This is one of my favorite editorial shots. And it still cracks me up when I look at it!
There are 3 people in the shot, but no faces are showing. They are the hands that tell the story.
[Photography Tip: You don't always need to show faces when shooting people. When it is a body part that is doing something interesting, focus on that. Decide if it's better to tell the story zoomed into that body part or zoomed out to capture the scene.]
This week’s I Heart Faces challenge is “Raise Your Hands”. Feel free to check out the other submissions.
I love The Bossi bag sooooo much that I asked THEIT if I could give one away! (Thank you, Nicole!!!) I mean, how can I not share something sooooo beautiful?!!
This bag will cheer you up… be the statement piece to an outfit… AND keep your camera safe. How many bags can do all of that?!!
[If you haven't read my review yet, please check it out. I have lots of photos of this beauty!]
Details to the “Hot Mama! The Bossi Bag Giveaway”:
* This Giveaway will end on OCTOBER 15, 2011 at 11:00pm PST.
* Each blog comment counts as one entry.
* You can have up to 3 entries per person. (See the rules below.) The 1st step is mandatory to enter.
* At the end of the Giveaway, I will choose ONE lucky winner randomly.
* I will contact the winner either via Facebook or the email address given in their blog comment. (It’ll be a surprise!)
* The prize: THEIT will give a $150 merchandise credit to the winner, so she (or he) can choose their favorite bag!!!
* THEIT will inform the winner of the details (and restrictions, if any) to using the merchandise credit.
* If the chosen commenter does not correctly enter the Giveaway, the entry is disqualified and a new winner will be chosen.
How to Enter:
1. Go to my Annie Tao Photography Facebook page, “Like” it, find this Giveaway post on the Wall and leave a comment. Tell me one thing you love about photography or why you want to win this bag (in the FB comment). Then come back to this blog post and tell me that you did this step. *THIS STEP IS MANDATORY TO ENTER
If you want to increase your odds of winning, here are more entry opportunities….
2. Go to the THEIT Facebook page and “Like it”. If you want, you can leave them some FB love on their Wall (optional). Then come back to this blog post and tell me you did this step.
3. Both Nicole, the Founder of THEIT, and I believe moms have one of the toughest “jobs” in the World, and they deserve to be stylish too! So this step is dedicated to all the moms! 
Leave a comment in this blog post about being a mom (or about a mom that you know). It could be something funny (ie, “I wore 2 different shoes to the store after I had my baby, so please let me win this bag. I need it!”) or serious (ie, a parenting tip). [Please note: you do not have to be a mom to enter.]
[ADDITIONAL NOTE (10/1/11): Be sure you are making separate comments for each of these steps. Each blog comment is one entry! What I'm seeing is that some people are doing all 3 steps, but mistakenly enter only 1 comment. That will be considered 1 entry only, not 3 (even if you stated that you did all 3 steps in that comment). At the end of the Giveaway, I will choose a random number, which will determine the winner, so the more entries you have, the better your chances. Email me or write on my FB wall if you have any questions!]
Good luck!
Annie
This week’s i heart faces theme is: A Touch of Sun.
It was a cold and overcast morning. Just when my clients were about to start some family hoppin’ fun, the clouds cleared. You could almost hear the “ommmmmmmm” from the sky!
I love that the touch of sun highlights the kids in the middle as they jump in unison.
Bringing a baby into the home changes everything: the noise level, the amount of “things” we acquire, our activities, our amount of sleep, just to name a few. And it also effects our pets!
This recent image from an urban newborn shoot is not your typical family shot or pet shot.
Ramsey, the cat, looks like he wants to escape the Newborn Baby World while his family is ogling their new addition.
[Photography Tip: Think outside the box. Consider an alternative point-of-view!]
This week’s iheartfaces theme is Pet Week.
I was in the middle of a family shoot, and the parents momentarily laid their baby on a blanket.
Right away, I noticed the similarity of the blanket pattern and the baby’s beautiful blue eyes. So I quickly took the shot before the baby rolled over or decided that he didn’t like having a stranger standing directly over him!
[Photography Tip: Look out for patterns. They're everywhere!]
This week’s iheartfaces theme is “Beautiful Eyes”. Feel free to browse and enter one of your images!
Ms. L is the lucky raffle prize winner from the 2nd annual IHMC Pamper Night! YEAAAAA!
She won a 1-hour mini shoot and the digital negative of her favorite image. Congratulations, Ms. L!
The Mystery Winner!
My first exclusive Annie Tao Photography (ATP) Facebook giveaway starts today! The theme of this contest is: Show me your ATP Gallery OR Show me that you need one!
WHAT YOU CAN WIN:
A 1-hour photoshoot avec moi and 30% off any prints, so you can create an ATP gallery! (More details will be sent to the winner.)
WHO CAN ENTER:
Anyone who lives in the Bay Area or is willing to travel to the Bay Area for their photoshoot!
HOW THE CONTEST WORKS:
1. First, you need to be a “fan” of Annie Tao Photography on Facebook, so you can post things on the Wall. Click on that Facebook button at the top of this blog if you haven’t already. And if you haven’t joined Facebook yet, now is the time!
2. Take a photo of yourself in an area where you’ve displayed photos from our photoshoot together.
Or, if you don’t have ATP photos yet (or you need more!), then take a photo of yourself in front of an area where you’d like to have an ATP photo gallery! This can be a wall, a desktop, or any area of your home or office.
The photo can be of any place, really. You just have to be in it. Be creative!!!
3. Attach the photo onto the Annie Tao Photography Facebook Wall.
4. Along with your photo, make sure to include a message about wanting to win the contest!
HOW TO WIN:
The most creative, funny, or impressive entry will win!
I will notify the winner via Facebook.
DEADLINE: Friday, April 30, 2010. So get in your entries! You can submit up to 3 entries.
ENTRY EXAMPLES: (The first photo is an actual client photo, but she would need to be IN the photo for this to be a valid entry.)
Here is my livingroom with my ATP gallery! I’d love to win The Gallery Contest because my bedroom is bare!
I NEED to win the contest! I’ve needed to fill this wall with artwork since I moved here 15 years ago!
Need I say more?!! We need an ATP gallery here!
Today I met Jami who is my Tribute To Moms Contest winner! YAY, Jami!!!
Being a parent — especially a mom — is quite a tough job! Of course it is truly rewarding and can even bring your ability to love and feel loved to a whole new level you never thought was possible. But there are always times, or entire days, that we chalk up as “challenging” and we hope for a better day tomorrow.
I love real parents — parents who admit to the bad times as well as the good times. I think it is because it makes me feel better to know I am not alone. There are days when I just want to crawl back into bed, or days when I don’t know how I’ll get through it because my monkeys won’t listen to me!
This contest that I ran in Fall 2009 was so much fun. There were many great entries about the joys and challenges of being a mom. I enjoyed reading every one of them!
Jami is the winner of my Tribute To Moms Contest. Here was her entry:
I had just delivered my third baby – this time a girl. We were ecstatic! In preparation for this event, however, I wanted it to be special for my other two kids. I had hand-picked some particular gifts about a week before I was scheduled for my planned delivery. The gifts were “from the new baby” to her new big brothers. For the four-year old brother, the “baby” gave him a cool parking garage for his cars. For her two-year old brother, she got him a cute, sweet, little red Elmo doll that lets you pull his arms and legs back and forth – the Stretch and Fun Elmo.
SO, if you have never seen a bull go after a red-caped bullfighter, you have not missed anything. Just try and picture what happened next.
My two-year old (already rambunctious) son took one look at the red Elmo, and immediately began acting upon his already-understood-middle-child-syndrome anger on this poor, poor innocent doll (btw, his new baby sister happened to have been born with red hair…hmmm…). Nonetheless, that little stretchy Elmo took such a beating. Not only were his arms and legs stretched back and forth, but his entire fluffy body was tossed around the recovery room like a kangaroo that had been locked in a cage for a month (not sure if that image really works, but you get the idea). It was fortunate for little stretchy Elmo that we were in a hospital, because he needed some major repairs.
Somehow, we caught the entire fifteen-minutes (yes, fifteen-minutes of Elmo beating) on video (and yes, we will absolutely save this video until we need to show it to his someday-fiancee).
In case you were worried, nearly two years later, Elmo is a happy, well-adjusted doll that happens to be eyeless, disheveled, and missing some other body parts. Yet he always has that loving smile that brings the same to all of us, whenever we look at the poor fellow…who will forever sit on the fireplace mantle, away from angry middle-child two-year olds.
(To read all the contest entries, click here to go directly to that blog post.)
Poor Elmo
Prize 1: Starfield Bay necklace
As the winner of this contest, Jami won a silver fingerprint charm and chain from Starfield Bay!
I think it looks great layered with her onyx necklace. I have mine layered too.
Prize 2: A Photoshoot with Moi!
The focus was on her as a mother of three beautiful children.
I love this one. Tee hee. Reminds me of my home!
Meet The Kids
Here are some of my favorites of the kids: Gavin (3.5), Kelsey (2) and Cade (6).
Can You Hear It….
The tune to Batman?!! Da da da da, da da da da… BAT MAN!!!!
High Five with Elmo
At this point, Elmo was soaking wet from falling into the creek. Nice! And he was super dirty. So high-fiving Elmo was not too pleasant, as you can imagine!
And that’s Brett, the daddy, on the right. He was great as the solo act when I needed to get the kids’ attention. Thanks Brett! You were terrific and even entertained me as well! What a nice bonus to my morning.
If you’re like me, you like beautiful jewelry, your kids hold the key to your heart, and you treasure photography of your precious family. Oh, and you love getting things for free!
I designed this contest to appeal to moms who like all those things. And it is soooo easy to enter! It will take 5 minutes of your time, and you can win $400 worth of goods that you will treasure forever.
The fantastic prizes:
1) A beautiful, one-of-a-kind sterling silver circle pendant and silver chain by Starfield Bay. The pendant can have up to 3 fingerprints of your loved ones. This prize is not a gift certificate, but rather a gift bag that includes the clay, roller, instructions, and even an addressed and stamped envelope! It is ready to go and only requires you to roll out the clay and put your cutie pies’ fingerprints on it! The value of this Starfield Bay gift pack is $100.
I have 2 fingerprint necklaces from Starfield Bay that I wear every day! I get compliments on them whenever I go out, but most importantly, I love them! And they are 100% unique since they have my children’s fingerprints on them.
2) You also get a 1-hour portrait session with me! You must wear your winning necklace and can include up to 3 family members — preferably the people whose fingerprints you’ve put on the charm! The location will be in an East Bay location. If you live outside the San Francisco Bay Area, you are welcome to travel here for your photoshoot. If you are unable to come to the Bay for your photoshoot, you are still welcome to enter the contest to win the fingerprint jewelry.
You also get a free 8×10 with any product order. Total value is $295.
How to enter:
1. Be a fan of Annie Tao Photography on Facebook, if you aren’t already.
If you’re not on Facebook yet, then join now! Even my 70 year old father-in-law has a Facebook profile! (Okay, I just joined less than a year ago, so I can’t really tease anyone for not being on it. But trust me, Facebook is a powerful and fun networking tool.)
2. Leave a comment on this blog post. Since this contest is a tribute to moms, your comment must be an answer to one of the following questions related to parenthood. Please also state the location where you are located in the name box (ie, “Sally, Oregon”. “Judy from San Carlos”).
What was something funny, silly or embarrassing that happened to you as a result of caring for your children, like from lack of sleep or from them distracting you? What was something funny, silly or embarrassing that your child said or did when you were out in public?
And if those don’t jog any memories, you can tell us a brief story about your experiences with your children that made you laugh or make you forget about all those sleepless nights they kept you up or your 15+ hours of labor! You get the picture. (I can’t wait to read what you have to say!!)
Other details:
* To be eligible to win the contest, you must meet all requirements noted above.
* Contest ends October 31, 2009. The winner will be chosen by an impartial judge.
* If you are not located in the San Francisco Bay Area, you are welcome to travel here for your photoshoot if you are the winner. If you cannot travel, then you are still eligible to win the jewelry. You must submit a photo (taken by anyone) of yourself while wearing your winning necklace and email it to me, so we can announce the contest winner!
* We would love to hear your stories, so you are welcome to submit multiple comments to this blog post. It does not, however, increase your chances of winning.
* The photoshoot prize is not transferable. For instance, if you live outside of CA, you cannot keep the jewelry and give the free photoshoot to a CA friend. Sorry!
* The winner will be chosen by an impartial third party.
* The winner will be contacted via email. If I do not hear from you to receive your prizes within 5 days, another winner will be chosen.
* Anyone who is the main caregiver can enter the contest — not just women. Dads can enter too, if they wish!
* Make sure I can match your blog comment name to your Facebook name. So if you have an obscure Facebook name, like “CoolChick”, then please note that as your name on my blog.
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