Jennifer Bowen Photography » Engagement, Wedding, Portrait & Family Photographer // Scottsdale, Phoenix Arizona

Ahhh, that’s my girl, in all her well-roundedness.

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In other randomness, I’m NOT-so-patiently waiting for my Canon 5d Mark II. I thought I was super quick to order one back in Sept right after they announced it, but a weeks delay then is more like a month or two delay now on the receiving end of things. I’m wondering why Canon is so slow to roll these out… makes me say hmmmm. I’m reading lots of things on the forums about potential issues and such, which could be contributing to this slower-than-normal distribution, but I’m still waiting with baited breath for Mr. Postman to deliver it. Before Christmas. Please. I think my old 5D is dying or at least on its last leg now that its 2 years old…so the sooner Santa Clause can deliver this new baby to me, the happier this mamasita will be.

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What else? The studio will be closed Dec 22nd-Jan 2. I will still be checking emails periodically during this time of course, but I wanted to let you all know the response time might be a tad slower during these two weeks. After this very crazy fall, I need to catch up on some sleep and reading.

I will keep all my clients posted about my maternity “leave” (likely starting about Jan 20th) should you be waiting on any products such as albums or other items. I will still have my album designer (Rachel) on hand to help turn the production around as well as my assistants (Katie and Kerry) in the office a couple times a week to respond to emails, etc., so you shouldn’t experience any unnecessary delays in receiving these things. And I wont be MIA, I’ll still be checking email as often as I can.

Just a reminder for those looking to book portrait sessions for the spring, we will be scheduling these again in mid to late March. My first wedding back is March 28th, and from there the work schedule will progress a little more like normal, albiet a tad lighter through the spring and early summer.

This email is evolving from personal stuff to business stuff. Hmm, that is telling of my life right now. More evidence I need some time off.

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What’s up for 2009?

I’m excited for 2009! Mostly of course for this new baby boy who is to join our family, but also for several things in the works business wise. At a very minuium there will be a new look and a new website unveiled. I will also be expanding the portrait side of the business with new promotions for existing clients, as well as new products, new services, and new looks. They will all be released in due time, but just wanted you to know that we are not going anywhere. We also have some killer weddings on the books for 2009, so I’m very excited for those as well!

The next photography workshops will likely be in the mid-to-late summer. We don’t have any of the details out yet, including dates, pricing, any new format, etc., but for those of you who have asked if we will do another, the answer is 95% yes and the details will likely be out in the spring.

For those of you who are not aware, I also have been offering personal one-on-one training lessons (one hour long to cover anything you want to know or need help on) as well as longer, intensive training sessions. If fact, I’m just wrapping up one of those. If you would like more information on these, shoot me an email and we can talk about them in more detail. I can do a couple one hour sessions in early January, but will not be scheduling any intensives until the spring and will take a break on the 1 hour sessions in mid Jan through early March. (For the record, I dont want you to think for a second that I think I’m all that and a bag of chips by offering these. I don’t believe I’m the worlds best photographer by any stretch, nor am I trying to present myself as some expert photography teacher. I have learned A LOT over the past five years, and have been fortunate to build a successful photography business, and if I can help pass along some of that knowledge or help someone understand the fundamentals better, than that is what I aim to do. If anything, these sessions and workshops have evolved out of emails from you guys out there requesting advice and one-on-one help. I guess one of the areas from which I get the most joy is helping others find their confidence to develop their skills and have that “aha” moment when the relationship to understanding manual shooting kicks in. I’m also more than happy to share any testimonials/referrals from those who have taken these from me, or for those whom I have helped along the way, so you can get a better idea of what to expect or how my teaching style is.)

California Summer Sessions – many of you know that I try and travel out to California each summer to escape the insane AZ summer heat, and will likely be doing that again next year. We might be out in San Diego this time, but nothing is firmed up yet, so I’ll keep you posted on this regarding any available sessions during the week or two we are out there. I’m not sure what to expect with the TWO kiddos underfoot, so I appreciate your patience on my future-planning-of-these-types-of-things. Sometimes, you just have to roll with the punches, right?

Well, this blog post is probably long enough now. Happy holidays to all of you out there! I hope this season is safe, healthy and happy for you. Given the economy and many people cutting back on the gift giving this year, maybe we will all tap into what is really important: family, friends, faith, giving back, and slowing down to focus on what is truly meaningful and good. God bless.