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For Photographers Holiday Gift Guide 2013 |
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| Are you looking for that perfect gift for the photographer in your life? There are some smoking deals going on right now and I thought I'd put together a little holiday gift guide for photographers. All of the gifts on this list are things I use myself and they are tried and true.
So here is my 2013 holiday gift guide starting with the most affordable gifts and increasing in price so you can easily decide how much you love that special someone and pick your gift accordingly - haha :). No -- love does not equal money. But sometimes thoughtfulness is all it takes to express tremendous love, regardless of the price. Maybe one of these gifts would be the perfect thing for someone to receive in this stage of their business journey! #1 -- Convertible 60" umbrella -- $29.95 I use this umbrella for shooting group portraits in a dark church. You can read more about how I use this handy tool in this blog post. #2 -- Gary Fong Lightsphere -- $43.95 I love how this diffuser softens the light coming out of my flash. It's a must for all photographers who shoot receptions. #3 -- Lexar 16GB CF card 2 pack -- $76.00 16GB is a great size in my opinion -- large enough so you're not having to change cards constantly and small enough that you aren't having to depend on one card to hold an entire event's worth of images. #4 -- My Blog Collage Templates -- $99 Combine images on your blog easily with these templates. You get 34 templates and a .pdf with easy to follow instructions for use. Click here to watch a video of how easy they are to use. You will love having a prettier blog in the new year! #5 -- Tamarac Light Stand Bag -- $147.95 This bag is great for transporting your light stand, umbrella, soft box, and/or tripod. I check it on planes and they treat it like a golf bag. #6 -- Avenger Light Stand -- $148.29 This light stand is great for any off-camera flash work. Check out my series on using flash in order to learn more. #7 -- One Hour Coaching Session with Me -- $150 If the photographer in your life just wants to soak up as much knowledge and know-how as possible, this may be the perfect gift for them! And distance isn't an obstacle! I've done many-a-session over Skype! #8 -- Album Design Templates -- $150 My album design templates are for use with Photojunction -- totally free software that is very user-friendly. I use Photojunction and my templates for all of our album designs! #9 -- Canon 50mm 1.4 lens* -- $299 after an INSTANT REBATE of $100 This used to be my favorite lens before I upgraded to the 50mm 1.2. It is hands down, the best bang for your buck when it comes to lenses -- the perfect lens for someone just looking to get into photography. #10 -- All of my Workflow Forms & Resources -- $379.99 Over the course of 9 years, I have developed a very organized and efficient wedding workflow that offers my clients a high-end experience. All of my workflow forms and resources are available for purchase, and are a great way for the photographer in your life to jump-start their way to an organized workflow or to take their current workflow and client experience to the next level. #11 -- Tamarac Rolling Backpack -- $549.95 I've been using this camera bag for 9 years -- it's lasted me the entire life of my business so far and flown in the overhead compartment of countless flights overseas and around the country. Click here to read a blog post I did awhile back with a more comprehensive review. #12 -- Canon 600EX-RT Speedlite -- $499 after an INSTANT REBATE of $50 THESE ARE AMAZING! Check out my review here! These are great flash units with radio transmitters built in -- so you don't need pocketwizards! -- and B&H is offering a great rebate for a limited time! #13 -- A Seat at One of my Upcoming MJ2DAY Workshops -- $1,200-$1,300 We will be coming to LA in June and likely holding another workshop in Phoenix in October 2014! Payment plans are available and registration is now open here! #14 -- Canon 50mm 1.2 lens -- $1,439 after REBATE of $180! My favorite lens. Read a recent review I did of this lens, complete with images, here. #15 -- Canon 24mm 1.4 lens -- $1,549 after REBATE of $200! I love this wide-angle lens. Read a recent review I did of this lens, complete with images, here. #16 -- Canon 70-200 2.8 lens IS -- $2,199 after REBATE of $300! As a wedding photographer, you can't live without this lens. Read a recent review I did of this lens, complete with images, here. #17 -- Canon 5D Mark III -- $2,899 after an INSTANT REBATE of $500! Love this camera for so many reasons -- it's performance at high ISOs and full-frame sensor being two of them. If you're a Canon shooter, you can't go wrong with it! Know your special someone would love something on this list that is just too expensive for you to buy in it's entirety? You could get them a B&H gift card to help towards purchasing it at a later date! B&H is offering a lot of great rebates on other equipment right now -- click here to see the full list! Happy shopping! |
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News! Job Opening |
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| There is a job opening at MJP!
Sara, my full-time office manager for three years now, is leaving us in March. I am so sad to see her go, but I know it is time for her to move on. She has been such a great part of the MJP team for so long, and will be greatly missed. While Sara has big shoes to fill, I am confident that we will be able to find someone who can do so. We are currently accepting applicants for a full-time office manager position. As with any small business, this employee will be asked to wear many hats and work on a variety of tasks within the business. Interested parties can find a full job description by clicking here. Please note that I will not be entertaining any applicants who have their own photography business or aspire to start their own business at any point in the future. While that may sound harsh, I want to be clear that I am not looking to train someone who plans to leave and start their own business. I teach workshops and offer one-on-one coaching for current and aspiring business owners, so if you fit this description, I would encourage you to look into one of these avenues for further training. This position is open to those who would like to be a part of our team, preferably for the long-term, and who will be thrilled to be an employee of a growing business where their gifts and input will be highly valued and utilized. This employee will be required to work from the MJP office located in the Arcadia area of Phoenix, just north of Sky Harbor Airport. Please forward any questions or resumes to melissa{at}melissajill{dot}com. Thank you! |
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Personal Frivolous Friday vol. 95 |
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| Frivolous: playful, lighthearted, trivial; the little things in life that should be savored.
Favorite Outfit of the Week -- Top: Anthropologie / Skinny jeans: Lucky / Scarf: Forever 21 / Boots: Nordstrom / Earrings: Nordstrom Highlight of the week: Lest any of you think I somehow "have it all together," I have been crazed the last couple months and am on the verge of burn-out. I just haven't had a break. My workaholism has reached an extreme with trying to juggle a busy fall season and two growing businesses. I love the growth and feel blessed, but I desperately need to outsource or delegate more or I'm going to keel over. So my highlight this week was a few hours of obligatory Bible Study homework. I honestly probably wouldn't have taken the time to do it if I didn't have to show up and tell my group that I failed, but the accountability was good in that it got me exactly where I needed to be -- removed from my overwhelming pace of life and face to face with TRUTH. Refreshing, soul-enriching truth. Lifting-me-above-my-circumstances-for-fresh-perspective truth. And a reminder that I shouldn't try to do it all on my own. And that everything is going to be ok because I'm not alone. Yes, I did this: 1 -- Finally called a plumber after weeks of enduring leaky faucets. 2 -- Ate this yumminess at 10:30pm one night. Met with my financial advisor, a business consultant, and my accountant all in one week. I'm feeling quite strategic at the moment. Lots of strategery going on. Celebrating: My friend Jordan's birthday. We ended up celebrating a week late, but he still seemed pretty stoked about it. Yay for great friends and yay for any excuse to eat red velvet cake! Photographers -- there are only a few hours left to enter to win an Epiphanie camera bag of your choice AND a free album design from Align! Click here to enter before noon CST! Feeling Blessed: It's raining outside as I write this AND I get to celebrate my favorite holiday next week! I might take most of the week off of blogging in an effort to recover from aforementioned burn-out, so enjoy your Thanksgiving and I'll catch you on the other side of pumpkin pie! |
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Weddings Happy anniversary Brian & Laura! |
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| Brian and Laura were married four years ago today on 11.21.09 at The Royal Palms Resort in Phoenix. You can click here to see their original wedding blog post.
Today, in honor of these two, I asked them if they would be willing to share their favorite wedding photo and why it's so meaningful to them. They picked the above photo and Laura shared this about it: "I have way too many favorites to count, so this was a challenging task. I decided to go with this one, though, for these reasons: 1 -- I love how the black and white seems to lend an almost ethereal, spiritual glow to the photo. It literally glows with a warmth that I can feel but is hard to describe. The rabbi glows in a surreal light that seems to surround everyone under the chuppah. Spiritual is the best word. 2 -- It documents the 'breaking of the glass' which for me represents the exact moment that we became husband and wife in the Jewish tradition and officially became official! 3 -- Most poignant for me, it captures my beloved brother Gregg, the best man, who sadly and tragically passed away 10 months later. These photos are some of the very last I have of him, and I will forever cherish each one. I love knowing that he was with us and it reminds me that he always is and always will be. It reminds me that we had an angel by our side during the most important day in our lives -- a blessing we will cherish forever. And of course I love how Will, my nephew and the ring bearer, is peering forward to wait for the crack of the glass. I love how I can just feel his anticipation -- so cute!" Thank you Laura for sharing so openly. I am SO sad for the loss of your brother. I know he is deeply missed. But I have great memories of your day as well. I still remember how emotional and sweet you and Brian's first look was. Your love was palpable. Thank you again for allowing me to witness and capture it! Happy Anniversary! |
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For Photographers Where are they now? MJ2DAY Alumni Tina Jay |
| With over 150 MJ2Day alumni now taking over the globe, I thought it would be fun to do a series on my blog to check in on past attendees and see what they're up to now and how their businesses, lives and photography have been impacted by their experience at the workshop. I've heard so many fun stories from past attendees that leave me beaming with pride at their coolness and I can't wait to share!
Today, I'd like to introduce you to Tina of Tina Jay Photography -- an attendee of the very first MJ2Day ever in May of 2009. Tina is located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and specializes in weddings. She is so sweet, and stylish to boot! |
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| We get photographers at all stages of their businesses at the MJ2Day and Tina was just starting out. She had shot a few portrait sessions and had four weddings booked. Only one week after attending the workshop, she shot her very first wedding of her own. Even though she was a newbie when she attended, she knew deep down that she wanted to make a business out of wedding photography. But at the time, she was working full-time as an accountant and wasn't sure which steps to take to make her dream a reality. It turned out to be the perfect point in her journey to attend the MJ2Day and I'm so glad she did! It was such a blessing to get to know her and to be a part of seeing that dream become a reality!
I interviewed Tina for this post and I appreciate what she shared in answer to my first question: Q: What is the biggest difference in your photography since attending the MJ2Day? A: My photography has improved SO much since the MJ2DAY. There were two big changes for me. First, it gave me a lot more confidence as a photographer. Also, I learned how to look for light and use light to my advantage. I used to just run for the shade and not experiment with beautiful light. I was pushed out of my comfort zone when I saw MJ shoot! Here are some examples of Tina's work before the workshop: |
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| And here are some examples of her work since attending: |
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| Gorgeous work Tina! Way to have mastered the art of backlighting! :)
Q: What is the biggest difference in your business since attending the MJ2Day? A: The MJ2Day made an impact on every single area of my business. Before attending the workshop, I was all over the place. There is SO much to think about and learn when you’re starting your own business, and it can be completely overwhelming. I found myself jumping around a lot – one day I’d think “Oh my gosh I need to research web design! And start an awesome website asap!” Then the next day I’d be thinking “I need to start thinking about albums, and figuring out how to design them!” I was constantly jumping from one project to the next, never really completing anything I was working on. "Overwhelmed" doesn’t even begin to describe how I felt. After the MJ2DAY, I had this amazing sense of confidence and calm. It was a HUGE relief leaving the workshop feeling like, “I can DO this!” I think that was the best part of the workshop for me. Melissa puts thing in very real, attainable terms….she explains everything in a way that gives you the confidence to go out and do it on your own. She definitely doesn’t hold back! Q: What are some of your goals that you set after attending the workshop that you have since completed? A. When I attended the MJ2DAY my goal was to book more weddings in an attempt to maybe….possibly….making wedding photography my full time job one day. As much as I hate to admit it, I never thought I’d be able to do this full time. Even when I was at Melissa’s workshop I kept thinking, “Is this possible for me?” By the end of the workshop, I had concrete steps to take to further my dream. I’m SO happy to say that I’ve been a full time photographer for 3.5 years now (I left my day job 1.5 years after the workshop), booking 20-25 weddings per year. Sometimes I still can’t believe that dream became a reality. That “I can DO this!” feeling is something I’ll never forget, and I truly believe Melissa’s workshop was instrumental in my success. Q: Have you raised your prices since the workshop and/or seen a change in your booking rate? A: I have absolutely raised my prices since the workshop! They’ve just about doubled since that time. In our one-on-one chat at the end of the workshop, I distinctly remember Melissa telling me she thought I could charge $3,000 for a wedding. I thought that was CRAZY and didn’t think I would ever have anyone willing to pay me that amount. All of my weddings are booking well beyond that price now…..I wish I would have had a little more confidence & belief in myself way back when! My bookings have definitely increased since the MJ2DAY as well. Like I mentioned, I had 4 weddings on the books when I took the workshop. The following year I booked 11 weddings, and the year following that, I booked 22. I have been consistently booking 20-25 weddings per year since that point, which is my happy spot. Melissa also taught us the importance of being ourselves. When you put a web presence out there that truly focuses on who you are, and not someone you’d like to be, it’s amazing what kind of people enter your life. I honestly feel like I’d be friends with just about every couple that I have the pleasure of working with. Being yourself is such an important part of the business! Q: What relationships did you build as a result of the workshop? A: As much as I absolutely loved soaking in all of the information Melissa provided at her workshop, I can’t talk enough about the relationships I’ve gained from the workshop as well. That’s one of the best parts about attending workshops – forming relationships with people all over the country. I met one of my very closest friends, Gail, at Melissa’s workshop. Her and I clicked instantly, and I’m so glad the MJ2DAY brought her into my life. To this day, we still email each other and Skype as regularly as we can. We’ve also made it our goal to visit each other once a year, switching back and forth between Pennsylvania and Indiana. You can’t put a price on a friendship like that! I’ve also kept in touch with Allison of Allison Marie Photography, who is one of the sweetest, kindest women I’ve had the pleasure of meeting. She also runs an amazing full time photography business for herself, and I absolutely love that her and I can bounce business ideas off of each other, or just give each other advice when any issues come up. It was SUCH a great group of attendees at the workshop, which made the experience even better than I could have anticipated. |
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| Speaking of Allison and Gail, one of the coolest experiences was that we all reunited about two years after the workshop for Allison’s wedding. Allison hired Gail as her wedding photographer, and Gail in turn hired me to fly out and second shoot with her! It was a perfect wedding, and I was SO much fun that we were all able to have that experience together!
Q: Are there any other changes or exciting developments you'd like to share? A: I can’t speak highly enough about the MJ2DAY experience. I’ve attended many workshops, but Melissa’s is one of two that I recommend to anyone I talk to. If you’re in the beginning stages of your business, or feel like you need to step up your game, don’t hesitate to sign up. It had SUCH an impact on my personal life and my business, one that I can’t put a price on. I left the workshop with confidence, concrete goals, and steps to achieve those goals, as well as amazing friendships. Those were the huge takeaways I had from the MJ2DAY. It also improved my workflow so I wasn’t constantly chained to my computer, and I’ve even been published on a few wedding blogs (Delancey and Penn, Wed Loft, and Bayside Bride) since that time! I’m so glad there are people like Melissa in the photography industry. She runs an AMAZING and impressive business, and she’s an open book when you attend her workshop. Besides that, she is such a sweet, warm-hearted person, and you can truly feel that she wants to help everyone succeed. Keep doing what you’re doing Melissa!! Wow Tina -- thank you for your kind words! And you have SO MANY exciting things to celebrate!! I'm so proud of you and blown away by your growth!! I can't wait to see where the coming years take you! Thank you for sharing so openly with us. If you're a photographer and would love to take your photography and business to the next level like Tina has, join us at an upcoming MJ2Day! The Phoenix workshop in January is sold out with a waiting list, but we still have spots open for June in California! It promises to be beautiful and life-changing! |
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