March 2016 - New Jersey, Philadelphia, NYC Personal Branding, Commercial and Editorial Photographer

My First Speaking Engagement

March 12, 2016/0 Comments/in Photography Business, Speaking Events /by Deirdre Ryan

So way back in October 2, 2015, I was part of a Business to Business Roundtable at Mrs. G’s Appliances & Sleep Center. I spoke about the importance of professional photography for your business, Maggie VanDagens of J&M Marketing Communications and Sherry Tomaino of Women’s Healthcare of Princeton talked about good web design, Barbara Simpson of Muirhead Foods talked about e-commerce, and Rocky Romeo of The Romeo Group talked about turning leads into sales.

The above and below photos were taken by Hilary Morris.

This was my very first speaking engagement. My friend Dolores DeGiacomo, worked with me on my presentation, helped to tighten up what I wanted to say and my delivery. Working with a slideshow was both powerful and tough at the same time. The questions during the Q&A portion were good. They were about copyrights, one was about how much I would charge for a certain type of job, (this I couldn’t/wouldn’t answer because it requires an appointment and all jobs are different), how I prepare for what I do, and many more great questions. I got a lot of positive feedback because many in my audience had no idea what to expect or what they needed to do when hiring a professional photographer.

I had a lot of great points like:

When you hire a professional photographer, you’re hiring more than just someone with a camera. You are getting knowledge, skills, expertise, talent, tools, and adaptability.
How to best contact a professional photographer, budget, don’t be afraid to ask questions.

There was more to my talk, but one of the most important things that I did stress upon was this:

Like any professional you would hire for an important job you want the most bang for your buck…but you also have to bear in mind you get what you pay for.
Anyone with a camera can take a picture. But only a professional photographer has the skills and the talent to light and frame the image, to make on the spot adjustments, and to complete those adjustments behind the scenes, and still deliver on time.

Thank you to everyone who spoke after I did and thank you to Mrs. G’s for hosting the event and Hilary Morris with our networking group, Coffee Talk NJ for putting it together!

Studio Portraits Of My Friend Roseanne

March 7, 2016/2 Comments/in Editorial, Headshots, personal, Portraits /by Deirdre Ryan

My dear friend Roseanne has just opened her Pilates Fusion and Barre Fitness Studio here in Bordentown, NJ and I couldn’t be more proud of her! This tiny powerhouse, former ballerina, mother of three beautiful girls, juggles a full time job, teaches Pilates both as a group class and in private homes, and is a weightlifter who holds the record for bench press at 105 lbs! She won the First Place trophy for the World Natural Powerlifting Federation(WNPF). But something tells me that she can do much more than that 😉

The above and below images are used with the permission of Rosanne Joy.

So I asked if she could help me test out some lighting that I wanted to try out and she said sure! Her youngest came along, and it was perfect because my 9 year old and she could play upstairs together. We had such a good time, just the two of us, and the images of her turned out beautiful! But of course that’s mainly because she’s in them 🙂

Thank you so much to my beautiful friend! These were what I was looking for and more! I can’t wait for our next project together! Congratulations on your studio!

And thanks to my loving husband, David, who took this image after we shooed him away. As you can see, space is tight in our basement. It’s our family room, my office, and our daughter’s play area. I used one Dynalite strobe with a 46″ Photek Softlighter II Umbrella on it with a double sided 5’x7′ Savage popup black/white background. I also had a Savage 5 in 1 Reflector out to help modify the light a bit, that’s what the extra empty stand with the reflector clamps is there for. I tethered my Canon Mark 5D III to my Macbook Pro and used the Canon EF 85mm f1.8 lens.

NJPAC Celebrates Kwanzaa

March 3, 2016/0 Comments/in event photography /by Deirdre Ryan

You may ask…what is Kwanzaa?

The following text is from this link :

In 1966 Dr. Maulana Karenga created a uniquely African American and Pan-African holiday called Kwanzaa, which is celebrated from December through January first. Kwanzaa is related to many African celebrations of the first harvest. The name Kwanzaa comes from a Swahili phrase “matunda ya kwanza,” which translates as first fruits.

In African-American culture Kwanzaa is a time for five fundamental activities:

To reestablish interpersonal bonds
To express reverence to the creator
To commemorate and honor ancestors
To commit to following cultural ideals
To celebrate life, family, community and culture

Kwanzaa recognizes and celebrates these 7 principles of African culture:

Umoja (unity): To work towards unity with others whether family members or members of a larger community.
Kujichagulia (self-determination): To define oneself and find one’s unique voice in the world.
Ujima (collective work and responsibility): To cooperate in community building and problem solving.
Ujamaa (cooperation): To build and sustain business from which the community as a whole profits.
Nia (purpose): To collectively strive towards cultural unity based on tradition.
Kuumba (creativity): To use our creativity to improve our community.
Imani (faith): To believe in each other, our leaders, and the righteousness of our struggle.

During Kwanzaa, children receive gifts of books and heritage symbols. The book represents the value of learning recognized since ancient Egypt and the symbol is to remind the child of his or her commitment to African traditions.

Kwanzaa colors are red, green, and black. A mat (called a mkeka) is laid on a table and decorated with 7 candles representing the 7 principles and one is lit on each day of Kwanzaa. Ears of corn are placed on the mkeka, along with a unity cup (called a kikombe cha umoja) for pouring libations in honor of the ancestors. The mkeka is also decorated with beautiful art objects and books that represent the best that African culture has to offer.

The final day of Kwanzaa is set aside for reflection. Celebrants spend this day in quiet contemplation and maintain a peaceful, humble attitude towards others. It is a time for individuals to answer three questions:

Who am I?
Am I really who I say I am?
Am I all I ought to be?

Answering these questions honestly can bring about a renewed commitment to being the best we can be and to honoring the time honored African cultural traditions. Kwanzaa does not reflect any religion but rather plays tribute to ancient cultural values and traditions.

As you can see it is a beautiful holiday and I was very happy to be referred to the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) to photograph their Kwanzaa celebration back in December. It had all that you read above, including speakers from the President and CEO John Schreiber, Vice President of Community Engagement, Donna Walker of NJPAC, and three of the Elders. These Elders were honored by dancers and young people.

Leaders Luncheon With Burlington Coat Factory and The Phillie Phanatic

March 3, 2016/0 Comments/in event photography /by Deirdre Ryan

I had the pleasure to photograph another fun event for the Burlington Coat Factory back in December for their end of the year Leaders Luncheon. It was held inside the Diamond Club at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team and their mascot, the Phillies Phanatic. This was a lot of fun, because the Phanatic was up to his usual mischief(I even got a photo with him!), and then afterwards, they split up the large group into 2 groups to tour the field and where the Phillies warm up, their locker room, and the media room.

The Diamond Club offers sweeping views right above home plate in the ballpark, and lucky for us, the month was mild, so we were able to go outside and not have to worry too much about jackets. It was “brisk” with the breeze, but a gorgeous day!

Thank you once again to everyone at Burlington Coat Factory and of course, the Phillie Phanatic 😀 You were awesome!