Jenny Sun Photography Workshop 2011: KL

I'm really thrilled to be able to announce that our second Jenny Sun Photography Workshop is launching today! It will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia this time around over 3-5 August 2011. The last one was held in Singapore earlier this year in January, and it was a completely full class with alot of great feedback. If you want to read about what some of the participants of the last workshop said about it, have a look here:
http://www.lauragoodwinphotography.com/?p=44
http://vanillafilm.wordpress.com/vintage-wedding/
http://oliviaoonphotography.blogspot.com/2011/01/fruitful-weekend.html
http://synkronize.wordpress.com/2011/02/02/aeron-sharon-jsp-inside-out-workshop-part-1/
http://synkronize.wordpress.com/2011/02/02/ee-va-edwin-jsp-inside-out-part-2/
http://levinphotography.wordpress.com/2011/02/01/jsp-inside-out-workshop-2011/

That's right, it is a 3-day intensive (and I mean INTENSIVE!!) workshop where we will be covering aspects of shooting/posing/lighting, workflow/editing, and business/branding. I am not joking when I say this will be a very packed 3 days - the syllabus is very full, with ALOT of information to take in, and then apply and execute, so expect your brain to be hurting a little by the end of it all :) The participants of the last workshop in Singapore all mentioned that they likened the workshop to a bootcamp - that is how intense it is. Be prepared to be pushed, to do alot of hard work, and to be challenged.

Just like the last one, I'm kind of biting my nails as I write this announcement - I'm hoping there will be a group of you cool people to hang out with in Kuala Lumpur. I know the food is amazing in your city, so I'm excited to meet you guys and make friends with you at the workshop! :D The last workshop sold out in less than a week, so do get in early to get your place and also take advantage of the early bird rate we have!

Anyhow, here are the workshop details! :D

Date: 3-5 August, 2011 (9AM - 5PM each day)

Where: The Gardens Hotel, Mid Valley (This is RIGHT NEXT DOOR to the awesome Midvalley Megamall Shops :D That means you have direct access to the train, various options for accommodation if you are coming from out of town, shopping, and lots of food :D )

Capacity: Limited to 20 people. First come first served basis.

Investment:
- $750AUD/ RM2300 (early bird rate, until 23rd May 2011) - If you need more time to get your leave approved, please email us immediately!!
- $850AUD/ RM2600 (normal rate, from 24rd May 2011)

So, what is the deal with this workshop?
I have honestly, always always believed that the success of a photography business rides on how well a photographer does two things:
(1) produce their art, and
(2) run their business.
My philosophy has followed the strength of that marriage and this workshop is about those two very things. We are going to spend 3 very intense days working from the inside-out. Working out who you are as a photographer and your style, and helping you carry that through to your photos as well as your business and brand. Sounds scary? It is! But that is the fun of it - Learning to be a better photographer AND a better entrepreneur! :)

Our aim from the workshop is to help you walk away with the skills and confidence to shoot better photos that you love (that is covering use of posing, light, composition and post processing), AND book clients that love the photos that you shoot! :) Win-win! :) Time will also be spent learning about how I work with my clients from the moment I meet them, to the shoot, to the finished product, as well as opportunity for 1 on 1 time with me for questions and feedback/critique :)

Who is this workshop for?
Anyone who loves photography and their craft, and is wanting to develop their style and business. This workshop will be a best fit for amateurs wanting to start a business/gain regular paid work, or photographers who are wanting to become full timers. The workshop will also suit photographers who are already running their business and want to improve and fine tune/update/change their brand or clientele. While we will be talking about how to see and use light, it is also best that you have a good grasp of manual exposure before coming into the workshop as we will not be teaching basics of shutterspeed, aperture, and ISO during the 3 days.

The Itinerary For the 3 days:
Day 1 - All about style (yours and Jenny's!). Discovering and developing your own style of photography and hearing about how Jenny molded hers. We will also be covering and teaching how to pose/engage with your clients, composition, how to see light, wedding day run through, how to get a maximum number of shots within a small space or short period of time, workflow/editing, elements of business and branding will start today and continue on day 3, and Q&A session.
Day 2 - Demonstration shoot in the morning (to see how Jenny shoots), followed by a shooting/Assignment day for all participants (this is a surprise! Be prepared to be challenged and pushed out of your comfort zones! :D )
Day 3 - The day will be split into two. One part of the day will be spent going over and critiquing photos from day two on aspects of posing, use of light, composition and style. The other part of the day will be spent learning valuable branding and marketing techniques that will help bring you in touch with the right clientèle, bring you business and strengthen your consultation/sales confidence :) If you have prior and current marketing material, that is encouraged to be brought to the workshop as well for critique and feedback.

Please note that this is a highly practical 3-day workshop so be prepared to do ALOT of work!! There will also be plenty of opportunities allocated on each day for Q&A, as well as 1 on 1 time with Jenny at one point of the workshop :)

I'm ready! How do I sign up??
Perfect! Here are the step-by-step instructions!

(1) All you need to do from this point is to press the 'PAY NOW' button below to make payment and reserve your seat.
(2) Once you get to the next page, you will have the option to pay via PAYPAL or CREDIT CARD. If you do not have a paypal account, please select the 'PAY BY CREDIT CARD' option (which is the option to the left of the paypal login section - see picture below the PAY NOW button below).
(3) Enter your credit card details/log into your paypal account and follow the instructions.
(4) Once payment has been finalized, THIS IS IMPORTANT - please drop us an email (at info@jennysunphotography.com with a printscreen of the payment confirmation and the following details: your first name, your surname, your studio name, your studio website, phone number, and email address.


You MUST complete the above steps to be properly registered! You can click the below 'pay now' button to make payment and get your registration process started :)

For those who do not have a paypal account, and wish to pay via credit card, please press the above PAY NOW button, and use the 'pay using credit card' section next to the paypal login section. Press the CONTINUE button. See example below:


OR please contact us at info@jennysunphotography.com for information on how to make a payment via bank transfer. Thank you!

Please note that once full payment has been made, your place at the workshop is secured and non-refundable (You may however, transfer your place to another person, but you will be responsible for organizing the exchange). An email confirmation will be sent to you within 24 hours of payment, with another email following that will have the full workshop details including what to bring, hotel recommendations (if you are coming from out of town), full workshop itinerary, and more! :)

If you have any questions about the workshop, please drop us an email at info@jennysunphotography.com and we'll holla right back at you! :D Hope to see you in Kuala Lumpur peeps! :D

Jenny Sun Photography: The Mailing List

Hello and happy Monday to everyone! Hope your weekend was lovely and that you are having a great start to the week. The weather where I am today is looking chirpy, sunny and bright, which is a beautiful change to the torrents of rain I've been seeing everywhere :) I'm not a fan of this whole El Nino shift in the world's weather patterns - apparently some places are experiencing extended summers (yay for that!!) while in other parts (like in Australia) we are suffering from overdue winters.

Anyhow, enough weather babble :P

I just wanted to drop in really quickly this monday morning to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who made the launch of the first JSP workshop such a success. We sold 3/4 of the seats in 2 days and sold out completely in a week! My jaw nearly fell on the floor in surprise when I realized the class might actually be full! Thank thank you thank you for not letting me hang out alone in Singapore! :) I'm so excited to be teaching next year and I really hope those of you on the other end of the syllabus will soak in much fruit from the workshop.

To those who have written in to me and didn't make it into the class before we filled up, I am sooooo sorry!! Please know that I wish I could make the class bigger, but do know that I would have loved to have had you along. In any case, do write to us if you would like to be put on the waiting list at info@jennysunphotography.com. Otherwise, please sign up to our newly minted JSP newsletter!! I will be launching all big and special JSP-related announcements and news tidbits (and even some special giveaways just for you newsletter loyals :D ), tips/tricks and other camera/photography stuff, before everyone else gets the word, INCLUDING when we will be launching the next JSP workshop.

So do sign up in the form below! :) We'd love to stay in touch with you this way too!

Have a gorgeous week ahead everyone! I'm off to start an insanely crazy 2 weeks (yes, crazier than the last month that just disappeared before my eyes). I'm hoping I survive in one piece by the end of it!

x

ps: to those reading this post via RSS, you may need to visit the original blog link to signup to the mailing list. If that is the case and you can't see the form below, take a hop and a skip over to this LINK :)

Oh, one more thing! To those who are waiting to see updates on the blog, but are getting impatient, do drop on over to the following spaces as I drop alot of sporadic sneak peeks while the blog is being prepped :) There's a whole lot of stuff up there now! :D

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/jennysunphotography

TWITTER: www.twitter.com/jennysunphoto

Jenny Sun Photography Workshop 2011: Singapore

I am SO excited to announce this!!

I have had countless emails sent to my inbox over the last couple of years asking when or if I would ever conduct a workshop, and as much as I LOVE teaching, the last couple of years have just been crazy. Like C.R.A.Z.Y. So much so that there really hasn't been a slice of time long enough for me to actually sit down and write the syllabus and plan the workshop that I've really wanted to launch :)

Well, thanks to a couple of wonderful enthusiastic individuals, who asked and then invited me over, I am SOOOO thrilled to be able to say the very first official JSP workshop will finally be launching in Singapore this coming January 28th-30th, 2011.

That's right, it is a 3-day intensive (and I mean INTENSIVE!!) workshop where we will be covering aspects of shooting/posing/lighting, workflow/editing, and business/branding. I am not joking when I say this will be a very packed 3 days - the syllabus is very full, with ALOT of information to take in, and then apply and execute, so expect your brain to be hurting a little by the end of it all :)

I have to admit, I am a little scared making this announcement! I hope there are a bunch of you out there who wouldn't mind hanging with me in the city of Singapore for 3 days talking photography jargon, food, and my occasional ramble about music in my Australian accent :P It would be lovely to meet and make friends with a bunch of you out there in this cool city! :D

Anyhow, here are the workshop details! :D

Date: 28th - 30th January, 2011 (9AM - 5PM each day)

Where: Shangri-la, Singapore (right in the heart of the city! Totally and completely accessible via public transport, near by the shops and tonnes of food options, with lots of accommodation options around if you are coming from out of town like myself! :D )

Capacity: Limited to 20 people. First come first served basis.

Investment:
- $700USD (early bird rate, until 10th November 2010)
- $800USD (normal rate, from 11th November 2010)

So, what is the deal with this workshop?
I have honestly, always always believed that the success of a photography business rides on how well a photographer does two things: (1) produce their art, and (2) run their business. My philosophy has followed the strength of that marriage and this workshop is about those two very things. We are going to spend 3 very intense days working from the inside-out. Working out who you are as a photographer and your style, and helping you carry that through to your photos as well as your business and brand. Sounds scary? It is! But that is the fun of it - Learning to be a better photographer AND a better entrepreneur! :) Our aim from the workshop is to help you walk away with the skills and confidence to shoot better photos that you love (that is covering use of posing, light, composition and post processing), and book clients that love the photos that you shoot! :) Win-win! :) Time will also be spent learning about how I work with my clients from the moment I meet them, to the shoot, to the finished product, as well as opportunity for 1 on 1 time with me for questions and feedback/critique :)

Who is this workshop for?
Anyone who loves photography and their craft, and is wanting to develop their style and business.

The Itinerary For the 3 days:
Day 1 - All about style (yours and Jenny's!). Discovering and developing your own style of photography and hearing about how Jenny molded hers. The Class will ajourn outside for a portion of the day to watch how jenny shoots, engages with her subjects and poses them, and work with light to create her shots. Time will also be spent on this day working on editing and processing photos to give your photos that finished look, as well as plenty of opportunity for Q&A throughout.
Day 2 - Shooting/Assignment day for all participants with real life couples! (this is a surprise! Be prepared to be challenged and pushed out of your comfort zones! :D )
Day 3 - The day will be split into two. One part of the day will be spent going over and critiquing photos from day two on aspects of posing, use of light, composition and style. The other part of the day will be spent learning valuable branding and marketing techniques that will help bring you in touch with the right clientèle, bring you business and strengthen your consultation/sales confidence :)

Please note that this is a highly practical 3-day workshop so be prepared to do ALOT of work!! There will also be plenty of opportunities allocated on each day for Q&A, as well as 1 on 1 time with Jenny at one point of the workshop :)

I'm ready! How do I sign up??

UPDATE (5th November, 2010): This workshop has SOLD OUT!!!

If you would like to be put on the waiting list, or if you have any questions about the workshop, please drop us an email at info@jennysunphotography.com and we'll holla right back at you! :D Hope to see you in Singapore peeps! :D

Redninja TV and the Got Mojo? Workshop!

Alot of you have asked over facebook, emails, and in person when am I going to launch the first JSP workshop?! Well, while I cannot reveal that yet (I hope to announce that once we have finalized writing the syllabus which is in progress now), what I can share are certain events that I will be part of teaching, speaking and the like.

Earlier this year, I was at Chargeup giving two talks, and coming up next I will be at Redninja's workshop!

What is Redninja I hear you ask? It is an organization made up of 5 like-minded individuals (Grace Tan and Alex Lam of Stories, Jon Low of Jon Low Studios, Mark Leo, and myself!! )who are dedicated to bringing and organizing GOOD QUALITY teaching resources to the Asia region for photographers. We all realized that while there are excellent sources of teaching around the world, especially in the USA, UK, and Australia, it was difficult and often too expensive (due to travel costs amidst other things) for Asian photographers to fly out and obtain high quality teaching to get better at their skill, art, and business. So, Redninja is a direct birth of this need, to bring the talent from around the region and the rest of the world to Asia. So that YOU, who are photographers in this region can learn from the best possible, right at your fingertips :)

Our first workshop will be a 2-day workshop held on the 24th and 25th April, 2010. The main anchor speaker is Wiki Lee, who is an INSANELY talented photographer (who also does fusion and video work!!) from Australia, and will be speaking about finding YOUR own style. In an overly saturated market and industry where it is hard to stand out and be noticed, Wiki will be teaching you over several theory and practical sessions about how to find your own unique style of shooting, and marketing. Which, I personally think is fantastic - so many workshops focus on just honing in your shooting skills, but so few actually teach you skills to actually market yourself and book jobs! This 2 day workshop will cover aspects of both!

Here are some photos, that Wiki has taken! Go to his website to see more!!

The best thing is, along with Wiki's MAD skills, you will also be able to learn and have access to 5 other photographers (myself, Jon Low, Grace Tan, Alex Lam, and Mark Leo) who will be mentoring (yes! It means you can ask us questions ALL day for 2 days!! We will guide you through the exercises and chat with you about anything you need to know so you can walk away feeling sound in what you have learnt over the weekend!) and speaking as well. That is 6 photographers all at your fingers tips over 1 weekend!!

If you are wondering what I will be speaking about, I'm going to be teaching and speaking about how to find/book clients you LOVE 100%. Are you not getting the kind of clients you want to work with? Turning up to jobs and feeling frustrated with the kind of weddings/jobs you are shooting? Then this will be perfect for you as my talk will draw on my experiences and share with you my insight into finding and booking clients you LOVE 100%.

Registrations close soon , spaces are going fast, and places are LIMITED so I hope to see you there! To find out details about the event, click on the picture below to take you to the Redninja website!!

The Fan Page: Jenny Sun Photography

I've delayed, I've deliberated, I've procrastinated, I've waited... and then waited some more. Mainly because the idea of it made me feel TOTALLY silly....

But it's finally up! And real!

A facebook fanpage for yours truly!

I know... I know!! it sounds so totally vain! :( All of you who read my blog know I shy from all things about the ego, vanity, and the like, but it really was about time. The increasing number of friend requests every day, the crazy amount of messages via facebook, and more importantly, the scary reduction in privacy on facebook has led me to create this new little spot on the web! :)

Besides, I think this will be a really fun and different way to connect with all of you! I plan to keep the place exciting with regular updates, announcements, and special/exclusive giveaways that are just through this page so do join! I'd feel really sad if I logged in tomorrow and found I only had 2 fans! :P

Much love for making JSP what it is today! It is all of YOU who make it happen!

xox

Jenny

*you can click the below picture to have a look at it!* :)

Photoshop Action for Borders and Logos: Blogstomp

In my line of work, time is SO important. It is a precious commodity that I protect with my life because there is so little of it, yet we as photographers often find we need to do so much with it....and if you are anything like me, you'll find that time is often stretched. So efficiency, and anything that saves me time is a HUGE deal... like, this is worth telling your mum, dad, best friend, and everyone you know kinda BIG DEAL :)

So you can imagine my UTMOST DELIGHT when I stumbled upon BLOGSTOMP :D I have had countless emails asking me how I used to create the black border around my photos in my earlier days, and now also my white border. And I have to admit, it was something I used to do manually.... oh yeah, ONE by ONE. So blog posts were always painful because of how many images I had to 'border up' on my own. It took FOREVER. I always thought there could be a faster way to do it, but being the technologically challenged person that I am, I didn't know how... that's where the 2 geniuses behind Blogstomp come in.

They have created an action that not only automatically puts the border around your photos, but it also stamps YOUR logo to the picture, all at the touch of one button! Whether you like black borders, white borders, no borders, horizontal or vertical, Blogstomp does it with their fabulous action. I love love love it! Because it now means I can blog faster, and seriously who doesn't love being able to do their work faster right?? :D So whenever you are looking at all the white bordered photos on my blog, with my logo on it - it's thanks to these guys! :D

You should totally check these guys out - their action is totally affordable! Just $29 each... or if you can't choose and love em all, you can get the whole bag of it for just $49. And seriously, in the photoshop action age that we live in, thats a BARGAIN!

By the way, Chip and Craig, who are the two guys who created this awesome action, are some of the NICEST guys ever - they will help you out with anything, and ensure that you are happy with their neat little product! I always think that great customer service + great product is hardly a thing to say no to! You're gonna love how much time it saves you! :D

If you don't believe how awesome these two are at Blogstomp, they have even been kind enough to give all of you who buy a 20% discount - I'm not sure how long it lasts so take it while it lasts! Type in the promo code box 'international', and you'll get your lovely discount! :D

Happy tuesday everyone! I hope to keep sharing my photoshop and any other photo related finds on my blog in the near future! :D

Charge Up: The Workshop Conference!

I love workshops and conferences. I think there is a really buzzing spirit of hunger and passion when I go to one, and I always leave so deeply encouraged for my craft and the people I have met.

Next year, 2010, marks the start of a number of speaking engagements I'll be involved in, with the first being kicked off at the most awesome Charge Up Conference!

If you are a media user (video, photography, sound, etc), or a lover of media and want to grow in your knowledge and skillset for it, then you should totally pay attention! The Charge Up conference is a 4-day long event, filled to the brim with workshop talks on an enormous kaleidescope of topics to help nurture and challenge your understanding of your skill, as well as a 2-day practical involving hands-on work to tackle the challenge given, and applying what has been taught!

I'll be giving two talks:

(1) Understanding exposure - how to get the right exposure in differing circumstances, to create a different array of photos.

(2) How to engage and interact with your subject, as a photographer - I get this question ALOT. Ie. how do I work with my clients to produce the kind of images that are up on this blog? At Charge Up, during this session I'll be explaining techniques and tips on how to work with your clients to get the best images possible!

Other speakers include Louis Pang, and Grace from Wedding Story, amongst many others touching on subjects such as composition, using available light, posing, workflow, and so on! It's going to be an AMAZING 4-days so do register if you are interested! The details can be found here: http://www.livewiremedia.org/ws/chargeup.html

Register before the slots are filled up! There is a special early bird registration deal which ends this coming monday (30th November) so take advantage of that! Go to the website, download the form, and register now! :D

I really look forward to seeing some of you there! it would be sad if I were talking to the 3 walls facing me! Please save me the embarrassment! :D

Have a lovely weekend ahead everyone! I'm off to tackle and amazing week of the most delightful shoots - HUGE visual surprises coming when I get back in front of the computer!

xx

Jenny

COOLEST Wedding Entrance EVER!!

So, while you are all waiting for the next photo post to be published (which I am writing AS WE SPEAK! hehe), I thought I'd post up something to keep your fingers, toes, and heart warm :)

This video is seriously one of the BEST wedding video's I've seen in a LONG LONG time. If you are a bride or a groom, wanting to add that extra pizazz to your wedding to make it look unique and fun for your photos/videos, I hope the following gives you some inspiration. Look out of the box, because this is what happens when you break tradition. The fabulous, the amazing happens. And you get magic :)

Happy Friday! :)

For those reading this from RSS feed, click this link to view the video: HERE


ps: I can't really find where this video came from, apart from Youtube, so if I forgot your link back, please let me know! I want to credit properly :)

TRA & Pin Me Up Couture Competition Winners

This was a feat. A sheer and utter battle against my indecisiveness. I believe I make good choices, but when given a mountain load of incredibly good options to pick from, I swear I am a complete puddle of goo.

That was how I felt when I started sitting down, then sifting through ALL the entries we received for our celebratory 100,000 competition where we're giving away a whole set of Totally Rad Actions, and a hairpiece from Pin Me Up Couture, away for free :) I was amazed, and astounded at the incredible response we received (there were sooooooo many!), and just humbled that there is such an amazing community of photographers and blog readers. Thank you to ALL of you who took the time to write, share, and just introduce yourselves to me. It was beautiful to finally hear from people who had been visiting our little corner of the web for awhile, but was a little shy to let us know :) You are all amazing :)

Anyhow, I really have to ring out my apologies through and through, as this post was supposed to go up on tuesday, but as life has it, the little interruptions along the way stood between me and that last full stop I was intending to write. First with the flu, then with blackouts in the office, and then last night with a terrible case of food poisoning. In fact, I am still sitting here in bed, typing with a sore tummy from all the vomiting action that occurred last night. If it weren't for my husband, who took me to the clinic while I was clinging on to his arm in pain at 3am, then again at 5am, and then stayed with me until 11am to make sure I slept and was okay. I honestly don't think I would have survived the night as I did, without him :) I am able to sit here and blog, and do what I love, and what you get to see here, because of him :)

So... without further ado, here are the winners. Sadly, alot had to be eliminated because the entries didnt answer all the questions required for the giveaway. The entries only counted if you answered our questions properly. Regardless, it was REALLY REALLY REALLY hard to choose. I swear, if I could give 50 sets away, I easily could have, and it still would have been hard narrowing down the winners. And just to make sure there was no bias, I enlisted help to pick the winners below:

(1) Winner of the Pin Me Up Couture hairpiece:

MICHELLE CHONG

(we loved your entry, it was sweet, honest, and made us laugh. I hope the piece makes a beautiful addition to your wedding day photos! I want photos of it! :) )

(2) Winner of the TRA set: 

AJIRA DARCH-SHARP

(your entry was so lovely, cheerful, and really showed you read the blog and know what it and what I am all about. As well as what TRA is all about! I can't wait to see how TRA moulds and shapes how your photos look!)

And a special last giveaway to a third person: Aesthetic Awakenings

When we were sitting down reading the entries, we kept going back to yours. It was so heartfelt, real, and very inspiring. We'd love to send your way an itunes gift voucher to use at the itunes stores :) Thank you for gracing us with your beautiful message, it really was humbling and encouraging :)

To the winners, please email me your details:

(1) Email address

(2) Postal address

Thank you to everyone who was part of this! It was amazing and so fun! I don't think this will be the last time so stay tuned :) We received a lot of emails requesting for the 1 hour mentoring, but I still can't get over how conceited that sounds and because I dont want to look or sound, or BE a vain little thing, I might hold off. Unless some of you convince me otherwise hahaha :)

Thank you again beautifuls! 

xoxo

To those waiting for the next post, here is a sneak peak to the shoot I'll be blogging about in my next blog post, after I catch a few hours of shut eye! :)

100,000

I'm writing this post, as I sniffle and cough. It's no fun being sick :(

On the bright side, we recently shot through the 100,000th visitor mark! I was totally not expecting to have such an influx of visitors since I made the announcement over the weekend (I actually thought we werent going to get to 100,000 til sometime this week), but looks like alot of you pay attention to my facebook updates! :D

Anyhow, to celebrate and because I think happiness is better shared, I wanted to give away something fabulous! :) Actually a few things! Here is what is in store to be given away :)

(1) $20 itunes gift card to the 100,000th visitor (yes, I have already saved your IP address!)

(2) For photographers: 1 x TRA set of your choice (not both of them, 1 set, so either TRA1 or TRA2 depending on which one you like). I was going to give away a 1 hour mentoring session with myself, but that sounded SO vain (yuck!), and I'm not that cool anyway which means I KNOW none of you will want that so I'm sticking with the TRA prize haha :). If you are wondering what is TRA, these are some of the photoshop actions that constitute a large part of how my photos look. See here and here for how I've mixed them into my work!

(3) For brides: 1 x Pin Me Up Couture hairpiece (these are the FABULOUS hairpieces I was raving about in my last post! ). You get to choose between Stelle, or Carleigh :) Brides, alot of you have asked me where you can find beautiful vintage pieces for your hair, well Pin Me Up Couture is the place. And they deliver everywhere, so don't hesitate to order one for your big day :) Pictures below courtesy of Pin Me Up Couture:

(Stelle)

(carleigh)

Well, there's nothing much you can do to win the first prize, unless the winner doesn't claim it, so here's how you can nab the other two prizes! You can only enter for ONE prize so choose which one you want carefully!!

For the TRA set, either drop a comment into the comment box below, or send me an email to info@jennysunphotography.com (with the subject line: 100,000 TRA), telling me why you read our blog, and what about TRA actions that you love! :)

For the Pin Me Up Couture hairpiece, drop a comment into the comment box below or send me an email to info@jennysunphotography.com (with the subject line: 100,000 pinmeup) telling me what you love about the hairpieces :)

To the 100,000th visitor, your IP address is: 122.106.220.158 (so email me a printscreen to VERIFY your IP address and your postal address and once your IP verification check is genuine, I'll send it out to you now! :) ) To check your IP address click HERE.

Contest is open for a week. So get cracking! Note that the more genuine and creative your responses are, the better are your chances! :) And NO, you do NOT need to write an essay to get my attention :) Good luck!

And for those waiting for picture posts, here is a sneak peak to what I'll be posting up next :)

Have a glorious tuesday everyone! I'm back to bed to nurse this cold.

Birdcage Veils: Pin Me Up Couture

Now if you read yesterday's post of mine, you'll know I'm a HUGE lover of all things vintage. So when one of my FAVOURITE wedding blogs "Wedding Chicks"(if you are a bride, and are looking for FABULOUS ideas that are fresh, unique, and beautiful for your wedding, look no further than this blog. But trust me, you'll be hooked so make sure you have tonnes of time before sifting through this amazing site!) ran a competition with "Pin Me Up Couture" to give away one of their stunning couture head pieces, I was smitten. I knew I HAD to be part of it.

But looking at the sheer number of entries, I didn't think I'd have a chance in a blue moon in winning.

So when Wedding Chicks and Pin Me Up Couture wrote me an email saying I had WON, I was like ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?! I never win anything!

You should have seen me, I looked like a small little girl getting her first ever Christmas Present and scoring like, a million barbie dolls. I was THAT happy. My family were looking at me as if I had been possessed or something! haha :)

Anyhow, I was only expecting one piece of my choice (below) to arrive in my mailbox:

But to my surprise, Pin Me Up Couture, being as FABULOUS as they are, sent me an extra one, in PINK! YUM!! :D


And brides, if you think these veils rock your socks off, wait til you see their AMAZING packaging. Get one for yourself now and blown out of the water by it :)


Thank you SO much to Wedding Chicks (BRIDES, check out this blog and REGULARLY from now! You have no excuse for no ideas for your wedding day now!) for running the competition, and a HUGE thanks to Pin Me Up Couture for making such stunning head pieces to wear on the big day. Thank you for picking lil ol' me. You have no idea how much it made my day :)

xoxo

WPPI 8x10 Print Competition 2009 Results

I was going to post something completely different today, but I have pushed the original entry to be scheduled + published next time. Why? Because I received a very surprising email through my phone's email inbox last night...

I don't normally do this... you know, enter competitions...nor do I let people know if I am part of any associations/organizations... and I feel even stranger sometimes letting everyone know I've won something, because it just seems to vibrate that slight tinge of 'vanity'. I love humility, and I love humble people, you see.

However, at a recent talk given by industry colleague and friend, Louis Pang, his words that were filled with such encouragement and passion, tugged at my heart and I caved. I finally swallowed my fear and I sent off some of my favourite images to WPPI. I have never entered before, its because I never felt like my work was good enough. I thought, oh my goodness, as if me of ALL people out of the thousands and thousands of entries submitted from all around tehe WORLD would even score a smidgent on the score board. So I just sat there in the shadows.

To those wondering what is WPPI, and why of ALL organizations I decided to plop my little bottom down and be part of this group, is because of its international influence, quality contribution to the industry, and the fact that most of the industry heavyweights are part of and back this organization. The top wedding photographers in the world like Marcus Bell, Jerry Ghionis, Susan Stripling, (and my personal fave) Cliff Mautner, etc just speak volumes of the calibre of work that circulates in this arena.

Anyhow, last night's email sent my hands and heart into a quivering state of unbearable joy, and disbelief. Because I was informed that one of my photos scored 3rd place in the bride and groom together category, and another 3 photos had scored an accolade of excellence. I literally shouted at Ju - omg!! omg!! and my fingers were shaking so badly because I thought it was unreal. It couldn't be true until I read it again and again and again to make sure I wasn't going crazy.

Here is the winning shot: The beautiful Matt and Mandy, from still one of my favourite ever weddings. Mandy/Matt if you are reading this, thank you for being part of something bigger than I ever thought I could imagine being part of.

Thank you so much to Louis for encouraging us that night to do just do it, and to my husband who puts up with my workaholic ways and supports me even though my love for my work drives him crazy at times, to my family who always encouraged me, and lastly and most importantly to God. I know I know... some of you out there are thinking, oh dear lord, here's another one of those crazy people doing the whole God speech. Please know I do mean it. I am so grateful and thankful to Him for everything. He gives all things, and makes all things possible. I am nothing personally and professionally without all the blessing He has given to me.

I say it again, I deserve none of this. And I will and always want to dedicate this back to our Lord and heavenly Father for being so so so so good and gracious. In the good, and even in the bad. I know Your hand of Wisdom works in ways we sometimes cannot understand but I continue to trust and be amazed at all of it.

Thank you again everyone for your love and support and the HUGE number of messages I've received on facebook, twitter, my phone, and my email inbox :)

So much love to you all!

xox

ps: For those that want to see the 3 photos that were given an accolade of excellence, do let me know! I didn't want to be OTT in this post, so holler! ;)

pps: And to my dear industry friends, I've already sent you messages personally, but congratulations on your achievement too. So well deserved and I'm so proud to see where you are all heading! :D

Who are you?

I was talking to a few fellow photographers over lunch today, and the topic of a past poll came up. I ran it when I first launched my blog and my business just to appease my curiosity and see who you lovely people were.

It has probably been just about two years now since I ran the poll, and so many things have changed about my blog, my work, my readership and the like. So I'm publishing this dear little poll up again! :) Please leave your mark here and tell me who you are below!! And don't be shy! :) All results are private :)Lastly, one vote only... so choose carefully! :)

Oh and before I forget, for those choosing 'other', I am getting your answers emailed to me, so thank you!! I love reading them :D



Alright peeps, I'm off now, but I promise to be back with a post tomorrow with photos for all of you to have a look at :D

I Heart Faces

( button above is clickable! :D )

I don't normally enter competitions, but when one is about faces and people and their expressions, AND on top of that Jasmine Star is the judge - I held no hesitation :)

So here is my submission to the iHeartFaces contest this week. The theme is Wedding Bells :) I love this photo to death. Really I do. It was from Loren and Josh's wedding and its just full of emotion, happiness, and joy... which is what weddings are all about :)

Big thanks to iHeartFaces for running such a neat little contest, and to Jasmine Star for taking the time to go through the sheer number of entries I know you will get for this one :) And also for the time to look at mine for a brief few seconds :)

xox

Have a gorgeous day everyone!

ps: I love scheduled posts like this one. It means it publishes on its own, even while I am asleep or travelling, or busy with other stuff like now! :D

ps: Post with photos will be up tomorrow sometime! :D

Shootfest 001: Divulging My Thoughts

At present, I am sure, in fact, I KNOW there are a whole BUNCH of blog posts out there about Shootfest at the moment which is great, because I also know there were alot of people who wanted to come, but couldn't make either due to scheduling or work commitments. I know those people especially appreciate all of you who have been taking the photos, blogging about it, filming, and giving live twitter feeds of the talks :)

Anyhow, my post today about the event, is more of a collection of my thoughts and feelings about the entire thing so those who are looking for a debrief of who spoke on what, and the contents of each session, I'm really sorry to disappoint you right here! But I promise to provide some links later in this entry for your reading pleasure :)

Now, as an advocator and supporter of knowledge sharing in our industry, it has meant that since I've started working in this business, I have always encouraged photographers to be open about how they shoot, how they work, and how they basically get the things they get done for their business. Why? Because in doing so, not only do the recipients of their knowledge gain, but they themselves gain as well. No one photographer knows everything, and if we all pooled in together what we knew, the industry and our personal growth as a photographer would be so much richer as a result. From the very beginning, I have always believed this.

So needless to say, when I met people like Grace and Alex from Integricity (who, by the way, are some of the nicest people you will ever meet in this industry!!), I was beyond thrilled! And since those early meetings at Delicious and Pizza Uno, its been so encouraging to see other photographers I knew advocating something that the majority of the industry was so against. I love how the new and modern age of this industry is moving away from the old school of thought :)

So when Shootfest was announced by Grace and Alex, I was SO excited! And why not?!? A 2 day event where a whole congregation of photographers and videographers alike would be pooling together talks that shared their experiences and knowledge? That's PLENTY to be excited by. The sessions covered anything and everything from digital workflow, to contracts, to photography equipment, to post processing, to wedding videography, online presence, and so on. The list was huge! It really was a knowledge fest for everyone who participated including myself. And at the end of it all? After reading all the blogs, facebook comments/reviews, and twitter feeds - EVERY SINGLE PERSON said it was a BLAST, and completely rewarding in so many ways. The bonus being, we all met old friends and made new ones :) Don't believe me about all the feedback? Read just SOME of them here at the official shootfest site.

I've always believed that knowledge and goodness shared, is knowledge and goodness gained. So to those out there who are shouting at me at their computers right now - you are crazy and a complete idiot for telling people what you know! Your business will suffer as a result of it! I say - its completely the opposite. People tend to and WILL want to help and pay attention to others who pay attention to them. Food for thought! :)

Thank you again to Grace and Alex who headed this initiative. You have set a fine example that the rest of the industry should follow, and I hope that the next one will be even bigger and better. Inspiring others to follow suit with your passion and generosity :) If our industry was made up of only people like you, and those that attended, our industry would be soaring. I look forward to that day :)

Here are some photos of the event! :) I decided to leave my camera at home this time around, as I really wanted to soak it in and enjoy the event, and really meet people (I tend to get into work mode when I have my face behind the camera :P), Plus I was only there for the 2nd day, so I have the pleasure of being able to use photos by some of the other awesome photographers who were there! :)

Thanks to Mark Leo, for these awesome group photos, and the few following after that! He has probably the most comprehensive report (and in chronological order too!) on all the talks so check out his shootfest blog posts here (day 1) and here (day 2).

Day 1's group!


Day 2's group!


Here is Alex (one of the organizers) giving his talk :)


And his lovely wife, Grace (another organizer!) giving another talk :)


Thanks to Jon Low for snapping this one. I was super duper nervous before my presentation. Really, i was like a nervous wreck - so scared that I would bore the living daylights out of people! haha :P And in case any of you are wondering, I was talking about branding. How to market yourself as a photographer (in particular, as a wedding photographer).


And thanks to Andy Chin (the TALLEST photographer I have ever met in my life! You give basketball players a run for their money!) for snapping me doing my last round of prep :)


Shootfest also ran an insanely crazy photobooth on the day. This is an example of the utter insanity that came from it! hahahaha!! Jon and Fiona, you guys crack me up!! hahaha. To check out the entire set, go to the official shootfest site here. You will want to see them :)


Adios for now! :)

Shootfest 2009 Write up ...COMING!

That's right people! The write up is coming tomorrow sometime, with tonnes of photos and the like :) The event was a HUGE HUGE success :)

Stay tuned! In the meantime, for those that came, please feel free to leave your feedback HERE, as the organizers Grace and Alex of Integricity would REALLY love to hear from you!! :)

Gotta run now, as I play catch up :)

Funnies for you photographers out there

So since I am up to my eyeballs in work, and STILL recovering from that 40 hour stint of no sleep (i wont EVER do that again, not unless its my plan to ruin my body clock completely), I didn't want to leave my blog today without some love.

So this one is for all you photographers out there. I LOVE it. Its hilarious and you'll totally understand why. Hope it brings a little sunshine into your day! :) All courtesy of one of my favourite sites: Photographer's Math. Definitely bookmark worthy!!

Now the important question is, how many of these are YOU guilty of?? ;)

SHOOTFEST 2009!!

If you know me, and have been following my blog well, you will know that I am a huge advocate for sharing knowledge, experience, and the like. I've been very very blessed with meeting similar minded people who were extremely giving in their know-how early on in my career, which has helped me in leaps and bounds in the past couple of years :)

So when I was asked if I would like to participate and give a talk in an upcoming event called SHOOTFEST, an 'unconference' for photographers and videographers, I was stoked!

What is this shootfest you are asking? Well, I couldn't explain it better than the orgazanizers of the event themselves. This is an extract from their site:

An unconference is an informal gathering of likeminded people with a common interest. It’s a participant-driven conference, meaning everyone must participate in some way or another. We encourage everyone to present a topic or engage in a discussion during the 2-day sessions.

Each ShootFest is a media unconference primarily for photographers and videographers. This first one that is organised is themed The Wedding and is meant for professionals, freelancers and anyone interested in wedding photography and videography.

The benefits of ShootFests are knowledge-sharing, networking and raising the bar for the industry. If you feel you don’t want to share any of your kung-fu, then the unconference is probably not for you. We want to breed improvement for everyone, and need you to share your thoughts too.

If you want more details, please visit their site! And register NOW, because the event has a limited number of spaces, and you don't want to miss out on the talks by other speakers! The topics covered will be awesome!

I hope to see you all there! :)

FAQ: Lights, Camera, Action!

I'm still on the road and/or running around shooting in between it all!! I know, I miss my own bed, the regularity of being able to see the clock chime past the same numbers as I open my eyes each morning, and in essence be a homebody. I want to get my hands all grubby in that domestic goodness, and soak in all its peaceful glory for a good long week or two!

Anyhow...since I can't, and because I love you and my blog way too much to starve it, here's an entry for the component that won the largest number of votes in our recent poll (which you can still vote in!!) And WOW, have we had an influx of FAQs come into our inbox this past week or two! Thank you SOOOO much to all of you who have written in. Our inbox has been so nice and fat because of all your lovely messages :) So please don't stop sending in those questions every time one pops into your head! Not only will you be helping yourself, but probably alot of other photographers out there who may be thinking or wanting to know the same things! Whenever you do have the urge to raise a hand and ask something, just drop us a line at info@jennysunphotography.com with 'FAQ' as the subject line and we'll add it to the FAQ vault for our next post!  :) We'd love to hear from you! Otherwise, we'd have nothing to answer and that would just be sad because then I would have to stop writing these type of entries!! :)

So, without further ado, here goes! 3 Random questions we picked out of the bunch this week:

(1) LIGHT:

Do you use strobes or reflectors when shooting? Especially when shooting against the sun. 

If not, how do you manage to get the exposure just right?

No, I don't use a single strobe or reflector at all when I shoot outdoors. I am what I like to call a 'light and fast' shooter, meaning the less I have on me, the happier I am when I am snapping away. At very most, I will work with just 2 lenses during a session and nothing else. The more I have to carry, the more it burdens me and which restricts how I think and what angles I can put myself in. And when shooting against the sun, with those backlit photos, I will usually meter for the face, and then adjust accordingly. I shoot entirely in manual mode and completely wide open, and then do some minor curves adjustment in post production. When I am shooting backlit, I often don't care or don't mind if SOME of the sky is completely burnt out because my focus is on the couple's face and interactions in my photos anyway. I am more interested in how the light falls on them, than how 'pretty' the background is. The most important thing about backlit photos is choosing the quality of light. Obviously you are not going to get pretty backlit photos if you are shooting in the middle of the day without a single shade component (eg: trees, building, etc) in a place like a dessert or an open field because the light is not directional... its high above and you will have no shadow. Best to wait a little for a time when the sun is a little lower. I know we don't always get the choice of time to shoot, so in another FAQ or when I decide to run my workshop, I can show you how to shoot in yucky light :)

Just a tip: when shooting outdoors backlit, it is often hard to tell on the LCD screen whether you have the exposure correct. What APPEARS to be a well exposed photo, is often almost always overexposed once you come back and download the photo to your computer. I often find that the ones that are properly exposed are the ones that look slightly underexposed on the LCD screen. Best to read your histogram to really tell for sure and be totally accurate, but I can talk about that in another FAQ if anyone is interested. 

(2) CAMERA:

I have noticed that you said you generally use your 1.2 and shoot wide open. I dont have a 1.2, but I do have a 1.8 and everytime I try to shoot at 1.8 i get the focus point in focus, but everything else is out of focus (ie - the eye is in focus, but the ear is foggy, or 1 person in focus, one not). I know the 1.2 is a much better piece of glass than the 1.8, but I dont understand how lowering the f-stop would fix my problem.

 Is there a trick I'm just not getting?

Shooting wide open can be tricky when you are first starting to try it, huh? :) But don't worry it isn't as hard as alot of photographers like to think. I know alot of photographers freak out because shooting wide open means less sharp images (not true! Calibrating your lens and/or investing in a good lens helps in this regard!). Before I had a 1.2 lens, I was shooting at 1.8, 2.0, and 2.8 for most of my photos and even at those apertures, I was experiencing the same dilemma as mentioned above! Until I learnt a term called 'same plane of field', and distance.

To get your subjects in focus and tack sharp, they need to be both/all equally distant from your camera. If one person is a little further back or forward, you will notice the person that is further/closer to your camera will be out of focus. HOWEVER, you will also notice that the further and further you move from your subjects, the distance between your subjects (ie. the subject that is closer/further away from you, and the subject which you have locked focus on) won't be so noticeable, or noticeable at all! :) You can try it at home out in the garden/backyard. Put two chairs on the grass. One a little further back than the other. Start your first couple of shots close up to the chair. You'll notice that the chair further back is very out of focus (this is if you are shooting wide open). Then take several steps back. You'll then notice that the chair behind is still out of focus, but not as blurry as before. Take several more steps back and keep repeating the steps. You'll notice that the further back you are, the more in focus the chair behind looks :) Until both kinda look sharp! :)

Same goes if you are shooting people :) Oh and for the eyes thing, I gather thats when you are shooting up close for makeup and head shots, shot from the side. I find the best angles to do that are when you are shooting straight in front of the subject, or completely 90 degrees from the subject so you don't see the blurry eye. Otherwise, move a little further back :)

Eg: With the below shot from Loren and Josh's wedding, I shot it at a slight angle and slightly elevated. I kept moving my camera back until both lashes were somewhat in focus. 

(3) ACTION:

I know alot of you are asking about post production and what I do. I'd love to give a single response and say that is the magic black and white rule to get all your images looking like that, but post production is sooooo much like cooking. Its a delicate process, and requires adding or subtracting to taste as each photo is different. You'll need to add different ingredients in different amounts depending on light, or colour, and so on. So, I guess the best way I can think of to help in this regard is just to share with you my own recipes I've made for certain images in the hopes that it might inspire you to try your own recipes, or help you create the finished look you are after :)

Today's image was created by using Kubota's awesome set of actions. There are several volumes of actions you can choose from but I'll let your wandering and curious eyes do the shopping and picking, not me :)

(a) Shoot a photo with some kick-ass light!

(b) Inject it with some curves adjustments

(c) Kubota actions: Daily multivitamin + Punch lite + 81K warming

Alright peeps! That's all from me for today! Remember to keep sending in those questions (or at least check one of the reaction boxes below otherwise I'll have to stop writing these entries because I'll start to think I'm boring and that I totally suck in your eyes, and that would make me sad :) Have a beautiful weekend!!

FAQ: Posing and Post Processing

Hello thursday! I always love thursdays because its the day before Friday. And we all know that Friday is the REAL day that the weekend starts right?? :)

Anyhow, I thought it would be such a nice idea to start answering the hoard of questions I normally get emails about, in the hopes that it helps any one of you out there. I am not attempting to be a know-it-all-guru AT ALL, but if these posts do help you in anyway, I'll be really happy :)

So, lets get on with business right? I've basically copied the latest question I've been emailed in that particular subject (since it answers all previous questions along the same lines) below :)

Posing

Q: How do you normally pose or guide your clients during a shoot? We love how you seem to know how to draw out a couple's personality and their natural smiles in the frame? What is your technique?

A: You know, funny enough, I don't really have a technique when I shoot my couples. If I had to describe the way I shoot, I would probably term it as 'casual'. I like my shoots to remain very laid back, easy going, and breezy, and liken our sessions to us hanging out together with some shooting in between :) More often than not, I give fairly general instructions to my couples and let them interpret it as they like. If it doesn't look quite right, I'll correct it, but usually I go with the flow and keep my shoots very quick, fluid and work with whatever I have. I actually enjoy and like it when my clients make mistakes in their own quirky way because...well, its THEM :) I tend to draw alot on the client's energy and their chemistry with each other, being sensitive to their personalities. I wont ever make them do anything that is uncomfortable, or that they wouldn't do normally as a couple! And on top of all that, alot of the times I get fabulous couples to shoot, who are just beautiful, fun, and themselves in the frame. I know, I am very lucky - I don't take that for granted! :)

Post Processing: Actions

Q: I just love how your photos seem to pop. How do you get your photos looking the way they do in post production?

A: I think I get at least one email a day about this :) I was going to post this video that took you step by step through one way that I get my images edited. But it ended up being about 100mb large, and whenever I uploaded it to a video site, the compression was awful and made my photos look dull and soft :( So here is the next best thing. Anyhow, I love using photoshop actions in my photos. There are some that I have created on my own, and then there are others which some seriously awesome people have created for our lovely photo creation purposes. I'll talk about the TOTALLY RAD ACTIONS today. These are by far one of the most versatile, yet simple to use photoshop actions I've had the pleasure of using in my workflow. I tend to use a combination of actions in the set together, to create my final image. Here are a few examples of mixes (and the actions I used in the TRA set) below:

Clairefy + Oh Snap! + Warm it up Kris (+ sharpening)

Clairefy + Yin/Yang + Contrast! + Warm it up Kris (+ sharpening)


And since I don't always play around with punchy colours, here is an example of the new kind of post processing that I have been playing with:

Curves adjustment + yin/yang + clairefy + cool as a cucumber (lowered opacity) + pool party
(+ sharpening)


The most important thing though (especially as you can see in the first two images) is that you have to get some kick-ass light to begin with (you can't photoshop in great light!!), which helps to make sure your SOOC (straight out of camera) shots are as close to perfect as possible.

Okay, so that wraps up FAQ #1! Let me know if you found that helpful or if you would like more of these posts! :) And remember, if you have any questions you would like answered, just drop an email to info@jennysunphotography.com with the subject line 'FAQ' with your question, and I'll be sure to add it for future posts :) It can be anything about shooting, post production/work flow, marketing/business, clients, if you are curious as to whether I find coriander offensive or not :)

Til next time! :D