I stumbled upon Jamsine Star’s blog a few months ago, and am a little embarrassed to admit that I spent numerous hours going back and reading EVERY SINGLE POST!  Yup, her current blog goes back to April 2007, she writes a post almost every day, and I read them all!  Like my dad always says…”Anything worth doing, is worth overdoing!” ha ha!  I don’t always subscribe to that theory, but…the apple didn’t fall that far from the tree  🙂

Anywho…I seemed to have found her right at the perfect time.  I swear that happens to me a lot.  Turns out she’s speaking at a WPPI Roadshow here in Seattle on Monday, so I jumped at the chance to attend.  THEN she announced that she would be hosting a FREE online class for 5 days here in Seattle via CreativeLive! I feel so lucky that I am able to watch it live, although you can purchase the broadcast for $149 after the event or for $99 if you purchase before the class is over on Sunday August, 29th.  Today is the 3rd day of the broadcast, so you still have 3 days to catch live!

The 1st day she went over branding, marketing, the power of social media, and general “how she did it” information.  One of the coolest things about Jasmine is her willingness to share what she knows and her openness about just about EVERYTHING.  She regularly features a FAQ post on her blog FULL of helpful information for other photographers.

The 2nd day she answered more internet questions and then focused on how she uses natural light in her photography vs relying on flash or reflectors.  She was able to do a first look with the bride and groom.  She said that 85% of her couples do a first look.  I have to admit that Houston and I didn’t do that.  We went the traditional route of him seeing me for the 1st time in the little chapel along with the other guests.  I have to say…I might have done it differently had I known about it then.  It allows the bride and groom to have a moment that is just for them (well, and the photographer!).  It also allows more time for them to have pictures taken of them, without taking away from time with the guests.  She sold me on the idea!  She then shot with them for about an hour, the entire time explaining what she was doing and why.  It was amazing to see her in action.

I’ve already rambled more than I intended to, but will share the few little tips that stood out the most in the 11 pages of notes I’ve taken so far  🙂

• Be yourself!  She puts it ALL OUT THERE on her blog, and I’m not sure I can really fully do that just yet.  I keep thinking-“who cares about me??!!”  Well, the truth is…I’m hoping that everyone who wants me to capture their moments cares about me.  It’s ME that captures it, it’s what I see, and how I see it.  She talks about repelling and connecting a lot.  That not everyone is going to like what you write or you are, and that’s FINE!  It’s better to get that out of the way ahead of time to not waste anybodies time!
• There are two quotes that meant basically mean the same thing….”Shoot the t-ball game like it’s the World Series” and “If you feel like you are shooting ghetto fabulous weddings–take the ghetto out and just shoot them fabulously”.  Basically, take any opportunity you have to shoot and shoot it WELL and the way YOU want to shoot.
• Give the “permission to feel beautiful”.  There is no way I could articulate it the way she does, so I will just quote her-“If you’re a photographer, I want to encourage you to remind your clients they have the permission to feel beautiful. But don’t say it like that. I give you the permission to feel beautiful. That’s plain weird. But you get the idea. Remind your clients it’s okay for them to let their guard down and commit to getting the type of pictures they’ve always wanted. It really does go a long way.”-Jasmine Star

There are many more things that resonated with me, but I will let you tune in to see what you take away from it.