An accounting firm with personality?  I know, I thought it was a myth, too.  Until I met these guys.  Laughing, joking, having fun with one another – these accountants are a far cry from the stereotype of classic number people.  (No offense intended to accountants out there – you know the stigma of your industry!)  I enjoyed taking their corporate portraits last Friday for their new website.  I hope these images can convey some of the personalities at their office, and make their firm stand out from the more cookie-cutter accountant websites out there.  Happy Monday!

John came out of the office with a crazy joker-esque smile.  He wasn’t being creepy – he’d had three quadrants of his jaw numbed with novocain.  We were visiting his family in Milwaukee this last week, and he took the opportunity to have his sister, Dr. Nancy Larson, fill three cavities.   While he was slowly trying to regain feeling in his face, I had the pleasure of photographing the office and all the partners at the practice for their upcoming website.

If you or a family member live in Milwaukee, I’d highly recommend these three.  They have such a pleasant office, and everyone working there is so friendly and knowledgeable.  It’s a shame they don’t practice in Denver!

I’ll be honest, I laughed.  When I mentioned to a friend that I was going to photograph a couple of plumbers for Garvin’s, the response I got was “don’t get any crack in the photos.”  Kind of a lame joke, but it did make me laugh a bit.  No crack.  Just smiles from two of their friendly guys. :)

It’s Monday – let’s do something corporate to celebrate :) Here are a few of the headshots taken of Larry and Shara of Roundhouse Advisors, Inc this afternoon.

Larry could barely stand up after we took this first shot – he’s knees were not happy with me.  I asked in advance if it would be hard on his legs to squat like that, but Larry took it more as a challenge than a question and just did it.  Regardless, I think it was well worth the effort, but I guess only Larry can be the judge of that one :)

Happy Monday!

Maybe you can’t keep your eyes open for photos.  Or you always have red eye and look washed out.  Perhaps you have a cheesy “camera smile” that comes out of nowhere when you see a camera.  For whatever reason, you’ve decided you are not photogenic.  Terribly, horribly, irreparably un-photogenic.  You should just never have your photo taken again because you’ll always look horrible.  Wrong!

If you think you aren’t photogenic, you simply haven’t worked with the right photographer.  Or maybe you haven’t worked with a photographer at all.  People judge themselves as not photogenic because photos their friends take of them at parties never turn out well.  Of course not!  Direct flash, red eye, poor timing, too many cocktails…it’s a perfect storm of ickiness.

The best photos of people arise from natural moments when they aren’t posing for the camera, aren’t making their characteristic photo face – aren’t over-thinking it.  That’s why documentary photography is the best way to get great photos of everyone.  I’ve had many clients who think they don’t look good in photos, or don’t like having pictures taken.  Once they’ve taken photos with me, they’re usually singing a different tune.

So what’s the secret?  There’s a few.  Professional equipment is one, alongside professional training (it helps to know how that fancy camera works, after all :) )  Beyond that, there is a skill to making someone feel comfortable in front of the camera.  This involves taking time to allow them to settle into a groove and knowing what to say to encourage good photographs.  It’s just as much a part of a photographer’s style as their Photoshop work.

When you find the person that can make you really look like you, chances are you’ll never want anyone else to take your photo.  Once you’ve gotten good ones, you’ll never go back.  And you’ll never say you’re not photogenic again.

I had a number of corporate headshot appointments this week, and decided just to roll them into one blog post to keep it simple.  It’s so important to have your photo on your business website.  It builds an instant connection between you and your client, and makes you identifiable.  I think having a portrait also makes you seem more friendly, but maybe that’s just me.  Whatever the reason, I’m glad these four people now have new images for their websites and social media tools -and that they thought of me to take them!

As of July 15, 2010, this will be the new deposit policy for Tracy Carolyn Photography.

Portraits A $50 deposit is due when you book your session date.  This deposit will be applied to your session fee, and is non-refundable.  It is transferrable, however, should you need to reschedule your appointment.  The remaining balance is due the day of your session.

Weddings and Events A deposit of 30% is due with a signed contract to reserve your date.  This deposit is non-refundable.  The remaining balance is due two weeks prior to the event.

Boudoir Marathons A $50 deposit is required to book your time slot on a marathon day.  Any hair and makeup fees will be due upfront, since I pay the stylist in advance.  This deposit is non-refundable and non-transferable.

Thanks for wading through the boring business stuff.  Since everything is better with a photo, here’s an engagement favorite :)

Like most of us, Dave is multidimensional.  He has a corporate side – suit, tie, jacket.  Serious accountant Dave.  But then he has his casual side – jeans, baseball cap, tennis shoes.  Happy dog owner Dave.

We combined both sides into one for his portrait shoot yesterday.  Dave had photos of him alone, so I thought Sadie should get some, too.  She’s just so darn cute.

So I seriously considered doing a portrait marathon day in St. Louis – one of those long days where everyone gets 30 minutes of  my time, and hardly any of my attention.  But let’s be real – how much can you really get out of a 30 minute session?  If nothing else, I want to be able to talk to all of my favorite St. Louis people for more than 30 minutes and catch up on life!  So instead, I’m offering a week of full sessions!

A limited number of appointments will be scheduled during the week of June 9 – June 14th.  We’ll go anywhere you want to have your picture taken and do a full session (none of this mini business!)  You’ll also get a DVD with a high resolution copy of every photo from your session, with no copyright restrictions. I’ve raised prices in Denver to $350 for this kind of session, but for this week in St. Louis it’s only $250!  (You save $100 just ’cause I like you :) ).

These sessions will likely fill up quickly, so please contact me as soon as possible to set up your time!  I’m so excited to shoot in St. Louis!

Meet my Dad.  He’s an executive-type.  His old headshots looked stale and kinda stodgy (I can say that because I took them myself 3 years ago.)  He needed an update.

He demonstrated Blue Steel during his photo shoot.  I tastefully deleted the image.  I may or may not have been bribed to do so.  Probably not :)