It's time for your Holiday Portraits!

Oh my, where did this year go? It's already November but it's not too
late to update your family portrait and get your Holiday Cards ordered.
Our 2009 Holiday Special includes our classic portrait session AND a choice
of 24 custom-made folded holiday cards(images are retouched and envelopes
are included of course!) Or, you might want four 5x7 portraits (of the
same pose and fully retouched) for only $189! These are great for gift
last minute gifts - and inexpensive to mail to loved ones far away :- )

Appointments are going fast. Call Diana Miller Photography today!
916-729-5520

Click here to view a larger pic  http://www.dianamiller.com/Promotions/tabid/120/Default.aspx

The Delta King Fall Bridal Open House is today!

I will be at the Delta King Fall Bridal Open House today from 11am to 3pm. Come say hi, do some wine and cake tasting, check out the preferred vendors, and even enter their contest to win an overnight stay on the Delta King!

It's not too late for your Holiday Family Portrait !!

Click here to view a larger pic  http://www.dianamiller.com/Promotions/tabid/120/Default.aspx

Sarah and AJ's Wedding, Part deux!

We certainly didn't forget about our handsome groom, AJ, and here he is being photographed with both dads and groomsmen at The Grange restaurant and bar in the Citizen Hotel. More to come!

Sneak Peek: Gorgeous Sarah on her Wedding Day!

We had SO much fun photographing Sarah at the Citizen Hotel! Stay tuned for more to come!

Shelly and Dion's Engagment Album!

Aren't they just the most adorable couple?!? The day wedding is almost here, November 7th at the spectacular Viaggio Winery in Lodi. Stay posted for the wedding pics!!

Check it out:: The World’s Greatest Wedding Photographer

Don't read this if you easily offended. I came across Derek Pye's website which had me laughing out loud at his crazy articles and outrageous sarcasm. Don't miss the Cathedral dome flash diffuser!

DWF » Blog Archive » The World’s Greatest Wedding Photographer

Do’s and Don’ts of Photoshop Retouching | Webdesigner Depot

A photograph of a stunning model is sitting before you that has serious potential but several flaws.

The shade of the female model’s hair is dull, her eye color just isn’t doing it for you, and she has several pimples across her otherwise flawless face.

What do you do? Touch up the photo using Photoshop, of course!

The number of options available for enhancement are now sky high, but what’s the best way to clean the photo up?

To simplify the retouching process, we have highlighted the best and worst ways to create a clean, professional-looking photo in Photoshop.

To read the whole article, click here

AJ and Sarah

A.J. and Sarah-what a cute couple! I photographed their country-western rehersal dinner party tonite and tomorrow is their wedding day at Wilson's Vineyards!

For all of you Collin Raye Fans!

The big event for last night of the Jack in the Box Conference at Harrah's Lake Tahoe was...(drumroll please!) a PRIVATE Collin Raye CONCERT just for the attendees!  It was my first time seeing Collin Raye and I was very impressed and loved the concert.  How fun it was being able to go where ever we wanted and take as many pics as we wanted! The guests were also able to get up and dance on the dance floor during the concert.  Collin was on the stage of world famous South Shore Room at Harrahs, and after the concert we were taken backstage to the VIP area to get some one on one pics for the VIP's.  Collin was such a gentleman and took a genuine interest in each person he met and was photographed with.  It was a pleasure working with Collin Raye and his band. 

Abe Alizadeh presents Collin with a platter of Jack in the Box burgers, fries, tacos and more!

Ian and Kevin backstage

 

Me, Kevin and Ian doing the fish-lips for the fisheye lens!

Ian and Colllin

 

 Me and Matthew Stevens, Collin's manager
and drummer extraordinaire!!





And look what everyone had waiting in their rooms after the show...how sweet!!
P.S. It's a great CD - buy it!

Jack in the Box Conference at Harrah's Lake Tahoe

I realized I never blogged about the fantastic Jack in the Box conference I photographed this summer...with the help of two great friends and awesome photographers, Kevin Graft and Ian Russell.  Here are some of the highlights of the event:

Day 1 - Golf Tournament

Me, Kev and Ian at Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course

Ryan from Black Tie Video

 

Edgewood Tahoe Golf Club

 Me and Kev

















End of Day 1 - Welcome Reception on the roof of Harvey's Hotel, Lake Tahoe

Happy Jack Peeps

Clear Blue 22: This band ROCKED!!

 

What a bunch of dorks we are (Ok, I am... lol)

 Jack in the Box arrives with the mini cowboys!

The Gala Night at Harrah's Lake Tahoe

Ian and Kev being silly

                                                                               Love the Hat!

 
Abe Alizadeh during the awards

The Mini Buffalo Chicken dance!

DMP photographs Secretary of Education with Mayor Johnson, Gov. Schwarzenegger, Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg and Speaker Karen Bass

Wow...what a day! I photographed the meetings at the Capitol, the Education rally at the Guild Theater and the town hall meeting at the Library Galleria, downtown Sacramento on Sept. 3, 2009. There were only 2 or 3 other photographers besides myself allowed in the capitol offices of Sen. Steinberg and Speaker Bass. and backstage at the theatre.

After the capitol, I drove to the Guild Theatre for the Education Rally with Gov. Schwarzenegger, the Mayor and Secretary. It was great. They also took many questions from the students and spent quite a bit time talking with them.

Lastly I went to the Tskapolous Library Galleria for the Town Hall Meeting with Mayor Johnson and Secretary Arne Duncan. It was fun and interesting and I had a great time playing "press photographer" for the day. I also want to thank my assistant and wonderful photographer, Ian Russell, for joining me at the Town Hall to help out. He got some amazing shots...as usual!!

Oh yes!... it was also my birthday that day so my plans of a day off doing a "spa thingy" went out the window. But how often are you asked to photograph something like this? I figured the massage and pedi could wait.
:- D

Sacramento Press / U.S. Secretary of Education Duncan to Boost School Reform in Sacramento Thursday

Shared via AddThis

The Sterling Hotel Sacramento celebrates it's 1st Anniversary!!

The wonderful staff at the Sterling Hotel Sacramento hosted a rockin' party which was open to the public. There was free food tastings from Chanterelle, free wine tastings, music, dancing, and a Harley motorcycle on hand that folks could have their photo taken on. Check them out here:

To see them all go here: http://www.photodepository.com/view/DMP.html
Enjoy!!

The Photo Divas have arrived!

Due to popular demand, I am reposting this from my blog last year. Here you go ladies - enjoy!

These fun fotos were taken at my place during our monthly "ladies photography group" gathering in June. Everyone shares freely with one another and we always have fun. Thanks to all for the yummy food and to Kristen and Michelle for the tasty lemon drops!

Don't miss our End of the Summer Fine Art Infrared Portrait Special!

Come join us for this quick and fun session and have your portrait created with our digital infrared camera. I have always been a huge fan of infrared photography and went through more than my share of infrared film back in the day. Going over to digital photography was a bit sad for me since I couldn't create the same beautiful images...until now! Thanks to digital camera conversions, I can now again offer beautiful infrared portraits and scenics to my clients. Here are a few examples:

Soon the leaves will be changing and rain will be coming, and Infrared is best during sunny days and with lots of greenery.  The blue skies turn almost black and the foilage turns white.  It's awesome!

The special will run from Monday, August 31 - Saturday, September 20, 2009.  The cost is only $49 for the session and any prints you order will be discounted 30% off of our regular portrait pricing.   We expect this special to sell out quickly, so get 'em while they're hot! Call us at 916-729-5520 or email us at diana@dianamiller.com to schedule your appointment.

Want to learn more about Infrared photography?  Click here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_photography

Photos from the Down Syndrome National Conference

We had a great time on August 1st at the Hyatt Hotel Sacramento photographing people from the conference. Click below to view and order your photographs!

From Seattle Bride Magazine - Why you should hire a Professional Photographer

Issue Date: Fall/Winter 2009

PHOTOGRAPHY
By Cody Ellerd
I consider myself a pretty good amateur photographer. I’ve taken a couple of classes, I have a nice Nikon D60 and, as a professional travel writer, I’ve even had a few of my shots make magazine covers and pages. If you didn’t budget for a professional photographer at your wedding, I’m the friend you might call to take pictures.

So when Seattle Bride sent me to the late-winter wedding of Vicky Wu and Chris Nicoll to shoot alongside Joey Hong of John & Joseph Photography, a local award-winning team of two brothers who have been shooting commercial, fashion and wedding photography for more than eight years, I was curious to see how well I could keep up with a seasoned pro.

From the moment we started shooting in the bride and groom’s hotel room, I was floored. “Vicky, look down at your shoulders…put a gentle smile on your lips. Chris, look straight at my lens—no, smile. Relax your forehead.” Joey’s attention to such minute detail went way beyond “Say cheese” and brought out the couple’s absolute best. He knew how to manipulate the room’s light and reflective surfaces in ways I never would have dreamed of, transforming what I thought was an unremarkable setting into a photo studio with endless possibilities.

Joey commanded family portraits with a gentle control and confidence that only comes from years of experience. He had the right flashes and steadiness of hand for getting great dance photos, while I snapped shot after blurry shot in a mild panic that my precious memory space was quickly dwindling. I was giving it my best, and in a few instances it showed: an inside shot of Vicky simply glowing in the window’s natural light; a close-up kiss in the sunlight where the couple wore the sweetest smiles. But when those spontaneous moments that are here and gone in the blink of an eye happened, Joey caught them with lightning speed, while I lost many of them to improper focus or exposure.

I now disagree more than ever with the digital-age adage that “now everyone is a photographer.” Tens of thousands of dollars in education, equipment and experience separate me from the pros. Professional photographers, like any other artists or business owners, need to spend money to make money. When you hire them, you’re helping them pay for their investments.

“Photography is a very equipment-intensive business, and the equipment is expensive,” says Scott Squire of NonFiction Weddings, a Seattle-based photography team with 10 years of experience. To each wedding, he and his partner bring six or seven top-drawer lenses, a handful of strobes, three camera bodies, one backup and innumerable accessories. (In contrast, if my equipment had failed, my backup would have been my camera phone.)

Staying on top of new technology in the digital age is its own challenge, one that takes a professional commitment and expense. “The rate of change [in digital media] can be stupefying,” laughs longtime Seattle-based wedding photographer Sharlane Chase. She keeps up with the flow of information at annual weeklong workshops and seminars, and it shows in her final product.

On a side note, like all of you reading this magazine, I also happen to be planning my own wedding. My fiancé and I are on a tight budget and had planned to take a gamble and hire an amateur photographer friend. Now? We’re determined to find a way to get a pro.

Vicky and Chris would have been pretty disappointed if I had been their only photographer. If anyone ever does ask me to take pictures at their wedding, I’ll be happy to show up with my Nikon, and I may even take the best disposable-camera shots of the whole night. I just hope someone like Joey is there, too.




“This was such a cute moment, totally unscripted,” Ellerd remembers. “They bumped fists and it was clear it was a little habit of theirs, one that conveyed their friendship. Joey was right there to catch it while I was fumbling with my focus ring.”



“This image is so painfully inferior,” says our rogue photographer Cody Ellerd about her image. “My angle is bland while Joey’s is creative. His is crisp and perfectly exposed, while mine is washed out and grainy. Joey knew exactly how to take advantage of the sense of motion created by this cool backdrop.”



“The couple was getting a little photo fatigued,” Ellerd says, “but Joey turned it into a beautiful and intimate shot. I thought there was enough light, but without using a flash and spoiling the cool light bouncing off the building behind them, I couldn’t get my hand quite steady enough.”



For this “exit shot,” the clarity and color of Joey’s shot versus Ellerd’s is evident. “Notice the white car in front of Chris and Vicky,” Ellerd says. “Joey magically made it disappear—I’m not even gonna try.”

Cool California Nights is coming up!!

http://www.sacramentoadja.com

Click on the banner above to get more info. All proceeds help the kids at Shriner's Hospitals. Hope to see you there!!

Jake's Senior Session!

Also on my trip back to PA, I had the privilege of photographing one of my oldest and dearest friends' son's senior photo session! Cherie and I have been friends since we met in nursing school at CCAC in Pittsburgh, 1980. Her son Jake was a senior this year, so I was the lucky one who got to capture Jake's fun personality!

Joey Manzione's Senior Pics!

I had the honor of photographing my nephew's senior photos while I was back in PA for a family reunion. Joey got permission to do some of the shoot at a very cool high end auto body shop, RPM in Warrendale, PA. Next we went to his high school, Pine-Richland, and did some shots there:

What a sweet session with sweet Sachi!

Color InfraRed with Sachi in her party dress

Sachi and Mom, Maddie. What a great team!


She is a natural beauty

Another fun color infrared. Notice the Carlton shirt from Fresh Prince of Bel Air...lol

Sachi will be starting high school this fall. Another big milestone!

Sneak Peek: Mindy and Chad's Wedding Day!

Having fun with Chad before the ceremony

The Ceremony in InfraRed. I'm always a sucker for Black and White. I sure miss the darkroom sometimes!

Lovely Mindy and Alex

My good friend Peggy making her beautiful music

Mindy is such a sweetie!

Chad's the Man!!
The whole gang

This is what true love looks like :- D

The same photo done with a cool filter:

What a wonderful couple to get to know. Thanks Mindy and Chad and Aloha!

Shelly and Martin's Beautiful Wedding Day!

Shelley and Martin were married at the Faith Episcopal Church in El Dorado Hills, and their reception was held at Marriott. What great time we had working with them!
(P.S. Thanks again to Ricardo and Ian for their fabulous work!)

Here's a sneak peek of their wedding photos...Enjoy :-)

Fashion-Forward Fun Showcased by Diamond Bridal Gallery

Diamond Bridal Gallery impressed bridal crowds once again at the Arden Hills Resort Club and Spa Bridal Open House and Champagne Brunch on Sunday, May 17^th, 2009.

Showcasing their elite bridal gown collection, Diamond Bridal Gallery put on a fantastic runway show for the Arden Hills crowd. Bridal designer dresses that graced the runway included pieces from Romona Keveza, Pronovias, La Sposa and Oksana Couture.

The fashion show also contained a selection of Diamond Bridal Gallery’s exceptional collection of bridesmaid dresses, featuring pieces from the collections of Belsoie, Alvina Valenta and LOVE by Enzoani.

Visual Impact Design, www.visualimpact-design.com, an outstanding florist for all occasions, provided Diamond Bridal Gallery with beautiful arrangements for the runway show. Represented by Cathy Brooks and Erin Rochelle De Young, the floral accompaniments of Visual Impact Design, complimented the classic, yet fashion-forward, bridal designs on display. Hair and make-up for the models bringing the wedding day to life was provided by Image Provocateur, www.ImageProv.com. Images of the fashion show were captured by Diana Miller Photography, www.DianaMiller.com

In addition to the applauded fashion showing, the Bridal Open House and Champagne Brunch also featured a variety of wedding vendors including DJs, event planners, limousine services, catering, wedding cake creators, photographers, videographers and more. Guests also enjoyed delicious food served on behalf of the lovely venue host, Arden Hills Resort Club & Spa.

Celebrated for their attention to detail in quality and customer service, Diamond Bridal Gallery is the proud distributor of an incredible selection of European bridal gowns and evening wear. Exclusive distributor of the Anne Barge Collection, as well as Europe’s rising bridal gown designer, Oksana Mukha, Diamond Bridal Gallery only offers gowns created in the finest fabrics and accented with the finest lace, sewn sequins, Swarovski crystals, beaded pearls and rhinestones stitched by hand.

As a full-service bridal store, Diamond Bridal Gallery has an incredible selection of bridesmaid dresses, flower girl dresses, mother of the bride outfits as well as invitations, recommended vendors and cleaning and preservation services. Additionally, Diamond Bridal Gallery offers a variety of evening wear apparel perfect for formal dances, Prom and black-tie affairs.

Discover the dress of your dreams…book your appointment with Diamond Bridal Gallery by visiting www.DiamondBridalGallery.com or by calling 916.521.9856.

Senior shoot in InfraRed

My daughter was photographing me with my Canon 10D IR camera while I was photographing Katrina Zorich's senior pictures!

My Tweet Grade

dmillerphoto

has earned a Tweet Grade of "B+"
on this 6th day of June in the year of 2009.

TweetGrade - n. a quantitative assessment of your reach and influence in the Twitter community. Based on your interactions with others, the frequency and content of your updates, and your overall contributions to Twitter, we assign a simple letter grade that ranges from an 'F' to an 'A+'.

Not bad for just getting into this social media thingy the past month or so!

Ladies Night Out!

Welcome to our first Ladies Night out... featuring Boudoir Portraits by Diana Miller Photography! Sessions are $125 and run 20-30 minutes, and include a fully retouched 8x10 portrait, your own online gallery to view your images with friends and family, and the opportunity to purchase additional portraits, wall decor or albums from our boudoir price list.

In addition, We will be introducing Therapon Medical Grade Skin Care. Special Guest: Theresa Palella, L.M.A and Account Executive for Therapon. She will give a brief lecture, free skin care analysis and free samples to the first 25 guests. She will also demonstrate a “mini peel” on guests that are interested.

We also will have Silpada Designs - Unique, elegant, hand crafted jewelry which will be on display. There will be a raffle and one FREE necklace and pair of earrings will be given out to the lucky winner. Think purple! Presented by Laura LaRosa, Independent Representative.

Last but not least on hand will be luxurious, plush bathrobes by Telegraph Hill Robes. They will be offered at a 20% discount, also presented by Laura LaRosa, Affiliate Member.

When: Friday, June 19, 2009 from 4pm - 9pm

Where: The home of Laura LaRosa, 50 Los Gatos Circle, Sacramento 95831

Wine and appetizers will be served.

This is first come, first serve. Once we are full, we will have a waiting list available.
Please RSVP ASAP but no later than June 16 to reserve your space at this fun-filled evening.

Boudoir/Dudeoir Sessions at the Sterling Hotel!

Hey boys and girls...it's boudoir/"dudeoir" sessions this Thursday 11-4pm at the Sterling Hotel. Check it out and call or email me!

Purchase $50 vouchers for $25!

Hey...what a deal!!

Stock up on half-price vouchers during the month of April!

Buy vouchers to use for yourself, your family, Mother's Day, Father's Day or for a gift for friends and family to use. These make wonderful Baby and Bridal Shower gifts!
Call us at 916-729-5520 or email at diana@dianamiller.com to place your order.

These can be used for anything your purchase at Diana Miller Photography, and are valid from April through September, 2009.

Danielle and Vlade's Wedding!

Congrats to Danielle and Vlade! What a gorgeous couple and beautiful wedding at Morgan Creek!