WORKING IT | UTAH CHILDREN'S PHOTOGRAPHER

people, i am working it. no, mabye i'm not working it as fabulously as this little girl is from this weekend's "better than i could have ever hoped for," mentoring session. but there is definitely A LOT of work going down in yan town. on what you ask?

well...

the shoot above, wrap up of a dec wedding, tearing up the grossest, tackiest, most hideous linoleum known to man in our studio in order to get to the hardwood floors, putting together our NEW WEDDING WEBSITE (to be revealed this week), booking other weddings, planning engagement shoots, planning just for me creative explosion shoots, being a MOM, loving my life, and growing an entire human being within my WOMB.

but you know what? I know you're all working it too. I know your probably busier than you can handle, and we're all collectively wondering when our next moment to sit down, forget about the clock and do something purely relaxing, will be. Those moments do come, and when they arrive, they are glorious. but for now, let's just all keep moving forward, however best we can.

happy tuesday.

a piano and all his friends including the studio on center and university / utah wedding photographer

dear yan, the other day when i asked you how many copies of my album we should order i was thinking somewhere around 300.  you know, something modest, but enough that we could still distribute them over the next couple years.  so i was a little surprised when you said 50.  and at first i wasn't sure why you chose such a low number until you said outright "we don't have that many friends who will get your cd."

i think maybe you're right, so i'm suggesting we get 12.  thanks for helping me be realistic.

but i have a plan...i asked little myra for some advice.  she said i should, "teach them the music is pretty.  then they will listen."  i think if we can implement myra's plan we'll be able to push past cds 9 and 10.

don't worry i'll be sure to let our photographer friends know they can buy rights to the songs for their websites at a fraction of the cost for royalties charged for someone actually famous.  and if anyone wants to know what kind of music i do before i'm on the web, just tell them i sing the song on yanphoto.com.  oh and i'll be sure to tell your mom that you didn't just marry a street musician, but officially a recording artist.

in other news, i wanted you to know that i am so excited about the studio.  i'll pick the key up tomorrow and then let the wild renovations begin!  and by the way, love, thanks for all your support--i could never have done this album without you.

love and all her friends,

uncle marty

mama bear | utah children's photographer, boise children's photographer

i don't know about you, but I thought this was a photography blog? hehehehehe. okay, okay, you busted us. sometimes we like to just write. and sometimes its a little too easy to click the ol' "publish," tab before digging around for some fresh photos to post. but i just can't believe i haven't blogged all of THESE pictures yet. THIS, one of my last and loveliest sessions of 2009 in which:

a) a mother loves her children incredibly well

b) mother manages to look gorgeous while doing so

c) children manage to be incredibly well behaved, and all kid/free spirited like simultaneously.

i met julie, the culprit, I mean, mom, in these photos, last winter at a photography seminar (see her awesome photography here) and i do not believe i've encountered a kinder heart either before or since. she really wanted to be in front of the lens for a change to capture the connection she has with her children. julie was extremely patient with me in scheduling this session (thanks so, so much), but we were both sad to not be able to find a time when her husband could join us. =( hopefully next time, right julie?

lots of love,

yan

what, i'm signing my blog posts now? uncle marty must be a bad influence on me...

p.s. julie deserves a medal not only for her mad mothering skillzzzz but for her mega sweet styling. seriously, look at those kids!

dear yan / utah wedding photographer, utah family photographer

dear yan, thanks for the lovely introduction.  you and i both know that by "encouragement" you meant that time when you sobbed on my shoulder and said "i quit. i quit. i quit!" but i helped you see the beauty you possessed inside; i gave you a sense of pride.  or maybe you were thinking of all the times i watched the girls and didn't let them watch any shows because i'm such a good dad--instead i taught them everything through the 5th grade curriculum.  or maybe it was all the brilliant ideas...well, the list could go on and i'm sure you were thinking of all of those things...so anyway, thanks for the introduction although it was much more generous than i would have been to myself.

i wanted to just send you this little note to tell you i'm honored to be carrying the canon 5d mark ii to all our wedding shoots.  and i'm happy to carry yours for you too.  i'm so proud of you.  and let's rock this thing! also, i want you to notice how perfect your jaw looks in the picture below and then if you wish, notice how blobby my jaw looks. waa waa waa.  well, who needs new years resolutions?  who needs help with motivation?  i certainly don't because my blobby jaw was posted on international internet.  that's enough to make me lose 15 lbs in 2 months.

all my love,

uncle marty. he he he.  i mean, marty.

meet marty | utah wedding photography, boise wedding photographer

when we were dating he won my heart with clever notes signed mysteriously as "uncle marty." and although i was aware of the how strange it was for the person i was dating to also refer to himself as (somebody's) uncle, i was also charmed by his understated quirkiness. well, that, and the man can sing. never underestimate the power of the sensitive, guitar playing, genuinely talented type over the female undergrad. he stole my heart, and 5.5 years, plus two and a half babies later, i like to brag about how in love we STILL are...

now, it is with pride, and and wee bit of nervousness that I am giving all of you the chance to fall in love with uncle marty too (from afar, very, very, very afar, wink). of course, he's always been part of the yan photography team; behind the scenes he's offered endless encouragement and advice, wrote the song for my website and has even assisted me at quite a few of my sessions. But it wasn't until eight or so months ago that we decided to begin the gradual merge into a husband and wife photography team.

and it hasn't been until now, after a lot of blood, sweat and learning tears (slight exaggeration), as well as finalizing the plans to move into our studio, that we've felt it appropriate to announce to all of you.

so ladies and gentelmen, what this means is that yan photography is still yan photography. but there's a new kid on the team. yes, he shoots. yes, he WILL blog. yes, he sings. and yes, he's secretly more creative than i am though he's happy to let me me the attention glutton in the relationship.

for now mr. marty will be second shooting for me at our weddings, and also at sessions, as well as taking on A LOT, of the grunt work that goes on behind the scenes of running a business. so don't be afraid to say hello to the handsome, dark fellow, every once in awhile.