free session giveaway! woo hoo!
It’s almost Mother’s Day, and I am a fan. I am all about holidays that involve me getting gifts and special treatment. Even if the special treatment is slightly questionable breakfast in bed. 
But, I love giving gifts, too. So…for Mother’s Day, I am giving away not one, but TWO free photo sessions! Free stuff is awesome, right? Usually, anyway. I have seen some very funky things on sidewalks, with “Free. Take me” signs on them. Photo session are not gross, though. They are fun, and useful, and filled with glittery unicorns and rainbows. So let’s talk details….
The details:
Nominate a mom that you think deserves a photo session, by telling me why you think she is deserving.
I am not going to dictate the methods that you may use share her story…..you may write it out and send it in an email, write a blog post and send me the link, make a video, make a quilt, a collage, bake a cake and frost it with her story. I don’t care. Go crazy. Creativity is always encouraged.
All entries must be received by 11:59 PM on Friday, May 6.
You may nominate and enter yourself.
I refuse to discriminate with a narrow definition of “mom”……………please don’t hesitate to enter those that have had losses or are struggling to conceive, if they do not mind you sharing their story.
One winner will be chosen from the entries submitted, with the help of my super secret panel of judges.
Winner will be announced on Mother’s Day…..May 8.
Wait a minute……you said there were going to be TWO free sessions given away!
You are absolutely right. The second free session winner, will be chosen, at random, from those of you that do one (or more) of the following things…..
Share the link about the contest on facebook.
Share the link about the contest on twitter.
Like double scoop photography’s new page on facebook.
You will receive one entry for each of the options…allowing each person to have up to three entries.
The winner will be selected at random, and will also be announced on Mother’s Day……May 8.
YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE A MOM TO WIN THIS SESSION.
Fine print:
Free sessions are full sessions. Description of what is included can be found here.
Session must be within 75 miles of Murrieta, CA. You don’t have to live that close to enter, just be willing to travel to a location within that range for your session.
Session must be booked and completed by June 30, 2011.
lions and tigers and bears….oh my!
Ok…..so…just a tiger….and dog…and a panda. Close enough.
After my last post, I realized that I had never blogged the pre-baby Ryan session. Doh. How could I forget to blog the session that includes one of my favorite family images ever?
Notes Girls Write is a book!
So, I wasn’t exactly sitting around doing nothing in the little break I took from sessions. Some of you may be familiar with the photo essay project that I have been working on with Lynsey Peterson, for the last year, called Notes Girls Write. Well…..Notes Girls Write is now a BOOK! Getting it into book format was not the easiest task on the planet….making a book is hard work? Who knew? But…it is done…it is available for sale, and it is entered in a photobook contest. Wheeeee!It is full of amazing girls, of all ages, that have been gracious enough to share a piece of themselves for the project. There are not only images, but back stories for many of the notes, as well. I am so, so proud of it, and I am very excited to be able to share it with you. The book can be seen, in it’s entirety, online, by clicking on the widget below. It will only be available that way for a limited time, so go check it out now. If you would like to purchase a copy, there is a link to do so in the book preview. Notes Girls Write is still an on-going project, so if you think you would like to share a note, please send me an email.
I also have a little favor to ask. Part of the contest that we are in, is the People’s Choice award. The winner is the book that has received the most votes, by..well…..the people, of course. And the people, is YOU. So, I would be ever so grateful, if you would take a minute to register and vote for the Notes Girls Write book. It is not the easiest process ever, but it is not too bad. If you go to the link for our book, and then click on the “Vote for this book” button, it will ask you to provide an email address. They will then ask you to verify your email address by clicking the link in an email that they send you. A bit of a pain, I know, but relatively quick, and it keeps the competition fair. They just want to make sure you are a REAL person, casting a REAL vote. So, if you like the project, and you like the book, your vote would be awesome.
what’s new, pussycat?
Ok…so there have been some big changes around here. The name is the obvious one, but there has been more. So much more! I have been working my butt off on that so much more for over a month. First, there is a shiny new website. And this blog got itself a whole overhaul. You know how people talk about new websites, and are so thankful for such a great web design person, that made it so easy? Yeah, I don’t have one of those. These websites were a labor of love….or more accurately, a labor of cursing and threatening to throw my computer across the room. But..they are done. Woo hoo! Should you ever think to yourself….I think I may want to go ahead and design a website using adobe flash….DON’T. Just….just…don’t. I’m still traumatized. Of course, that may have to do with the fact that I have never once used adobe flash before in my life, but whatever.
And this blog…I am so happy with some of the cool new things this blog has to offer. The biggest one being that it allows me to share images this size……
See? How cool is that? There will also be a fancy slide show, coming soon, at the top, up there. So watch for that. This blog required me to learn how to do some changing to the CSS. Yeah….I have never done that before either..but I am a determined little thing, and when I put my mind to something, there is no stopping me. Or, maybe I am just delusional and consistently bite off more than I can chew. It could be that. So…point is….while I did my very best to get things as perfectly perfect as possible, there may be a thing or two that I missed, and will adjust those as I find them, but I still think it looks rather pretty, overall, don’t you? So come on in, make yourself at home, just don’t sit in that big, comfy chair over there…that one’s mine.
well, hello again.
I am back, just like that itchy rash you can’t seem to get rid of. Back from a small hiatus that was the product of many things life decided to throw at me. I almost did not come back. I had a long list of reasons not to, but, in the end, they were not nearly as compelling as my list of reasons to continue. One of the reasons on my “give up the whole photography thing” list, was an insidious and destructive thing that I think that almost everyone has experienced at one time or another…..Doubt. Just your normal, run of the mill, “am I good enough?” self-doubt. The only way to overcome that doubt, is to find out who you really are, and whether that is someone you can be proud of. In the time I have taken off, I worked through that for myself.
Hi. I am Melodee, and I love photography. I did not go to school for photography, or study under an expert with years of experience. I am a girl that has always loved the idea of a camera and what it could do. I am a girl that was raised by a single mom, which meant money was tight. There were no fancy cameras in my growing up….but there was an old 110 camera…and then a Kodak disc camera….remember those? I organized a whole “fashion shoot” with two friends and that crappy disc camera. Then, when the disc camera was broken, and I could not afford a new one, there were countless disposable cameras…many of which never got developed. But there were many of them that did….and there were stacks and stacks of images….faces….friends….family…smiling…laughing…goofing around…..posing, and not posing. If there were pictures taken at Christmas or another get together, they were probably taken by me…with a little cardboard disposable, waiting for the light to tell me the flash was ready.
After my son was born, I took him back to Pennsylvania, to visit family. My grandfather, who was deep into his battle with Alzheimer’s, wanted to hold my son, who was eight months old at the time. I snapped away with my little disposable camera, knowing that this may be the only time I ever saw them together. It was getting dark, and the flash was not ready fast enough for all of the clicking I was doing, and I was sure that I would have nothing to show for it. When I got that film developed, there was a shot of my son and my grandfather, looking right into each others’ eyes. The only time they would ever do so. It was looking at that image that I really understood the power of photography.
When my daughter was born, we got a REAL camera! A fancy camera. A camera that DID things. You could control things! And it was digital! Instant gratification and no paying for developing film! Oooh, the power! I posed and posed and posed my newborn daughter. My images were…..well, not exactly fantastic. But then, I caught an image of my husband holding my daughter up in the air and smiling at her…and as soon as I saw it on the screen, I felt it again.
When I had pushed my semi-fancy Sony and my point and shoot to its limits, but was still craving more control, and wanted to take even better pictures, I was lucky enough to get my first DSLR. So exciting. That camera was in my hands non-stop. No person, or animal, or flower, or blade of grass, or pair of shoes was safe from its lens. I put more hours into that camera than I had devoted to anything in a long time. I read the manual, cover to cover. I scoured the internet for tutorials, and articles, and classes. I took pictures of anyone that would let me. I looked at photography blog after photography blog, sometimes until 4 am. Then, I found this website, and spent the night pouring over it. After working with the elderly, and losing both of my grandfathers, it immediately grabbed me. Very soon after that, my step father died, after being very ill for a long time. I heard my mother wishing that she had gotten some sort of images of him to have from their last year….images of their hands together….the details. I realized again how amazingly powerful an image can be. My mother and I started working together to provide photo sessions for people on hospice and their families. As I was doing this, I began to have people ask if I would take pictures of their kids or their family. I agreed, but made sure to caution them that it was just a hobby. About a zillion digital files, and a whole lot of encouragement later, I took my first paid session. That was over two years ago.
In those two years, I have had friends that have become clients, and clients that have become friends. I have photographed a baby crawling for the very first time, a first kiss as husband and wife, and a dad that had been deployed, meeting his baby girl for the first time. In the world of photography, I would be considered by some to be a just a MWAC….a Mom With A Camera, and that is considered to be a bad thing. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to prove myself as something more…..then I realized that there was no need to be more. I don’t need to be more than who I am. I do not choose to pick up my camera to get the approval of some photographers that may have taken a very different road to this business than I have. I pick up my camera because I love photography. I pick up my camera because I love seeing my clients enjoying the images we have taken in our sessions. And even with external hard drives full of images, I still come across images that take my breath away…and not because of my fancy camera or my knowledge of aperture and shutter speed….but because of the moment that was captured. (And holy crap, I hate using cheesy words like “capturing moments”…but sometimes there is just no other way to say it.) …and that is a rush like nothing else. It is what I love….and no crabby photographers…..and no self-doubt…and no meaningless acronyms, like MWAC….will ever change that for me again.
I am so thankful for all of the clients that have given this girl and her camera a chance to be a part of their story. Here are a few images of moments that remind me why I love what I do….
Soooooooooo Excited!
I am so excited to announce a new option for photo sessions. It is so awesome, that I totally want one for myself. I spent this Saturday shooting a session with an awesome family, in one of my favorite locations, but that is not even the coolest part! You see, this session was special. I had, my good friend, Jeremy Dean, with me for this session. While I handled the still photos for this session, Jeremy was filming the video! That’s right! I am now thrilled to offer sessions with video, as well as my images.
Now what does something like that look like? Well, take a look at our promo. It will give you just a little sample of how freaking cool a session like this can be. Official pricing and details will be posted soon, but until then, feel free to email me for more info.
Now you can watch this video here…but I recommend watching it here…where it is all bigger and prettier.
A Gift Idea That Is A Guaranteed Win
With Christmas only a week away, I imagine most of you have your gifts all picked out and purchased. Unless you are like me….then maybe this idea could even help you now. I know it seems ages away, especially with Christmas looming, but I want to start talking Valentine’s Day here. Sure, candy and flowers are nice, but there are other options. If you want a gift that is really going to shine, you need to schedule a photo session for just the two of you, and have the images put into your own personalized coffee table book.
Ever since we had our family photo session, in June, I have been plotting and planning for an opportunity to have a session with just my husband and I. We haven’t really had any nice pictures taken of us since our wedding. I have a feeling that we are not the only ones. And you don’t need to be married for this to be an awesome gift. Just take a minute to picture your girlfriend’s reaction as she flips through her customized book of images.
You can even add a message of your own to be printed in the book, to give it that extra touch.
I know coming up with the perfect gift doesn’t usually rank very high on a guy’s list of fun things to do, so I am going to make it easy for you. For one great price, you can get your session, a dvd slideshow of your finished images, set to music (an awesome gift all by itself….known to induce happy tears on many occasions), a cd of high resolution files of your finished images, and, of course, the coffee table book….all for $325. You can complete your session by January 30 to recieve your book in time for Valentine’s Day, or you can just give the gift certificate for Valentine’s Day and schedule a session later. See how easy that is? And to sweeten the deal, if you schedule and complete your session in January, I will also throw in 2 8×10 prints of images of your choice.
So, since I have a feeling that most of the people who visit this blog are not of the male persuasion, I am counting on all of the woman to pass this information along to someone you think would benefit from it. Maybe a brother-in-law, a son, or maybe even your own husband. Or heck, maybe you want to give this gift to your significant other….or to another couple you know would love it. Just pass it on and spread the love.
Only 13 Days!?!
I have lived in Southern California for most of my life, so Disneyland is nothing new to me. I have been many, many times over the years, but for some reason, I just never seem to get tired of it. Last night, we took the kids to see the holiday decorations, fireworks, and, of course, the “snow”. Hey, we take it any way we can get it here, okay?
This is the view down Main Street, with Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, all dressed up for Christmas.
This is New Orleans Square, taken while we waited in line for our soup in bread bowls. At one point, they ran out of bread bowls. A lady came down the line, and was all….. No soup for you! But, miraculously, a few minutes later, more bread bowls appeared. It was a Christmas miracle. 
We found our spot on Main Street to watch the fireworks…
I kind of hate crowds, so usually avoid anything that involves packing myself in with hundreds of strangers like sardines, but this was worth it. Look….
Catching faux snow in his hat.
I’ve been so busy with holiday editing that it feels like the holidays are passing me by, so it was nice to take a break and enjoy it. What do you like to do to get in the holiday spirit?
Sneak Peek
Two of my mini-sessions today kept it all in the family. Julie and Leticia are sisters-in-law. They booked back to back mini-sessions this morning. Grandma came too. I have never seen a woman work so hard to get her grand kids to smile. I tried to convince her to start coming with me to all of my sessions, but it didn’t work. 
Bummer. After their sessions, they were heading off to a birthday lunch for Julie’s husband….who got all dressed up and allowed some crazy woman with a camera to follow his family around on his birthday. I hope you got some good lunch out this whole deal, Jesus.
These cute kiddos are cousins….
Ahtalya…..
and Tatyana are sisters. (Tatyana was ready for her n-a-p)
And….their cousins….
Would you take a look at these two? Roman and Mario…..but please don’t ask me which one is which.
And their beautiful sister, Mayah.
Thank you for letting me hang out with your families this morning!
Sneak Peek
This is actually a sneak peek for my mother. Yes, those two kids are mine. They were also the most difficult shoot I have ever had. You’d think they would be used to the camera by now….Or maybe that was the problem, they see it all the time. The thrill is gone. Either way, we got it done and Mamaw’s birthday present has been delivered. Here are my favorites from the session, along with a bonus slideshow.
Don’t forget to click here to see the slideshow.
Holiday Mini-Sessions October 18th!
Mini-sessions are an easy way to get those portraits done for a great price. Mini-sessions are smaller versions of the full-length sessions, offered in blocks of 30 minutes, at a specific location. You will receive 10-15 high resolution finished images on cd, allowing you the ability to print your images as you desire, all for $125! This is a terrific opportunity to capture those Halloween costume portraits or to get a shot for your holiday card.
Only three spots one spot left. Email me if you would like to schedule your mini-session for one of the following available times….
9:30 am
4:30 pm no longer available
5:15 pm no longer available
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A quick note….
October is almost completely booked and November is starting to fill up as well. If you were hoping to do a session before the holidays, now is the time to schedule it. I had a cancellation and the morning session for October 11 is now available. The 19 and the 25 are also still open for morning sessions only. Email me if one of those times will work for you.
In The Home Stretch..
It’s been wedding, wedding, wedding around here this week. I am almost ready to get working on the coffee table book/album for Carly and Harry. While I am doing that, here are a few more images from their big day….
The best man with one of his daughters…..
Wastin’ Time
It’s getting busy around here, with the holidays just around the corner…well, sort of…if you consider 106 days to be “around the corner”. October sessions are booking quickly and I still have a day of mini-sessions to squeeze in there somewhere. Here’s a little bit of insider information for you – It looks like the date for the mini-sessions is going to be October 18. If you think you my be interested, email me and I’ll put you on the list to receive the email when all of the information is announced.
So, before things get too crazy around here, the family and I have been making use of our Disneyland annual passes. Check out the look of concentration on my face in this shot. Why no, I am not competitive at all, why do you ask? Somewhere behind that other gun is my daughter.
We also been using my camera for something other than work. Hey, even a camera deserves a break, every now and then, right? Ever used your camera to paint with light?
My daughter’s heart….
Getting fancy with a double heart…..
Here’s my attempt. An “m” for Melodee…..
And my daughter’s “s” …..for Sophie…..
It was fun, and easy. If you do attempt it, a tri-pod is ideal, but a table or other flat surface will do. Don’t know how well hand-holding your camera would work for you. We used my daughter’s little LED flashlight/lantern thing…and my husband did some with a mag light. Just find yourself a dark room, set your camera for a long exposure and try it out.
Okay, now play time is over for me…..back to work.
And since I am working…..If you were thinking about doing a session for the holidays, it’s time to schedule. Dates are filling up!
More! More! More!
More from the mini-sessions….
The cute factor in this next shot almost kills me.
Thank you, Medina Family. I hope you enjoy your images!
Because I’ve Never Been Good At Keeping Secrets….
Here’s a few more of Gingi….
More images from all mini-sessions to come……
Sunday’s Sneak Peek
Today’s sneak peek was a bit different than the ones from yesterday. I didn’t have to chase after anyone at all….and Gingi didn’t give me the stink eye even once.
She is due in November, and I couldn’t even dislike her for looking so stinkin’ good while being pregnant, because she was just so nice.
She brought along her daughter, Natalie, who told me some awesome jokes. Way better than my lame joke…..Why did Tigger stick his head in the toilet? He was looking for Poo(h). Yeah, I know. Lame. But like I said, her jokes were better…and please notice how completely un-poofy her hair is in this next shot. So, Natalie…do you approve?
Thank you both. It was fun.
More Mini-Session Sneak Peeks
Day one of the 4 R Kids Sake Fundraiser is done. It was fun….kind of hot, but fun. Thanks again to everyone who participated.
Okay, so I’m pretty sure this family is one of the nicest I have ever had the pleasure of working with. It’s always such a nice treat for me to see siblings that actually get along….because my two crazies?…um….not so much. And not only did they get along, but they were adorable too. Look….
Her husband said if he could have the babies so she wouldn’t have to, he would…..and he totally meant it. How sweet is that?
This little guy was a crack up. He had his 2 fish that never left his hands the whole session. At one point, he fell and scraped his leg…again ….but his only concern was for his fish. He didn’t even inspect his own boo boos. Here he is with his buddy.
Thank you, guys. You have an awesome family. For real.
Mini-Session Fundraiser Sneak Peek!
Day one of the 4 R Kids Sake Fundraiser is done. It was fun….kind of hot, but fun. Thanks again to everyone who participated.
This little one gave me quite a workout. She was constantly on the move. She wasn’t too thrilled that there was some strange lady with a camera following her around. She kept looking back over her shoulder at me, surprised to still see me there…wondering why she couldn’t ditch me. She is celebrating her second birthday…well, probably right about now. Happy birthday and thanks for the workout!
More mini-session sneak peeks coming right up!
Par- Tay!
What’s cooler than a party? A “just because” party. This weekend, I was asked to take pictures at a “just because” pool party. The mom and dad in charge of this party are having me make dvd slideshows of the images to give to each of the girls’ families. Pretty cool, right?
There were only 8 kids at this party, but it sounded like a lot more. A whole lot more. About 15 minutes into it, I was wishing I would have brought ear plugs…..or some of those heavy duty ear coverings used at air shows and construction sites. Let’s just say these girls had some lungs on them…..
Wait, that’s no girl! Nope, that’s a little brother. He followed the giggling bunch of girls right into his sister’s bedroom….notice the bedspread. It didn’t take them too long to notice him, though, and off they went, leaving him in their very noisy dust. He didn’t seem to mind, though.
Beating the Heat
My kids and I have started back on our normal homeschool schedule this week, but that didn’t stop them from trying to squeeze every last bit of fun they could into this summer. It has been about a billion degrees around here lately, making the normal bike riding, hide and seek, running around screaming stuff they do with the other kids on our street nearly impossible. When it was still too hot to play at 5:00, we knew we needed a plan B. I learned that if you set up a sprinkler on your front lawn…especially an erupting volcano sprinkler……within seconds, 11 children in swimsuits will appear, seemingly out of nowhere. But who can blame them? It was so hot, I even considered running through that bad boy.
Hopefully everyone else is enjoying summer as much as my little delinquents. I, personally, am ready for fall. Jeans, long sleeves, the ability to walk from my house to my car without melting. It is supposed to be 94 degrees here tomorrow. I think the kids may have to fight me for that sprinkler.
Don’t forget about the mini-session fundraiser for 4 R Kids Sake. There are still sessions available…at least for now!
Dignity? Pssh…Dignity is Overrated
Sometimes, when people know you are a photographer, they ask you to take pictures of some pretty strange things. Sometimes, even when you really want to say no, you hear the words, “sure, I can do that,” coming out of your mouth. And then sometimes, you find yourself eye to eye…or lens to eye..with a dog in a tutu. Oh, yes…you read that right.
She was quite the professional. Sat like a champ…and just look at this pose….
You may not be able to tell in the picture, but the wind was totally blowing her ears like a supermodel. And if that is not enough, just check out these eyelashes…..
Need a tutu for your dog? Call Spiffylala’s. Need pictures of your dog in a tutu? Call me. I won’t think you are crazy….much.
Get Shot for a Good Cause
It’s Purple Ribbon Month!
All of Corona is covered in purple ribbons to remind people to never, ever leave kids in cars.
To help support 4 R Kids Sake in educating people about this important issue, Melodee Tonti Photography and The Mommie Store, are teaming up for a fundraiser, and we need your help.
I will be offering two days of Mini-sessions on Saturday, August 30th and Sunday, August 31st. Mini-sessions are simply shorter versions of my traditional photo session, offered at a single location that I choose. A Mini-session is 30 minutes long and includes 10-15 finished images. After editing, the finished images will be provided to you, on a cd, of high-resolution files, allowing you to free use to print your images as you choose or use them digitally. This is a great opportunity to get a photo for your Christmas cards.
There will be 8 slots available for the Mini-sessions, four on Saturday (location TBD) and four on Sunday (at Dos Lagos). These Mini-sessions will be offered for $100, with 100% of the proceeds going to 4 R Kids Sake. A great deal for a great cause!
To sweeten the deal, The Mommie Store, a new and gently used maternity and children’s clothing boutique, in Norco, will be donating a $50 gift certificate to be given away in a drawing, to one of the eight people that schedule a session. That is a one in eight chance of winning! Not bad odds there! Each person to sign up for a Mini-session will also receive a coupon for $25 off of a future session scheduled with me. And the coupon is transferable. Use it later, or give it to a friend.
So what can you do to help? Well schedule a session, of course! Or…we would love it if you would tell people about this….y’know, like, everyone you know. And visit www.4rkidssake.org.
For more information, or to schedule a session, email me.
Well, Hello!
I knew it would have to happen eventually, but I’d been dragging my feet. But here it is! Melodee Tonti Photography, The Blog! It may not be the most beautiful house on the block, but it’s mine. The template colors may slowly drive me insane, but I have done the whole self-hosted thing, with my personal blog, and I am just not ready to go that route again. I’m going to let the wonderful people at wordpress handle all of the dirty work for me. I would rather spend my free time behind my camera anyway.
So what am I going to fill this little speck of the internet with? Hmmm…Well I will definitely be posting some shots from sessions…probably some random everyday shots…and, of course news, updates, and special deals. I will probably throw in some of my patented incoherent rambling and call it good. So? Care to join me? Come on, you know you want to. All the cool kids are doing it.
