6 Secrets About Senior Pictures The Government Is Hiding

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The government knows PLENTY about high school senior pictures – trust me.  Do not think for a second that they would ever let these secrets get out if they could plug all the leaks.  At great risk to my well being I am going to share these secrets with you because, well, I think they are important darn it.  So here are 6 secrets about senior pictures the government is hiding:

6 secrets about senior pictures

Photographs in the Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

1.  Senior pictures could stop North Korea.  If you saw this recently you know the story goes that Kim Jong Un is making all men in North Korea get his style of haircut.  Our seniors are all about individual expression and being themselves.  Someone told me that they heard someone tell someone else that a friend said… our government is planning to unleash a bunch of our senior pictures on the North Korean population to incite an overthrow of Kim Jong Un when the people of North Korea realize how nice it looks to express yourself with any style of hair you like.

2.  Senior pictures are fun.  Okay this is a BIG one.  I’m going to guess that being a senator for example is not nearly as fun as taking senior pictures.  The government has tons of sealed files on just how fun senior pictures are and they do NOT want you to know.  Maybe the government is just jealous.

3.  Aliens love senior pictures.  That is the real story behind Hangar 18.  Aliens came to Earth to pass out wallets.

4.  Senior pictures make Presidents.  Sure this doesn’t always fit the narrative of character-shaping events they want you to focus on like George Washington chopping down a cherry tree (okay maybe that’s a bad example since there were no cameras during George Washington’s time nor were there “high schools”) or Teddy Roosevelt charging up San Juan Hill in the Spanish American War – but there are plenty of sealed documents that prove it was how most of our leaders felt about their awesome senior pictures that set them on the path to the White House.

5.  The government spied on Soviet on-location senior photo sessions during the Cold War.  Decades before senior photos became really popular in the U.S.A. some Soviet photographers were going out on location with high school seniors.  Apparently much like everything else during that time we viewed this as a communist threat, because, well, it was the Soviets.  The whole thing was short lived since the Soviets scuttled the on location program anyway, presumably because the pictures were boring.  The photographers were hired by the Soviet communist regime and were not allowed to be very creative.

6.  The government tried to limit outfit changes during senior sessions.  This was just one of those silly “government getting too big” things.  The bill was defeated when it was revealed that term limits have nothing to do with outfit limits and that freedom of expression does apply to clothing.

I know that exposing these secrets can put me at great risk but I felt it was my duty to help my fellow Americans.  Hopefully the government won’t get mad and do anythi

 

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Frameable Faces Photography
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Frameable Faces Photography is a small biz retail mom & pop shop of Doug&Ally Cohen located in the Orchard Mall in West Bloomfield, Michigan, United States Of America!
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Ally & Doug can be reached at the studio at tel:248-790-7317 or emailed at mailto:info@frameablefaces.com
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Being “Frameable” is an attitude, a community, a way of life – a life you would want to celebrate and display on your walls for all to see!  Tell us… ARE YOU FRAMEABLE?
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Persistence Paid Off With This Happy Family!

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Yes persistence paid off with this happy family!  Sometimes life, scheduling and various circumstances can get in the way of a scheduled photo session.  What are you going to do?  Sometimes it happens and that is just the way it goes!  This fun family was supposed to come to the studio once before but it didn’t end up working out.  We stayed in touch and ended up getting it rescheduled.   Then, the day before the session a minor sports injury occurred which threatened to “leave a mark” on one of the boys the day before the shoot!  Could the session be foiled again?

persistence paid off

Well as you can see by the fun family photo above the little guy shook it off and we were able to do the session without even resorting to any injury retouching!  I am not even going to tell you which brother it was!  Nothing to see here people!  Nothing to see that is other than just great pictures!  We hope you enjoy these sneak peeks.  Next we have a couple of individual shots of these handsome young men.  We like the way these look in black and white of both little brother and big brother:

persistence paid off

persistence paid off

Next we have a fun behind the scenes vine and as you can see we worked with several cute poses!

5 Reasons You Are Not Photogenic

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Photogenic

Photogenic is defined as “suitable for being photographed: likely to photograph well”.  It seems about half of the people who come to Frameable Faces warn us that we are going to have a tough time with their session because they are NOT photogenic.  Usually we just tell them we can’t help because we just don’t want the burden of trying to make such bad looking people look good.  It’s probably hopeless right?  WRONG!!!!!!!

Photogenic

Ally did NOT take this photo. I repeat – Ally did NOT take this photo… haha

Some people will go on and explain to us that “No – I’m serious.  I don’t photograph well at all.  I just don’t”.  If you are one of those people then in all seriousness there are likely some legitimate reasons you feel this way.  Here are 5 reasons you are not photogenic:

5 Reasons You Are Not Photogenic

  1. You are not pleased with the way you currently look.  Maybe you aren’t in the best shape of your life, or for whatever reason you aren’t thrilled with the way you look at the moment.  Hey no one is perfect, but you are the best and most unique version of you!  I wrote about this recently here.  Embrace and love yourself!  It’s okay!  If you indeed have not been taking good care of yourself then make that change and start now!  Meanwhile this is not the only reason you are “not photogenic”.
  2. You aren’t naturally comfortable in front of the camera.  Some people on a moment’s notice can just light up when someone is going to snap a photo.  They take more pictures, they practice more, they are prepared.  You are already convinced that you are not photogenic so you aren’t confident about being in a picture and you are not comfortable.  That does not mean there cannot be an environment created with proper planning where you will be comfortable.  There absolutely can be.
  3. You are being photographed by non-photographers.  This can impact a photo in a number of ways.  The person taking the photo may not have an eye for it and/or you may not connect with them.  Those two factors are really important for making a good photo – it doesn’t matter if it’s a ten thousand dollar camera without those two things.
  4. You typically are not lit (or posed) properly.  This is a continuation of the last point.  There is so much more than just knowing how to work a camera to produce a good photo.  Lighting (and posing for that matter) is a huge factor.  For example when we first opened the studio a photographer friend asked us why we had our main soft box set up on the side of our studio opposite our window.  He said that our main box was competing with the light coming in from the center court of the mall and impacting our lighting set up negatively.  He was right.  It wasn’t a difference I would have noticed but Ally sure noticed it after we made the change.  This is just one example of many factors that contribute to the composition of a photo that all combine to make you look better.  Real pros go to seminars and work with their peers – constantly honing their craft to improve all of their skills all the time.
  5. You typically are not prepared to look your absolute best when a random photo is snapped.  Maybe because of your line of work, your daily schedule or your hectic life in general you don’t have your best clothes on and your hair looking its best at all times.  If you are female your makeup also might not be done when someone says “C’mon!  Let me just get a quick picture!”

In short, not everyone is always at their perfect weight walking around 100% totally ready for their close up at a moment’s notice in perfect lighting with their favorite outfit on and hair perfectly styled to be taken by a random family member or friend with an iPhone who doesn’t know how to use the camera on it.

Here is the shamelessly self-serving part of this article – as you have probably figured out, these 5 reasons you are “not photogenic” can largely be addressed by going to a real professional whom you connect with.  I don’t just say this as an ad for Frameable Faces.  I mean it in general.  It applies to any professional who knows what they are doing.  Just don’t be hard on yourself if you haven’t always been pleased with how you look in photos.  It is not necessarily your fault!

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Frameable Faces Photography
**********************************************
Frameable Faces Photography is a small biz retail mom & pop shop of Doug&Ally Cohen located in the Orchard Mall in West Bloomfield, Michigan, United States Of America!
************************************************
Ally & Doug can be reached at the studio at tel:248-790-7317 or emailed at mailto:info@frameablefaces.com
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Being “Frameable” is an attitude, a community, a way of life – a life you would want to celebrate and display on your walls for all to see!  Tell us… ARE YOU FRAMEABLE?
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Join the Frameable Faces Community – sign up for our email newsletter for the best of the week in the Frameable Faces World!  Click here!

 

 

Hanging Out With Mitchell (and Teddy) – a Boy and His Dog!

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Hanging out with Mitchell (and Teddy) was really a great time!  It’s always fun when pets are included in a senior session and this was no exception.  Mitchell is a great guy – a personable and accomplished young man and his dog Teddy is not so bad either!  Let’s take a look…

We started off in the studio with a suit coat and dress shirt in front of the grey background.  We usually like at least one formal look like this one for the guys and Mitchell has a cool confidence that comes through in this photo.

Hanging Out With Mitchell

Then we headed out on location – in this case to Mitchell’s house where we met Teddy, Mitchell’s pup and Mitchell’s delightful mom hung out with us as well.  Teddy was pretty funny sprinting around in circles and generally having a blast of a time!  There were a few really nice textures and backgrounds for us to work with there and Mitchell did a great job.

Hanging Out With Mitchell

Hanging Out With Mitchell

Here is our fun behind the scenes vine of the session:

Maddy The Bat Mitzvah Model!

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We had so much fun with Maddy the Bat Mitzvah model recently!  This photo session was a collaboration with Guys N Gals here in the mall since Ms. Maddy’s dress was designed and special ordered from them.  We had to keep these photos under wraps until after the big event since these images were on display for all to see at her party, “Club Maddy”!

Bat Mitzvah Model

First Maddy went to Guys N Gals where she was able to try on various dresses for style and size…

Dress selection

Then she picked out the type and color of fabric she liked…

Color fabric swatches

And here is the fabulous result!!!  Beautiful!!!

Bat Mitzvah Model

A Bar or Bat Mitzvah is really such a special time for a young person and their family, and a professional photo shoot is a fun and unique way to mark the occasion!  The images are great for decorations at the party and they can be based on the theme for the party as well.  The photo session itself can also be a great gift!  Here are a couple more photos from Maddy’s awesome session!

Bat Mitzvah Model

Bat Mitzvah Model

While we are at it… I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention that we are now available to photograph your upcoming event!  In the past if we were asked if we photographed mitzvahs our answer was “not really…”.  For starters it was too difficult to work on weekend nights since we have kids of our own.  So now our event photographer Angela is available and has photographed several bar and bat mitzvahs for us and she has done a fantastic job just as we knew she would!  There will be more details and photos on this to come and in the meantime Angela is available so call us and you can come to the studio to meet her!

 

 

Springtime Spokesmodeling With Gabrielle!

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Yes let me repeat that title – SPRINGTIME spokesmodeling with Gabrielle!  We finally got a picture with some green in it for our last (but definitely not least) spokesmodel from the upcoming senior class of 2015!  We have put a wrap on our spokesmodel sessions and now we are preparing for senior photo sessions starting next month.  Yes we have already started booking them and no it’s not too early to get on the schedule for yours!  So with that said, let us get to a few stunning photos from Gabrielle’s session shall we?

Springtime Spokesmodeling

We have actually photographed Gabrielle before and gotten to know her family over the last couple years which always adds another element of fun for us.  As with every one of our female spokesmodels this year we started out in the studio briefly with our “black and blowy” set up which is always a winner.  Gabrielle landed this shot with perfection!

Next we went outside on what started out as a rainy day which we were a little nervous about.  The color came a little late this year with the brutal winter we had and it was this day or bust based on our schedules.  But the sun did indeed come out and we also had the advantage of an assistant and location scout on this shoot – Gabrielle’s boyfriend J. Edward!  That was a first for us and he really added to the proceedings.  What a great guy and a great help on the session!

Springtime Spokesmodeling

Ahhhh – now doesn’t that look nice?  Here is our fun behind the scenes vine from the day:

A Family Session With A Young Director Firmly In Control!

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This session gave us a chuckle for sure.  The son in this wonderful family was one tough negotiator.  He pretty much ran the entire session!  This little guy is a driver and we are confident that he will be the one to get things done when he gets older!  It was definitely a family session with a young director firmly in control!  First let’s take a look at the family portrait:

Young director firmly in control

It was fun watching Ally go back and forth with him as he commanded Ally to “Take the photo before my eyes get squinty” or “Wait delete that one!” or “Only 5 more good photos – and I’m officially counting” or “That’s not manly!”  Ally loves a fun “challenge” and we had a lot of fun while getting some great photos.  The next couple photos are priceless.  Let’s start with father and son enjoying a good laugh!

Young director firmly in controlBoys love their moms that is for sure.  Ally definitely captured that in the next photo:Young director firmly in control

Last but not least our director got his own time in the spotlight!Young director firmly in control

We hope you enjoyed these!  We certainly enjoyed our time with these folks and especially with our little director!

One More Leah – Spokesmodeling In The Sun!

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This year we have two Leahs representing our studio as spokesmodels!  We have had a great time photographing both of them so far and their spokesmodel sessions were the polar opposites of each other – literally!  Our first Leah was outside in the snow with huge fluffy flakes, while our latest Leah went spokesmodeling in the sun!  We will get to those in a second.  We started in the studio so let’s kick it off with this fun and playful shot!

Spokesmodeling in the sun

Leah was one of the first spokesmodels we met with this year and the way the schedule worked out we decided to slot her for a warmer weather session.  We have mentioned in our last few posts that we are focusing much of our last few spokesmodel sessions on getting as many outdoor photos as possible.  Now that the weather has warmed up we are happy to be outside in some of our favorite locations.

Spokesmodeling in the sun

We have used the stone wall above before and we love it here with this close up!  The close up really draws you right in to Leah’s pretty hazel eyes.  Next we moved to the barn which is really popular as a backdrop, and this next shot is fantastic.  Great dress, great pose and we love the backlight on Leah’s hair!

Spokesmodeling in the sun

Here is our fun behind the scenes vine of the session!

Spokesmodel Fun Times A Mill-i-an With Gillian!

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We have had an amazing and rewarding winter (and spring) getting to know our spokesmodels of the class of 2015 and photographing them.  We are finishing with a flourish just like we started since this class is strong through and through.  We have three more to present to you starting with Gillian.  Of this year’s spokesmodels we have known her the least amount of time and yet we definitely connected with her and her mom right away when we first sat down with them.  We were excited for this session and we definitely had spokesmodel fun times a mill-i-an with Gillian!  Haha!

We started in the studio just briefly to get a couple quick shots on the black background.  Here is one of our favorites:

Spokesmodel Fun

Then we headed outside for a perfect day – the weather was beautiful!  Gillian’s mom even stopped at the very cool local shop Jen’s Gifts Of Love to pick up some amazing Traverse City Cherry scones to take on location with us.  Just had to give that shout out because they were that good and we love little local joints like that…  But now back to our stunning model!!!

Spokesmodel Fun

We have some really nice back light on the photo above as well as the next one.  We love getting out on the trails in the parks around town especially after this harsh winter and there really are some great ones to choose from!  We have our favorite spots, and as much as we love the meadow we went to next we just had to focus in on Gillian and Gillian only for this photo…  this shot is such a winner!

Spokesmodel Fun

Here is the behind the scenes vine from the session.  We love these!

We were doing really well on time so we went to one more spot we had never photographed before and we love the water as a backdrop!

Spokesmodel Fun

We have images from two more spokesmodel sessions to post so stay tuned for more spokesmodel fun coming your way!  Meanwhile we hope you enjoyed these photos of Gillian!  We certainly enjoyed our time with her!

Doug’s Rant – Don’t Make These 5 Marketing Mistakes Online

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People make mistakes online when trying to advance their interests all the time.  Some of the miscues are flat out awful, but some come from someone just trying to make a dollar and not being aware of the etiquette on social media sites.  I figured I would try to come to the rescue with 5 tips that can apply to you personally or your brand.  So please, don’t make these 5 marketing mistakes online.  Here we go…

5 marketing mistakes online

Ugh – CLEARLY an online marketing mistake…!

  1. Do NOT send requests to strangers on LinkedIn without a professional (or any) headshot in your profile.  Why would I accept a request from a stranger with no picture for me to see if I know them?  I’ve posted about this before regarding Facebook too but I feel it is much worse on LinkedIn.  Some people venture on to Facebook without knowing much about it and are just getting their feet wet.  Fine.  But LinkedIn is a different story – people are literally there trying to network this way.  Like going to a networking event with a bag over your head.
  2. Don’t forget to be social on social media.  I wrote an entire article about this on another blog.  If you are posting things but not engaging with people it is like going to a party and talking at people, and then walking away when they open their mouths to reply.  Make sure your content isn’t all about you, and even if your content is fantastic be sure to reply to people who take the time to comment on it.  This applies to every social media site.  Go to their page and see what they are up to as well.  Be genuine about it because people can spot a fake.  Comment back and build those relationships.
  3. Don’t set up your new business on Facebook as a personal profile.  This can be an honest mistake but it is a big one.  So your brand is a female born in Detroit?  Tell me is your brand single or in a relationship?  Not only does this look silly and signal to people that you don’t quite have a grasp on what you’re doing, but you lose out on many tools for monitoring your progress with the data Facebook provides to business pages.  If you have already made this mistake you should correct it – make an announcement on your personal page that you are launching a proper Facebook business page for your brand and invite people to like it.
  4. Dont mispel werds ore yooz inkorect grammer.  It reely duz hert you’re kredibillity.  Enuff sed.  Hear iz ann inphografic too hellp yoo whith grammmr.
  5. Don’t bore us (or offend us) with your politics.  While I think it is never a great idea to espouse your politics online, it is even more important that you not do this with your brand.  Find a way to inject your personality into your brand because that’s important, but you have to be able to do it without being too personal.  This is another one I wrote about a while back on this blog.

There are certainly plenty of others (like not posting more than one Instagram per day for example).  I am willing to admit I have made plenty of mistakes myself but I see these out there a lot and they have been on my mind lately.  So make sure you don’t make these 5 marketing mistakes online!  What other mistakes have you made or see others making on a daily basis?