John Burchell Photography

If you’re in Midwest City, you should drive through Joe B. Barnes Park after dark. Enter from SE 15th Street, just west of Douglas Blvd. Turn north into the park and and see the Christmas Light Display they have there.

A very large Colorful Light Christmas Tree.

A Great looking Nativity Scene

Happy Birthday Jesus

Choosing a wedding photographer isn’t an easy thing to do, I know. As someone looking for a wedding photographer, the photographers are plentiful, their packages are even more daunting and then there is calculating the cost. On the itsjustmoney blog, they can really identify:

We decided that we would see 10 photographers. A lot, I know. But that’s just the type of people we are. As organized as we felt, we kept having a difficult time comparing the different photographers. We realized that the problem was that each had their own customized package”..

and after trying to figure out the exact package items, they go on to say:

“Ultimately, we found that quality sorted itself out. The mediocre photographers never really made out list. Personality was huge, but couldn’t overcome quality. We were turned off by photographers trying to be salespeople. Yes, it’s a business (and one heck of a business at that), but let your work speak volumes, and be cool.”

The most important part seems to be in finding the photographer you really want to work with. The one that creates the quality you’re looking for and the one who has the personality you can work with. Everything else in the “package” provides items you may or may not want. As a photographer, I know those choices can lead to more confusion, but a one-size fits all package just won’t work either. I would LOVE it if a a bride and groom were able to come to me as educated to know exactly what they wanted, that way I could give them a price based on that. That way, I’d know they were going to get everything they wanted. Nobody likes to be stuck with something they didn’t like! The difficulty in trying to please everyone with a single “Package” is that it will never please everyone.

I have looked at what other photographers are offering in their “packages” but what other photographers offer, doesn’t really give anyone the true picture of what most people want. After all, there are almost an infinite amount of options and products. I’ve been developing a new structure that doesn’t lock people into taking things they don’t want, or having to barter for things they do. I got some great ideas from Dawn Muncy, http://www.muncyphotography.com where she has everything priced individually. “The more you buy, the more you are rewarded - the more you save” is her motto. I really like it and I’m working on adapting the same type of pricing. If you’re anywhere near Enid, Oklahoma, and you need portraits, you should go see her, she’s an incredible photographer!  You should go see her anyway even if you don’t need portraits because they are really great people!

In choosing a photographer:

1. Make sure they can produce the quality of work you want.
2. Make sure you feel comfortable with them and that you can get along.
3. Make sure you can get what you want without a lot of hassle.

If you’re looking for a wedding photographer, I hope you’ll look at my gallery section to see the quality of my work. I’d love to talk with you anytime to see how well we get along!

Good Luck in making your choice.

This weekend, the first weekend after Thanksgiving, is going to be fun! I’m basically having a big party at the home studio. Several people have been invited and it should be a lot of fun. So far, 7 have committed to showing up, but there may be as many as 10 or 12! I have music, drinks and maybe even some finger food. ( I hope they like turkey!)

There are still some slots open because they are coming in groups. Contact me asap if you want to be added to the list.

Update I only have one slot left, from 3:00 to 4:00. I appreciate all the interest everyone has had and am excited about everyone coming to have their portraits made. It’s going to be a lot of fun, I can’t wait!

I’ve been trying out different templates for a couple of months, and this one seems to fit really well.  I enjoy the the ease and layout of it, but I’m missing the Calendar.  The template name is HemingwayEx and is actually still in beta, but I like it and I think I’ll try it out a while longer.

I’ve also put a Gallery page into the mix, so you’ll be able to see more of my work.  I’m about to be updating all of my Gallery Images soon, but for now, there are two Galleries:

1. The “Product Photography Examples” gallery, which is in transition. Meaning most of those images will stay, but they will need to be updated a bit.

2. The General Gallery of Photographic Examples has a lot of my older work and that gallery will probably go away.

Please comment on what you think about it and any content you might find here!

Last weekend, I assisted Larry Foster on another beautiful wedding that took place at the crystal bridge, Downtown Oklahoma City.  He managed to get several really awesome artful photos and I think the bride and the groom were happy.  I didn’t have the opportunity to take any photos this time, there just wasn’t really enough room for a second photographer during the ceremony.   Also, the area where the ceremony was held was very dark, almost no ambient light whatsoever.

There was beautiful food, an great looking unique cake design, dancing, laughing and a great time.  It was a fun wedding to be able to attend.  The bride and groom posed for the final shot, which was taken outside.  It was really great the weather wasn’t too cold for them to come out for that photograph, because that one turned out really well!

In my searchings on the internet, I came across a cake decorator named Erica in the Edmond, Ok area.  She had a simple ad posted and I contacted her.  She sent me some photos of her cakes and I was totally impressed!

Now, I’ve been to a few weddings and I’ve seen a few cakes and those are a couple of really creative designs.  Erica seems like a neat lady and I’m sure she’d love to hear from you if you’re going to be needing a cake for your wedding, engagement, baby shower or anniversary.  She is currently working on her own website, but I’ve got her contact info below.  She’s also studying to be a graphics designer, something that will probably help with her creativity in designing her cakes.  She also said she’s making a three-tiered cake this weekend for a 50th wedding anniversary. 

I’ll be looking forward to getting some photos of that for her before it’s all gone.

If you want to get in touch with Erica, here’s her contact info and a few more of her delicious looking cakes:

Erica
Reach her by email at: cravincake@cox.net
or reach her by phone at:  405-641-0676

I am doing 43 things.

My profile on www.LinkedIn.com for anyone interested in staying in contact with me or anyone interested in joining my network.

I’ve had a LinkedIn profile now for quite some time. A collegue of mine had sent me an invitation so I went ahead and created a profile, with the absolute bare minimum of information at first, because I didn’t know how much SPAM I was going to start receiving. So far, it’s been completely spam free. I haven’t looked at it in a couple of years until recently another colleque sent me another invitation to join his network. I’ve been hearing the buzz about the linkedin website and I didn’t really see why I should join it till I read this article by Ben Worthen on the Wall Street Journal Biztech Blog site.

According to the article: “LinkedIn is also a good way to solve problems that you don’t know how to answer. If you need help with a marketing problem, for example, but don’t have a relationship with anyone in your company’s marketing department, you can find out what friends or friends-of-friends have that expertise. It’s the equivalent of asking your friends if they know a good dentist, says Luo, only faster.”

I know personal referrals aren’t 100% always great, but they are light years ahead of calling someone at random out of the phone book.

I’ve added myself on a cool new website as a Freelance Photographer

If you’ve landed here from the Freelance Photographer, FreelanceDesigners.com site, you’re currently in my BLOG section. If you’re interested in viewing some of my work, please visit my New Website http://www.JohnBurchell.com page where you’ll find all the info you need about me.

Whether you need a photographer for your wedding, your portraits or commercial needs, or if you’re another photographer, I hope you find my site, my Blog and my Gallery exciting and full of useful information.