Southern California Fine Art Wedding Photographer - SherriJ » Product

Kristin + Jordan: Print Order

sjphoto — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 07:42:09 +0000

I just wanted to share a couple of Kristin’s favorite images. Today, I got an order for an 8×10″ from their engagement session we did back in July at Manhattan Beach (this was one Kristin selected from her proofs and it hasn’t been published before!) And also a 11×14″ from their wedding day taken a couple months ago from their wedding at the Victorian. I love what she picked out!

Client Meeting Area: First Impressions are Everything!

sjphoto — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 21:45:11 +0000

I used to be one of those photographers who met clients out at coffee shops. Doing this was kinda stressful for me, because I wanted to bring all of my albums and enlargements with me. After many years of lugging, hoping to find enough seating, and the loud barista atmosphere, I finally realized it wasn’t really working for me. I wanted to bring my client meetings up a notch! When Mat and I moved to Santa Monica a year and half ago, I knew we had to get a space big enough for my client consultations… after all first impressions are everything! That’s pretty much where I’m at now. My meeting space is in my home, customized with my images, and my branding. Doing this has been much more efficient for me, because everything is at my fingertips! This week, I got some new jumbo canvas enlargements in and they look fantastic! Here’s a little peek to what the space looks like!

Pictured: a large 60″ HDTV to project client images on. A 20×30″ Canvas Gallery Wrap, two 40×60″ Canvas Gallery Wraps, and some miscellaneous mounted prints: 8×10″, 16×20″, 10×15″, 24×30″. Some leather and photo wrapped sample albums. Personal prints: a drawing of Bjork Mat did and a framed 16×20″ print of our engagement picture.

Custom Leather Wedding Albums

sjphoto — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 23:29:37 +0000

Lately, I’ve been getting requests for custom wedding albums. After some long time researching and thinking… then lots of waiting… I’m finally very happy to share some pictures of my new sample leather albums! All of my leather albums are printed on professional Kodak paper with UV coating and the mounted on a thick archival board for durability. The pages have a split binding, with the smallest gutter between pages, allowing the option for large double page spreads! Even though the cover colors come in a rainbow of options, my favorite covers are simple, in either a white, black, or brown… with maybe a second color for an accent. Pictured below is a 12×12″ leather album with a brown and lime green cover, matching leather dustcover, custom photo cover, and name imprinting on the spine.

The second version is a 10×8″ with solid black cover, custom photo cameo on the cover, and name imprinting on the spine.

If you’re interested in seeing these albums in person, contact me to set up a consultation!

Before and After Edit Samples

sjphoto — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 06:45:10 +0000

I didn’t realize until recently, some people may not be aware of my special talents. Now, I’m not talking about my double jointed arm, my psychic abilities when playing rock -paper-scissor, or even my ability to correctly estimate the number of jolly rancher candies in a 3 foot jar (all true stories)… but another photography related talent of mine is the ability to edit like nobody’s business! I’ve been editing for fun since I discovered photoshop back in 2005… and since 2007 I started doing it professionally. I’ve kinda kept this a secret, but it’s really something unique I want to share in today’s post! One of the great things about choosing me as your wedding photographer, is not only having your wedding day documented with emotional moments, detailed shots, and beautiful lighting… but all of your final images will get a little extra TLC to look amazing! Here’s some of my edit samples below.

I try to shoot right in camera, but sometimes I have an “oops” moment and miss the exposure. This doesn’t happen often, but when and if it does, it’s not a big deal. One of the benifits with shooting in RAW is the ability to adjust exposure a couple stops without damaging the detail. The image above is a basic edit for exposure and color. Edit time= 5 seconds in Lightroom.

Even gorgeous brides can use a little beauty retouching. The shot above has been color corrected, the skin smoothed out on her forehead and under her eyes, then some highlights in the eyes and hair were added for extra detailing. Edit time= 5 seconds in Lightroom plus 5 minutes in Photoshop.

One of the popular trends lately has been vintage processing. This kind of edit adds a yellow tint to the image to warm up the temperature and also flattens out the highlights and shadows to look faded. The image above is also rotated clockwise a little bit and cropped to straighten the horizon line. Edit time= 10 seconds in Lightroom plus 5 seconds in Photoshop with a preset action I developed.

Last but not least, another common edit is the removal of distracting objects. The need for this can happen a lot during the ceremony pictures, when I have little space and control of what angles I can shoot. In the picture above, I was standing at a 45 degree angle behind the alter, photographing towards the guests. The microphone was blocking the bride’s beautiful veil and one of her bridesmaids was in the background. By removing these two things and replacing the texture by cloning the background, the focus is now back on the bride and her expression as she was reading her vows. What a great moment! Edit time= 15 minutes in Photoshop.

2012 Client Welcome Packets

sjphoto — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:47:31 +0000

Hi everyone! This year has taken off to a great start. I want to share with you today, one of the new things I have in store for my awesome clients of 2012! Introducing, the Client Welcome Packet! This packet is loaded with helpful information and easy step-by-step planning resources for your wedding. After you’ve chosen to book (*wink wink) with me, I’ll send you this packet to help welcome you to the SJP Photo family! For my clients who’ve chosen booked within the past couple of weeks, lookout for one of these in your mailbox!

Contents include:
1) Welcome Letter
2) Mini Inspire Guide to help with portrait wall displays
3) Studio FAQ including The Photobooth, The First Look Moment, tips to help you with Formal Portraits on your wedding day, and much more!
4) Engagement Session Information
5) Last but not least, you will also receive a copy of your contract.

If you’re recently engaged and are looking for your wedding photographer, contact me asap! I am half booked for the season, but hopefully I still have your date available! To reach me, you can comment below, click the link above in the menu that says “Contact”, or send me a smoke signal, and I will get back to you in a flash! (Of course, I’m totally kidding about the smoke signal. That’s not very safe.)

Hellman Production: Product Shoot

sjphoto — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 06:41:20 +0000

I never really thought about how many different kinds of CD/DVD packaging options were available to consumers, until I photographed Hellman Production‘s inventory of diverse packaging. They offer single cases, mini DVDs, trifolds, poster pull outs, inserts coming out from hidden pockets, different surface finishes, embossing, bevels, clear containers, and so much more! They are amazing people and super nice to work with. Here’s some of the product shots we got.

For more information on simple CD/DVD duplication, contact Hellman Production