April newsletter 2015

INSPIRED B Y NA P C P

APRIL 2015

Featuring Rya Duncklee of Rya Duncklee Photography

The

LATEST INSIDE

Industry News & Announcements, Workshops, Updates and much more!

A look at our brand new Client Flowchart template now in the NAPCP store N AT I O N A L A S S O C I AT I O N O F P R O F E S S I O N A L C H I L D P H O T O G R A P H E R S

Hello friends!

With events blossoming left and right, we’ve caught the spring fever at

NAPCP! Fun projects and creative juices are flowing, and we hope you find your own inspiration with the turn of warmer weather! Over the past months, our esteemed panel of judges has been hard at work reviewing the January 2015 International Image Competition submissions, and the results are finally in! Congratulations to winners Becca Wohlwinder (siblings), Suzanne Taylor (toddlers), Leigha Graf (seniors/tweens), Jennifer Kapala (family), Jamie Bard-Dube (children), Nicole Klein (maternity), Svetlana Aleynikova (newborn) and Brittany Harvey (babies)! You are all one step closer to the Photographer of the Year announcement, which will happen in May.

An award-winning photographer herself, this month’s featured photog Rya

Duncklee knows a thing or two about creating beautiful portraits! A sun-seeking Floridian favoring the maternity, baby and child realms, Rya believes that photography should be a complete experience. Between her interior design skills and love of DIY projects, she lends a dynamic approach to client sessions and provides an extra dose of creativity when crafting custom artwork for client homes. It’s no surprise that she was a 2014 NAPCP International Image Award Winner, so read on to see why she’s one of Jacksonville’s premiere family photographers!

Other news in the NAPCP world includes fun additions to our online store! Our

original artwork template allows you to get creative by making custom stamps and stickers – perfect for housewarming gifts, snail mail personalization and birthday party favors! You can also put these to good use on our custom wrapping paper, also available online. From photos to personal mantras, what’s wrapped inside doesn’t have to be the only “gift” your loved ones receive.

Speaking of loved ones, Mother’s Day is right around the corner! In honor of

all of the wonderful moms, we’re celebrating them all month long with an Instagram contest (win an Artifact Uprising gift card), blog posts and our free Mother’s Day Gift Kit – let us help you make her day perfect!

There’s more fun news and events inside – happy reading!

Sincerely

The NAPCP Team

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Newsletter April 2015

TAB L E O F CON TE N TS Pg. 3 ..........................NAPCP Store: New Products Pg. 4 .................................News & Announcements

Pg. 5.............Featured Photographer: Rya Duncklee

Pg. 21 .................................Camera Bag Essentials Pg. 25............................................Video Resources Pg. 26................................. Apply For Membership NAPCP

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NEW

in the

store

FI NE A RT P R I N T S N OW AVA I L A BLE

Our brand new series of art prints is the perfect solution to a number of needs. They can be printed and hung in your office, included with client packages as a gift, or perhaps even framed and given to a special someone for Mother's Day? Each print is sized 8x10 and provided in (2) unique colorways. Click here to view the new prints!

C O M I N G S OON Be on the lookout for exciting new downloads including our "Original Artwork" kit and customizable Birthday wrapping paper!

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Newsletter April 2015

N E WS & A N N OU N CE ME N T S Facebook Community We hope that everyone will continue to partake in our NAPCP Facebook Community page! Join now and get involved with the latest discussions, trending topics, news and updates, and much more! Click here to request to join today!

Napcp Store If you are in the market for fresh, new photography templates and creative client gifts, be sure to hop on over to the NAPCP store! We are constantly adding new products to help make the design side of your business a little less stressful! Don't see something you've been hunting for?

Drop us an email with new products you would like to see!

NAPCP

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FEATURED PHOTOGRAPHER R YA D U N C K L E E

Images by R ya Duncklee of R ya Duncklee Photography

NAPCP

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R

ya Duncklee of Rya Duncklee Photography is this month’s

featured photographer! Hailing from Jacksonville, Fla., Rya is an award-winning maternity, baby and child photographer! She uses her love of DIY projects and interior design to make her photography sessions a completely unique experience for her clients. As a two-time NAPCP International Award Winner, her passion for her work combined with her creative nature makes her a premiere photographer both locally and abroad. Continue on to see some of her coveted images!

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AT A GLANCE BEHIND

a

1. Started photographing when? Right before my first trip to the South Pacific. I received my first DSLR on December 25th, 2010.

2. Officially opened business? It took me about a year before I "officially" registered my business.

3. Favorite camera? For personal work, my iPhone6+. For business, my Nikon D4s.

4. Lens of choice? 70-200 2.8, but the 200 2.0 is on the wish list.

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Newsletter April 2015

5. Favorite Film? Fujifilm 400H

ESCENES WITH

a

RYA DUNCKLEE

7. Favorite lab? Musea and Pro DPI for prints. Cypress for higher-end client orders. Artifact Uprising for gifts.

8. Favorite age to photograph? I love that children lack a sense of humility and will allow you to capture pure honesty, so any stage of childhood is wonderful to photograph!

9. Favorite movie? Good Will Hunting 10. Recent favorite read? The Luminous Portrait 12. 3 things you can't live without? My husband, our Golden Retriever Scout, and creating art

F L I P T H E PAG E F O R OU R

Exclusive interview with Rya Duncklee!

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Tell us your story. How you started and how your photography, brand, and business transformed over the last few years?

Believe it or not, I haven't had a camera in my hand my entire life and I did not get into photography to photograph my children. In fact, I don't have children (yet;) and I didn't pick up a DSLR until late 2010 when I received my first camera as a gift. I was traveling to the South Pacific for the first time and it was on that trip that I discovered my love for the craft. Upon my return, I tried to soak up all I could about the industry and the art, and it built from there. I've always had a love for landscape photography and travel and I think that aspect has become more prevalent in my work of late. I also have a degree in advertising and marketing and worked in publishing prior to opening my own business, so I think that has helped me to transform my passion into a business.

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Tell us about your typical work day and work week. From sunrise to sunset.... ? I guess that is the beauty of being self-employed, it varies! Typical days though begin at about 5am (I have recently become part of the "5am club" and am slowly getting use to it!) It's amazing what all you can get done 3 hours before the phone starts ringing. I use this time to sketch, journal, workout, take care of my Golden, slowly sip coffee, whatever little extra goodies I'd like to accomplish. Then by 9am it's off work- answering emails, editing, create marketing materials, updating social media, placing client orders, etc. I typically try to keep shoots to a maximum of 3 per week, although sometimes I'm busier than I want to be. I recently set "work hours" after learning some awesome work/life balance tips at the retreat, including Sundays for family time, and it has helped keep me sane!

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You have an eye for design and we are in love with your office space. How do you put it all together (function, color, organization, and fun)?

I LOVE interior design and it is probably the one other avenue that I would consider venturing into some day, aside from marketing. I think creating a space is a lot like creating a photo. You take one small piece of inspiration and build from that.

It could be a color or even a favorite print. I'll typically sketch out the concept, just like I do with my landscape images, and go from there. For my office space, I made a wish list of things that I wanted the space to have and then worked backwards from that. By breaking the space up into smaller work areas, it created organization and function. For color, a lot like I will do when creating a special photograph, I consider the mood that I want the space to have. There is an entire school of thought based on color and the effect it has on mood. I find all of that so interesting. A transformed space can actually make you feel different.

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Newsletter April 2015

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What is one business lesson you wish you learned a long time ago?

Just say no. This is a lesson I am still learning. I think knowing when to walk away and say no coupled with aligning client expectations have been the hardest business lessons learned so far.

We are so inspired by your Mother's Day event, can you tell us more about that and why you are doing it?

My Celebrate Mom Event came from a desire to elevate my brand in 2015 and make it more about the client experience versus just running another mini session to kick of the season. The goal was to attract someone who values the special service that I provide instead of a price-sensitive buyer. My goal in this event is to have my clients leave with a finished product that they can pass on to

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Newsletter April 2015

their children. It's about the 5 senses as they call it in advertising. We're more than just photographers. We're commissioned artists that offer something unique to our clients and that is what I want this event to convey.

You have attended several learning events (workshops, training, etc). What is your biggest take-away from each one? You know it's funny to read this question because there really is one commonality I've learned from all of them....stay true to yourself. Do what truly makes YOU happy and don't worry about what everybody else is doing. Pull inspiration from everywhere and don't try to conform to another artist. I find that when I'm creating my absolute best work, it comes from inspiration from my own experience or my own vision, not from someone else's. Incidentally, it's also when I'm the happiest:)

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Where do you see your life 5 years from now?

Great question! In the near future I see getting settled into my new city of Jacksonville and creating roots for my business in this new place while evolving my brand. My husband and I have a dream of buying our first home together very soon and a business stretch goal is to build a little studio on the property.

Somewhere I can create and have the occasional session. I love capturing children and families and watching them grow so I expect to continue with that avenue of photography, but I would ultimately like to be in a position with my business where I can contribute a percentage of my profit to charity and travel regularly for charitable work.

To see more of Rya's work, please visit her site here!

Thank you so much Rya!

CAMERA BAG ESSENTIALS W I T H R ya D u n c k l e e

1. Kate Spade bag 2. Kelly Moore Bag Insert 3. Nikon D4 + 35mm f/1.4 lens 4. iPhone 5. I shoot in Florida, where there is rain and sand all the time, so this Rocket Air Blaster and Gear Rain Jacket is a must-have!

6. The ExpoDisc is an easy way to adjust light balance 7. Always carry extra business cards and a pretty journal for inspiration!

BEHIND

We asked Rya to give us a peek into her busy day to day life with a few of her favorite

SCENES

WITH RYA DUNCKLEE

Instagram captures. Enjoy a behind the scenes look at some of her favorite moments!

Celebrates Mother's Day Join us on the blog for several fabulous Mother's Day contests and freebies, including: A R T I FA C T U P R I S I N G I N S T A G R A M C O N T E S T

Post a picture of you and your children (or you and your mother) for a chance to win one of FIVE $100 Gift Certificates to Artifact Uprising.

Use #NAPCPmom to let us know you have entered! Contest starts Tuesday May 5th, and ends Sunday May 10th at 5pm EST. NAPCP MEMBER FEATURE

Members, be sure to submit photos of you with your children to be included in our Mother's Day feature roundup! Details can be found in the member forum here!

D O W N L OA DA B L E M O T H E R ' S DAY K I T

Dad's look no further...we have the perfect Mother's Day Gift Kit for you!

Be sure to checkout the blog later in the week for this FREE download.

W W W. N A P C P. C O M

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NAPCP Issue 31