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The fall season can really get busy, as the weather tends to be nice, and the holidays are soon upon us! This is a great time to get out of your comfort zone and run some fall mini sessions. Maybe just the thought of mini sessions bring about panic and heart palpitations, but they don’t …

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Business

Your Guide to (Stress-Free) Fall Mini Sessions

Confession time: I have a love-hate mini sessions relationship.  My clients love them, and love when I offer the micro-sized events.  I hate mini sessions.  HATE.  They cause me more stress, anxiety, and dread than any other work I do.   More than once, I’ve wondered: Why do I hate mini sessions? Do I have to …

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Genres

It’s Okay to Hate Mini Sessions (And How To Improve Your Experience!)

Let’s Get Organized! Managing Content Calendars, Social Media Scheduling, and More! With Mandy Liz Marketing ourselves on social media can feel overwhelming with many asking themselves — “where should I start, what should I post, and how can I drive engagement with my audience?” In today’s episode, we chat to photographer and personal brand expert …

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Business

Find Your Focus Podcast: Episode 42

Yes, I offer free mini sessions in my photography business.   No, I’m not crazy.  At least not for that reason.   Today, I’ll share with you how I structure my mini-sessions, why I occasionally offer them for free and how that has helped grow my business. The Origin of the Free Mini Session I struggled with …

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Business

How Free Mini Sessions Helped Grow My Business

Christmas always seems to be around the corner (no matter what time of year)! Families tend to want to plan early to purchase holiday cards, so it’s never too easy to get a head start as a photographer! Christmas mini sessions can be a really lucrative offering for your business if you are willing to …

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Business

Planning Your Christmas Mini Sessions (So You’re Not Stressed Out)

DSLRs vs. Mirrorless Cameras — Is it Worth the Switch? With Shalonda Chaddock Many photographers are currently considering moving from their tried and trusty DSLR camera to a newer and shinier mirrorless model. If you are one of them, this is definitely the episode for you! Shalonda Chaddock joins us on the podcast again to …

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Gear

Find Your Focus Podcast: Episode 41

Avoiding Sparkly Object Syndrome: Top Investments for Your Business Episode 40: Show Notes. As photographers, it is always easy to get excited about the latest and greatest piece of equipment and imagine how it will be improving our photos and upping our game. In this episode, we explore why this mindset can often be the …

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Gear

Find Your Focus Podcast: Episode 40

If I asked you if you enjoy selling photography prints, what would your answer be?  I’m guessing you’d say things like ick, yuck, ugh, or even just a definitive NO! But if I asked you the following questions, would your answer change? Do you enjoy serving your clients? Are you willing to help clients solve …

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Business

The Secret Sauce of Selling Photography Prints. (HINT: It’s Not about the Money)

Sometimes we can get so caught up in the hamster wheel of our businesses, that we lose that feeling of inspiration and love for photography that got us started. It is when you can really share that love you have with the world is when things get REALLY good. This is where photography passion projects …

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Photography

Fuel Your Photography: Passion Projects that Nourish the Soul

Nikon is a popular camera that’s compatible with multiple lenses. A standard DSLR lens is the 50mm Nikon 1.8. There are two variations of these lenses: the D or the G. The f 1.8 D is the older edition of the 50mm 1.8 Nikon lens, while the G is a newer, more updated version. There …

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Gear

Lens Review: Nikon 50mm 1.8 D vs 1.8 G

If you recently shopped for a digital camera, you probably heard or read something about HDR photography or dynamic range. Unless you know something about modern photography, you may be wondering what is dynamic range, and why does it matter?  What Is Dynamic Range in Photography? In photography, the term dynamic range refers to your …

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Photography

What is Dynamic Range and How it Affects Light

Stitching photos together is the process of taking multiple images and placing them side by side to form a panoramic photo. Adobe Lightroom offers an easy-to-use photo merge Panorama so you can build beautiful panoramic images. In this article, we’ll show you how to stitch photos together in Lightroom so you can rebuild the look …

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Editing

How to Seamlessly Stitch Photos Together in Lightroom

Photographers spend a lot of time ensuring we have the right settings during a session. We spend hours in front of our monitors tweaking an image to get it to look just right. We pour over educational courses looking for ways to improve our technique and business acumen. But we don’t talk a lot about …

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Photography

The Mindset Shift I Made In My Photography Business That Changed Everything

If you ever worked with Photoshop, you probably heard the term Smart Object. It may seem like a small thing, but a Smart Object can be a valuable tool if you know how to use it. Read on if you want to know about Photoshop Smart Objects. What Are Smart Objects For? Essentially, a Smart …

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Editing

What Is a Smart Object in Photoshop?

Solar filters help protect both you and your camera from the intense effect of the sun’s light, and you’ll need to invest in one if you plan on photographing the sun. Most solar filters cost upwards of $100, so thrifty photographers have been building their own DIY solar filters instead of purchasing one for years.  …

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Editing

How to Make a Solar Filter for Your Camera

Even the most talented photographers in the world will tell you, your education as a photographer never ends.  That’s where EXIF data comes in. EXIF data is recorded every time a photo is taken, and it can provide you with valuable insight into the tools and settings the photographer used to capture that image. Today, …

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Gear

What is EXIF Data and How to Use the Information