But besides me being energetic, happy and in a good mood, there is another advantage to the heat that many of you might not realize. The newborns are not cold.

So here’s the thing. I am looking for newborns under two weeks old, boys or girls, to photograph outdoors. Babies of different than typical northern European looks most welcome . The photoshoot is for free and shall happen during next week (19.-23.7.2010). I intend to use the photos in my portfolio, so the condition is that you have to sign a model release allowing me to do that. In exchange for that you will get free 3 (three) digital files (value of 350€) of your favorite images from the shoot.

xx

Please read about how the newborn shoots are done in the info section on my webpage and get inspired by images in my newborn/maternity gallery.

If interested, contact me immediately via email niki@nikistrbian.com or call 0400-358990.

I am a member of a few photography forums, dedicated to portrait photography and children portraiture. Jesh’s lecture has been discussed there more than once and people raved about it. I am the type who doesn’t go to see a movie if everyone raves about it. I am the type who doesn’t believe in mass happiness. (Yet I am a potterologist and avatarlogist. Go figure!) I missed the lecture anyway. One evening, after having a rather difficult day with my little angels (sometimes it happens even in the best of families), I was editing photos and thought to myself that I will give it a try. I listened to the recording of the lecture and it

CHANGED. MY. LIFE.

My life as a photographer. My life as a person. As a human being.

I knew instantly that I wanted to become a part of this movement. BELOVED movement. And one day a package arrived. The BELOVED field guide. Which changed my life still more. Ok, I know you want to know now what this photography voodoo is about. Bear with me a little longer.

Imagine that you decide to have your photos taken. Any given occasion will do. You got engaged. Married. Secretly married. Your wife is pregnant. You have a newborn baby. You have a family. You celebrate your wedding’s 50th anniversary. Any occasion will do. Even one as simple as: “it’s a beautiful day”. So what is it that you want to have captured?

Poses.

OR

Feelings. Laughter. Deep gazes into each other’s eyes. Hugs. And … do we dare … kisses.

I bet it’s the second one. And it damn well should be! BELOVED photography will empower just that. Through a number of small tasks (for a lack of a better word), you will experience real feelings in front of the camera. You will BE LOVED. And if you let me, I will capture the feelings in a timeless manner. Resulting in a true celebration of your relationship.

Oh common. Say it out loud! This is unheard of in Finland. This will never work with the Finnish nature. Finnish culture. Finnish personalities.

Really? Try me! Book your Beloved session now. (It’s also a perfect gift.)

Oh and not that it’s the most important thing. But I am officially qualified for the Experiential Photography. You can also find me listed as a photographer of the Beloved movement. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Your Beloved photographer,  Niki

PSHHH: The first three Beloved sessions will receive a special gift from me.

I am pleased to notice that none of my blog readers, who left a comment, voted for the traditional yo-kuva (a rose, a glass of champange and a stiff posing). But unfortunately only one of you could be the winner of a free yo-kuvaus with me… Without further ado, I went off and used a random number generator, did hard job programming the machine to randomly choose a number between 1 and 14 (since the last of 15 comments was not really a yo-kuva seeker) and hit the “generate” button.

scrolling in the original post, scrolling in the original post and the winner is …..

….. TIINA (or actually her brother!).

Congratulations! Looking forward to working with you.

You would not believe it, but May is knocking on our door. Ok, maybe not just yet, but we will hardly breath-in, breath-out (twice) and it will be time to take this year’s high school graduates’ photos.

Become part of my yo-lakki kuvaus campaign.

I am looking for 3 girls and 3 guys who will graduate from high school this spring and want to participate on my campaign. You can get involved on several levels. Everything is free and at some stages you can actually make money. For start, however, I would take your portraits. There is only one condition, you and your parents must sign a model release allowing me to use your photos during the campaign. Oh, and English is an advantage, but not a must. Kyllä puhumme suomeakin.

You will receive your free portraits, min. 5 photos, in digital format on CD (value of 500€).

This offer expires as soon as I have my 6 models, so don’t wait up. Hora ruit. (Time runs.) Call or email me latest on Feb, the 14th.

0400-358990 or niki@nikistrbian.com

Anyways, if you are sad because you didn’t win, don’t be! There will be another opportunity again. Life is full of them, after all

Tomorrow also is the last day for your contest photo submissions, don’t forget to participate, people The prize is awesome and you know it

And of course you all want to know when I am back from my holidays That would be 30.11. and after that there is really just a couple of slots available for Xmas minisessions. If interested in having a last minute family portrait session this year, book quickly! For 350€ you will get:

1. 10 artistically edited portraits as high resolution digital files on a cd
2. 1 digital file of a Xmas card (design of your choice)
3. a beautiful minialbum with all your images

That’s something you don’t want to miss! I am going to check my email during holidays, so book away. Happy start of the Pikku Joulu season to you all.

Off to bed now

The prize:

The winner will receive a complimentary portrait session with me and a CD with high resolution images (value of 800€). Further details about the session can be  obtained from my website. The session must take place before March 1st and must take place in Helsinki Metropolitan Area or before June 1st in Prague, Czech republic.

The contest:

1. enjoy a little photoshoot with a child or children that is/are really close to you, you may also use a recent photo
2. send ONE favourite photo to my email niki@nikistrbian.com, the photos will be posted in a special album on my Facebook fan page
3. if you are not yet a fan, become a fan of Niki Strbian Photography on Facebook
4. send people (family, friends, colleagues, ex-classmates) to become fans of Niki Strbian Photography and to vote for their favorite photo (which would be yours, of course)

The winner will be announced on Friday 4th of December based on the total number of votes entered for each image. Votes are counted as individual comments under each photo. Clicking the Like link doesn’t count as a vote. Voting people must be fans of my fan page, votes from people who are not fans won’t be counted.

And inevitably the rules:

1. entries must be submitted latest on Wednesday, the 18th of November
2. one entry per person
3. voting will continue since November 19th till  December the 3rd, the winner will be announced on Friday, the 4th of December
4. one vote per person
5. comments under a photo count as votes, clicking the Like link doesn’t count as a vote
6. you may vote for your own image, but are you really that desperate?
7. submitted images must be of child/ren under 18 years of age
8. photos taken by professional photographers won’t be accepted

Are you ready to play?

• boys 1-5 years old (very very blue eyes, very very blond hair)
• families – children under 5 years and parents with expresive hair styles (rasta, punk, etc.)
• kids 1-5 years old with dark skin
• newborns under 10 days old
• young ladies (14-18 years old) of Middle East origin willing to incorporate their traditional outfit to the shoot
• a group (4 and more) of 2009 high school graduates willing to have fun with their student caps

If interested, please send me an email to niki@nikistrbian.com. I require a signed model release, permission from parents if you are under 18 years old and a sense of humor from everyone over 12 This offer is valid through August and September.