You either lose your fear or

Obsessions with self-preservation
Faded when I threw my fear away
It’s not a thing you can imagine
You either lose your fear
Or spend your life with one foot in the grave

- Over the Rhine, “Spark”

Up way late editing, not much better than hot tea and Over the Rhine playing. This verse always sticks with me. Great song from a great live album, Live from Nowhere, Volume One

Even if you can’t sleep it makes for a nice relaxing listen.

Deedle Beetle Hybrid

Runs on cuteness. Recharges with naps and milk.

Think warm thoughts

Winter’s still here. Snow melted a little, but cold wind hasn’t yet disappeared.

Think warm thoughts.

I’m wrapping up a stack of summer wedding albums, and this photo Sara took of Zach and Jacqueline making an exit from their wedding at Holy Cross Church has a great warm summer day feel.

Enjoy.

Winter is here

Old news, winter’s here in Indiana. For some fuss I couldn’t post these pics yesterday but the photo cuteness of Adrian in the snow was too adorable to keep offline and I found a way to share them!

Our snow baby all bundled up with Mama, ready for his first play in the snow!

Wait a minute, this stuff is on the ground, is great to eat when I’m teething, I can eat it and Mom and Dad aren’t telling me no? I LOVE SNOW!

He jumped right into the fresh snow!

For as much as he didn’t want to be born during a snowstorm, almost 10 months later he sure loves the white wonder.

Wait this snow stuff stays around how much longer? DO NOT WANT!

Ok I still like it. Few more cute pictures and we go warm up, ok?

On that note… Whether you love it or hate it, snow does make for a fun Christmas card background. Drop us a line or a call to set up a wintry shoot and make the best of the wintry white wonder out there!

Photo Lessons by Joe McNally

I took a break from designing and sketching ideas for this weekend’s event setup to check the web feeds. Had a good laugh when I came across this napkin art. I’ve had some pretty cool photography instructors, mentors and inspirations. Still nobody illustrates his or her work as simply and geek friendly as the famous Joe McNally. What do these scribbles equate to for a photo?

Check out his workshop post HERE

Instead of “light modifiers” I will probably start to refer to our lighting kit as the photon force field.

Keep the creativity cookin!

Food for thought

A group of photographer friends and colleagues are planning a dinner night out to talk photo, ideas, things geeky and laugh. They’re gathering at a Chinese Buffet I frequented in high school. It was the closest restaurant to school and we always took a bunch of eggrolls back to class.

One photographer replied that the buffet is her favorite Chinese Restaurant. It didn’t occur to me till I began a reply that my favorite Chinese restaurant is directly across the parking lot. So how, then do two similar restaurants stay in business? Here’s my reply that got ME thinking while I wrote it.

- - - - -

Should you get the chance, drive, walk or take a rickshaw across the New China parking lot north toward Ireland Road and walk downstairs to China Garden. Same great fried goodness, less sitting-in-a-buffet-bin texture. Order your food, not scoop it.

Disclaimer: Sara and I frequent China Garden. Probably 25% of the time that we have their food we order it carry out. We’re hooked. I won’t pass up a buffet meal with friends or family, but given the choice between these two Chinese restaurants within a fortune cookie’s throw of each other, I’ll be found at China Garden.

Small business lesson here? Two restaurants, pretty much same ingredients. Two different approaches to serving similar* foods.

Differences?

New China / Buffet: (Been there at least since 1998)

• U-Scoop - eat as much as your digestive system allows.
• One price and you get everything in the bins
• Great to try different dishes that at your leisure, good for picky eaters too.
• Staff takes payment and takes away dirty plates
• Conversation: Hi how many?” and “Are you done with that plate?”

China Garden / Sit-down: (25+ years in business including restarting after a building fire)

• A greeting where, if followed by “How many?” is to determine your party size not your order total upon entry
• Meal courses (appetizer, entree, dessert) served individually and not all available simultaneously. Timed delivery keeps the food coming a portion at a time.
• Portions are generous and I often take home leftovers
• Servers take your order at table, bring food, and in most of my experiences there, conversation.
• Did I mention an experience?

My first time eating at China Garden with Sara was not long after her mother had passed away, not two months into my dating days with Sara. When we arrived the staff asked how Sara was and how her family was doing. When Sara told our waitress that her mother had recently passed, the waitress broke into tears. I didn’t realize how long Sara’s family had been visiting the Garden and how they had gotten to know the staff.

Their chef, Jimmy, has come out to our table to see how our meal was (always tasty!). The exact date escapes me but within the last year or so he lost his wife. More than once he’s had conversations with us and with Sara’s dad about lost loved ones.

Once the fried goodness digests and tiredness subsides, what are you left with? A rumbling stomach, perhaps. Smelling like deep fried Chinese food, most certainly. What’s the experience that will get you talking?

What’s your business’ experience that will get your customers talking?

* Foods similar to American tastebuds and relatively safe to assume isn’t intestines, dog, or anything too “weird” for Americans to eat. Fellow China travelers can you agree?

PS This is certainly my most introspective and cohesive Tuesday Thoughts post yet. Thanks for reading.

Congrats ND Football

Congrats, Fighting Irish of Notre Dame University,

Today you beat a branch of the Armed Services in football. Thank goodness too, you were really getting beat up by those college teams you have to play and could finally get out of that losing streak. At least for three Saturdays a year you can take a break from college scholarship sponsored football and play cadets from the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

I regret to inform you that for these three weekends I will be cheering for your opponents. You see, I have had more family and friends in these three institutions of learning than those I know who have graced your classrooms. They get recruited to their academies as you do to your campus. However, in addition to sports training, they will go through boot camp and be put into active service. All have enlisted willingly and none had parents paying for them to attend. In fact I’m sure it cost the parents more in sleepless nights and prayers when the troops are called to duty.

When you have a few bad seasons your coach’s contract gets bought out or he’s fired. When the service men and women have bad seasons loved ones don’t return home alive. I’m sure they have better things to concentrate on than defending a goal line when they are preparing to be sent to defend our country.

The door of the Basilica on your campus sums up the order of loyalties in a four-word stone inscription: God, Country, Notre Dame.

My loyalties and respect for the first two will always come before your football schedule.

I’m all for recreation, so I’m glad your team gets to go up against our troops. I hope it is an honor to look into the faces of your opponents knowing they will be responsible for defending your freedom. In the spirit of recreation I can’t wait till you get to play more branches of the Federal Government in order to pad your win record and inflate your egos a little more. Who knows, maybe the Postal Service will scrimmage you soon. I hear the IRS is looking to put together a team too.

Looking forward to all your glorious wins ahead,

Signed,

American citizen, South Bend, Indiana native, and ND fan

Photo Doubleshot

A duet of the photographers found in Stacie & Bryan’s gallery. Stacie’s daughter Lexi asked if she could take a picture with Sara’s camera, so while Sara instructed her I photographed the lesson. Voila - photographer double shot.

Season 4 Finale - Nicole and Scott!

Tonight Sara and I wrapped up our fourth year photographing together (our third year as my full-time job) with a superb finale celebrating with Nicole and Scott.

Believe it or not, I (Eric) love shooting salon photos. Lots of color, shapes, fun with the bride and her friends, time to test out ideas, coffee… and today, numbers. The numbered containers of Redken styling products at Ken’s Studio Hair sparked an idea. Guesses?

(Answer: it’s the wedding date)

My compliments to Nicole ans Scott for the all the forethought and planning that went into your wedding day timeline. Everything moved along perfectly without feeling rushed and there was never a dull moment in between all the fun! They had planned to photograph nearly all portraits before the ceremony, and when I heard Sara snapping in the balcony above me I looked up to see Nicole catch a glimpse of Scott in his tux.

Sara created this dramatic image as Nicole descended the balcony stairs to meet her groom.

Scott’s reaction when Nicole walked the aisle to meet him? All smiles!

Today brought a first for us - celebrating a Latin wedding mass. The traditional Latin ceremony was wonderfully beautiful. From the balcony the acapella voices of five men singing resonated through the sanctuary in serene worship. A thundering organ played out notes that superceded all but the voices that joined it in song. Two lives joined to become one.

Click a photo above or CLICK HERE to see the Newlyweds’ Instant Album Slideshow where you can relive the celebration, get a reminder when the photos are ready, and even pick up a copy of the slideshow.

Enjoy!

Congrats Nicole & Scott!

Today we’re celebrating with Nicole & Scott. Their wedding day wraps up one incredible year’s worth of celebrations and awesome couples Sara and I have been privileged to photograph!

Click the photo or CLICK HERE to see their slide show. Be sure to request a reminder too so you’ll know when the full wedding day gallery is ready to see.

Congrats Nicole and Scott!

Enjoy!