Photographers – Linnea Lenkus Fine Art Portrait Studios

I photograph many, many families in all stages of their lives. Today I created family photography for a wonderful family whose children were all grown and moved away, but today was the only day that we could come up with where everyone was in one place.

Quite often, many family members, friends and even co-workers will call before or after a portrait session and request that they be able to cover part of the bill for that person they love. We understand. Many times my clients’ orders are covered as a result of a baby shower gift or a wedding shower gift, or simply a gift of appreciation. Now, to make this process simpler, I have created the “Gift Registry” to help those exact people.

Now, if you would like to be generous to someone who is, or will be, my client, Click on our Gift Registry to give them a great gift of memories. Click on that link to get gift certificates as well.

Happy Mother’s Day to every mother. We earned this day and I am enjoying it the most this year.

This Mother’s Day is such a special one for me. I just returned from a glorious vacation in Italy with my husband and three wonderful children. My husband wanted to celebrate my recent birthday in style by taking me to my favorite places. I was in bliss as we showed our youngsters how wonderful that country is as it is full of history, art and beauty.

My three children were such troopers as we walked for miles, and seeing the world through their eyes was something that I always treasure. Having three towheads in Italy is also a treat as the wonderful citizens of that country took notice of my kids.

I tried to be a photographer less on this trip. Although I did take several hundred images, which is low for me, I tried to force myself to put the camera down so that I could enjoy my family. Sometimes we mothers need to be reminded that life is happening all around us and to breathe it in. I wish that I had a professional photographer to follow me around so that I could not try to grab those moments myself, but BE IN those moments.

To all mothers, have a day to reflect about how lucky you are. Be grateful for these moments with these humans who make us grow ourselves. Today is a day that I feel the luckiest.

On the subject of creativity and how I think about photography, I compiled some of my favorite quotes by famous photographers that express how I also feel.

Please click on Photographers to see some photographers’ quotes.

What is creativity?

I think that this is an important question to ask somebody who calls themself a photographer. I have been a creative photographer for 20 years and I’ve seen many photographers come and go. Photographers email me daily from around the world and usually say that my work is inspiring. I am very flattered and I appreciate those comments. I work hard at trying to interpret the moment and interpret the person standing in front of me. I attempt always to create something new and powerful. I hope you can see that in my work.

What is not creativity? That’s an even more important question. Creativity is NOT copying someone else’s website, or buying “cheat” cards that explain pose 21 or pose 28. It is not copying at all. It is listening and communicating via your medium.

When photographers ask me how to do something, I always suggest that they stop looking around for ideas and come up with those ideas on their own and look at the person, really look at the person in front of them. THAT is creativity.

So, creative photographers, stop looking around and start looking within. You will do yourselves a favor and do your clients a bigger favor.

I created some nude photography with a wonderful couple this month. They were very hip and understood what I am trying to achieve. With an open mind we created some amazing nudes. Many people have some big misconceptions about nude photography and I’d like to set you straight.

We get calls. Many calls and emails about nude photography. If you have trouble saying what you want, that is a fine art nude, then don’t go there. If it’s uncomfortable or you are exploring some perversion, then just don’t call us. But if you want to create something beautiful, something elegant, something that will be put in art galleries and museums, then I’m interested in photographing your nude portraits.

This month and this month only I am extending an invitation to fit couples and shapely or muscular women. I am getting ready for an art show and I want to include those people who have an interest in art. We will have a special, with no sitting fee and reduced rates. Call or email us ASAP.

I am a photographer who proudly photographs nude photography.

Hello out there to all of our great friends and clients!

While I always love seeing you and chatting on the phone, I realize that most of you live very busy lives and I do not always have the opportunity share with you as much as I would like…. so I promise to be more diligent with sharing all of the amazing things happening with the portrait studio via Linnea’s blog! And, for those of you reading this whom I have not met, my name is Megan, and I have the pleasure of being Linnea’s studio manager.

So, one story I would like to share with you is my recent first experience being photographed by Linnea. She created this beautiful family portrait of my son and me.

On a daily basis, I encourage parents and loved ones to slow down and take the time to document these beautiful and fleeting moments in life with portrait photography. Being a proud mother, I see, first hand, how quickly children grow and how easy it is to let the craziness of life distract you from enjoying these times. Working for Linnea and watching how she sees life and love, I have truly come to see why family portraits are such an irreplaceable treasure…yet it took her months of reminding me to actually step in front of her lens myself!

I came up with all the excuses in the book to avoid being photographed, “I need to get my hair done, tone up a bit, etc…” But I realized my son was growing too fast for me to keep making excuses and finally asked her to photograph the two of us together.

I literally see Linnea’s work everyday and I am impressed everyday, yet I was still floored when I saw the results of our session. They weren’t just photographs of us; she really captured our relationship and how we feel about each other. When I look at these wonderful family portraits of my son and I now hanging in my home I don’t see a “photo”, but that sweet moment in time between my son and I that I will always have to cherish….even when he becomes a rebellious teenager! So, I wanted to share one of these moments will all of you out there…it is my favorite portrait of my son, Logan, and myself. It is, in itself, Art!

One of my art pieces was accepted and is currently on display at a juried exhibition of photographers at The 2nd City Council Art Gallery at 435 Alamitos Avenue in Long Beach.

The photography that is on display is a portrait I photographed last year for the Healing project entitled “In Good Hands”. There is a fine art photographers’ reception at the photo gallery this Saturday, February 27th, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and I plan to be there.

Please join us.

“The Video”
Thank you Jaclyn, Nicole, and Erica for mentioning that I was your maternity photographer on “The Doctors” the other day. I was very flattered by what you said.

Here’s a link to “The Doctors” video that featured the maternity photography that I created for them.

Congratulations to the Dahm Triplets and your husbands for your little girls and the new lives you’ll be leading. The only thing that tops being pregnant is holding your little one in your arms.

A couple of months ago, we were contacted by three sisters reqesting that I create maternity photography of a very unique maternity session….identical triplets all pregnant at the same time! When I heard that they contacted us, my creative juices started rolling and felt I just had to do this.

It is very beautiful and rare for sisters to be expecting mothers together and the type of emotional moment that I love capturing. But Erica, Jaclyn, and Nicole are not just sisters; they are identical triplets! Wow! I am the mother of twins, so I have a great understanding of the unique bond that forms between these special siblings and the whirlwind that they create. And a whirlwind they are! So, needless to say, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to photograph such an unusual moment.

In December, I took maternity portraits of the three gorgeous Dahm Triplets together, who were roughly a month apart in getting pregnant, and have since photographed each of them with their husbands in individual maternity sessions at two of my portrait studios. Next, we can’t wait to get all of their beautiful daughters in the studio together for newborn portraits! Nicole delivered her daughter, Charlie, in January. Jaclyn’s little girl, Chanel, arrived last week. And, Erica’s little bundle of joy will be joining the pink party in the next few weeks!

It has been such a pleasure to work with these amazing women and watch their family grow. I am proud to be their personal photographer. Be sure to watch “The Doctors” tomorrow to hear about their experiences and see the maternity photography that I created for them!

“The Doctors”
Tuesday, February 9th
11:00 am
Kcal 9

I am honored to be asked to speak at the Professional Photographers of San Diego County tomorrow, Tuesday at 7pm. If you are a photographer, please feel free to attend. I get an email practically every day from photographers and aspiring photographers from all over the world asking me so many questions about how I do what I do. I’ll be talking about just that!

Public Speaking has been something that has been a nerve-wracking thing for me in the past as my face would turn red, I would shake, and I would stammer and then not get to the point. I say “past” because I have been working hard this last year in my local Toastmasters on my public speaking abilities, and it is improving. I actually was able to speak to over two hundred people with a 1 minute notice at the Healing opening this last fall without making a fool of myself (or so they say).

I am very hard on myself and so my self-perception is altered by my critical nature. I see that in many of my female clients too. We women have a tendency to put our appearances down and not accept our faults, blowing them way out of proportion. I often will remind a woman when she’s pregnant that she’s supposed to be carrying extra weight. The world forgives you, but we don’t forgive ourselves.

I joined Toastmasters to overcome my shyness when the world watches me, but also to stop the self-judging. I also figured that since I have been asked to be on TV several times and to speak to several organizations, I had better get comfortable being in front of an audience. I am getting better. We photographers usually choose this profession because hiding behind a black box is very comfortable for us. When I was a model I made an effort to figure out how to look natural in front of the camera, and so I thought, I could figure out how to speak to an audience without falling apart.

I spoke to an audience in Northern California a couple of years ago, and last year a young man approached me at one of the national conventions I attended. He asked, “Are you Linnea Lenkus?” “Yes,” I replied. “I saw you speak in Oakland,” he said. I wanted to crawl in a hole at that moment. All I could think to say was, “Oh, you poor thing. I know I was horrible.” “No,” he said, “That was the most inspiring speech I’ve ever heard.” “You’re just saying that,” I said. And he went on and on to tell me that I was actually really good. Wow!

I hope to see you in San Diego this Tuesday, February 9th, 2010 at the Holiday Inn at 3805 Murphy Canyon Road. You won’t see me shake so much and I hope to be inspiring, but I can’t guarantee that.