Seniors, Seniors are the Best - St. Louis Senior Portraits

The 2013 Senior Ambassador program is officially underway! 

Here is all the info you need to know....

ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS THROUGH MAY 2013

What is a senior ambassador? 

Senior ambassadors are students who will represent Exposure Photography at their high school. You will model for senior portraits and pass out rep cards with your portrait on one side and Exposure info on the other.

To be an ambassador you must:

• Attend one of the local high schools in Jefferson County or South St. Louis County
• Have great style, lots of personality and love being in front of the camera. You MUST be photogenic!
• Be in the class of 2014
• Agree to tell your friends about Exposure and pass out your rep cards.
• Have your parents sign a model release allowing me to use your photos for advertising
• Promote Exposure only.

What do Senior Ambassadors get?

• A totally awesome, totally free May or June portrait session at a variety of locations from rural to urban. Numerous outfit changes are encouraged. Each student is different, so your session will be tailored to your life whether you are a cheerleader, band member, football player or dancer. 
•  A phone skin for your iphone 4 or 5 with your image and Exposure logo on it.
• 50 rep cards with your image on one side and Exposure's info on the other. These are the cards you give to friends and classmates.
• An album on Facebook with up to 10 images with Exposure's logo. You are expected to share the images, use them as profile pics, etc.
• And you have the ability to earn print credits with each friend you refer to Exposure.

So, the big question...How do you apply?

Send me an email to esutterer@aol.com with the subject "senior ambassador".

The email should include:

• A recent photo of you in JPEG format
• The high school you attend
• Your name, age, phone #, address
• Your parents' names and phone #
• And the story of you. Tell me about you.

Then go to my Facebook page and "like".

Preparing for the busy season - St. Louis Photographer

In the photography industry it is pretty slow in January, February and this year, March. Exposure is based just outside St. Louis, MO where yesterday we got the biggest snowstorm of the winter (even though it's actually spring). 

I have to admit that the "slow" season is actually nice after the crazy, busy fall season. You know, everyone wants their photos by Christmas, so it's a lot of late nights, a lot of phone calls and emails, and just a lot of work. Then Christmas comes and it's silent. And I just breathe.

But I know that the busy season is just around the corner and boy do I have a lot of prep work this year!  It's kind of like spring cleaning. I make a to do list and a list of goals. This year the lists are extra long because we just moved into a new house and I am relieving myself from maternity leave (after 1 full year). 

One of the best parts of working for yourself is making your own schedule. So, when we started building a new house, we were trying to sell the old house and I had a new baby I simply gave myself time off. Nice, huh?

Well, it was nice while it lasted, but now I have a lot to make up for. 

One of the biggest projects is going to be building the new studio. It will be in the basement, which will be so nice. Our old house didn't have a basement, so I would literally rearrange my living room for every studio session. It's no wonder I do mostly on location sessions, right? 

The next big project/goal is to promote senior portraits in our local high schools. I am preparing to put together a senior ambassador program, so keep an eye out for that if you are interested. 

Another project is to get all the info from my website onto my blog and cancel the site. It just doesn't make sense to keep it. It's not easy to update, so it's always outdated. And it seems people like to read and look at blogs. "Give the people what they want!" That's what I tell myself.

I have lots more on my lists, but I won't bore you with those. 

What's on your agenda for spring? Any to do lists? Goals? 

By the way, do you like this BIG font? 

Shop Open! - St. Louis Photographer

The Etsy Shop is now open! 

I have all 3 kids home today. Of course I do, it's Sunday. But, I have a feeling they are all going to be here until after Easter. All day, every day. It's snowing...a lot! And I'm pretty sure they will have snow days until spring break is supposed to start, making for a really long spring break. Don't get me wrong, I love having them all here, it's just hard to work. I don't know how I found the time today, but it sure feels good to get some work done!

Not only did I get the shop open, I also created the kids' corner in the basement. I am feeling inspired today. It must be the snow. I am not a lover of cold weather. I am feeling trapped today! Maybe that's why I'm getting so much done inside.

So, back to the shop . I haven't listed all the images. And I haven't listed many canvases yet, but I have listed regular prints that are ready to frame. And I have listed metal prints that are ready to hang. I decided to include some inspirational canvases and prints as well. 

I only have this one listed as of now....

I want one of these for myself to hang it in the girls bathroom. I want them to be able to read it everyday. I think it will help them to remember what is important. 

There is an author, Amy Marxkors, whose words inspire me. She writes about running. If I could read some of her words each morning I think I would start my day with motivation.  I would like to quote her on some canvases. I'm not sure about copyright laws when it comes to quoting people. I will need to learn about that. 

What inspires you? What is something you could read each morning to improve your daily life?

Etsy Shop Coming Soon... - St. Louis Photographer

After days of researching different "shop" sites, deciding how and what I would like to put in the shop, and preparing photographs, I have now decided to open an Etsy Shop. 

I know Etsy is kind of trendy, but to start out it seems to be simple and easy to do. And lets face it, I do NOT have a lot of time to spend setting up a shop and doing inventory. 

So, it will not be long before you can purchase prints and canvases by Exposure! 

I have a whole array of photographs I plan to put in the shop from landscapes, to farm photos, to children photos, to industrial photographs. 

The prints and canvases will be made to order, so there will be endless inventory on those.

I also plan on putting up some of my work that has been in galleries around St. Louis. It will take me a little while to get those photographed for the shop. The gallery work will be one of a kind, so if there is something you like you will have to jump on it. 

Here is a sneak peek at a few photos that will be available as prints or canvases...

Now I have to get to work setting up the shop. Stay updated on when the shop is open by becoming a follower of Exposure.

Cake Smashing Fun - St. Louis Child Photographer

I am SOOO late posting these! But I am SOOO excited to FINALLY have internet service again!

 If you can tell it took Seray a little while to warm up to her cake, but she finally dug in.

So, I'm thinking about offering Cake Smashing Mini-Sessions. Do you think that would be something you would do? What about your friends? I need feedback! Leave comments! 

I Have Internet Again! - St. Louis Photographer

Wow! It felt like we were never going to have internet again! Long story short, we haven't had real internet service since we moved out of our old house in November and the only way we were able to connect was through Chad's iphone, so when Chad was out of town I was pretty much just out of luck. Sure, I could have gone somewhere to use Wi-Fi, but have any of you ever taken 3 kids to a coffee shop and tried to work? Yeah, it's not fun, trust me. 

Now that I am able to connect with everyone I am stumped. I'm sure I have a million things to say, I just can't think of them. 

I have some pics to post, but I am still working on them. Hopefully I will have them up tonight. 

Totally random post, I know. I am just excited and wanted to announce that I am connected to the world again!