Which Client-Style Are You?

It's no secret, I'm a loyal Starbucksian.

Beyond the irresistible sugar/caffeine high via their perfectly designed, ever-evolving packaging, is the fact that I can order some completely-personalized item from them without the bat of the eye. Iced, grande, half-caff, caramel macchiato, half the vanilla, extra caramel.

I love shopping. But more specifically, I love shopping where I not only feel appreciated, but also catered to. Where my experience is allowed to be personalized - and where that personalization is welcomed with wide-open arms.

A lot of stores are simply off my list because the policies override the customer needs. That doesn't feel very neighborhoody to me. And that neighborhoody/ everybody-knows-your-name atmosphere is everything.

We've found that of all our favorite clients, really no two are exactly alike. Some come to us only wanting to show up looking and feeling their best; while others come to pre-consultations eager to share Pin Boards, bios and outfit choices. We love you all.

Which client-style are you?

The Visionary

Often times you are a fellow artist or craft enthusiast. Filled with strong ideas and tastes. Armed with sketches, stories or Pin Boards, but always knowing exactly what you're looking for in your photographs, and have an exact idea in mind of what you'd like the end product to look - and feel - like.

The Giver

Like the name suggests, you have a gift-list and we're probably on it! Viewing & Ordering appointments are your heaven and also where your check list is accomplished line by line. One is not enough and the photographs are always for the whole community, not just your immediate household.  You know how to seize the opportunity of using your photographs for just about everything (holidays, birthdays, wedding thank-you's and now that you're thinking about it... Mother's and Father's Day)!

The Minimalist

Whittle down 200 photographs to just one? Not a problem for The Minimalist. If you're a Minimalist Client you are on the hunt for that one perfect photograph to frame and you frame it large. You know that the next session will fill in any temporal gap in your home gallery and the wait does not bother you. The anticipation of the next perfect purchase only adds to the fun of it all.

The Tactician

Sure, you could use this item for that, but why stop there?! As a Tactician, you are looking for multiple uses for your photographs and even the items that you order. You are creative and resourceful and enjoy dreaming up endless possibilities.  

One such client has ordered numerous photographs from her engagement session and is cleverly using them as wedding decor! Post-reception they'll double as thank-you-gifts to select family and friends... and of coarse keep a few for herself ;)

The Traditionalist

You honor tradition and value the tried-and-true. You see the wisdom in comfort and invite it into your home.  You frame just enough from your session and in traditional/classic frames that allow the moments to shine; saving room - and time - for the next milestone.

The Eclectic

Old ideas out. New ideas in. Open to experimenting and wanting nothing you've seen before. Though we work with renowned master framers, your tastes generally collide and triumph their advice in your quest of communicating your own strong sense of style and anthropology...but trust us, we delight in your strong, and often unusual decisions!  

The Experientialist

From start to finish, you don't want to miss a beat. You love to fully understand and involve yourself in each step of the experience. You're along for the process and enjoy the photography as much as all it took to create it.  You are more than willing to partake in a pre-consultation before your shoot, fully enjoy the viewing and ordering process, take us up on our expertise of framing and matting, and happily invite us to come into your home to install your beautiful new additions with precision!

Whichever category - or categories - you find yourself fitting into, be there boldly. We implore you! Like your favorite local spot, we insist there is not only room for your style, but cause for it to be celebrated and catered to.

Your individuality keeps us on our toes, challenged and sharp! It's the beautiful element that keeps us growing creatively... an organic cycle of individuality nurturing individuality.

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Win Now!

We'd love to have the opportunity to create something completely unique for you! Be sure to enter for a chance to win $300 to our studio by following the instructions on our Facebook or Instagram page. Just look for this post once you get there:

Find this post on our Facebook page (or Instagram) for full information on entering to win $300 to Bluefly Lens! Good luck. We can't wait to work with you in the future!

How do you choose the right photographer for you?

If you're like me, you probably haven't worked with a ton of photographers in your life. 

My first experience with photography was when my mom would dress my sister and I as twins (even though we are close to two years apart) and then hire a photographer to come to the house and make our family portraits. 

I don't remember much about the photographers, but I do remember being less than thrilled when family-portrait-time came around.

In high school I had braces all 4 years.  Let’s just say, I definitely didn't peak until my 20s. 

When senior picture time was upon me, I went with the school recommended photographer because, hey, why not?  I didn't know a good photographer from a bad one - and, although we weren't forced to use the suggested company, everyone else was doing it. 

He had me pose in the exact same places as every other girl in my class. 

There was no consultation, asking me for my vision.  There was hardly any communication at all, actually. Though, I do remember him letting me know he could "only work with what he was given".  Well, I’m still unsure of what that means, but I feel like it was intended to offend me.

Fast forward to my engagement pictures.

Nina and Alicia had not teamed up yet, and in fact, Nina was still living in Chicago.  We scheduled the photoshoot for a time we would both be in Worcester, Massachusetts, around Thanksgiving. 

My husband was in the Air Force at the time, so we wanted pictures with his uniform on.  We were going for an old-time-sort-of look, but I wasn't exactly sure what that meant to me. 

Nina ended up finding this gorgeous old church and a gigantic American flag mural for locations. 

Believe me when I tell you, these were hands down the first pictures ever taken of me that I whole heartedly LOVED. 

The work she put in, finding the perfect backdrops, meant so much to me.  The photos were so much more meaningful and unbelievably custom. They were everything. 

Since then, I have never had a need to find another photographer.

I can almost hear your thoughts as you're reading this, cursing me for being biased because Nina and Alicia are old friends. But you're wrong.  I am for sure lucky that I knew these girls, but trust me when I say they treat ALL their clients like they are old friends. 

Their meetings and photoshoots seems more like girlfriend brunch sessions with cameras (coffees and assorted breakfast treats often included). 

One client told me the girls sent him beard cream because they saw it and thought of him. First of all, yes, beard cream, and second of all….no, I don't know any other photographers who would do something like that. But then again, why shouldn't they?

Why shouldn't a photographer send a card or a gift to a client during the stressful time of wedding planning? Why shouldn't a photographer treat you like a best friend? This person is sharing some of life’s most intimate moments with you, so they sure as heck better treat you like a friend! 

Aside from obvious things like reputation and availability, there are a few other things you might want to consider when choosing a photographer. 

Finding someone who does a pre-consultation is a huge opportunity to express the vision you have.  Finding someone who’s style you like is pretty obvious too, but what defines style? 

Photography reflects the eye, the perception, and the creativity of the photographer. Their style will be defined in the angles they choose, their compositions, their edits, the rules they follow or choose to creatively break, and the mood and tone they convey with their sessions with you.  

So to conclude, find a photographer you vibe with. Find a photographer who listens to your vision and then takes it to the next level. Find a photographer who sends you beard cream.

Making a house a home - the power of photography, interior design, and art working together!

I’ve worked with Bluefly Lens since the conception of the company.

The emphasis that this photography company puts on tangible items is something I just didn’t realize. It’s actually the main focus of what the entire company is based on; but I don't think most people truly understand why.  

I didn't understand this priority until only recently, when I sat down with Nina and Alicia. 

It all became clear. Their philosophy is simple; art that reflects your love and your life is what makes your house feel like a home. 

I have to say, they are right. 

Up until a couple weeks ago, with really no place to put it all, I had been collecting framed artwork from various photoshoots with Bluefly Lens (maternity, newborn and mother/son photos). 

My family and I were living at my parents’ house until recently, when we bought our first home. It was just in the nick of time too - I was beginning to feel like my dad didn't love the huge, framed portraits of my husband and I laying on his dining room table.

When we bought our new house, we were fortunate that there wasn't a ton of work waiting to be done.  

The previous owner was a home inspector, unsurprisingly keeping the home in great shape. But he wasn’t an interior designer! The house was painted a little too much like a circus for me (greens, reds, oranges and blues everywhere).  

Once the old brown rug was replaced with a fresh and modern one; and we painted over the circus-colored walls with a relaxing, cool gray, the house was beginning to look more like ours. 

But it wasn't there yet.

I looked around in eagerness. The house was covered in boxes, but I was only interested in finding one; the box with our photography in it.  

My husband, Pat, and I agreed on which frames we’d hang where, and I was anxious to get everything hung up. 

He kept saying crazy things like "we need a level,” and “make sure the pictures are hung evenly”! I ignored him.

There was no time to get a level; I needed to see how everything would look - now. 

The first pictures I hung were our maternity pictures; one of Pat nestled into my pregnant belly, and one of me alone. They now hung side by side. A perfect pair.

OH MY, what a difference! 

I FREAKED OUT over how insanely gorgeous the black and white pictures looked on our new gray walls.

I ended up hanging all the other pictures in the same room, on the same day, on same wall (ha! jk).

Nina and Alicia offer installation as part of their included services to clients (along with delivery, framing/matting, design appointments and the more obvious things like editing and retouching).

And, while this time I couldn’t control my urges and wait for their help, I’m excited to know that they will come and guide me on future sessions, frames and memories as I “make my house a home” little by little.

I feel like, who better to help me decide where my artwork looks best than the photographers who are experts on lighting and placement?

In this aspect, I sometimes think N+A are doing themselves a disservice only marketing their business as photography, because to me, this part of the business seems like interior design and it's a huge part of what they are offering.

Besides the installation service, the girls even meet clients for an in-home pre-consultation to gauge each client's style, needs and wants; and do a home walk-through in order to help select spaces in which to draw inspiration. 

THIS IS SO AMAZING TO ME.  Have you ever heard of a photographer doing a home walk-through to help suggest where to place custom art for your home?  I haven't.  

This isn't just photography.  This is clearly also interior design and it is so damn cool that these two things are being combined!  

If anyone can think of a new word that combines photography, art and interior design, please let me know ASAP so I can get Nina and Alicia to rebrand their business.

Engagement Session : Beacon Hill & Boston public garden

Back in October we took Engagement photos of this sweet couple in Beacon Hill in Boston, MA.  After we got our cobble stone fix, we walked across the street to the Boston Public Garden and captured some great shots there too just before sunset!

 As Nina and I arrived, we walked around Beacon Hill scoping out ideas of where we wanted to shoot.  Acorn St. is suchhh a popular St. in Beacon Hill that is was swarming with other photographers!  We were patiently waiting for a different photographer to finish up their shoot, so we were waiting on the corner of Acorn St.  Out of nowhere, a squirrel fell out of a tree and flopped right in front of our feet...and then the poor thing kept flopping down the street, ouch! - queue the screaming and freaking out from Nina and I! haha...it was an interesting start to our shoot for sure!

Wedding at Kennebunk River Club in Kennebunk, ME

"Cheers Ya'll" was definitely the vibe at Katie & Spens' wedding!  Such a great mix of Maine (where Katie grew up) and Texas (where Spens grew up).  After their first look, we drove over to First Families Kennebunkport Museum to capture some photographs of Katie, Spens, Tony, and Lucy (their Great Danes!) in front of the flags.  Then, during the ceremony, Spens' grandfather and cousin played the fiddle.  Proceeding the ceremony, everyone exited to them playing "Wagon Wheel" which was so much fun!  

Katie is a local celebrity here in Maine!  She was spotted while taking photos before the ceremony.

Cheers Ya'll!

xoxo,

Alicia & Nina

Wedding at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, MA

Now that Christmas is over, we have a little down time and are getting back to blogging!  First up is a wedding we shot at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, MA.  Every detail of this wedding was soo beautiful!  The architecture of the building is stunning... check out that ceiling!

How beautiful do those shades of purple look together?!

The stunning bride with all of her gorgeous bridesmaids!

Yes, it is! ;)

Have you ever seen so many cousins all so close in age?? :)

thanks for stopping by!

xoxo,

Alicia & Nina

Devyn & Mike's Engagement Session at Linnell Landing Beach in Brewster, MA

I don't think we'll ever get tired of photo shoots at the beach!  Something so calming and peaceful about being at the beach, and the scenery and colors are always breathtaking.  I went a little black & white happy with this blog post... but, you can feel so much emotion in a black and white photo.  We got caught in a crazy storm at the end of the session, check out the lightning & clouds in one of the photos towards the end!  

This water was soooo warm, literally the warmest ocean water we felt ALL summer!  We would have gone for a dip had we had our bathing suits on...we still went in quite a ways fully dressed to get some great shots ;)

Ring : M.pope Jewelers

Should we do engagement photos?

Yes! There are so many reasons why we think every couple should do engagement photos!  First of all, you just got engaged and are smitten with each other and so genuinely happy and excited.. as you should be!  This is the perfect time to have nice photographs taken of the two of you.  When you decorate your home, it will be nice to have other photos hung up, rather than just from your wedding day - the variety looks really great!

You can use these photos for quite a few things as decorations or invitations for your wedding day, too.  Save the dates, invitations, photobook as a guest book, a large matted frame where your guests can sign as a guest book, or a statement piece as a decoration over a mantel at your wedding reception.

Also!  What a great thing to have your wedding photographer take photos of you and your fiancé BEFORE your wedding.  It gives you a chance to really get to know each other.  You'll get to see your photographer in action, and it gives your photographer the chance to experiment.  What are your best angles?  Which poses work best with the two of you?  How will your photographer feed off of your personalities to get the most genuine laughs or smiles out of you?  On that note...they will also understand if there is anything you did NOT love about your engagement photos so they will be extra prepared on your wedding day.