Brooke Turner Photography Blog

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What do you DO all week?

Often when I meet someone for the first time and they hear I'm a wedding photographer, their next question is asking what I do during the week.   There's this crazy misconception that Monday - Friday, photographers enjoy a life of leisure and Saturday is our only workday. I definitely don't get offended because before I jumped into the business, I thought the same thing! :)  So consider this post an educational segment about what goes on with your wedding photos behind the scenes during the week. 

Here's the entire workflow (process) that your images go through:

1.   Wedding Day -   I photograph the wedding in RAW format with my professional Canon cameras and equipment.

2. Upload/Backup - Download all images to hard drive and several backup hard drives, and DVD stored in remote location (in case my house burns down! ..morbid I know but we've got WEDDING PHOTOS on the line here!)

3. Selecting Slideshow Favorites -  go through all images, and select my favorites from the day

4.   Slideshow and Blog -  Minor photoshop tweaks to slideshow images (sharpening, color correcting, resizing), get music for slideshow, create slideshow & load to web server, create blog post

5.  Sort through images - select all images that client will ultimately see..which means deleting out photos with blinks, out of focus, and those where someone walks in front of the camera right when you click the shutter

6. Edit -  color correcting, sharpening, & some minor cropping of the original RAW files selected for final proofing (typically 600 - 800)

7. JPEGing - batch processing the RAW files (which cannot be printed from) into manageable size JPEGs

8. Upload  - All final JPEG images uploaded to client website, sorted, & organized, email client with viewing info

9. Print Burn CD- Burn copy to send to client, copy to keep, and copy to store

10. Beg and plead for client to select their album images to begin album design

11. Album design - custom design coffee table album by assembling favorites selected into a prescribed number of album pages (depending on package chosen), while trying to make design as visually appealing as possible!  Load album design online for client to view

12.  Album Edits - get feedback from client on album and make changes if needed

13. Album printing - Album design sent off for printing and binding, then shipped to me 

14. Album Shipped to Client! - finally , after I make sure there were no errors in production, I ship out the album

Add to these a pretty busy schedule of engagement portraits, bridal portraits, family/children portraits, and day in the life sessions..Monday - Friday fills up pretty quickly! :)

Meg & Vinny: Engagements

Meg and I were really good friends in college and our friendship fortunately did not fizzle away like some friendships do when you're no longer living down the hall from each other.  Meg lived in NYC for 5 years after college,  so I have tons of fun memories of girls weekends in New York!  I was so happy when she moved back down to Charlotte...although my trips to NYC are not as frequent without a free place to crash, I get to see my friend in just a quick drive up I-77!  I was so happy to make the quick trip yesterday to photograph Meg & Vinny's engagement pictures.  We had a great time catching up and talking about wedding plans. Here are just a few!

gotta love TARGET!!

confession: I am addicted to Target's 75% off rack.   Up until about 2 months ago, when browsing the clothes at Target I would see the clearance racks back in the maternity section.  I never understood why only pregnant chicks got all the deals until my friend Heather clued me in that there weren't only maternity clothes back there on the sale racks.  Life hasn't been the same since :)

all these for less than $40..  look at all those red tags! what a fun day!

Beth's Bridals

So sorry for the lack of posting recently!  I thought January was supposed to be my slow month!  ;)

Here are a few from Beth's bridal portrait session at the State House in Columbia. 

Have a great day! 

and below is the one that was in the paper-

SELAH

Selah: pause and reflect; understand; meditate on the weight and glory of the Lord

The blog has been quiet, I know, I know.  I cherished last week off; to disconnect, to unplug.  A new year has come, and instead of letting it quickly pass me by as I've done in the past, I decided to spend some time in quiet reflection.  This past Saturday I had the house to myself as my husband went on one of his crazy 4 hour bike rides.  My old journals from the past year, an open bible, my 'fake' fireplace roaring and a Yankee Candle burning...all the perfect elements needed for some sweet time with my Lord.  As I looked back over my journals, full of scribbled desperate prayers, celebrations, dreams, and struggles; I realized just how important it is to pause and reflect.   Just to "be still and know that HE is God" and examine His faithfulness in my life over the prior year.  His hand is so evident, but so often I can get caught up in my day to day circumstances that I miss it!  

2009 is going to be a big year for me! Already booked 18 weddings, we're helping to launch a new church, my best friend is having a baby, among some pretty big ideas I've got bouncing around in my head.  I cannot wait to see what the Lord does through all of these to draw me closer to Himself.   

Grace and Peace to you all in 09!

Beth & Trevor: December 27, 2008

Few people have come into my life that have touched me so quickly and deeply as my December 27th bride, Beth, has.  I knew of Beth in high school - she was two years younger than me- so when she contacted me to shoot her December wedding, I couldn't wait to catch up! After shooting their engagement session at Wofford we had such a great time, and I knew this adorable little lady just had to be my friend!  Since then we have gotten to know one another much better and she has taught me what it means to be generous, more expressive with my emotions, and a better friend.  And Trevor, well he's so great! He's such a ham and goofy but an intellectual all at the same time.  Ahhhh, i just LOVE this couple!  I could go on and on about how wonderful they are but I know y''all just want to see that SLIDESHOW! :)

CLICK HERE and Enjoy!!

Ceremony: Spring Valley Presbyterian

Reception: Spring Valley Country Club

PS - check back to see some images from her bridal session later this week!

Here are a few from the wedding day-

Beth and Trevor - I hope y'all are having fun at your ultra fab spa in Florida! Can't wait to hear all about it. And Beth - thank you for the friendship you have brought into my life - you are so dear!!

Love you both!!

Merry Christmas ( a little late!)

Melissa & Jonathan: December 20, 2008

What a beautiful Christmas wedding!  Melissa & Jonathan were married Saturday in Summerville.  I first met this sweet couple at Kristin & Phillip's wedding last March.  I knew immediately that we would just hit it off!  I've toughened up a bit and stopped crying at most weddings, but I just couldn't hold it together at this one.  Melissa walked down the aisle to "Be Thou my Vision" and it was truly a holy moment.  I'm glad I had a camera in front of my face to hide the tears of joy.  

Enjoy their slideshow!!  Usually I use the first dance song for the slideshow, but this time I decided to use one of the songs from their ceremony.  It's "Come Home Running" sung by Chris Tomlin.  Somehow I'd never heard this song before, but it's been on playing on repeat since I heard it at the wedding.   It just fits these two, a beautiful couple that seeks to honor Christ. I can't wait to see how the Lord will use their marriage for His glory.

Teaser pic!

More from Melissa & Jonathan's wedding on the way!

Lauren & Jason: Engagements

Friday I met Lauren and Jason up at Wofford for their engagement portraits.  Lauren and Jason met while attending Wofford...they were lab partners freshman year. How sweet!   We wandered around campus and snapped some cute pictures with and without their lab Maggie.  Here are a few of my favorites! Can't wait for their wedding in May!