It was such a blast meeting everyone at our workshop. I hope each of you came away with something new and helpful. Can’t wait to do it all again next time! Here are a few photos we were able to snap amid the non-stop babble coming out of my mouth lol.

I hope it was instructional and as fun for everyone as it was for the two of us. Can’t wait to do it again… maybe a separate workshop for a more in-depth topic like off-camera flash photography, or night-time photography? What do you think? What kind of workshop would you attend? Let us know below!

So why are we hosting this? From our website, we get a lot of photography questions and it is difficult to answer all of them. The questions range from the basics to the more advanced. Even with a long-winded email answer, it is always better to explain it in person, then show you with camera in-hand. You will learn so much more/quicker when it’s actually shown to you rather than reading it from a book or manual. This is a chance for those of you who would rather be behind the camera to learn more! So while we are in the Midwest, here’s your chance to ask us your questions in person.

Outdoor Photography workshop details:

When: Saturday August 27th, 2011
Time: 2pm – 6pm
Where: St. Paul, MN
Location: will be sent via email to attendees (only room for 10. First come, first served)
Cost: $100 per person

We will start the day off indoors with a discussion on the principles of photography. Then, we will head outdoors to apply everything that was discussed. That’s the best way to learn! How many times have you read your camera manual and felt even more confused or felt like you didn’t learn anything!?. No this won’t be like a classroom where you doze off in 10 minutes. The whole afternoon will be an active discussion between you and us to keep you awake ;p

We will also take you through an actual photo session with a model and explain the principles behind outdoor photography (at least how we see it). YES, bring your gear! You’ll get a chance to apply what you learned earlier and take photos but then get feedback on the spot!

This is a great chance for some of you to see how we work, but most importantly, it is a chance to get out there and get a guided walkthrough on the principles of outdoor photography. Whether you just want to learn more about your camera, see how we create the photos from our portrait sessions, or simply want to greatly improve your family photos, you will definitely come away from this workshop with a better understanding of outdoor photography.

Some of the things we will go over:

1. Our photography workflow: how we process our photos from camera to computer to web site to print
2. Don’t let your gear limit you:
   - making the most of the gear you have
   - when and how you should upgrade to lower your costs.
   - gear recommendations. don’t buy gear you dont need.
3. How to conquer your fear of manual mode
4. Improve your composition and framing
5. What is “depth of field” and how to conquer it
6. How to use natural light to your advantage
7. How to use speedlights to your advantage (on and off-camera)
8. How and when to use light modifiers
9. How to engage and get the most out of your subjects
10. The business side of photography
11. … and anything else you might want to discuss, dresses? =p

Outdoor Photography workshop details:

When: Saturday August 27th, 2011
Time: 2pm – 6pm
Where: St. Paul, MN
Location: will be sent via email to attendees (only room for 10. First come, first served)
Cost: $100 per person

Here’s your chance! Reserve your seat before they’re all gone. Use our Workshop Entry Form page to lock in your seat.

>> Workshop Entry Form <<

The Fine Print:

• Entry fee must be paid online, in advance to reserve your seat. No entry fees will be accepted on the day of the workshop
• Seats will be filled via first come first served (after confirmation of payment).
• Location of meeting point will be sent out via email after confirmation of payment. We will start indoors on the principles of outdoor photography, then head outdoors to apply it.
• We reserve the right to change the location or cancel this workshop at any time. But so far everything looks pretty definite
• Entry fee is non-refundable. Entry fee will only be refunded if workshop is cancelled.

For Wisconsin photography junkies
You’d like to attend a workshop but you’re not in the St. Paul area? Leave us a comment below, we will also be in Wisconsin the first two weeks of September 2011. If there is enough interest we may host a workshop there as well.

Here is our tentative schedule:

1. Southern CA, Orange/LA county: Sunday April 24th – to – Sat. April 30th.
2. Fresno: Sunday May 1st – to – Tue May 3rd.
3. Bay area / Sacramento: Wed. May 4th – to – Sun. May 8th.

Please note: Dates and locations are subject to change. (Unless something crazy happens, this should be our schedule for the most part ;p)

Since every post should have a photo, here’s one from our last visit down there! Yays. So excited to see CA again… jump for joy! Click through the rest of this post to see all the details, and a special group offer!

If you are interested, contact us for rates. We’re expecting weekend dates to book up fast, so if you want to secure your date, book early! Dates will be reserved on a first come first serve basis. Dates can only be secured with booking deposits ($50) so lock in your date as soon as possible!

Also, there are perks for referring friends and family. For every booked referral we get from you, you receive $25 in print credit. If you can get three other booked sessions from your same city, you get a FREE 2hour session (contact us for specific details).

If you are serious about taking your web presence to the next level, whether it be a personal blog or a professional photography portfolio site, you will want your own site with your own custom domain name. Nothing screams unprofessional more than: “come visit my site at myownsite.blogspot.com” right? Wouldn’t it be more convincing if you directed people to your very own: www.myphotographystudio.com ? Additionally, with your own site, you now have your very own custom email address: me@myphotographystudio.com, instead of myphotographystudio@yahoo.com.

Ok, if you want to take the next step and don’t have a clue where to start, we will help you do it. And we’ll do it for FREE!

Click here for more details.

Above: The transition between spring and summer is always a wonderful time of the year. When the perfect location is found, wildflowers are abundant and fill up your frame beautifully. (More photos from this shoot to come!)

Below: The wedding of Grace and Kmong was heartfelt and beautiful. We were so fortunate to be able to share that special day with them.

Fall is undeniably the most striking season and we took full advantage of it. The cool autumn breeze was a bit nippy but I figured since Mai Zua played a mean game of flag football, a few goosebumps wouldn’t be able to take her down. Mai Zua is my nephew’s beautiful girlfriend.

Always take a walk around your neighborhood, you never know what you’re going to find. We hit the jackpot when we stumbled upon this enchanting weeping willow -the bonus? an apple tree right next door! Yes, we are easy to please and little Anabelle was the perfect addition to our secret garden!

We met up with Maikue and family over the summer and instantly fell in love with their kids; especially, the little guy… he was full of energy and laughter, the way all kids should be.

After a maternity session with the radiant Viola, we followed up 9 months later to photograph her darling baby girl. Felicity had the most beautiful lashes a baby girl could ever have. *sigh*

This set of photos of my wonderful cousin Nou and I were taken during the summer. I couldn’t ask for a better “sista from another mista!” We used to take studio pics together once a year (picture whoring is a family trait) so this photo shoot was long overdue.

Lizzy came to her shoot armed with her helpful sisters and lots of creative ideas. She owned the downtown Portland scene that afternoon. This particular photo stood out for us; it has a magazine editorial feel to it.

Our senior session with Lilly was set in a completely remote nursery. Rows and rows of natural texture lined our shoot. It was hauntingly beautiful. (More photos from this shoot to come!)

I don’t care what anyone says, Mai Yer is the Hmong Kelly Hu! We had so much fun with these two hotties, can’t wait to do more shoots with them in the future!

It could not have been any muggier on the day of Pa’s family photo shoot but it went fairly smooth because of how patient they were. Pa is a sweetheart, she gifted us her picnic basket after the shoot! Thanks again Pa. =)

I remember this day vividly because I almost fainted from trying to become the human bubble machine…I don’t recommend it. =/ We met Betty when we first moved to Oregon and let me tell you, she is just as beautiful in person -not fair right?! I know! =p

Susan is one of those people who make us love what we do. =) We found this spot scouting a few days beforehand and couldn’t wait to shoot Susan underneath this breathtaking canopy of trees. The photo below is one of our favorites because of its enchanted Cinderella feel.

This photo below is one of our all-time favorite bridal portraits. Susan was the perfect elegant bride to match the mood needed under this seclusion of trees.

The photo below is currently framed and enshrined on our personal wall of portraits. The magical Avenue of the Giants should be on every picture whore’s bucket list. ;p

A sunny day in the cold of winter bought us just enough time to capture this photo at the Grand Canyon; definitely another bucket list place to visit. The high noon sun provided the perfect rim light for this faux summery winter photo.

Miles and miles of vibrant California poppies made this day a special one. It was SO worth the 2hr drive!

Some spots take a good drive, others require you to look no further than around the corner. That was where we found this golden field of wild flowers. A mid-summer dream is what comes to mind when I think of this day.

Kristy is another ridiculously gorgeous woman! What I love about this photo is the detail that was captured: the sun-kissed shoulders, the wind blown hair… the textured goosebumps… the layers of waves touching the shore; they really set the mood of a breezy day at the beach.

It was the first time, after a decade of promises to visit, they finally made a trip out to California. YAY! I think that’s why this photo was so memorable for us. To be able to capture this moment in time for them was special.

One of my favorite photos of Sue is below. Her playful personality and perfect smile really shines through in this photo.

This photo is foam board mounted and blown up on our wall of portraits. It is one of my favorites because of the peaceful zen-like mood that’s portrayed within it.

We took this photo very early in the year… the seemingly suspended oak tree is what makes this photo unique.

Ty calls this one the “Ice Queen”. Truthfully, it should be called the “Frozen One” because it was buurrrr cold that day.

This shoot was memorable for the ethereal glow the setting sun provided. This remote rocky hillside paints a picture in my mind of what the rolling hills of Scotland would look like (except I imagine Scotland to be 100 times more breathtaking).

And last but not least.. one of our most recent photos. It is special because we have very few “nice” photos of the both of us. We definitely plan to use our tripod more often, so look forward to more photos of us this coming year. Yays! (More photos from this shoot to come)

We’d like to sincerely thank all of you for visiting our site; especially those of you who take the time to leave your kind words. It really motivates us to share more of our work. 2010 was full of cherished memories and we met so many wonderful new friends. We can’t wait to see what 2011 brings! This year we hope to share with you many more photo-ventures, photography tutorials and NEW video tutorials!

With lots of love… Kay and Ty

Hi Everyone… hope you all had a safe holiday. We enjoyed our little road trip back home. It was so nice seeing the rest of the family again (and the new little one too!).

Just wanted to post a reminder for you guys about our photography video tip contest entry. We posted a 30 second video on how you can improve your outdoor photos instantly! If you haven’t already, please go vote for us! You might learn something you haven’t known before too! Every vote matters, it’s getting close! The winners will be announced on Jan. 6th. The prize is photography gear. =) We’ll do another video tip with the gear if we’re lucky enough to win.

And thanks to all of you who’ve voted already. Let your friends know too! It’s easy to vote and will take only a few seconds of your time. Just visit the link below and click the Green VOTE button.

Video tip: How to improve your outdoor photos!

Here are the before and after photos (w/ Kay in her fav T-shirt ;p). Take a look at the 30sec video to see the quick and easy tip.

coming soon: photo recap of 2010, our favorite shots from the past year.

Here’s hoping this holiday season brings lots of love, joy and happiness to you and yours.

Love,
Kay and Ty

P.S. Tripod self timer baby! *high five* Check back for more photos from this shoot.

Click through for the list.. a lot of them are very affordable.

• updated: older TS2 model is discontinuted. TS10 is the newer model. Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS10 ~$192: Waterproof point and shoot digital camera. This camera is compact and looks great, but its best feature is being extra durable. It’s drop resistant (from 6ft), waterproof (up to 30feet), freeze proof (14°f)… but most importantly, it’s practically kid proof! So your little one loves snapping photos, but you cringe every time he runs around with it? This Panasonic Lumix camera is what you’ve been looking for. Let them develop their creativity w/o you having a heart attack. Take it to the beach, take it fishing, take it swimming, take it camping… take it everywhere. And it comes in all sorts of lifestyle colors: orange, blue, silver, and yellow. This camera also has video features, the quality is quite good.. just not great for high framerate, extreme sports stuff (if you care more about video quality, look at the next item). In terms of quality, design and durability, this is probably the best overall P&S cameras out there (wish I had it when I ruined my old P&S camera while white-water rafting down a river). Here are a few test videos: Regular video and underwater video samples.
• GoPro HD HERO ~$260: Extreme sports video camera. For those who care more about video quality than picture quality… this is the HD video camera to get for that extreme sportster you know. Strap it to your chest, a skateboard, mountain bike, helmet, snow skis, RC car, motorcycle, auto, surf board.. basically strap it onto anything for video footage you’ve never been able to produce before. The high frame rate quality of this video camera will allow you to easily take slow motion footage. It also doubles as a 5Megapixel digital camera. Of course, this video camera is also waterproof (180feet). This video camera actually comes in several kits. All the kits have the same HD Hero camera… only the mounts will differ (helmet,auto, surf). Take a look at this extreme sports footage taken with the HD Hero video camera.
• Microsoft Lifecam Studio Webcam ~$99 (currently exclusive to BestBuy): So your friend loves uploading make-up tutorial videos to youtube? But her videos are super grainy… and you just don’t have the heart to tell her? Get her this HD webcam so her videos can finally look “professional”. Wide angle, auto focusing, close-up focusing… it’s pretty much the best USB webcam you can get right now. Here’s a quick review I found on youtube. Another one, but more of a makeup tutorial type video using the actual camera.
• Yeti USB Microphone ~$97: This is the perfect gift for the youtube musician / podcaster who you may know. The Yeti is a professional grade USB microphone at still an affordable price made by Blue Microphones, a respected high quality brand (not your crappy $10 walmart logitech microphone). It has multiple recording modes and is totally plug and play (no need to install extra PC drivers). I’m thinking about getting one of these myself for upcoming PrettyGeeky video reviews =). Here’s a video review of the mic. Here’s an actual clip:sample song recorded with the mic.
• Black Rapid RS-W1 strap ~$65: customized DSLR camera strap for women. Your wife is always the one taking photos of the kids. You see the heavy camera strapped around her neck all day long and then complain about her raw, sore neck after dinner. Get her this shoulder strap and you’ll never hear about it again. The strap evenly distributes the weight of the camera across your body. It also puts the camera into a more accessible position so you can quickly grab and shoot. They make a strap for guys too.
• Scott Kelby’s Digital Photography Boxed Set, Volumes 1, 2, and 3 ~$44: The best way to improve your photography skillset is to actually go out and shoot! Practice makes perfect. The second best way? Read, read, read. As with anything else, a little guidance will go along way. This set of 3 books by Scott Kelby will definitely point your new photography enthusiast of a friend in the right direction. Scott explains technical things in plain English… he shows you instead of drowning you in technical jargon.
• Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S lens ~$192: Ever wonder why your photos never “pop” like those of the pros? If it’s not operator error =p, it could be the technical limitation of the kit lens that came with your camera. Set aside the kit lens that came with your camera and get creative with “real” lenses. Ever wonder why your indoor photos are always blurry? The lens is one of the major reasons why. Lenses with larger apertures (f/2.8 to f/1.4) will allow you to take better, sharper images in dim light conditions. Get this lens and you’ll never touch your kit lens again.
• Lensbaby Composer ~$270: Allow your photographer friends to really explore their creativity through this “tilt-shift” type creative lens system. Focus on your subject and watch everything else blur away (like this). It’s a manual focus system which forces you to develop your basic skills of creative framing. They make separate kits for different brands: Lensbaby for Canon and Lensbaby for Nikon.

Well, that’s it for now everyone. Hopefully the short list of items and reviews will ease your holiday shopping woes. As Christmas approaches, I will try to update this list with more gadgets… check back often for updates.

Do you have cool gift ideas that should go up alongside these? Share your gift idea in the comment section below…

You can read all the info here: Photography Gear list.

As always, if you have questions about certain gear, feel free to ask =).

Below are the trip details, book early to lock in your preferred date.

Appleton, Green Bay area: June 10 to Jun 23rd, 2010

St Paul and Minneapolis: June 24th – July 5th, 2010

Also, if you know someone who’s been thinking about it… please pass the word along. Thanks for your support,
Kay and Ty.