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Since The Workshop : Gladys Jem
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In 2009, I met one of the sweetest, bubbliest, and silliest girls. She had a heart of gold and immediately stepped up with a few other photographers and planned a mixer the night before attending my photography workshop in Orange County. Little did I realize that this girl would grow a successful photography business in San Francisco...and later become a J* bride (I photographed her Sonoma wedding in 2010).
Gladys Jem is shaking things up in the Bay Area and today she offered to share what she learned from theWorkshop.
It's been a few years since Jasmine's workshop in 2009. I showed up with barely any shooting experience and a hunger to learn everything that would help get me started. Initially, I went to Jasmine's workshop to build on technical skills that I lacked as a new photographer. I returned to San Francisco with so much more. Looking back, a lot has happened since then. Up's, down's, and everything in between. It all makes me realize that what I really took away from The Workshop didn't come from watching Jasmine shoot, or how she processed her images. It's that the journey is worth it. |
| If you're new to photography, keep in mind that everything takes time. Add to that, everyone's journey is different. What works for someone else, might not work for you. That's more than okay. It's going to happen when the time is right. I know it's easy to follow others, especially when you're starting out. I'm guilty of it. But trust me, making your own path is better than following someone else's. Focus on accomplishing your goals and dreams. Do it because it feels right for you. No matter how little the accomplishment may be, or how long it may take, you have to remember that you're one step closer than you were before. Things are happening. Eventually, you'll realize that you've done so much more than you thought possible. |
On this journey, you'll find that there will be negatives, but there will also be positives. There will be clients who love your photos, and there will be clients who tell you how to do your job. I've experienced both. You'll doubt yourself, make mistakes, get scared, and fail. In these moments, take the time to reflect on your feelings. Help it lead you to find and strengthen your voice. Make the changes that are needed. Learn from your mistakes. Let these experiences inspire you to work even harder.
Lastly, listen to how you feel. Follow your heart. I know, I know. We've heard it before, but it's so true. Some of the most beautiful things happen when you stop thinking, and start feeling.
I write this post with a full heart knowing that we're all on this journey together. Remember, it's worth it.
If you're interested in attending a future Workshop, be sure to sign up for the J* Newsletter to be the first to know when registration opens. |
    
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Since The Workshop : Mark Potter
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F our years ago, I taught my first personal workshop. It was a day full of nerves, but I encountered some of the most amazing people in the process. Since then, I've met hundreds of photographers through these workshops and I've been blown away by their progress.
So many people have gone on to do amazing things and I'll be highlighting a few of them in the upcoming months. At my June 2012 Workshop, I met Mark Potter. Just over a year ago, he decided to become a wedding photographer and has since grown by leaps and bounds. He and his wife Allison are shaking things up in North Carolina...and he offered to share what he learned from The Workshop. |
| About a year ago, the thought of creating a successful wedding photography business was merely a distant daydream. After all, I shot in auto, knew little about weddings, and had no idea what it took to start or run a business. But, I wanted it more than anything and in my search for knowledge I stumbled across the Jasmine Star Blog. Like many of you, I related to j*'s story as if it was written for me and she sparked an inspiration within that started my journey. Now, at the end of my first year in business, I find myself reflecting on the top three factors that helped me to grow as a photographer. |
Attitude:
I discovered early that attitude is everything. Like most things in life, I tend to learn the hard way. There were times I was harshly unfair and critical of myself. There were moments that I viewed my work and ability so negatively that I felt like giving up. But I wanted photography bad enough that I soon realized I needed a healthy outlook. One that was free from self-criticism and centered on perseverance and tenacity. I began to celebrate the small wins, and I chose to keep the big picture in mind - developing over time into the photographer I wanted to be. I'm a work in progress, but I now understand the importance of attitude to growth. |
Immerse Yourself:
I've always been the type of guy to dive in the deep end, especially when I'm passionate about something. So, I completely immersed myself in everything photography related. I read books, scoured hundreds of blogs, analyzed photos and developed an eye for detail, photographed my wife, my dog, friends, visited photography forums, and reached out to others for help. I taught myself to shoot in manual and began to understand my camera and the settings that worked for me. A little over twelve months ago, I didn't know what ISO was and as a result I shot a friends engagement session at ISO 1000, in broad daylight. I knew my photos didn't look the way I wanted them to, but I also knew that if I continued to push myself and take every opportunity to learn, that I would see progress. |
Finding You:
Knowing your camera is vital, but it's the beginning. I reached the point where I was happy with my photos from a technical perspective, but they lacked the 'feeling' I wanted to evoke. Simply put, I was shooting without a sense of style or brand. I began to understand that I lacked a vision for my work and sought to define how I wanted my work to look. This wasn't an easy process and it took time to develop. But by shooting as much as possible, then reflecting on the results, I began to slowly piece together what my style was - and when my results didn't reflect what I was going for, this was just as powerful, and in hindsight it probably taught me more. |
| It's mind blowing to come full circle and have the opportunity to write a guest post on Jasmine's blog. I feel incredibly thankful to have this chance to share with others. It's my hope that maybe I've helped just one person to take a step closer to beginning their journey. |
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The Workshop : November 2012
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© Jasmine Star. This post cannot be republished without permission. Stealing makes me sad. |
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S ometimes the universe brings the perfect mix of people together, like puzzle pieces waiting to be made whole. There are moments when I feel the gravity of what I'm able to do and I realize I might be the luckiest person. Ever. Meeting and educating 20 photographers on their journey to becoming better at their art and businesses are things I'm honored to do...and I was happy this happened recently at one of my photography workshops.
Hosted here in Orange County, California, we covered eight components of branding and dissected businesses together to find ways to strengthen along the way. This group of photographers was strong, driven and full of amazing questions which made for a perfect day.
Many thanks to an amazing team for allowing things to come together in ways I couldn't manage on my own...
Makeup and Hair: Angelina with All Made Up
Dress and Accessories: Emily with Ferndales
Florals: Jaclyne with Heavenly Blooms
Models: Tiffany and Justin Jahangiri
All Around Awesomeness: JD |
| JD is the backbone for theWORKSHOP...he takes care of every last detail and plans the day so my focus can be solely on teaching. He also manages to be a wonderful host...my parents were right: I married up! |
| All of the behind-the-scenes photos were captured by JD...who makes fun of me for looking like a bunny when I talk. I can't say I disagree. |
| I was honored to work with Tiffany and Justin who traveled from Minnesota to model for theWORKSHOP...I couldn't be more thankful to work with such amazing couples who love each other...and make what we do as photographers effortlessly sweet. |
| We hosted a shoot and the goal was have each student photograph the models with specificity and intentionality, using the images to further the words they use to describe their brands. |
| The first 25 minutes of the shoot was a mixed demonstration and dissection of posing and lighting techniques...it was an overcast day, so we lucked out with perfect weather... |
| A portion of the shoot was open for students to take the reigns and pose the models in a way to further their brand via signature images. |
| Here's Arica getting down and WORKING IT OUT for a photo...rock it out, boo! |
This is my favorite photo of the day. I can't wait to see what's in store for this amazing group! I was challenged in new ways and I'm happy to have encountered such a great collection of minds, hearts, and drive. I'm convinced this industry is made extra wonderful with people like them in it. Really.
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If you'd like more information on future workshops and speaking events, be sure to sign up for the NEWSLETTER to be the first to know!
Happy Tuesday! |
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The Workshop : June 2012
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© Jasmine Star. This post cannot be republished without permission. Stealing makes me sad. |
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J ust past 10pm on Tuesday night, I got into the car and JD turned me and asked how I was feeling. Lucky, I replied, so darn lucky. It was such a small way to express the gravity of what I felt after spending the day with 20 amazing photographers. A couple times a year, I host a photography workshop and it's an incredible opportunity to spend a full day with extraordinary people.
Last Tuesday's group of photographers left me inspired and hungry to do more in the photo community and I'm honored to call them friends...and know they're ready to change the industry.
So what does The Workshop look like? Well, it starts at 9am with breakfast and mingling... |
| One of our favorite things is getting to know photographers on a personal level and JD is usually a popular conversationalist in the morning... |
| The Workshop focuses on The Eight Components of Building a Brand and I was incredibly honored to have an awesome $250 giveaway from Adorama (where I get all my camera gear) made for an extra exciting day! |
| We were incredibly fortunate to work with an adorable and lovely couple for the photoshoot and I'm so thankful for Erin and Brandon joining us for a lot of fun in front of our cameras... |
| The day was incredibly warm and we photographed during the brightest time of day in order to discuss how to approach harsh lighting and how to work in difficult situations... |
| Erin is a gorgeous girl, but Vivian Tran of All Made Up Team was the source of Erin's phenomenal hair and makeup...love her! |
| I was sooooo happy to work with Carissa of JL Designs for Erin's gorgeous bouquet filled with hues of orange, yellow, and cream...and who doesn't love a beautiful peony?! |
| Many thanks to JD for all the behind-the-scenes photos! ;) |
| Brandon is such a kind guy...totally liked everything about him and he makes Erin incredibly happy... |
| During The Workshop, I ask students to define their brand and then capture photos that embody those descriptions. Students who volunteer will pose the models and then I offer feedback on how to make the posing experience stronger and improve communication with the couple. Here the lovely Amy is doing a great job! :) |
| Love this couple...GORGE!!! |
| Like always, this is my favorite photo. Spending an entire day with such amazing, sweet, generous, and thoughtful people makes me feel like one of the luckiest photographers. Ever. I'm terribly excited to see how they'll change their business and lives to follow their dreams and making their passion a reality. My heart melts at their camaraderie and support of each other and love for the industry. |
| To attend a future workshop, be sure to sign up for the newsletter as I announce registration for The Workshop exclusively through it! |
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The Workshop : November 2011
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© Jasmine Star. This post cannot be republished without permission. Stealing makes me sad. |
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L ast Tuesday I sat around a large table surrounded by photographers from around the world. Okay, so the majority of us were American, but there were five Canadians, so that's still around-the-world-ish, right? At this time in the evening--after a long day of my photography branding workshop--we felt like friends, BFFs sitting around the proverbial campfire swapping stories. When I started a sentence that began with, I really love that new show New Girl... I was promptly cut off by four other people who reinacted their favorite scenes.
And right then? I felt like the luckiest girl. Ever.
It's one thing to do what I love (wedding photography), and another thing to teach photographers about what I do (branding and marketing), but an entirely different thing to be seated at a table with people who I want to squeeze way too tightly. I don't think I'm stepping out of bounds when I say that in that moment, we all felt really darn lucky. |
| The Workshop focuses on the Eight Components of Branding and I spend the day detailing how I built my business...and formed my photography brand. I arranged a shoot to demonstrate how I shoot in ways to push my brand forward and I give attendees the chance to do the same...but before they do, they have to tell me what three words embodies their brand and how they plan on photographing images that'll push that idea forward. Lucky for us, we worked with Melanie and Mark for the day and I couldn't have asked for a nicer couple to model for us... |
| One thing I love about Melanie is her ability to live life to the fullest...she's fun, kind, and quirky...oh, and she's also an insanely talented event designer/wedding coordinator for Jesi Haack Weddings...she definitely came ready to have a good time... |
| One of the attendees (hi, Chantel!) asked if I'd be able to demonstrate how I shoot in full, midday sun...and riiiiiiight about then I felt my stomach turn. It always makes me nervous to shoot in the harshest conditions, but I maintain that if a photographer can shoot in those conditions (75-degrees, full sun), they can shoot anywhere! |
| Many thanks to the ever amazing...ever kind...and ever fabulous Vivian Tran of All Made Up for styling, hair, and makeup...love her! |
| Oh, Melannnnnnnnnie! STOP IT. Really. So much hotness and I can't even stand it! Work it out... |
| Because Melanie is beautiful AND talented, she decided to make her own bouquet...yes, I'm jealous of her, too. |
| And, like, always, this is my favorite photo of the day...I can't describe how much I loved this group. So much talent, heart, and burning passion that I am thoroughly excited where the industry is headed!! Oh, and they made J* t-shirts, so I gave them double cool points for being so awesome! I can't wait to see where they're headed and the amazing things they'll do in their communities...I'm lucky to call them peers...and friends. |
| To attend a future workshop, be sure to sign up for the newsletter as I announce registration for The Workshop exclusively through it! |
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