with you on a regular basis :) Yay for the new blog!

If you follow me on facebook (and if you don't you totally should- really...go to the page and click "like"- you won't regret it!) then you already know how important this new phase of Sarah Elle Photography is to me. With this new beginning comes a lot of different emotions. First and foremost I am definitely EXCITED! :) But I'm also nervous and on completely new ground; which can be scary! But you know what else comes with all of those emotions? Growth. I am growing. I'm growing as a photographer, as a business owner, as a person. And that in itself brings with it a sense of peace and hope and determination. I know that through this growth I will learn and continue to carve my way into the photographer I want to be- the best photographer I can be!

 But if you've gotten this far with me then I know already that you're behind me- and that's the best thing I could ask for! There's nothing better than having the peace of mind knowing that you're family supports you in all that you do. So, with this new chapter of Sarah Elle Photography starting to unfold I want to say hold on tight, Sarah Elle Photography family, it's about to get fantastic! Stay tuned for the great unveiling of the brand new website (the link above is the old one-couldn't release the new one early, you know), new session guide(s)-yep, more than one!, and new business focus. First up? A self-developed project that is dear to my heart called "Life: As it is." But more about that in the next post ;)

 And since a photographer can't have a post without images I thought I'd leave you with one of Charlie Dog. :D

 

Charlie Dog is always trying to come on the shoots with me and thinks hiding in the camera bag is the way to get a free pass to come along.... silly puppy.

Best,

Sarah