Slacker!

I don't think I've gone over a month without blogging since I started this in 2007. One would think I was slacking off, but it was more like robbing Peter to pay Paul. It's been so busy at the studio that I've been sacrificing my blogging time to edit photos. 

When I began as a photographer, so much of the process was handled by outsourced companies, both in the developing and printing process. My job was to get business in the door and photograph it. So much has changed. I am now a computer technician, graphic designer, social media guru, marketing manager, editor and oh yeah, sometimes a photographer. 

Don't get me wrong, I love what I do, but with the digital age I have become a control freak. The way I light, photograph and edit a photo is as much my signature as my John Hancock. The past few months I have been posting the new "Extreme Collages" that we have been doing on the blog and Facebook. To say they have been well received is an understatement. Because of them we have been able to book three sports tournaments, three sports leagues, two seniors from Lafayette, NY, and more. 

We have since expanded doing them for equestrian photos, dance photos and I'm working on a Car Extreme. There really is no limit to what we can do with them. The only limit appears to be how many hours a day can I sit at a computer before I start twitching. I guess we'll find out.

The Stars Align

I love when things fall in to place, as if the stars aligned and handed me the answers. We are in the process of creating a separate division of Chesler Photography for sports photography. In addition to photographing sports leagues and action photos at tournaments, we are developing an area of sports portraiture that will be over the top cool. I wanted to do something different with my sports photos that would set them apart, when out of left field (pun intended), a super cool set of Photoshop brushes, textures and masks found me, like it fell out of the sky on to my head, only a less offensive than bird poop. 

 It's a given that we will be doing these for our senior portrait clients, but we will also be offering these one of a kind sports images for individuals of any age. It's my goal to display huge versions of these images not only at the studio and in people's homes, but at businesses and locations all around the area. I won't sleep until there is one of these in every athletes home. Alright, I lied...I'm going to bed. I need to get my rest, there's much work to be done.

Second Chances

There are a few companies out there, and one in particular, that run so many sales that it's a no brainer to wait a day or two and not pay full price, ever. It gives me the feeling that their sale prices are their regular prices and their non-sale prices are so over inflated just so they can have a sale. When someone does pay full price, the company probably snickers and says "Sucker!"

Our prices at the studio were designed and calculated to stay in business. The amount of overhead it takes to run a photography studio is astronomical, so I'm not a big fan of running too many sales. That being said however, I do feel it's necessary to create a spark sometimes when things are going along at the status quo or during the slower time of year when we need to generate some cash flow.

A few weeks ago we ran a One Day Sale for senior portraits which dramatically reduced our session fees for one day. The objective was to get people to book their sessions for any time throughout the summer, but by booking on that day they saved a lot. It may have been poor timing on my part since it was still earlier in the school quarter but the results were less than spectacular. I'm going to give it another shot now that the school year is winding down and the Class of 2013 is starting to get excited about their senior year. This time however, the sale will be for three days to let it soak in. The discounts are not as drastic as the last sale, but they're still pretty darn good. If you didn't take advantage the first time around, here's your second chance.

The sale begins tomorrow and runs through Thursday. If you book your session for June, you get 60% off the session fee. If you book in July it's 50%, August is 40% and September is 30%. The session must be paid for when you book it to be eligible for these prices.

As a bonus to our friends and fans on Facebook, if you repost our sale on your page and tag us in it during the sale, you'll get a free set of 8 wallets when you place your senior portrait order. Word of mouth is our best form of advertising and we like to reward those who help us with it. You can find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chesler-Photography-Seniors/82775183328.

If you have any questions about our session options or to book your appointment, call the studio at 585-393-9242 beginning at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, June 5.

One Day Senior Sale

Mark your calendars for Wednesday, May 2 for our One Day Senior Sale from 10:00-5:00. This is our biggest sale of the year to kick off our Class of 2013 senior season. Sessions must be booked and paid for during the sale so have your credit card ready to reserve your spot. Book early in the season for huge savings on senior sessions. Here are the session discounts based on the month your schedule your session for: May 80% Off, June 70% Off, July 60% Off, August 50% Off and September 40% Off. This discount is for the session only. Orders will have separate discounts based on package purchased and ordering early. Call the studio at 585-393-9242 with questions or to book your session May 2.