You can now get custom jewelry created from your rialee photography images. These are gorgeous solid sterling silver pieces that will no doubt become a lasting keepsake.

If you have already had your session with us, but would still like to order something, the $250 minimum reorder will not apply to these orders. Click on over to the product page under the stuff tab for more info and pricing.

By far one of the best decisions for my business was attending this year’s WPPI in Las Vegas. I am home now more motivated and inspired than ever. We got to learn from some of the best in the photography world… Audrey Woulard, Jared Bauman, Kevin Kubota, Sarah Petty, Tamara Lackey, Jasmine Star, and Brianna Graham. Wow… there was so much great information presented in such a short period of time… I have a LOT to process. We had an amazing time at the Trade Show as well, and will hopefully announce some new products that we will be offering soon. And of course… my time in Las Vegas would not have been the same without my girls! We all have such different personalities, but we had SO. MUCH.FUN. Going through these photos this morning has me smiling and giggling remembering all the times we laughed until we almost wet ourselves… seriously. Thanks ladies… can’t wait to do it again!

And just for fun, a photo from a recent session. I’m adding this to my list of all-time favorite images.

First of all, a cool guy named Ryan Fritz (you may remember him as the Rad Dad from the last OTMOM issue) came up to the studio today to help me with some website optimization. I have wanted to blog about his super-fun business for quite awhile now… it is http://www.fargokids.com/.

He really has a passion for kids and art, and he will take your child’s artwork and print it on canvas. How cool is that? My assistant Karina had some of her kids’ art done and it was so neat. I’ve also added his website to my links at the top so make sure to check out his stuff… and thanks for the help today Ryan!

Second… I wanted to share with all of you something really cool coming up that was brought to my attention by the next feature mom for OTMOM. She’s such a great person and does tons of volunteer work for our community. You can read her blog here. When she asked for all of us involved with OTMOM to spread the word about this project, I was more than happy to help.

A ROCKUMENTARY called “In Pieces”

Hope Street Foundation, Fargo, has created an enlightening production entitled “In Pieces” that will highlight the issue of domestic violence through live rock music and video. A locally produced video will be shown along with music provided by local musicians on January 25 at 7:00 PM at the NDSU Fine Arts Center. The cost to attend is $10 / $8 for students. Tickets can be purchased at the Rape and Abuse Crisis Center and all area Hornbacher’s stores. This production is recommended for adults and students over age 15. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Rape and Abuse Crisis Center.

This production has been called a rockumentary as it will incorporate live rock music into a locally produced video production. The original script was written by Ross Almlie, who is president of RDA Financial Advisors, LLC in Fargo and current president of the Hope Street Foundation Board of Directors. All actors, camera operators, video editors, production staff, and band are members of the local community and have created this production as volunteers.

The original idea was brought to the Rape and Abuse Crisis Center by Ross Almlie and Center Staff have provided input into the storyline to ensure an accurate portrayal of a survivor of domestic violence. The story line follows an abused woman and her young child and also the life of her abuser. Emphasis is placed on the cycle of violence showing the correlation of abuse in a home with child witnesses. There is a strong message of the impact of abuse along with a hopeful message of survival and new beginnings. The Rape and Abuse Crisis Center strongly supports the message brought through this creative medium.

Hope Street Foundation offers assistance in life skills development for the involuntarily underprivileged class in areas of budget management, financial education, computer knowledge, resume writing, self-empowerment, and personal accountability in decision making in order to provide for their families and themselves and, thereby, return to a role as a contributing and productive member of society.

The Rape and Abuse Crisis Center offers crisis intervention, advocacy, counseling, and education to all persons affected by sexual and domestic violence and provides prevention programs to create a society free of personal abuse.

Contact Information:

Lynn Speral
Director of Development
Rape and Abuse Crisis Center
(701) 293-7273
(701) 293-9424, Fax
lynn@raccfm.com

Ross Almlie
Board President
Hope Street Foundation
(701) 277-8105
Ross.Almlie@rdafinancial.com

And last, but not least… my sweet neighbor up at the studio brought me the nicest gift the other day… it turns out she executive produced a CD this year and she brought me one! The artist is a local Fargo woman named Sarah Morrau and she recorded the album at Raptor Studios in Fargo. It’s such a cool mix of music and so relaxing and stress-relieving to listen to! It is available at Barnes & Noble, Baker’s Nursery, and Zandbroz so if you looking for some new tunes, make sure to pick up a copy, and thanks so much Beth for mine… I love it!

This is Karina and she is my new fabulous assistant! YAY!  She will be taking care of some of my more business-related duties like invoicing, ordering, packaging and some of the e-mails and phone calls. I am so so stinkin excited to finally have some help and hopefully have more time to get my editing work done! (I might even be able to sneak a few more sessions in for those of you on my waiting list!) Welcome Karina!

I was up at the studio this weekend trying to catch up on some work and had a little helper with me. She is ready for school with her new (way too short…long story) haircut and glasses. It’s hard to believe that summer is coming to an end~~I think I just blinked and there it went. I really do need to thank my husband and kids for their patience with me these last three months. Ever since my kids were babies I have been home with them, and then all of a sudden I was gone all day every day. Sometimes all day and all night. It was an adjustment for everyone and they had to pick up a lot of the slack for what I wasn’t able to do at home. So…thank you to Tim for getting the kids to all their appointments and activities, Carter, Cooper, and Kennedy for remembering to do the dishes and let Emme out, and especially Katelyn who, not by choice, was the official summer babysitter and lunch maker. Every time I would drive into the garage after a long day, I knew I would be greeted by my family who was happy to see me and loved me unconditionally. Next summer will be better…I promise!

Here's a photo of my kiddos from the weekend…

(I was trying to get them to smile by having them say funny things and in this very photo they are repeating "we hate our mommy's job because she is never home anymore.")

This photo is from the Chasing Fireflies website. Love it! The J.Crew website didn’t have the right file type to save and put on the blog, but my FAVORITES are their peacoats and trench coats, wool herringbone sportcoat, milan-knit Paley jacket, polka-dot ruffle cardigan, velvelt ruffle jacket and sorbet-stripe Julia dress. All super cute!

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And…..mark your calendars! The rialee photography open house is scheduled for Friday September 19th. There will be refreshments and prizes for the kids and lots of give-aways and prize drawings so make sure you stop by! Plus…you’ll get to see the loft!

I will be heading out of town for a little family time Thursday through Saturday. I will not be returning e-mails or phone calls during this time, but will be back in the studio on Monday! I am almost finished proofing sessions for the week of July 14-20, so if you had your session on the 21st or 22nd, look for your password next week. My schedule is now booked into November with only a handful of sessions still available. I’ll have lots of sessions to blog next week so check back!

I’m supposed to be the one BEHIND the camera! Did you know that I have never ever posted a photo of myself on my blog? For the last month I have been working on a very exciting project that will be so so so great for our community and they told me yesterday that they needed a photo of “mwah”. EEEWWW! Since I am a photographer…that means good ole’ me had to do the dirty work!  So here you go…I’m pretty sure this is not the one they will use, but here I am. When I haven’t been shooting, this is where I’ve been planted for most of the last month…at my computer in my new office. And for those curious blog stalkers, you can get a little glimpse of the loft in the background! I’ll be announcing details about this exciting project very soon!

I know you’ve heard the stories
But they all sound too good to be true
You’ve heard about a place called home
But there doesn’t seem to be one for you
So one more night you cry yourself to sleep
And drift off to a distant dream

Where love takes you in and everything changes
A miracle starts with the beat of a heart
When love takes you home and says you belong here
The loneliness ends and a new life begins
When love takes you in

 In my thoughts and prayers today is Steven and his family who suffered an unspeakable tradgedy last night. Their youngest daughter Maria who was adopted from China was playing in the driveway when one of their older sons pulled in with his vehicle and did not see her. She was struck by the car and killed. Steven and his entire family have been such an inspiration for me because of their heart for adoption and orphans around the world. A few years ago when I became interested in adopting a child from China (long story) I discovered the story of how the Chapmans were led to adoption and how they have helped many more realize their dreams of adopting through their foundation Shoahannah’s Hope. They also have an organization called Show Hope, a movement to care for oprhans….someday someday someday I would love to be able to participate in one of their mission trips to show orphans hope through the love of Jesus Christ.  This is an amazing family going through a very difficult time and I ask that you remember them in your prayers, and if you feel so led, to make a donation in memory of Maria to Maria’s Miracle Fund.

          “Project Childhood, which corresponds with Child Abuse Prevention Month during the month of April, is about creating a unified front among professional photographers in order to accomplish one goal: TO CELEBRATE CHILDHOOD.”

 

Here are a few details about this project….

1. Project Childhood will provide a web gallery of photos that will ultimately seek to inspire others to see the beauty of childhood.  It will be a site meant to CELEBRATE CHILDHOOD, a site filled with content by those who spend each day doing just that through the art of photography. What better people to capture the essence of childhood than photographers.

2. By offering a free session to a child who normally wouldn’t be able to afford it, each photographer is making a significant difference in that child’s life. If nothing else, those parents will have a picture on their wall of their child. A picture to celebrate, and that child will grow up knowing that someone took the time to make a difference.

3. By donating the session fee to a children’s charity of his or her choice, each photographer will be making a difference in the community and contributing to a cause that they feel warrants financial assistance. It’s sort of like the PAY IT FORWARD concept.

So…how does this affect you? I am looking for TWO children who wouldn’t normally be able to afford a photography session to offer a free session fee,  8×10 portrait and proof book. So, if you know any one who you think would benefit from this program, please e-mail me ASAP. The photos need to be submitted to the Project Childhood website by April 25, so I’d like to get started on this right away. I will be donating the session fees to two of my favorite children’s charities, Meritcare Children’s Miracle Network and Cully’s Kids.

Thanks so much for your help!

One of my talented clients…the one with the gorgeous baby in the hand crocheted orange blanket… made me this super cool blanket [in my colors] to use for newborn shoots… It is unbelievable! She also sells those cute little knitted pants her baby was wearing in a few of the photos, as well as the cutest little knappy diapers and really great body butters and creams. Check out her stuff at www.mybetterearth.com  … and if you must have one of these delicious baby blankets you can find the link by clicking here!

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I will be heading out of town today to do a photography presentation, some photo sessions, and hopefully a lot of shopping for the studio. I will be checking e-mails and messages periodically, but it may take me a day or two to get back to you! Also…April is now completely booked and only a few weekday appointments are still available for May.

And…although I’m nothing of an expert on the subject, I’ll pass along some of the things I’ve learned from my less than one year in this business.

• Being a successful photographer is about so much more than just the technical aspects of photography. Yes the right light and camera settings are important, but I have learned that establishing a connection with your subject is vital to capturing emotion in an image.
• Running a successful photography business is about taking great photos…BUT… the marketing, branding, design, technology, and workflow pieces are just as important and need just as much attention.
• Define your own style, find your niche, and stick with it. Offer something new, but don’t try to be good at everything.
• Say no more often (I’m not very good at this one.) It’s easy to get overworked and overstressed and lose your enthusiasm and joy for photography.
• Join a photography forum. There are so many talented photogs out there and I have definitely learned a lot from them!

I’ll leave you with this quote from photographer Skye Hardwick’s blog:

“You have no competition because there is only ONE of you on this earth. Embrace that fact and let it carry you in your art, your business, and your confidence!” — Mike Colon, Photographer

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That’s all I’ve got for now! Here’s one of those photos that I was talking about…images with emotion. This one still leaves me breathless.

A clothing change and MORE pictures wasn’t what he had in mind…

And in this one he is saying….”Are you kidding me Ria…another clothing change?”

What a trooper he was…but it is more fun to play hockey!

If you know of a business that would be interested in some photographs to brighten up their walls, let me know!

October weekends are filling up fast, so if you would like to schedule a session it would be a good idea to call now. If you mention that you have read my photoblog, you will get a complimentary photo session for up to four people! This offer is good if you call me to schedule your appointment before October 1st.