Embracing Failure or Creative Blocks and Moving Forward

Hi all!

The title of this weeks blog may seem a little depressing or pessimistic, but it is quite the opposite! Every professional and especially creatives go through a slump or a creative funk, and I'm no different. Hitting one of these slumps can often give you a feeling of failure if things aren't always going the way you want. This can also lead you to question your own confidence.

Now, I'll preface by stating that I don't feel I've "failed" in any particular way, and I'm certainly not aware of any dissatisfied clients, but I have felt that in the last week or 2 I may have hit a lull creatively. Of course I'm always looking to improve upon myself personally, professionally, monetarily, and creatively so I decided to research and read a ton of articles about "creative ruts" as well as "creative blocks" and ways to snap out of them.

I found a great article here: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/07/12/7-ways-to-get-out-of-a-creative-rut/ from psych central.com and gave it a quick read. #6 Celebrate your failures there is a great quote that you can read from author Ray Bradbury who also coincidentally has another great quote I've heard many times, "Living at risk is jumping off the cliff and building your wings on the way down." 1. Create space and 3. Change something small also were helpful in motivating me to take a small step back and make a few minor changes.

Needless to say I decided to step away from the computer & cell phone for a while yesterday. I went to chop firewood for our weekend bonfires and boy did it help clear my head! During this time of contemplation I already came up with a couple new ideas and different ways of shooting that I'm excited to implement on several photographic shoots that are scheduled over the course of the next few weeks. There were many ideas that popped into my head that will hopefully allow me to pursue my ultimate goal of creating unique photography that differs from anyone else's. I'm excited to share some of these plans and also share the final photos with you in the near future.

Until next time, stay positive and always embrace failures...they can lead to growth!

As always comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques are welcome!

New Realty Images Updated on the Website

Hi everyone,

The blog this week will be short and sweet. For those that have asked about, texted, commented, or have read last weeks blog...YES, I am thoroughly enjoying the new truck and am still shocked by the whole scheme that went down last week!

I spent this week doing some digital photo editing jobs and updating the website a little. I've added a few new images from some more recent real estate jobs and removed a few older ones in the Architecture/Real Estate section of the site. Real Estate work has been pretty good this year overall and is also something I enjoy very much so I wanted to share some new photos for my website viewers and especially for the real estate agents that may be reading. If you or someone you know is a local real estate agent(s) and they'd like to know more about how professional photography can increase their clients' interest and ultimately their sales, please have them contact me to discuss more. 

As always comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques are always welcome! 

Crazy Week Topped Off By A Crazy Surprise

Happy weekend everyone,

This week is a little different than most blogs. Along with a realty job, some editing, and a few others this week, I had a bombshell surprise dropped on me that I was totally unaware of. Rarely do I share many personal stories on the blog (I try to keep it MOSTLY professional) but this one was a total shocker to me!

For about a month my awesome girlfriend, Noele, had been planning a surprise purchase for me and I was hit with it on Thursday. My "family vehicle" Honda Pilot had been racking up some high mileage over the years and I've been looking into a few used pickups good to haul camera equipment to jobs, take the quads places, pack vacation gear, or just supplies for around the house. After some bogus story about wrecking her car and needing picked up at the dealer, I was presented with this GMC Sierra and was completely floored when I arrived! Reluctantly, I accepted, but only after a series of my typical headstrong squabbles making her prove and reassure me of our financial stability first. 

The truck had 25 miles on it and is the 1st vehicle I've ever had that was brand new. Anyone that knows me knows that I am a huge GM fan having previously owned a Corvette, Camaro, and multiple trucks in the past. This truck is absolutely suited for me and (yes, some reading this may think its a bit strange) everything about it matches my personality and disposition. I can now cruise to a wedding, meeting, or photo shoot in style, or else traverse rugged terrains to a great fishing hole, remote photo destination, or quad trail.  

Of course, upon leaving the dealer the camera was out and clicking cycles away feverishly. For the photography friends that may be reading this, I tried my hand at a little High Dynamic Range (HDR) photography with it to better highlight the details. One of the images I also converted to a metallic looking black & white. I loved how they turned out and wanted to share. I'm a lucky man! 

As always comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques are welcome. Have a great week! 

          

Turning Back to Spring this Week

Happy Friday all,

Fall is here and the Western PA area is starting to feel like it a little bit. It hasn't been too bad thus far, but you can definitely feel a slight chill in the air and the leaves are beginning their transition. With that, I decided to focus this weeks blog on a few shots I snapped during the late spring and early summer to get our minds off of the upcoming cold weather.

This first image is a late afternoon shot of a farm landscape near Bedford, PA. My son and I were returning from our annual Red Sox baseball trip from a game in Baltimore on Memorial Day and we stopped off quickly to snap a few photos (he was also captivated by the windmills in the distance so he made me stop there too.) I loved the way that the late day sunlight played off of the silos and surrounding fields in both the foreground and background. The shapes created within the farm buildings and telephone wires, along with the rolling curvature of the distant hillsides all brought a nice touch of visual elements to the photo also. Anyone that knows me should also know that I have an affinity for our disappearing farmlands as well.

The next set of photos I took randomly during the spring and summer. I've always enjoyed Alfred Stieglitzs' Equivalents series from the 1920's and 30's, (if you are unaware of his work, check it out!) and figured I'd take a crack at my own "cloudscapes." The main reason I was attracted to these scenes was not because of the form within the clouds, but more of the deep rich colors and tones of the sky. 

As always comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques are welcome! Thanks for reading, have a great weekend!    

    

A Few Things I've Been Up To

Happy Saturday everyone,

This will be a rather short blog this week, but I'll give readers an idea of a few things I've been up to recently.

It's been a little hectic the past 2 weeks. Last week, and into the beginning of this week, I finalized images for the Heather Habura Studios event for them that I shot a few weeks ago. On Friday of last week I had the pleasure of photographing a Westinghouse and United Way event in Wilkinsburg in which employees helped to beautify a local high school, and also gave a wonderful career panel discussion to students. I also worked feverishly to best present my 10-minute Keynote Presentation to my BNI Circle of Gold chapter this past Wednesday at Rivertowne Pourhouse in Monroeville. Members and guests seemed to thoroughly enjoy it, so I'm guessing it hit its mark. 

Another large chunk of time was dedicated to a special LinkedIn discount that my partner, Eric Pensenstadler of Video Horizons LLC and I are offering to real estate professionals. Eric has just completed his certification training to fly his drone commercially. This can help to give realtors a unique view of their properties for aerial photo or video tours they can offer to potential clientele. We are also offering a 15% photo/video package discount for local realtors willing to try us out for their properties! Realtors that I am connected to via Linkedin can expect a message from me in the next few days. Check my LinkedIn page to learn more. Also, I will be helping Eric out with video in a few short hours for a wedding. This will be my first "video only" wedding gig and I'm looking forward to it. Have a great weekend, all! 

As always comments, questions, suggestions, and critiques are welcome on the Drakulic Photography blogs!     

Toiling Around the House This Week

Happy Friday everyone,

The title for this blog kind of sums up this week for me. If you look at the definition of "Toil," it can mean 1 of 2 things, "1. working extremely hard..." or "2. moving slowly or with difficulty." Admittedly, BOTH have been the summary of my week. 

One of the beautiful things about owning your own business (also one of the downfalls) and being a photographer, is that you spend many, many, hours working from home doing editing and other business duties such as replying to emails, archiving photos, research, paying bills, blog posts, etc. I look at it mostly positively though because I get to spend a lot of time taking care of my son and handling other personal things. However, it IS easy to "take a break" and get sidetracked by the other stuff.

With 3 separate jobs on the table to finish, I've spent a good portion of the week craned against the computer screen editing the jobs that I need to get finalized for my clients. I've also found myself dilly dallying (definition 2) a little too much. No worries though, I'll still have my jobs completed ahead of schedule and as creative as possible! With that being said, I have still managed to shoot a little iPhone photography around the house that I have shared below. The images were taken as I "toiled" around the house but I'll leave it up to you to decide which definition they fall under, ha ha!

As always, comments, questions, and critiques are always welcome!  

This Weeks in My Photography Business

Hi everyone,

Anyone reading this that knows me, even a little, knows that I'm sort of obsessed with photography. It's what I absolutely love to do for a profession, and it doesn't really matter what kind of photography it is, I'm ALWAYS trying to learn more to better myself. Whether its portraiture, wedding, product, food, fashion, documentary, abstract, or landscape photography I want to try and dabble in all of it. This week I also had a chance to try something new...a television commercial. 

In the past week, I had the pleasure of photographing the 2nd Annual Showcase Pageant and Charity Event for Heather Habura Studio, and shooting still portraits and sunrooms for a television commercial for Pro Home & Sunroom! Although both events were a huge amount of work, they were both a blast to shoot! I want to thank Rick Edwards of Pro Home & Sunroom and Heather Habura both for the business and the honor of allowing me to be a part of your important projects.

Both events also allowed me the privilege of working closely with my good friend Eric Pensenstadler of Video Horizons LLC and seeing the magic he creates through his videography and see how a commercial/web videos are created. Parts of the commercial and customer testimonial interviews took us much longer than anticipated but it will all be worth it in the end. Eric's such a perfectionist...I admire that.

Attached to this weeks blog are a few images I shot from the Pro Home & Sunroom commercial and the 2nd Annual Showcase and Charity Event. Have a great week everyone. As always, comments, questions, and/or suggestions are always welcome! 

Intro: Assistant Ashley on the Blog

Hi everyone, 

This week I want to introduce Ashley Klimek to the blog. Ashley joined my team about a month or so ago and has been doing a fantastic job behind the scenes assisting me with multiple tasks. As a small business owner, it's often very difficult to continuously keep up on everything on your own and I'm grateful Ashley has accepted this part time role as my "Executive Assistant." She's been a tremendous help and is a very driven, goal oriented individual who isn't afraid to think outside of the box, this also works well with my goofy eccentricities as a person and business owner. With that, heres Ashley's blog...

Introducing...ME! 

Hello everyone, I'm Ashley Klimek, Executive Assistant at Drakulic Photography LLC. I'm very excited to be on the blog this week, and first and foremost would like to thank Bobby Drakulic for allowing me this opportunity to introduce myself to you...thanks Bobby! 

Some of you may already know me as your friendly neighborhood bartender at Ski's and Nick's Lounge Inc., where you'll find me 3-4 days a week slinging cocktails and helping make memories. If you haven't been there, stop by sometime to visit me (it's like Cheers, but better!) When I found out that I'd be doing the blog this week, I couldn't help but brainstorm what sort of business related topics I could discuss with you ( I have a few, but we'll save them for future posts.) After much deliberation I decided I will just give you a little about my background and how I came to be here, working for a photographer. 

Last month Bobby gave me the opportunity to branch out and try something new, to get out of my comfort zone, so to speak. I've spent the last 12 years in the service industry and while it's a job I really enjoy and am pretty darn good at it, I needed a new adventure and challenge. This challenge also had to fit around my other most important job, being a mother to my 2 beautifully awesome children. They are my heart and soul and the reason for my being. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade 12 episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse a day or playing "find the sippy cup" with my kids for anything in the world. However, I was missing something, something intellectually stimulating that I'd had in college 6+ years ago. I needed to dive back into the intellectual pool head first, no matter how daunting or scary it seemed at first. 

So, this is what I've done. In spite of not having any prior professional experience in marketing, web design, or SEO marketing, these are some areas I've been focusing on trying to find new ways of helping Drakulic Photography maintain current business and grow to reach its fullest potential, and at the same time this helps me reach mine. As it turns out, I have a knack for this sort of thing. I believe in what I'm doing, I believe in the Arts, and photography is one of the most important artistic commodities we have available to us. A photograph, if properly taken, can tell us a story, show us the essence of a person, increase business sales, give us a glimpse into the history of a building, or help us to remember someone special. For most of us, I'm certain photographs have captured the most important milestones of our lives; births, vacations, family or big corporate events, weddings, and many other special moments in between. And to this end, Bobby Drakulic is exceptionally skilled at this. He has the talent, desire, education, and most importantly, the PASSION for his work. This allows him to always over deliver for every job or project he takes on. He truly loves what he does, and that is inspiring.

So this is me in a tiny nutshell. Someday very soon I will be returning to school to combine my passion for helping others and their business, and hopefully build a career out of what I love. In the meantime, I'm doing work that I'm proud of on all 3 fronts. I enjoy every single second watching my kids grow, and the rare date night with my wonderful fiancé, Josh. All in all, life is pretty good right now and I'm looking forward to whatever new excitement the future brings. Thanks for reading and I'm sure you will hear more from me soon. 

Sincerely,

Ashley Klimek

Executive Assistant

Drakulic Photography LLC

The Print-Photographys Grand Finale

Hi all,

Despite todays obsession with digital imagery, the print usually stands as the finality of a photographic job. All of the meeting, negotiating, contracting, shooting, uploading, and editing culminates into these final prints. The final photographic print, if done well, is like an epic cliffhanger ending to a movie or book!

I emphasize the importance of the print to many of my clients. To hold, touch, hang, and examine a well balanced, properly color corrected photo print is a far more superior visual experience than just viewing the same digital image on a tablet, phone, or computer screen any day. Once the client decides on the images they'd like to order is when I feel the true magic begins. There are times it can take hours to get the correct print I feel is deserved to hang on their walls or frame. It is all worthwhile in the end though to see their reactions when handing over these final prints!

All of my wedding contracts (and really any job I shoot) have archivable print options that can include, metallic prints, enlargements (as big as they'd like to go,) canvas wraps, and customizable albums or books. If the print hanging on your wall for the next 40 or 50 years or more is of importance to you, choose a photographer that understands the complexities of printing and won't just hand over a cheap print that is not color corrected or will fade in a few years.

I've added a few sample images of prints I recently gave to a client to this weeks blog. Although, I also have several pretty sweet metallic prints that are being mounted right now that I'll share in the future. 

Thanks for reading and as always comments, questions, and critiques are always welcome!          

Delivering the Goods

Happy Friday everyone,

This weeks blog post discussion is regarding the final image delivery to clientele. To start off this topic, ask yourself (from a customers perspective) have you ever received more or a higher grade of a product or service than you initially paid for? Did this make you more likely to use the product or service again and satisfy your overall experience with the business? 

I'm willing to bet most people enjoy getting MORE of something, as long as the quality of that service or product is not lacking. When I contract out a corporate event, family shoot, or wedding, there's a specific number of final edited high resolution images that's agreed upon. I always over deliver to my clients!

Most of my weddings have their entire day photographically covered from start to stop. Why wouldn't I take the extra time to ensure my clients get to cherish as many of these moments as possible? It may take a few extra hours on my end of cleaning up, color retouching, or implementing other editing techniques but I'd rather take that time to make my customers happy with the final results. There are several clients of mine right now who will be receiving more than they paid for over the next few weeks. I guess the cats out of the bag if they read these blogs, haha!

Find a photographer for your event that will not only produce wonderfully creative images but also go the extra mile to assure you get more than what you paid for. Next week, I'll discuss final prints and present a few preview images from the latest wedding.

Have a great weekend, and as always comments, questions, and critiques are encouraged!   

The Photographer-Managing Situations for Events

Happy weekend all,

Tying into what I discussed about differentiating your business with wedding photography last week, I decided to make this weeks blog about the many other jobs a photographer must do for events. Some people think we show up, take a bunch of "pictures," then go home to upload them and we are done. This couldn't be FURTHER from the truth!

The truth is, there's multiple layers (like many other professions) to wedding and event photography. The one layer I'll discuss this week is crowd control and managing the group that's to be photographed. This could include executives, managers, CEO's, brides/grooms, wedding parties, family members, etc.

For most events, there is going to be a series of standardized group shots that need to be photographed for the client(s.) One of the most difficult situations photographers face at these events is corralling the group together in a non demanding, friendly manner while they are trying to enjoy themselves. The photographer needs to keep the group shots mood light and airy regardless of time constraints or other issues. The idea is to make the group shots go quickly, effectively, creatively, and as entertaining as possible. 

Making the group photo shoots go smoothly and engaging will undoubtedly affect the final results of your images. Upon a thorough evaluation of the final photograph, it will be obvious whether or not the photographer did a good job of keeping everyones interest and attention, or if they (the photographer AND group) were hurried and stressed. Choose a photographer whose attitude, personality, and leadership skills will match the environment for your event, it will make all the difference. There are a few tricks I personally use to manage these situations that make it fun and successful, but I'll keep those under lock and key.

Thanks for reading, as always comments, critiques, questions, and suggestions are encouraged.

          

Old School Photography Last Week-Doing Things Differently

Hello everyone,

Happy Friday to you! So, last week before my clients Nick & Morgan's wedding, I bought an old school Polaroid Impossible Red Stripe camera (probably from the 80's or 90's, not sure when they came out) and a few packs of black & white film to add a little dash of nostalgic touch for the day. I hadn't used a Polaroid in AGES but the goofy little squared instant prints were a hit with both my clients, and their guests. For a few weddings in the past, we used an Instax camera in sort of the same manner, to give guests something physical to look at and hold at the reception. 

The Polaroid was a bit different though, because just about everyone in attendance, young and old, identified with it and the sub par quality prints they produce. This wasn't about the quality of print though, this was about the MOMENT of their day. 

Having the Polaroid present allowed me to switch rapidly from my normal DSLR to making a print right then and there of the scene. No digital images that will never make it to print, no smart phone/tablet/or computer screen viewing necessary, no uploads to social media and then forgotten forever. These were straight physical prints that they can cherish forever along with other wedding day items. Some say "print is dead" and I say bring print back! 

Since last week I've become a little obsessed with the Polaroid and have been snapping a few photos with it of various things, people, and significant moments. I'm not sure how often I'll use it in the future but there's just something about catching that special moment in time, with a print that is there to hold.

Thanks for reading. As always, comments, suggestions, questions, and critiques are encouraged.       

Switching Creative Gears for Today-Nick & Morgan

Hi all, 

After a super long week of photography for Westinghouse, senior portraits, and some personal work, it will be great to switch creative gears for todays awesome couple, Nick & Morgan. An early congrats to these 2 love birds on their upcoming wedding in mere hours at Linden Hall. I'm excited and honored to be a part of this special day and will do my best to make the most creative images I can of your day AND make it fun fun fun in the process. Thanks, and congrats again!    

Frequently Asked Questions-Costs of Photography

Hi All,

It's been a CRAZY last 2 weeks and I've not had much time to focus on the blog, but I'm back now and ready to steam forward consistently again. In the last 2 weeks most of my focus has been on a graduation party here at the house, realty photography, wedding photography, commercial photography for a few local small businesses, and also a few Westinghouse jobs so that has occupied quite a bit of time, but I'll continue with the theme from a few weeks ago...Frequently Asked Questions. 

One of the main concerns potential clients have is, with good reason, cost. Hiring a professional photographer for your business, family or corporate event, or wedding (just to name a few) doesn't have to break the bank, but there are numerous costs involved for professional photographers as well. These costs do factor into the pricing structures. Personally, I have factored in what I'd need to make to operate a profitable business, pay my bills, and live a somewhat normal life based on the time I have invested into a job. I do my best to keep these prices average and competitive, yet still affordable. Admittedly, I have very little overhead so I can pass this onto my clients.

Let's get into some of the things that we, as professional photographers, have to pay for when we quote you a price. 

Education. Anyone can take a photograph, its knowing what to do in certain lighting situations with white balance, where to put your focus points, understanding exposure, shutter speeds, composition, ISO, focal lengths, and how to tell a story with each powerful image...plus many more aspects. All of this comes with experience (sometimes years) and education. An example of this educational cost is the $60,000+ I paid for my BFA to get a great art and photographic education and to learn as much as I could about my profession and passion.

Next we have equipment costs. In my camera bag right now I have around $10,000 worth of equipment and that is actually pretty low compared to other professional photographers. I do NOT put an emphasis on having the best of the best, top of the line equipment, because I believe creativity comes from within. The most expensive camera isn't necessarily going to make me the best photographer. However, you do need to have equipment that is sufficient for all of the types of jobs you accept. This includes lenses, batteries, camera bodies, SD or CF cards, filters, cleaners, tripods, bags, chargers, and so many more items. Also, every one of these items listed you'd need to have backups of (usually AT LEAST 3 of each.)

Business costs. Businesses cannot operate if they cannot make money, and it takes money to make money in some instances. Creating a legal business entity, networking, insurance, meetings with clients, business group memberships, business cards, website work and hosting all cost a professional photographer, and all of these are also factored into the overall costs.

Finally, I'll leave you with a few other contributing costs to photographers that maybe people don't know about. Printing, CD or DVD costs, gas, wear and tear on a vehicle, additional lighting, stands, backdrops, flash units, external hard drives, computers, editing software, phones, film, legal advice, contracts, electricity, rent (if you own a studio) and way too many other items to list. 

These are the reasons why it is not just "taking a few pictures" and often to receive high quality work it costs a little more. 

Some advise for my readers: 1. Be very wary of low priced photography. Often these are new photographers/students with no idea of the costs of business, or the quality that a client expects, or worse yet a photographer that doesn't appreciate the value of their own work. 2. Shop around. I always tell potential clients to look around and see the price differences and also which style of work best fits their purchase and likes. From my perspective, it also feels much more fulfilling knowing a client did their homework and still chose me. 3. Don't expect great creative work for cheap, or worse yet, free.  

That is all for this week. Thanks for reading and as always questions, comments, and critiques are always encouraged!      

My Little Assistant Yesterday

Happy Friday Everyone,

Yesterday I had the opportunity to take my 4 year old son Luka with me on a small commercial photography shoot for Health Markets in Penn Hills. I'm not sure who was more excited, him, to be able to go to a job with me, see what I do, and help assist me, or me for being able to share with him what I love to do. His job was to hold the reflector and help carry equipment. 

It was fun to see him take an interest in my work and hang out with dad during the shoot. A big thanks also to Scott Corna of Health Markets for allowing him to assist, being a wonderfully friendly guy to him, and for taking the time to accomadate his lofty needs for Scott to draw him a boat, ocean, and shark (see the image below) while I set up.

Also, for my fellow BNI members, fellow business owners, or interested blog readers, I will be giving the keynote 10 minute presentation this Wednesday (11:00 A.M-12:30 P.M.) at our weekly meeting at Tolericos in Monroeville. If you'd like to come and hear more about what I do or just tag along to see what zany and interesting things I have to say email, call, or text me. We'd love to have you visit, plus it's free to attend! Have a great weekend!

Weekly Blog-Frequently Asked Questions-Time of Day

Hi all,

I hope that everyones week is going swimmingly (anyone catch that pun, based on the beautiful weather lately?) and prosperous! I've been quite busy lately working on commercial photo shoots for local small businesses, several family/kid portraits, engagements, food photography, and also some personal works. Images from some of these shoots to follow soon.

Over the next few weeks I'd like to cover a few questions that I'm frequently asked when clients inquire about photography services or are planning a specific time/location for a shoot. Hopefully, this will also be informative to some of my readers and that they can apply these ideas to their own personal photography.

This week is all about lighting/time of day to do a shoot. I'm asked regularly about WHEN we should schedule a shoot outdoors in natural light. My response is always (and honestly not usually accepted eagerly) early morning or really late in the afternoon. The reason, I explain, is to utilize the best possible lighting which occurs just after sunrise or before sunset. There is a small window of time during this part of the day, when the sun gives us a gorgeous golden hue that is frequently called the "Golden Hour" or "Magic Hour." Obviously this doesn't apply as much on cloudy overcast days but it still makes a difference in the final quality of the images. 

Most people have noticed this, and EVERY competent photographer worth their salt should know this. The difference is completely noticeable when comparing images shot in the late morning, noon, or early afternoon versus the same images taken during this "Golden Hour" time period. Personally, I rarely even take my camera out of its bag between 10:00-2:00. A few reasons for this is that midday sun is often too bright and can "wash out" (or brighten a scene entirely too much) and also creates harsh unflattering deep dark shadows. You can try to apply this to your own photography by taking any photograph yourself at noon, and then take another photo of the exact same spot or subject at 7:30-8:00 P.M. (this time of the year) and compare them side by side. Below is a quick example of just a simple iPhone photo I shot in my backyard a few days ago during the "Magic Hour." Hope this helps! 

As always, comments, critiques, and/or questions are encouraged. Thanks for reading!    

      

Abstractions and Little Oddities of New Orleans

Happy Monday everyone,

This weeks blog post will focus (or not) on a few abstractions I created during the New Orleans trip last month. There are so many unique and odd artifacts to see around the city if you just look closely. It seems there's some sort of little photographic gem hidden on almost every city block you travel. Here are just a few of the items that caught my eyes during the trip that I felt warranted a photo and subsequent blog post. 

This will be the last blog I'll post on the trip for a little while as there are many other things I've been working on that I'll share in the coming weeks. As always, I'd love to hear comments, questions, and/or suggestions or critiques from all of my readers. Thanks, have a great week!   

Delicious Foods and Drinks of New Orleans

Good afternoon everyone,

The last few weeks have been quite busy across the board, but I'll share more of the things I've been working on in future posts. Staying with the New Orleans theme, for today's post I'd like to share some of the unbelievably delicious food and drink we were fortunate enough to have during the trip a few weeks ago. 

This blog post features some of the BEST sandwiches I've ever had, the original Muffuletta sandwich from Central Grocery, and the Po'Boy from Mothers Restaurant. Both are equally delicious in their own unique way! Also included are charbroiled garlic parmesan oysters (which I was leery of at first, until I tried them) fantastic buttery croissants, sugary beignets from Cafe Du Monde, étouffée, Bloody Mary's, and a French 75 drink, which was 1 of my birthday drinks. Admittedly, these photos are not the best of quality because I took most of the images while dining in the restaurants with whatever available light I had. There wasn't an opportunity to light or style the dishes the way I wanted, but my main goal was to just chronicle or document some of the spectacular foods New Orleans has to offer. If you've never been to New Orleans and you are a food lover...GO! You will not be disappointed with the HUGE variety of flavorful foods available there. Enjoy, and as always comments/critiques/questions are encouraged.

         

Architecture of New Orleans

Happy Monday everyone,

Last week was a difficult week so I apologize in advance for not posting a blog. I won't get into specifics but I'll just say that we again lost another close family member to that hideous affliction, cancer. Pretty much every family member I know has had at some point, or passed away from cancer and I'm quite aggravated by it. Hopefully we will find the cures to rid us of this despicable disease that has impacted too many of our lives.

On to this weeks blog as I feel the need to dive straight into work. This week's blog focuses (pun intended) on the many styles of New Orleans architecture. The city is littered with popular historical buildings, like Lafitte's Blacksmith Bar, Cafe Du Monde, and St. Louis Cathedral but there are also a wide range of other architectural styles that reflect the many cultural influences that helped shaped New Orleans. Shotgun houses, Creole cottages, Double-Gallery houses, and Creole townhouses are just a few of the other designs I photographed on our trip. The multitude of colors, shapes, and sizes are very interesting to observe as you walk the streets. The Superdome is also another interesting structure to see at night. The entire stadium changes colors continuously throughout the evening. 

The goal of this blog is to give readers who haven't visited New Orleans (or even those that have) a sense of place based on the unique structures and sights the great city of New Orleans has to offer. Enjoy, thanks for reading, and as always questions/comments and critiques are encouraged!