It all starts with a Holiday Card…
And so it goes, late summer comes around and my email and phone fill up with the same message…”Karen, we need to book your for our Holiday Card photo”…
The fact of the matter is no professional photographer wants to be know as “The Holiday Card Photographer”….we really are much more then that! But, reality is many clients come to me year after year to get that perfect picture for their holiday card. I realized early on in my career as a portrait photographer that I could not fight it. If that is what gets people to me then it’s okay because I know at the end of the day that photo on the card will also end up on the wall…year after year. And when I visit clients at their homes it has proven to be true.
This year I sent out my 20th holiday card since my husband and I were married. When I realized it has been 20 years of sending out holiday cards it really hit me. Wow, does time go by fast. I do think back and recall each and every card I have created. Last year I decided to search high and low and gather up a card from every year and display them in my home at the holidays. I never could have imagined what an emotional undertaking it would have become. When I looked at my cards laid out year after year I saw our family come to life. From our first dog, to one child after another to another dog…and some growth and aging along the way! And I got tears in my eyes when I saw the year I almost did not send a card…it was a tough year and it was sent very last minute but it documents where we were that year. And for that reason, if a client ever says to me….”I just don’t think we are going to send a card this year”….I quickly reply…”yes you are and I will help you do it”. Each and every year deservse to be documented…the good and the bad.
What most people do not realize is that I found my way to my photography career through my love of creating cards. Every year I would spend so much time putting thought and care into our card and the presentation of it. My initial start of my business was based around creating holiday cards. What I found early on is that what I enjoyed most was interacting with families and actually taking the PHOTOS for the cards!! But, I do find myself still enjoying helping clients when they struggle to pull a card together! I can often be heard saying to a client….”Oh, I see the caption for this year’s card….”Laughing all the Way!”
I have just finished my busiest year to date with close to 700 clients…and when I tell you I know the arrival time of my mailman down to the minute. I can’t get to my mailbox fast enough to pull out all the cards that come my way. They bring so much joy to me seeing the moments and memories created through the holiday card! It may start with a holiday card but it does not end there….it is a gift that when saved and properly displayed will be passed down from generation to generation. I know it will be for my family and I hope it will be for yours too! So, in 2018 don’t hold back…feel free to call me anytime to book your “Holiday Card” session because I know it will end up being so much more then just that!
Here are my “Holiday Card” photos from 2017 which will be hanging on my walls in my home after the New Year!
(Photo credit: Saren Cassato Photography)
