Showing posts with label kella macphee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kella macphee. Show all posts

Chris and Kella Launch Suburban Camping Company! plus a little Seth on "shipping" which reminded me of their venture and Meditation part lll


Kella and Chris MacPhee have launched their amazing new business called Suburban Camping Company - operating in the NJ area at the moment - they bring the outdoor camping experience to any backyard and they make that experience amazing - "they offer the smell of burnt marshmallows, the feel of wet grass and the sound of storytelling"

I just love it!

Hubby and I are going to schedule the Tent for Two for our anniversary in August. It features a vintage-style tent set up in our backyard with a comfy bed and lots of old school camping props, drinks and even breakfast in bed - it is pure genius!



They have lots of family and kids packages including a wonderful little send off party for Harry Potter's final episode with cots and sleeping bags and an outdoor movie set-up - I'll post more on these later, but check out their site HERE!

(we will probably rent the movie, too - we have to decide which movie we want to watch on a gigantic outdoor screen - what is the best anniversary movie - probably something classic - maybe Kate Hepburn I love her)

Now I have really dropped the ball on this meditation series and I thought for certain week 3 (week 5 now) was the week these instructions talked about inward vs. outward meditation, but it turns out week 3 simply introduces the addition of 3 cleansing breaths

(which you must step outdoors to do - or at least stick your head out the window)

so after we have finished our meditation - in my case when my oven alarm sounds letting me know my time is up - we go outside and take 3 deep, slow cleansing breaths. This is a release and renewal step that helps with grounding. Even when things are really crazy we can always find time for this grounding step and something about deep breathing fresh air always helps me think straight. Next week our inward / outward focus with this thing gets introduced.

Seth's talk about "shipping" -

(what we do for a living is not 'be creative' what we do for a living is 'ship')

at the 99% conference is something makers will just love and reminded me of what Kella and Chris are doing with their new business! I think you will like it.


* breathe print at TwoPaperdollsShop

Friday Finds - Summer is a Coming!

"A life without love is like a year without summer." ~ Swedish Proverb
Photobucket

1. savannah bee company tupelo honey
2. velorbis bicycle with wooden crate
3. alice supply company garden tools
4. cb2 oscar planters
5. seltzer studios picnic set
6. alice supply company hose
7. push me pull you the fox and the stork print
8. rosewebs lawn chair wallet
9. gudrun sjoden floral topper

Another amazing stack to get your weekend started right brought to us by the amazing wedding photog and stacker of all things stackable Kella MacPhee.

Another Saturday Night and What I Ain't Got....

Home alone this Saturday night, so a good time to scout around the web and find us some total awesomeness!

Like this gorgeous textured rug by Gan Rugs that will freak out your feet, these amazing wedding portraits by my favorite wedding photojournalist Kella MacPhee of Faye and Mike's Asbury Park wedding last weekend, Lola Falk's gorgeous clutches, Keetra Dixon's beautiful layered wax now showing at I Space in Chicago, love these new cans of tea, how cool is this sliding barn door for your closet - I really, really want to make this

Rachel Demsick of GetReadySetGo's amazing vintage luggage (have bought 2 of these so far) and Rachel has a locket, gotta love this armoire turned into a bird house, SF's parking spaces into parks- how cool is that, round the corner picture frames, the park seat that you do NOT want to collapse on you - ouch! - the happiest pendant lamps I've seen lately!
















hiring (?) MODELS

Well, I didn't exactly "hire" them, unless you count the pizza I have promised, but haven't delivered on yet (after all models can't actually eat pizza, right?). At the urging of Noelle, of Xenotees, to get some 'models' in my pics I "hired" these two pretty (and familiar) faces- what cha' think?



Tips for Photographing Jewelry from the Amazing Kella MacPhee


Today I asked my favorite Jersey Girl Photographer Kella MacPhee - check her out and prepare to be blown away - for some quick tips to better jewelry photographs. Kella says - Interesting + FAKE IT LIKE A PRO photos can be achieved in 3 steps! #1 Light. Turn that blinding automatic flash off! The built in flash on a camera is a photographer's worst enemy and will ruin any shot. Your best bet is to invest in a lightbox, they are not too much money and will ensure that you get even light and the proper white balance every time! {www.bhphotovideo.com} This will eliminate the need to fuss with camera settings before photographing your products each time. If you're saying to yourself, hey I'm a starving artist here, I don't have money for a fancy lightbox, but still want great photos try cheap, however unpredictable sunlight! Not as practical as the lightbox, but beautiful none the less. Some examples would be the soft and diffused light of a window {try setting up a table with your art next to a window} another option is venturing outdoors. Two rules to keep in mind: first you stay out of that midday sun- your photos will have harsh shadows and be blown out! {even your jewelry does not like to look pasty} {early morning and late afternoon are best} and 2. when shooting outside in light other than those great early morning hours and the "magic hour" before sunset, look for even shade, there is nothing worse than mottled light. Using light properly will ensure you have clean, evenly lit, pro looking pics!
#2. Angle. Change your angle. Eye catching photos are created by thinking outside the box. Long gone are the days when photos need to be shot straight on.. so 1992 and so boring! Try setting your camera down and shooting at the same level as the product. Another technique is to shoot up at the product... creating some drama. Shooting straight down and I mean straight down, get your butt up on that chair can also be interesting and modern. Play around and have fun, look at some of your favorite sellers and see what it is about them that is catching your eye.
#3. Composition. Think outside the center. Centered images are boring! Negative space is king! Try placing your product on the left side and leaving the right side empty. Interesting photos are not always achieved by filling up space. Leaving room for your products to breathe can create these artistic + pro images you're after. Check out these beautiful photos by lilfishstudios and tqbdesigns.Another method is layering, now this is where it gets technical, for all you point and shooters out there cover your eyes. Gosh darn it control that depth of field if using a manual camera, think larger apertures like 2.8 or 4 {I know these seem like small #'s, but they really are large and let in more light, creating only a small portion of the image in focus.. yada, yada} by using a shallower depth of field and being in control over what you decide you want in focus, you will instantly have more professional pics. So show a variety of pics on your page, but maybe one can have a the pendant of your necklace in focus while the chain is not. Some of the most interesting photos are only parts of subjects, leaving the viewer intrigued or an interesting composition allowing your eye to move around the image.REMEMBER you are artists appealing to creative buyers .. this is not ebay.. the first thing people see is the photos.. be creative and HAVE FUN!