OK, this is pretty cool.

The lastest "MPIX ROCKS" ad has hit newsstands!

First, it was THE Photoshop DUDE himself, Scott Kelby.

This blog post is going up about 20min after I planned, because I just spent that much time
reading all about his awesome BLACKHAWK shoot -- VERY COOL, Scott!!

After Scott'sMpix ad came my buddy JP!

DAGNABIT! You guys are too good!
I just delayed this post (and my Rubios lunch!) by another 20 minutes watching JPs videos!
LOVE the engagement video, JP!

Scott & JP's ads finished their runs, so it was time for a GIRL to come in and show the boys how it's done, right!?

Where else would my Mpix ROCKS ad be but THE BEACH!!??

To create this photo for the ad, I called on my buddy, ZAK& his family.

We met on Coronado, and I brought along my Alien Bees lights, power pack, and wireless trigger.
We set up one light with a big softbox on it and set it off to the side a bit.

I used Zak as the test model to get the light setting just right.
Normally when I use my lights, I go for an over-dramatic effect,
but for this, I wanted it to look more natural, just to help me stand out because it was a cloudy morning.

Zak took the opportunity (soooo prize soooo prize) to ham it up a bit.

Seriously, though, he is a pretty cool dude... when he wants to be:

Once the lights were set up, Zak's family played in the background and I took some shots of them,
turning back to Zak for "the shot" for the ad.

The best moment of the morning was when Jack decided it was time to hug & cuddle:

After the hug break, we went back to work...

Here's one of the shots I got while I was shooting the cute family:

And here's the final result, on newsstands near you!

Here's my own version, though...

MPIX DOES ROCK, by the way!! Haven't experienced the awesomeness yourself? WHY NOT!?

GET to Mpix.com and see for yourself!

Happy Friday everyone!

First, have you entered to win one of those cool prizes I announced yesterday!?
You've got until Sunday night, so CHECK YESTERDAY'S BLOG post if you missed it.
A few seconds of typing & clicking will enter you to win something fun!

NEXT, I'm making my plans for FALL IN NEW YORK CITY!
If you live in or around the city & you have a camera you're dying to learn about,
this announcement is just for you!

I'll be having a myFUNcamera workshops in Central Park the morning of Friday, October 23rd!
If you have a DSLR camera, and you're stuck on Auto mode, wanting to venture into those
"creative modes" but are intimidated by all those settings, this morning is for you!

We'll go over camera settings, different equipment (lenses, cameras, sensors),
composition, light, finding great shooting angles, and lots more!

I'm working on a bigger announcement for this workshop
(with sponsorship announcements, prizes & giveaways, too!),
but if you SIGN UP TODAY OR SATURDAY, you'll get $50 off!!
The workshop is normally $250 (lunch included -- that's always a blast!),
but I'm launching this workshop with an "early bird special".
So, if you sign up today (Friday) or tomorrow (Saturday),
you'll get the workshop for $200 instead of $250!click that button to sign up!

spots are limited!

CLICK HERE to sign up!

Happy Friday, and I'll see you in NY in October!!!

~Carey

PS: If you are interested in a session in Central Park the weekend of Oct 24/25, email me,
and you can get on my schedule!

Here I was thinking that is WAY too late to get anything custom in time for Mother's Day,
but I was WRONG!!

I just found out that my friend Fran, from Little Windows is still taking orders and promissing
delivery in time for Mother's Day!!

If you order by May 1st and choose Priority Mail shipping, she says you'll get your order by May 8th!

She also has fun DIY kits so crafty moms can make awesome creations themselves.
I want to try that some day, but for now, I'm just going to let Fran keep making my Little Windows.

...like this custom bracelet she made for me:

I am going to force my kids to let me take pictures of them after school today
so I can order one of Fran's "Double Sided Clip-on Charm" for Mother's Day.

I've wanted to get one of those for a while now, and I'm going to treat myself!

If you want to order some Little Windows of your own, use promo code

LWCS10808

to save 10% on your order.

You've got until May 1st to get those custom Little Windows orders in for Mother's Day delivery,
so get started!

If you miss the Little Windows deadline, don't forget about Mpix!
A book from Mpix, some magnets, or some framed prints would all make great Mother's Day gifts,
and they always ship your order within one business day.

Happy e-shopping!

~Carey

Quick question for San Diego folks:

Is there a painter out there who wants to barter?

I promissed my son that I would get his room painted CHELSEA BLUE
for his birthday, and I still haven't done it.

Right now, his room is a vivid green color (from back when green was his favorite color).

Now that his blood runs BLUE for Chelsea, his favorite color is... duh ... blue.

Is there a painter out there who would want to trade a bedroom paint job for a Mini Platinum??

The materials for the job would be $100-200 for the primer & and the paint & such,
so add in your time & labor, and I think the trade works pretty well.

Let me know if you're interested!! barefootmemories@gmail.com

~Carey

Getting the mail isn't as high on my "exciting things" list as it was when I was little.

Nowadays it's mostly bills and junk.

EXCEPT FOR TODAY.

TODAY was SOCCER MAIL!

First, Mat's "Totally Frank" (Frank Lampard's autobiography) arrived.
If this won't get him to like reading, I don't know what will!

THEN, under all of the junk (oh, and Costco coupons, gotta look through those!),
there was something very exciting:
our first issue from our free subscription to SOCCER AMERICA MAGAZINE.

I subscribed to Soccer America a few months ago, and this was the first issue to arrive.

As I was flipping through it,
I came to the centerfold,

AND THERE'S MAT AND HIS WHOLE TEAM!!!!!

Mat and all of his friends made the centerfold of SOCCER AMERICA MAGAZINE!

I told him he's got to work on his autograph a little more before I let him sign it.

Thanks for enjoying my fun mom moment with me!!

~Carey