Custom Chalkboard Backdrop, ooooh let the fun begin!

This fall has been a busy painting & photo season. Since I cannot dedicate my full attention to photography and painting (because of my full time gig) I have been scheduling photo sessions on weekends and hardly painting; however, I did manage to sell two paintings in November. One was a commissioned painting for the new Gus's Fried Chicken in Oxford, MS and the other was one I sold on Etsy. I still have 5 families I have to photograph before Christmas and the weather has been making it hard to squeeze them all in.

Thanks to the early arrival of the Polar Vortex my tasks today are simply: turning one of my spare bedrooms into my official indoor studio. I have been using it as a painting studio but I decided I needed to get it set up as a photography studio too!

The light is perfect. There is a window on the west side of the room, perfect for afternoon sessions, and a window on the south side of the room. Either way I can pull in natural light from the west and south and use reflectors to bounce light onto the north side of my subjects.

My first "to do" is to get one wall set up as a Chalkboard backdrop. Since I started doing chalkboard art drawings for a local Memphis restaurant I have been wanting to incorporate it into other things I have been doing. I have seen lots of unique chalkboard backdrops at weddings and also on special occasion photos like baby birthdays, holiday times and engagements. I thought this would be a perfect way for me to utilize my drawing skills and photography skills all at once. It is also something that other photographers in the area are not tapped into, and if they are, I have not seen any look like what I have in mind.

My next "to do" will be to set up a back drop stand on another wall. I want to have a variety of fabrics I can use so I have backdrop options for clients. I want to have just a basic clean white backdrop, but then some unique ones as well. Either way I am on a mission. I found some adorable photos from very talented photographers. I wish I knew their names so I could give them credit! Above are some beautiful examples of what I have been envisioning. Hopefully I will get it all set up on this rainy day and offer some great and creative holiday photos to my remaining clients unless they are just dying for Polar Vortex photos!


















































































































The Galphins and the Tiny but strong Millie!