We showed this at the party at the Eltrym Theater tonight!
Keeping it under wraps was a difficult task – excited to get to share it now!

So I kind of stink at blogging lately. And it’s weird, but I’m choosing this absolutely inopportune time to update you on what’s going on at Carly Carlson Photography! Tonight at 6:30 at the Eltrym Theater is the annual Launch Party event. I’ve brought in some amazing live bands, we’ll be showing a behind-the-scenes video of a REAL photoshoot on the big screen in the theater, the new magazine for Class of 2014 seniors will be available to pick up… and it’s all FREE. And it’s not just for high-schoolers, I love to see the community turn out and support this fun event. We have amazing sponsors this year, Crave-A-Bowl Grill (which you all should know how I feel about my thai-aki chicken bowl by now!), Sorbenots, Paizanos and A*Diva plus some other awesome local businesses have pitched in coupons for our swag bags. The swag bags include sweet gifts and freebies, coupons, candy and other fun stuff for all Class of 2014 seniors! It’s my little way of saying “Hey, welcome to senior year!”

I have so many sweet friends that do not live locally and won’t be able to make it to the party tonight, which is why we’ve been using tagboard.com to create an awesome landing page where you can keep up with the events tonight in real-time from posts made by party attendees! The hashtag #PARTYWITHCARLY will be your “beam-me-up-Scotty” to the party – check it out here: http://tagboard.com/partywithcarly

I can’t wait to share this amazing night with this wonderfully supportive community. Come #PARTYWITHCARLY and let’s have a crazy night.

xx-

Carly

I’m kind of obsessed with my kids.

You would be, too, if you had to endure this beauty day in and day out.

Olive, age 2 (and a half), in the kitchen.

Jesse is my last senior for 2013! I can’t wait for 2014. I’m doing some traveling this year so BEND, PORTLAND, SEATTLE… I’m coming to you. Soon. Will be posting more details ASAP – keep your eye on the FACEBOOK PAGE for more info! :)

I don’t even know what to say. I have been sitting here trying to come up with a good post but just have no words tonight. Julia… I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Lace dress (top photos) can be found at MADhabit on Main Street here in Baker City

See Julia’s Summer shoot <<HERE>>

Did you know Carly Carlson Photography shoots all over the region? Not just Baker High but also… La Grande High School, Union High School, Enterprise High School, Joseph High School, Wallowa High School, Powder Valley High and all the high schools in between use Carly Carlson Photography… (I’ve even shot seniors from Pendleton and Boise and SWEDEN… Ya’ll, come get some sweet pics.) So, regional seniors of 2014… it’s important to know that my calendar fills up insanely fast. Spring and Summer fill up fastest because everyone knows these are the best seasons for senior pictures. Many people WANT fall colors but we all know the fall lasts about 15 minutes here, however we can totally count on the Summer months for beautiful lighting and warm weather and that perfect breeze that my seniors have come to love in my pics… (um, hello blowy-hair-goodness). These dates don’t last, they are the best, and I’m opening the calendar now for March-August. Contact me. Like, now. :)

Check out my High School Seniors portfolio <<HERE>>

A recent shot from a personal project I’m working on, all about Baker City – my home. 

Totally unrelated to this post, by the way… 

In the early days of my business I was working every single day of the week, morning noon and night. I quickly learned that in order to be effective and efficient, taking time off was essential, as well as having (flexible) work hours. My weekend is Sunday and Monday, I will occasionally respond to emails or text messages on these days but for the most part I avoid working and try to really set that time aside for family, housework, and personal projects.

Your work hours can be totally non-traditional, it’s YOUR business, do what makes sense to you – without making it impossible for your clients to work with you. For me, I get most of my editing done between the hours of 8pm and 1am – I’m a mom, so when my kids are in bed I can really focus. Beyond that, I know I work best at night! My work hours tend to be Tuesday-Friday, 1-4 and again 8-12 (yes, at night!) and Saturday’s are flexible, if I have a shoot I base my hours around the shoot. If I don’t, I try to get my work done in the early afternoon (1-4). These hours work well for me, afternoon coincides with my oldest being at school and my youngest taking her nap (if I’m lucky, these days!!) and after they are in bed I can pump out a ton of work, guilt free. Leaving Sunday and Monday as days that are totally dedicated to my family has made a huge difference in our home. I think the key is identifying times of the day that naturally work for you to get your work done, and seeing if that’s enough time to realistically get through the to do list. If not, you may have to work day care, a nanny or baby sitting into your business expenses. Or figure out how to live on 2 hours of sleep a night (if you figure that out will you cue me in?!) Keeping these hours flexible is necessary, sometimes the time you set aside to work just doesn’t happen and sometimes an unexpected opportunity to work pops up and you need to take it!

The point is, when you work for yourself you gotta take a weekend off. You gotta set boundaries for your work hours. And you gotta be flexible. Do it. Your business will thank you for it, because when you come back to your work week refreshed and energized for progress you’ll be that much more productive! Comin’ at you live… from my weekend! ;)