Step One

I know it's cliche', but I can't get that quote, "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" out of my head. The new blog has officially launched, and while it still needs a great deal of work, and I REALLY need to finish the website first and foremost, I must admit that its completion feels like that first "single step". I am nervous and excited and overwhelmed all at once and I just feel like this dream is beginning to take shape and become tangible.

I also want to, once again, take the opportunity to exclaim my gratitude to Jen & Gary Mobbs of Mobbs Photography (my awesome wedding photographers). Jen- without your help, I have NO IDEA how I would have figured all of this out! Thank you a million times over!

Check out the new blog here.

Alex is here!

After having such fun at my first ever maternity session, I've been so looking forward to meeting Alex as he made his entrance into the world! While he arrived in early February, the activity in the DesRosiers' house has been a little hectic (duh!) and we finally were able to schedule a time to meet last Saturday. Alex wasn't feeling his best, but we had a great time nonetheless! One of the things that I really enjoy about photographing babies and kids is that they are just these perfect little metaphors of life- they change in an instant, from quiet to chaotic to bursting with joy...and just when it seems that the tears will never end, we are graced with a heart-stopping smile and the sadness and frustration just melt away.

I've almost learned how to use my slideshow software, so look for a slideshow soon!!

Until then, here are a few to tide you over...










Bailey says that SHE used to get that kind of attention!

In a Flash!

As the school semester and my law school career begin to (thankfully!) draw to a close, I found myself thinking this morning about what I will take away from my experience even though I've decided not to pursue a career in the law. Aside from fluency in "legal-ese", I have been fortunate enough to make a few friends along the way. Different from the friends of your childhood or those go-to pals that can be counted on in thick & thin, good classmates are valuable in their own right. Sure, they can pass along notes for classes that you miss and can make great study partners, but more than anything, they remind you that you are all in this together, that your difficulty is shared, that you are not alone.

I didn't actually get to know Alison until this year, but her sense of humor and fun personality has already made school a more pleasant place! When she agreed to let me chase her German Short-haired Pointer puppy, Flash, around with my camera, I was really excited!

The late afternoon was mighty chilly, but as the sun began to drop, the light turned this amazing golden color and I just couldn't get enough of Flash in the tall grass!

Here are a few favorites...

With a Little Help From Our Friends...

I have several other posts that I've started and not finished yet, but I wanted to get this one down "on paper" before my emotions began to fade...

This afternoon I met with local wedding photographer extraordinaire, Shane Snider, and he was really fantastic. Shane photographed the wedding of our good friends Jennie & Rebekah in November of 2007 (you may remember Jennie from our wedding photographs- she was our officiant!) and Jennie has been encouraging me to contact him. It took me a little while to find the courage...not every photographer I've approached has been exactly welcoming (which I suppose is understandable) and that pesky voice in the back of my head kept saying things like, "What if he takes one look at your work and tells you that you might want to go take the bar exam after all?" But contact him I did and he actually agreed to meet with me (thank you, Jennie!!)!

So, after three outfit changes (again! I've been changing clothes a lot this week, eh?) and armed with a box of cookies (are people allowed to be mean if you bring them cookies?), I left the house an hour before our scheduled meeting time (just in case!)...and arrived on his block with nearly forty minutes to spare. Yes, I'm a dork. So I sat in my car in a parking lot down the street and listened to the remainder of my book on tape (I told you- I'm a dork!), doing deep breathing and trying to figure out how to NOT seem totally intimidated.

I need not have worried. Shane was awesome. After the preliminary warnings of how tough an industry this is and some discussion about gear and must-have lenses, etc, he really helped me prioritize some of the steps I need to take and gave me some fantastic advice about finding my own style, consistency, and how to really get going. He even took some time to look at what I posted on my SmugMug page and gave some great constructive feedback.

I just walked out of his office this afternoon SO excited. It's photographers like him, like the Mobbs, like Meredith that help me combat thos voices in my head, that make me feel like I'm not completely insane to have chosen this path, and that I can, with a lot of hard work, make it.

Thanks, Shane!

Tots 2 Teens Seminar

On Monday we had snow. Enough to close down all of the local public schools. Today it was over 80 degrees. Incredible! For the first time, it is beginning to feel like the end of school is really as near as it is and that the next stage of my life is really hovering just beneath the surface alongside the crocus flowers! Oh, the anticipation of Spring!

With my heart and eyes toward that future, I attended Sandy Puc's Tots 2 Teens Seminar today and was just blown away by the amount of information that she shared!



After three outfit changes (casual? trendy? business-y?) , I arrived at the seminar site thirty minutes before its scheduled start time, repeating the mantra, "I am not intimidated, I am not intimidated, I am not intimidated..." over and over in my head. I was completely intimidated. I was totally convinced that everyone there would just take one look at me and know I was a big fat wanna-be with no skills. Fortunately, I remembered after a few minutes there, that no one was paying any attention to me- everyone was there to learn, just like me! So I drooled over the gorgeous and quirky Finao products and played with the Canon 5D Mark II for the first time (oh, how I adore thee!) before settling into my seat poised with paper and pen to absorb every last bit of information I could glean.

I have to make a confession. After searching the big ol' World Wide Web for seminars and workshops that I could both fit into my current school schedule AND afford right now and finding almost nothing under $250, I was a little skeptical of a 6 hour seminar that cost only $79. After being disappointed with a photography course at a local art center that I took last summer, I was worried that this would be another "you get what you pay for" kind of deal and I was fully prepared with low expectations. Lesson learned. I frantically scribbled over thirty pages of notes as I attempted to keep up with the marketing plans, the descriptions of tools and camera settings, and tricks for making children sit still for more than two seconds. While I am not sure that a full-time children's portrait studio is my goal, I learned SOOOO much that I can't wait to apply to my business and to my photography! I have a couple of children/family sessions lined up for this week (I'm on Spring Break- yay!!) and I can't wait to try out some of what I learned!

Cuppa's SmugMug page...

So I have been attempting shoot like crazy lately so that I can work on slowly gaining the skills necessary to make this venture a success! That said, I am feeling the pressure to really start working on those Photoshop skills! Spring Break...I will hit it hard (right after I finish writing the paper that is due after the break and studying for the test that will be on the following Monday, THEN I will hit it hard! When is this school thing over again?).

Considering how stretched thin I am, I thought I would mention that Cuppa has a SmugMug page now! While it doesn't look the way it eventually will, it is where I am posting the work I am doing as I finish it. If you are interested in checking it out, click here.

The Singer Formerly Known As

A logo is a business's calling card of sorts...it's supposed to be the symbol that conveys a sense of the business's personality and style. Mary Elisa, the brilliant friend who has been working so diligently on my color palette has also been working her tail off to create a logo for me. Can I tell you, she asked me for some feeling words that I wanted my business to evoke and then she came up with THIS! I think she dove right into my brain and articulated into my logo what I couldn't define in our conversation.

A HUGE shout out to Mary Elisa! I know we have some finishing touches to nail down, but here is the general concept...



Feedback is welcome!!

A Rose By Any Other...

We have a name!!!!! Yay!!! Drum roll please...

Cuppa Photography

As in... a "cuppa" tea, or a "cuppa" joe, or "let's sit and have a cuppa and catch up on life." My hope is that it evokes the same kind of sense of warmth and comfort that we get from good friends, beloved childhood memories, and the kind of conversation that can only happen with a friend who sees your soul.

I bought a website template today, but am woefully short on images that are even passable...my goal is to launch by the end of March, so if you know someone who can use some photos, send them my way! I have a portfolio to build and skills to learn (that translates into...I'm cheap, so get me now at a big fat discount...as in I'm free...please please please let me take your picture!!!).

Have I mentioned that I have 3 months of school left...yeah, I keep forgetting too. So it's time to put down my excitement and pick up Real Estate Finance (and you wonder why I changed paths!).

Moving Forward

So I have been overwhelmed with the ever growing list of things to decide, learn, organize, and do to move this photography decision forward. What do I call it? Everyone seems to use their names, but "Cindy Giovagnoli Photography"? (1) It doesn't have much of a ring to it, and (2) I have a sneaking suspicion that people would avoid calling because they didn't know how to pronounce it! So Justin and I have a new game that we have been playing all week. The rules mostly seem to consist of tacking the word "photography" onto everything in sight. "Spoon Photography?" No. "How 'bout 'Fork Photography'?" Nope. "Ooh! Ooh! What about 'Fork AND Spoon Photography'?" Seriously? Is this the best we can do?

That said, at least the general color scheme is relatively simple...I'm just going to carry over the colors I've been using for my organization business for the last several years: Carolina blue (a light blue for all who may be unaware of UNC's colors!) and a deep chocolate brown. I'm excited to play with some accent colors, though, and keep getting drawn back to red as my primary accent. I would use that blue for everything if I could (take my house as an example- my office is painted that color with white trim and espresso colored wood everywhere; my bedroom is all blue, brown, and white...I just LOVE LOVE LOVE those three colors together!!!). I have been working with my friend, Mary Elisa, a super talented artist who works with a large marketing firm in Chicago to come up with my palette and she has been just fantastic!



Now if only we could settle on a name...

A few cuties!

Between school and life, I've fallen woefully behind on processing my personal photos...including our honeymoon! I was prompted to address at least a few a couple of weeks ago while beginning to put together a website for my Mom's new business, MaryCares petsitting. As I searched through my archives for fun images of furry friends, I realized that I took quite a few while Justin and I were in Charleston, SC in December for our honeymoon! Here's just a little sampling of the "critters"...I promise to fill in the blanks with the rest of our trip SOON!

We popped into the Imaging Arts Gallery and met this little princess sleeping on the job...





How can you not adore a rescued greyhound? We met these two in front of the old Customs House and (small world!) it turned out that they were from Chapel Hill!






The only time we actually left the peninsula of Charleston proper was to take a day trip out to Magnolia Plantation. When we arrived, we were met by these guys!

Seriously!

Brace yourselves- there is big news coming! Are you ready?

I'm DOING IT!

That's right. After endless days and nights "bargaining" and what seems like a million and two conversations with Justin, the Mobbs, and my good friend, Meredith, I have officially decided NOT to sit for the bar exam after graduation and to pursue photography instead. Holy Crapp.

So amidst the screaming voices of self doubt and criticism raging in my head, there is this piece of my soul that sits quietly with her hands folded and smiles. She knew I'd get here someday.

A "Star" is born...

...well, to ME anyway! Holy CRapp- I am sitting here just blown away!! Have you all heard of the uber-talented Jasmine Star? I have just a tiny bit of time, but can I just say this...

SHE DROPPED OUT OF LAW SCHOOL TO BE A PHOTOGRAPHER!!!!!!!!!

How 'bout THAT for a sign?

I can't wait to start reading her blog and to find out a little more about her story...

A Quick Peek

On Saturday, I had an incredible opportunity to take some maternity photos for friends Tania & Justin. They are expecting their first, Alex, in mere weeks and generously welcomed me into their home to attempt to capture this most precious of times. Words cannot begin to express what an amazing time I had- it was just wonderful! From Tania and Justin's willingness to try anything to the little tiny clothes and shoes, to Bailey, their gorgeous, hilarious dog...I had SUCH a great time and can't wait to start our exciting project when Alex makes his debut!

I'm only about a third of the way through the editing process, but here are a just a few of my favorites thus far...keep an eye out for more soon!

Bells Are Ringing

I made a passing reference a few posts ago to having photographed some weddings with my with my fabulous wedding photographers, Jen and Gary Mobbs and wanted to share with you what an AMAZING experience it was!! These two have just been so much more enthusiastic and encouraging than I would ever have thought possible! Truly incredible!

I have SOOOOO much to learn and SOOOOO much work to do to get my technical skills (among other things) where I'd like them to be, but Jen and Gary have just been incredible mentors to me and continue to be so patient and willing to answer the million and six questions I have every single time I talk to them. When, shortly before Justin and my wedding, they extended an invitation to shoot behind them at some upcoming weddings, I was just blown away- I mean, seriously, that kind of experience is NOT easy to come by!

At these weddings, it was so wonderful to see the real rapport that they have with their clients and to see what fun they have doing what they do. And they were phenomenal when it came to teaching me- the number of times one of them would say something like, "Ooh ooh! Get in there, Cindy- that would be such a great portfolio shot!" or "Don't worry about us, we can shoot around you- get this experience!" It was just so much more than I could ever have expected! Afterward, they sat down and went through every image that I shot and we talked about what I did right and where I needed to work on things- you can't PAY for this kind of one-on-one teaching (well, you can, but it sure doesn't come cheap!) and I just don't have the words to ever thank them enough for all that they are doing for me! Shout out to the Mobbs!

So on to the weddings!

Jennifer & Jason had a New Years Eve wedding bash in Maryland...it was so much fun! Their ceremony took place in a gorgeous church in Frederick followed by the reception at the amazing Ceresville Mansion. I just love the feeling of receptions in a big, old house like that...they just have SO much character!















Late into the evening, the New Year's Eve regalia came out, as did the guests wild side! So much fun...








Sarah & Ian got married January 3rd at the Wren Chapel on the campus of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. It was the first time I'd been back to Williamsburg since my own wedding in November and it was admittedly a little nostalgic! Early in our wedding planning I'd actually investigated the Wren Chapel- it is just so beautiful in that spare, federal manner that I love so much about Williamsburg. Alas, a connection to the College is required to use the Chapel, but it was wonderful to see a ceremony take place there! Their reception was held at the William & Mary Alumni House- another stunning venue! Be patient with me, however, as the reception images will be coming soon...I'm still working on them!

Sarah got ready at her grandparents' house, so there was a ton of laughter and family and hairspray squeezed in together...I loved it!




I couldn't stop taking photos of the food....mmmmmm!!