A Social Media Nashville Conference You Won't Want To Miss!

We are 2 weeks away from the Doing Social Media RIGHT conference brought to you by A Magical Affair! For more info you can read our previous blog post on the event!

Zach & I will be guest speaking at this event and you won't want to miss it! Christine Boulton from Think Like A Bride, is the featured speaker and we all have a lot to learn from her!

Admission: $55
Location: Embassy Suites Nashville Airport (10 Century Blvd, Nashville, TN 37214)

To Register Click Here

Hope to see you all there!

We live in such changing times and the success to your business staying alive is the ability to adapt...

Photoshop Classes from the Pro! THIS July!

For those of you whose initial reaction after reading the title was, "What a second... I thought the Grays don't do Photoshop!" you are correct in that thinking! - WE don't do Photoshop, but we have a fabulous photographer friend who is a Master at Photoshop and she is actually holding workshops to share her tricks of the trade.

Mel from The Velvet Trunk is holding sessions this summer to share with other photographers her knowledge of Photoshop. The fact of the matter is ANYONE can do Photoshop tricks to images, but very FEW can do it well.

Take advantage of this opportunity to learn from one of the best!

For information on classes, dates, rates, early bird specials, and more Before & After pics, visit Mel's Blog.

Below are some Before & After's that YOU can learn to do!

















For some images, the changes are minute (eg. pregnant woman) but make differences. Go to Mel's Blog and hover over the images to see the Before & Afters!

IN-CAMERA Nashville Photography Workshops - Going Worldwide

(**Note** If you have found this blog post via internet searches, please visit the Photographer's area on our website and/or our new blog for the most updated photography Workshop information!)

This post is scheduled to go up Monday morning, and depending on when you're reading this (on Monday) we are either 1) hosting the 2nd IN-CAMERA: Shooting & Post Workshop, or 2) if it's in the evening, we are with the sold-out IN-CAMERA: Light workshop attendees for Part II of their two-day spanning workshop.

It has been a blast holding these workshops here in our home-town of Nashville,. TN and we are looking forward to moving on with planning the out of state & country workshops that we have been contacted about!

If you have yet to reach out to us about bringing our workshops to your area, please email us at INCAMERA@GrayPhotograph.com. We travel worldwide and would really love to bring one to Hawaii! Hint, hint! ; )

Below are some topics we share/teach on and can lead a workshop covering a few different combined items:

1. Website Marketing: Are images really enough? – Standing out amid the rest by branding yourself on your site
2. The Most Valuable Advertising – Utilizing Clients & Vendors to be your biggest advertisers
3. Creating Balance – Having your business work for you and not you for your business
4. Pricing – What to charge and how to charge it
5. Client Meetings – How to utilize your client meetings to your advantage and book a higher percentage
6. Advanced off camera lighting including multiple strobes
7. Lighting ratios – Controlling different light sources to give your images the look you want
8. Advanced composition & Leading Lines – Giving your images more visual power
9. Exposure – How to properly use the histogram, LCD, the in-camera meter as well as a hand-held meter
10. Accurate Color – In-camera custom white balancing techniques
11. Post Production Workflow – How to edit 1,200 images in 2.5 hours

Have a great start to your week and stay tuned for a full workshop blog post as well as some weddings, and a special announcement :)

Nashville IN-CAMERA Photography Workshop Completed!

(**Note** If you have found this blog post via internet searches, please visit the Photographer's area on our website and/or our new blog for the most updated photography Workshop information!)

"Great day! Super informative!"

"AMAZING class!"

"I seriously learned more here than anywhere!"

"It was amazing at how well the photos turned out, and I didn't have to do any editing to them!"

"Thank you for helping me conquer manual mode!"

"Loved it!"

"Great experience"

"Fabulous!"

"The class was amazing"

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

The above are just a few comments that we have received since the IN-CAMERA: Shooting & Post workshop on Sunday! We had an amazing time this past Sunday afternoon, despite the rainy weather! We had 13 students for this sold out workshop and we all had a blast shooting together and talking shop ALL day. :)

It was great to meet so many different photographers from different places and to see everyone get so excited to get such great images right in the camera (which is what these workshops are all about!). We had students from Nashville and the surrounding areas, and students who came all the way from Kentucky, Alabama, and Arkansas. The award for longest distance traveled goes to Melissa with an 8 hour drive! :)

The day began with some class time at our studio in good 'ol downtown Nashville, TN... (photos complements of Kristine Neeley)




Next, we headed off for lunch and then the hands-on shooting & learning time began! We started off as a whole group doing some stuff with 'el natural light and then split into two groups so people could get lots of time shooting with flash as well as natural light at the same time. Oooh ahhh!

Here are some behind the scenes shots of the hands on class time, some of the set-ups, and then some images from Jody and I and from the students that we took of our awesome models Lindsey and Dustin. Enjoy!!

Here we are talking through the basic flash set up that we used for some of the shots




I love this image! Everyone looks so intent on nailing the perfect shot!






As you can see, it was pretty rainy!







Here is Jody at another setup talking through the dynamics of available light and using it to one's advantage with an amazing thing called a reflector!



Shooting away!




Here are two that I (Zach) took while demonstrating how to shoot the first flash set up.



And one with just the reflector used for adding light



Here is one that Jody took while demonstrating how to capture a correct exposure and white balance.



This shot belongs to the awesome MD Laidlaw



Here is one from the amazing Kristine Neeley



This one is from the super cool Da Norm



Here is a really cool one from Abiola



Here is a great shot from Wes Brown Wes Brown




After the shooting time, we all headed back to the studio for some snacks and then got into the post-production side. We went through our entire workflow and showed students the whole process from importing and organization, to editing and preparing the image for the final print.

It was an awesome day and we have received tons of amazing responses from all of our attending students (the workshop received 5 out of 5 on the exit surveys!) saying that the class was extremely helpful in giving them the tools to shoot photos the way they want in the camera without having to spend tons of time in Photoshop making them look they way they want. Mission accomplished.

You guys are all the best and we look forward to the next two workshops that are coming up the weekend of the 17th! There are a few spots left for this same class that we are hosting on Monday the 18th, so check out our website to sign up!

And lastly, here is the whole crew taken by one of our awesome assistants Cliff Neeley!!




Everyone who attended, feel free to leave us some comments and let us & others know about your experience!

IN-CAMERA: Basics Photography Workshop - Completed! (And workshop class added!)

(**Note** If you have found this blog post via internet searches, please visit the Photographer's area on our website and/or our new blog for the most updated photography Workshop information!)

Earlier this month, on April 11th, began the start of our Spring 2009 Photography workshops!

A few comments from the day...

"Thanks for the workshop - it rocked!!!"

"It was awesome and I learned alot!!! Thanks you guys, for everything!"

"It was a blast"

"I cannot thank-you enough for the instruction you and Zach gave in the workshop... thank you, thank you, thank you again!"

Here are just a few pics to highlight the shooting part of the day...














Goofing off...


Most of the group at the end of the day!



Click here
to see some of the work of one of the class attendees from the workshop - MD of Laidlaw Photography!!

We are so excited about the IN-CAMERA: Shooting & Post workshop this Sunday! It's going to be a full class and we are pumped!!!

Just a reminder that we have officially added an additional IN-CAMERA: Shooting & Post workshop for Monday, May 18th for $199. To register please visit Gray Photography and go to our Workshop web page!

Gray Photography Workshops Open For Early Bird Registration!

(**Note** If you have found this blog post via internet searches, please visit the Photographer's area on our website and/or our new blog for the most updated photography Workshop information!)



We have already received registrations via snail mail for our I N - C A M E R A Workshops and now online registration is officially open!

Fore more detailed info on the classes as well as Early Bird Specials, read our Workshop Blog below.

To register please visit Gray Photography and go to our Workshop web page!

This is going to be an awesome time of learning, sharing, getting to know each other and your peers and having a blast at the same time!

Class sizes are limited for quality learning so make sure to register before they fill up!

Reminder if you want to bring any of these classes to your area, please contact us! INCAMERA@grayphotograph.com.

PS - By the way, in reference to our previous blog, thanks to those who said that I (Jody) don't look like a boy :)

IN-CAMERA Photography Workshops - Nashville & In Your City!

(**Note** If you have found this blog post via internet searches, please visit the Photographer's area on our website and/or our new blog for the most updated photography Workshop information!)

Introducing our IN-CAMERA Workshop Series!



For a taste of the last workshop which we did in association with Evan Baines Photography, check this video out!



Do you want to turn this:



Into this?



Or take this:



And make it look like this?



Do want to turn this:



Into this?





IN-CAMERA Workshops are photography workshops which are designed to inspire photographers at all levels and help them gain a better understanding of every aspect of photography from beginner techniques all the way down to advanced lighting and business strategy. These workshops will cover many topics including:

- Shooting perfect exposures, color and compositions right inside the camera
- How to manipulate light to get the shot that you want every time
- Interacting with your subject
- Consistent shooting for fast work flow
- Finding natural light and using it to your advantage
- How to take your photography business to the next level through marketing and branding in a competitive market

There will be workshops geared for exactly what you need and all you have to do is choose the one(s) that are right for you. These workshops will be hosted by us (Zach and Jody Gray) at our studio in downtown Nashville. We will shoot on location with models in and around the city and show how we do what we do, day in and day out!

These workshops will be fun, informative and intimate with limited seating space for each of the sessions. They will not disappoint!

IN-CAMERA: Basics - Saturday, April 11th - $175 ($149 Early Bird) ($125 for High School/College Students, $99 Student Early Bird)
This workshop is great for those who really want to learn how to take control of that new digital SLR camera, or for those who want to take great, professional looking images of their friends and family. Topics will include camera basics, basic lighting and simple secrets of shooting killer looking portraits. This workshop will be one day consisting of morning class time and then putting into practice what has been learned in the afternoon. Camera function will be taught from a Canon digital SLR perspective.

IN-CAMERA: Shooting & Post - Sunday, May 3rd - $199 ($149 Early Bird)
For those of you who may not know, we achieve our entire look in-camera without the aid of Photoshop. If you want to learn to shoot correctly in-camera, greatly minimize your post production time, then this is the class for you. Topics covered: Color, exposure, basic lighting, and lightening fast post-production with Adobe Lightroom. Also includes group shoot time.

IN-CAMERA: Light - Sunday, May 17th & Monday evening May 18th - $399 ($299 Early Bird)
This workshop is for the advanced photographer looking to take his/her images to the next level! This one and a half day workshop will focus on advanced off-camera lighting techniques and composition. Gain valuable insights and skills in the short classroom time and then put into practice with guided learning during the group shoot time with professional models. The Monday evening session will be used for showcasing images, critiques, and Q&As.

REGISTER by March 31st and receive the Early Bird rate! Sign up for 2 or more classes and receive a $50 refund the day of the workshop.

All workshops prices are per-person with discounts available for studios with multiple photographers. Workshops are limited to ensure an intimate experience and plenty of one-on-one time.

If you are a photographer and would like to bring one (or more!) of these workshops to your area, contact us (INCAMERA@grayphotograph.com) for more information and receive a free ticket to the hosted class!

Online registration begins next week via Pay Pal on Gray Photography on our IN-CAMERA Workshop web page. For those who want to ensure their spot in the meantime, we will accept checks and your place will be secure as long as we receive your payment by Monday (March 16th)! Please contact us for details - INCAMERA@grayphotograph.com.

Can't wait!