Category: Personal

Schedule your portraits now or forever hold your peace

Hi, everyone!

I usually don’t do posts like this, but based on what happened last year and the amount of weddings we have this year, I know that I should. :D

I have gone through my schedule for the year and blocked off weddings and sessions and set aside time for editing, orders, rehearsal attendance, travel, etc. With all of that included, I have anywhere from about 1-3 slots left for portraits per month for the remainder of the year (except December, which is always open!). So if you’re thinking about booking portraits for sometime this year, I suggest doing it soon/now/ASAP! No amount of tears or begging can open up an extra slot, so planning is key here. :) I have very specific days open, so it would kind of be like setting up a doctor’s appointment. :)

If you are owed a session with your wedding package but have not scheduled it yet, you need to do so also as soon as possible. That takes slots away that could otherwise be gobbled up by other portrait people. :)

Portraits are taken on a first come, first serve basis. This means that you actually have to have the contract signed and back to me in order to be booked – sometimes multiple people request the same dates, or the same time frame, and only one of them can have it, so if you want it you must sign the contract. :) Unfortunately, inquiring doesn’t count. :( Please plan accordingly and as soon as possible. Thank you! :D

xoxo – Carolyn

CSP News: Make the switch from DVD to USB

Hey folks!

I e-mailed my general client database this morning to inform those which this switch immediately affects, but I’d like to tell the rest of you too… you know, so you’re in the loop and all that. ;) We have officially switched from DVDs to USB drives. Why?

We’re a big fan of Lightscribe. It etches an image into the DVD instead of printing out a picture and adhering it onto a DVD. It’s much more effective and lasts a longer longer. Eventually labels peel off or your disc will become unreadable because of the weight issues with labels stuck onto DVDs. So we Lightscribed all of our stuff… etching in images and names and makin’ them fancy. Unfortunately (and unbeknownst to us), there are some computers (both Mac and PC) that can’t read Lightscribe DVDs. This was brought to our attention by a wonderful (and understanding) client who owned both a Mac and PC… neither of which would read our DVDs. We gave them a regular DVD which it read fine and we realized: Uh oh… perhaps this is happening to a few people who haven’t spoken up but have had to use the computer of relatives and friends to read these DVDs. That scared us. And made us sad. All at the same time. It of course turned out that this was true… and I’ve already received one e-mail back since I announced the switch thanking me because their computer also could not read the DVD. :( Bad news bears.

The second reason we’re switching is because Apple’s new Mac mini does not have a DVD drive. So, uh, how would you see your pictures? A lot of our clients have Macs… and we like to be on top of technology and enable our clients to actually be able to use their pictures… so we’re making the switch. :)

On top of that, USB drives are pretty sweet. They’re small, easy to carry around, and useful. We’d recommend putting the files onto your computer and backing it up just as we would a DVD, and this makes it easier to do. They’re made from eco-friendly bamboo and are inscribed with the CSP logo. Tada!