St. Louis Photographer » A Journal by Holly McCaig

I forgot to share this in the last post for Christina + Jeremy!

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Melissa pointed something out at her workshop the other day when she showed us a photo with the bluest sky. I had read this before, here. See Myth #2 – I never tried it before. But, I know now that I can achieve this result, as it’s more aware to me. Hey, look at that? I did it without even knowing it at the wedding I shot with Megan Morgan in Ohio this summer! The stringed lights above were mesmerizing me the entire time. I only had wished that all the guests would have been able to dance outside, under the lights. Unfortunately, it got rainy and cold. The festivities moved inside the yacht club instead. Me? I stood outside and kept playing.

Ahhh, home sweet home. It’s always nice to get off the plane, get your luggage and come home to wagging butts of my doggies. I was away for a week. I loved every minute of my trip this time. It’s never enough either. When I leave, Audra and I always say, it’s just not enough time! This time though, I really suffered from my allergies and the dust that was blowing around a lot in the Phoenix area. It’s actually nice to get back to the humidity and rain for a little relief.

One of the purposes of my trip was the MJ2Day workshop for photographers hosted by Melissa Jill. She’s one of the most sought after wedding photographers in her area and was a wealth of information that will be invaluable to me for years to come. I came away with so much inspiration. It will totally set me apart from what other photographers are doing and I cannot wait to implement the ideas and my own revelations.

Read Melissa’s post today!

The first day together, Melissa hosted a mock engagement session. Seeing how she interacts with her couples is amazing. It flows so well and I love this shot of the couple. I didn’t shoot much because I really wanted to watch what she was doing.

Here’s some of the photographers that attended, getting in on the action!

I can’t say enough about these people that attended. I know that I was rewarded with an amazing group of friends that I’ll have for a long time. People that had the same thoughts and concerns about business, as I did. People that want the same things I want in my business. It’s a gift. On the last day, we all went to Gilbert to get headshots from Melissa and to photograph each other. I didn’t have enough time to get to everyone. We were having so much fun! Here’s a few!

This is the talented, Amanda Pair! She’s adorable. Got to see her at the airport this morning as I was waiting at the skycab!

This is the sweet, Anna Swarin – from CT! Love this chick and how she wanted to twirl for me…like I have my seniors do!

Robin first had me play with “the ball” but then we had her splash the water towards us! SO CUTE huh? Love this! And, Robin Watson below!

Bruce came all the way from Canada and was the only dude. But, his adorable wife came and joined us for dinner one night. They are so cute! Go Bruce Clarke!

Dallas was full of good info and very photogenic!

Jessica is the most excellent cook that fixed our dinner the second night. And, talk about a FUNNY lady! I truly enjoyed her!

Lucy was one of the carpool buddies with my group. I had fun talking to her about our thoughts about the workshop on the drives.

What can I say about Kelly? SO cute! She got in the fountain for us! She’s in Atlanta, and I sure hope to get to see her again since I will be down that way in a few weeks.

I didn’t get any of Denise, Janna, Courtney – I could have spent hours with these guys! I can’t say enough about how important it is to continue to educate yourself. Budget for the really rewarding workshops – you owe it to your business!

Now, back to the grind of work tomorrow!

Being that I’m slightly crafty, I enjoy a good idea that involves doing it yourself. I especially love a lot of the new, DIY ideas from Martha Stewart and weddings. I’m REALLY into details. I love photographing them, so when I see that a couple has put a lot of fun, unique ideas into place for their big day, that makes me giddy!

This weekend, I’m doing a little DIY stuff for my studio props: painting, sanding, crackling, drilling…ya know, normal stuff (ha). And, I figured I could dedicate a little blog post to some of my “Martha” loves on her site. Never underestimate how much fun a lot of cute, fun, details that cost so little can bring so much to your big day!

Place cards: I think these are remarkable. I wish more people did these to help you find your seat. I know for me, I’ve been to weddings where you’re walking around the tables, looking for where you’re supposed to sit. These can be at the front door, and then you can go RIGHT to your table. These are some of my most favs:

This ribbon idea for the board is cute!

I love that these are so out of the norm. And, your guests can take them with them!

And, what a CUTE idea! Costs so little with lots of scrap papers or fabrics!

Photo Ideas: I LOVE doing these types of cute, snapshots! I’m working on a fun little, self-shooting box setup to take to wedding receptions with me. Doing fun things like this gets your guests really involved and having more fun. Plus, you get some great memories from your big day.

And, for more awesome ideas, check out Style Me Pretty’s blog and their DIY category! LOTS of yummy, crafty, DIY goodness!

Not as much as I would have liked to share, but it’s a busy day! Thought you’d like these little inspiring tidbits on a Sunday! ENJOY!

So, here’s a little design/news update for you.

First off, I wanted to share with you, this:

I designed these t-shirts so I could get them printed to give to new bride and grooms that sign a contract with me for weddings. Now, I have to get Jake to get them printed! I figured, they are just too cute to NOT share with other photographers, so you can purchase the designs at Pink Ink Studios for $60. You get both the .PSD and a Vector file in .AI to use. My store at Pink Ink Studios lately has mostly the things I design for my own studio use.

And, because it’s been mostly photography-related designs, I failed myself to keep up with my commitments in the digital scrapbooking world. So, I am no longer creating anything new for sale at Two Peas in a Bucket (I am still waiting on a response for if my stuff stays there or gets removed or what – so sorry for the vagueness, I just don’t have any answers!). I enjoyed designing for their audience, but as I mentioned before, my time just goes towards my photography business. I hate saying I’ll retire, so I won’t. I won’t say “never”. In fact, I am pretty sure you’ll see me working on future projects and maybe giving away a few things here and there. Life and times are just evolving.

I hope to get some more new designs up at Pink Ink Studios as I complete them for the business. Things like Grad Announcements and Save the Dates (other wedding related products for my clients too). SMOOCHIES!