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Personal Musings by Karthika Gupta of Memorable Jaunts focusing on photography, tips, techniques and general musings

Colors Of The Tropics

Last month I had a chance to sneak way for a quick trip back home to India. It was a very short trip for some family time and it was over before I knew it. In fact, I really did not have a chance to get over my jet lag. I spent the better part of my 10 day trip staying awake all night long, much to the chagrin of my mother! 🙂 In true motherly fashion, she tried everything – hot milk with turmeric, cool blast of the air conditioner, soft music but nothing really worked.

Now when I look back, I think my mind was on a sensory stimulation overload – coming from the bleak winter of the midwest, the sights, sounds and smells of the tropics were a bit too much for my color-starved brain to handle. Much of my days were spent camera in hand walking around the house and garden going clickaty-click-click! There is so much to see and take it.

Pink Colored Paint on the outside of a bungalow in India Yellow Hanging Flowers in Nagarhole National Park Most of my trips back home are always with my family in tow. Between kids and family, I rarely sit back and really soak in the sights and sounds of the everyday. It almost seems too mundane to notice. But once you really take the time (which I had a lot of this trip) and have no real agenda, your brain just absorbs and notices so much more. What struck me the most about my trip to the tropics was the colors that were everywhere – not just in nature but also in the architecture, vehicles and in the clothes that people wore. I rarely saw people wearing black.

Maybe there is a lesson here – color stimulates the brain. I for one am ready to break free from the fashion restrictions put forth by god-knows-who with ridiculous rules like no white after labor day, tan, grey and black colors for winter. Why, oh why, should we restrict ourselves? Let’s enjoy the colors and stimulate the senses no matter what the season!!!!

Who’s with me???? 🙂 – lets start now since it does not look like winter is ready to head out of here anytime soon! – And I really want to paint my bycycle purple!

How I view – Nature and Bokeh

The wonderful thing about collaborating with other creative people is that you are bound to come up with ideas that tend to make you step outside your comfort zone. I blogged about this earlier – the benefits of being open and honest about your business with other small business owners. Little did I know that our little blog circle of fellow photographer would come together and rework the format of our month blog circles.

This year our blog circle is going to explore common photography terms along with various subjects. First up is “Nature and Bokeh”. If you don’t know what “Bokeh” is, here is the official definition

In photography, bokeh (Originally /ˈ b oʊ k ɛ /, /ˈ b oʊ k eɪ / boh-kay — also sometimes heard as /ˈ b oʊ k ə / boh-kə, Japanese: [boke]) is the blur, or the aesthetic quality of the blur, in out-of-focus areas of an image. Bokeh has been defined as “the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light”.

Simply put, it is a way to blur out the background around the primary subject to make the subject stand out and focus the eye on that subject – the buttery smooth background with the crisp clear foreground 🙂

There are many schools of thought on how to achieve bokeh but one of the key elements is to use a large/wide aperture. Wide aperture is the lowest f-stop number on your lens. I know it feels contradictory that a large aperture could be a small number but remember that the f-stop is essentially a fraction number. Hence smallest denominator equals largest fraction. Aperture is the amount of light that enters the camera – wide aperture is essentially maximum light.

Bokeh is used in conjunction with various subject – here are a series of nature images with beautiful bokeh. It works best when you want to isolate the subject away from distracting backgrounds!

Please follow along to my friend Heidi’s page to see her images featuring nature and bokeh!

Becoming A Socially Responsible Business

I am so excited to announce that Memorable Jaunts Lifestyle Photography is now an approved vendor of the Chicago Green Wedding Alliance. That means that Memorable Jaunts is considered a Green Business. For those who know me and know my love for nature and the environment, this might come as no surprise 🙂 but the fact that I had to document my business policies and preferences and have them reviewed and verified by like minded individuals and businesses means so much more.

“Chicago Green Wedding Alliance is a wonderful organization of Wedding Industry Professionals who encourage mindful weddings, commitment ceremonies and social events by connecting a community of environmentally and socially responsible vendors” – Chicago Green Wedding Alliance. You can learn more about CGWA here.

It is a prefect fit for me as I strive to incorporate my deep connection with Nature and the Environment in every aspect of my business be it recycling my packing, using e-invoices, incorporating nature and the outdoors in all my shoots and sharing green tips with my clients!

But social responsibility is a lot more than just being a green business! – I love the official definition of Social Responsibility – it is the duty every individual has to perform so as to maintain a balance between the economy and the ecosystems. Note the use of the words “duty” “individual” and “ecosystem“- I love it.

Ever since starting Memorable Jaunts three years ago, I have always tried to share my love of imagery with others. I volunteer with West Suburban Humane Society taking pictures for their adoptable pets and have donated my services to organizations like The Gold Hope Project and Teen Parent Connection. It is a great way to get out of the “I” mentality and move into the “WE” mentality.

After all, don’t all these birds on this tree collectively make the image more aesthetically appealing than just a lone bird 🙂

I look forward to participating in many more socially responsible activities and events this year! For now, I am still doing a happy dance for becoming a CGWA member 🙂

Are you a closed door verses an open book?

Are you wondering what doors and windows have to do with Lifestyle Photography? Quite a lot actually, I assure you :). In fact, the more I think about it, it is applicable to any and every industry – be it in a corporate setting or in a small business environment.

The crux of the issue is centered around you and how well YOU play in the sand box with others. How do YOU handle competition? Are YOU an open book about what you do and how you do it? Do you just slam the door shut at anyone who rings your doorbell asking for help/advise/mentorship (no matter how awesome your door looks!)? Or Do you welcome them with open arms eager to share your knowledge and experiences???

I am not a life coach or a business coach – that is not what I do best 🙂 But I wanted to share my experiences with closed doors and open windows and how they affect me as a business owner and a photographer. Of late, I seem to be encountering my share of doors slammers and open windows and really felt the need to write about my experiences in the hopes that it would open some of the closed doors out there!

1) Make friends with the competition

A wise man once said ‘Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer’ 🙂 – Of course, I don’t see fellow photographers as enemies. In fact some of my closest friends are photographers and I LOVE to talk shop with them. I know the glazed look that my husband gets when I start talking camera, lens, lighting :). But when I talk to a fellow photographer, I feel at home. I get quite animated when I talk about techniques, equipment and we even help each other out on shoots and such. Never have we ever felt like we are taking business away from each other. We each have our share of clients and we are all secure in our space in this creative industry. As long as you have the mentality that you will always win some and loose some, you will do just fine.

2) Build Relationships

I truly believe it is very important to meet and network with people in other businesses and industries. I belong to several groups of local women entrepreneurs and I really enjoy meeting with and discussing all aspects of a being a small business owner with these women. Not only are they super smart and business savvy but they also have a good pulse on all the local happenings around. I also have my virtual group of fellow photographer that I interact with – we are constantly sharing ideas and concepts with each other. We act as a sounding board as well as a virtual shoulder to cry on when the going gets tough. But no matter how you build relationships, always go with the intention of how can YOU help the other person and you will be surprised as the number of doors that automatically open for you.

3) New business and New opportunities

When you put yourself out there to help other – in your industry and in other industries, you build a reputation. That reputation will precede you and will open up new opportunities and experiences for you. Most small businesses relay on word of mouth and referrals and this is where being a good “neighbor” really helps. People you help out recommend you to their friends, family and neighbors and very soon you see your business thrive and prosper – all because you were willing to help a fellow business owner! – talk about good Karma!

So the next time you get an email or a phone call or a question about your business and your work, stop and listen and respond in a positive way – don’t slam the door on them – give them a helping hand as much as you can. Don’t do this with the intention of getting something in return but do this because you really want to help a fellow human being ! 🙂

Naperville Lifestyle Photographer 6 on 6 Favorite Images

Another year brings another installment of my blog circle friends showcasing various aspects of lifestyle photography and our personal take on them. This month, some of us is aiming to be super productive in spite of the cold arctic freeze here in the US and is looking to crank out two blog circle posts :).

First up is ‘Favorite 6 on 6’ – a quick snapshot of my current favorite lifestyle photos 🙂

1) Taken during a trip back home to India. I was feeling quite nostalgic and was up one night browsing through some old images and came across this one. This was taken around 8.00pm in Rishikesh during the famous Ganga Aarti. Just looking at this image puts my mind at ease and brings me peace and tranquility!

2) Taken during our 2013 winter vacation, driving from Jackson Hole, WY to Yellowstone National Park, WY

3) As much as I love winter and the snow, 2013-2014 Winter is just about testing my patience! 🙂 – I am longing for Spring and the bust of color everywhere.

4) Beautiful Bougainvillea flowers while hiking in my SIL’s farm

5) This one! – oh my, don’t let this face fool you. This guy was quite the bully. He chased away 5 of his brothers and sisters because he wanted the hog the camera -:)

6) The quentisial equestrian photo of a horse’s eye 🙂 – I did not even realize I had this in my collection of images. I was like a kid in a candy store when I found it and it has since become one of my favorite images!

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