Early Bird Special Extended!!

Hey everyone!!

I've heard there are more out there that wanted to get in on the specials, so I am extending the Early Bird Special till the 15th of Feb for the Basic Photoshop class, and the Photography 101 & 102. Call or email to get in on the deal!!

Inspired by Disney… and Dayton!

I know that many of you are doing service for a free day at Disney, and we are also excited to be a part of something so big! We have partnered with SKIP, an amazing company that supports needy children in Peru, and are doing a fundraiser to benefit these children! We will have more information about SKIP during your session, but you can check them out here, and you can even purchase fanastic handmade items that the women there are making to support their families. I am so excited because it truly is a win win for all involved. So, if your interested, here are the deets:

“Minnie” Sessions - Fundraising Photos:

What: come and have your child or children’s custom photo taken, all proceeds benefit the SKIP foundation.

When: Sat. Feb. 13^th, 2010

Cost: $35 for 3 custom edited images on CD 8 x 10 or smaller.

$45 for 3 custom edited images on CD full resolution (can be enlarged to any size)

Copy rights for the images included.

Prints available at session.

Who: Any child or children, (we will be scheduling the shoots in the morning)

Any child that has a mental or physical disability will receive their images free of charge!

This last summer, I had Dayton’s family pictures on my calendar, but hadn’t taken them yet, and I got word that he was in the hospital with something that could be serious. Of course, I started getting worried, and thought, what if something happens to him before I am able to take these photos of him for his family to enjoy? It literally made my stomach drop. So, in an effort to bless other families with kids like Dayton and help them to have custom photography of their little angels on earth, we are offering free photography for them.

Enjoy Custom Photography of your child

Please spread the word to anyone that you know that has a child that is disabled. My whole family is helping with this event, and we all love Dayton, and would love to share the joy of custom photography to others like Dayton.

Also, don’t be surprised when my daughter or son are the ones to arrange your session with me, this is a family affair!

Sessions are limited, so call or email right away to get on our calendar!

Amy and family

480-296-9212

amy@amyfraughtonphotography.com

We made the News!!

I still remember when I heard that my really good friend's newborn baby had started seizing. We were all young Mom's together, and this was her first born, just a year behind my first born. It was shocking. The years that followed were filled with tests, surgeries, and more tests. The seizing never stopped. Today, Dayton is a joy and an inspiration everywhere he goes. Although he's never stood a day in his life, and never spoken the words "I love you Mom", he is all there inside, just trapped in a disfunctional body. My kids adore him, his cute sisters adore him, and so does everyone he meets, he has friends, he is in scouts, and loves camping and his church and his family! This summer Dayton got a new well trained dog. The dog is trained to sense when Mr D. starts his seizures, and will climb up onto his lap. Around his collar is a special unit that when placed near a unit in Dayton's upper chest, either stops the seizure, or minimizes it. So, welcome to the family Omega...he goes everywhere with them, yes everywhere! I took the chance to take their family photos back in August, and was so excited to see a few of them on News Channel 3 last night when they did a story on Dayton - so so cool! It's amazing meeting people like Dayton, you see the hours of service his family and therapists put into him and his quality of life. You are a little awkward at first, not knowing his capacity to understand, and you want to help, but you can't. But the real deal is that you always leave feeling the strength of his special spirit and you wonder if he is the one helping us, not the other way around. Love you Dayton!!

Just found this link for the news story: click here

Basic Photoshop Class!

It's finally here! The much requested Basic Photoshop class is finally on my calendar, and I am so very very excited!! As a photographer, I feel that half of the art is in the camera, and the other half of the art is in photoshop. I've spent alot of time devoted to learning both, and everything on my blog and website has been edited in photoshop.

Here are the details:

Date: Saturday, Mar. 6th
Time: 2:30pm - 9:00pm
(dinner will be provided)
Requirements: I will be teaching from
Adobe Photoshop CS4. If you only have Elements, or a later version of photoshop, don't worry, you will be able to learn almost everything that I will be teaching. What you don't have, we'll just cover quickly for those that do.
We will be in a conference room, and your welcome and encouraged to bring a laptop. I will be providing detailed notes on all of the subject matter as well.

What: This is a basic photoshop class, but we will be fully editing a
handful of images by the end of the session.

Where: in Mesa, at a business office, more details when you register

Cost: The cost of the class is $225, but for anyone that registers
before Jan. 31st will receive $25 off of their registration.

To register: call or email me asap! I am limiting this class size, so be sure to get a seat!
I will send you a paypal to reserve your spot.
480-296-9212
amy@amyfraughtonphotography.com

Here are a few of the topics covered:
file organizing
understanding the tools
curves
levels
layers
sharpening
eye work
fixing exposure
correcting skin tones
actions
enhancing colors
creating your workflow

and if time permits, we will also cover:
head swapping
make me skinny
monitor calibration

and here are some reasons why you might love this class

After

Before

After

Before

Giving was Awesome!

This family was nominated last year in my "Giving is Awesome" contest, and it took all year to get together between my crazy schedule and theirs. They were in the restaurant business, and like many other businesses have been, theirs had some really hard knocks. Here are just a few of my absolute fave's from the shoot, although there were many more... especially with girls like these. I love getting to know people. Even if your with them for just an hour or two, for some reason, behind my camera, it seems I can see so much about the family, the relationships, and the individuals, and my guess from what I now know about this family is that this Mom has one of the biggest hearts! She just seems like the type that cherishes her friendships, and is a true friend. The other thing I noticed was the girls. I mean look at them. Such a cute and sweet relationship for sisters. And little "G" brother is totally edible! It was all my pleasure working with this amazing family and getting to know them!

Photography 101 and 102 - March session

My next photography 101 and 102 classes will be held on Tuesdays, Mar. 23rd and 30th. Both will be from 9-12. Early bird registration ends on Jan. 31st.

Here are the two classes...
Class 101 - $95, early bird special for $75
Composition
Lighting
Creativity
Toddler Tricks
Clarity and Focus
Using the Creative modes (not Auto)
Aperature Priority
Shutter Priortiy

Class 102 - $95, early bird special for $75
Lenses - why, which, when?
Depth of Field
White Balance
Focus Points - toggling
Exposure
ISO
Aperature
Shutter Speed
Manual Mode

Both classes combined: $190, early bird special for $150

As always, class size will be limited, so that I can be sure to provide attention to all the students, and your seat for the class will be held with your non refundable registration. Register now before the early bird special runs out!

The "eyes" have it!

This is THE NEATEST family ever!! Cute, darling and beautiful girls, and I loved having them on in front of my lens! It must have been their eyes! The parents are so great, and they all had so much fun together hanging out and capturing all of this fun! I loved just getting to know them and being to add such great people to my book of friends! Enjoy guys!!

He loves Nascar!

Check this guy out... if you can't tell, he loves Nascar and his Mommy! Just as he should!!

China Doll!

To really love these pictures as much as I do, you must hear a bit of the story.

Baby L's parents, who had been working on adopting from China for over 2 years were understandably frustrated to find out they were going home from China empty handed. See, they had already been there for a couple of weeks, and the baby they were supposed to take home was taken back to the orphanage (another story for another day). So, when they got the call saying there was another that they could possibly have, they were ecstatic. They knew she would come with heart problems, they had signed up for that. The orphange brought her to the hotel with grungy clothes, and pants that have an open crotch area. They tie elastic around the waist, since there are so many babies, and then they just put a large pad up and tuck it under the elastic. Then just pull it off to change her. She had been in the care of 4 or 5 different "homes" by this time. Her natural Mom was forced to leave her on the porch of the orphanage. Her new Mom and Dad (the greatest people) were so excited to finally get their baby girl~ miraculously, when they finally got her home, they had her checked with a clean bill of health!

I loved going to her home for some of the pics, her older sisters had decorated a darling "princess" room for her, complete with a closet full of the cutest clothes, bows, boots, and blankies. They are such an amazing family and everyone is head over heels in love with this darling baby!

These images were taken 3 weeks after she had been brought home here with her new family. She still had marks on her ankles where she was tied down to the crib in her orphanage. They tie them down so they don't roll over the other 2 babies that they share the crib with. She has taken the normal time to adjust, but I was in awe at how she responded with the biggest grins for her Mom (mom is standing right behind me for these shots), and how calm and peaceful and just contented this new baby was. I am so impressed with the parents, and am still dying over how beautiful she is! Mom wanted to do a session just for her, since she has no photos of her first year. They literally had to guess her birthday. Mom didn't mind me sharing, in hopes that her story might be an inspiration to anyone else out there looking to adopt... enjoy!

Time to catch up!

Wow! It has been a true whirlwind of crazy activities with family and friends along with much photog business to do over the last few weeks! I have so so many pictures to share with you, all of which are of some amazing people - we caught some great stuff! Christmas was the best day ever, the kids all loved what they got, which made it so fun for me. I put a lot of thought into their gifts this year and added some homemade touches here and there. I'm always nervous when Santa decides to bring things that are not on their lists, but luckily, Santa made good choices, and all were thrilled! I'll have to show some pics.... but later....

We had a fantastic Creative Lighting class this last weekend, there was a great group of women all wanting to learn, play and create with their cameras!! The sun totally cooperated, so we created some amazing sun flare, silhouettes, and even moody and artistic stuff. Our model has been a client before, and was fantastic! Thank you Bay~ I'll be sharing pics of her later.... I've had a few ask when the next one will be offered. As soon as I have enough interest, so email me, I'll get you on a list and we'll go from there.

I still have a few spots left for the basic photography classes that start next week. If you know of anyone that still wants in, let me know as soon as possible. I am also looking for someone to host it. The host will receive 1/2 off of their registration for letting us use their home for the classes. This way, I can just show up and not worry about getting my own home ready for the class. I would prefer if the host lives near or around Gilbert, but it's not necessary.

I am in love with the pics below. Mrs. P was so fantastic to work with, she did not want traditional - yeah!! So we were able to be creative and do some super fun things with her, her hubby and her 3 edible boys! I loved the colors that came through our background, with the warm sunshine and the greens. Very beautiful nature! Mrs. P and I have alot in common, we are both from the Great Northwest, and we have suffered from losses in our families, so I feel an extra warmth around her. Check them out below...






This one above Mrs. P ordered as a very large gallery wrapped canvas! It is stunning and will be the first thing people see when they walk into their home. Such a fantastic choice!