From the category archives:

Beyond Snapshots

Life Is a Photo Op | Ketti Phillips

Today is the day we start our new photo blog series. The second half of our book is an inspirational guide entitled Life Is a Photo Op because we feel that the world around us offers us endless inspiration on a daily basis if you just know how to look for it. Not only is it a chance to highlight photographers around the world, both professionals and hobbyists, but this is a chance to inspire all of you to start a photo project that maybe you will someday share with us. We are thrilled to kick off this series with a clever and almost hauntingly beautiful look at life with children.

Thanks to everyone who has already submitted their projects! We would like to extend an invitation to those that have or are currently working on a personal photo project to email us at info@beyond-snapshots.com. It can be anything that sparks your creativity. We just ask that you submit work that you were not paid to produce. Please send us a brief description of your project with up to 10 images. We would love to see what you are working on, and possibly share it with everyone here!

Ketti Phillips | kettiphotography.com

Where are you from?
Southern California.

Where do you currently live?
Seattle, WA

How long have you been shooting?
About 4 years

Are you self-taught or schooled in photography?
Mainly self-taught. I had to take a photography course while I was studying graphic design in art school and it made me fall in love with shooting. The darkroom was not my favorite though – I did not have the patience for that.

Do you photograph for a living or is this a hobby?
That is a bit of a gray area… I have a business and photograph families for money, but it’s not something I market or really work at to gain clients. I have about 1 shoot a month, and about a quarter of those end up being freebies. So I don’t earn a living through photography, but it’s also more than just a hobby.

What is in your camera bag?
Canon 5D, 35L, 24-70L, 85 1.8 and 50 1.4. I also have a Pentax 645 that I like to play with.

Do you shoot digital or film or both?
Mainly digital but I am trying to get more film into the mix.

What do you find both positive and negative about shooting in both formats?
The instant gratification of digital and being able to correct myself on the fly. I love how film forces me to slow down and really think about a shot before I push the shutter.

Why do you love Film or Digital?
They are both great mediums! There is a tactile quality to film that is so beautiful. Digital can try to replicate it, but the real thing is always better.

How did this project come about?
I was looking for something to shoot that would push myself to explore an area I felt I needed to work on. In this case it happened to be detail shots and storytelling through objects and scenes. Since I work at home, I am never without my kids and don’t get out much. It is easy to fall back on them as subjects, so this time I kept them as the subject but removed their physical presence from the equation. It’s called “Kids Were Here” and the rules of the project were one photograph a day for 30 days, about my kids, but with no actual children in the photograph.

What is it about this project that speaks personally about you?
It is all about my children and tells me so much about them and what stages and quirks they were going through during this time period.

What would you want this project to say to the viewer?
To give the viewer a sense of my children, their personality, behavior, the chaos that exists in our home…

Are you currently shooting or planning to shoot another personal project?
I would love to but haven’t found the inspiration yet!

How do you keep challenging yourself photographically?
I give myself little rules to follow. Right now I’m focusing on composition so I tell myself nothing can have a center comp, I need to explore new angles.

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Books!

We are only a couple months away to the release date of March 20th of the Beyond Snapshots book. Not only is it exciting that we are seeing this project come to fruition, but what gets us head over heels is the sheer fact that this book is just that, A BOOK! It’s made of paper, that smell that only you can get from opening a brand new book. So very full with not only the written information and inspiration you need to pick up a camera and shoot, but also beautiful examples of pictures that you can learn how to take!

But where will you buy the book? We all know Amazon is a great place to get books, but did you know you that all of our other favorite vendors are pre-selling the book as well?

We also hold a special place in our hearts for the local bookstore and we encourage you to support them by visiting one that is in your neighborhood. Ask them to order it for you. That’s right, they do that!

There is a stop motion video called the “The Joy of Books”, by Toronto book store owners Sean Ohlenkamp and Lisa Ohlenkamp, that has inspired this post and made us want to proclaim our love for books and now hopefully proclaims yours. Just remember the simple pleasure of sinking into the corner of a book store and getting lost in a book. Where will you get your copy of beyond snapshots and where will it take you?

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Dusting Off The Beyond Snapshots Blog

Exactly two years ago we announced the journey to bring our dream of an idea to bookstores with this blog . It always seems that in the first week of January we have something noteworthy to report. This year isn’t any different and we have exciting changes for us, including new faces and plans that we hope will excite you as well!

We are growing! Last year we added Meredith to the Beyond Snapshots team and just this week, we have added the awesome Isabel to help with the blog and some of the administrative tasks to help the blog grow and bring you some more interesting articles to read.

my love of photography was first born in the bottom of a cardboard box. one filled with curled and crumpled memories of the lives of my mother and father. as an only child living between two homes i found family in those photos. i found a history for myself, beyond the two spaces i floated between. i started out in the tiniest town in the world, warwick ri, and now reside in Medford MA with my husband and two kids, Jack (6) and Leo (3). i’m the daughter of a photo journalist from the days when journalists had to shoot their own images. i grew up on film and the darkroom was my first love. i can still remember the first time i developed one of my photos. from camera to paper. this white square, floating under my rubber tipped tongs. swaying gently back and forth in the small waves of the developer. and from the fog an image emerges. i was hooked.

after having my first son at the age of 19 and marrying my long time hunny, i felt lost in the motherhood identity and knew there was something missing, something just for me. i was always taking photos but my point and shoot just wasn’t giving me the satisfaction i missed from the days of shooting film. capturing a moment, but so much more than that. a feeling, a connection. it’s more than wanting fancier equipment, it’s the calling you have to be a storyteller of sorts. so, two and some odd years ago i invested in my first dslr. for the first 6 months i spent a lot of time on the computer and a lot of time shooting. transferring what i knew about film to digital was harder than i had anticipated. it was at that time that i stumbled upon rachel’s site and the beyond snapshots blog. i was starving for knowledge and any blog that offered sincere help and genuine caring to the importance of teaching this craft was devoured. of course it’s rachel’s sense of humor and the genuine emotion she captures in every photo, of kids or lemons (really, one of my favorite shots of hers is a lemon on a tree in a diptych with a window…), that keeps you coming back for more, and it was the same for me.

i photograph my life and when i’m lucky i get to photograph other families lives too. i write, i play with the kids, i love the husband, i spend way too much time on facebook and instagram (@ifurie), i’m a music and concert junky, i have a not so perfectly kept home and a few laundry piles lying around. but at the end of the day, these photos i take of our life, of my kids, of them with their cousins and grandparents and each other, they are the greatest love letter i’ll ever write.

i’m so excited to be a part of this team, that is committed to continuing to inspire and teach the artist in all of us and build a supportive community for anyone who shares this love of photography.

you can find me at my blog http://www.ifurie.com/
on instagram: @ifurie
and on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/furiephotography/

Now that the Beyond Snapshots book is written (with nearly 2 years of constant work, you can be sure this is a VERY complete opus) and our blog family has expanded a bit, we decided to take a step back and really reflect on what we wanted to give our readers on a more consistent level. We even wrote a mission statement of sorts!

It is not JUST that you don’t have to be a pro to take great photographs, but that if you take great photographs, you don’t have to BE a pro. There is more to professional photography than the ability to expose properly and compose with interest. There is so much more. We at Beyond Snapshots are not here to make new pro photographers. We are here to encourage natural talent to see a moment and record life beautifully with still images. We want to share those results as inspiration for others who see photography as their art form, whether it is their livelihood or not. We embrace this photography renaissance and all the opportunities it provides those who previously could not afford to pursue their passion. To sum it all up, we exist to champion the desire in anyone with a camera to go Beyond Snapshots.

mobile PHOTO monday’s are coming back! Our weekly feature where we highlight 3 images that our readers have taken with their mobile devices, will be revamped and more accessible to everyone. We are excited about the changes to the submission process to make it easier for you to participate. The goal is to not only to educate you on popular mobile applications, but to encourage everyone to record their life regardless of what kind of camera you have. Check back soon for more info!

The revival of thinking thursday will be featured once a month, where we will be selecting some images from the thinking thursday flickr group to give individualized help as well as posting tips for getting better pictures with fewer shots taken and less time spent on the computer.

We are also excited to reveal a new blog series, “Life is a Photo Opportunity”. Every two weeks we will be featuring a photographer and their personal photographs. These artists will not necessarily all be professionals, as we want to celebrate the general enthusiasts and everyone who loves taking pictures. In fact for the pros who are featured, the one requirement is not about subject matter, but that your session/shot was non-paid work. Travel, food, kids, pets, LIFE photos… There will be more details on how you can submit your work in the next few weeks, but here is a glance (in no particular order) of some who we already have lined up:

rosina waszaj :: www.rosinasphoto.com

mary collier :: www.mkcphoto.com

abbie mcfarland :: www.abbiemcfarland.com

sara tegman :: www.sarategman.com

molly flanagan :: www.mollyflanagan.com

rebecca conway :: www.rebeccaconway.com

shannon harrison :: www.jackandrubystudios.com/blog/

ketti phillips :: www.kettiphotography.com

amy lucy :: www.amylucy.com

amy boring :: www.aboringphoto.com

The book is almost here! An advanced copy of “Beyond Snapshots” is literally on it’s way to us and we are so close to the March 20th release date. The PR madness for the book has begun, and we are looking forward to an article being published by the New York Times this week!

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a “lite” side to learning

Our February class just ended, and we can’t believe how amazing all of our students were. We are so proud of the progress they made, that we had to share some of their best work. Thank you to everyone who participated. You all did a wonderful job! These are just a few of the many images that were submitted for assignments and we will be featuring more work from everyone who has taken the class in the near future (more on that soon!)

Images:
Joel Reid / Shannon Shaw
Ros McMillan
Bron Curnow

There is that saying, “when one door closes, another one opens” and this holds true to our online class for beginners. As our February class has ended, we are already heading into our third week of our April class and are already booking for our upcoming June class. We are particularly thrilled about the June class, because we are adding a little variety into the mix.

Starting with our June class, we will now be offering a “lite” version in addition to the “full” version. What is the difference, you ask? The lite version gives you full access to class materials, assignments, and discussion boards, and instead of having us individually critique your work, we will work with you in a discussion setting so EVERYONE in the class can learn from EVERYONE.

This class is not only great for the budget concious individual, but it is also perfect for moms and especially mom bloggers. We have a few mommy bloggers in our class right now and another (Jill from Baby Rabies) in June! Jill will be giving away a spot in our June class, so check out her blog for more information (and a discount code for her readers)!

Our goal is to make this class accessable for everyone. We think that you will have fun taking it on your own or with a group of your friends. This last class had a group of friends who decided to all take it together and really got so much out of the class as they did assignments together on some weekends. We also have friends taking it this time who are in different states, but can still connect and focus on learning together online. Feel free to look at the class registration page for more info or contact us for payment arrangements and group discounts!

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Thinking Thursday and Beyond

The Beyond Snapshots team is busy preparing another online class for beginners to start in late February. We have created a waiting list and will be contacting everyone soon. If you have not already requested a place on that list, please send us an email to info@beyond-snapshots.com to grab a spot. Space is limited and this class fills up fast. If you think you might be interested, make sure you sign up now!

There have been many requests for an advance photography online class, including individualized mentoring sessions. Plans for events like these are definitely in the works, and we hope to announce something in the near future.

Also, in an effort to help others with mindful shooting, Rachel will select up to 5 photos once a month from the new “Thinking Thursday” flickr group (flickr is free to sign up for if you have not already!) and give constructive critiques on those images chosen on her facebook fan page. For more information on “Thinking Thursday”, please visit Rachel’s latest blog post.

So what do you have to do?

Go to Rachel’s Facebook Page and become a fan.*
Go to the “Thinking Thursday” flickr group and add an image. (Only one image is allowed per month)

*If you are not on Facebook, not to worry! To partipate, please go to the “Thinking Thursday” flickr group and add the image you want critiqued.

In addition to the individual photo help, Rachel will be posting tips for getting better pictures with fewer shots taken and less time spent on the computer!

Needless to say, there are a lot of exciting things happening!

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A New Year at Beyond Snapshots

Happy belated New Year to everyone! 2010 had been an amazing year for us, and we appreciate you going along for the ride. Not only did the new book take all of our time (still not done, but we handed that manuscript in proudly on December 1st), but family and life in general made it a bit crazier than expected. We thank all of you for hanging in there and being patient, while we try to juggle everything.

We don’t make New Year’s Resolutions, but we do intend to make some improvements with Beyond Snapshots for 2011. There are a lot of exciting things happening, including more Beyond Snapshots classes, advanced mentoring sessions and other events. Also our goal is to be more diligent about posting educational and interesting articles on the blog and continuing to build on the community that is already established. With all that planned, we decided we desperately needed some more help and we got it.

With a leading percentage of our readers being in the states, we felt it was essential to find someone who lived there. We also wanted someone who was as ~~addicted to~~ comfortable with their computer as we are. Meet the newest member to the Beyond Snapshots team, Meredith.

Not only is she based out of the west coast of the US, but she totally knows her way around the social media thing. She is organized, motivated and super nice. In fact, we are pretty sure that Meredith means “the bees knees” in Welsh. We enjoyed having her in our Beyond Snapshots class and are thrilled that she would even consider taking this on. She will begin by helping us out with the Beyond Snapshots community building, posting here on the blog, Facebook and Twitter. No more, months of silence from us!

Meredith in her own words:

“I was born and raised here in Seattle. I have two beautiful kids, Liam (6) and Ava (23 months), with my Swedish expat husband. For the life of me I can’t remember when I found Beyond Snapshots, but I do remember there being an instant connection to Rachel as she is a mother of children close in age to mine, and I fell in love with the style of photography that both Rachel and Peta produced.

I purchased my first “adult” camera almost 3 years ago, when we went on our annual trip to Sweden and I really haven’t put it down since. I kept taking pictures and more pictures, making a lot of mistakes (which I still do) and just finding myself consumed with capturing life with my camera. It wasn’t until recently that I sort of went through some life changing events that made me realize that my corporate 9-5+ job wasn’t making me happy, and I really needed to make a change. What makes me happy is taking care of my family, taking pictures, watching movies, playing “Words with Friends” (I am so bad!), eating awesome food, drinking great wine, but most importantly building relationships. I never thought that at age 36 I would be an intern, not to mention one for a couple talented women. So I am beyond thrilled that Rachel and Peta are taking me under their wing and giving me the opportunity to help and build relationships with you. I am a big social media geek, so I welcome to find me on Twitter (@seattlemum), Facebook and Flickr. The more friends the merrier!”

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Where on EARTH are the Beyond Snapshots girls : a post about the best camera for you

We KNOW it has been too long since there has been a post here, and let us be the first to apologize. We are hard at work on the book and with the whole thing due on December first, we are in a bit of a frenzy of writing, shooting and editing.

Since we are spending so much time at work on book details, it is hard to even keep shooting our own lives as well. Then again, it is next to impossible for us NOT to keep shooting. We feel there is something integral to daily life missing when we do not photograph for ourselves…it is what keeps us growing as artists and people. It keeps us sane.

We get asked all the time for camera recommendations. People want to know what the perfect camera is. Some of you may have seen Rachel talk at BlogHer and if you did, you will know that our thoughts on the perfect camera are in line with the old adage… “the best camera is the one you have on you at that moment.” If your camera is at home in the camera bag in the closet, it may be safe, but it certainly is not taking any photos. This is not a new concept nor is it ours alone…this guy even wrote a book on it.

That said, we totally understand that at times you will just not be able to take your big fancy camera. We don’t always have ours. That is one of the reasons that it is so hard to compile just ONE post telling you what camera we recommend. So for all the reasons that fall under the heading “It Depends”, we want to begin a series of “the best camera for you” posts by focusing on the tiny one you have in your hand probably every day…

The camera phone.

Using a camera phone is not just convenient, but it is great practice. It frees you from the pressure to get the settings perfect and allows you to concentrate on composition and visual storytelling. Unfettered by the “right” f-stop and embracing the grain and unexpected colors, you can really learn to see the shots. With some phones, you can download apps that take the standard camera on the phone and turn it into a whole world of possible cameras from a vintage polaroid with expired film to a land camera loaded with black and white plates. Some of the apps have “the rule of thirds” grid option for the camera’s viewfinder. If you need help with composition, that tool will make it a no-brainer to put the subject in the most interesting position in the frame. We will share our equipment and favorite apps with you now.

Get ready to let yourself go and create some instant art.

Peta uses the iPhone4.

hipstamatic - $1.99

- fun!
- change lenses/ borders/flash effects to create different looks
- based on different vintage cameras/lenses
- square format pushes creativity
- upload directly to facebook/twitter
- classic viewfinder mode captures the scene slightly differently than what you see in the viewfinder, just like vintage cameras
- cute vintage camera interface
- option to purchase more “lenses” and “films” to change things up

cross process – $0.99

- great vintage cross process effects
- can either take the photo with the app or use photos from library
- choice to save a “straight” version of the shot in the library
- different colour effects to try
- straight forward interface
- doesn’t affect the quality of the shot beyond the colouring, which is great for when you want a bit of pretty colouring without going too lo-fi with the effects
- choice of border or none

Rachel uses the HTC Desire, an android phone.

Vignette – £2.99 full version (free trial version that works on the tiny size only)

- completely customizable effects even after taking the shot and you can save your favorite combinations
- option to save a copy of your image and then apply new effects for many different versions of one shot
- frequent free updates
- self timer and time lapse options
- square just one of the many different crops available
- large selection of borders or the option to have none
- easy upload to flickr, facebook, twitter and other web sharing sites from app
- can import any other photos to the app and apply effects at any time
- works with flash if your phone has one
- geotag your shots…great if you are location scouting and want to easily remember where an image was taken

Apps are great fun, but do you want to get even more out of your little camera? You can buy these awesome little extra lenses from photojojo.

We really think that training yourself to photograph things on a daily basis will help you stretch your limits. It will spark ideas that you can take further with your big camera. You can finally tackle that 365 – photo a day project that you have been putting off because the thought of editing a photo a day is overwhelming…well, at least that is what Rachel has done! You can follow her 365 self portrait project on flickr.

Peta and Rachel pin prints they do at home from their camera phones on boards as a visual sort of record for upcoming projects. You can make your own with a blank canvas from the dollar store or a magnetic panel from Ikea.

Peta is framing small prints of her favorite shots in large frames with big white mats. Rachel would, but she A) takes too many darn photos and B) totally forgets to frame anything.

Our only warning…get organized because you are going to take A LOT of photos! Make sure you download the images from your phone on a regular basis so that you don’t lose all those shots if your phone goes missing or crashes! Rachel has a folder on her computer called “phone-tography” where she keeps all of her camera phone shots in dated subfolders. With her 365 project, she downloads her images daily.

Are you shooting your life with your camera phone? We want to see! Please link your sites, sets or just your favorite shot in the comments so that we can all watch your art grow. Let us know what camera-phone you have and your favorite app if you have one.

For all of you wanting to buy a new DSLR, we will be having more posts coming up with our thoughts on Nikon options, Canon options and then the great gear from other brands! This is just the beginning. In the meantime, keep working with whatever you have!

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For the love of

Mom / Mum / Mama / Móðir / 母亲 / мать / Moeder / Madre / 母

In honor of Mother’s Day (in most countries) this weekend, we would love to “meet” your moms.
Images from years gone past or just an iPhone snap that you took yesterday… please share with us!
(Maybe your photo will be our next Spotted. post!)

No photo handy, tell us a quick story about the woman you call mom or even just her name.

We’ll start:
Here is Rae Lou, Rachel’s mommy with (almost) all of her grandkids from last summer.

And here is Peta’s mum, Leah with baby Peta, 23 years ago.

We love you Mom and Mum! Happy Mother’s Day.

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Workshopping

The response to our last poll on locations for a possible teaching tour was really wonderful. Clearly there are a lot of you who would like to learn more and we have a much better feel for where we are considering holding these classes. We would love to hear from you now about budget and time. If you would just take a minute to answer this super short poll, we would appreciate your thoughts.

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Introducing Some Beyond Snapshots Goodies

Does your camera take great pictures? Well, have we got a coffee mug for you.
Can’t stop taking photos of your baby? There is a onesie for that.

Beyond Snapshots has teamed up with the AWESOME, fantastic, Jodi Walker, the talented designer behind Itch Design to come out with a line of fun, quirky, photo-themed goodies for your enjoyment. We are beyond thrilled with what she has come up with and we think you will love it too!

There is something for everyone. We love that all the American Apparel tees are organic and we are really excited about the cute SIGG bottles and the adorable journals (it will be perfect for jotting notes for our book!)

Head over to the store to see the full range