Happy Tuesday…

Good afternoon peeps, hope you are all having a wonderful Tuesday. 

Today is another workday for me even though I have stopped taking sessions till after this little bundle of joy is born I still have a whole heap of things to do.

So I am back to my lists of lists and slowly ticking them off as I go. I am writing a business plan right now which is not easy let me tell you but I know just how important it is to any business.

I am excited to say I am looking into new packaging and a new design for my blog so lots to keep me going today.

I have just finished some edits that you can see on my page, so if you do have any home photos that you want given a little sparkle too or have saved then contact me to find out about my Editing Service…..

K Lou xx

So Whats Been Going On??

Well, what has been going on I hear you say, I seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth until now!!! The truth is I have been on a little break as some of you might have already known. I was not going to write the reason’s why but I feel like it tells more of the story as to why I took a break and where I am today.

Just after Christmas, I was made redundant from my city job, it was a huge blow to us as a family as the job brought in good money and meant I could carry on buying equipment and props for my growing photography business. It also has thrown me into the world of being a full time stay at home mum, which was an adjustment as I have worked since I was 16 without a break.

I had a few other personal issues going on around this time as well and it all made me sit back an have a good ol’ think about what I really wanted out of life, a bit deep I know, but that’s what happened.

I started my business up 2 years ago now, with only the last year taking on the bulk of my paying shoots. I have always questioned what my style was, what type of photographer I wanted to be, the kind of work I wanted to be producing, it’s very time consuming and it’s hard to get to the answer.  This break gave me the time and perfect opportunity to really have a think about it. A little bit of a risk when I had a wonderful client base to then suddenly stop taking on shoots for nearly 6 months but that’s what I did.

I had a few shoots the start of this year but not many and turned a lot of work away to give myself the time to reflect on my photography, but it helped so much to think about my brand and what I stood for and the changes I wanted to make to my business for it to be the best it could be and something I could be really proud of. It also gave me time to try and get the balance of work and family life back.

As some of you may also be aware I am now nearly 5 months pregnant with a little girl due the start of Jan 2013 J I am just finishing off the last shoots I had already booked in as I suffer with a condition called SPD and it’s made it a little hard for me to be able to keep up with those fast footed toddlers.

I am very much JUST ON A BREAK; I will be coming back to photography as soon as I can in the New Year. It looks as if I will be having a C-section with this baby so as soon as I am healed and rested I will be ready to take new bookings again.

I have already made a few changes and have a lot more in the pipeline, which won’t be taking place till 2013 when I take new bookings on. These are going to include different packages which will allow options for clients to chose the best package that suits them and their budget. I have a few new products that I will be able to share with you and samples for you to see in person to see just how amazing they are. No more sharing images on my FB page or private galleries, I will have a meeting with the clients face to face to show the images from your session and this is when orders will be taken. There are lots more things going on but it’s still a good few months away yet so I will let you know as I go along of any new changes I am going to be making.

I am so grateful for all my loyal clients and people that check out my FB page and blog and I ask you to still carry on supporting me while I take this break.

Thanks for reading

K Lou xx

A different road................

17th January already? Where is this month going?? I wish at times I had a little pause button for life, I feel like I never get a second to breathe. Anyway....... 2012 so far has been great, I have meet some lovely families already and some yummy little newborns to photograph and I have some very exciting things booked in for the rest of the year.
 
I am sooooo excited, as I will be attending a Newborn Workshop on the 28th Jan so will be looking for some Newborns after this date for a free shoot, so I can practice some of things I have learnt as well as some new photoshop skills I have picked up over the last few weeks.
 
I have thought long and hard about where I see my photography going this year, and right now I see a lot of Newborn work. When I first started up K Lou Photography my main aim was to be JUST a newborn photographer. I had no real skill back then (just a lot of hopes and dreams), and had no idea what I was really doing with newborns: how to pose them, settle them, props to use or how to edit them.
 
A lot of people think Newborns are the easier subjects to photograph, but they are wrong. It takes a long time to do a Newborn shoot, up to 4 hours in some cases. It can take a long time for them to settle and to get them into just the right poses. This is something I have made my mission to brush up on this year and to pour my heart into creating the type of photos I will be 110% happy to say are my work.
 
Don't get my wrong, I will still be photographing children of all ages and families, and do love my on location family work in the summer, but I am excited to push myself with the Newborns more this year.
 
I have invested in a 27 inch iMac....yes you read that right.....27 inches!!! I will be calling it THE BEAST! This is something that I have saved up for and I know it will make my workflow a lot easier and faster.

 
Hope your all having a bright Tuesday afternoon...K Lou xx

Happy New Year

Can you believe it is 2012 already?? Where did Christmas go?? I hope you all had a wonderful time and a great New Year. I had a lovely break with my family, cleared my head, got a new business plan together and I'm all ready to kick start the year....
 
I did have a post that I wrote just before New Year, which included all of my favourite photos from 2011 but as always, time got eaten up and I never got around to posting it!

So instead, let's look at the year ahead...
 
One of the idea's that I was playing about with last year was offering a Cake Smash Package, never done one before but they look so much fun and are such a great way to remember your little ones first birthday. So with the fact that I have never done a shoot like this before in mind, I would like to offer those who have little ones turning ONE either this February or March a FREE photo shoot* which will include a complimentary story board of images from your shoot. Additional images from the shoot will be available to purchase, though there is no pressure to do so.
 
In order to be in with a chance to take part in this fab competition, all you have to do is email me at klouphotography@hotmail.com or karen@klouarts.co.uk with your full name and the name of your child and their date of birth. If I could please ask that in the subject box you write the code: CAKECOMP, I would be very grateful. This competition will run till the 24th January, so you have two weeks.
 
I am now also offering a 'Beloved Package' for 2012 - This is a wonderful package, that is for anybody who is in love. You could have just got together, just got engaged, been married for years, it really does not matter. These shoots are fun and we work together to make sure it's not cheesy and that we come away with some great shots of you and your loved one that's just for you both. If you would like more information on these shoots please contact me on klouphotography@hotmail.com
 
I have already had two wonderful shoots this year, and another this coming Thursday so will be blogging about them very soon.
 
Hope your all having a fan Tuesday morning...... K Lou xx

* Terms and Conditions - You will receive the shoot and the story board free of charge, to purchase any additional digital images from the shoot there will be a £10 charge per image. This shoot is for babies that turn One either in February or March 2012. The Storyboard images are put together by myself and cannot be changed.