Costa Rica Wedding

On November 15th, with my wife Karen, I had the pleasure of attending and photographing the wedding of Christa and Kevin Hanson at sunset on the beach in Tamarindo, Costa Rica.

It was a beautiful afternoon and the ceremony was performed as everyone gathered around the bride and groom as the sun was setting. Wow!

The reception followed in the two side-by-side houses that they had rented for the families just steps from where the ceremony had been held on the beach. A good time was had by all!

Check out a few of the beautiful images here and see more on my website in the destination wedding portfolio.

This is the second time we have been to Costa Rica and I would recommend it as a place to consider for a wedding or as a honeymoon destination.

I have traveled to over 65 countries and 45 states and enjoy traveling with my camera to capture beautiful images anywhere in the world. Let me know if I can be of service to you.

A busy week for DGP!


Lifetime Giving Luncheon and Good Scout Award

On October 22, my wife, Karen, and I attended a luncheon that The Boy Scouts of America, Orange County Council held to honor a good friend of ours, the Honorable Harriett M. Wieder, with the Lifetime Giving and Good Scout Award at the Islands Hotel in Newport Beach.

It was a great event with lots of people there to honor and support Harriett who has worked for many years in Orange County politics and has put together programs that supported organizations like the Boy Scouts.

It was great for me to reconnect with the Boy Scouts because I earned my Eagle Scout award as part of a troop here in Orange County. I hope to continue that involvement in the years to come and can highly recommend to others to consider this worthy organization. www.ocbsa.org

A project that has been in the works, and is now open, is called the Outdoor Education Center which is located in and around Irvine Regional Park.
This facility will be available to everyone to learn and enjoy outdoor activities. For more information please visit: www.outdooreducationcenter.org



The President's Volunteer Service Award

On October 23, I was honored to be the photographer for a ceremony to honor the recipient of The President's Volunteer Service Award in Orange County which was held at the Village of Hope in Tustin.

Rather then try and tell you a lot about the award, simply go to their website at www.presidentialserviceawards.gov.

In another one of those small world moments, as I was walking past some of the recipients before the ceremony, I heard someone shout out my name. It turned out to be Karissa Kiremit who just two nights before had booked me to photograph her wedding that will be held in January 2009. She was there with her mother because her father was one of the recipients that day. It was wonderful to meet Karissa’s parents and then have someone that I knew receive one of these prestigious awards.




Girls Incorporated of Orange County

On October 24, my wife and I attended another event at the Islands Hotel in Newport Beach in support of an organization we have enjoyed supporting for many years, Girls Incorporated. http://www.girlsinc-oc.org

Mission: Inspiring all girls to be strong, smart, and bold.SM
Vision: Empowered girls and an equitable society.

This says it all about the organization who serves about 4,500 young girls from 4 to 18 years of age with many programs around Orange County and the country.

It is such a pleasure to be around the girls that are part of the program. If the mission and vision speaks to your heart, getting involved with the girls and the organization will only make them both come alive. I can wholeheartedly recommend Girls, Inc. as worthy of your time and support.

Friends of Dorothy Halloween Party

October 25, I donated my time and talent to photograph the Haunted Halloween Costume Party for the Friends of Dorothy Guild at the Village Crean in Newport Beach. The event was a smashing success raising $45,635.00 for Aids Services Foundation.

As you can see from the other post in this blog, I have been supporting this organization proudly all year.

I hope to see you at the next event! For information:

www.ocasf.org/dorothy.htm

VW Drag Races at the Irwindale Raceway

Finally, on October 26th, Karen and I went out bright and early in the morning to the Irwindale Raceway to watch my sister, Susy, and her husband, Mike, race their VW’s down the drag strip. It turned out to be an all day family affair, with my sister, Kathy, and her husband, John, my Aunt Judy, my cousin Jack and his wife, Linda, there to support Susy and Mike.

My sister and brother-in-law ended up racing each other in the practice runs – great fun to watch this married couple beat it down the stretch! The race of the day, from my perspective, was “The Powder Puff VW Division” comprised of all seriously competitive women – including my little sister! She placed second while her best friend took the checkered flag. I was the unofficial photographer for that division. The next race is Fontana on May 3rd, 2009. Be there!

“Morning Light” Movie Premiere

After waiting for more than a year for Leslie and Roy E. Disney to complete the editing process on the documentary movie “Morning Light,” my wife, Karen, and I were invited to attend the premiere at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood on Tuesday, October 7. The movie will be in “select” theatres starting October 17th.

For those of you that don’t know, I did still photographs during the filming of the movie. If you go to the “meet the team” tab on the “Morning Light” website and, at the end of the movie, the photographs of the crew are all my images. It was fun to see my name in the credits at the end. To our surprise, Karen and I are in the background as the boat leaves the dock in Long Beach for the start of the race, so we get a little face time in the movie, too!

If you would like to know more about the story, there’s an excerpt below straight from the movie website.
http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/morninglight/

Fifteen young sailors... six months of intense training... one chance at the brass ring. This exciting True-Life documentary tells the inspiring story of a group of intrepid and determined young men and women, on the cusp of adulthood, as they embark on life’s first great adventure. Racing a high-performance 52-foot sloop in the TRANSPAC, the most revered of open-ocean sailing competitions, the crew of "Morning Light" matches wits and skills in a dramatic 2300 mile showdown against top professionals. From their earliest training sessions in Hawaii conducted by world-class teachers through their test of endurance on the high seas, they form an unbreakable bond in the process of becoming a singular team that is greater than the sum of its parts. Edited by one of the key filmmakers responsible for the acclaimed 2004 surfing documentary, "Riding Giants," written and directed by the team of filmmakers behind the recent rock documentary "Amazing Journey: The Story of the Who," and the critically acclaimed "Once in a Lifetime; The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos," "Morning Light" will appeal to the sense of adventure in everyone.

It was great to see and catch up with all the “kids” again and to finely see what they were doing for eleven days at sea. We had only heard a few stories, but because it was all documented, we got to see what they experienced. It is an amazing journey!

I know I am a little biased, and I would recommend seeing the movie. You will not be disappointed. It is a wonderful story, told well! Heck, it’s a Disney movie!

Cheers!

Centennial Heritage Museum

I had the pleasure of donating my photography services to document the 4th annual fundraiser, “Gangster Gala and Flapper Fling,” on September 27, 2008, at the Centennial Heritage Museum in Santa Ana to help raise funds for the education programs at the museum.

For those of you that do not know about this wonderful organization, the Centennial Heritage Museum is an award-winning, non-profit organization dedicated to preserving, promoting and restoring the heritage of Orange County and the surrounding region through quality hands-on educational programs for students and visitors of all ages. The museum receives approximately 20,000 visitors each year primarily from schools, both public and private, and groups affiliated with United Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts of America.

Besides the educational activities that go on throughout the year, the historic Kellogg house and wonderful gardens provide a beautiful background for numerous weddings and corporate events. So, check them out if you have a wedding or other event coming up.

Visit their website at, www.centennialmuseum.org for more information about everything that is going on at this amazing location. They can also be reached by phone at 714.540.0404. They are located at 3101 West Harvard Street, Santa Ana, California 92704.

Orange County Rescue Mission’s Village of Hope

On September 12, 13, 14, I had the privilege of working for Roberta and Howard Ahmanson photographing a series of events for the Orange County Rescue Mission and the opening of the Village of Hope in Tustin.

The Village of Hope is a 200-person residential facility for homeless families located at the former Tustin Marine Corps Air Base. The Ahmanson’s have been long-time supporters of the OC Rescue Mission and were a big part of helping to build the Village of Hope.

Friday night, September 12, the Ahmanson’s hosted a sit down dinner for the residents and staff of the Village of Hope at the facility in Tustin. After dinner, everyone was treated to a concert by The Pacific Symphony and Pacific Chorale that played for the first time a commissioned piece titled “From Greater Light” by composer Alva Henderson.

Saturday night, September 13, a benefit dinner and concert for the Village of Hope was held at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. The dinner for 375 guests was held in the Samueli Theatre. The Pacific Symphony and Pacific Chorale headlined the concert in the Renee and Henry Concert Hall that was dubbed the “Concert for Hope.” After the intermission, it was time for the world premiere of “From Greater Light.” It proved to be a delightful musical event, not just a noble one.

Sunday afternoon, September 14, was the Grand Opening for the Village of Hope in Tustin. The afternoon was full of fun, food, drink, music and tours of the facility for the public. The Ahmanson’s commissioned art pieces by sculptor Albert Paley and artist Peter Brandes which were also dedicated that afternoon. Jim Palmer, the director of the OC Rescue Mission, hopes that these and additional paintings that are on loan from the Irvine Company will, with their beauty, help to inspire the residents.

The weekend was a lot of work and extremely fulfilling. It was great to be a part of all the events over the weekend and to see what was being done by the Ahmanson’s to support the homeless in Orange County.

DON ’T MISS OUR SPECIAL “FAMILY PORTRAIT MONTH ” PROMOTION !

This October Doug Gifford Photography will participate with an elite group of photographers around the country in a very special family portrait promotion. Throughout October we will celebrate “Family Portrait Month,” a wonderful opportunity for you update your family portrait (or portraits of your children), and help to support Operation Smile, which treats children around the world who suffer with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities.

Along with other studio members of Professional Photographers of America (PPA), we have pledged to contribute $25.00 from each session to PPA Charities, which has chosen Operation Smile as its charitable partner.

What’s more, we want you to benefit from this special offer: With your purchase of a single wall portrait, choose one of the following:
• 2 free gift-size portraits
• 24 free custom holiday cards
• 10 percent discount on framing
• $75 gift certificate (for your use or as a special holiday gift)

Recording the faces of children and their families is our greatest pleasure. That’s why we believe so strongly in the work of Operation Smile. Each year this incredible organization of more than 6,000 volunteer doctors, nurses, dentists, and specialized health-care professionals, perform free reconstructive surgeries for children suffering with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities. More than 1000,000 children are born with a facial deformity each year in Operation Smile's 26 countries.

We also believe that Family Portrait Month is a wonderful way to teach children the value of reaching out to others. Even small children can understand the importance of Operation Smile’s work, and they are eager to help these needy children.

We hope you will join with us in helping to make this vital work possible. Don’t forget that the holiday season is right around the corner, so there’s no better time for a family portrait, which is always appreciated as gifts for family and friends and to send along with holiday greeting cards.

Call today to schedule your appointment so that you do not miss out on this wonderful opportunity.

As always...we look forward to creating some truely wonderful portraits of your family.

What I have done during my summer; vacation?

I hope everyone has had a great summer so far. I have been busy!

Here is the latest news!

Cheers!



Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's

In June, I was hired by Charlie Palmer to produce the advertising images for his newest restaurant in Bloomingdale’s South Coast Plaza. The restaurant and its affiliated Next Vintage Wine Shop are located on the ground floor of Bloomingdale’s. I certainly recommend that you stop by if you are in the South Coast Plaza area for a drink in the beautiful bar, for a great meal at lunch or dinner, or to pick-up a bottle of wine from the Next Vintage Wine Shop.

Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's
South Coast Plaza
3333 South Bristol Street
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
ph: 714.352.2525
www.charliepalmer.com

Charlie was at the restaurant as I was photographing it. He’s a really personable guy with great vision and I really enjoyed meeting him. To get a taste for the personality of Charlie and one of his dishes, check out this clip from a cooking segment that he did July 30th, 2008 on the Today Show.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/25916605/


The 4th of July on Bainbridge Island, WA

My wife, Karen, and I were invited to spend the 4th of July on Bainbridge Island, a short ferry ride from downtown Seattle, at the home of our dear friends who live on the water’s edge. The “boys” did their work early in the holiday by assembling a couple of new deck chairs and putting up a new flagpole. After that, it was time to relax and enjoy the fantastic weather. The tall-masted ships sailed by through the morning fog and then it was off to the street fair. On the morning of the 4th, it was back to Main Street for the “big” parade. That’s Americana! Back at the house for the fireworks, the grandkids found it hard to wait for the sun to go down at 9:30pm to enjoy the show – a spectacular and endless display throughout the bay and Puget Sound!



















PPA International Print Competition

July 20-24 found me heading to Daytona Beach, Florida, to judge the International Print Competition for the Professional Photographers of America (PPA). I was one of 40 judges selected from a total list of only 125 qualified jurors who, over a three-day period, judged over 5,000 entries from PPA’s 15,000 plus members. To become part of this esteemed group of jurors, I first had to become a Master Craftsmen Photographer with PPA, then judge for many years at the local, state, and regional competitions, followed by completing a series of judging classes, and finally a review of my background and submissions of my work for review by other judges. Over the years, I have also had many opportunities to judge the international print competition for the Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (WPPI). By judging these international print competitions, I get to see thousands of prints from photographers around the world. This allows me to stay in touch with the latest trends and styles in photography and, most of all, to always provide fresh perspectives and ideas for my clients.

Another part of being in Daytona Beach was it gave me a chance to get to see the Raceway. Wow, is it big! The track is 2.5 miles in length, with 30 degree banked turns. They have a great IMAX show that tells the story of the track and of NASCAR. There is a terrific museum about racing as well as you get to ride a tram around the track. I can’t wait to go back for a race!


I am proud to say that two of the four images that I put into competition where accepted into the load collection. They are part of the top 5% of the images accepted into the exhibit.
























Newport Beach Breakers, World Team Tennis / Hoag Hospital

This July, Hoag Hospital hired me to cover the seven home matches of their World Team Tennis (WTT) team, the Newport Beach Breakers, which features marquee stars such as Lindsay Davenport, Serena Williams, Anna Kournikova, Martina Navratilova, and John McEnroe. The team played their matches at Breakers Stadium at Newport Beach Country Club. If you have never seen WTT matches, they are lot of fun. In between points, there is rock music and they use graphic replays to check if a ball is in or out. They use the stars in both single and double matches, and then have an autograph session for the kids at the end of the night. At the end of the season, I photographed a favorite of mine, legendary comedian Dana Carvey, as he performed at a Benefit Comedy Night for Hoag Hospital at Breakers Stadium. What a great night! I am looking forward to photographing more events with Hoag Hospital in the future.

NAWBO – Orange County
I have become one of the few male members of the National Association of Women Business Owners' Orange County (NAWBO- OC) which happens to be one of the largest NAWBO chapters in the country, with 400+ active members. NAWBO-OC is committed to enhancing the overall success of women business owners by providing its members encouragement and support, networking opportunities, educational programs, and professional development. Earlier this year good friend and then President of NAWBO, Barri Carian, asked me to photograph a special speaker that the group had at that month’s meeting. As long as I was there they asked me to do some other photographs. Then I was asked if I could do photography again for the next month, and the month after that. At the last of those meetings Barri suggest that I become a member, and so I did. Besides providing my photographic service to the group at the meetings each month, I have also become the photographer of choice if a member needs to update their business portrait. With my wife, Karen, as President-elect, it looks like I with be hanging out with the women of NAWBO awhile longer.

Brooks Institute of Photography students visit with Doug

A group of 16 graduating students, all women, from the world renowned Brooks Institute of Photography, stopped by to talk to me this August about how I have been able to be successful as a photographer over all this years. Brooks Institute is celebrating more than 60 years of educating students in the visual and media arts. With campuses in Santa Barbara and Ventura, California, the school offers Bachelor of Arts degrees in fields including Professional Photography, Visual Journalism, Film and Video Production, and Graphic Design, and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Photography. I was honored to have an opportunity to tell my story and answer questions from this wonderful group of young women as they make plans to start on a career of their own in this profession that I have loved for so long. I talked to them about how they now have great photographic skills to compete with, but they must also be as good as any one in the way they do business. I also reminded them that it is tough to rebuild their reputation with their peers and clients if they don’t go through their careers with integrity. I wish them much success!

“Morning Light” - a documentary sailing movie by Roy E. Disney

Last year, you might remember that I had a chance to work with my friend and long-time yacht photographer, Sharon Green (www.ultimatesailing.com), shooting stills for a documentary movie being made by Roy E. Disney. The movie is about a young crew of sailors that are on the yacht Morning Light in the Trans Pac Yacht Race that sails from Los Angeles, California to Honolulu, Hawaii every other year. The movie follows 15 young sailors through the selection process in August 2005, their training in Hawaii and Long Beach, and sailing the race in July 2006.

The movies trailer is now available and the release date has been set for October 15th, 2008. http://www.apple.com/trailers/disney/morninglight/large.html
They have made this into a compelling story that will be great to see up on the big screen in October.


First Basic Photography Class held at DGP studio is a success!

After years of teaching a basic photography class with the University of California, Irvine (UCI) Extension program, I taught my first basic photography class here at the studio. It was a great success! The students loved the individual attention I was able to give them and I loved being able work with each student until the concepts were clearly understood by each of them.

The response from the class has inspired me to soon offer basic, intermediate, and advanced classes, along with field trips, for small groups of photographers – from the enthusiast to the professional. And for those who prefer personalized instruction, I will continue to provide individual coaching as before.

For dates and times of the classes, please check the DGP blog for announcements. For private coaching, please call me at 949-362-3661 or send me an email at doug@douggiffordphoto.com.

Hello everyone!

Hope your year is going well!

I’ve been as busy as ever, so let’s get caught up.


Weddings – they missed me!

As we have reconnected with the wedding coordinators, we are finding that they missed me. Why? Because so many of the new photographers they have been working with just don’t have the same professionalism. For example, they don’t want to play by the rules, or work with the other vendors, and they are not prepared to work through problems that happen at almost every wedding. That’s sad to hear, but it is mostly because a lot of the photographers have never worked with another experienced photographer for any length of time before they started covering events themselves and so have no training on how to be a prepared good professional.

I have always taken the job of documenting this once-in-a-lifetime event very seriously. So, before I set out on my own, I worked for a year (apprenticed) with another photographer. The first thing I learned is that I had the perfect patient personality to work in this type of photography. I then learned how to be the good professional, play by the rules, and how to be prepared. I had a good foundation of basic photographic skills, but I found out where and who to go to be the best I could be. Today, I am still learning new tricks, and shooting in a new style, but that professionalism that I learned early on is still a part of what I have given to my clients from the beginning.


Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (WPPI)I had a great time speaking at this year’s WPPI convention in Las Vegas March 16 – 19th. This year, I talked about the secrets of getting great results in taking low light photographs for editorial, wedding and portrait photography.
Fuji Film has gone through a lot of changes over the last couple of years and you could see that with the new printers, software and book binding products and services they where offering in the booth this year.

As usual, I connected with allot of photographers I only see once a year at this event. We talked about what changes they had made to their business over the last year. It was also good to see the new products and services being offered in the trade show, and to talk to my service providers.

Phantom of the Opera

As most of you know, I have been working with the Orange County Performing Arts Center (OCPAC) for the last seven years, and I get to do a lot of amazing things because of that relationship. While the Phantom of the Opera was in town last month, the company changed out one of the principal actors who played Meg and hired me to do the new public relations stills.

We did the photographs on the stage with the new actor, Jessi Ehrlich, in full costume as Meg. She had three people looking after her: make-up, hair and a dresser. I had five people looking after me, helping me with the lighting and background, as well as the stage manager and a company representative helping me direct the shot. After meeting Jessi on stage, I got the light level and temperature to set my camera, and then ran down into the seating area to take the picture. We worked for about 20 minutes until we had what we wanted. I said “that’s a wrap” and everyone disappeared and that was it. What fun!

The final image turned out to be the third one we did. They loved working with me and the final image so I hope to have another opportunity to do something like this again down the line.



UCI Extension Class – “Keeping it Simple: Photographing People

For the 7th year, I taught my basic portrait photography class for the UCI Extension program in this spring quarter, April1st to May 6th. The classes where held from 7pm to 9:30pm on the UCI campus in Irvine.

We had a wonderful group of students this year and we look forward to teaching the class again next year.



Classes Workshops Personal Instruction Coaching

Classes:
For the very first time, I am offering the same class I have been teaching at UCI extension at my studio in Laguna Niguel. This location allows us to have more time demonstrating work outside using natural sunlight.

· “Keeping it Simple: Photographing People”

Course Description:
Students will learn how to use their own cameras to take great portraits. Doug will share simple techniques and “tricks of the trade” in photographing people using available light and other lighting sources. Class assignments will be done using the cameras already owned by the students. Work inside and outside the classroom will be done to demonstrate techniques.

When: Tuesdays, July 8th, 15th, 29th and August 5th
Time: 7-10pm: 4 meetings
Where: Doug Gifford Photography
28142 Casitas Court, Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
Fee: $300 (limited to 10 people)

· “Keeping it Simple: Photographing People” Field Trip

When: Sunday, August 10th, 6 – 8pm
Where: Divers Cove, Laguna Beach (Myrtle and Cliff Drive)
Fee: $45 (Limited to 10 people)

· Create Your Own Class

Put together a group of, at least, 6 friends and create your own class.
Topics that could be covered: Portraiture - location, in the studio; Wedding Boot Camp; Fine art; Travel; Scenic; Editorial – entertainment, sports (auto and yacht racing); Commercial – executive portraiture, product, architecture.

When: TBA
Where: TBA
Fee: TBA

Remember that we are also available for private lessons and coaching.
o $150 / hour

Go to DGP Blog for future announcements about other classes and workshops.


Heart of America – Regional Print Competition

Two years ago, I was asked to speak and judge at the Heart of America Conference in Omaha, Nebraska and I found out how great the steaks are in that part of the country. So when they asked me back this year to judge the Regional print competition, with the conference being held across the river in Council Bluffs, Iowa on April 11 – 13th, I couldn’t wait to get back there to have another great steak.

On my way there, I got to spend “just” a couple of more hours then I wanted to in the Dallas airport because I was caught up in the American Airlines DC grounding. Once I got to Omaha, I was met with of all things - snow. For me, this was fun to see and go out and play in, but for my Midwest friends, they were frustrated with it. Fortunately, it stopped snowing before I had to head home.

As I have talked about before, what is so great about judging these regional print competitions is that I get to see, and be inspired, by hundreds of images from a different part of the country from where I live. And, I also get to talk and meet a lot of great photographers from that part of the country and see what ideas they may have that are different from my area.


Grand Prix of Long Beach

Since 1983, I have been apart of the staff at the Grand Prix of Long Beach (GPLB). This year’s GPLB was very historic because it was the last year that the Champ Car series would ever race anywhere. It was a chance to look back at the 25 years of history with CART or what then became the Champ Car series on the streets of Long Beach. Several of the old drivers came back, as did several of the old cars. As usual, it was a fun weekend and all the races turned out to be good ones.

Several weeks before the race, I talked to the GPLB PR director about an idea I had to photograph all the drivers together that would be a part of that last race. After coordinating it with the Champ Car PR director, we were able to get all the drivers together just before the Saturday morning warm-up session in the winner’s circle. I think the drivers really enjoyed getting together and the photograph turned out great. The next day, after my friend and fellow photographer, Tim Mathiesen, had made a print of the image, we were able to get most all of the drivers to sign it. We have since scanned the print and have made up a limited edition poster of that image with the signatures. If any one would like a copy of that poster, please let me know.

AMA Superbike Challenge at the Auto Club Speedway, Fontana

For 28 years, I have photographed every type of motor sports vehicle, except the big road course motorcycles, known as the Superbikes. I finally got my chance to do that the third weekend of April this year as the guest of one of the Supersport division teams, Safety First Racing. It was great to have friends on the inside that I could talk to about all the details of this type of racing. By the end of the weekend, I felt very knowledgeable about the bikes and I was finally able to refer to the person on the bike as “rider,” rather then “driver” - a little thing that is a big thing, in this type of motor sports.

Even after watching them for several years on TV, in person, I couldn’t believe how far they tipped over the bikes as they went through the corners dragging their knee, and sometimes elbows, on the ground to help them keep the bikes under control. It was amazing! The still image, as it does most of the time, really allows you to see and appreciate this technique even better then you can on TV.

When I am photographing race cars we are tipping the camera to one side or the other to create movement. With the bikes, there is no need to do that because of their tipping over in the corners. But, you have to remember to bring a longer lens to fill the frame with the bike because they have such a large runoff area and they are much smaller than a car of any type.


The Friends of Dorothy

As a part of my ongoing desire to give back to my community I volunteered my services to photograph the “Haute for Spring” event at Bloomingdales, South Coast Plaza, May 7th, for “The Friends of Dorothy” support guild of Aids Services Foundation which raises funds for the ASF of Orange County. In its first year, the guild reached its goal to raise over a $100,000.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

It is almost Valentine’s Day and I am just now updating the blog. Fortunately, I have been busy to start the year.

Let’s get caught up!






Kona, Hawaii
For the last three years, my wife, Karen, and I have been asked to join our friends in their condo on the beach in Kona, Hawaii to start the year. Watching the turtles surf in the waves and the whales cruise by with their babies is inspiring. Okay, it’s tough, but someone has to!

This year, it was Kenny’s 70th birthday. We celebrated it by taking a tour that went to the snowy top of Mauna Kea at 13,796 feet above sea level. This is where the world’s largest telescopes are located and it feels like you can see every star without them. It is simply amazing to go from the beach to a snow- covered mountain in “Hawaii.” Fortunately, you don’t have to remember to bring warm clothes with you from the mainland so you don’t freeze to death on top of the mountain. The tour operator we selected was Mauna Kea Summit Tours (www.maunakea.com). They supply you with a parka and gloves plus a great box dinner provided by one of our favorite restaurants, Jackie Ray’s. The other odd thing is that it is hard to walk around in the thin air at almost 14,000 ft, so you have to stop at the visitor center at 9,500 ft for an hour just to get your body ready to go higher. I highly recommend your taking this tour the next time you are on the Big Island.



Also, if you need a place to stay the next time you go to the Big Island, let me know. I would be delighted to introduce you to our friends that own the condo. It is a beautiful place to stay, right on the beach, just 2 miles south of downtown Kailua-Kona. If the melody of crashing waves is not up your alley, then save yourself a call!






Weddings and Our New Team Member

After spending a lot of time last year focused on editorial work (and by popular request), I am returning to photographing more weddings this year. I missed all my brides and grooms and am happy to be doing this work in a bigger way again! So, we are reconnecting with all of the professional service providers in the wedding business with whom we previously worked as well as connecting with new ones so they know about our services.

To help me with this task and others, I am really delighted to let you know about a new addition to the team. Her name is Marie Nelson. She lives across the street. When we moved to our new location a couple of years ago, she heard that I was a photographer and asked if I might help judge the art competition for the Marian Bergeson Elementary School. This year was my third year and these young artists constantly amaze me with their talent. I really enjoy giving back to my community this way and appreciate Marie for asking me to lend a hand – especially with all the changes in education these days!

A bit about Marie…After years in corporate America, Marie became a stay-at- home mom. This year, she wanted to find some part-time work. Our experience working together on the art competition made it easy for me to ask if she might want to become part of my team. She can walk to work and I have a great person who cares about preserving family histories and important events as much as I do. So, the next time Marie calls, please extend her a warm welcome. She is looking forward to meeting you all!


Negatives for Sale!

One of the first projects Marie is working on is to contact all of our past clients and offer the negatives for sale that we have been storing since we opened our doors 27 years ago. While we have some contact information, many of our more than 1250 wedding couples and over 2000 portrait clients have moved. So, if you are a client or were part of a wedding or event, please be sure and keep us up to date on your whereabouts. The prices for the negatives vary based on several factors. We will make a concerted effort to find clients over the next several months or so. After that time, we will decide if we want to offer to continue to store them for a fee or recycle them. By the way, if you have negatives or images of your family histories or events on CD that you want to store, please let us know as we are evaluating technology to offer that as part of our new suite of services.

Something to know about storage technology: Unlike DVDs, CDs, and hard drives that are only made to store digital information for a short time, we know from a 100 years of film history that negatives are made to last for many decades – depending, of course, on how you store them. This makes the negative files I have even more valuable. Who is the keeper of your family history?

Another tip: The best way to keep your favorite images is really to make prints on good quality photographic paper. And, remember, ink jet printing for archival purposes is not as stable as other types of paper and inks, or dyes. If you decide keeping them on media, like DVDs, CDs, flash drives, etc is really for you, you must keep updating to the new media and hardware to read it or you will lose it.

Judging - Western States Print Competition

Wow!
I was so proud to represent California and the Western Region as a judge last week for the Western Region Print Competition held in San Diego, California. We had two (2) prints that score a perfect 100 and many albums that scored 85 and higher. The very first set of images to be judged was albums. And, the first album scored a 93! What a start, and it just keep going over the next two days.
See for yourself on the PPC website:
www.prophotoca.com

For those of you that don't know, I have had the honor of being an affiliate juror for the Professional Photographers of America (PPA) the last 8 years. It is a long hard road to become a juror for PPA, and there are only a 100 jurors on the "list" at a time. Moreover, not every one that wants to be there will make it. You start out working in the minor leagues, judging as many of the local and state competitions as you can, trying to learn from, and catch the eye of affiliate jurors that are judging beside you. About this time in the process, you have to take a week long course on how to be a PPA judge. Once you have your Master of Photography degree from PPA, you have passed the course, and you have great reviews from the other judges, you can then be invited to become an affiliate juror by the head of the Print Competition Committee (PPC) for the PPA. Once you are an affiliate juror, every time you judge you are reviewed by your jury chairman and the other judges. If you don't do a good job, you’re out! You must also continue to submit images for print competition and they must score well or you can be taken of the list. Every year, the judges meet and are trained on the latest techniques so they can spot good and bad use of that technique in the competitions. Each competition is run the same way, with a well-trained chairman and jurors so that there is a great deal of integrity and consistency in every competition. If your image is judged by a PPA panel of judges to be an excellent print, you know it is! www.ppa.com

Having the honor to be able to judge the International, regional, and state competitions for my professional colleagues gives me a front row seat to see the newest ideas from photographers from around the world each year. I have been able to stay in tune with what the latest trends and techniques are by sitting in judgment of these images under the lights of competition. I see what works and what doesn’t, and I am inspired to go out and keep my own work fresh and up to date.

My next judging assignments are for the Orange County (PPOC) and San Diego (PPSD) local photography groups and then the Heart of America regional competition in Omaha, Nebraska in March, and PPA Nationals in July.


Professional Photographers of Orange County (PPOC)

Speaking of PPOC! A group of past presidents, of which I am one, joined together with the current board of directors to help to make the group stronger. New mentoring and other programs are being put into place to give the members more value in their membership, and to give the long time members a chance to help the “new” colleague be the-best-they-can-be.

If you are photographer in Orange County, please consider PPOC and attending our meetings to see what is new. Please go to the website for more information. www.ppoc.org


Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (WPPI)

I will again be speaking at this year WPPI convention in Las Vegas, NV March 16 – 19th. This year I will be talking about the secrets of getting great results in taking low light photographs for editorial, wedding and portrait photography.
The talk will take place at the Fuji Film trade show booth on Tuesday and Wednesday. Stop by the Fuji booth to get the schedule and to check out how they can help you with your photographic capture and printing needs.
www.wppionline.com



UCI Extension Class – “Keeping it Simple: Photographing People

For the 7th year, I will be teaching my basic portrait photography class for the UCI Extension program in the spring quarter, April1st to May 5th. The classes are held from 7pm to 9:30pm on the UCI campus in Irvine.

If you would like to sign up or need more information please call 949.824.5414 or go online at www.extension.uci.edu.

That’s all for now!

Cheers!

Review of DGP News from 2007

2007 for Doug Gifford Photography was filled with lots of new projects, challenges, assignments, travels, event, and loses.

The year started with the loss of one of my dearest friends, mentor, teachers and colleagues and ended with the loss of another one.
Most of the world knew Monte Zucker as a great teacher of photography technique, as did I, but he also became a great friend over the past 25 years. I miss him dearly!
Most of the photographic community would not know my other great friend that we lost just recently unless you where involved with PPA photographic print competition as I have been for many years. Buddy Stewart was a true southern gentlemen, funny, smart, and a great photographic artist that all us that knew him will miss.

Here is a review of the DGP News of 2007.

Doug attends PPA Convention in San Antonio
San Antonio, TX.- Doug attended the Professional Photographers of America (PPA) convention in January to stay on top of the changes in the photographic industry. Besides learning a lot and catching up with old friends, Doug also got to spend two extra days there because an ice storm closed down the city of San Antonio. But, he did walk away with a very unusual photograph of ice hanging off a cactus in front of the Alamo.

Dates announced for a Photographic Tour of China
Beijing, China - The Itinerary have been set for the Photographic Tour of China with Imperial Tours that Doug will be the photographic expert. Imperial Tours was founded by Westerners who've lived in China for many years. It combines local knowledge and know-how with a top-quality, professional service; we bridge the gap between your preference for high quality service and its provision in China. Both parties are excited to be working together on this Luxury Photographic Tour of China. For more information go to: www.imperialtours.net

A new limited edition book is now available of Doug’s images of people and places in China.

New book about California
Laguna Niguel CA. - Doug is proud to have 10 images in a new book called, California…A great place to live, by Rhino Media Works. www.rhinobooks.net All of Doug’s images in the book are from Catalina Island, an island off the coast of Southern California which he has worked and played on his whole life.

UCI Irvine Extension – DG Shares Photo Wisdom
Irvine, CA – Doug will return for his sixth year in the Spring 2007 to teach photography fundamentals through the extension program at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). After years of teaching only his peers, this course was open to all who wanted to know more about how to take better people pictures using their own cameras. Titled, “Keeping it Simple, Photographing People”, Doug shared some of his photography wisdom and a few “tricks of the trade” for the amateur and aspiring photographer. For info, contact UCI at www.extension.uci.edu, or call (949) 824-5414.

Getty Images
Los Angeles, CA. - Doug has just signed with the leading supplier of photographic images to the worlds media Getty Images to cover events for them in the Orange County, CA. For more information about Getty Images and to see Doug’s images from the latest event he has covered, please go to their website, www.gettyimages.com.

The Morning Light Project
Long Beach, CA. – Since August of last year, Doug has been working with his long-time yacht photographer friend Sharon Green (www.ultimatesailing.com) on shooting stills for a documentary movie being made by Roy E. Disney. The movie is about a young crew of sailors that are on the yacht Morning Light in the Trans Pac Yacht Race that sails from Los Angeles, CA. to Honolulu, HI. every other year. The movie follows these 15 young sailors through the selection process in August 2005, their training in Hawaii and Long Beach, and sailing the race in 2006. Look for it to be out in a theater near you in the Fall of 2008. One of the highlights on this project for Doug was when Roy took the team to Disneyland. Having worked there, and grown up there himself, Doug enjoyed photographing the team as they had a chance to visit the park with Walt’s nephew. Funny, they didn’t have to wait in any lines!

New photographic book – Building of the new Concert Hall at OCPAC
Costa Mesa, CA. – Doug published a new photographic book of the building of the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall at the Orange County Performing Artscenter (OCPAC). Doug than sold the book to the OCPAC who than give it to their top donors. Doug has worked for the OCPAC for seven years as a staff photographer and was there for the building of the new concert hall from the ground breaking to opening night. Doug covers about 40 performances, parties and events a year for OCPAC. www.ocpac.org

Catalina Art Festival – Doug to Exhibit Fine Art Photography
Avalon, Catalina, CA – From 2001 to 2004, Doug was involved with the Catalina Art Festival as a judge. Since than, Doug has been a exhibitor at this annual event that is held each September in Avalon. He has won 2nd place in the photography division the last two years. From those entries, for the second year, he will produce the official poster for the event. Beside those posters, he will also have two new photographic books, Avalon, and The Inn on Mt. Ada, as well as prints, note cards and post cards of images from Catalina and the around the world. If you want to have a great day and see some amazing art, join Doug and over 100 other exhibiting artists in Avalon on September 16-18. www.visitcatalina.org

Doug Gives Back
Laguna Niguel, CA – For the last 27 years, Doug has enjoyed being able to give back to the not-for-profit community. This past year, he donated items for silent auction fund raisers held by organizations such as: Healing Odyssey, 2nd Harvest Food Bank of Orange County, Girl’s Incorporated, Orange County Noblettes, Sierra Catholic School, and the Orange County Performing Arts Center Guilds. Each year Doug makes it a point to help several great causes. Call him to see if he can help you.