MAGGIE HOLMES Photography and Scrapbooking Blog

Online Photography Workshops: Updates & New Class Open

Yikes! It's been much too long since I last posted! Sorry about that!! I've caught the spring cleaning and/or nesting bug and I have been cleaning out closets lately! As you know that can suck away the time like nothing else and once you start you can't stop.... that is unless you want to live in a huge mess! :) The closets are all done now though so that feels really good! Now the kids are on Spring Break for 2 weeks so we will be enjoying the time off and hitting the swimming pool for sure!!

I have some awesome giveaways coming soon so be watching for those! The first one will be tomorrow!!

I also wanted to post an update about my online photography workshops. I've been getting lots of emails asking about upcoming class and dates, etc.

The next Beginner/Intermediate class will run from April 11th - May 21st. The link to register and all the details can be found on my workshops page here.

I am currently running an Advanced class that is now Sold Out. The next Advanced class date isn't set yet but will likely not be until later in the year.

I will be taking a small break to have the baby and then will start classes back up after that in the late Summer or early Fall. This means that if you want to take the Beg/Intermediate class sooner rather than later, you better jump in the April class and register now before it is sold out. Again you can register over on my workshops page here. The link is in the right column.

I haven't shared testimonials in a while so I thought I would share a few that I have received recently. I truly do have the best students and they send me the sweetest emails! It always means so much to hear such nice feedback and comments! Thanks you guys!!!!

I was just on the message board and wanted to thank you so much for your great feedback on my pictures!  I am loving your class so far, and even though I was a little frustrated at working in manual last week, I do love it when I get a great photo!  So worth all the struggles!!  :)  Years ago I had taken a photography class in college, (just for fun), but the book was so very dry and technical, I ended up not finishing the class (which my husband loves to tease me endlessly about!! :) Your lessons are so clear and well written, and I just love your writing style....and the message board is so neat because you can see everyone's beautiful pictures!...so, thank you for such a wonderful class! I am enjoying it very much!.................Belinda :)

...............................................

First I have to thank you for all the hard work you have put into your course.  I have been searching for some time for a course on-line that I thought would fit with my style. I happened to stumble over your website on a good friends family blog as one of. Her favourite websites.  As I opened your page I was instantly inspired by your photography. Snapping shots of infants, children and possibly maternity is something I have always thought I would enjoy doing. Not being able to shoot in manual made this a challenge.  So, I was SUPER excited to stumble across your courses. I signed up right then. your assignments have been EXACTLY what I have been looking for. Straight to the important things in lingo I can understand. I was laying in bed the other night with assignment 2 in one hand, camera in the other and my labtop on my knee and I said to my husband "mydream might come true! I already feel like I have learned so much." I am blessed to have a wonderful husband who supports my dreams 100 percent. So THANK YOU! I will definitely be signing up for the advanced course.......................Lara

..........................................................

I wanted to say I learned soooo much from your class- it was a great six weeks and am sad to see it end (wondering if you are thinking of developing anymore classes??? )  The content was incredible- feedback great and I really feel like I have grown in my skills....!!! Thank you so much for everything- your insight, teaching and information was absolutely incredible!!!  I am going back to the tutorials/assignments to make sure I have all the information:)  Thank you again and good luck with everything!!!  I hope you do some more classes, I would take them in a heartbeat:).......................Rachel

...................................................

I've been meaning to email you this for months! I just wanted you to know how much I enjoyed your online classes. I took both the beginner and intermediate photography classes and they were great.

I've taken other online classes, and though I have learned a lot, I learned the most from your classes.

Thank you for sharing your hard work and your talent...............Deb

.................................................

If you have any questions about the classes, you can always email me!! Looking forward to having you in class!! Oh, and since blog posts aren't nearly as exciting without an image, here are a couple that I took up in Utah last year.

Love these two!! Tyler is super duper sweet to Emily Jane and always has been. It has been really fun to see what a special and tender love he has for her. Ever since she was tiny he would go up to her and put his head right to hers and talk really quietly and sweetly to her..... and even now he is still doing it. Now that she is older and getting more spunky she won't always let him and she will often tease him by saying "Tyler's kisses are yucky kisses." He knows she is joking but I think he still gets a little hurt by it. The other day she said out of nowhere: "Tyler I love you.... you are my best friend..... your kisses are yummy kisses, not yucky" and he lit up like I have never seen! 

Things She Says....

There are so many things that this girl says that we don't ever want to forget..... ever.....

 

She says "I love you" and we ask "how much do you love me" and she says "right now".

She tells me "I'm the line leader" all day long and makes sure that she gets in front of me and leads the way.

She says "I call shotgun" when I pick her up from school.

She kisses my pregnant belly and says "cootchie, cootchie coo" to the baby.

She is always asking for "5 more minutes" when it is bedtime.

She still calls her favorite blanket her "green gwee gwee".

When I get ready she often tells me things like "you look fancy mom" or "you look pretty like a princess mom".

She calls her soft skinny jeans her "soffily jeans".

She touches the clothes at the store and says things like "this is goooogeous" or "this is soooo adorable".

Whenever she is talking about an event that occurred in the past, whether it was last week or a year ago she starts by saying "remember, last night, when......".

She calls cupcakes "pucakes".

She answers with a very prim and proper and ladylike "yes" rather than the slang "yeah" that the rest of us tend to use.

And my favorite right now..... She always asks for "5 kisses" from her daddy and she counts them as he kisses her. He will trick her by not making the kissing sound and then she stands back, holds her hands out in a very cute and dramatic way and says "kisssss meeeeeee!!!" I've got to get this one on video!! 

She is 3 1/2, but still our baby girl princess and we adore her to pieces!!

 

 

 

Lately I've Been.... Editing

The last few weeks I have been editing lots and lots of our personal photos. I took a TON of pictures of my kiddos up in Utah last year (in the summer and the fall) and sadly to say I am just now editing and printing them! Did I really admit that? Yes, I guess I did. You would think that I wouldn't get so behind but typically I am busy working on photos for my clients so I end up letting mine go on the back burner. 

After the mad rush of CHA, I found myself with some down time and also some sick kiddos which kept us here at home for almost 2 weeks! (Yes I did get out during that time but the majority of our time was spent at home resting and snuggling and working on getting better.) While the sick ones slept I would sneak in here and work on editing my back log of photos. 

I have to say that my favorite part of photography is the actual photo shoot - being out with my clients or my kids.... interacting, snapping away and capturing those moments. I don't often love the editing side of things because it tends to be the most tedious and can take lots and lots of time. However the last couple of weeks I found myself really looking forward to and enjoying these spurts of time spent on the computer working with all of these images. Maybe it is because they were from a few months back and so they brought back memories.... maybe it is because I am biased and I always think that every picture of my kids is the cutest thing in the whole wide world...... or maybe it was the excitement of having lots of new photos printed and ready to be scrapped! I don't know.... but I have really loved it!

Anyway, I still have LOTS and LOTS more photos in my back log and I will probably never ever be caught up since I am always taking more and more..... but I am happy to say that I went through a few thousand photos, did a lot of narrowing down, edited the keepers and now have hundreds of photos printed out right here next to me!! Talk about rewarding!! I LOVE it! Pictures make me happy and PRINTED pictures make me even happier!! This is a shout out to all of you that have had photo shoots done or have taken pictures of your own family but don't ever print them.... schedule out some time each month to start printing them! It is sooooo worth it! I am making a new promise to myself to keep at this project and keep working away at my back log of photos! Even if it is just one day a month or a few hours each week, I am going to make this a part of my normal routine! 

Here are a few from Utah in the fall. I love doing photo shoots in Utah because there are so many amazing locations! Sadly for my kids, I can never get enough of shooting in Utah! I have been known to pull off to the side of the road at any given moment to drag them out of the car and snap some pics! If I see a spot I love, I will stop and use it! 

And yes, if you are wondering..... I do pack their cutest clothes when we go up there and I do tend to color coordinate them most of the time we are on vacation because you never know when a photo-op is going to arise! Call me crazy, call me a little kooky, I just call it being prepared! :)

Also, Emily's headband is from here: Miss Ruby Sue on Etsy! She makes the most amazing things and every time I wear anything of hers I get stopped and asked about it a million times over. This is my favorite headband of hers.... Emmy and I share it. Lots of new ones that I am eyeing as well! I'm just warning you ahead of time that if you click over to her shop you will be hooked!! :)

 

 

 

Online Photography Workshop Update

Hi all! Hope you are enjoying your weekend!! Ours has been busy with the boys starting basketball and me working on layouts for CHA. There's always something going on around here to keep us busy! :)

I don't have a big post planned for today but wanted to pop in with some important workshop info.

The beginner/intermediate class that starts Jan 17th is now SOLD OUT. I'm so excited to have such a wonderful group of students to start this year out with! I have been reading all of the bio sheets as they have been coming in and it is always so fun to get to know each of you a little bit before class starts!

I sent out an email to everyone that I have registered for the class. If you registered but did not get an email, please send me an email ASAP so we can get you in the system. It could be an error on my end or could be that your paypal email (that I have for you) is different than the one you use. Also, I know that some of the registrations were purchased as Christmas gifts so in that case, the email would have gone to the person who paid for the class..... either way, I just want to make sure I get everyone all set up, so please email me if you didn't get the email! The link to email me is over on the right under my picture.

If you missed out on this class and want to get information on future classes, you can email me to be added to the wait list.

Looking forward to starting class! 

...............................................................................

And because a blog post is always better with some photos, here are some more from that shoot with Emily.

 

Happy Sunday! Be back soon!!

Oh, and it seems as though some of you missed the announcement in the last post. Maybe I was too discreet!! Not trying to keep my friends in the dark! Haha!! YES, we are EXPECTING.... baby #5 is coming this summer!! I have been super duper sick up until now but I am finally starting to feel better! I was definitely in survival mode for a while there! Felt bad for my kiddos and hubby because I sure didn't feel like much of a mom or wife! Just have to remember that it does eventually pass and it is worth all the sacrifice and suffering! Thanks for all of the comments here on the blog and the tweets of congrats!! Love you all and appreciate all of your support and well wishes!!! thank you!!!!!!!!!!!

 

2011 Photography Workshops!

I am super excited to announce the launch of my first 2 Online Photography Workshops for 2011! Yipppeeee!  

Beginner/Intermediate: Jan 17th - Feb 26th, 2011 $250

This is a 6 week online photography course that teaches you how to go from shooting in Auto mode to shooting in full Manual mode in just a few short weeks! Also covers things like lighting, composition and creativity! Complete class details can be found here. Commonly asked questions can be found right here.

 

Advanced: Feb 28th - April 9th, 2011 $350

This is another 6 week online photography class that is the perfect follow up to my beginner/intermediate. The beg class is all about teaching you how to get the best possible image straight out of camera. Then in the advanced we take it to the next level and learn how to edit those photos so that they will look even more magical! It also covers things like advanced lighting and when/how to use your external flash. The complete course outline can be found here. 

You are not required to take the beg/intermediate course before the advanced but I do strongly recommend it. If you are already completely comfortable shooting in manual mode and you feel like you can pretty much nail your exposure and focus most of the time, then you are welcome to jump right to the advanced course. I have also had students take the advanced first and then go back and take the beginner/intermediate after because they felt like they needed a refresher on the basics... and that is perfectly fine too!

You can REGISTER by going to my workshops page and clicking on the registration links that are listed in the right hand column. The spots have been previously opened up to my waiting list so a lot of them are already filled. The remaining spots will be filled on a first come, first serve basis. Now is the time to register if you want to guarantee your seat! 

This is the perfect gift you can give to a loved one or to YOURSELF this Christmas! :) Or you can ask someone to give it to you! I know from personal experience that there is nothing worse than spending LOTS of money on nice camera equipment (something many of us do this time of year) only to be extremely disappointed that our pictures didn't improve drastically! The missing component is education and knowledge on how to make the camera work for you! One of the main focuses of my beginner class is teaching you how to be in charge of your camera so you can get the results you want! It's so exciting!!

Here are a few TESTIMONIALS from some of my previous students:

"I just wanted you to know how much I enjoyed your online classes. I took both the beginner and intermediate photography classes and they were great.

I've taken other online classes, and though I have learned a lot, I learned the most from your classes.

Thank you for sharing your hard work and your talent. Many blessing to you and your cute family" Deb Zorn

....................

"I want to thank you for your class.  When it first began I was worried that I wasn't good enough, that my skills were not there. It was hard to post photos knowing that they were not my best, but I became comfortable with you and loaded the pictures I was having problems with.  You gave me such wonderful feedback and now I am able to see details in my photos that I had missed before.  Before I could tell my photo was 'off' but could not pinpoint what the problem was.  Because I couldn't tell what the problem was, I didn't know how to fix it.

Your class was such a growing experience and I was sad when the class ended.  I LOVED the last assignment.  Again it was hard to put my photos out there to the other students, but it was wonderful.  It helped me give words to my style, when before I didn't even realize I had a style!

Your encouragement made me take so many of the photos that have been swimming in the back of my head.  I finally dragged our kitchen table into the living room and took the picture of my baby girl on a fuzzy rug in the middle of the wood floor.  Thank you!  As I uploaded the photos onto my flickr account I actually did a double take.  I felt an amazing sense of pride.  I took those pictures.  And they look good.  In a few short weeks you've help me bring my talent up to the next level. 

I am so grateful." Jen

...............................................

"I wanted to say I learned soooo much from your class- it was a great six weeks and am sad to see it end (wondering if you are thinking of developing anymore classes??? )  The content was incredible- feedback great and I really feel like I have grown in my skills....!!! Thank you so much for everything- your insight, teaching and information was absolutely incredible!!!  I am going back to the tutorials/assignments to make sure I have all the information:)  Thank you again and good luck with everything!!!  I hope you do some more classes, I would take them in a heartbeat:)" Rachel Healey

................................

"I took your first beginner class March of last year and I've taken classes from 2 other instructors since then.  And I am SOOOOO happy and thankful to be back in your Advanced class now!  You are by far my favorite instructor.  Maybe I'm just partial because you taught me how to get the heck out of auto!!  :-)  I am forever grateful for that, but that's not it!  I really truly love your lesson writing style and class format.  I'm looking forward to watching the videos to feel like I'll get to know you a little more!!  If you ever have a level 3 class, I will be right there!!!!  For now, I'm off to bed!" Kimberly  

..........................

"This was a fantastic class to take in order to get familiar with shooting manual and learning some tricks of the trade! I have tried a few different "self teaching" methods and using books, and the way Maggie explains things in her lessons was so much more effective! I learned so much from the class and feel so much more comfortable with my camera now - and LOVE the results I get since I've learned to shoot in manual.  I am looking forward to taking the advanced class from Maggie and learning even more!" Christiane

...............................................................

On a final note from me, it is truly rewarding to go back through and read the sweet emails from my students with their feedback. I can't even express how exciting it is to see them make so much progress in such a short amount of time. Can I just say that I am blessed and truly grateful that I get to do this? It is the best!! 

Looking forward to getting started on the classes again since I have had a short break during the crazy busy holiday photography season. I am also even more excited about 2011 and these first 2 classes because my BRAND NEW WEBSITE will be launching in time for the first class! This has been a long time coming and I had to make a huge U-turn a few months back and start over with new designers/developers but since starting down this new path I am giddy with excitement about everything! Not only is the design completely ME, but the systems and functions that they are implementing are going to make my classes run soooo much more smoothly! I can't wait to start using the new site!

Looking forward to "meeting" all of my new students and "seeing" you in class!! Again, here is the link to the workshops site where you can register. 

  

Time to Share Some PHOTOS!!

Well sheesh! It is about time I shared some photos! I have been crazy crazy editing and editing my little life away these past few weeks! By now I know to expect it this time of year and I try to gear up for it but at the same time I seem to forget how super busy it can be! I become like a little hermit in here on the computer staring at all of my beautiful clients every day!

Wow, I have lots of fun shoots to share from this past couple of months and I doubt I will even get the time to post them all on here but I will try! Here are a few from a cute family that I photographed again this year. It's amazing how much this little cutie has grown since the last time I saw her!

 

 

I've been a bad blogger... random updates

Hey there! So I know that I have been a horrible blogger lately! Lots going on so I thought I would share some of the random happenings here in our world.....

:: My adorable friend, Pam, helped me clean out my scrapbook room last week. It was much needed as I had been ignoring it and just dropping things everywhere and anywhere; making piles in every nook and cranny these last few weeks. I had a huge project for Making Memories that I created in between Creative Escape and a trip to Cali and that only added to the chaos! But it is looking good again and as the clutter clears away I find that I can start being creative again, so all is well!

:: I have been going through lots of photos from the summer and 1st day of school to print and use with my October Studio Calico kits. They are all organized and waiting on my scrap table and I am anxious to dive in. The exclusive stamps are amazing for next month so you really need to be on your game and snatch up the add-on kits before they are gone! You can check out the sneak peeks right here. I am also loving the mix tape by American Crafts that shows up in 2 of the kits!! LOVE!

:: Gearing up and getting excited for my photography sessions in Cali and Utah this fall! There are still some openings in all three locations....

Southern California - October 1st and 2nd

Utah - October 15th and 16th

Northern California - November 5th and 6th

.... so if you are interested give me a jingle (email) and we will get it all set! Thanks to my clients for scouting out some awesome new locations for me! I am getting super excited for all three places! 

:: Also my fall schedule for Arizona photo shoots is filling up quickly and I can't wait to connect with past clients and meet the new families! This time of year gets crazy busy but I really love meeting up with everyone and seeing how all the kiddos have grown and changed! In addition to the regular shoots, I have some days set aside for mini sessions here in the phoenix valley as well so if you that's more your style we can fit you in! And in case you haven't heard I have brand new pricing for this fall which I think you will love!! Give me a shout and I will share the details!

:: Emily Jane is killing me lately (in a good way) with the hilarious things she says....

Every day when I pick her up from school she says "I call shot gun mom."

The other day when I asked her to get me a diaper and wipes she came back and said "I got a diaper but I can't find the wipes. But don't worry mom, you can just betend (pretend) you have the wipes." seriously! yuck! And btw, yes she is 3+ and isn't potty trained... please don't judge.... I am trying but she wants NOTHING to do with it!

:: The boys have all started soccer and they are loving it! It's Nathan's first time officially playing on a team sport and he is over the moon excited and feeling super big! He got his uniform last night and was smiling from ear to ear! He also wants to know if Emily can be a cheerleader for him during his games! 

:: Edited this newborn photo shoot that I did recently. He was a little bit older and I was nervous he would cooperate but he did really great! He was awake the entire time which is different than most newborn shoots I do, but man his eyes are beautiful so it worked out perfectly! I LOVE doing newborn shoots in an outdoor setting like this.

On a side note I have never laughed so hard or had so much fun on a newborn photo shoot before! Who knew that this tiny little guy could be so funny and entertaining without even knowing it! Thanks for a great time Michell and baby! Enjoy!

:: And finally a question for all of you stampers and scrapbookers out there. If you have a great solution for storing your clear stamps, please share! I have tried a few different things and none of them have worked very well for me. I am looking to change it up and mainly need them to be easy to access and browse through so that I will use them more!! Help!

Maggie Holmes Photography is Heading to Utah!

EDITED::: Please note that the dates for Utah have changed to October 15th and 16th. 

I have been busily shuffling my schedule and figuring out my travel dates for photo shoots this fall (which by the way I can't believe I am already saying fall!!) and I am excited to announce that Utah is on the calendar!!

Hurray!

I LOVE doing photo shoots in Utah because it is stunningly beautiful and the locations are amazing!!

Details are below..... I already have a few people that are on the list so if you are interested please email me quick to reserve your spot! The time slots are booked on a first come, first serve basis.

Email me -- it's the link right under my picture over there on the right! 

 

the fine print..... payment is due at time of booking to reserve your spot...... I will be more than happy to help you in deciding what to wear....... I promise that we will have lots of fun....... yes, the colors in that flyer above are exceedingly bright and I don't know why except that I must have been feeling happy.................utah family photographer: Maggie Holmes Photography

the not so fine print..... yes I am definitely still going to California to do photo shoots this fall!!

Because of all the requests, I have decided to do Southern California AND Northern California!! Fun! I already have lists going for both of these locations & will email you back soon with all of the details!

IF you are interested in one of these shoots and we haven't been in touch, please email me asap!!

Fall Photo Shoots: Arizona & California Photographer

Hi there! Just popping in to share some info about photo shoots for this fall.....

Arizona Family Photography:: Saturdays are already filling up quickly for September, October and November. I will not be doing any shoots in December for Christmas cards. You can still book a shoot in December but proofs/photos will not be delivered until after the holidays. This means that if you are in need of a Saturday please email me asap so we can get you on the schedule. I will be scheduling shoots on weekdays for all three months and I am more flexible with those dates but again, it is best to book early!

California Family Photography::  I am thinking about doing some shoots in California this year the weekend of October 1st through possibly October 6th (sometime in there).... if you are interested in scheduling something - either a regular shoot or a mini shoot, please email me asap and we can chat about the details. 

The giveaway in the post below is still open! I love hearing all of your comments about scrapbooking! Fun stuff! Will be back on Saturday to draw the winner..... Good luck!

Blog Tour Day 2 and a Utah Photo Shoot

Moving right along with the Ella Publishing Blog Tour, here are two more links to two of my fellow nominees and there are more prizes up for grabs today! 

Click on the links below to say hello to today's spotlighted bloggers and enter to win! 

 

 

(Jenni Bowlin will be posting later tonight so her info may not be up yet.)

You can learn more about the MISA award, the other nominees and the blog tour at the Ella Publishing Blog. (They have a special section for the award! How fun is that!) 

Keep checking back each day for more links and more prizes!!!

................................................................

Today we are staying inside and avoiding the heat! I am editing images from some photo shoots that I did while we were in Utah. And it is making me miss the green and trees and the beautiful weather!