Otis the Wonderfloof

A month or so ago, my friend squuueeed with excitement when she saw the colored powder pet portraits by photographer Jessica Bell. Her doggo, Otis, has been in training for a while now with the goal of becoming The World’s Goodest Boy. Which is to say, he knows commands like “stay”, “forward”, and can jump with a fair amount of athleticism.

All that was missing was the powder, right???

This weekend, we carved out some time to play. There was, I admit, a steep learning curve. Figuring out the lighting, the time values on my camera, and the timing in general was an exercise in patience. There are definitely things I would do differently / better the next time I try it. But damn was it a lot of fun. And the most important lesson I learned yesterday?

Otis the Wonderfloof was, most definitely, The Goodest Boy. ❤

Interview with Edith Levy

There are so many talented photographers out there, and I truly love discovering the world through their eyes.  Sometimes, though, I find someone who’s work resonates so strongly with me, I just have to share.  Edith Levy was one such photographer.

When I look at Edith’s images, I am completely drawn into the scene.  Her images have such a strong sense of place and her travel portraits always seem to tell a great story.  I fell in love with her travel work as soon as I discovered it, and I hope it speaks to you as well. 🙂

Enjoy!

 

Where are you located?

I’m in Ontario, Canada…Toronto to be exact.

How did you get into photography?

My parents bought me my first SLR, a Yashica FX-2, when I was 15 years old. I had been using a Kodak Instamatic up until then but I was bugging them for a “real” camera for a couple of years. I learned by trial and error, figuring out what settings to use as I went along. The problem was that with the cost of film and developing mistakes were costly for a 15 year old.  While I didn’t major in Photography in University (I was a theatre major) I did take take some classes and learned how to develop film. When I got married and had my boys photography took a bit of a back seat and really with the exception of photographing my kids and our vacations I wasn’t pursuing the artistic side of the craft. I bought a DSLR, the Canon Xti, about 7 years and that put the wheels in motion for me. I rediscovered my love for the art of photography. I now shoot with a Canon 7D and am looking to add the 5D Mark iii later this year.

Who/What inspires you?

I find inspiration all around me but traveling to new places and meeting new people is a great source of inspiration. Closer to home I’m inspired by other photographers. I love to see how each photographer interprets a scene, how they create and bring their vision to life.

According to your website, you have your hands in a lot of pots…a brand for travel/street photography, a brand for dog portraits and a DVD company. Can you tell us a little about each?

I suppose I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. The DVD company,  HiTIDE Productions, I started about 8 years ago. I create slideshows, sign-in books and coffee table books for weddings; Bar Mitzvahs, any milestone celebrations.

Edith Levy Photography started life as a blog, a place for me to challenge myself and grow as a photographer. What started as a 52 Week Challenge (posting a picture a week) quickly grew to where I posting almost daily. The reception that I received from visitors who quickly turned into followers of the blog and in turn people that I now call friends just amazed me. Now almost 4 years later while I don;t post as often, Edith Levy Photography is still growing. I have an online gallery and I’ve licensed a number of images. Last year a major US publisher licensed one of my images for a book cover.  That was very exciting for me especially when as advance copy of the book arrived in the mail.

Last year I decided to combine my love for photography with my love for animals and that’s when the idea of a pet photography business started. PhoDOGraphy by Edith is a new venture and I’m still trying to build this new brand. My focus right now is local marketing which is challenging with this type of business. Check back with me in a year and I’ll let you know how its going.

What type of photography (travel or portrait) is your favorite and why?

Travel…hands down. I love exploring new places, people and cultures and capturing those with my camera.

Having multiple income streams gives you a financial safety net, but it requires more work. Can you talk a little bit about what goes into building, maintaining and marketing three separate business brands?

It’s not easy that’s for sure especially since I actually have a full time job. I work for a Financial Institution here in Toronto and my other business activities are conducted in the evenings and on weekends. It certainly is a juggling act but I love it and I have a very supportive husband. HiTIDE Productions has turned into a word of mouth / referral type business and a lot of return customers so I don’t do a lot of marketing for that. I work hard at promoting my main photography business through social media, local events such as photography exhibitions and connecting with potential buyers.

I noticed you are also a member of a camera club.  How has that impacted your photo business / photography?

I joined my club, The Toronto Digital Photography Club, about 3 years ago.  It was one of the smartest things I’ve ever done. I’m surrounded by like minded individuals who are all striving to improve their craft and we all learn from each other. The club provides us with a venue to enter competitions, learn from a number of varied speakers and attend workshops throughout the year. If you want to grow as a photographer enter a competition. Trust me when you listen to the judges critiquing your images it can be very disconcerting but its a great learning experience.

Anything else you want people to know about your photography?  Any projects to promote?

No specific projects per se. This year is about growing my pet photography business. Last year I attended a wonderful pet photography workshop and it was the first time I shot in a studio setting. I loved it so this year I’m putting my energy into learning all about studio lighting.

 

How can people find you/get a hold of you?

You can find me at www.edithlevyphotography.com or www.PhoDOGraphybyEdith.com

I can also be found on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/EdithLevyPhotography
Twitter https://twitter.com/Edithlevy21
Instagram https://instagram.com/edithlevy/
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/edithlevy/

The Emotional Factor

Not too long go I watched a video about what Lorne Resnick – an accomplished travel photographer – thinks makes a photo special.  In a nutshell, he said that of course there have to be strong technical elements…comp, edits, light, framing, etc.  But in the end, for him, the “wow factor” comes from the emotional impact an image has on the viewer.

Is it a scene we connect with?

I’ve stewed this idea over in my mind since watching the videos, thinking back on all of the joking commentary I’ve heard about newborn and baby animal photos…  “If you want guaranteed success as a photographer, cute kitten photos are the way to go!”

Does Lorne’s idea of emotional impact cover the aforementioned, slightly snarky comments (not my comments, I’d like to point out!!) about Anne Geddes and Golden Retriever Calenders?

In my own world, obviously I put my heart into my own photographs, but there is no denying that the strongest emotional impact is the photos I have of my loved ones.  I think most people are that way – you love a photo of the Eiffel Tower on your wall because it represents an idea of love, mystery and a place you want to see.  But you LLLLLOOOOOOOVVVVEEEEE every photo of your child, niece, nephew, grandchild and calico meow named “Whiskers”.

I’ve learned to appreciate both types of photo-love for what they are, and while I obviously try to improve my ability to translate the feeling of the places I’ve been with every image I take – sometimes I just like to bask in the emotional connection I have with an image.

That being said, yesterday I lost my not-quite-8-year old greyhound Izzy to cancer.  It’s been a tough few months, but photos like this – him feeling alive and full of humor and spirit help me remember that our time together was more than worth it.

Izzy

I’ll miss you, Doodle-Bug. ❤

I’m In Love

…with this little guy. =)

Dressed to Impress

He was a major part of yesterday’s engagement shoot. Hmmm…maybe I should clarify.  It was a people engagement shoot!

Do I Have To?

Wearing Some Hats

It’s been a busy few photo weeks, and I love it!

I just finished a great joint post endeavor discussing cell phone photography and the impact its having on traditional photo editing. That took a few weeks to research, with input from several other great photogs (we really have a great community of creatives, don’t we?) You can check that out here.

I’m in the midst of engagement shoots and wedding booking. Meetings, meetings, meetings!

I’m super excited about this weekend’s photowalk with Will from wheretowillie.com in NYC. Any photogs in the area with suggestions, let me know. 🙂 This particular photo was from a trip to NYC last year. It was a rainy day and we were all hiding in shelters where we coukd find them…except for this pup who was too curious to care!

Rainy Day Pup - NYC

And last but definitely not least…Quotography! For those of you quotographing…how’s it coming? If you have any questions, or need someone to bounce ideas off of, we are here for you!

So…what else does Seeing Spots have in the works? Find SSP on Facebook for exclusive updates!

You stay classy, World…and Thanks for Stopping By. 😉