It was a great session– it’s always fun when people bring props to their sessions. There are so many different photos to choose from!

We had a great time taking your senior photos, Mark! Thanks for choosing Pam Long Photography!

Laura is a big bookworm, and for her photos she brought five bags full of her favorite reading material. We had a great time stacking up the piles into a tunnel for Laura to lie down under and read her favorite book, and everyone got into it! Her collection was envy-inducing: the entire Harry Potter series (bought in England!), Le Morte D’Arthur, Edgar Allen Poe, Looking for Alaska, a whole bunch of books by Tamora Pierce…I would name many more than that, if I could remember them all! It was a super unique set of photos, and lots of fun–especially when she stood up and knocked them all down!
Laura is also a budding photographer, and that lent a whole new set of ideas for portraits. But I won’t ruin the fun: check out some of the samples below!
All in all, it was a great time, one of my favorites so far. Laura, we had a great time doing your senior photos, and we hope you did too!

Fun with the whole family!

Laura’s brother Chris got his senior portraits with us as well!  Chris is an awesome senior at Mount St. Joseph.

And our magnificent book piles come tumbling down!

And now, a note from Pam.  Wow, what great sessions we had with this incredible family! Jodi, thank you so much for contacting us and choosing Pam Long Photography as your photography studio for your family portraits as well and your senior portraits.  We had a magnificent time with your entire family.  I had a great time planning your different sessions with you, photographing and getting to know your family and having you back in the Studio for your Portrait Premiere. It was fun watching you all interact together.  It’s been a true pleasure getting to know you and your family.  Thank you.

Rachel, you are a gem.  Thank you for your assistance during the sessions, for your genuine love of photography and for wanting to be the best you can be.  I’m honored to have you interning with Pam Long Photography this year!  And congrats on your first blogpost!!!

Your smiles can help provide a smile for a child in need!

This year we will be raising money for Operation Smile, www.operationsmile.org, which treats children around the world who suffer with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities.  More than 100,000 children are born with a facial deformity every year in Operation Smile partner countries, yet tens of thousands remain untreated.

Sunday, October 23rd from 11a.m. – 5 p.m.,  we will be having a fantastic time celebrating your children, family and this beautiful weather. The colors of Autumn are vibrant, the weather is gorgeous, the time has come for our Limited Edition Fall portrait sessions.  At Pam Long Photography, we have designed a wonderful outdoor session that brings the magic of the fall season to you!  Your beautiful smiles and laughter will complement the season, creating timeless portraits of your children that you will cherish for years to come!

These Limited Edition sessions will be held in our Garden Studio with a backdrop of natural grasses and fallen leaves, ideal for timeless portraits of your children.

Documenting the faces of children and their families is our greatest pleasure.  That’s why we feel so strongly in the work of Operation Smile.  Please check out  www.operationsmile.org.  For as little as $240, we can help provide a cleft lip or cleft palate surgery…..translation…..we schedule 10 sessions, we provide one surgery for a very deserving child!

Sessions are only $75.00!

• $25 of your session fee will be donated to Operation Smile.
• Limited Edition packages start at just $199!
• 30 minute sessions
• 10% discount on all gallery wrapped canvas portraits created from these sessions.
• 10% discount on holiday cards created from these sessions.

Our special Limited Edition pricing will be in effect, and availability is limited. Call 410.719.0405 now to schedule your appointment.  Session fee of $75 is due upon booking to reserve your space.

This is the perfect time to capture and update your child’s portrait…even your family portrait if you choose!

We’re looking forward to sharing some cider, hot cocoa and treats while creating beautiful portraits for you!

Thank you for choosing Pam Long Photography to document those special times in your family’s life!

Nicole was up for a great combination of portraits; she really wanted to celebrate this amazing time of their lives. She is gorgeous, loves to laugh, she’s a natural with children, and has a kind heart. Joel was a trooper. He enjoyed watching sports on the big screen during Nicole’s session and was ready to join in whenever we needed him, didn’t even complain when I put him to work holding the reflector . I really enjoyed spending the afternoon with them while creating some maternity photos.

Thank you, Joel and Nicole.  It was an honor for me to document this miraculous time of your lives.  I’m looking forward to meeting Kaitlin. She is very lucky to have you as parents!

xoxo

As a business owner, you face many challenges of keeping up with the demands of running a business successfully.  And, by successfully, I’m talking about consistently delivering beautiful and high quality products, consistently providing great client service, taking care of the needs of your clients whether they are in your Studio, on location, on the telephone, or on the other end of an email, researching new equipment, maintaining current equipment, finances and accounting, creating marketing pieces, continuing education by scheduling and attending classes, seminars, webinars, and conventions,  keeping up with social media to keep your ‘name’ in front of your clients and potential clients, and giving back to your community.  If you are a business owner you know that I could go on and on with a much longer list but for the sake of getting to my exciting news, I’ll end it there!

As a photographer, we may focus on weddings, maternity, babies, children, family, engagement, high school seniors and boudoir, in studio, on location….whew, it’s a lot! Each of those I LOVE to photograph but in reality, I’ve had to stop marketing for some for the sake of maintaining a high level of client service.  I made a difficult decision a couple of years ago to only accept a handful of weddings each year.  My youngest was beginning Kindergarten and my weekends became even more important.  As much as I totally love my wedding couples, I had to make a difficult business decision and cut back on weddings.

Senior photography has been a passion of mine and I LOVE to photograph seniors, but I didn’t have a ‘formal’ senior program, couldn’t spend time marketing to them yet and wasn’t planning on rolling out my official senior program until 2012-2013. Well,…..and here’s the exciting news……I now have a fantastic Senior Program,…..here’s the more exciting news……I have the honor of introducing my lead Senior Photographer!!  A much sought after successful photographer is joining my team and she will lead our Senior Photography division into a fantastic year.  She has successfully run her own business for the last several years, has won numerouos awards for her work, has served as the President for the Maryland Professional Photographers Association and is currently the Chairperson for Maryland PPA, is a counselor for the PPA, Professional Photographers of America along with other accolades.  I am BEYOND thrilled to introduce to you, VANESSA ARD!

Vanessa is Howard County’s premiere senior photographer and has made a great name for herself in the surrounding counties as well.  To say we are ecstatic is an understatement, we are absolutely thrilled that she is joining us at Pam Long Photography.  She is creative,  technically brilliant,  professional, fun and uber, super-uber talented and FANTASTIC photographer.

“I’m so excited to be able to continue my passion of photographing high school seniors through Pam Long Photography!  I’m inspired by the creative potential as I get to photograph our clients in a new space and Pam’s gorgeous Garden Studio!  I feel a peace of mind knowing that our combined clientelle will be well cared for by Pam and her fabulous team!”

Here is a sampling of Vanessa’s talent as we introduce to you our 2011-2012 Spokesmodels:

To be able to extend part of my business because I have a wonderfully competent, exceptionally talented photographer joining my team is an unbelievable blessing!  Please join us in welcoming Vanessa to PLP team.

So last year, I entered my first image.  My goal was to be awarded a score of 80…..I won’t go into the whole scoring process now, but that was my goal.  I thought I would have to compete several times before reaching that goal, so you can imagine how thrilled I was  when the score was called and it was an 80!   No way!  I went home that night with a blue ribbon!!

And later, in our Annual Competition, I entered this image and received the Kelly Pierce Memorial Award, for Best Portrait of a Child!  I was beyond excited!

Here’s my first entry, titled “Chicks Dig Me”.

This image is so special to me. Joseph, my adorable subject, is the son of 2 of my favorite people in the universe. Thank you, Sue and Cliff!

Last month, I competed again, still sooooo nerve racking. There were over 90 images submitted!  I found myself feeling like I was in second grade, sitting on my hands with my fingers crossed, avoiding eye contact with the teacher, hoping she doesn’t call on me!! Who does that??
Here is “Golden Statue”. I was thrilled to receive another 80 with beautiful Nahal as my model!  Thank you, Nahal!

I also entered “Little Big Man” last month and it scored an 80 as well!!  How cute is he?! Thank you, Danielle!

Now, I’ll back up a few months, I entered more images in another State Print Competition.   I was so excited about the scores and I came home with more awards!  BUT, I’ve got to take a moment to say, that I apologize for not posting these sooner. I really want to celebrate my clients, but it’s difficult for me because I feel like I’m praising myself when I put these up and talk about awards.    While I do want my clients and potential clients to know that I work hard to deliver beautiful, emotional and fun images and I’m continually working to improve, it’s still uncomfortable for me to say “look what I did!”  So for the family members and subjects of these next several images, I’m sorry that I didn’t announce these sooner.

Here are the winning images from a few months ago:

This sweet baby, I’ve had the pleasure of watching her grow because she’s on my baby’s first year plan.  The baby to one of my wedding couples, this is “Peaceful on Grandma’s Blanket”. Thank you, KC and John.

I love this family portrait.  Pete and Mary, two of my oldest (not in age but in # of years that I’ve known them!! ) friends and it was an amazingly fun time hanging out with them and their handsome boys!

Titled, “A Brilliant Family Perspective”. Thank you, Pete and Mary.

Sweet, sweet Bella had so much fun at her one year old portrait session and I had a blast with her.  Thank you, Donna and Jeff.

“Ummmm, privacy please!”

This beautiful little baby girl was the perfect, happy subject, simply titled, “Christmas Baby”  Thank you, Shawn and Brian!

I will be the first to admit that it is extremely rewarding to be recognized for your work and to win awards.  But, it is even more rewarding to have wonderful clients that trust me to create beautiful and emotionally moving images for them to admire for generations.  I’m blessed to be able to document incredible milestones in a person’s life and I never take that for granted.  I always work to continually improve my craft.

Thank you! xo

For anybody who is interested in the Print Competitions and what the judges look for when they score:
(copied from the Professional Photographers of America website, www.ppa.com)

The use of these 12 elements connects the modern practice of photography and its photographers to the historical practice of photography begun nearly two centuries ago.

Twelve elements have been defined as necessary for the success of an art piece or image. Any image, art piece, or photograph will reveal some measure of all twelve elements, while a visually superior example will reveal obvious consideration of each one

The Twelve elements listed below are in accordance to their importance.

Impact is the sense one gets upon viewing an image for the first time. Compelling images evoke laughter, sadness, anger, pride, wonder or another intense emotion. There can be impact in any of these twelve elements.

Technical excellence is the print quality of the image itself as it is presented for viewing. Retouching, manipulation, sharpness, exposure, printing, mounting, and correct color are some items that speak to the qualities of the physical print.

Creativity is the original, fresh, and external expression of the imagination of the maker by using the medium to convey an idea, message or thought.

Style is defined in a number of ways as it applies to a creative image. It might be defined by a specific genre or simply be recognizable as the characteristics of how a specific artist applies light to a subject. It can impact an image in a positive manner when the subject matter and the style are appropriate for each other, or it can have a negative effect when they are at odds.

Composition is important to the design of an image, bringing all of the visual elements together in concert to express the purpose of the image. Proper composition holds the viewer in the image and prompts the viewer to look where the creator intends. Effective composition can be pleasing or disturbing, depending on the intent of the image maker.

Presentation affects an image by giving it a finished look. The mats and borders used, either physical or digital, should support and enhance the image, not distract from it.

Color Balance supplies harmony to an image. An image in which the tones work together, effectively supporting the image, can enhance its emotional appeal. Color balance is not always harmonious and can be used to evoke diverse feelings for effect.

Center of Interest is the point or points on the image where the maker wants the viewer to stop as they view the image. There can be primary and secondary centers of interest. Occasionally there will be no specific center of interest, when the entire scene collectively serves as the center of interest.

Lighting—the use and control of light—refers to how dimension, shape and roundness are defined in an image. Whether the light applied to an image is manmade or natural, proper use of it should enhance an image.

Subject Matter should always be appropriate to the story being told in an image.

Technique is the approach used to create the image. Printing, lighting, posing, capture, presentation media, and more are part of the technique applied to an image.

Story Telling refers to the image’s ability to evoke imagination. One beautiful thing about art is that each viewer might collect his own message or read her own story in an image.

“Our mission at Salon Marielle is to recognize and enhance the natural beauty around us; from the clients we serve to the communities in which we work while maintaining our commitment to the Aveda lifestyle.”
MaryAnne Spurlin, Founder

The Salon came highly recommended  to me a couple of years ago by a few of my friends.  The moment I stepped into their Salon, I was happy to be there.  The aroma of lavendar in the air, the welcoming smiles from the staff members and the attention to detail that I received from my stylist, Kathleen.

One of the exciting things I wanted to begin this year was to partner with some of the local companies and get more involved in the community.  One way I do this is to offer wall displays to other businesses in which I am impressed.  If they treat their clientele with great respect and truly care about consistently providing great customer service, I offer to partner with them.   It’s been great showing off some of my clients in this wonderful establishment.  The displays will change throughout the years, so be sure to mention to me when you schedule an appointment that you are a Salon Marielle client, perhaps a portrait of you, your child or your family will be displayed on their walls.

Here’s a quick snapshot of one of our displays, located in their waiting room.  My clients have enjoyed their gallery wrapped canvas wall groupings in their homes.

I’ve had the privilege of providing professional headshots for their stylists and staff members. When I consulted with Rachel, the manager of the Salons, I had asked her if she wanted the headshots to look consistent with each other or allow a little creativity so that the different personalities of each stylist could be recognized. She definitely wanted each of her staff members to have some flexibility. It was fun having them in the Studio and getting to know each of them a little bit more. Here are the wonderful staff members of Salon Marielle of Ellicott City and Salon Marielle by the Bay of Havre de Grace.

This will be a large 60″ portrait, proudly diplayed in their Salon.

 A SPECIAL OFFER FROM SALON MARIELLE – You receive a free glossing with any haircut with Elizabeth, April or Amanda at their Main Street, Ellicott City Salon.  And at their Havre de Grace Salon, you receive the same offer from Sara or Alisha.  Be sure to mention that you saw their offer on my blog when you book your appointment in order to receive the free treatment.

 A SPECIAL OFFER FROM PAM LONG PHOTOGRAPHY  to any STAFF MEMBER or CLIENT of the Salon Marielle family call by July 31st and receive $75 off of your session fee!  Yes, you read it correctly, $75 off!  Call between now and midnight July 31st to schedule a design appointment to plan your photo session.  The photo session must take place before August 31 in order to qualify for this amazing offer.  Let us know that you’re a client of Salon Marielle and what your favorites services are that you receive there and you will receive your $75 off when you book your session.  Remember, this offer is good through midnight, July 31.  Call NOW to save $75 off of your session! (offer is valid on regular sessions in Studio, Garden Studio or on location, not valid on mini sessions and cannot be combined with any other special offers).

I’m looking forward to serving you.

I really enjoy getting the entire family together for family photos.  It’s a great opportunity to celebrate each other.  I’ve had the honor of watching these kids grow up and they’ve really grown into beautiful, respectful, fun and smart kids.

As I look at these images, I can recall the laughter and fun we all had during their photo session.  Thank you, Tony and Euncha for trusting me to produce these beautiful portraits for your family!

I was happy to deliver this wall portrait framed and ready to display above their fireplace.

The following  2 images of the kids,  grace their walls as 20″ gallery wrapped canvases.

Thank you Euncha and Tony for the honor of photographing your beautiful family!

And FYI to any residents in Anne Arundel County, Euncha and Tony own Grateful Pets, a terrific pet service company, phone # 410.266.3998, email at info@gratefulpetsinc.com   Be sure to check them out when you find you need such a service!

xo