What A Difference 5 Years Makes.

Vanessa Wells Images is 5 years old this month.  Wooo Hooo! It has been an exciting journey. I have met so many amazing people, some of the are clients and some of them are peers. I consider all of them friends.

I was so green around the gills 5 years ago, that I didn’t know what I was doing. I had been searching the internet trying to teach myself, but that was like riding bumper cars.

I was introduced to organizations like the Professional Photographers of America (PPA), Metro Professional Photographers of America (MPPA) and Professional Photographers of Oklahoma (PPOK) which are great for networking and education.  It is thru these organizations that I have found many friends, some are local  and some are in other states. I have received many hours of education and learning, such as how to run a business and to be an Entrepreneur. I have learned about photography, lighting, composition and so much more.. It seem the more I know, the more I don’t know, and I want to know what I don’t know. Ya know what I mean?

In this time frame, I have studied and passed the difficult requirements of becoming a Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) as recognized by PPA. I will say that, earning my CPP has been one of the highlights of my career and so rewarding for me personally and professionally.  I have entered print competition where I have earned my first merit towards my Masters of Photography Degree. The Master of Photography Degree required 25 merits total between service and image competition. They say its not the end that matters it’s journey in between. I still have a long way to go.

I get excited creating art and freezing a moment in time for my clients and to work on personal projects for me. When I am behind the lens it seems like the world stops and I don’t have a care in the world.  Photography is my JAM! it’s what I think about all the time. How to read light, move the body, how to run a business.  Photography truly is my passion and never feels like work. Photography is my JAM!

Let me freeze a moment in time for you.

How do you show your family portraits?

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Recently I did a session for a family that I have known for years. They are an awesome, fun-filled, love to laugh, giving family. I don't think I have ever laughed so much during a session as I did during their session.  I was so honored and excited when they asked me to shoot their family portraits, which was a mother's day gift to mom.  How awesome is that, what a great gift for a mother. Portraits that she can look at and treasure for years to come.  I received a message with a picture showing how they are displaying their portraits. I have to say, it is so neat and well put together.  Do you have space that needs updated family portraits? Fall is fast approaching and it's a great time with the cooler weather and amazing fall colors to take family pictures. They make great Christmas gifts too.  Contact me to get on the schedule before it's all booked up. www.vanessawellsimages.com

Why I choose to print.

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WHY I CHOOSE TO PRINT

When I was a senior in high school I didn’t get senior pictures. Actually I did, but since I was paying for this myself, I couldn’t afford much.  I had them taken as required by the school/studio.  A few poses were chosen and purchased in the 4x6 size.   I made copies of the 4x6 prints, which resulted in very dark and over saturated pictures. Oh my… how wrong was I back then.

When Danielle, my eldest became a senior I knew she was going to have the senior pictures I never had. You know what I’m talking about. We all want our kids to have what we didn’t. The session was set up and we carefully picked the outfits that would represent who she was.  A few weeks later and several hundred dollars and I have a beautiful senior portrait on my wall.

When it came time for Kiley, my youngest to have her senior pictures taken we did the studio session for yearbook purposes. But we also wanted something different. Not your typical studio look and feel. We wanted the on location look and feel.  She was a soccer player and we wanted to incorporate that into her pictures.  We hired a photographer, had the session and a couple weeks later we had the CD in hand with her senior pictures.  We were so excited to finally have her senior pictures and get them hung on the wall next to her sister’s portrait. At the time, I thought this was the easiest and cheapest way to go. Easiest because I would not have to sit down with someone to pick and choose.  I could do that from the comfort of my own home on my own time. I wasn’t accountable to anyone.

Many of you know what it’s like when you have a senior in the house. There are so many activities and functions and things on the calendar, this in addition to everyday life. You get busy and don’t have time for anything else..much less decide which picture you like the best and what size and who gets what and where to print. Graduation came and went as did summer then college. Needless to say, I didn’t print any of her senior pictures. To this day I still do not have any of her pictures on the wall. Sad but very true. It’s not because I didn’t like them. Time just got away from me. I wasn’t held accountable.  You know what they say out of sight out of mind.  The CD was put away and I forgot about it.  Uber fail on my part. In fact I went and searched out the CD for this blog and I’ll be printing some out.  Soon I’ll have both sisters’ senior portraits on my wall.

When I opened my business I knew immediately what I wanted my business model to be. I wanted to be a full service photographer for my clients. I want to ease the stress and for them to have a great experience from beginning to end.  I mean really…who needs or wants more stress in their life.  I want to help them pick their favorites images and sizes and know when they return from the lab the color is the same color as the pictures in their gallery. Not the dark or overly saturated ugliness.  All my clients have to do is hang the pictures in their home. Easy peasy no stress, just pure excitement, joy and happiness. Your memories deserve prints.

If you would like a stress free fun session contact me at www.vanessawellsimages.com and we’ll get you on the books.

Photo credit would go to the studio, but I don't remember who the studio was or if they are still in business.

PORTRAITS IN THE PARK

PORTRAITS IN THE PARK

The torrential rain has finally stopped and the flooding has subsided. The sun is shining and the Oklahoma heat wave has arrived. With that comes the beautiful green grass, trees are full of leaves and people are buzzing around enjoying all the outside activities.

I recently did a session for a gorgeous family in the Myriad Gardens Park. This family of 5 oozes love and they know how to have fun and aren’t afraid to show it. We had a ton of fun and laughed a lot as each of their personalities came thru, mom was making sure the girls had lip gloss, dad was taking selfies with Nikon and brother was waiting on bubble gum after the session. This is why I love this job. When you're able to catch the pure love, joy, laughter and emotions of their relationships. Every family needs to have pictures to decorate their walls, to share with their families near and far and to share with their future generations.

Mom and dad just celebrated their anniversary and I was beyond excited that I was asked to take their portraits.  They'll have new portraits on their walls in no time and mom and dad will have updated pictures for their desks at work.

When was the last time you updated your portraits for walls at home or your desks? Do you have an anniversary coming up? What a great time to update your pictures.

Contact me so we can set up your session.