Power to Choose

Choice is one of the most powerful forces I can think of (after energy). This is the simplest concept that's the most overlooked. It's overlooked by parents, friends, relatives, teachers, managers, employees, neighbors, etc. Almost to the point of being ignored. Never by choice though.

Some of the hardest choices I made were the choices I didn't make. The choices I didn't realize I could have made. Think about it. You did the same thing. You also know someone who did the same (or did not that is). Every single step was determined by a choice catalyst from us.

Each of one of us has the power to choose anything we want in this life. You want something, it's yours if you want it. Such an idealistic concept some might say. I don't think so. I believe it to be more logical than anything else.

You made a choice when you decided to skip a day of work. You made a choice when you decided to study for that exam. You made a choice when you decided what career you wanted. All of everything you are now, or more like where you are now, are all the results of choices you made. In some cases, a choice of letting someone else make the choice for you. Regardless, all of the choices made aligned up the necessary steps to make your choice come to fruition.

The other day, my brother said we are destined with certain things meant for us. I sat there listening and my brain could not compute that thought process. I interrupted almost immediately as if I were attacking the poor guy, but I passionately disagreed.

Destiny is as proven as the earth is flat. It's a narrow perception until someone gets far enough to realize it's just not true. This is where choice comes in. You have the power to choose your destiny. It's not determined. If someone can prove otherwise, I'll be happy to listen.

Fate and destiny are the two most famous excuse words I can think of. Excuse of why you don't have something or why your life isn't where you want it to be. If you're using these words to this day, remove them from your vocabulary all together. Throw them out. Stop using these words as the ticket out of accountability. Not to others, but to yourself.

If you want a word, remember fault. It was always your choice to be happy. If you're not, it's your fault. Without going into writing an entire book, just contemplate the root of any complicated situation and where it began. The fault lies within the choice that was not made, leading to the domino affect. You may have never realized at that time you had the power to choose. Worse, you were never taught you did.

It's sad that you can trace back generations where this simple concept wasn't shared somewhere along the line. From my own personal experience, I can attest to how such a valuable lesson would have done wonders in my own life very early on.

Years from now when you are older and even wiser, you won't look at your life as a destiny, but a journey you took with the turns being the choices you made. Forget years from now, why not choose to do so now?

Choice is connected to our instinct. That gut feeling of doing what makes us happy or receive satisfaction.

Maybe it shouldn't be the power to choose, but rather the will to choose.

Well, it is your choice. Always has been. Always will be.

Wedding Invitations & Planning Made Easier: Google Docs

Getting addresses for all of your wedding guests is probably one of the hardest things about wedding invitations & planning. Watch this video on how you can use Google Docs to send out a form to all of your friends & family to complete, making your job a hundred times easier. Of course, you can use this for so many other things too. I've always loved Google Docs for all it's sharing abilities, but this will certainly save a lot of couples one less headache.

Letter To A Wedding Photographer

I've always been fascinated by the power a letter carries. Call me old fashioned, but someone taking the time to write to you is nothing short of wonderful. What makes it even more beautiful is when you have moved someone by just doing what you love. A few days ago I received just such a letter and it made my day.

"Subject: Standing Ovations

Spring has hit northern california with blue skies and a lowlying chill in the air but for a brief moment I forgot it finding myself captured by your photography.

The moment you held in your hand: the woman in a wheel chair watching the young man, the couple in love, a busy dance floor and lingering cigar smoke, I am enthralled and in awe of you talent.

My vision of photography has been that which you possess: to capture the moments that flee us. The notions that exist while everyone is busy posing and smiling. That which makes up the experience of life.

You made me cry this morning and for that I am thankful. I needed to know that I was not insane for feeling passionately about photography.

Cheers, Amina"

Dear Amina, thank you for sharing your thoughts & kind words. You can never be insane for being passionate about you dreams. Regret only sets in when you don't follow them.

Pakistani Indian Wedding Photography Slideshow

Who doesn't love a sweet little slideshow? This is from a Pakistani wedding. Enjoy.

Upgrade to Aperture 3 or Not

Someone asked me on Facebook why I don't think it's the right time to upgrade to Aperture 3 from Aperture 2. I thought I'd share my opinion here.

Many of the features are not advantageous at this time to justify an upgrade. Looks are one thing, functionality is another. Cool brushes and gizmos sound great in A3, however A2 is still fantastic for its intended objectives. Things such as facial recognition and geotracking won't help much, especially if you're shooting weddings. If you need that, you can always use iPhoto '09, which has had these features for a year now. Video editing is nice, but you really have to identify your requirements before being sold on the novelty of it. If you're into the whole 'fusion' of photo & video, that's a different story, but then it's also safe to say your using video editing software already as well. The slideshow incorporation with video, photos, & music sounds lovely though.

At this time, I personally don't find it feasible to upgrade, especially with reports of it slowing down/crashing for users if you have anything 4GB or less. It's 64-bit, which makes it easier to add & utilize more RAM, however, this means you will need to purchase what?...More RAM because its made to utilize it knowing it will require it. What a conundrum. Another pain right now is migrating your A2 libraries to A3. If you try to do the entire upgrade in one go, it takes a crap and no one knows why for now. I guess the other option would be try migrating one project at a time, but boy that's gonna take up some time if you've got a bunch of those. It simply will not run fast enough or crash when on a MBP running at 4GB when you've cropped at 100% to edit a photo. So either upgrade the RAM or buy a new machine.

These additional stresses, headaches, & costs need to be considered and should probably be listed under *System Requirements* with "$99 for Software Upgrade Fee, Additional Hardware Costs Required, Motrin Optional." Best thing to do: Wait for all fixes or version 3.1, try a 30-day trial of v3, or explore other options such as Lightroom or Lightroom 3 Beta.

In closing, I see far too many photographers and independent businesses get sold on the marketing sheepdom of buying the latest equipment and the latest software. If you were running a 50-employee company all using the current software, you would make more logical assessments based on hardware/software requirements and costs for all 50 people. If you have to upgrade the hardware in addition to the software, you're talking more money regardless. You have to think like this even if you are running a one person studio. If you're in business, think and act like it.

How To Add Facebook & Twitter to Gmail

If you're confused about adding Facebook & Twitter to your Gmail interface, here are the step by steps:

1. Click Settings in Gmail upper right hand corner.
2. Click on Labs
3. Scroll all the way to the bottom and Enable Add any gadget by URL.
4. Hit Save Changes.
5. Hit Reload on your browser to reload Gmail just in case.
6. Go back into gmail Settings.
7. Click on Gadgets.
8. Paste https://twittergadget.appspot.com/gadget-gmail.xml
9. Hit Add.
10. Now paste http://hosting.gmodules.com/ig/gadgets/file/104971404861070329537/facebook.xml
11. Hit Add again.
11. Done. Now send out a Tweet telling everyone how fabulous @asimsoofi is ;)

Some notes:

-Both Twitter and Facebook will be on the left sidebar.

-Click on ">>" next to Twitter to expand/refresh the tweets. No number indicator shows up, so you have to hit it to see the latest updates if you're in gmail.

-Under each person's Tweet, there's actually a "RT" button to retweet the classic way, i.e. "RT @asimsoofi blah blah blah". Much easier then how Twitter does it now. The entry field opens up right there so you can edit it if you want as well.

-If you want to see the follow status and details of someone you're following, click on their name and you can see if they are following you, if you want to unfollow and more.

-For Facebook, you have to click on 'Expand' in the sidebar upper right hand corner to view your FB account.

The Dynamics of Pricing

Regardless of what kind of business you're in, whether you're a wedding photographer, a wedding planner, or an employee in a corporation, here's a very interesting yet short read on pricing that's worth your time.

The following link will open up a new window to display an e-book in PDF written by Todd Satterston forwarded by Seth Godin: http://bit.ly/dm004R

Ask Me Anything

Anything about weddings, photography, me, etc. Go ahead.

Use the form on the right side of this blog or go here and submit your question.

All answers are FREE :)

• Wedding bride or groom with a question about wedding photography?
• Photographer curious about something?
• About American / Indian / Pakistani / or South Asian weddings?
• What I ate for breakfast today, yesterday, Tuesday?
• Meaning of life??

All questions welcome and creative questions encouraged.

So ask something. Someone else might be wondering the same thing.

http://www.formspring.me/asimsoofi

p.s. If you don't see your question posted, that means it wasn't appropriate for public view. Sorry!

Who's Wedding Is It Anyway?

I shot a wonderful wedding a few months back that will be airing tonight on the Style Network show "Who's Wedding Is It Anyway?" Make sure to tune in at 9 PM, Saturday, December 19th. If you miss it, no worries. Here are the re-air dates and times:

It was quite an awesome experience working with all of the wedding planners and the show's crew, but the most important part was that the couple and all of their guests had a wonderful time. "Who's Wedding Is It Anyway?" is the #1 most watched wedding show where they follow the entire planning and events leading up to the big day.

The show provides the bride and groom a wedding planner to work with to help make their vision a reality. In this episode, the groom worked with renowned wedding planner Ana Cruz from Florida and the bride was partnered up with the infamous 'Wedding Diva' from right here in Baltimore, Ms. Linnyette Richardson-Hall.

You'll see me working in the background, so watch closely! There are definitely going to be some funny moments though. Check out a short teaser clip and remember to tune in tonight at 9PM for the rest:

TWITTER CONTEST

For all you photographers who love watching these wedding shows, I'm even giving away a cool universal leather hand strap grip. This can fit most Canon & Nikon bodies. All you have to do is Twitter the following and I'll pick one winner tomorrow and another on Monday:

Follow @asimsoofi & watch "Who's Wedding Is It Anyway?" tonite @9PM on Style. Win Leather Hand StrapGrip 4 ur camera. http://bit.ly/6IifqV

Happy Holidays

It's that time of year. The few days right after Thanksgiving weekend and everyone is already out looking for Christmas trees and out shopping for gifts galore. The mad rush has begun.

So with Charlie Brown's Christmas album (everyone should own it) playing in the background throughout the month of December, I wish you all Happy Holidays!

The Company You Keep & The Friendships You Don't

Why do you keep the company you keep?

Humans are a strange bunch. We are motivated by so many good and bad things. There are people we already know and those that we want to know. Our goals are sometimes long term and sometimes short term. For each purpose, we end up utilizing people one way or another because we are smart enough to realize that who you choose to associate with can make the difference between failure and success in reaching a certain goal. At least that is what we would like to believe.

What people fail to realize is successful people had friendships before they reached the proverbial stage of success. There is a tight circle of bond and relationships that existed before wealth or notoriety discovered them, let alone other people. These can be childhood friends, cousins, sisters, brothers, or just about anyone. It is the real friendship unmotivated by greed or desire that helps them blaze their own trails. It is this friendship that lasts when the wealth and notoriety leaves them as well.

Either you are using people or people are using you. True friends don't do either, and there is dignity in knowing this in every relationship you choose to keep. If you couldn't be real friends with a person outside of your motive, the value of the relationship exponentially deteriorates over time, leaving you with truly much of nothing. It's like fighting a natural law; it just won't have the sustenance needed to maintain the connection nor leave you with much fulfillment. After a while, you'll lose interest and energy for trying to essentially 'force' a relationship, or worse, they will just tire of you.

So keep the following question in a back pocket and bring it out once in a while: Would you still be friends with someone if you weren't related by blood or driven by a motive?

My Thanks for 2009

As I take a break from helping mommy dearest in the kitchen, I want to take a moment to share with you, my friends, all that I am grateful for.

For 2009, I am thankful for:

-my family that loves me so much, they aren't shy about yelling at me for being away too long.

-my friends that look with their hearts and let me pick food off their plates.

-Nikon & Canon for taking all of my money but leaving me w/warm fuzzies.

-my ex-bosses for demotivating me and helping me realize cubicles are not natural.

-my nephew & nieces for reminding that I am addicted to my laptop and cameras.

-the new 2011 BMW 5-series facelift, which I'll still not buy because I'm abnormally too logical.

-all the couples who invited me to shoot their wedding, and consider me family oddly enough.

Most importantly, I am thankful for:

-all of the wonderful and inspirational friends I have made in 2009.

-every kind word and message of support I received for my work and passion.

-every couple that invited me to shoot their wedding and become a small part of their history.

-all of my friends on Facebook & Twitter that I hope to meet one day.

-my family, my nephew, my nieces, and my friends for making me smile.

I am truly humbled to have every single individual I know in my life. Every single one of you gives value to my life and I am forever grateful.

Sincerely, thank you.

Connecting With Your Clients in the Service Industry

How long do you spend with each client? When someone contacts you for your services, do you simply provide a quote and answer their questions, or do you leave a resounding impression of not only what you provide, but the client leaves knowing WHO is actually providing it?

Many in the service industry are sometimes bogged down the amount of inquiries they receive and at times forget how important it is to give each person the attention they deserve. Even the repetitive cycle itself sometimes gets old. At times, it is much easier to just answer the basic inquiry and wait for them to take the next step, but it doesn't create real value or even provide enough incentive for them to get back to you. Even if you're offering the hottest widget in town, you will have to back it up with great customer service.

In the service industry, such as wedding photography, the connection we establish with each client should encompass a personal one. You have to learn more about your clients in order to be able to know exactly what they need. Majority of the time, couples getting married are looking for a wedding photographer for the first time. With this situation, you have to educate and show real concern for each bride & groom. By showing you truly care, the basic 'trust seed' required to establish a working relationship can be planted.

Far too many established photographers tend to have the attitude 'here are my prices, call me if you want to setup an appointment,' but this is not evolving your methods, and for some client impressions, is a step backwards for your brand and the services you provide. Just because you've been doing it for a while, doesn't mean your client has.

You could pay a lot of money to an outside consulting firm to come in, analyze your business practices, and give you a written report concluding your clients just wanted to get to know who you are and feel more connected to you. Or you could be proactive by sticking to the basics of personal attention and good old fashioned etiquette. Give each clients the treatment you would for a guest invited into your home. After all, you want to get 'invited' into their home eventually. Take care of your clients, or someone else will.

Of course, as a client this is a great litmus test. If you don't get a warm fuzzy from the person who you may be working with, walk the other way no matter what. Go beyond just asking the boiler plate questions of how much, etc. Make the effort to connect and see how much they want to connect with you. If they don't care about you now, how much do you think they'll care about the service they provide you later?

Keep it simple my friends.

The Chain Photo Studio Experiment

If you followed my updates on Twitter/Facebook on 11/13, you heard the play by play. Here are the end results just for you!

OBJECTIVE:
To experience the value and quality of service consumers receive when using chain type portrait studios or value-priced portrait centers.

BACKSTORY:
It began with a visit to a Starbucks for coffee. Located next door was a portrait studio with hordes of families going in and out wearing matching outfits. As a photographer, you're always curious when you see a place with words like 'portrait' or 'photography' and you always investigate. I was intrigued by a huge sale sign in the window for $9.95 portraits with like 35 something prints. I thought, wow, what a bargain! So for the sake of education and to get the inside scoop on what you actually get, I went in and decided to get a session.

Turns out the special was applicable only to a family with kids and not a poor single guy like me. I did think about borrowing one of the loud screaming children to get the deal, but squashed that idea quickly. Instead, they told me I could have as many poses as I wanted for $15. I thought, that sounds pretty good. Let's do it.

I needed a holiday looking outfit so I had an hour before my appointment to run to a department store. I was fortunate enough to find the beautiful red sweater you see in the photos.

GUIDELINE STANDARDS:
-Pretend to be ignorant of photography and any methods.
-Follow all instructions of 'employee/shooter' (i can't in good faith refer to them as photographers due to lack of evidence at this time)
-Do all poses the 'shooter' requests without objection or reservation
-Comment to shooter "Wow, that's a big camera!"
-Tell shooter at another point during the shoot "That camera must take great photos!"
-Agree enthusiastically to every 'pro' opinion when reviewing horrible shots, i.e. Shooter: "Oh, you look great!" Undercover Agent: "Aww..Thanks!!"
-Last but not least, smile like a cheese-ball the entire time

RESULTS:

You can see all the photo results at the following link http://bit.ly/4BBcn4. You may have to add me on Facebook in order to view the album. I don't want these photos floating around just anywhere!

CONCLUSION:
So what do you get for not going with a professional photographer and instead with one of these chain type portrait studios? Heard the saying, "You get what you pay for?" Of course, you are more than welcome to draw your own conclusions.

TIPS:
-Resist the charm of bait-priced, uncreative photography services.
-Share the above images with family & friends for education & fun.
-If you are looking for a photographer, do an online search for photographers in your local area on Google or better yet, ask your friends & family. Referrals are sometimes the best way to find someone that is already trusted and known. Either way, check out the work and see if it really speaks to you. If the style of images will be enjoyed 50+ years from now by your family, you know you've found the right photographer.

DONATE & HELP A CHARITY!

If you're really cool and want to help, you can win an autographed print from this AWESOME portrait session. Donate $10 bucks and you'll get signed photo with a special holiday message in either a wallet, a 4x6, a 5x7, or a 8x10 mailed to you. If you learned something from this ultra valuable experience or you just found this very entertaining, you can still show your luv $1.00 and $5.00 donations.

Proceeds will be donated to one of the 4 charities I support (visit my website and click on the CHARITY link to see the full list)

$1.00 - Liked It $5.00 - Luv'd It $10.00 - Gotta Have It

U2 & Muse: Saw Them...Again!

Yesterday I went to see U2 and Muse...for the second time!

After I went to the show on 9/29 at Fedex Field in DC and had a great time listening to U2 and their opening band, Muse, I knew going again would be worth it. If they are coming to your city, definitely get tickets...Even if you have to sit behind the stage. The Fedex Field tickets I bought were in the Red Zone, which is on each side of the stage. Great place to watch the show, but a bit more money. I didn't mind paying though because all of the profits from this section goes straight to charities.

So for the 10/1 show at the University of Virginia, I was fine with sitting behind the stage because for one, tickets were only $30, and due to to the large screens they are using on the behemoth stage (biggest ever built), I could see everything.

See...sitting behind the stage has its advantages...

Here are a few more photos I took using a point & shoot, since they claim you can't bring an SLR. Steady hands are key!

If you'd like to see more photos, visit my Facebook page to see the entire set.

Love these songs by Muse...Can't believe I didn't even know about them until I went to see U2. Enjoy... (Hint: You have to turn up LOUD to really enjoy Muse ;)

U2 & David OReilly Great Animated Video

David O'Reilly directed/animated this video for the U2 single "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight." Love the style of animation, all the detail to every movement and subtle panning. Visually awesome. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

U2 - I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight from David OReilly on Vimeo.

Day After Eid

Wow, yesterday was a bit crazy. And I'm not even talking about the 300+ people that showed up at the Eid party. Lots of food, lots of family, lots of friends, and lots of kids. My ears were ringing as I went to bed from the amount of noise in the house. Of course, what was crazier than the party was the number of Twitter entries for yesterday's Take-My-Eid-Money contest. I'll have to do some accounting and feed it into the secret Winner-Picker very soon. Right now...I'm so exhausted, I woke up early. If that makes any sense. Thanks for everyone that entered! Remember, the September giveaway is still going strong, so remember to check it out a couple posts below.

I leave you today with this one picture from yesterday's party. Yes, the kids had a moon bounce for the day. How cool is that? :)

Eid Mubarak! Win My Eid Money

Eid Mubarak to all celebrating today around the world!

When I was wee lad, we used to get Eid-E money as Eid Gifts...Yes, cash! A kid could stand to make $50 to $100 in one day! It was great...except when you got overlooked by some cheap uncle or aunt. Friends of your parents would stop by and you would anxiously wait for them to call you over so you could collect. I would make my way all the way to the door with my little brother (for cute purposes) as they were leaving, pretending to be a good host to walk them out, in hopes they would remember they had a certain obligation. When they left me empty handed, I would close the front door, run to my mom with my brother in tow to report how cheap her friends were and demand they be banished from all future visits.

In celebration of Eid, I'm going to give an Eid-E gift to 5 lucky people today only! If you win, your Eid-E cash will be sent to you via Paypal or Mail, whichever you prefer. You may enter today as many times as you want, up to midnight tonight, in order to increase your chances of winning!

Simple Explanation: There are $100 in the pot. Five entries will be drawn. It could be someone with multiple entries or five different people. So anywhere between 1 to 5 people will win.

How to Enter:

1. Follow me on Twitter, if you aren't already - http://twitter.com/asimsoofi

2. Paste the following message into your status:

RT Eid Mubarak! Win @asimsoofi's Eid Money ★ Up to $100 - 5 Winners ★ Just follow @asimsoofi and RT this msg! Details http://bit.ly/jccS9

You may enter as many times as you wish by updating your Twitter status multiple times, but only up to midnight tonight (09/20/09). One RT counts as one entry. Winners wil be notified via Direct Message (DM). Contest ends 09/20/09 at midnight. U.S. residents only.

Good luck & Eid Mubarak!

September Twitter Giveaway: Flip UltraHD Mini Camcorder

This month's awesome giveaway is a brand spankin' new Flip UltraHD Mini Video Camcorder. It's so easy to use and I love mine. Just hit the big red button and start recording video of anything & everything; family, kids, dogs, cats, lamas, blackmailing your friends...All in beautiful and clear HD quality!

Check out a sample clip I shot with mine:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02AVZmqdLH0

How to Enter:

1. Follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/asimsoofi

2. Paste the following message into your status:

RT Sept Giveaway from @asimsoofi ★ Flip UltraHD Mini Camcorder ★ Just follow @asimsoofi and RT this message! Details http://bit.ly/Wk9E4

You may enter once per day. One RT per day counts as one entry. Contest ends 09/30/09 at midnight. U.S. residents only (sorry!). Flip UltraHD Camcorder has 120 minute capacity and will be shipped to winner with an ultra cool white finish.

Good luck!

Just for the Grooms: The Proposal

The proposal is such a huge deal and guys go out of their way to plan it perfectly. Some keep it simple, and some get the entire family & friends involved in a complex plan leading up to the big question.

So I wanted to reach out to any guys that are thinking of proposing to some lucky girl. You guys get forgotten during the whole wedding planning, so I want to help you out a bit. I will be giving away at least 3 completely FREE shoots to capture the proposal.

So if you are planning a surprise proposal, I want to hear about it. It doesn't have to be big, it doesn't have to be small....As long as it's a surprise and REAL! I will giveaway 3 shoots where I will capture her first reactions as you get down on you knees to ask her the big question.

I'll shoot anywhere, anytime...schedule permitting of course. If I have to travel outside the local Washington/Baltimore area, those expenses would have to be covered. That's the only catch. Otherwise, just drop me an email at info AT asimsoofi.com telling me what you have planned and I'll pick the first 3 that catch my eye. Contest ends when 3 winners are picked.

Remember to include:

-Full Name

-Phone Number

-Proposal Time Frame

-The Proposal

Good luck!