Ashley Brawner Photography

Hey guys!

Sooo… I know I said that I was going to be WAY better about blogging this year, and soo far.. I have not been!

BUT!! ((and yes, thats a big but)) It is because I have been busy with shooting you guys

and… launching a new line of photography, as well as putting in more time on my commercial work

my website is now live, www.ashleybrawner.com

its not 100% completed (and yes, its really a lot more work to do a website than you would think) but its there.

all that being said, I am going to be catching up my shoots from Jan 1 and maybe even a few of my favorites from 2010 (we shall see)

thank you & goodnight… stay classy my internet friends and blog stalkers

Happy New Year!!!

And… Just a little update for you all…

2011 has some BIG things coming up!! I already have almost 20 weddings on the books from this month up until November and several months that I am not taking anymore weddings (dont want to get soo busy that you dont get all the attention you deserve for one of the biggest days of your life!) Soo… without further delay, here are some updates for you guys broken out by category

Personal: I will be maintaining what you call a 365 photo project… I will be taking a picture a day, sometimes it may be whats going on in my life, a highlight from that day, something that speaks to me or has personal meaning… or maybe just something that I think is kinda cool. I will post these images on my personal blog, that you are more than welcome to check out… Havent decided yet if I wanted to post them here as well though… Thoughts?

Professional: New website. New blog updates. New pricing. New exciting opportunities for me AND you to get in on the action and some fun give aways and events! You guys have probably seen where I have asked for models for shoots… And there will be more of that in the new year for ABP. I cant wait to share with you all the exciting things coming up! I am also going to attempt to maintain regular postings on my blog of all my recent shoots and favorites. Also! Many of you have asked for mentoring sessions, tagging along, etc… So I will be working in opportunities for you guys to do so as often as possible. Many of you have already tagged along with me on a shoot or a wedding and I have really enjoyed it, a lot! So stay tuned for that!

Personal & Professional: One of the biggest reasons that I work from home, is so that I can be there for my kids and my family. I am soo very privileged and blessed that God has allowed me to have a passion for something that I can do because I enjoy it and to be able to make it my profession. I will be taking my time home more seriously this year though. It is great to be busy and to have work, but everyone needs some R&R … Especially with 3 kids . Because of my need to be completely confident in the work that I give to you as my friends, customers, family and clients, I will be revamping my schedule to allow for specific off days. The off days may change, some times as often as weekly, but for the most part will stay the same and be consistant. I want to be sure that I am well rested and have enjoyed time with my family so that I can give my family my best and give you guys my best. After all, you dont want a half awake person with coffee stained shirts working on your pictures .

With all that being said… My new site and new pricing (see note below on pricing) will be live effective January 15th…Anything booked before January 15th will be grandfathered in at the 2010 rates.

I hope everyone has had a safe and happy holiday season! And heres to making 2011 better and bigger than 2010! (and a sneak peek from the first shoot of 2011)

*Pricing: You may ask yourselves why photographers charge what we do… And I saw an EXCELLENT explanation for this on a fellow photographers blog, so in a nutshell, here it is: When I charge you for your sitting, your prints, your dvd of your images… You may say/ask yourselves why you should pay me for a disc or a print when you could do that yourself for so much less… Or why I charge what I do for the sitting when Im only with you for maybe an hour or so. It is soo much more than that though. On average, for every hour that I spend shooting with you, I will spend 2 to 3 hours culling and editing those images(sometimes more, sometimes less depending on the specific needs of your shoot, event, wedding). The editing time doesnt include all the time that goes in to planning for your photography needs… It may include setting up the location, scouting the location, loading and reloading equipment and/or props, among many other things. You are also paying for quality, artistic interpretation/design and my experience… I pride myself in the amount of time that goes in to each image because I want to make sure that you are not showing people images that do not capture who you are and are not of high quality. Yes, you can go pay $15 for a sitting fee, and you will probably get 1 or 2 pretty good images, but I can assure you that you wont have to worry about only getting 1 or 2 good images with me. I produce quality work from an experienced artist/photographer and I take utmost pride in it… And you should too! You shouldnt look back at your photos years from now and wonder what you were thinking .

Okay guys!! I know you have been awaiting the launch (relaunch) of my website and it’s almost here! I’m very excited with the direction we have chosen to go with it and really feel like it will go along with all the different things that we encompass with Ashley Brawner Photography! Keep checking here and I’ll update you on when the site is ready to go live! I’ll also be catching up all my missed blogs that I haven’t had time to post .

Get excited!

We have SIXTEEN (16) weddings booked for 2011 already and I have several months completely booked… Sooo…. Make sure you contact me ASAP to make sure your date is still available. ALSO – Prices will be going up effective January 1st on all packages (weddings, lifestyle photography, commercial photography, etc). I will still honor any 2011 weddings and shoots booked before the end of the year at the 2010 rates.

AND…

To close out the year with a bang and to celebrate all the new and exciting things coming to Ashley Brawner Photography… I am offering gift certificates at 50% off! WHOA!! And yes, you read it right!! If you purchase a gift certificate for someone, it’s 50% off! Sooo… a $50 gift card is actually worth $100!! You can NOT beat that!!

Lots of things are happening and we are very very excited about all the exciting new adventures and new people that we are going to be working with on projects, etc. Stay up on my blog and facebook page and I’ll keep you posted about opportunities for you to get involved AND to let you know the cool things that we are launching!

And just so this isn’t a completely wordy post…. Here are two teasers from a wedding I’m editing now

Hanna & Ryan had such a fun fun FUN wedding at the Farley Plantation in Milner, GA. I love shooting at Farley Plantation, not only because it’s soo pretty but because the owners are AWESOME and some of the sweetest people you could hope to work with.  I was so excited when Hanna booked me and told me that’s where they were getting married.  I’m not sure that I have ever seen a group dance as much and as long as this bunch did, it wore me out just watching them, but it was a great time had by all. Ryan serves our country in the Navy, so they pretty much came back to Georgia to get married and then shortly after headed right back out to the west coast (I’m jealous!). Here are a few of my faves from their wedding day! OH! And a big shout out to Wes Brawner and Brandi Shirley for shooting this one with me, I have some awesomely great 2nd shooters/assistants! Check it out… AND ENJOY!

Hanna & Ryan made a last minute decision to see each other before the ceremony, which allowed us to get some really great photos of the two of them, but it also was a really sweet “private” moment for the two of them that we were privileged to be a part of.

and now… on with the show – Check out their colors! (And no it’s not indicative of their football team of choice, I asked )

I had to post this next one… I almost deleted it because everyone is just all over the place, but now I kinda love it! It’s very fitting

And here are just a few of the fun and bright details of their wedding day!

So I know it’s been a few days since my last blog post… BUT I figured that I wouldn’t keep you guys waiting and I would give you a sneak peek on the weddings and shoots I’m editing so you know what you have to look forward to . Enjoy! And make sure to check back and see the whole shoots/weddings!

Okay guys… Sooo… We all know that with the weather getting cooler we aren’t as likely to go do outdoor shoots. BUT IT IS STILL SOOO BEAUTIFUL and great for outdoor shoots. I know this may sound crazy because I always charge sitting fees… BUT in keeping in the spirit of giving for the Holidays, I am offering FIFTEEN ***FREE*** Photoshoots by Ashley Brawner Photography for the month of November.

What’s the catch you ask?
There really isn’t one. I’m just waiving my sitting fee for the first 15 people that respond and book. The photo shoot will, as always, have to be at a mutually agreed upon time and location.

But you’ve always charged the sitting fee to reserve your appointment, with no sitting fee, how can that be done you say?
Well… I’m glad you asked! Your appointment time can be reserved with a $50 deposit that WILL be applied to your print and/or disc order. All you have to do is paypal your deposit to me at: payments@ashleybrawner.com and we will book your date (I also accept cash or checks, for your convenience).

Respond on this note w/your name and number of people in your shoot and your preferred location. Locations will vary between Nash Farms, Piedmont Park, Little 5 Points, Downtown Locust Grove, and a few other places.

Dates & Locations Available:

McDonough:
Nov 6th: 7:45am, 6pm, 6:45pm

Piedmont Park:
Nov 7th: 5pm, 5:45pm, 6:30pm

Downtown Locust Grove:
Nov 8th: 5pm, 5:45pm, 6:30pm

Little 5 Points:
Nov 12th: 5pm, 5:45pm, 6:30pm

Gwinnett County:
Nov 13th: 7:45am, 8:30am, 9:15am

Oh!! And don’t forget to come see me on October 29th at the trunk or treat for Monica’s Kids, on Jonesboro Rd AND at the Health and Wellness “Fair” at Heritage Park, sponsored by Eagles Landing FBC, on Nov 6th!

Hey guys!!

Sorry for the delay in posting new blogs! We have had a VERY exciting last few days/weeks…which is a good thing. Thank you to everyone who keeps coming and looking/reading my posts…I promise you won’t be disappointed! I have several shoots and weddings to post for you so bare with me. Friday we got to meet…Are you ready?? JORDIN SPARKS!! Yay! My girls were soo excited, and she was soo sweet! We also got to photograph her concert, we were going to grab a few pictures of her before the show but the timing didn’t end up working out with the storms and her schedule, etc.  Saturday we went and photographed a beautiful wedding at Ocean Isle Beach, NC…and a first for me…had two associate photographers shooting a wedding in Gainesville, GA. All in all it’s been a great time and we have some great and exciting things coming to show you! But right now I’m going to go climb up in my very own bed and get some shut eye!

Ya’ll be looking out for a new blog post tomorrow! I’m pretty excited about it!!

Ash

ps- here’s a sneak peek from a recent shoot

Amber is one of the sweetest persons you will ever meet, and I’m not just saying that. Anyone that knows her will agree with me. Her heart and personality is just as pretty as she is on the outside…And she has a beautiful voice! I had the privilege of meeting her last year and doing a model shoot for her…So naturally I was excited when she called me to do her wedding shoot . She was overjoyed and so in love, I could tell. I couldn’t wait to meet the guy who had won her heart! Jason and Amber couldn’t be a more perfect match! Jason is just as kind and sweet as Amber…And they make a VERY handsome couple! I never once had to tell these two to be “lovey dovey” it was just natural for them! And that made my job VERY easy! I hope you enjoy looking at their photos as much as I enjoyed taking them!

So with this being a new blog, I realize that I don’t have many posts and there are some of you who have been wanting to see some wedding photos…So this post is for you! Here are a few pictures from some weddings that I have recently shot. I will be catching up with blogging individual weddings but I didn’t want to leave you hanging completely without anything at all to look at…So here goes! Enjoy!!

Okay guys!!  Here is *THE CONTEST* that you DON’T want to miss!!

I am GIVING AWAY an engagement (or bridal) session!!…Yes…I’m being quite serious!!

If you are one of my 2010 or 2011 weddings and/or you have not yet done your engagement session, this is perfect for you! Lately I have been really big on writing notes about themed shoots I really want to do (gotta keep the creative juices flowing)….And it sparked an idea, a great idea if ya’ ask me. There is no way that I am the only person that has some(what I think are neat) neat ideas for engagement shoots and bridal shoots…And this is where you come in:

Send me your unique shoot idea w/as many details as you can provide, along with preferred location and date

Pretty simple, right? Right! Once we get all the submissions we will go through them. If your submission is the most unique/creative/fun/original/etc…YOU WIN!! Simple as that! How can you go wrong?? You get a free shoot AND will be featured on my website, blog and advertising materials.

Contest end date has yet to be determined but go ahead and start sending in your submissions…I can’t wait to see what you guys come up with!!