3 Huge Secrets On How To Prepare For Your Head and Shoulders Photography Session.

Are You Out There In Social Media Land?

There are a lot of people out there in Social Media Land.  I heard once, that with social media, you have about 3 seconds or less in which to capture someone's attention.  If they aren't impressed, they will keep right on clicking.  This means that they are actually looking at profile pictures to quickly make the decision as to whether or not to stay there.

If you are a business owner or a professional, you already know that social media is a great tool with which to network and create relationships.  The image that you should have for your profile picture should match the level of professionalism you are creating.

Many professionals dislike being in front of a camera.  Memories of going to a busy, packed studio as a child often makes folks stiff and nervous.  They don't want to look stiff or unnatural, they want to look friendly, approachable, professional.  Oftentimes, they just don't know how to start the process of preparing for a Head and Shoulders Photography Session.

My approach to this is to help my clients feel as comfortable as possible, and this starts at the very beginning when they call me.  We'll discuss many things during that call, including what you want to wear and what image you are desiring to show.  I'll ask you questions, such as, do you want to wear a uniform of some sort, or do you want to wear business casual clothing?  What is the message you are wishing to convey through your image?  Do you want to appear friendly, yet assertive? These are the things that I do to help my clients overcome their stagefright.

The goal, then, is to provide the client with images that make them look their best, on their very best day.  This includes the amount of time, afterwards, to retouch the images that have been selected in such a way that reflects that.  A client's appearance in the images is not changed, it is simply enhanced.

Here are 3 tips on how to prepare for your Head and Shoulders Photography Session.

1. Get a haircut, color or permanent at least a week in advance. If you have anything done to it the day you are photographed, it will be either a little short, or the color too intense, or the perm too curly. Let your hair relax into its style and you will look great the day of your headshot session.
2. Color and style are so important in your outfit. Most Head and Shoulder portraits are at least waist up, so don’t worry about what to wear waist down, you could wear shorts if you would like. If you are a lawyer, you should wear a shirt, tie and jacket that fits you well. If you are the owner of a cleaning company, it’s a good idea to wear a crisp polo shirt with your logo embroidered on it. If you are a stylist, and you want to show your creative side, a great top that fits you well and shows your personality would work great. It’s suggested to avoid clothing that might cause some kind of wardrobe malfunction. You can bring a couple of outfit choices to your session to see what will work best.
3. Be relaxed. Your expression will show your feelings, so if you are nervous about being photographed, it will show. Many people get anxious about having their photograph done, because they are self-conscious or they don’t know what to wear. Remember to breathe and have fun. Practicing your smile and saying cheese should be avoided. Your photographer should be able to help you laugh and smile before you step in front of the lens.

These simple, but important, tips will help you to prepare or your headshot photo session. If you have any questions about having your Head and Shoulder portraits done, please feel free to call me, Megan, at 240-245-0416.

Brand New Products

Do You Wish That You Had Other Ways To Enjoy The Images From Your Photography Experience Besides Printed Portraits?

Here at Honey Bee Photography, we are super-excited to introduce some brand new products.

(Please note, these are stock images from my professional print house.)

Treasured boxes

Treasured Boxes are a wonderful alternative to the traditional album.  It starts with your personalized box, covered with your very favorite image printed in a high definition medium and bound with album quality leather.  Open this beautiful box, and find your favorite 20 images, printed on double-sided 5x7 prints.  This is perfect for the coffee table or a gift for grandparents!  I know everyone will treasure these as the years go by!

Lay Flat Albums

Perfect for the family who loves their images and wants to enjoy them in an album.  Beautiful Integrity™ Lay Flat albums are guaranteed to last a lifetime.  Your album is covered with a beautiful soft-covered photographic album cover, and starts with 10 spreads.  You choose your images to put in the album.  You’ll have the equivalent of up to 20 pages, including artwork and graphic design.  The lay-flat design allows your spreads to stay open, and increase your enjoyment of seeing these images every time you pick up the album. These are available in 2 sizes, 8x10.5 and 12x12.

Metal Curves

These beautiful, freestanding metal prints will bring your images to a brand new dimension!  These are perfect for office desks, and mantels.  You can even mount curves on the wall to provide a stunning display with the other metals that HBP offers.

Accordion Albums with Gift Tins

These are the most stylish brag books for you and the grandmoms.  Perfect for purses, the office, or to display on a console table, it’s a great way to collect many of the images that you know you love!  Gift tins make the perfect presentation and protect your albums in purses.

Two styles are offered!

Gloss pages 3x3 with 10 squares and Gift Tin

Pearl pages 4x4 with 6 squares and Gift Tin

These new products will definitely add beauty to your life so that you can always have your favorite images right at your fingertips!

Did You Know That Your Mom Really Wants a 3-Generational Photograph of Your Family For the Holidays?

Did You Know That There Are Only 9 Shopping Days Left Until Christmas???







Wait!  What???









Did you know that more moms and grandmoms want beautiful artwork of their families more than anything else as a gift at Christmas?  Many families get their portraits done between October and November than any other month of the year.  However, the time that most families with 3 and 4 generations get together is in December, because of the holidays.

If your family is going to be getting together this year for the holidays, just call me, Megan Martineau, for a multi-generation family portrait session.  With plenty of experience with working with large families with all kinds of personalities, shapes and sizes, I'll get you guys relaxed, smiling and looking GREAT for your portraits.

A gift certificate to give to your parents is a wonderful way to tell them that you've actually been listening to their hints all year.  When you call to order your gift certificate, we can go over the details and even schedule your session on the day that you know your entire family will be there!  The only days I won't be available are the 25th and the 28th, when I'll actually be spending time with my own families and doing my own family's portraits. Other than that, I'll be available to photograph your family as early as 8 am and starting as late as 8 pm.

I'll help you decide where we'll  photograph your family (mom's homestead is usually a wonderful spot, and we can use the area with my portable lights), inside or outside, and help you come up with outfits.  I'll even help you with making the calls to your siblings and cousins for getting ready.

A couple of summers ago, my family was able to get together for a mini-family reunion at my stepmother's home in Pennsylvania.  This is my favorite image of all of us together, and this was done with the timer, which is why I'm on the end.

It was a really, REALLY bright day outside.  I was so glad to find open shade!  My family has actually been "trained" to do photographs with the timer, so I really don't recommend this for everyone.  It's best to hire a photographer who knows how to pose large groups of people and make everyone smile, so that you and your family can't wait to display your 3 generation portraits at home and office.

There's been a new grandchild added to our family, so I'll be photographing all of us at our family day on Dec 28th.

I want to take this time now to thank all of you who've allowed me to be a part of your family's memories this year.  I hope that you are enjoying your family time during this holiday season.

Call me by Wednesday, Dec 17 at 5 pm to order a gift certificate, and receive a special gift in which to present your gift certificate with an amount of $500 or more.  240-245-0416.  Remember, I travel to you for sessions!

With Warm Holiday Hugs,
Your Favorite Photographer, Megan!

A November to Remember

It's nearly official!  The holiday season is about to start.  There's so much to do to get ready and plan for the holidays.

Whether you are hosting or visiting, there's one thing you want to be sure of, and that's, "Did I get everything done that I needed to get done?"

Just like Santa, I make lists.  I check them twice.  Sometimes 3 or 4 times.  I make a master list and then sub-lists.  I don't want to leave a step out, because I'm afraid I'll forget, and that just throws a stick into the gears and messes EVERYTHING up.  And I mean... EVERYTHING.

The one thing you want to definitely remember, is how to make your holiday cards memorable. Make your holiday cards really stand out this year by having punch-out cards designed, so your recipients can display your card as an adorable ornament for their trees!  Ask me for details!

Another way is to totally surprise your loved ones with adorable images that tell a story of a visit from Santa, without going to the mall!

Imagine having a meltdown-free visit with "Santa", with smiles and cookie-eating, exploring and having so much fun!  

Your loved ones will get such a kick out of these images, that they will show them to their friends and families all throughout the holiday season, and treasure them for YEARS to come.  

I'm scheduling the Santa Baby Sessions now, for all throughout November, and part of December.  If you act NOW, and call, you can be one of the 5 available sessions left where you can get a Two-fer... meaning a Santa Baby session AND a family portrait session, with 4 digital images, for only $95.  I am extending this until Saturday night, November 8 at 8 pm. 

Top 5 reasons to do a Santa Baby Session with Honey Bee Photography.

5.  It's a fun session, in a quiet area, where we'll have fun telling a story through beautiful images of your children.

4.  Pajama Party Time!  You get to shop for holiday jammies!

3.  Free Snacks!  Your children get to enjoy yummy cookies.  

2.  The Entertainment Value.  There's more to this session than meets the eye.

Dad dresses up as Santa!  But you never see his face!

1.  No Mall Meltdowns.  Your children will happily play with our props, and when Dad steps in behind, dressed as Santa, the smiles and giggles will be contagious and we'll get those awesome expressions you've been hoping for all of these years.  

YOU CAN COUNT ON MEGAN FROM HBP TO HELP YOU GET THE PICTURE PERFECT IMAGES FOR YOUR GREETING CARDS THIS YEAR.

240-245-0416

Discover HBP's Secret to Successful Santa Photographs!

It's that time of year again!  Can you believe it?  The year goes by so quickly!

Wasn't it New Year's Day like... yesterday?

The preparation of getting ready for the holidays has come upon us, and it's time to have some fun.  Don't do the boring old photographs that you've always done... Do something different!

Do you have visions of your children in line to see Santa at the mall, and you wait patiently, munching on a delicious goodie, keeping them occupied, until it's your turn, and excitedly, you put them on Santa's lap or seat next to him, and you have the saddest faces of all?  The moment that you've talked about, dreamed about, thought about, crumbled in moments because your children are scared of Santa?

It's time to take the stress of that OUT of your holiday planning... time to get beautiful photographs that are keepsakes to treasure year after year.

Can you imagine the FUN???

(Of course, the cookies don't hurt, either.  I'd smile for a cookie, too!)

So reduce that stress!

Call today for this offer.  Offer is good Dec 1-Dec 10, 2014.  Appointments only.  Pets are welcome.

He loves baseball, and so does his brother.

One of the things that I love about photographing families is getting to know them and their stories.

When I spoke to their mom the first time on the phone, it turned into a very unexpected conversation.  She had expected to just give me her name, phone and email, and set up a time to photograph her just-turned-5 year old son.

"Please tell me 3 things that your son loves".

"Oh, he loves baseball, and books, and being outside".

After a few other questions about his likes and dislikes, I told his mom,

"I think we should do a session around his love for baseball."

She got REALLY excited.

"I never thought of doing something like that!  Could we do a couple of the boys together?"

And so we began to plan what would become an EPIC session.

It was a beautiful day.

Her boys actually acted like they like each other!

This child is bound to become a baseball champion!

This next image, his dad was playing with him, sending imaginary pitches.  What is going on in his mind? I think this is my favorite image from the session.

And the books!  He loves to read.  It's another one of his favorite activities.  This stack is a good representative of this favorite pastime.

Location: Allen Pond Park

Time:  About 4 pm

Weather conditions: Mostly Sunny

Amount of fun:  a LOT of fun

Celebrating Life With Her Favorite People

Have you ever thought about what it would be like to have a severe, rare disease?  The only cure is an organ transplant.

Even then, there are complications.  It isn't perfect.  Every day is a gift from God.  Every moment spent with a beloved family member or friend is cherished.  Within each of these is a great miracle.

The miracle is love.  The celebration of life can be any moment that you choose to do so.  You make memories with those whom you cherish.  Every details of the moment is caught up in your memory:  the way the light plays on the leaves and the shadows below; the infectious giggles of your children; the tight cuddle from your spouse as you kiss him; the loving embrace from your mom whose job since the moment she gave birth to you was to keep you safe, happy, and loved.

The common denominator here is the miracle of love.  This beautiful woman has been given another chance by medical experts who were able to save her life.  This session was done to help her celebrate this miracle.

Please share this with all of your friends and family.  Life is so precious.  So is family and so is love.

One more thing.  I know that this is a hard thing to think about, but it's so important to remember and to talk about with loved ones.  Please consider organ donation.  It's very easy to do.  Life is not ever predictable.  Organ and tissue donation is one of the most important legacies a human being can leave behind.  Please visit http://donatelife.net/for more information.