Friday, May 28, 2010

Kansas is Beautiful too! :)







SWEEEEEEEET!

Yesterday I braved the heat to take an hour hike through "my" favorite spot. I'm kind of possessive... so when I like something I invariably refer to it as "Mine" :) But I share!

I love this place. It's my favorite place to go and relax, catch out some beautiful scenery, walk my dog, and (just lately) fish. I wanted to give a preview of this location to a Client I am just so excited to work with. Such a sweet awesome girl and I can't wait for our session. I wasn't expecting to get anything really special. My sole purpose was to give her an idea of the surroundings... When I got home and looked at the RAW images I was so happy! The camera (with a little help from me I suppose) really got the scene exactly as I see it and enjoy it all the time. I just wanted to post my favorite 4 that I got. Enjoy!

MBP
~Melisha

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Mini Session & now booking Iowa Dates!

Just wanted to post on here as well as on Facebook that a big Congrats goes out to Gerry on the free mini session!

I also wanted to send out an update that I will be back in Iowa July 5th through the 21st. If you are interested in booking a session with me shoot me a message @ info.melishablair@gmail.com. Iowa sessions book up extremely fast!

For those who entered the "non-contest" and didn't get the free mini-session I will be posting my project list soon! If you're available and have the equipment I need to make my vision happen I will shoot for free!

Have a great rest of the weekend!
~Melisha

Monday, May 17, 2010

Free Mini Session Details!

This "I'm not a contest I swear Facebook" contest, is geared towards my Iowa & Kansas friends. I am setting a goal, 200 fans by next Friday! The person that can get me the most fans will receive a free Mini Session - 1 hour, up to 20 fully-edited images and a 20% discount off of any prints purchased! Here's the other great part... After I announce the winner, the first fan that was suggested by the winner that contacts me to book a session will be given the option of a) 50% off a normal 2 hour session b) 10% off any package or c) a free 1 hour Mini Session as well!

Here's how to enter:
- Go to the Melisha Blair Photography fan page.
- Click on the "Suggest to Friends" tab under the main picture
- In the pop-up window, click on all of the friends that you'd like to refer MBP's fan page to
- Send me a message with the names of the people you suggested the page to. If you invited a ton of friends, first initial and last name will be perfectly fine. You don't need to write out their full names if you don't want to. :)

I will send you a message back confirming I have recorded all of the names of your friends. Next Friday, May 21st I will go through all of the fans and check which ones came from who. If two people suggested the MBP page to the same friend, it will be counted for both. I will announce the winner Saturday, May 22nd at 1:00pm Central time so stay tuned. The winner will receive a message from me before I announce it on the page.

GOOD LUCK!

Prizes up to $150 in value. Mini Session prize expires after 1 year. The Mini Sessions can be used towards any regular service I offer: Portrait, Trash the dress, Family, Children, Ect. It is completely acceptable for seniors to use the free Mini Sessions towards Senior Portraits, Additional Special products I offer in the Senior Package will not apply but can be purchased a la carte at a 20% discount if that is what you choose to use it towards.

Thanks to all of my new and old fans for supporting my company and page. I greatly appreciate each and every one of you! Without you, MBP wouldn't exist!
~Melisha Blair

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Somewhere Over The Rainbow?






Not an extremely exciting post to be sure, but I just had to share some of the shots I got last weekend on some short lived off time. We've had our fare share of spring storms already haven't we?! Both Iowa and Kansas! During one of those particularly crazy thunderstorm/tornado warning packed nights I happened to look out my window and see the most AMAZING and VIBRANT rainbow I think I've ever laid eyes on! I ran to my desk to get my equipment as quickly as my feet could get me there. I think that Mr. Rainbow knew what I was up to, because he did his very best to try and disappear before I could make it to a suitable "picture taking" location. I did manage to grab about 6 shots before he vanished. I didn't get the exact shot I had wanted him to cooperate for, but they turned out fairly well (all things considered). I will catch Mr. Rainbow off guard one of these days!

Thanks for looking!
~Melisha Blair~

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Secret Garden - Maizie & Makayla S.


























These two beautiful little ladies made for an amazingly imaginative, fun and exciting session. I am, so grateful that I was given the opportunity to capture their personalities for their awesome parents to keep and share for a lifetime. *To view additional photos from this session and other sessions click on my Facebook badge. While you're there "like" my page for updates on promotions, discounts, and contests coming soon!*

Which one do you like best?

If you are interested in a session for your little one(s) contact me at info.melishablair@gmail.com.

It's a Pug Life






Oh, who doesn't love a cute puppy?! I'd say on the list of "Things I love", animals would be in the top 5. Pugs especially, I mean just LOOK at those two faces! Zombie (Black Pug) is my "Son", and Lola (Fawn Pug) is his girlfriend.

Many people don't see a point in "Pet Photography", but in my personal opinion it is no different to me than capturing images of a child for a parent. My Zombie is a part of my family, I have photos of him plastered just about everywhere in my home and I'm always showing him off to strangers with the help of my iPhone. And have you ever tried to capture a photo of a hyper dog outside on a nice day? It's not easy folks! :) Thankfully, Pugs can only run around for so long before they get tired and are more manageable.

If you are looking to get some cute shots of your favorite friend contact me at info.melishablair@gmail.com about special pricing. If you have a Pug I might even throw in a little extra!

Holden



The coolest kid on the planet? I think so!

A Little Bit Rock & Roll




Anyone close to me could tell you how crazy I am about music. All music really! I've been itching to get some edgier band shots and finally got the chance to test it out. This is Charlie. The lead singer of Driveway Rockers. Hopefully, I will be able to shoot the WHOLE band together sometime this summer on a trip back to Iowa. I have some great ideas I'd like to try out!

P.S. Thank you moon, for making a special appearance during sunset for these shots! :)

P.P.S. If you have a little extra time and have a special thing for music you can check out Driveway Rocker's Facebook fan page (or is it "Like Page" now?) here:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000847492348

The Iowa Project







The Iowa Project is something that I came up with on a sunny day in March. I was sitting outside at my mothers house out in the country enjoying a bit of sun after the torturous winter we had here this year when I heard the song. "The House That Built Me" by Miranda Lambert. I don't even like country but I like her. It brought tears to my eyes... granted I am naturally a very emotional sappy person. I looked around at my "home". Iowa is the home that built me. To be fair, I was born into a military family so I lived in a lot of different places when I was little but this is where I grew up, THIS is home!

I think Iowa gets a bad wrap. "Iowa? That's the potato state right?". Anyone who passes down I-80 while traveling to what they would like to think is a far more entertaining and beautiful destination will tell you that it's a boring ride. Corn... cow... hog... Des Moines... more corn.. bean farm... etc. But they're MISSING something! Iowa is so much more! The food, the places, the things to do, the beautiful sunsets and even prettier sunrises... but the people. Oh, you have never met such amazing people if you have not lived in Iowa.

If you don't want to take my word for it. Jack Kerouac wrote "On The Road". This is what he wrote about Iowa: "I ate apple pie and ice cream - it was getting better as I got deeper into Iowa, the pie bigger, the ice cream richer. There were the most beautiful bevies of girls everywhere I looked in Des Moines that afternoon - they were coming home from high school - but I had no time for thoughts like that... So I rushed past the pretty girls, and the prettiest girls in the world live in Des Moines." And I would have to agree with him :)

That's when the idea came to me. I love this place, I have a camera, and I know how to use it! This will be an ongoing lengthy project. Partially because I actually live in Kansas! What I want to do is take pictures of all the beautiful and interesting things that makes Iowa so great! I want to compile a book or calendar of the best images at the end to sell. Any revenue I make from these images will go to a charitable organization that helps Iowa in some way or another. I am hoping for some amazing shots this year from the Fair. When I think Iowa summer, the fair has to be my favorite part! Oh deep fat fried snickers bar... how I miss you so!

Anyone else have some ideas? If you live in Iowa, have ever lived in Iowa, or just love Iowa... what places, events, and activities scream "IOWA" to you?