On Twitter every Friday there is this great movement called FollowFriday.  It is where you can recommend in your “tweet” other people that you think your followers should follow.  So I’m doing that up blog style.  Along the lines of my photographer interviews, I plan to feature a few different people that *I* follow and blogs that I find interesting.  Since most of them deal with arts and lifestyle things I figured some people on here might like them too.  🙂

Wayyyy back when I was in college at Syracuse, one of my sorority sisters was Jennie Schaeffer.  She was an amazing artist back in school – one of those people that just made you so jealous as you sat there trying to sketch, well, anything.  Since college she has gotten married, had an ADORABLE little boy and opened her own studio which I think is just SO cool.  She has two businesses in Newtown, NJ – Traillworks, which is her studio and art Gallery and a second business – Wedding Cake Portraits which is exactly what it sounds like.  Amazingly *beautiful* oil portraits of your wedding cake.  Some people buy them as surprises for their spouse for anniversaries and other people buy them just to commemorate their wedding.  If I had any pictures of my cake I’d have her do one of mine!!

You can find her at the following locations:
Traillworks
Wedding Cake Portraits

And very cool, right now until February 14th, anyone who becomes a fan of Wedding Cake Portraits here on Facebook will receive a $75 credit towards a purchase!!  I love that she is doing this – what a great way to get a custom oil portrait.  Anyone who appreciates fine art and painting will LOVE Jennie’s work.  So check it out 🙂

As I first spoke about last year, I have been dying to feature some of my favorite photographers here on the blog.  Do a little interview, show you their photos and most importantly just expose you to them and their work.  There are some truly amazing photographers out there and often, unless you are a photographer yourself and belong to one of the big national boards, you will never see them.  So consider this your introduction.  😉

First up today, most appropriately, is one of my favorite photographers and one of my best buddies.  You have heard me talk about Bernadette Uzcategui of BU Photography (out of Philadelphia) on here several times.  I have shot her little boy Evan a few times as well as her family and have traded head shots with her.  Bernadette was my closest friend in Philadelphia and is just an amazing photographer.  She started out working with just animals, primarily dogs and then moved into children and families.  Her work amazes me every. single. time.  She has an ability to work equally at ease with dogs and babies and families.  Her pet photography is among the best, I believe, in the country and she has a knack for family photography that just captures the essence of them perfectly.  So grab a cup of coffee, sit back and learn a little bit about her and see some of her favorite images.  Then, if you want to see more (and you really really should) head over to her website at

www.buphotography.com

And I promise, I did NOT pay her to give me the first shot 😉  For those of you that don’t know, that is me and Matt last November while very pregnant with Layne.

How long have you been shooting professionally (as your job either PT or FT)?

About 2 yrs

What is your favorite subject to shoot?
Wow, that is a tough one…I have to say that I adore keeping a variety of subjects as my m.o., so the biggest key to having ‘favorite’ shoots is really about the clients.  I love having awesome clients that are willing to have fun and go with my imagination.  Having total creative freedom is a perfect shoot for me!

What is in your camera bag?
Canon 5D, Mk II
Canon 5D
24-70mm f/2.8L
50mm f/1.4USM
16-35mm f/2.8L
100mm f/2.8USM
oh, and squeakies….VERY important 🙂

What is your go-to lens?
For fast pets & babies on the go, the 24-70 is my go-to lens!  For everyone else, it is usually my 50mm,1.4

You seem to have such a connection with animals, what is your secret?
One word: bacon.

No seriously, a pup can tell a dog-lover a mile off.  I adore pups of all shapes and sizes, so I think that they quickly drop any reservations they may have (belly rubs help) and get comfortable with me and with my giant camera.  Dogs don’t hold back.  You can tell what they are thinking, so happy dogs = happy photos!

What is the silliest thing you find yourself doing during a session?
It has to be the host of sound effects I (TRY to)  make during a shoot…from monkeys, to pigeons, to Handy Manny’s tools, I will pull out all the stops to get my desired effect, regardless of how insane I look/sound!

Who are your idols in photography?
Ahhh, where to begin?  I adore Tara Whitney, Grace of Shine Pet Photos, Jose Villa, Jinky Art, and The Image is Found because they have all found such unique voices for their work. I think they also all have a sort of ‘storytelling’ capability that makes my heart beat a little faster when I see a new post from them in my Google Reader.  I am quite sure that if I ever met them, I would be ridiculously star-struck and giggle for a week straight afterwards….yes, I am THAT dorky.

If you could do any type of shoot (sky is the limit) what / where / with who would it be?
Okay, if I am dreaming, I would clone myself and shoot my own family somewhere in Tuscany, playing, exploring and documenting our own story.  If I am being limited by the sky….I think I would love to do a shoot in Vegas’ Neon Boneyard with some rad little kids  all decked out, and some gorgeous dogs. Can you imagine the color and fun? A day to myself in that place would be a DREAM!

Did you ever plan to be a photographer?
While I always loved photography, I never considered it as an occupation. I actually graduated with a degree in architecture.  My love for shooting architecture led me to a love for shooting my own pup, Kia, which then led me to where I am today.  It has been a very organic process in finding my amazing job.  I cannot imagine doing anything else; I love my work!

What is your favorite product that you offer?
Honestly, digital negatives.  When I worked with film, I always hoarded my negatives and kept them safe and sound so that I could go back anytime I wanted to adore my favorite images, despite what may happen to albums and prints (how many of your grandparent’s photos are bent, faded, yellow or stained?) .  I have the same sentimental attachment to the full-resolution files of my own images, so I like to offer the opportunity for clients to keep/preserve memories in this way for future generations in their families.

Now for some fun…

What is your biggest vice?
My total and absolute refusal to share any/all dessert.  Seriously, call me greedy, selfish, or whatever…if there is chocolate on my plate, YOU are not going to get a taste.  Period.

What is your favorite splurge?
A happy somethin’somethin’ (preferably in yellow) from my fave clothing store, Anthropologie

Beach or mountains?
Mountains (I will take a chunky sweater over a bathing suit ANY day!)

Ideal date night cuisine?
Noodles.  (think Lady & the Tramp….but maybe a Great Dane instead of the Tramp)

Favorite music to edit to?

Jazz, French or Instrumental…I concentrate better when I cannot understand the words or there are none, because I am pretty much constantly rehearsing a karaoke performance otherwise!

Welcome to the new blog design… A few very cool features you may have noticed – some awesome sliding sidebar widgets over there on the left, a new background that matches my logo, post dividers, a bigger logo and the potential to do this: Beautiful lightbox style galleries as well as slideshows right here in the posts. Yay! So being sick CAN be productive!