Film: Las Vegas!

I know, I know, you are all sick of hearing about Las Vegas...but these are too funny!

Enjoy the out-takes of the Photogen Inc crew!

LOVE>FILM!

eliesa

Film: Red Rock Canyon!

I am LOVING film. No, I'm totally obsessing over film lately! Ever since being gifted my DREAM film Camera (A Mamiya 645), I have been practicing my squeeky-skillz to bring back FILM!

I got back SO many rolls today from the fabulous Richard Photo Lab and instead of boring you with a HUGE post, I'll be posting a few film images a day, over the weekend!

To begin with....

Here are some shots from our shoot in Las Vegas at the Red Rock Canyon!

LOVE > FILM !

eliesa

Tax Time!

It's that time...again...the dreaded Tax Season! Each year, we SWEAR we have our act together and we are organized and then comes crunch time before we go see the FABULOUS people over at Fox Tax!

I haven't been blogging (or shooting) much, because we are focusing on some final business stuff before the beginning of the wedding season!

I've been designing new marketing and packaging materials while Judd has been working on the books, Liz has been doing the final stages of her training and Cadence has been organizing our new hard drive system and backing everything up...we have been total home bodies here at the Photogen Inc Studio!

Check out the new...and serious...hard drive system!

 

We updated the studio gallery with some new art!

 

And got some new toys for the upcoming season...:0)

 

Our FAN wall is filling up!

 

And now my fun is over and back to taxes....

  Thanks for humoring me...

eliesa

Joynoelle Ad Campaign!

Haut Couture. Those are the first words that come to mind when describing the A-MAZING designs by Joynoelle! I first met Joy last year while shooting her fashion show with Monique Lhuillier and we we hit it off right away! I was ecstatic when she asked me to shoot her new ad campaign - and I couldn't be happier with how these turned out!

And YES! This is the fabulous Christian who I also used as my model for FFN 3! Can you believe that this shoot was her FIRST time modeling? I LOVE finding hidden gems!

If you are a bride, seriously check out getting a custom couture dress by Joynoelle! They are just FABULOUS! Also check her out If you want a kick ass coat or custom dress or hat or purse or....the list goes on and on!

eliesa

Daniel Chin Photography - So HOTT!

I love Daniel Chin Photography. Seriously - I am a HUGE believer in the fact that the photography industry is going to take a turn and I think Daniel is one of the photographers who is going to BLOW UP in the next few years! While we were in Las Vegas, Daniel took these photos of Team Photogen Inc in action...at 6:00am...Check out Daniel HERE!

Enjoy - and THANK YOU to Daniel for sending me these!

 eliesa

Random Photo-booth-ness!

Here are some random shots from various photo booths in Las Vegas!

(I just found them in the bottom of my backpack...)

Q and A with Eliesa!

Its about that time again! I've acquired MANY e-mails in the past month asking me about business questions, technical questions, etc - and so I've decided it's time for another Q and A on the bloggy!

Q: How do you choose/hire your employees and assistants?

A: I'm a HUGE believer that certain people come into your life for a reason! Every single person I have brought onto the Photogen Inc team has been a very natural transition. When I met Brandon, he had never shot a person in his life - I LOVED that and hired him immediately, because I didn't want to hire anyone who had a pre-conceived notion of 'what photography was suppose to be' - especially when it came to weddings!

For Cadence, I remember we were walking around the lakes last summer and talking about photography and her passion to pursue it more and I was like....DUH! Why don't you assist me? Why haven't we discovered this before?

With Liz, Brandon introduced me to her at an art gallery and after 5 minutes, I knew she would be a bigger part of the Photogen Inc team.

Every choice I have made with the company has been and easy and obvious answer - and the way I always want my business to be run!

Q: After meeting you and your team in Las Vegas, I couldn't help but notice your chemistry! How can I connect with my assistants like that?

A: Have FUN! There is obviously a certain level of expectation for my assistants and I expect them to go above and beyond that! I take my assistants very seriously! They are so talented and so amazing - and I realize their potential! I try to take the time to critique their work (though I should be better at this - it's one of my goals!), have yearly reviews and set goals! Overall though, we have amazing shooting chemistry because we have great relationships! It makes all the difference!

Q: Does Brandon have a girlfriend?

A: NO LADIES! HE IS SINGLE!!

Q:Do you advertise?

A: Nope! I've been too busy to advertise! Sometimes the thought crosses my mind as to 'What if? How would that effect things?' But overall, I feel that by getting published (which is usually a monthly basis) is the best exposure I could ask for! People are seeing my true work, in many different ways and not just an advertisement. Not saying that I won't EVER advertise, but for now I like being the hidden gem!

Q: How do you get such correct exposures in direct sunlight?

A: Easy. Seriously! Many photographers are scared to bring their subjects into direct sunlight - and it definitely takes practice! There is no magic exposure, but go ahead and try test shooting! Remember to bring your ISO all the way down and your shutter speed all the way up! Also, remember to watch the shadows - the sun is like a big spot light!

Q: Can I come along to shadow you? Can you help me with pricing?

A: I can not even BEGIN to tell you all of the requests I have had for other photographers to shadow, observe and assist me! It's a little humbling, because I am not a technical shooter - and again I feel like I am invited into people's worlds and I just get to hang out, play and take photos everyday! We will be setting up a program for photographers who want to learn more from Photogen Inc in the future!

Hopefully this helps! Have a fabulous week everyone!

eliesa

De Colores!

Mexico was amazing! I'm still in denial that I'm back in cold Minnesota! While down in paradise, Brandon and I took the opportunity for a little shoot around the island!

THE. COLORS. WERE. AMAZING!

The people on this island were amazing as well! As amazing as the colors are there, good ole black-and-white just fit these images the best!

 

Self Portrait?

 

FASHION FIGHT NIGHT 3!!!

WOW! What can I say? February has proven to be a WHIRLWIND of AWESOMENESS for me!!! I couldn't think of a better way to top off this month than Fashion Fight Night 3!!!

The event took place at the Uppercut Boxing Gym and was put on by Metro Magazine!Our team assembled at 8 am (and we didn't go on until 10pm!) to begin running through hair, makeup, styles and test shoots!!!

First off - a HUGE and ENORMOUS Thank-You to my team! Brandon, Micah, Gabi, Trevor, Christian and Colin - THANK YOU SOOO MUCH! You all brought so much creativity and passion to this event, I couldn't have done it without you all!

The clothes we used for FFN3 were sponsored by Humble Fashion and Belle Reve Boutique!

 We BROUGHT the competition and ROCKED the event - and WON!

 

Colin joined our team last minute (literally the morning of!) and I am SOOOO happy he did! He absolutely brought the energy we needed and was amazing to work with - and the perfect addition to complete my DREAM TEAM!

Also, for all of you reality-show-lovers, Colin will be making his debut THIS TUESDAY on Bravo's Make Me a Supermodel!!! CHECK HIM OUT!
 
Here are some behind-the-scenes images from our prep!
 
The place was SOLD OUT with 800 attendees!!!
 
My awesome friend Olivia took these photos of our team in action!!!
 
Round 1: Gangster - and YES - That is a TOMMY GUN!
 
Round 2: SEX BOMB!
 
Round 3: White Trash Wedding!
 
Thank you once again to all of the fans who came out to support Team Photogen Inc and I last night! The energy was AMAZING!!! We have some AWESOME footage from the event that should be up soon so those of you who didn't make it can experience it!

ROCK ON!

eliesa

An Update from Mexico!

Hello friends, family and blog-stalkers!Just a quick little update from Mexico! B-Funk and I are down here shooting a wedding (and YES - the weather is BEAUTIFUL by the way! ;0) and we are having a fabulous time! For anyone who has called my phone the past few days, I can only receive text messages and e-mails, so if you need me - go that route!
 

So, on our second day here, we ventured out with the clients around La Isla Mujeres via golf cart! We ended up getting a SWEET personal tour by this dude who created an island by using recyclable materials (like plastic bottles, trash, etc) to basically create a renewable island! It's really pretty sweet! This is his second island - the first one he lived on for 7 years before it was destroyed by a hurricane! It's really pretty amazing!

 

Shooting a wedding on this island was absolutely AMAZING! Brandon and I decided to do some time-lapse shit later on in the night and this is what turned out!

 
I have also been shooting a TON of film these past couple weeks!
I'm soooo excited to see what I've got!