We are so excited to welcome the amazingly talented Jessica Q to the Pretty Forum Blog! Take a moment to learn more about her amazing wedding photography, and be sure to visit her website Jessica Q Photography. Thank you so much Jessica for taking the time to share your work with us today!Where did your inspiration for photography begin?
My inspiration for photography begin when I was searching for my own wedding photographer back in 2012! I was blown away by all the different styles and approaches of each photographer and set out to see if I had what it took to be one. Originally I started out in just portrait photography but I kept getting requests to photograph weddings so I just jumped into it and never looked back. I didn’t think that my first year I would book 14 weddings but I did! It was so surreal to have all these amazing couples trust me with their wedding day. How would you describe your photography style?
My photography style is very fun and candid. Since I mainly photograph weddings, I approach a wedding day by capturing the moments as it happens, but with a curated eye. I love having fun with my couples and doing anything I can to put them at ease. Sometimes this involves some jokes (sometimes it’s even funny!) and other times it’s just building a rapport with my couples so that they feel comfortable in front of my camera. I love images that captures emotion and natural interaction so most of my prompts includes ways to engage my couples to be natural and be themselves. Did you study photography in school or are you self taught?
I am 100% self-taught! When I first started, I made all my friends pose for me and did shoots anytime I can. One of the best things you can do is practice, practice, practice! I spent a lot of time on the computer googling, reading articles, and watching videos and just trying to absorb everything I can. Then once I got the hang of it a little bit, I took workshops from more veteran photographers. I am still always learning. You never really stop learning about photography and I don’t think anyone ever gets to a point where they know everything. I just always aim for self-improvement and how can I better myself to serve my clients.What brand/model camera do you shoot, and what is your favorite lens?
Ahhh I LOVE gear questions! I am a Canon girl through and through! I recently upgraded to a Canon 5d Mark iii and let me tell you that I am in love! I also have a variety of L series lens that I shoot with but my absolute FAVORITE lens is my 85mm 1.8. It’s not the most expensive lens in my bag but I tend to have it on my camera about 75% of the time. There’s just something about the focal length and the way it captures images that I just love. The 85mm 1.8 is the less expensive version of its L series sister the 85mm 1.2 but I just found that I didn’t like the 1.2 version as much. It takes a longer time to focus and it’s a pretty heavy lens. It all boils down to personal preference of course. Do you have any tips for photographers on how to find the light?
I love golden hour lighting and typically plan my shoots during that 1.5 hour before sunset. Personally I LOVE shooting into the sun and I will always place my clients with their backs to the sun. I absolutely love the way the sun backlights them and creates a soft halo around them. But I can’t always shoot at this golden hour, especially on wedding days so in that situation, I find open shade. I will typically look for big buildings or really tall and lush trees to place my couple in and go from there.

As far as shooting bridal prep, I tend to bring my bride in front of a window or the doorframe to the patio if there is one and shoot her getting into her dress there. I try to leverage natural light as much as I can especially when most of my brides get ready in hotel rooms with all sorts of competing light sources. I’m including an image here where I had my bride slip on her dress, then I placed her in the doorframe of the patio so that she’s illuminated by the natural light instead of orange and tungsten lighting inside her hotel room.

What is the most challenging thing about photographing weddings?
I would say the timeline. Couples usually don’t know what to expect on their wedding day and part of my job is to be a resource for my couples and provide them with my personal and professional experience. Brides are not going to know that 1 hour isn’t enough time for family formals, bridal party photos, bride & groom photos etc. Or they’re not going to know that you need time to take ceremony and reception photos before all the guests arrive. It’s part of my job to educate them and help them maximize our time together. Personally for me, I enjoy putting together their timeline for them. I find that it really helps set the tone for the day, helps me get the images that I need for them, and helps them stress less. If I wasn’t a wedding photographer, I’d definitely be a wedding coordinator!What is a good lesson you have learned this year in photography or in your business?
I’ve learned so much in my 3 years that it’s hard to narrow down one single thing. But a huge part of being in this business that I am still learning is to be yourself! There is always going to be others out there who does things differently and who will try to tell you how to run your business. But you have to do what is best for your business and stay true to who you are. It’s okay to have a style and be passionate about that style even if others might not like that style. You can’t be in this business and not be passionate about what you’re doing or producing images that you’re proud of just because someone said that’s what you should be doing. If you could encourage a new photographer in one area, what would it be?
Don’t be afraid to take risks. Don’t be afraid to reach out to other photographers and ask for advice and mentoring. I am part of a great community of photographers here in Arizona and we’re believers in community not competition. Practice, practice, and practice some more. You’re going to make mistakes, your style is going to change all the time but trust that everyone goes through it. No one comes right out of the gate and knows what they’re doing. It takes time.What do you love most about being a photographer?
This goes back to before I started my business and how I feel towards our wedding photographer. I absolutely love her to this day and feel like she’s not JUST a vendor on our wedding day, but a friend! With that being said, I absolutely love being the person to capture my couples biggest day in their lives and to see how each couple’s love story started. It warms my heart that most of my couples become my friends as well and I am able to share not only their wedding journey, but as they start their own families and being able to grow with them. My first ever wedding couple has a baby girl who’s almost 2 years old now. I was there to do their maternity photos, her newborn photos, her 6 month photos, and her one year cake smash. What’s better than that?Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Hopefully I am running a flourishing business, with an associate photographer or two! I would love to travel more with my husband and explore the world! About the Artist: I’m a fun sized wedding photographer in Phoenix Arizona. I am addicted to Starbucks and need to have my coffee every day. I have a love for shoes and currently own over 60+ pairs that I know of and love the color mint green! I also regularly quote lines from FRIENDS and Harry Potter because I am obsessed! Even though I am an adult, I love reading mushy young adult dystopian novels and wind down with a good book. My husband and I also love going on cinematic adventures together every Friday to see the latest new releases.

Visit Jessica at her WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM pages

We are so excited to welcome the wonderfully talented Brittany Mahood to the Pretty Forum Blog! Take a moment to learn more about her beautiful wedding photography, and be sure to visit her website Brittany Mahood Photography. Thank you so much Brittany for taking the time to share your work with us today!

Where did your inspiration for photography begin?
I took a photography class as an elective in high school, which was first ignited my passion for film photography. Seeing photos come alive in the dark room was incredibly fascinating. I didn’t think more about it until I finished playing hockey in my early 20’s. That had taken up a big part of my life until that point, so with a void to fill, I decided to buy a camera. A few years later, here I am.

How would you describe your photography style?
My hope is that my work is feminine and beautiful, while maintaining an element of strength. I am always drawn to authentic and deep imagery, so I have seen a slight arc in my work over the last few months. As much as I am a girls-girl, I also grew up playing boys hockey and have four brothers, so I believe my work is a reflection of those two elements coming together.
Did you study photography in school or are you self taught?
I am self taught. I have a degree in Management and Community Development and while completing that degree is when I started my photography business. I strongly believe that if you have enough of a passion for something, you can make anything work. There were plenty of things I tried before that I just didn’t have the passion to continue, but when it came to film photography, I couldn’t stop reading and experimenting and learning about the topic. When it’s your passion, there’s nothing in the way.

What brand/model camera do you shoot, and what is your favorite lens?
I shoot with Contax 645’s and my favorite lens on that is the Zeiss 80mm 2.0.

Do you have any tips for photographers on how to find the light?
Do your research beforehand. Especially towards the end of the day, ten minutes can make a big difference in the quality of light. So try and plan your shoots for both the light and your environment. I know when I am shooting in a city like Phoenix that is surrounded by mountains, my session times are going to start earlier because once the sun gets behind them, we are done. That is something that is often overlooked. Same situation when you’re shooting in a downtown area, make sure you account for the sun being behind the buildings, thus bumping up your ‘sunset time’ significantly. I had to learn this the hard way once before, I hope this saves someone out there the same mistake.

Take your assistant or your couple into the light and don’t be afraid to move them around until it’s is how you’d like it. I know that for close up intimate portraits, I’m almost always going to want those backlit. So even after I have them set up, I am not afraid to ask them to rotate a bit so we’re getting the best light.

If you can’t tell where the light is exactly falling, put out your hand and watch how the light is falling. When I am driving or walking up to a location, I always look at the shadows on the ground to see which direction I will need to be.  Even on overcast days, the direction you have your couple’s facing is still important. Be sure to watch for under eye shadows and move accordingly.
What is most challenging thing about photographing weddings?
Getting couples and bridal parties to ‘buy-in’ in such a limited amount of time. Logistics of the day are easily my least favorite part and so when things go array, I still need to produce beautiful and authentic images. Hair and makeup will always be over, someone will always be upset in the bridal party; so getting everyone on the same page to create great images can sometimes be challenging. Knowing how to approach certain personality types is a great asset for a photographer. You have to know when to lighten the mood up and when to wrangle people together.

I start by giving the couple a little talk before any engagement or wedding day portraits. I let them know that it’s okay to feel like this will be weird for the first little bit, but we’ll get through that. I say things like ‘don’t stop yourself from doing things because I’m watching, if he makes you laugh, laugh. If you feel like giving him a kiss, do it. I throw away the bad images and we never have to see them, so feel free to be yourselves.’ I end by making some lame joke like ‘I watch people make out all the time for a living so trust me, there’s nothing I haven’t seen before.’ You have to let your couples know that you don’t expect them to be perfect and that you’re going to make it work, together.

What is a good lesson you have learned this year in photography or in your business?
To be more proactive. Specifically when it comes to logistics and timelines. Not all of my weddings have hired planners, so in that case, I am the one who dictates the timeline. I have learned that I need to be having that discussion months before their wedding, as ceremony times, limo rentals, etc have already been written in a Sharpie at that point.

If you could encourage a new photographer in one area, what would it be?
To find your own vision. Stop stalking Pinterest. For me, I found freedom when I stopped looking at those around me and started shooting what and how made me happy. And yes, that mean unfollowing some people on Instagram on Facebook. I’m a strong believer that we have to preserve our mental strength and passion, so doing whatever it takes to ensure that is the key to preventing burn out.
What do you love most about being a photographer?
I love sharing the final images. A wedding isn’t complete until I’ve received that call, text or email that they loved the images. Or the couple sending me photos of my images on their walls. Sharing work I’m passionate about and seeing people respond emotionally is the best part of this job.
I also have to mention the community. Find your people and stick with them. There are some amazingly talented and beautiful people in this industry, many of who I would have never met if it weren’t for this shared passion.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I see myself moving towards shooting a smaller amount of weddings per year and hopefully working on some side projects, still within the creative field. Everything I am passionate about is really complimentary to each other, so I don’t plan on straying. I love the editorials I have shot for different brands, whether that’s bakeries or candle companies, and I would love to set aside more time for those kind of projects in the future.

About the Artist: Brittany Mahood is a wedding and lifestyle fine art film photographer. Growing up in Phoenix, Arizona, she moved back to her childhood home to attend university in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Following her degree she spent time as a missionary in Europe and Asia. Currently Brittany splits time between Winnipeg and Phoenix.

Her approach to photography stems from her years spent living in Phoenix, where those desert tones seeped right into her heart and art. Combining her love of portraiture with the raw and fast pace of weddings, she creates timeless images on her favorite medium format camera.

Named one of ‘The 30 Most Inspiring Wedding Photographers For 2015′ by Weddingbells Magazine. She has been featured in numerous magazines and wedding blogs, including Style Me Pretty, Grey Likes Weddings, Green Wedding Shoes, Wedding Chicks, 100 Layer Cake, Weddings in Winnipeg, The Refinery Magazine, It’s Love Magazine, Wedding Sparrow, Belle Lumière, Swooned Magazine, Lemonade and Lenses Magazine and is a preferred vendor at Once Wed.

Visit Brittany at her WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM pages

We are so excited to welcome the amazingly talented Lena Antaramian to the Blog! Take a moment to learn more about her beautiful portrait photography, and be sure to visit her website at Live Love Laugh Photos. Thank you so much Lena for taking the time to share your work with us today!

 Where did your inspiration for photography begin?
It sounds like a cliché but my inspiration for photographing families and children was my own family and kids.  As so many moms out there I was taking thousands of pictures of my daughters and the more time I spent doing that, the more I realized how precious those pictures were because they helped me bottle up time; time that is so fleeting.

As a Mom I know how special chubby cheeks and elbow dimples are, and how you want to remember every smile, nose crinkle and funny expressions that make your kids who they are.  Watching my girls grow up and trying to freeze moments with the help of my camera is what inspires me to do the same for others.

How would you describe your photography style?
I love fine art photography but I also love lifestyle photography and for a while I was going back and forth between the two trying to find ME.  I felt that I had to choose between the two but then I realized that I don’t!  My photography is lifestyle in nature but with a fine art twist.

Did you study photography in school or are you self taught?
I did not study photography in school – my degree is in Computer Science actually. But I spend a lot of time, effort and money on education – took a whole lot of workshops and classes, read books and tutorials, etc.  And of course nothing can replace good old practice – just taking lots and lots of pictures and seeing what works and what does not.

What brand/model camera do you shoot, and what is your favorite lens?
I shoot with Canon 5D Mark III.   My favorite lens depends on what I use it for – if I am travelling and can only take one lens then my go-to lens is 24-70 – I feel it is the most versatile one.  If I am shooting a session outdoors, my absolute favorite is 70-200 II (I recently upgraded from V1 of this lens and the upgraded version is so much better!)  And for portraits I love 85mm 1.2 lens.

Do you have any tips for photographers on how to find the light?
It took me a while to learn to find and see the light but once I got it, I really GOT it.  I don’t think there are any shortcuts to finding the light (or if there are, I have not discovered them!) – you just have to practice, practice and practice some more.  Shoot in the morning and shoot in the evening, shoot on cloudy days and shoot during the midday sun – the more you shoot the more you will see the light and the better you become.  Try to notice the light when you look at paintings or photographs of others, when you watch movies or are driving down the street – beautiful light is and can be found everywhere – you just need to practice to find it.

What is the most challenging thing about photographing children?
I think the most challenging thing about photographing children is having them let go of what they think is expected of them during a photo shoot – namely – cheesy smiles.   Tell a child to smile and I guarantee you will get a very fake looking smile – a smile that does not light up their eyes and touch the rest of their face.

I make sessions fun – and what that fun is depends on a kid. Sometimes it is playing a game of ‘red light/green light’ or ‘Simon Says’ or wiggling my nose.  Or conspiring with kids to  start a tickle fight and surprise their parents.  With older kids, I just talk to them – I genuinely want to know more about them and their interest.  And when they open up I am able to capture them and not their fake smiles.

What is a good lesson you have learned this year in photography or in your business?
Trust your gut feeling. Trust yourself when it comes to your work and your vision – don’t imitate others and be true to yourself – people hire you for YOUR vision.  Trust yourself when it comes to turning down a session (if it is not in line with what you like to do) or a client (if you see any red flags during your initial communications).   Trust yourself when you stand your ground and follow your studio policies.

I learned to trust my instinct years ago and to this day I think it is one of the most important things I’ve learned in this business.

If you could encourage a new photographer in one area, what would it be?
Treat your clients well – go above and beyond for them and exceed their expectations.  Be proactive and responsive, caring and thoughtful.  Small gestures – such as hand-written cards, surprises with their order, etc. – make a big difference.  Provide your customers not only with beautiful images but also with an amazing and memorable experience – from start to finish.  And when you do that, they sing your praises  to everyone who will listen.  And you will get great customers – and if you are lucky – good friends – for life!

What do you love most about being a photographer?
Where do I start?   I love so many things about being a photographer!  I love that I get to capture precious moments and memories for my clients.  I love that I get to meet and develop relationships with so many wonderful people and watch their kids grow.  I love how excited kids (and parents!) are about their sessions with me. I love that so many people have beautiful images of their families that bring smiles to their faces – images that I captured!  I love that photography allows me to find beauty in the most unexpected places. I love that it allows me to share my point of view with the world. And this is just a small sample of what I love about being a photographer.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I am not very good at long term planning so picturing myself 5 years from now is tough!  For one I will be in my mid 40s and my kids will be pre-teens – crazy! But in terms of photography I still see myself photographing children and families – which is my first love!  I see my boudoir business grow and help women see the beauty in themselves.  I see offering more photography classes at my photography studio – classes both for parents and for kids.About the Artist: I am Lena Antaramian, a children and family photographer located New Jersey and an owner of Live Love Laugh Photos. I am a mom to very different but equally amazing twin girls and a wife to a smart and funny man. I love dogs, books and sunny spring days. I love all types of food, dessert in particular; cooking it is a different story though. I love bags and believe you can never have too many. I am a world traveler and after visiting many countries, living in a few and meeting people from all over the place I truly believe that the world is a wonderful place and people at their core are good. I get teary-eyed when I witness emotional connections and moments – a hug between a mother and a daughter that shows more love that can ever be described with words, pure joy that is a belly laugh of a toddler, happiness on kids and parents’ faces when they are being silly together. And I feel very privileged to capture and help preserve them for my clients.

Visit Lena at her WEBSITE | FACEBOOK pages